"Dr. Ox's Experiment" is a short story by the French writer and pioneer of science-fiction, Jules Verne, published in 1872, it describes an experiment by his assistant Gedeon Ygene. A prosperous scientist Dr. Ox offers to build a novel gas lighting system to an unusually stuffy Flemish town of Quiquendone; as the town bore no charges, the offer is gladly accepted. The hidden interest of Dr. Ox is however not lighting, but large scale experiment on effect of oxygen on plants and humans, he uses electrolysis to separate water into oxygen. The latter is being pumped to the city causing accelerated growth of plants and aggressiveness in animals and humans; the story ends up by destruction of the oxygen factory of Dr. Ox – by accident and hydrogen got mixed causing a major explosion. Jules Verne acknowledges in the epilogue that the described effect of oxygen is a pure fiction invented by him; the text was re-published in a Verne short-story anthology, Doctor Ox, in 1874. The story was adapted by Jacques Offenbach as Le docteur Ox, an opéra-bouffe in three acts and six tableaux, premiered on 26 January 1877 with a libretto by Arnold Mortier, Philippe Gille and Verne himself.

Annibale Bizzelli composed Il Dottor Oss. It was adapted by Gavin Bryars as Doctor Ox's Experiment, an opera in two acts with a libretto by Blake Morrison, first performed on 15 June 1998. Dr. Ox's Experiment Dr. Ox's experiment, other stories, Internet Archive E-book at University of Adelaide Doctor Ox's Experiment public domain audiobook at LibriVox

Ignatius of Antioch known as Ignatius Theophorus or Ignatius Nurono, was an early Christian writer and bishop of Antioch. While en route to Rome, where he met his martyrdom, Ignatius wrote a series of letters; this correspondence now forms a central part of the collection known as the Apostolic Fathers, of which he is considered one of the three chief ones together with Pope Clement I and Polycarp. His letters serve as an example of early Christian theology. Important topics they address include ecclesiology, the sacraments, the role of bishops. Nothing is known of Ignatius' life apart from what may be inferred internally from his letters, except from traditions, it is said Ignatius converted to Christianity at a young age. Tradition identifies Ignatius, along with his friend Polycarp, as disciples of John the Apostle. In his life, Ignatius was chosen to serve as Bishop of Antioch. Theodoret of Cyrrhus claimed that St. Peter himself left directions that Ignatius be appointed to the episcopal see of Antioch.

Ignatius called. A tradition arose that he was one of the children whom Jesus Christ took in his arms and blessed, although if he was born around 50 AD, as supposed Christ had ascended 20 years prior. Ignatius' feast day was kept in his own Antioch on 17 October, the day on which he is now celebrated in the Catholic Church and in western Christianity, although from the 12th century until 1969 it was put at 1 February in the General Roman Calendar. In the Eastern Orthodox Church it is observed on 20 December; the Synaxarium of the Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria places it on the 24th of the Coptic Month of Koiak, corresponding in three years out of every four to 20 December in the Julian Calendar, which falls on 2 January of th Gregorian Calendar. Instead of being executed in his home town of Antioch, Ignatius was escorted to Rome by a company of ten Roman soldiers: From Syria unto Rome I fight with beasts, both by land and sea, both by night and day, being bound to ten leopards, I mean a band of soldiers...

Scholars consider Ignatius' transport to Rome unusual, since those persecuted as Christians would be expected to be punished locally. Stevan Davies has pointed out that "no other examples exist from the Flavian age of any prisoners except citizens or prisoners of war being brought to Rome for execution."If Ignatius were a Roman citizen, he could have appealed to the emperor, but he would have been beheaded rather than tortured. Furthermore, the epistles of Ignatius state that he was put in chains during the journey to Rome, but it was illegal under Roman law for a citizen to be put in bonds during an appeal to the emperor. Allen Brent argues that Ignatius was transferred to Rome at the request of the emperor in order to provide entertainment to the masses by being killed in the Colosseum. Brent insists, contrary to some, that "it was normal practice to transport condemned criminals from the provinces in order to offer spectator sport in the Colosseum at Rome."Stevan Davies rejects the idea that Ignatius was transported to Rome for the games at the Colosseum.

He reasons that "if Ignatius was in some way a donation by the Imperial Governor of Syria to the games at Rome, a single prisoner seems a rather miserly gift." Instead, Davies proposes that Ignatius may have been indicted by a legate, or representative, of the governor of Syria while the governor was away temporarily, sent to Rome for trial and execution. Under Roman law, only the governor of a province or the emperor himself could impose capital punishment, so the legate would have faced the choice of imprisoning Ignatius in Antioch or sending him to Rome. Davies postulates that the legate may have decided to send Ignatius to Rome so as to minimize any further dissension among the Antiochene Christians. Christine Trevett has called Davies' suggestion "entirely hypothetical" and concludes that no satisfactory solution to the problem can be found, writing, "I tend to take the bishop at his word when he says he is a condemned man, but the question remains, why is he going to Rome? The truth is that we do not know."

During the journey to Rome and his entourage of soldiers made a number of lengthy stops in Asia Minor, deviating from the most direct land route from Antioch to Rome. Scholars agree on the following reconstruction of Ignatius' route of travel: Ignatius first traveled from Antioch, in the province of Syria, to Asia Minor, it is uncertain whether he traveled by land. He was taken to Smyrna, via a route that bypassed the cities of Magnesia and Ephesus, but passed through Philadelphia. Ignatius traveled to Troas, where he boarded a ship bound for Neapolis in Macedonia, he passed through the city of Philippi. After this, he took some sea route to Rome. During the journey, the soldiers seem to have allowed Ignatius to meet with entire congregations of Christians while in chains, at least while he was in Philadelphia, numerous Christian visitors and messengers were allowed to meet with him on a one-on-one basis; these messengers allowed Ignatius to send six letters to nearby churches, one to Polycarp, the bishop of Smyrna.

These aspects of Ignatius' martyrdom are regarded by scholars as unusual. It is expected that a prisoner would be tran