Difficult choices as death nears. As the changes described in this article develop in the final days or hours of a progressive terminal illness, difficult choices may arise. There may be questions about whether to provide food and fluids, receive blood transfusions, or treat infections.
The use of mercury in thermometers dates back hundreds of years. It was widely used because it reliably expands and contracts with changes in temperatures. It is highly poisonous, however, and can enter the body through the respiratory or digestive tracts, or directly through the skin.
What can be considered the first modern thermometer, the mercury thermometer with a standardized scale, was invented by Daniel Gabriel Fahrenheit in 1714. History Various people are credited with inventing of the thermometer including Galileo Galilei, Cornelis Drebbel, Robert Fludd and Santorio Santorio.