Chapter 1—Cardiac Surgery History Surgeons are often teased about their fondness for history, but you will likely have a receptive audience to comments or questions that refect your awareness of the historical roots of any surgical specialty. Perhaps the most remarkable fact about cardiac surgery is the incredible tempo of advancement, particularly in the last 50 years. After perhaps a slow start at the turn of the last Century, the introduction of mechanical cardiopulmonary support transformed the feld making it a hotbed for innovation and life-saving therapy. Drs. Miller and Cameron have provided you with a succinct summary of important individuals and the milestones they achieved. It is worth taking a moment to review where the feld has been as you consider where it is going. And if nothing else you may be able to inspire personal refections or even some inside stories from the cardiac surgery staff. Chapter 2—Surgical Anatomy of the Heart Surgeons are of course applied anatomists. Cardiac anatomy is complex and compact; you will struggle to understand the procedures being performed if you do not have a basic understanding of that anatomy and you will be expected to have foundational knowledge of the relevant anatomy when you enter the operating room. And as is so often the case, the more you know, the more you will learn. Surgeons love to demonstrate advanced anatomy to students that demonstrate initiative and have educated themselves on the basics. Conversely, ignorance of that foundational knowledge is unlikely to play well. Seeing and touching the beating heart is an experience every medical student should have. Chapter 3—Preoperative Evaluation and Risk Assessment Preoperative evaluation of cardiac surgical patients and risk assessment has evolved from a simple “foot of the bed test” as to a patient’s general ftness, to a sophisticated, data-driven science as summarized by Drs. Calle and Shahian. The evolution of a specialty-specifc clinical database by the Society of Thoracic Surgeons has enabled the development of a sophisticated tool to calculate