Body-Temperature. 



121 



number of subjects and therefore gives a better average, but the subjects had 

 not acquired the same skill in taking the temperature as those who had had 

 previous experience. 



BODY-TEMPERATURE MEASUREMENTS WITH A RECTAL THERMOMETER. 



Fortunately, in many of the experiments already published or presented in 

 this report, the body-temperature was taken with sufficient accuracy and with 

 sufficient frequency to warrant publication as furnishing evidence regarding 

 the rectal temperature of men during the 24 hours and during certain periods 

 of the day, since the observations were continuous. Furthermore, the errors 

 incidental to taking the temperature in the mouth or due to the inexperience 

 of the subjects in taking their own temperature are here avoided, and we deal 

 exclusively with temperatures measured deep in the rectum by electrical means 

 with an accuracy not far from 0.01 C. 



In discussing these results, the experiments may be advantageously sub- 

 divided into three groups: (1) experiments of long duration in which food 

 was taken; (2) experiments of long duration in which no food was taken; and 

 (3) experiments of short duration, covering a part or all of the waking hours 

 of the day. The subjects occupied the respiration chamber in all of these 

 experiments and no muscular work was done. 



Table 47. 



-Body-temperature with rectal thermometer in experiments with food 



during 24 hours. 



1 The records were in each case taken at regular intervals throughout the day. 



2 Unpublished experiment. 



3 Partially reported in this publication. 



