Ferdinand Waldo Demara’s Medical Textbook

Ferdinand Waldo Demara’s Medical Textbook
Origin	Ferdinand Waldo Demara
Type	Medical Textbook
Effects	Grants near photographic memory and the ability to quickly learn new material and skills
Downsides	User will want to impersonate other people’s jobs
Activation	Reading
Collected by	Warehouse 13
Section	Bickerstaff-561RA
Aisle	672295-9874
Shelf	489223-5716-498
Date of Collection	February 23, 1990
[Source]

Origin

Ferdinand Waldo Demara was known as 'The Great Impostor' and masqueraded as many people - from monks to surgeons to prison wardens. Said to have a high IQ score and perfect memory, all of his stunts were to gain respect in the field instead of money. His most famous incident was when he impersonated a ship’s surgeon during the Korean War. Faced with soldiers who had life-threatening injuries, Demara speed read through various medical texts to learn how to operate. He performed several procedures, including major chest surgery, and all sixteen soldiers he treated survived their treatments. Ironically, this stunt led to the real surgeon’s mother discovering Demara imitating her son when he was still practicing in Canada.

Effects

The user gains near complete photographic memory and can quickly learn new skills that they are exposed to. This allows the user to understand and process information quickly and respond well to sudden changes. While amazed, the user will eventually get tired of their normal life and try to impersonate someone else’s.