Nicole Salomone

1. First off, tell us more about yourself and what you do!

My name is Nicole Salomone I am an independent scholar, focusing on eig

hteenth-century scholarly medicine – especially having to do with premature burial.

In 2011, I published my book, forgotten, which focuses on the medicine and interpersonal relationships during the American Revolution. It is historical fiction. However, it bases out of historical fact, complete with bibliography.

I love coming up with fun and interesting ways to present history to a modern audience. And I am currently working my way through school in order to become a history professor.

2. Do you have a favorite anime?

I grew up on the anime of the 80 ‘ s, so I have a soft spot for it… especially The Littl’ Bits, the Noozles, Voltron, and Grimms Fairy Tale Classics.

3. Since Halloween is incoming at Anime USA, what’s the scariest 18th century medical fact you can name?

Your question actually stunned me. I don’t usually have to pick just one. But I suppose, the one that I go to most often, has to do with the cauterization of wounds. Cauterization was imperative to stop puncture wound bleeding. One of the most common ways of doing this was to cauterize it with a hot poker. That is they would stick the end of the poker, which is something like a fireplace poker into the fire until it turned red, and then they would put the end of the poker into the wound in order to burn the edges. Of course this was very painful, as we are talking about a time before anesthesia. Often fevers and infections would follow. Another way that they cauterized wounds, which was less invasive, was the application of turpentine. This is not the day glow green stuff that we find in the hardware store today, but rather the resin of pine trees. This was found to have protective and disinfecting properties nearly 200 years before

4. Can you tell us more about one of your panels?

The history of medicine is all around us, if only you know where to look. Harry Potter stories emphasize this in ways that people don’t even realize. Charms, divination, and even the fantastical creatures that Rowling included in the books all come into play through the perspective of medical history. I hope that my audience members walk away with a better understanding of the great strides that medicine has taken in the past few hundred years, and the brilliance of Rowling to make an esoteric subject accessible to a whole new generation.

5. Finally, what are you most excited for at Anime USA? 

I am so excited to get to know a whole new audience of people. I cannot wait to show my perspective on history the history of medicine, and gain new perspective from the audience members. I’m also looking forward to showing off my new costume!