The Bion Experiments
Description
The Bion Experiments on the Origin of Life-first published as Die Bione in 1938 in a limited German edition-represents a cornerstone in Reich's scientific development. This work documents a series of experiments conducted in Oslo in 1936-37 in which Reich applied the formula of tension¿charge¿ discharge¿relaxation, derived from his research on the function of the orgasm, to the microscopic biological world, thereby opening a route to the understanding of the origin of life. This work is divided into two parts: the first, a detailed report on the experiments; the second, Reich's conclusions and an exposition of his research method.The Bion Experiments provides a unique insight into Reich's scientific method, and makes available the experimental material essential to understanding his later work with cancer and orgone biophysics.
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Content
- Intro
- Title Page
- Epigraph
- Editors' Note
- Preface
- Part One: The Experiment
- 1. The Tension-Charge Formula
- 2. Bions as the Preliminary Stages of Life
- Vesicle Formation in Swelling Blades of Grass
- The Transformation of Grass and Moss Tissue into Forms of Animal Life
- Confirmation of the Vesicular Character of the Flowing Amoebae
- Motile Vesicular Earth Crystals and Earth Bions
- Egg-White Preparations (Preparation 6)
- 3. The Culturability of the Bions (Preparation 6)
- Electrical Experiments
- 4. The Beginning of Control Experiments by Professor Roger du Teil at Centre Universitaire Méditérranéen de Nice
- 5. Culturability Experiments Using Earth, Coal, and Soot
- Elimination of the Objection that Preexistent Spores are Present
- The Incandescent Coal Experiment
- Cultures of Soot Heated to Incandescence. The Biological Interpretation of Brownian Movement
- 6. Control Tests and Instructions for Verifying the Bion Experiments (Summary)
- Possible Future Studies
- Part Two: The Dialectical-Materialistic Interpretation
- 7. The Problem of the Mechano-electrical Leap
- Chemical Preconditions of the Tension-Charge Process
- Electrical Charge as a Characteristic of Colloids
- Electrical Charge as a Prerequisite for Vesicular Movement
- Individual Functions and Integral Function
- 8. An Error in the Discussion of "Spontaneous Generation"
- Summary
- 9. The Dialectical-Materialistic Method of Thinking and Investigation
- The Basic Methodological Approach to Our Experimental Work
- The Dialectical-Materialistic Law of Development
- Some Remarks on Biogenesis
- Notes
- Notes 1
- Notes 2
- Notes 3
- Notes 4
- Notes 6
- Notes: Appendix
- Appendix
- Production of Bions from Sterilized Blood Charcoal
- Three Series of Experiments Based on the Tension-Charge Principle, by Roger du Teil
- Bibliography
- Also by Wilhelm Reich
- About the Author
- Contents
- Copyright
