PMS, and the origins thereof

[ninevirtues]

This is an obituary of Katherina Dalton, who discovered that women's hormonal cycles vary throughout the month. In process, she coined the term "PMS" and showed us that women's mood changes and physical changes before menstruation had a scientific, observable, and trackable origin. By doing so, she inadvertently helped to discredit Sigmund Freud and his theories of id, ego, and vapors.

Worth reading, even if you do have to register for it:

http://www.nytimes.com/2004/12/26/magazine/26DALTON.html

Here's one of her books-- this one is out of print, but you get the idea:

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/089370525X/qid=1104074683/sr=1-1/ref=sr_1_1/102-5542001-6595319?v=glance&s=books