MedWorm provides a medical RSS filtering service. Over 6000 RSS medical sources are combined and output via different filters. This feed contains the latest medical blog items that have been tagged with 'academia'. Sat, 03 Sep 2011 01:48:52 +0100 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=5182291&cid=t_99079_149_f&fid=35776&url=http%3A%2F%2Fpipeline.corante.com%2Farchives%2F2011%2F09%2F02%2Fhow_many_new_drug_targets_arent_even_real.php So, are half the interesting new results in the medical/biology/med-chem literature impossible to reproduce? I linked earlier this year to an informal estimate from venture capitalist Bruce Booth, who said that this was his (and others') experience in the business. Now comes a new study from Bayer Pharmaceuticals that helps put some backing behind those numbers. To mitigate some of the risks of such investments ultimately being wasted, most pharmaceutical companies run in-house target validation programmes. However, validation projects that were started in our company based on exciting published data have often resulted in disillusionment when key data could not be reproduced. Talking to scientists, both in academia and in industry, there seems to be a general impression that many results... In the Pipeline blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=5182291 Fri, 02 Sep 2011 12:05:32 +0100 5182291 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=5169576&cid=t_99079_109_f&fid=34752&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FPsychsplash%2F%7E3%2F99B5X6YMrKA%2F URL: http://www.get.gg/Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT) has been proven to help mental health problems. This website offers CBT self-help information, resources and tools, including therapy worksheets. For: Anyone, Clinicians, ConsumersTopics: Academia, Behaviour Management, Cognitive, Cognitive Behaviour Therapy, Common Factors, Counselling, Depression, Eating Disorders, Emotional Health, General Psychology, Life, Mental Health, Mental Health Promotion, Personality, Personality disorders, Psychology and Technology, Psychology and the Media, Self-helpFeatures: Articles, Assessment Instruments, Clinical Tools, File Sharing, Information, Links, Multimedia, Patient Handouts, Research Tools, Resources, Training, e-learning Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT) has been proven to help mental hea... PsychSplash blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=5169576 Sat, 27 Aug 2011 17:00:09 +0100 5169576 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=5159028&cid=t_99079_90_f&fid=36413&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.dcscience.net%2F%3Fp%3D4704%26utm_source%3Drss%26utm_medium%3Drss%26utm_campaign%3Duniversity-of-westminster-shuts-down-naturopathy-nutritional-therapy-but-keeps-acupuncture-and-herbal-medicine There’s been no official announcement, but four more of Westminster’s courses in junk medicine have quietly closed. For entry in 2011 they offer University of Westminster (W50) qualification Chinese Medicine: Acupuncture (B343) 3FT Hon BSc Chinese Medicine: Acupuncture with Foundation (B341) 4FT/5FT Hon BSc/MSci Complementary Medicine (B255) 3FT Hon BSc Complementary Medicine (B301) 4FT Hon MHSci Complementary Medicine: Naturopathy (B391) 3FT Hon BSc Herbal Medicine (B342) 3FT Hon BSc Herbal Medicine with Foundation Year (B340) 4FT/5FT Hon BSc/MSci Nutritional Therapy (B400) 3FT Hon BSc   But for entry in 2012 University of Westminster (W50) qualification Chinese Medicine: Acupuncture&... DC's goodscience blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=5159028 Wed, 17 Aug 2011 11:43:52 +0100 5159028 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=5159029&cid=t_99079_90_f&fid=36413&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.dcscience.net%2F%3Fp%3D4683%26utm_source%3Drss%26utm_medium%3Drss%26utm_campaign%3Dprofessor-geoffrey-petts-of-the-university-of-westminster-says-they-are-not-teaching-pseudo-science-the-facts-show-this-is-not-true Jump to follow-up On 23rd May 2008 a letter was sent to the vice-chancellor of the University of Westminster, Professor Geoffrey Petts Dear Professor Petts   You may be aware an article by Zoe Corbyn, published in Times Higher Education 24 April 2008, with the title Experts criticise ‘pseudo-scientific’ complementary medicine degrees.   The subtitle of the article was Vice-chancellors should re-examine courses, say campaigners.  In the light of that, we wondered whether you had anything to add to the comments made by David Peters in todays THE.  We are preparing a response to that, and it seems fair to ask your view before we proceed. (In order to save you time, copies of the two articles are attached.)   As an expert on... DC's goodscience blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=5159029 Thu, 11 Aug 2011 15:37:57 +0100 5159029 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=5077773&cid=t_99079_109_f&fid=34752&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FPsychsplash%2F%7E3%2F6sS4sxfqvDo%2F URL: http://www.jeffstanden.net/Jeff Standen is a psychology professor. His website is chock full of useful bits of psychology information. Listed on the Jeff Standen website are: links to web resources and other websites that you will find useful, as well as links to recent items of topical interest Links to interactive pages with quizzes, challenges and revision pointers. For: Anyone, StudentsTopics: Academia, Biological Psychology, Clinical Psychology, Educational Psychology, General Psychology, Health Psychology, Life, Mental Health, OCR Level-A Psychology, Social Psychology, Teaching PsychologyFeatures: Articles, File Sharing, Information, Links, Resources, e-learning Jeff Standen is a psychology professor.  His website is chock full of useful bits of psychology information. Listed... PsychSplash blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=5077773 Fri, 29 Jul 2011 17:00:53 +0100 5077773 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=5077774&cid=t_99079_109_f&fid=34752&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FPsychsplash%2F%7E3%2Fbxp2uKNbBzI%2F URL: http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/section/2/10/APA Overview and Workshop This workshop provides an overview of APA (American Psychological Association) style and where to find help with different APA resources. It provides an annotated list of links to all of our APA materials and an APA overview. It is an excellent place to start to learn about APA format. For: Anyone, Students, Students, TeachersTopics: Academia, Biological Psychology, Clinical Psychology, Educational Psychology, General Psychology, Health Psychology, Life, Mental Health, OCR Level-A Psychology, Social Psychology, Teaching Psychology, Academia, WritingFeatures: Articles, File Sharing, Information, Links, Resources, e-learning, Articles, Databases, Dictionary, Information, Multimedia, Training, e-learningAPA Overview... PsychSplash blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=5077774 Thu, 28 Jul 2011 17:00:06 +0100 5077774 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=5159030&cid=t_99079_90_f&fid=36413&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.dcscience.net%2F%3Fp%3D4615%26utm_source%3Drss%26utm_medium%3Drss%26utm_campaign%3Ddr-elizabeth-thompson-of-bristol-homeopathic-hospital-finds-that-pills-that-contain-nothing-have-no-effect-not-even-placebo-effect Conclusions: A future study using this design is not feasible, That’s pretty feeble. They don’t state the conclusion as "homeopathy doesn’t work", far less that "homeopathy doesn’t even have a placebo effect". Just the eternal cry after every failed trial of magic medicine: the trial design was wrong and more research is needed. An excuse was offered in the form "A further limitation was the length of the study period which may have needed to be longer in order for homeopathic treatment to make an impact in a complex disease with high variabilitythrough the year." This is a paraphrase of the typical homeopathic modus operandi. Keep trying a different pill until the patient gets better anyway, then claim the credit. Some details of th... DC's goodscience blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=5159030 Wed, 27 Jul 2011 22:46:35 +0100 5159030 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=5069534&cid=t_99079_109_f&fid=34752&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FPsychsplash%2F%7E3%2FsjrXBlug4Do%2F URL: http://www.psychdomain.com/Welcome to PsychDomain! The goal of this website is to provide psychology students and faculty with up-to-date, relevant, and informative psychology related links, videos, interactions and images. Use the Content by Area navigation on the left to search for content by psychology area. Alternatively, use the the Tag Cloud below to browse the content. For: Anyone, Consumers, ResearchersTopics: Abnormal, Academia, Attachment, Behaviour Management, Clinical Decision Making, Clinical Psychology, Common Factors, Depression, Life, Lifestyle, Mental Health, Mental Health Promotion, Social SupportFeatures: Articles, Collaborative News, Community and Social Networking, Information, Links, e-learningWelcome to PsychDomain! The goal of this website is to provide psychol... PsychSplash blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=5069534 Wed, 27 Jul 2011 17:00:38 +0100 5069534 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=5062493&cid=t_99079_149_f&fid=35776&url=http%3A%2F%2Fpipeline.corante.com%2Farchives%2F2011%2F07%2F25%2Fbroader_impacts_indeed.php Since I don't have to write NSF grants, I haven't had to wrestle with "Criterion 2". But ask anyone in academic science about it. The first criterion is intellectual merit, as it darn well should be. Here's the NSF's own description (in full): How important is the proposed activity to advancing knowledge and understanding within its own field or across different fields? How well qualified is the proposer (individual or team) to conduct the project? (If appropriate, the reviewer will comment on the quality of prior work.) To what extent does the proposed activity suggest and explore creative, original, or potentially transformative concepts? How well conceived and organized is the proposed activity? Is there sufficient access to resources? But the second criterion, while initially worthy-... In the Pipeline blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=5062493 Mon, 25 Jul 2011 13:01:32 +0100 5062493 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=5159031&cid=t_99079_90_f&fid=36413&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.dcscience.net%2F%3Fp%3D4582%26utm_source%3Drss%26utm_medium%3Drss%26utm_campaign%3Dapologists-for-andrew-wakefield-at-southampton-university-a-russell-group-university-teaching-some-dangerous-nonsense Conclusion Electrodermal testing cannot be used to diagnose environmental allergies", published in the BMJ .[download reprint]. In 2003 he published "A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled proving trial of Belladonna 30C” [download reprint] that showed homeopathic pills with no active ingredients had no effects: The conclusion was "”Ultramolecular homeopathy has no observable clinical effects" (the word ultramolecular, in this context, means that the belladonna pills contained no belladonna). In 2010 he again concluded that homeopathic pills were no more than placebos, as described in Despite the spin, Lewith’s paper surely signals the end of homeopathy (again). [download reprint] What i cannot understand is that, despite his own findings, his pri... DC's goodscience blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=5159031 Sun, 03 Jul 2011 17:10:30 +0100 5159031 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4984501&cid=t_99079_109_f&fid=34752&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FPsychsplash%2F%7E3%2FbjbrRmU_AUk%2F URL: http://psychology.vanguard.edu/amoebaweb/Outstanding resource maintained by Douglas Degelman, Ph.D. Professor of Psychology at Vanguard University of Southern California. Features over 2000 categorized links to quality psychology content. For: Anyone, Researchers, StudentsTopics: ADHD, Abnormal, Academia, Addiction, Anxiety, Behaviour Management, Bipolar, Clinical Psychology, Cognitive Behaviour Therapy, Depression, Eating Disorders, General Psychology, Mental HealthFeatures: Articles, Databases, Information, Links Outstanding resource maintained by Douglas Degelman, Ph.D. Professor of Psychology at Vanguard University of Southern California. Features over 2000 categorized links to quality psychology content. Also, lists monthly featured websites, psychologically related, of cours... PsychSplash blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4984501 Thu, 30 Jun 2011 17:00:13 +0100 4984501 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=5159032&cid=t_99079_90_f&fid=36413&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.dcscience.net%2F%3Fp%3D4562%26utm_source%3Drss%26utm_medium%3Drss%26utm_campaign%3Dhalf-baked-nonsense-in-the-atlantic Jump to follow-up Reply to David Katz. The Atlantic is an American magazine founded (as The Atlantic Monthly) in Boston, Massachusetts, in 1857. It is a literary and cultural magazine with a very distinguished history. Its contributors include Mark Twain and Martin Luther King. So it was pretty exciting to be asked to write something for it, even with a 12 hour deadline. Sadly though, in recent years, the coverage of science in The Atlantic has been less than good The inimitable David Gorski has explained the problem in Blatant pro-alternative medicine propaganda in The Atlantic. The immediate cause of the kerfuffle was the publication of an article, The Triumph of New-Age Medicine. It was written by a journalist, David Freedman. It is very long and really not very good. It has been decon... DC's goodscience blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=5159032 Thu, 23 Jun 2011 13:38:18 +0100 5159032 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4960329&cid=t_99079_150_f&fid=35777&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FPharmalot%2F%7E3%2Fdzqbvzs1qj4%2F Two years ago, a study found that nearly 53 percent of academic researchers have some form of relationship with the pharmaceutical industry, especially consulting, and faculty with industry research support were more productive than faculty without support. For instance, faculty with industry relationships published significantly more and published at a greater rate in the past three years. In an update of the findings, which first appeared in Health Affairs (read the abstract), the researchers explored conflict of interest policies at universities that have been under increasing pressure to scrutinize and disclose financial ties between faculty and drugmakers. The attention is an outgrowth over concerns that medical practice may be unduly influenced by industry (see here). What did the l... Pharmalot blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4960329 Wed, 22 Jun 2011 15:13:27 +0100 4960329 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4960315&cid=t_99079_149_f&fid=35776&url=http%3A%2F%2Fpipeline.corante.com%2Farchives%2F2011%2F06%2F22%2Fthe_nih_and_conflicts_of_interest.php The NIH has, it appears, been getting quite sensitive about conflicts of interest. There have been some rather ugly scenes involving ghostwritten articles (and entire books), and NIH director Francis Collins has said that the agency's guidelines are in the process of being revised. You'd have thought that the existing ones would have banned that sort of thing, anyway. And in fact, it seems as if many scientists at the NIH already find the rules too restrictive. From the original paper that looked into this: Eighty percent of respondents believed the NIH ethics rules were too restrictive. Whereas 45% of respondents believed the rules positively impacted the public's trust in the NIH, 77% believed the rules hindered the NIH's ability to complete its mission. The problem, as so often happ... In the Pipeline blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4960315 Wed, 22 Jun 2011 13:54:58 +0100 4960315 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=5159033&cid=t_99079_90_f&fid=36413&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.dcscience.net%2F%3Fp%3D4541%26utm_source%3Drss%26utm_medium%3Drss%26utm_campaign%3Dfreedom-of-information-reveals-some-unusual-testimonials-for-the-university-of-westminster-when-will-professor-geoffrey-petts-do-something-about-it Jump to follow-up Universities, like most businesses, cite glowing testimonials from grateful students, I doubt whether universities are any more honest than anyone else in their choice of what to publish. When I asked to see any letters that had been sent to the university, I was sent only one and extracts from it appear in the last post on Westminster. More dangerous nonsense from the University of Westminster: when will Professor Geoffrey Petts do something about it? But I knew (don’t ask how) that there had been more than that, and a slightly widened FOIA request produced some interesting results (though I’m aware of other letters that were not supplied -not good). As always, the information came with the caveat "Copyright in our response to your request belongs to ... DC's goodscience blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=5159033 Mon, 20 Jun 2011 08:50:30 +0100 5159033 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4945132&cid=t_99079_149_f&fid=35776&url=http%3A%2F%2Fpipeline.corante.com%2Farchives%2F2011%2F06%2F16%2Fwhat_translational_research_should_academia_do.php We've talked quite a bit around here about academic (and nonindustrial) drug discovery, but those posts have mostly divided into two parts. There's the early-stage discovery work that really gets done in some places, and then there's the proposal for the big push into translational research by the NIH. That, broadly defined, is (a) the process of turning an interesting idea into a real drug target, or (b) turning an interesting compound into a real drug. One of the things that the recent survey of academic centers made clear, I'd say, is that the latter kind of work is hardly being done at all outside of industry. The former is a bit more common, but still suffers from the general academic bias: walking away too soon in order to move on to the next interesting thing. Both these translation... In the Pipeline blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4945132 Thu, 16 Jun 2011 11:14:03 +0100 4945132 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4934232&cid=t_99079_99_f&fid=34589&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2Fscienceblogs%2Faetiology%2F%7E3%2FZViDJHNHk_M%2Ffunding.php Ah, classes are finally over. The last two summers I've taught a short, intense course in Applied Infectious Disease Epidemiology, condensing a semester's worth of work into a week. It's a fun course to teach, but exhausting--after teaching, I head back home or to the office to finish last-minute preparation for the next day's talks and assignments, and by the time that's done, the nightly student homework is rolling into my email inbox for me to grade and comment on for the next morning. By Friday, I feel like a zombie who hasn't seen my family in a week. But, it's now wrapped up for another year, which gives me a small block of time to navel-gaze and reflect on the past year before diving back into more research (and starting prep for fall's course, Introduction to Molecular Epidemiolo... Aetiology blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4934232 Mon, 13 Jun 2011 21:00:00 +0100 4934232 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4921734&cid=t_99079_149_f&fid=35776&url=http%3A%2F%2Fpipeline.corante.com%2Farchives%2F2011%2F06%2F09%2Facademic_drug_discovery_a_survey.php Nature Reviews Drug Discovery has an interesting survey of academic drug discovery (summary at SciBx here). The authors were motivated, they say, by the large number of opinions and impressions about this topic, with a corresponding lack of actual data - I think they've done everyone a service. What they found was 78 centers of academic drug discovery (in one form or another) in the US. Cancer and infectious diseases are the most widely worked-on, but tropical and orphan diseases make a strong showing (and I'm glad to see this; they should). Another interesting stat: "49% of targets being investigated are based on unique discoveries that had little validation in the literature". But when we say "drug discovery", we should really be saying "very early stage drug discovery", with little or... In the Pipeline blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4921734 Thu, 09 Jun 2011 11:20:48 +0100 4921734 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4862634&cid=t_99079_109_f&fid=34752&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FPsychsplash%2F%7E3%2FovqaR0_pg1c%2F URL: http://www.mincava.umn.edu/The Minnesota Center against Violence and Abuse (MinCAVA) has information on these subjects: child abuse, domestic violence, sexual violence, stalking, trafficking, workplace violence, youth violence and more. Most information is in PDF form, but some are in regular text or web pages. For: AnyoneTopics: Abnormal, Academia, Addiction, Anger, Behaviour Management, Child and Adolescent, Clinical Psychology, Common Factors, Depression, Emotional Health, Family Therapy, General Psychology, Life, Lifestyle, Mental Health, Mental Health Promotion, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, Quality of Life, RelationshipsFeatures: Articles, Grants & Funding, Information, Links, Multimedia, Resources We are an online resource community only.  Our services are limited t... PsychSplash blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4862634 Wed, 25 May 2011 17:00:13 +0100 4862634 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4862903&cid=t_99079_149_f&fid=35776&url=http%3A%2F%2Fpipeline.corante.com%2Farchives%2F2011%2F05%2F24%2Fmaybe_it_really_is_that_hard.php Here's an interesting note from the Wall Street Journal's Health Blog. I can't summarize it any better than they have: "When former NIH head Elias Zerhouni ran the $30 billion federal research institute, he pushed for so-called translational research in which findings from basic lab research would be used to develop medicines and other applications that would help patients directly. Now the head of R&D at French drug maker Sanofi, Zerhouni says that such “bench to bedside” research is more difficult than he thought." And all across the industry, people are muttering "Do tell!" In fairness to Zerhouni, he was, in all likelihood, living in sort of a bubble at NIH. There probably weren't many people around him who'd ever actually done this sort of work, and unless you have, it's hard t... In the Pipeline blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4862903 Tue, 24 May 2011 12:10:42 +0100 4862903 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4813364&cid=t_99079_109_f&fid=34752&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FPsychsplash%2F%7E3%2FgTWlWXqLTVk%2F URL: http://www.indiana.edu/~intell/index.shtmlThis site includes biographical profiles of people who have influenced the development of intelligence theory and testing, in-depth articles exploring current controversies related to human intelligence, and resources for teachers. For: Researchers, Students, TeachersTopics: Academia, Clinical Psychology, Cognitive, Educational Psychology, Philosophy, TeachingFeatures: Articles, Collaborative News, Community and Social Networking, Information, Research, Research Tools This site includes biographical profiles of people who have influenced the development of intelligence theory and testing, in-depth articles exploring  current controversies that are related to human intelligence, and resources for teachers and educators. (Source... PsychSplash blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4813364 Thu, 12 May 2011 00:20:32 +0100 4813364 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4803236&cid=t_99079_109_f&fid=34752&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FPsychsplash%2F%7E3%2F-0Isg9k0HVc%2F URL: http://beta.in-mind.org/Welcome to the website of the Inquisitive Mind. The Inquisitive Mind, or In-Mind, is an exciting on-line quarterly magazine for social psychology. The magazine’s purpose is designed to interact with everyone that is interested in everyday human concerns and to inform you on the hot trends in scientific social psychological research. Now, science has its own language and you might not feel like having the time to keep up-to-date. We will attempt to bridge the existing gap by relating important social psychological research to issues that catch your mind. For: AnyoneTopics: Academia, Behaviour Management, General Psychology, Mental Health, Mental Health Promotion, Psychology and the Media, Social Psychology, WritingFeatures: Articles, Books, Collaborative News,... PsychSplash blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4803236 Mon, 09 May 2011 17:00:37 +0100 4803236 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4803237&cid=t_99079_109_f&fid=34752&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FPsychsplash%2F%7E3%2FIawpLwuFa8Y%2F URL: http://www.statsoft.com/textbook/This Textbook offers training in the understanding and application of statistics. The material was developed at the Statsoft R&D department based on many years of teaching undergraduate and graduate statistics courses and covers a wide variety of applications, including laboratory research (biomedical, agricultural, etc.), business statistics, credit scoring, forecasting, social science statistics and survey research, data mining, engineering and quality control applications, and many others. For: Anyone, Anyone, StudentsTopics: Academia, Behaviour Management, General Psychology, Mental Health, Mental Health Promotion, Psychology and the Media, Social Psychology, Writing, Academia, Clinical Tool Development, General Psychology, Research Methods, S... PsychSplash blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4803237 Sun, 08 May 2011 17:00:05 +0100 4803237 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4789595&cid=t_99079_149_f&fid=35776&url=http%3A%2F%2Fpipeline.corante.com%2Farchives%2F2011%2F05%2F05%2Ftranslation_needed.php The "Opinionator" blog at the New York Times is trying here, but there's something not quite right. David Bornstein, in fact, gets off on the wrong foot entirely with this opening: Consider two numbers: 800,000 and 21. The first is the number of medical research papers that were published in 2008. The second is the number of new drugs that were approved by the Food and Drug Administration last year. That’s an ocean of research producing treatments by the drop. Indeed, in recent decades, one of the most sobering realities in the field of biomedical research has been the fact that, despite significant increases in funding — as well as extraordinary advances in things like genomics, computerized molecular modeling, and drug screening and synthesization — the number of new treatments ... In the Pipeline blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4789595 Thu, 05 May 2011 11:11:54 +0100 4789595 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4780291&cid=t_99079_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FzRRDs2EfY94%2F By Neal McCluskeyThere is a reason “ivory tower” has a negative connotation, evoking images of effete snobs walled away in ivory opulence as they look down on the commoners and demand outsized respect. The image, unfortunately, is occasionally accurate for individual academics, and almost always so for the whole of academia, which is funded by massive subsidies taken from taxpayers, but walled off by claims that no price can or should ever be affixed to the “public good” it produces. Add to this its professorial residents often demanding limitless freedom — and job security – to say whatever they want about such evil pursuits as “big business” that generate the tax dollars that keep the tower cushy and its jobs secure, and... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4780291 Tue, 03 May 2011 20:13:01 +0100 4780291 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4747865&cid=t_99079_149_f&fid=35776&url=http%3A%2F%2Fpipeline.corante.com%2Farchives%2F2011%2F04%2F25%2Fthe_phd_problem_a_global_perspective.php Nature News has a big article on the "Too Many PhDs" problem, which we've discussed several times around here: In some countries, including the United States and Japan, people who have trained at great length and expense to be researchers confront a dwindling number of academic jobs, and an industrial sector unable to take up the slack. Supply has outstripped demand and, although few PhD holders end up unemployed, it is not clear that spending years securing this high-level qualification is worth it. . . The piece looks at several different countries, each with its own set of problems. Japan seems to be in just awful shape as far as doctorates go; it makes the situation over here look not so bad. China, for its part, is cranking out zillions of fresh PhD holders these days, but (as the a... In the Pipeline blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4747865 Mon, 25 Apr 2011 14:34:47 +0100 4747865 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4734583&cid=t_99079_149_f&fid=35776&url=http%3A%2F%2Fpipeline.corante.com%2Farchives%2F2011%2F04%2F20%2Fnothing_personal.php There's an interesting follow-up over at SciBX to Bruce Booth's piece on the reproducibility of academic research. Booth, in his position as a venture capital purse-string holder, advocated caution and careful verification of exciting academic discoveries before starting the company-formation process. The SciBX folks followed up with him and with several other VCs. Booth sticks to his position, and says that his firm, Atlas Venture, has allocated money to allow CROs to do reality checks on the new ideas that they see. Daphne Zohar at PureTech Ventures takes a similar line, but says that they do this sort of work with the originators of the technology, giving it a quiet shakedown before talking to investors. They do use CROs when appropriate, though. On the other end of the spectrum, thou... In the Pipeline blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4734583 Wed, 20 Apr 2011 12:54:52 +0100 4734583 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=5159036&cid=t_99079_90_f&fid=36413&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.dcscience.net%2F%3Fp%3D4308%26utm_source%3Drss%26utm_medium%3Drss%26utm_campaign%3Dthe-a-to-z-of-the-wellbeing-industry-from-angelic-reiki-to-patient-centred-care This is a slightly-modified version of the article that appeared in BMJ blogs yesterday, but with more links to original sources, and a picture. There are already some comments in the BMJ. The original article, diplomatically, did not link directly to UCL’s Grand Challenge of Human Wellbeing, a well-meaning initiative which, I suspect, will not prove to be value for money when it comes to practical action. Neither, when referring to the bad effects of disempowerment on human wellbeing (as elucidated by, among others, UCL’s Michael Marmot), did I mention the several ways in which staff have been disempowered and rendered voiceless at UCL during the last five years. Although these actions have undoubtedly had a bad effect on the wellbeing of UCL’s staff, it seemed a litlle... DC's goodscience blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=5159036 Fri, 15 Apr 2011 20:29:37 +0100 5159036 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4719932&cid=t_99079_109_f&fid=34752&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FPsychsplash%2F%7E3%2FvA8fH867OTY%2F Search by alphabetic or category listings of a myriad of test titles. You will find included in Buros’s Institute of Mental Measurements free information on 3,500 commercially available assessments. For: Clinicians, ResearchersTopics: Academia, Behaviour Management, Clinical Decision Making, Clinical Psychology, Clinical Tool Development, Psycho-education, PsychometricsFeatures: Assessment Instruments, Databases, Information, e-learningSearch by alphabetic or category listings of a myriad of test titles.  You will find included in Buros’s Institute of Mental Measurements free information on 3,500 commercially available assessments. Over 2,500 of these same assessments have been critically reviewed by the Buros Institute.  The reviews can be purchased for 15 $ a review. (Sourc... PsychSplash blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4719932 Fri, 15 Apr 2011 17:00:56 +0100 4719932 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4693492&cid=t_99079_149_f&fid=35776&url=http%3A%2F%2Fpipeline.corante.com%2Farchives%2F2011%2F04%2F08%2Froche_and_stanford_academia_v_industry.php This article in Science has a good summary of the details (here's another). What seems to have happened was Thomas Merigan at Stanford sent a postdoc, Mark Holodniy, over to Cetus to learn about their PCR technology. Holodniy signed an agreement to respect Cetus' intellectual property, the standard sort of thing - you'd think. But that's the problem. Ten years later, Stanford (building on work from the Merigan lab and its collaboration with Cetus) received patents on a method to quantify viral RNA in human serum, which turned into a useful assay for monitoring HIV. Roche began to sell kits to do just that in 1996, and starting in 2000, Stanford started pressing them to pay licensing fees to the university. Roche didn't, so Stanford sued, then Roche claimed that the Stanford patents were i... In the Pipeline blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4693492 Fri, 08 Apr 2011 12:21:17 +0100 4693492 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4664459&cid=t_99079_149_f&fid=35776&url=http%3A%2F%2Fpipeline.corante.com%2Farchives%2F2011%2F03%2F31%2Fwhat_if_those_wonderful_results_are_wrong.php Venture-capital guy Bruce Booth has a provocative post, based on experience, about how reproducible those papers are that make you say "Someone should try to start a company around that stuff". The unspoken rule is that at least 50% of the studies published even in top tier academic journals – Science, Nature, Cell, PNAS, etc… – can’t be repeated with the same conclusions by an industrial lab. In particular, key animal models often don’t reproduce. This 50% failure rate isn’t a data free assertion: it’s backed up by dozens of experienced R&D professionals who’ve participated in the (re)testing of academic findings. This is a huge problem for translational research and one that won’t go away until we address it head on. Why such a high failure rate? Booth's own explanat... In the Pipeline blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4664459 Thu, 31 Mar 2011 11:26:08 +0100 4664459 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4658416&cid=t_99079_109_f&fid=34752&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FPsychsplash%2F%7E3%2FfJnd2T4XH_8%2F URL: http://www.brunswik.org/The Brunswik Society is an informal association of researchers who are interested in understanding and improving human judgment and decision making. For: Clinicians, ResearchersTopics: Academia, Behaviour Management, Clinical Decision Making, Clinical Psychology, General Psychology, History of Psychology, Research Methods, TeachingFeatures: Articles, Author Lists, Collaborative News, Conferences, Information, Links, Research, Societal or Organizational Membership, e-learning The Brunswik Society is an informal association of researchers who are interested in understanding and improving human judgment and decision making. Members of the Society share an appreciation of the work of the psychologist Egon Brunswik. The Society has no dues. Its primary activitie... PsychSplash blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4658416 Wed, 30 Mar 2011 17:00:15 +0100 4658416 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4653575&cid=t_99079_149_f&fid=35776&url=http%3A%2F%2Fpipeline.corante.com%2Farchives%2F2011%2F03%2F29%2Fthe_nih_goes_for_the_gusto.php Here's an interesting funding opportunity from NIH: Recent advances in neuroscience offer unprecedented opportunities to discover new treatments for nervous system disorders. However, most promising compounds identified through basic research are not sufficiently drug-like for human testing. Before a new chemical entity can be tested in a clinical setting, it must undergo a process of chemical optimization to improve potency, selectivity, and drug-likeness, followed by pre-clinical safety testing to meet the standards set by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for clinical testing. These activities are largely the domain of the pharmaceutical industry and contract research organizations, and the necessary expertise and resources are not commonly available to academic researchers. To e... In the Pipeline blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4653575 Tue, 29 Mar 2011 11:30:06 +0100 4653575 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4642678&cid=t_99079_109_f&fid=34752&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FPsychsplash%2F%7E3%2FgE0Gkq_IAco%2F URL: http://www.wfmh.org/World Federation for Mental Health (WFMH) is an international membership organization founded in 1948 to advance, among all peoples and nations, the prevention of mental and emotional disorders, the proper treatment and care of those with such disorders, and the promotion of mental health. For: AnyoneTopics: Academia, Clinical Psychology, Common Factors, Educational Psychology, Foundation Website, General Psychology, General Science, Health Promotion, Health Psychology, Health and Social Services, Healthcare Information Technology, Mental Health, Mental Health Promotion, OCR Level-A Psychology, Psychology and the Media, Social Support, Teaching PsychologyFeatures: Articles, Collaborative News, Commentary and Blogs, Community and Social Networking, Group Management,... PsychSplash blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4642678 Mon, 28 Mar 2011 17:00:06 +0100 4642678 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=5159038&cid=t_99079_90_f&fid=36413&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.dcscience.net%2F%3Fp%3D4239%26utm_source%3Drss%26utm_medium%3Drss%26utm_campaign%3Da-thoroughly-dangerous-charity-yestolife-promotes-nonsense-cancer-treatments Conclusion The information supplied by YesToLife is more likely to kill you than to cure you. The next time you see somebody collecting for a "cancer charity" be very careful before you give them money. Follow-up (Source: DC's goodscience) DC's goodscience blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=5159038 Mon, 28 Mar 2011 00:42:45 +0100 5159038 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4626832&cid=t_99079_87_f&fid=39187&url=http%3A%2F%2Fgetbetterhealth.com%2Fphysician-salaries-increase-in-academia-and-primary-care%2F2011.03.23 Academic faculty physicians in primary and specialty care reported slight pay increases, according to the Medical Group Management Association. The organization’s Academic Practice Compensation and Production Survey for Faculty and Management: 2011 Report Based on 2010 Data, annual compensation for internal medicine primary care faculty physicians increased by 6.84% since 2009, and increased 4.46% between 2008 and 2009. Median compensation for all primary care faculty physicians was $163,704, an increase of 3.47% since 2009, and median compensation for specialty care faculty was $241,959, an increase of 2.7% since 2009. Department chairs and chiefs received the greatest compensation, $292,243 for primary care faculty and $482,293 for specialty care faculty. Primary care professors re... Better Health blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4626832 Wed, 23 Mar 2011 11:00:00 +0100 4626832 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4615191&cid=t_99079_109_f&fid=34752&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FPsychsplash%2F%7E3%2FfK9AWVu0SF4%2F URL: http://www.apsa.org/The American Psychoanalytic Association (APsaA), the oldest national psychoanalytic organization in the nation, was founded in 1911. APsaA, as a professional organization for psychoanalysts, focuses on education, research and membership development. For: Clinicians, Researchers, StudentsTopics: Academia, Behaviour Management, Clinical Decision Making, Common Factors, General Psychology, Psychodynamic, PsychotherapyFeatures: Articles, Careers, Collaborative News, Community and Social Networking, Conferences, Information, Journals, Links, Networking, Research, Resources, Societal or Organizational Membership, TrainingThe American Psychoanalytic Association (APsaA), the oldest national psychoanalytic organization in the nation, was founded in 1911. APsaA, as a profess... PsychSplash blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4615191 Sun, 20 Mar 2011 17:00:40 +0100 4615191 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4615192&cid=t_99079_109_f&fid=34752&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FPsychsplash%2F%7E3%2FK2_jnK1fizk%2F URL: http://www3.uakron.edu/ahap/The Archives of the History of American Psychology (AHAP) was established in 1965 at The University of Akron to promote research in the history of psychology by collecting, cataloguing, and preserving the historical record of psychology. The central feature of the AHAP is the manuscript collection, which includes the papers of over 740 psychologists. The growth of the repository exceeded projections, both in the rate at which materials were donated and in their diversity. This expansion led in 1976 to the establishment of the Child Development Film Archives, a unit that cares for both research footage and instructional films. This expansion was followed, in 1980, by a decision to supplement the numerous unsolicited gifts of books by devoting space to the pu... PsychSplash blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4615192 Sat, 19 Mar 2011 17:00:29 +0100 4615192 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4610849&cid=t_99079_109_f&fid=34752&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FPsychsplash%2F%7E3%2Fr3j9-44Vpwc%2F URL: http://www.psychonomic.org/The Psychonomic Society was founded by a group of experimental psychologists during a meeting in Chicago, Illinois, in December 1959. The main goal was to create a society that would support open communication about psychological science with minimal structure. For: ResearchersTopics: Academia, Biological Psychology, Clinical Psychology, Educational Psychology, General Psychology, Health Psychology, Teaching PsychologyFeatures: Articles, Collaborative News, Community and Social Networking, Group Management, Information, Journals, Links, Research, Societal or Organizational Membership The Society currently consists of approximately 2,000 members and 650 associate members. To be eligible for membership, a person must hold the Ph.D. degree or equivalent, a... PsychSplash blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4610849 Fri, 18 Mar 2011 18:41:34 +0100 4610849 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4592395&cid=t_99079_87_f&fid=39187&url=http%3A%2F%2Fgetbetterhealth.com%2Fa-social-media-guide-for-researchers%2F2011.03.15 I’ve recently come across a great guide about using social media in science. I cover this issue in my university course, Internet in Medicine, and I’ll definitely update my materials with these suggestions. From the Research Information Network: This guide has been produced by the [University of Derby] International Centre for Guidance Studies (iCeGS), and aims to provide the information needed to make an informed decision about using social media and select from the vast range of tools that are available. One of the most important things that researchers do is to find, use and disseminate information, and social media offers a range of tools which can facilitate this. The guide discusses the use of social media for research and academic purposes and will not be examining the many... Better Health blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4592395 Tue, 15 Mar 2011 16:00:09 +0100 4592395 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=5159040&cid=t_99079_90_f&fid=36413&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.dcscience.net%2F%3Fp%3D4188%26utm_source%3Drss%26utm_medium%3Drss%26utm_campaign%3Dyet-more-dangerous-nonsense-inflicted-on-students-by-edinburgh-napier-university As promised in my last post about Edinburgh Napier University, I wrote to the vice-chancellor of the university, Professor Dame Joan K. Stringer DBE, BA (Hons) CertEd PhD CCMI FRSA FRSE, to invite her to respond. 7 February, 2011 Dear Professor Stringer, I should be grateful if you could let me know about your opinion of the degrees that you offer in Aromatherapy and Reflexology I have posted on my blog a bit of the material that was sent to me as result of recent FoI requests. See http://www.dcscience.net/?p=4049 I submit that degrees like this detract from the intellectual respectability of what is, not doubt, in other respects a good university, but since you are mentioned in the post, it’s only fair to give you the chance to defend yourself. In fact you’d be very welc... DC's goodscience blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=5159040 Mon, 14 Mar 2011 15:08:06 +0100 5159040 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4560577&cid=t_99079_149_f&fid=35776&url=http%3A%2F%2Fpipeline.corante.com%2Farchives%2F2011%2F03%2F08%2Fmore_on_the_postdoc_situation.php Here's a good article ("Academia Faces PhD Overload") via Genomeweb on the academic post-doc situation in the sciences, which we were last discussing here. (Thanks to Jonathan Gitlin on Twitter for noting it). That was in response to a Nature News piece calling for more "permanent postdoc" positions, which I doubted would actually happen. But perhaps it is - take a look at this part: Since there aren't enough tenure-track jobs for every PhD who has taken one, two, or even three-plus postdocs, "there's a finite number of postdocs who cannot anymore be a postdoc, and so they [often] stay at the same institution and become appointed to the research faculty," Chalkley says. As a result of the postdoc surplus, "the numbers in the research faculty ranks have increased in the last decade," he a... In the Pipeline blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4560577 Tue, 08 Mar 2011 17:11:10 +0100 4560577 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4545237&cid=t_99079_149_f&fid=35776&url=http%3A%2F%2Fpipeline.corante.com%2Farchives%2F2011%2F03%2F03%2Fa_postdocs_lament.php Here's a call to make something different out of the postdoctoral position. Says Jennifer Rohn in Nature News: ". . .we should professionalize the postdoc role and turn it into a career rather than a scientific stepping stone. Consider the scientific community as an ecosystem, and it is easy to see why postdocs need another path. The system needs only one replacement per lab-head position, but over the course of a 30–40-year career, a typical biologist will train dozens of suitable candidates for the position. The academic opportunities for a mature postdoc some ten years after completing his or her PhD are few and far between. . . The scientific enterprise is run on what economists call the 'tournament' model, with practitioners pitted against one another in bitter pursuit of a very ... In the Pipeline blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4545237 Thu, 03 Mar 2011 13:34:43 +0100 4545237 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4536136&cid=t_99079_109_f&fid=34752&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FPsychsplash%2F%7E3%2FEm0llE1r6X0%2F URL: http://www.psychologicalscience.org/The Association for Psychological Science (previously the American Psychological Society) is a nonprofit organization dedicated to the advancement of scientific psychology and its representation at the national and international level. For: Anyone, ResearchersTopics: ADHD, Academia, Addiction, Anxiety, Attachment, Clinical Psychology, Cognitive Behaviour Therapy, Educational Psychology, General Psychology, General Science, Health and Social Services, Psycho-educationFeatures: Articles, Careers, Collaborative News, Group Management, Journals, Links, Networking, Resources, Societal or Organizational Membership The Association for Psychological Science (previously the American Psychological Society) is a nonprofit organization dedicated to the adva... PsychSplash blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4536136 Tue, 01 Mar 2011 17:00:29 +0100 4536136 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4512605&cid=t_99079_149_f&fid=35776&url=http%3A%2F%2Fpipeline.corante.com%2Farchives%2F2011%2F02%2F23%2Fgonna_focus_on_reengineering_the_tools_for_the_process.php I have tried several times to get my hands around what NIH head Francis Collins is talking about here, but I now admit defeat. Allow me to quote a bit, and we'll see if anyone else out there has more luck: We have seen a deluge of new discoveries in the last few years on the molecular basis of disease. . .(But despite) increasing investments by the private sector, there has been a downturn in the number of approved new molecular entities over the last few years. Also, drug development research remains very expensive and the failure rate is extremely high. Perhaps in part responding to these factors, and to the downturn in the economy, pharmaceutical companies have cut back their investments in research and development. We can't count on the biotech community to step in and fill that void... In the Pipeline blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4512605 Wed, 23 Feb 2011 17:14:14 +0100 4512605 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4433110&cid=t_99079_90_f&fid=36413&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.dcscience.net%2F%3Fp%3D4049 In 2009 I asked Napier University Edinburgh for details of what was taught on its herbal medicine "BSc" course. At first it was refused, but then (as often seems to happen when threatened with exposure) the course was closed, and Napier sent what I’d asked for without waiting for the judgement from the Scottish Information Commissioner, Some samples of the dangerous nonsense that used to be taught on Napier’s herbal medicine course (now closed) have been exposed in “Hot and cold herbal nonsense from Napier University Edinburgh: another course shuts“. That sadly doesn’t mean that Napier has stopped teaching nonsense. It offers a 3 year Honours BA degree in "reflexology" (the only other place in UCAS is the University of Wales Ins... DC's goodscience blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4433110 Thu, 03 Feb 2011 17:54:39 +0100 4433110 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4433138&cid=t_99079_109_f&fid=34752&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FPsychsplash%2F%7E3%2FahyWG7Pa2zQ%2F URL: http://www.hsl.virginia.edu/historical/eugenics/index.cfmFrom psychcentral.com/blog which is highly recommended of course, if you haven’t read them, come many different and various blogs dealing with many facets of psychology. I recently read a blog by Margarita Tartakovsky, M.S., on the psychcentral blog World of Psychology discussing Eugenics and Carrie Buck, who was a woman who was sterilized in 1927 in the State of Virginia because some viewed her and her family as imbeciles and that they should not reproduce. Horrendous as this is, considering no one knows how a person will turn out, regardless of his or her environment or hereditary issues–many “higher ups” in society considered eugenics to be the right thing to do. Read more about eugenics on this websit... PsychSplash blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4433138 Thu, 03 Feb 2011 17:00:05 +0100 4433138 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4424419&cid=t_99079_149_f&fid=35776&url=http%3A%2F%2Fpipeline.corante.com%2Farchives%2F2011%2F02%2F01%2Fthe_nihs_new_drug_discovery_center_heading_into_the_swamp.php I've been meaning to comment on the NIH's new venture into drug discovery, the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences. Curious Wavefunction already has some thoughts here, and I share his concerns. We're both worried about the gene-o-centric views of Francis Collins, for example: Creating the center is a signature effort of Dr. Collins, who once directed the agency’s Human Genome Project. Dr. Collins has been predicting for years that gene sequencing will lead to a vast array of new treatments, but years of effort and tens of billions of dollars in financing by drug makers in gene-related research has largely been a bust. As a result, industry has become far less willing to follow the latest genetic advances with expensive clinical trials. Rather than wait longer, Dr. Col... In the Pipeline blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4424419 Tue, 01 Feb 2011 13:47:38 +0100 4424419 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4411711&cid=t_99079_149_f&fid=35776&url=http%3A%2F%2Fpipeline.corante.com%2Farchives%2F2011%2F01%2F28%2Ffriday_mental_health_break_bad_project.php A reader sent this along to me, and I figured that many folks who are in (or have been through) academia can relate. This is the Hui Zheng lab at Baylor, with their Gaga-esque production of. . .Bad Project: Congratulations to them. It's a good thing that there was no YouTube back when I was in that position, or I might have gotten myself in a lot of trouble. . . (Source: In the Pipeline) In the Pipeline blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4411711 Fri, 28 Jan 2011 14:32:42 +0100 4411711 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4355774&cid=t_99079_109_f&fid=34752&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FPsychsplash%2F%7E3%2FynzHpEzyB1g%2F URL: http://www.efpsa.org/index.php?option=com_wrapper&view=wrapper&Itemid=206The JEPS Bulletin is a blog about scientific writing and publishing. We wish to create a unique platform for learning experience, inspiration and acquisition of skills in the technical and challenging art of writing and publishing good scientific articles primarily in the field of psychology. For: Clinicians, Researchers, Students, TeachersTopics: Academia, General Psychology, General Science, Mental Health, Mental Health Promotion, Psycho-educationFeatures: Articles, Commentary and Blogs, Group Management, Information, Journaling, Journals, Networking, PublishingThe JEPS Bulletin is a blog about scientific writing and publishing. They wish to create a unique platform for learning experience, inspiration and acqu... PsychSplash blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4355774 Sun, 16 Jan 2011 17:00:26 +0100 4355774 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4304919&cid=t_99079_109_f&fid=34752&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FPsychsplash%2F%7E3%2FL8g1uzE0g3g%2F URL: http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/The Online Writing Lab (OWL) at Purdue University houses writing resources and instructional material, and we provide these as a free service of the Writing Lab at Purdue. Students, members of the community, and users worldwide will find information to assist with many writing projects. Teachers and trainers may use this material for in-class and out-of-class instruction. For: StudentsTopics: Academia, TeachingFeatures: Commentary and Blogs, Glossary, Information, Links, Publishing, e-learningThe Online Writing Lab (OWL) at Purdue University houses writing resources and instructional material, and we provide these as a free service of the Writing Lab at Purdue. Students, members of the community, and users worldwide will find information to assist wit... PsychSplash blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4304919 Mon, 03 Jan 2011 17:00:43 +0100 4304919 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4304888&cid=t_99079_90_f&fid=36413&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.dcscience.net%2F%3Fp%3D3919 Times Higher Education published today a version of an earlier post on this blog, Why should a postman pay for your university education?. Although the submtted version was within length, it got shortened and, worse, a bit garbled in places. I got no chance to check the final version. The penultimate paragraph was not written by me. So here, for the record, is what I sent them. .We hear a lot about lifelong education, and a good thing too. But we have a government that seems to think socially-useful learning does end at 18. This age is a watershed in official attitudes to education particularly in two areas, religious discrimination and education as a public good. In 1871 the Universities Tests Act made it illegal for a university to discriminate among applicants on the basis of... DC's goodscience blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4304888 Mon, 03 Jan 2011 09:49:58 +0100 4304888 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4302132&cid=t_99079_90_f&fid=36413&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.dcscience.net%2F%3Fp%3D3891 One of my greatest scientific heros is A.V.Hill, and its one of my great regrets that I saw him only in the distance. He’s a hero partly because of his science, but also because of his other interests, in particular his efforts to help scientists escape from pre-war Germany. Read the Biographical Memoir of Hill, written by Bernard Katz [download pdf], and comments in my obituary for Katz.   A.V. Hill, c. 1935 (drawn by Edward Halliday in 1978, from a photograph)
 There are some amazing pictures from Hill’s photo album here. And you can read an account of a visit to the lab on Boxing Day 1960 written by AV’s grandson, Nicholas Humphrey (his father, John Humphrey, was external examiner ofr my PhD). And Austin Elliott gives some of the scientific backgroun... DC's goodscience blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4302132 Fri, 31 Dec 2010 16:06:58 +0100 4302132 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4266219&cid=t_99079_149_f&fid=35776&url=http%3A%2F%2Fpipeline.corante.com%2Farchives%2F2010%2F12%2F15%2Fchemistry_jobs_roundtable_what_about_tenure.php The latest post in the week-long blog roundtable on chemistry jobs is up over at Chembark, and it looks at the academic side: is tenure useful? If so, do its disadvantages outweigh the benefits? What would happen if we ditched it (and could we)? (Source: In the Pipeline) In the Pipeline blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4266219 Wed, 15 Dec 2010 14:50:36 +0100 4266219 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4253151&cid=t_99079_90_f&fid=36413&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.dcscience.net%2F%3Fp%3D3829 Jump to follow-up We hear a lot about lifelong education, and a good thing too. But we have a government that seems to think life ends at 18. The contrast between official attitudes to schools and post-school education is striking. The contrast is most striking in two areas: religious discrimination and public support for costs. Religous discriminatiion and selection The Universities Tests Act was passed on 18 June 1871, while William Gladstone (Liberal) was Prime minister. It was "An Act to alter the law respecting Religious Tests in the Universities of Oxford, Cambridge, and Durham, and in the Halls and Colleges of those Universities". Of course UCL was founded in 1826, partly as a place that was free of religious discrimination. Since 1871 it has been illegal for a university ... DC's goodscience blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4253151 Sat, 11 Dec 2010 18:23:18 +0100 4253151 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4251115&cid=t_99079_90_f&fid=36413&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.dcscience.net%2F%3Fp%3D3829 Jump to follow-up We hear a lot about lifelong education, and a good thing too. But we have a government that seems to think life ends at 18. The contrast between official attitudes to schools and post-school education is striking. The contrast is most striking in two areas: religious discrimination and public support for costs. Religous discriminatiion and selection The Universities Tests Act was passed on 18 June 1871, while William Gladstone (Liberal) was Prime minister. It was "An Act to alter the law respecting Religious Tests in the Universities of Oxford, Cambridge, and Durham, and in the Halls and Colleges of those Universities". Of course UCL was founded in 1826, partly as a place that was free of religious discrimination. Since 1871 it has been illegal for a university ... DC's goodscience blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4251115 Sat, 11 Dec 2010 18:23:18 +0100 4251115 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4251149&cid=t_99079_109_f&fid=34752&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FPsychsplash%2F%7E3%2FXKDEZYnC2i8%2F URL: https://netforum.avectra.com/eWeb/StartPage.aspx?Site=USPRAIn 1975, the U.S. Psychiatric Rehabilitation Association (USPRA) and its members developed and defined the practice of psychosocial/ psychiatric rehabilitation, establishing these services as integral to community-based treatment and leading the recovery movement. Today, with nearly 1,400 members, USPRA is the preeminent association advancing the practice of psychiatric rehabilitation and recovery. For: Anyone, ConsumersTopics: Academia, Common Factors, Foundation Website, Health and Social Services, Life, Medico-Legal, Mental Health Promotion, Quality of Life, Social SupportFeatures: Collaborative News, Community and Social Networking, Group Management, Information, Links, Networking, Newsletter, Societal or Organizational Me... PsychSplash blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4251149 Sat, 11 Dec 2010 17:00:55 +0100 4251149 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4245355&cid=t_99079_109_f&fid=34752&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FPsychsplash%2F%7E3%2Fxqu7BwTHc8w%2F URL: http://www.no2abuse.com/No2abuse combines every aspect of family injustice under one roof. This site offers support for survivors of abuse as well as families going through the Family Courts; there are articles by victims of abuse and professionals who have experienced the Family Courts and the State’s approach in general to the family unit. For: Anyone, Consumers, StudentsTopics: Academia, Anger, Anxiety, Behaviour Management, Child and Adolescent, Depression, Educational Psychology, Emotional Health, General Psychology, Health and Social Services, Life, Parenting, Trauma, YouthFeatures: Articles, Case Studies, Clinical Tools, Collaborative News, Commentary and Blogs, Community and Social Networking, Information, Links, RSS FeedsNo2abuse combines every aspect of family injustice un... PsychSplash blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4245355 Thu, 09 Dec 2010 17:00:10 +0100 4245355 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4230165&cid=t_99079_90_f&fid=36413&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.dcscience.net%2F%3Fp%3D3789 Research quangos lead to mediocrity is the headline title of a letter to The Times appeared on 6 December 2010. It is reproduced below for those who can’t (or won’t) pay Rupert Murdoch to see it. The letter is about the current buzzword, "research impact", a term that trips off the lips of every administrator and politician daily. Since much research is funded by the taxpayer, it seems reasonable to ask if it gives value for money. The best answer can be found in St Paul’s cathedral. The plaque for Christopher Wren bears the epitaph LECTOR, SI MONUMENTUM REQUIRIS, CIRCUMSPICE. Reader, if you seek his memorial – look around you. Much the same could be said for the impact of any science. Look at your refrigerator, your mobile phone, your computer, your cent... DC's goodscience blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4230165 Sun, 05 Dec 2010 22:28:13 +0100 4230165 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4214130&cid=t_99079_90_f&fid=36413&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.dcscience.net%2F%3Fp%3D3778 The press may like to portray students as irresponsible revolting . When I visited the occupied Jeremy Bentham room last week, i got a very different impression. That was more than confirmed yesterday (29 November). The students aren’t just sitting around grumbling. They have organised a very impressive series of events. Here is yesterday’s programme. I volunteered to discuss with them some ideas of what could be done to further their aims. It was the same day that our letter came out in the Daily Telegraph, that pointed out the foolishness of deciding on funding before deciding what form universities should have in the future, I also suggested some possible changes along the lines of those proposed in the Times in October. I didn’t talk for long and th... DC's goodscience blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4214130 Tue, 30 Nov 2010 14:46:48 +0100 4214130 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4214185&cid=t_99079_109_f&fid=34504&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.blacktriangle.org%2Fblog%2F%3Fp%3D2163 The safety of newly marketed drugs is always provisional, based on the relatively limited population the drugs are used in prior to marketing. The number of subjects who take a drug in clinical trials is large enough to detect efficacy, but too small to detect rare, but serious, adverse events. In addition, the patients are [...] (Source: Black Triangle) Black Triangle blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4214185 Tue, 30 Nov 2010 09:43:21 +0100 4214185 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4214193&cid=t_99079_109_f&fid=34752&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FPsychsplash%2F%7E3%2FzbZFkpmpl_0%2F URL: http://www.thearc.org/page.aspx?pid=2530We are the largest national community-based organization advocating for and serving people with intellectual and developmental disabilities and their families. We encompass all ages and all spectrums from autism, Down syndrome, Fragile X and various other developmental disabilities. For: Anyone, ConsumersTopics: ADHD, Academia, Aspergers, Common Factors, Developmental, Foundation Website, Health Promotion, Mental Health Promotion, Quality of Life, Social SupportFeatures: Articles, Collaborative News, Commentary and Blogs, Community and Social Networking, Group Management, Information, Links, Networking, Societal or Organizational MembershipWe are the largest national community-based organization advocating for and serving people with intellectua... PsychSplash blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4214193 Mon, 29 Nov 2010 17:00:15 +0100 4214193 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4207499&cid=t_99079_149_f&fid=35776&url=http%3A%2F%2Fpipeline.corante.com%2Farchives%2F2010%2F11%2F29%2Fdesign_your_own_lab_course.php Here's an interesting question from a reader in academia. At his institution, they're thinking about rewriting the introductory organic lab syllabus. "Rather than put what the faculty would like to see in it", he writes, "what would your readers like to see in it?" The questions he raises include these: What organic chemistry lab basics should non-majors be sure to get? And which ones should the chemistry majors have for their advanced courses to build on? What kinds of experiments should be included (and what classics are ready to be dropped?) And which sort of lab curriculum trains people better - the "discovery"-oriented type, or the "cookbook" type? Add your thoughts in the comments below. I don't know what specific experiments are common in undergraduate labs these days, so I'll let... In the Pipeline blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4207499 Mon, 29 Nov 2010 13:23:14 +0100 4207499 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4207295&cid=t_99079_90_f&fid=36413&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.dcscience.net%2F%3Fp%3D3761 One problem with the Browne report is that it didn’t consider the whole picture. It looked only at how to fund universities as they are now, and concluded that arts and humanities weren’t worth funding at all. What it failed to do (and to be fair, it wasn’t asked to do) was think what universities should be like. Perhaps that is just as well, given Browne’s views, but it means that the job is only half done. I have argued that the present system, which was essentially dictated by John Major’s conservative government, is simply not working for an age when 45 percent of kids go into higher education. It makes no sense to decide on a funding mechanism before deciding what sort of university system we want. Michael Collins is a lecturer in 20th Century history at... DC's goodscience blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4207295 Mon, 29 Nov 2010 06:55:23 +0100 4207295 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4167972&cid=t_99079_90_f&fid=36413&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.dcscience.net%2F%3Fp%3D3675 Jump to follow-up The mainstream media eventually catch up with bloggers. BBC1 TV (Wales) produced an excellent TV programme that exposed the enormous degree validation scam run by the University of Wales. It also exposed the uselessness of the Quality Assurance Agency (QAA). Both these things have been written about repeatedly here for some years. It was good to see them getting wider publicity. Watch the video of the BBC programme, "Week In Week Out – University Challenged." “The programme examines how pop stars and evangelical Christians are running colleges offering courses validated by the University of Wales.” (I make a brief appearance, talking about validation of degrees in Chinese Medicine). In October 2008 I posted Another worthless validation: the Un... DC's goodscience blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4167972 Mon, 15 Nov 2010 20:45:22 +0100 4167972 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4155383&cid=t_99079_149_f&fid=35776&url=http%3A%2F%2Fpipeline.corante.com%2Farchives%2F2010%2F11%2F11%2Fand_one_was_just_right.php I've been reading an interesting new paper from Stuart Schreiber's research group(s) in PNAS. But I'm not sure if the authors and I would agree on the reasons that it's interesting. This is another in the series that Schreiber has been writing on high-throughput screening and diversity-oriented synthesis (DOS). As mentioned here before, I have trouble getting my head around the whole DOS concept, so perhaps that's the root of my problems with this latest paper. In many ways, it's a companion to one that was published earlier this year in JACS. In that paper, he made the case that natural products aren't quite the right fit for drug screening, which fit with an earlier paper that made a similar claim for small-molecule collections. Natural products, the JACS paper said, were too optimized ... In the Pipeline blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4155383 Thu, 11 Nov 2010 12:29:33 +0100 4155383 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4152224&cid=t_99079_149_f&fid=35776&url=http%3A%2F%2Fpipeline.corante.com%2Farchives%2F2010%2F11%2F09%2Fwhere_drugs_come_from_by_country.php The same paper I was summarizing the other day has some interesting data on the 1998-2007 drug approvals, broken down by country and region of origin. The first thing to note is that the distribution by country tracks, quite closely, the corresponding share of the worldwide drug market. The US discovered nearly half the drugs approved during that period, and accounts for roughly that amount of the market, for example. But there are two big exceptions: the UK and Switzerland, which both outperform for their size. In case you're wondering, the league tables look like this: the US leads in the discovery of approved drugs, by a wide margin (118 out of the 252 drugs). Then Japan, the UK and Germany are about equal, in the low 20s each. Switzerland is in next at 13, France at 12, and then the r... In the Pipeline blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4152224 Tue, 09 Nov 2010 12:26:46 +0100 4152224 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4142810&cid=t_99079_109_f&fid=34752&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FPsychsplash%2F%7E3%2F-ZulUEykm1k%2F URL: http://www.myh.org.uk/In this time of uncertain time for Muslims (and other cultures), the Muslim Youth Helpline (MYH) is a registered charity which provides pioneering faith and culturally sensitive services to Muslim youth. For: Anyone, Consumers, Anyone, ConsumersTopics: Anger, Anxiety, Attachment, Behaviour Management, Child and Adolescent, Clinical Psychology, Depression, Emotional Health, Health and Social Services, Lifestyle, Mental Health, Mental Health Promotion, Pediatric Depression, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, Quality of Life, Self-help, Youth, Academia, Addiction, Attachment, Clinical Psychology, Common Factors, Depression, Emotional Health, General Psychology, Lifestyle, Personality, Trauma, YouthFeatures: Collaborative News, Group Management, Information, Journals, L... PsychSplash blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4142810 Sat, 06 Nov 2010 17:00:41 +0100 4142810 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4134197&cid=t_99079_149_f&fid=35776&url=http%3A%2F%2Fpipeline.corante.com%2Farchives%2F2010%2F11%2F04%2Fwhere_drugs_come_from_the_numbers.php We can now answer the question: "Where do new drugs come from?". Well, we can answer it for the period from 1998 on, at any rate. A new paper in Nature Reviews Drug Discovery takes on all 252 drugs approved by the FDA from then through 2007, and traces each of them back to their origins. What's more, each drug is evaluated by how much unmet medical need it was addressed to and how scientifically innovative it was. Clearly, there's going to be room for some argument in any study of this sort, but I'm very glad to have it, nonetheless. Credit where credit's due: who's been discovering the most drugs, and who's been discovering the best ones? First, the raw numbers. In the 1997-2005 period, the 252 drugs break down as follows. Note that some drugs have been split up, with partial credit bein... In the Pipeline blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4134197 Thu, 04 Nov 2010 11:45:34 +0100 4134197 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4118955&cid=t_99079_90_f&fid=36413&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.dcscience.net%2F%3Fp%3D3632 Jump to follow-up The Prince of Wales’ Foundation for Integrated Health shut down amidst scandal in April 2010. In July, we heard that a new “College of Medicine” was to arise from its ashes. It seemed clear from the people involved that the name “College of Medicine” would be deceptive. Now the College of Medicine has materialised, and it is clear that one’s worst fears were well justified. At first sight, it looks entirely plausible and well-meaning. Below the logo one reads “There is a new force in medicine. A force that brings patients, doctors, nurses and other health professionals together, instead of separating them into tribes.” "That force is the new College of Medicine. Uniquely, it brings doctors and other health professiona... DC's goodscience blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4118955 Fri, 29 Oct 2010 15:41:37 +0100 4118955 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4097955&cid=t_99079_90_f&fid=36413&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.dcscience.net%2F%3Fp%3D3595 This is part 2 of a critique of Steiner Waldorf schools. Part 1 was The true nature of Steiner (Waldorf) education. Mystical barmpottery at taxpayers’ expense. Part 1 This essay is largely devoted to the methods used by the Steiner movement in the hope of getting state funding. That involves concealing from ministers and inspectors some of the less desirable aspects of the cult. That is sadly easy to do, because ministers and inspectors usually use a tick box approach that can easily be corrupted (just have a look, for example, at what goes on at the University of Wales). It is a classical case of bait and switch, a method that was used by chiropractors and acupuncturists to pervert the normally high standards of NICE. The technique is standard in alternative medicine, as described ... DC's goodscience blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4097955 Thu, 21 Oct 2010 22:07:25 +0100 4097955 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4060602&cid=t_99079_90_f&fid=36413&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.dcscience.net%2F%3Fp%3D3564 The proposals made here are intended to improve postgraduate education with little harm to undergraduate education and no extra cost. It is not intended to get the government off the hook when it comes to funding of either teaching or research. The recent Royal Society report, The Scientific Century: securing our future prosperity, makes it very clear that research funding in the UK is already low. There is a good summary of the financial case at Science is Vital. Even before cuts the UK invested only 1.8% of its GDP in R&D in 2007. This is short of the UK’s own target of 2.5%, and further behind the EU target of 3.8%. If you haven’t already, sign their petition. The article reproduced here is the original 800-word version of proposals made already on this... DC's goodscience blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4060602 Tue, 12 Oct 2010 05:00:18 +0100 4060602 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4045146&cid=t_99079_109_f&fid=34752&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FPsychsplash%2F%7E3%2Fq62ezthbRiQ%2F URL: http://www.academyanalyticarts.org/The Academy’s mission is to advance the study of psychoanalytic epistemology, theory, practice, ethics and education within a psychological framework consisting of philosophy, the arts and the anthropic sciences as opposed to biology, medicine and the natural sciences. For: Clinicians, ResearchersTopics: Academia, Behaviour Management, Clinical Psychology, Educational Psychology, General Psychology, Mental Health, PsychodynamicFeatures: Articles, Clinical Tools, Collaborative News, Forums, Group Management, Information, Links, Public Events, Resources, Societal or Organizational MembershipThe Academy’s mission is to advance the study of psychoanalytic epistemology, theory, practice, ethics and education within a psychologi... PsychSplash blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4045146 Fri, 08 Oct 2010 17:00:40 +0100 4045146 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4040616&cid=t_99079_109_f&fid=34752&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FPsychsplash%2F%7E3%2Fsj3zNtTCaZY%2F URL: http://askdrlove.com/AskDrLove was one of the first relationship sites on the Web in 1995. For: AnyoneTopics: Academia, Attachment, Clinical Psychology, Emotional Health, Life, Lifestyle, Optimism, Private Practice, Quality of Life, Self-helpFeatures: Articles, Commentary and Blogs, Information, Links, Question and Answer ServiceAskDrLove was one of the first relationship sites on the Web in 1995. Created by Dr. Jamie Turndorf, author of the critically acclaimed book “Till Death Do Us Part (unless I kill you first): A Step-By Step Guide For Resolving Relationship Conflict,” which has been endorsed by such luminaries as John Gray, author of “Men Are From Mars, Women are From Venus”.  Since 1995 she has been freely answering advice questions every week, amassing... PsychSplash blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4040616 Thu, 07 Oct 2010 17:00:42 +0100 4040616 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4036653&cid=t_99079_90_f&fid=36413&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.dcscience.net%2F%3Fp%3D3528 I have to admit that until a few years ago I had thought of Steiner schools as being rather cuddly experiments in progressive education. Perhaps a bit like Montessori schools or A.S. Neill’s Summerhill School. But then I discovered that they advocate "biodynamic farming". That includes utterly barmy doctrines about how the phase of the moon affects crops and such like astrological baloney (as well as some possibly sensible stuff about compost). Then I had a series of mails from a correspondent that made me realise that Steiner schools have some much more unpleasant ideas than a bit of astrological baloney, including the dangerous ideas about anthroposophical medicine. Faceless dolls used in Steiner schools. Waldorfwatch comments "In part, the goal is to stimulate c... DC's goodscience blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4036653 Wed, 06 Oct 2010 20:32:43 +0100 4036653 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4027166&cid=t_99079_90_f&fid=36413&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.dcscience.net%2F%3Fp%3D3516 Conclusions: The daily supplementation of vitamins B12, B6, and folic acid does not benefit cognitive function in older men, nor does it reduce the risk of cognitive impairment or dementia.” Disgracefully, this paper has hardly been reported at all. It is an excellent example of how the public is misled because of the reluctance of the media to publish negative results. Sadly that reluctance is sometimes also shown by academic journals, but not in this case. Two things went wrong, The first was near-universal failure to evaluate critically the Smith et al paper. The second was to ignore the paper that measured what actually matters. It isn’t as though there wasn’t a bit of relevant history, Prof Smith was one of the scientific advisors for Patrick Holford’s Food for... DC's goodscience blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4027166 Sun, 03 Oct 2010 18:00:35 +0100 4027166 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4018194&cid=t_99079_99_f&fid=34589&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2Fscienceblogs%2Faetiology%2F%7E3%2F0Ajz0piYLvI%2Fwomen_and_veterinary_medicine.php The Dog Zombie has an interesting post discussing women in vet med--and why there are so many. She notes that her school is only 12% male, versus more of an even distribution in med schools, and the recent discussion of gender imbalance in science blogging. This is interesting to me, as my personal vet is male, as are almost all of the vets we collaborate with for our research. Of course, the gender distribution of veterinarians in academia may well be more gender-balanced (or even male-skewed) than those currently in vet school or recently graduated. DZ posits some possible reasons for this divide: -Vet med is often seen as a caretaking profession, something that may appeal strongly to more women than men. -Why vet med and not human med? One difference is that vet med pays a lot less.... Aetiology blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4018194 Thu, 30 Sep 2010 14:00:00 +0100 4018194 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4013262&cid=t_99079_109_f&fid=34752&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FPsychsplash%2F%7E3%2Fugg0sXF6bZI%2F URL: http://www.hopetocope.com/A colorful magazine on how to deal with anxiety and depression. For: Anyone, Clinicians, Consumers, Anyone, ConsumersTopics: General Psychology, Life, Mental Health, Mental Health Promotion, Personality, Personality disorders, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, Academia, Anxiety, Clinical Psychology, DepressionFeatures: Advertising, Articles, Collaborative News, Community and Social Networking, Conferences, Forums, Information, Links, Societal or Organizational Membership, Advertising, Articles, Collaborative News, Commentary and Blogs, Information, Interviews, Links, Multimedia, RSS Feeds, e-learning A colorful magazine on how to deal with anxiety and depression.  Communicate with others about your depression and/or anxiety and you can be included in a new... PsychSplash blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4013262 Tue, 28 Sep 2010 17:00:48 +0100 4013262 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4003274&cid=t_99079_99_f&fid=34589&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2Fscienceblogs%2Faetiology%2F%7E3%2FD1Ho6-LChRs%2Fmoving_science_communication_i.php Mike and David Dobbs both have great posts up discussing "whither rewards for scientists who communicate to the public?" This ended up being one of the themes of my recent SciencePub talk in Columbus--what are the incentives--and disincentives--to scientists for bringing their work to the public at large, rather than simply publishing in journals? Read the rest of this post... | Read the comments on this post... (Source: Aetiology) Aetiology blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4003274 Mon, 27 Sep 2010 14:00:00 +0100 4003274 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4002968&cid=t_99079_109_f&fid=34752&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FPsychsplash%2F%7E3%2F7MUUlX0DTdk%2F URL: http://www.hopetocope.com/A colorful magazine on how to deal with anxiety and depression. For: Anyone, ConsumersTopics: Academia, Anxiety, Clinical Psychology, DepressionFeatures: Advertising, Articles, Collaborative News, Commentary and Blogs, Information, Interviews, Links, Multimedia, RSS Feeds, e-learningA colorful magazine on how to deal with anxiety and depression.  Communicate with others about your depression and/or anxiety and you can be included in a new issue.  Read the current issue online, or subscribe to the magazine. (Source: PsychSplash) PsychSplash blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4002968 Mon, 27 Sep 2010 02:06:48 +0100 4002968 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3969044&cid=t_99079_109_f&fid=34504&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.blacktriangle.org%2Fblog%2F%3Fp%3D2111 An interesting paper in PLOS Medicine on media reporting of medical news. Wilson et al examined medical news stories written by specialist and non-specialist journalists in Australia from 2004–08. They found specialist health reporters produced higher quality articles than general reporters, and broad sheets performed better than tabloids. They suggest: It does matter who writes news [...] (Source: Black Triangle) Black Triangle blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3969044 Tue, 14 Sep 2010 22:07:29 +0100 3969044 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3965438&cid=t_99079_90_f&fid=36413&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.dcscience.net%2F%3Fp%3D3443 Vince Cable, the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, said on the Radio 4 Today programme on September 8th 2010 “There was some estimate on the basis of surveys done recently that something in the order of 45 per cent of the research grants that were going through was to research that was not of excellent standard. So the bar will have to be raised.” The suggestion that 45 percent of research is mediocre provoked a storm, first on Twitter, than in blogs. One of the earlier blogs was In one day, Vince Cable has become an object of ridicule and loathing  Those that followed were scarcely more flattering. The number he quoted was simply wrong. Unravelling Cable says "when the text of the speech was released, I was shocked by what it revealed about t... DC's goodscience blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3965438 Mon, 13 Sep 2010 16:07:59 +0100 3965438 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3935825&cid=t_99079_109_f&fid=34752&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FPsychsplash%2F%7E3%2FhmDWyIEvhcM%2F URL: http://www.quackwatch.com/Quackwatch has grown considerably. To help visitors with special areas of interest, we maintain 22 additional sites for autism, chiropractic, dentistry, multilevel marketing, and many other hot topics. For: AnyoneTopics: Academia, Behaviour Management, Bipolar, Chronic Disease, Clinical Decision Making, Clinical Psychology, Counselling, Depression, Diagnosis, General Psychology, General Science, Health Promotion, Health and Social Services, Life, Lifestyle, Medicine, Mental Health, Mental Health Promotion, Self-helpFeatures: Articles, Case Studies, Clinical Tools, Collaborative News, Community and Social Networking, Group Management, Information, Links, Networking, Newsletter, Research, Research Tools, ResourcesQuackwatch has grown considerably. To help visit... PsychSplash blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3935825 Sun, 05 Sep 2010 17:00:04 +0100 3935825 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3911707&cid=t_99079_90_f&fid=36413&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.dcscience.net%2F%3Fp%3D3385 Systems biology is all the rage, No surprise then, to see the University of Westminster advertising a job for a systems biologist in the The Department of Molecular and Applied Biosciences. Well, no surprise there -until you read the small print. Much has been wriiten here about the University of Westminster, which remains the biggest provider of junk sciencne degrees in the UK, despite having closed two of them. Senior Lecturer in Systems Biology University of Westminster – Department of Molecular and Applied Biosciences, School of Life Sciences Cavendish Site Salary £37,886 – £50,751 (Inc. LWA) The Department of Molecular and Applied Biosciences wishes to appoint a Senior Lecturer in Systems Biology. The post-holder will teach on the undergraduate and pos... DC's goodscience blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3911707 Fri, 27 Aug 2010 11:52:20 +0100 3911707 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3907603&cid=t_99079_87_f&fid=39187&url=http%3A%2F%2Fgetbetterhealth.com%2Fpeer-review-and-the-internet%2F2010.08.26 Peer review has been the cornerstone of quality control in academia, including science and medicine, for the past century. The process is slow and laborious, but a necessary filter in order to maintain a certain standard within the literature. Yet more and more scholars are recognizing the speed, immediacy, and openness of the Internet as a tool for exchanging ideas and information, and this is causing some to question the methods of peer review. A recent New York Times article discusses this issue. This issue is very relevant to Science-Based Medicine (SBM) as this is in part an experiment –- an attempt to produce a high quality, editorially filtered, but not peer-reviewed, online journal. Our process here is simple. Outside submissions are reviewed by two or more editors and typically ... Better Health blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3907603 Thu, 26 Aug 2010 14:00:22 +0100 3907603 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3865280&cid=t_99079_99_f&fid=34589&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2Fscienceblogs%2Faetiology%2F%7E3%2FxcOubV7WGzY%2Fadditional_thoughts_on_bible-f.php PZ has some additional thoughts on the Bibleflugate retraction up at Pharyngula. Choice quote: This is a serious concern, to my mind. Scientists are expected to be open and communicative about their work, explaining all the details about how we achieve our results. Yet then we hand that work over to a publisher (usually a for-profit organization), where it is subjected to an arcane process cloaked in mystery that they call peer review. And every once in a while, some strange fluke exposes the inherently arbitrary and chaotic nature of that process, everyone asks "how the hell did that get published?", and some guy in a business suit steps out to unconvincingly tell us "oops" and reassure us that all is well in the machineries of their journal. I don't think it's enough. If a publisher wa... Aetiology blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3865280 Fri, 13 Aug 2010 17:46:00 +0100 3865280 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3865307&cid=t_99079_109_f&fid=34752&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FPsychsplash%2F%7E3%2FdoH909dlaOk%2F URL: http://www.mentalnurse.org/A very interesting and funny mental health blog, resources guide, and forum website. For: Anyone, CliniciansTopics: Academia, Attachment, Counselling, General Psychology, Lifestyle, Mental Health, Psycho-educationFeatures: Articles, Commentary and Blogs, Forums, Information, Links, ResourcesA very interesting and funny mental health blog, resources guide,  and forum website.  Especially open to all those who are all involved in any form of mental health nursing. (Source: PsychSplash) PsychSplash blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3865307 Fri, 13 Aug 2010 17:00:49 +0100 3865307 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3754094&cid=t_99079_154_f&fid=36427&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FABlogAroundTheClock%2F%7E3%2FY1FY9sJ2rkg%2Fuc_berkeley_genetic_testing_af.php The objectives of the project are clearly stated to be educational. From the On the Same Page website: "we decided that involving students directly and personally in an assessment of genetic characteristics of personal relevance would capture their imaginations and lead to a deeper learning experience." Okay, that sounds like the same reasons teachers and professors choose to do many activities. Sounds like science education. But what about the tools? Testing students' blood type or blood pressure uses tools commonly available in high school labs (or even at the drug store). The tools used here though are not commonly available - these samples are being sent to a laboratory for analysis. Participants don't therefore have a shared perspective that these are the tools of education. They see... A Blog Around The Clock blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3754094 Wed, 14 Jul 2010 20:13:36 +0100 3754094 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3750098&cid=t_99079_109_f&fid=34752&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FPsychsplash%2F%7E3%2FJ-aRD8iOAg8%2F URL: http://www.coolnurse.com/This site is a guide to assist in making intelligent, informed decisions. Teens are often quite afraid and nervous when it comes to asking questions about their bodies, and their sexuality. Cool Nurse is helpful without being condescending or authoritative. Very good, interesting site, especially for teens! For: Anyone, Consumers, StudentsTopics: Academia, Behaviour Management, Child and Adolescent, Eating Disorders, Emotional Health, Family Therapy, Life, Self-help, Sexual Assault, YouthFeatures: Community and Social Networking, Databases, Information, Links, e-learning Cool Nurse was created to help today’s teen and young adult achieve and maintain a high level of health, fitness and well-being. Teenagers need to know the latest ... PsychSplash blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3750098 Tue, 13 Jul 2010 17:00:16 +0100 3750098 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3718708&cid=t_99079_154_f&fid=36427&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FABlogAroundTheClock%2F%7E3%2Fp-2q9b4NDyc%2Fseven_questionswith_yours_trul.php Last week, my SciBling Jason Goldman interviewed me for his blog. The questions were not so much about blogging, journalism, Open Access and PLoS (except a little bit at the end) but more about science - how I got into it, what are my grad school experiences, what I think about doing research on animals, and such stuff. Jason posted the interview here, on his blog, on Friday, and he also let me repost it here on my blog as well, under the fold: Read the rest of this post... | Read the comments on this post... (Source: A Blog Around The Clock) A Blog Around The Clock blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3718708 Thu, 01 Jul 2010 16:09:30 +0100 3718708 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3699720&cid=t_99079_154_f&fid=36427&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FABlogAroundTheClock%2F%7E3%2FIO35uxKvoqg%2Fi_got_interviewed.php ....by my SciBling, Jason Goldman at The Thoughtful Animal blog. But this time, it is very little about blogging or Open Access publishing or science journalism, except at the very end. This interview is more about my experience in the academia - how I got into grad school, how I survived it, how and why I left research, the How and Why questions of using animals in research, and more. I know it's long, but I hope you read and comment - go ahead and click right here and read it right now! ;-) Read the comments on this post... (Source: A Blog Around The Clock) A Blog Around The Clock blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3699720 Fri, 25 Jun 2010 19:14:52 +0100 3699720 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3690895&cid=t_99079_109_f&fid=34752&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FPsychsplash%2F%7E3%2FUTzycSrIkfQ%2F URL: http://www.merck.com/mmpe/sec15.html?WT.z_section=Psychiatric%20%20DisordersMerck has created The Merck Manuals, a series of health care books for medical professionals and consumers. As a service to the community, the content of The Manuals is now available in enhanced online versions as part of The Merck Manuals Online Medical Library. For: Clinicians, Researchers, Students, TeachersTopics: Academia, General PsychologyFeatures: Clinical Tools, Databases, Glossary, Information, Symptoms Guides, e-learning, ebook Merck has created The Merck Manuals, a series of health care books for medical professionals and consumers. As a service to the community, the content of The Manuals is now available in enhanced online versions as part of The Merck Manuals Online Medical Library. The Onli... PsychSplash blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3690895 Wed, 23 Jun 2010 23:26:49 +0100 3690895 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3687108&cid=t_99079_90_f&fid=36413&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.dcscience.net%2F%3Fp%3D3200 Western herbal medicine need not be mystical nonsense, but it usually it is,  Plants often contain chemicals that have pharmacological actions, with all the possibilities for good and for harm that implies (see Plants as medicines).  It would be quite possible to teach about the plant constituents and their actions in an entirely scientific way, but it seems that this is not what courses in herbal medicine choose to do.  That is why they shouldn’t be called Bachelor of Science degrees. We have recently revealed the ancient nonsense taught at Middlesex University in its "BSc (Hons)" degree in Traditional Chinese Medicine in Dangerous Chinese medicine taught at Middlesex University as well as similar dangerous gobbledygook from the University of Westminster:... DC's goodscience blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3687108 Tue, 22 Jun 2010 18:17:47 +0100 3687108 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3687165&cid=t_99079_109_f&fid=34752&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FPsychsplash%2F%7E3%2FXCPGD0tfDkU%2F URL: http://psychclassics.yorku.ca/Classics in the History of Psychology is an effort to make the full texts of a large number of historically significant public domain documents from the scholarly literature of psychology and allied disciplines available on the World Wide Web. There are now over 25 books and about 200 articles and chapters on-line. The site also contains links to over 200 relevant works posted at other sites. For: AnyoneTopics: Academia, Clinical Psychology, Cognitive Behaviour Therapy, Educational Psychology, General Psychology, General Science, Health Psychology, Health and Social Services, History of Psychology, Psychology and the Media, Teaching, Teaching PsychologyFeatures: Articles, Author Lists, Information, Research, e-learning, ebookClassics in the History of Psy... PsychSplash blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3687165 Tue, 22 Jun 2010 17:00:12 +0100 3687165 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3683898&cid=t_99079_154_f&fid=36427&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FABlogAroundTheClock%2F%7E3%2FjzkO6aL2BRM%2Fsexy_science_good_science_and.php Apparently, someone published a really curmudgeonly and regressive-thinking article about science publishing in The Chronicle of Higher Education, titled We Must Stop the Avalanche of Low-Quality Research. Commenters there are shredding it apart. But you should also see blog posts discussing it, by Female Science Professor, DrugMonkey, Orac and Geekmommyprof. If anything, they do not fisk it thoroughly enough ;-) Read the comments on this post... (Source: A Blog Around The Clock) A Blog Around The Clock blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3683898 Mon, 21 Jun 2010 19:11:45 +0100 3683898 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3632448&cid=t_99079_154_f&fid=36427&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FABlogAroundTheClock%2F%7E3%2FHHJ7KzE5Ghk%2Fwhat_is_the_real_purpose_of_a.php Read the comments on this post... (Source: A Blog Around The Clock) A Blog Around The Clock blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3632448 Sat, 05 Jun 2010 02:21:55 +0100 3632448 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3625508&cid=t_99079_90_f&fid=36413&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.dcscience.net%2F%3Fp%3D3120 I was asked recently to write a reply to an article about "research managers" for the magazine Research Fortnight. This is a magazine that carries news of research and has a very useful list of potential research funding agencies. The article to which I was asked to respond originally had the title “Researchers and Research Managers, a match made in heaven?“, before the subeditors got hold of it. It was written by Simon Kerridge, who is secretary of the Association for Research Managers and Administrators The printed version of his article can be downloaded here, and the printed version of my response here. My response, as submitted, is below with live links. This invitation came at a strangely appropriate time, just at the moment that every unversity is having serio... DC's goodscience blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3625508 Thu, 03 Jun 2010 06:01:00 +0100 3625508 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3614570&cid=t_99079_109_f&fid=34752&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FPsychsplash%2F%7E3%2FI-c5C54LcfY%2F URL: https://www.bullyhelp.org/dev/counselor/login.phpStudents– If you or someone you know needs help in a bullying situation, you’ve found a safe resource to get it to them. If your school hasn’t signed up yet, click on “recommend” and we’ll contact them to do so. Otherwise, click on “report” to submit a report now, or “check report” to get updates on a previously submitted report. For: Anyone, StudentsTopics: Academia, Anxiety, Behaviour Management, Child and Adolescent, Depression, Educational Psychology, Emotional Health, Lifestyle, Quality of Life, Relationships, Self-harm and suicide, Social Psychology, Solution Focused, Strengths Based, Teaching, Teaching Psychology, Trauma, Youth, telephone counsellingFeatures: Community and S... PsychSplash blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3614570 Sun, 30 May 2010 17:00:56 +0100 3614570 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3612074&cid=t_99079_154_f&fid=36427&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FABlogAroundTheClock%2F%7E3%2FlqiI9zOMvYM%2Fis_starting_a_science_career_a.php Read the comments on this post... (Source: A Blog Around The Clock) A Blog Around The Clock blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3612074 Sat, 29 May 2010 18:03:32 +0100 3612074 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3611939&cid=t_99079_109_f&fid=34752&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FPsychsplash%2F%7E3%2FToT9Pefn2Ho%2F URL: http://www.youtube.com/user/psychetruthI make internet videos of things I am interested in, including but not limited to, health, alternative health, art, comparative religion, science, mental health reform, philosophy or anything else I want to know about. I like knowing stuff. I think you should like knowing stuff too. For: AnyoneTopics: Abnormal, Academia, Addiction, Behaviour Management, Biological Psychology, Bipolar, Clinical Psychology, Cognitive Behaviour Therapy, Counselling, Depression, Eating Disorders, Educational Psychology, General Psychology, Lifestyle, Mental Health, Mental Health Promotion, Psychology and Technology, Psychology and the MediaFeatures: Collaborative News, Commentary and Blogs, Community and Social Networking, Links, Multimedia, e-learningPsyche = Mind, ... PsychSplash blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3611939 Sat, 29 May 2010 17:00:58 +0100 3611939 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3577605&cid=t_99079_149_f&fid=35776&url=http%3A%2F%2Fpipeline.corante.com%2Farchives%2F2010%2F05%2F19%2Fanother_set_of_eyes.php Via Avik Roy at Forbes, there's news of a deal between Pfizer and Washington University at St. Louis. The company is giving the university "unprecedented access" to what they say is a list of more than 500 drugs and failed drug candidates, and letting them tear into them in an effort to find out what new uses there might be for both current and failed compounds. “There are two realities in drug discovery,” explains Don Frail, chief scientific officer of Pfizer’s Indications Discovery Unit. “The majority of candidates tested in development do not give the desired result, yet those drugs that do succeed typically have multiple uses. By harnessing the scientific expertise at this leading academic medical center, the collaboration seeks to discover entirely new uses for these compoun... In the Pipeline blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3577605 Wed, 19 May 2010 11:24:50 +0100 3577605 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3573755&cid=t_99079_109_f&fid=34752&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FPsychsplash%2F%7E3%2Fzpt1KQw8A4g%2F URL: http://psychbloggers.groupsite.com/main/summaryThe PBN is an international online community for health professionals, researchers, academics and writers who blog in the areas of psychology, neuroscience, mental health and academia. For: Clinicians, ResearchersTopics: Academia, Biological Psychology, Clinical Psychology, Educational Psychology, General Psychology, Health Psychology, Mental Health, Psychology and Technology, Social PsychologyFeatures: Careers, Commentary and Blogs, Community and Social Networking, Research Commentary, Research Tools, Societal or Organizational Membership Welcome to the Psychology Bloggers Network (PBN). The PBN is an international online community for health professionals, researchers, academics and writers who blog in the areas of psychology, neuro... PsychSplash blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3573755 Mon, 17 May 2010 17:00:19 +0100 3573755 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3567943&cid=t_99079_109_f&fid=34752&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FPsychsplash%2F%7E3%2FYmBrQTxSCc0%2F URL: http://www.dsm5.org/pages/default.aspxPublication of the fifth edition of Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5) in May 2013 will mark one the most anticipated events in the mental health field. As part of the development process, the preliminary draft revisions to the current diagnostic criteria for psychiatric diagnoses are now available for public review. For: Clinicians, ResearchersTopics: Academia, Clinical Decision Making, Clinical Psychology, Clinical Tool Development, Common Factors, Diagnosis, General Psychology, General ScienceFeatures: Assessment Instruments, Clinical Tools, Databases, Information, Research, Research Tools, Resources Publication of the fifth edition of Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5) in May 2013 will ... PsychSplash blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3567943 Sat, 15 May 2010 17:00:44 +0100 3567943 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3566822&cid=t_99079_154_f&fid=36427&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FABlogAroundTheClock%2F%7E3%2FQWEBdWV3CxE%2Fscience_isnt_a_business_video.php More Read the comments on this post... (Source: A Blog Around The Clock) A Blog Around The Clock blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3566822 Sat, 15 May 2010 02:08:56 +0100 3566822 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3563972&cid=t_99079_90_f&fid=36413&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.dcscience.net%2F%3Fp%3D3050 This study, of almost 500,000 people in ten European countries, found barely any relationship between intake of fruit and vegetables and cancer risk. This may be disappointing, but it can only harm patients to ignore the evidence when, as in this case, it exists. There are plenty of reasons to eat well, but apparently avoiding cancer is not one of them. It seems to be a bit more complicated than that. Dr Daniel says "IM in the UK is still clouded by complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) detractors owing to an important misunderstanding: IM is not CAM.".  I beg to differ. The content of the course is about alternative as you can get. It included teachers who have advocated the Q-link pendant to "protect" you from evil radio waves. It is not long since Ben Gol... DC's goodscience blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3563972 Thu, 13 May 2010 20:49:38 +0100 3563972 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3556098&cid=t_99079_87_f&fid=39187&url=http%3A%2F%2Fgetbetterhealth.com%2Fchallenges-continue-for-women-in-science-and-medicine%2F2010.05.11 I didn’t turn on the computer yesterday (yes, it was glorious), so I missed Mother’s Day coverage in our local newspaper. When we returned home, I was happy to see that on the front page of the print copy the dean of Duke School of Medicine, Nancy Andrews, M.D., Ph.D., was featured with her daughter in the lab on their “fun Saturdays” together. Also cited and pictured in the article was Duke vice dean for research and professor of pharmacology and cancer biology, Sally Kornbluth, Ph.D., and her daughter. Written by News & Observer science editor Sarah Avery, the article describes how women are increasing in ranks in biomedical degrees earned while still lagging at the associate professor level and up. This trend was cited specifically for faculty and administrat... Better Health blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3556098 Tue, 11 May 2010 16:00:19 +0100 3556098 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3542621&cid=t_99079_99_f&fid=34593&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2Fscienceblogs%2FAyaJ%2F%7E3%2FJ5LqCde1fEE%2Fopen_science_openly_arrived_at.php As an academic researcher I don't write grant proposals for a living, although sometimes it feels like I do. I need grants to do my work, but I also need to get to work and I don't consider myself to be commuting for a living. Although sometimes it feels like I do. Having said that, low on my list of favorite things would be anything that required even more compliance paperwork for a grant proposal, but the National Science Foundation (NSF) is now about to spell out a new compliance paperwork requirement, and frankly I approve of it. In principle, at least, although I won't like doing it if it spreads to my own granting agencies. NIH already has something like it and it needs to do more, even if I'll hate doing it. We are talking about something euphemistically called a "Data Management ... Effect Measure blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3542621 Fri, 07 May 2010 11:20:58 +0100 3542621 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3494321&cid=t_99079_99_f&fid=34593&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2Fscienceblogs%2FAyaJ%2F%7E3%2FzSxRoraeduM%2Fmaking_data_available_to_other.php Yesterday we posted on our strong support for open access publishing of tax payer supported research. We are taxpayer supported scientists (at least our NIH grants are) and we consider our work to be the property of the public, who paid for it. Whenever possible (which is most of the time) we do publish in freely accessible journals. Making data freely accessible is more controversial, but we also support this, perhaps with a reasonable grace period to allow scientists to have priority for data they expended effort to collect and with reasonable safeguards for confidentiality and privacy when human subjects are involved (we are, after all, epidemiologists). Adhering to this principle can be uncomfortable and inconvenient and sometimes aids and abets those with whom we have substantial diff... Effect Measure blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3494321 Wed, 21 Apr 2010 21:14:12 +0100 3494321 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3494350&cid=t_99079_109_f&fid=34752&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FPsychsplash%2F%7E3%2Fm_xJej3jods%2F URL: http://www.icsahome.com/Founded in 1979, the International Cultic Studies Association (ICSA) is a global network of people concerned about psychological manipulation and abuse in cultic groups, alternative movements, and other environments. ICSA is tax-exempt, supports civil liberties, and is not affiliated with any religious or commercial organizations. For: AnyoneTopics: Abnormal, Academia, Behaviour Management, Clinical Decision Making, Clinical Psychology, Cognitive, Cognitive Behaviour Therapy, Depression, General Psychology, Life, Lifestyle, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, Self-harm and suicide, Social Psychology, Social Support, TraumaFeatures: Advertising, Articles, Author Lists, Clinical Tools, Collaborative News, Community and Social Networking, Conferences, Databases, Infor... PsychSplash blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3494350 Wed, 21 Apr 2010 17:00:13 +0100 3494350 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3487127&cid=t_99079_109_f&fid=34752&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FPsychsplash%2F%7E3%2FxZ9BwwSrydE%2F URL: http://www.fmsfonline.org/This is the home page of the False Memory Syndrome Foundation. This site provides information about, and mailing lists related to, False Memory Syndrome (FMS) and a link to Internet resources connected with FMS. For: ConsumersTopics: Abnormal, Academia, Anger, Anxiety, Behaviour Management, Child and Adolescent, Clinical Psychology, Cognitive, Cognitive Behaviour Therapy, Developmental, Diagnosis, Emotional Health, Family Therapy, General Psychology, Health and Social Services, Life, Lifestyle, Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, Personality disorders, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, Quality of Life, Schizophrenia, Self-harm and suicide, Social Psychology, Substance Abuse, Varied DisordersFeatures: Articles, Commentary and Blogs, Information, Links, e-learning ... PsychSplash blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3487127 Tue, 20 Apr 2010 17:00:20 +0100 3487127 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3487128&cid=t_99079_109_f&fid=34752&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FPsychsplash%2F%7E3%2F0lYQjVkDkj4%2F URL: http://www.selfhelpmagazine.com/index.phpArticles, cartoons, blogs, mediation center, community discussion groups - since 1994. As licensed professionals, we bring information to your home or office, tailored to your needs through tele-seminars, eBooks and podcasts (MP3), and more. Drop in and tell us what you need. For: Consumers, Anyone, ConsumersTopics: Abnormal, Academia, Anger, Anxiety, Behaviour Management, Child and Adolescent, Clinical Psychology, Cognitive, Cognitive Behaviour Therapy, Developmental, Diagnosis, Emotional Health, Family Therapy, General Psychology, Health and Social Services, Life, Lifestyle, Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, Personality disorders, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, Quality of Life, Schizophrenia, Self-harm and suicide, Social Psychology, Substance ... PsychSplash blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3487128 Mon, 19 Apr 2010 17:00:15 +0100 3487128 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3460167&cid=t_99079_90_f&fid=36413&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.dcscience.net%2F%3Fp%3D2923 There is something very offensive about the idea that a ‘bachelor of science’ degree can be awarded by a university, as a prize for memorising gobbledygook. Once the contents of the ‘degrees’ has been exposed to public ridicule, many universities have stopped doing it. All (or nearly all) of these pseudo-degrees have closed at the University of Salford, the University of Central Lancashire, Robert Gordon University, the University of Buckingham, and even at the University of Westminster (the worst offender), one course has closed (with rumours of more to follow). I’ve already written about the course in Traditional Chinese Medicine at the University of Salford (Chinese medicine -acupuncture gobbledygook revealed) and at the University of Westminster: see... DC's goodscience blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3460167 Mon, 12 Apr 2010 06:51:20 +0100 3460167 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3460214&cid=t_99079_109_f&fid=34752&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FPsychsplash%2F%7E3%2Fy9iNZ6TP92o%2F URL: http://www.abacon.com/firstyearfocus/index.htmlThis site involves an easy to use interface, and helps first year students learn how to best save money, how to best study, and how to deal with other facets of their first year as an undergrad student. For: StudentsTopics: Academia, Behaviour Management, Fitness, Lifestyle, Social Support, Solution FocusedFeatures: Clinical Tools, Information, Resources, e-learning This website, by book publisher Allyn & Bacon, is explicitly for first year college/university students.  This site involves an easy to use interface, and helps first year students learn how to best save money, how to best study, and how to deal with other facets of their first year as an undergrad student.  Highly recommended! (Source: PsychSplash) PsychSplash blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3460214 Sun, 11 Apr 2010 17:00:36 +0100 3460214 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3457866&cid=t_99079_109_f&fid=34752&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FPsychsplash%2F%7E3%2FbiFWXAhG1P8%2F URL: http://www.ahpweb.org/index.htmlThe mission of AHP is to enhance the quality of human experience and to advance the evolution of human consciousness. We fulfill our mission by sponsoring, alone and with strategic partners, educational events and projects, publications, and a global Web presence. For: AnyoneTopics: Academia, Attachment, Behaviour Management, Cognitive, Emotional Health, Life, LifestyleFeatures: Articles, Collaborative News, Conferences, Databases, Information, Journals, Links, Research, Resources, Societal or Organizational Membership The mission of AHP is to enhance the quality of human experience and to advance the evolution of human consciousness. We fulfill our mission by sponsoring, alone and with strategic partners, educational events and projects, publicatio... PsychSplash blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3457866 Sat, 10 Apr 2010 17:00:06 +0100 3457866 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3453909&cid=t_99079_90_f&fid=36413&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.dcscience.net%2F%3Fp%3D2914 Yet another university has stopped its homeopathy course. The particular interest of this course was that it was being run at Robert Gordon University, Aberdeen, the vice-chancellor which was Michael Pittilo, until his recent premature death. Pittilo is the person who recommended to the government that herbalists and Chinese medicine practitioners should get honours degrees and be regulated like doctors. His report, was, in my opinions, disastrously bad.  It recently emerged that this, very bad, advice would not be accepted by the Department of Health (DH), so the campaign against the Pittilo proposals, on this blog and elsewhere was successful. The alternative DH proposals look pretty silly, but we won’t really know until after the election exactly what will happen. ... DC's goodscience blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3453909 Fri, 09 Apr 2010 06:04:10 +0100 3453909 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3429197&cid=t_99079_90_f&fid=36413&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.dcscience.net%2F%3Fp%3D2881 Conclusions I’ll confess to feeling almost a little guilty for having appeared to persecute the particular individuals involved in thie episode. But patients are involved and so is the law, and both of these are more important than individuals,  The only unfair aspect is that, while it seems that even the Prince of Wales’ Foundation for Integrated Health has rejected Daniel and Atkinson, that Foundation embraces plenty of people who are just as deluded, and potentially dangerous, as those two.  The answer to that problem is for the Prince to stop endorsing treatments that don’t work. As for the University of Buckingham. Well, despite the right wing maverick Kealey and the ‘anti-evidence’ Miles, I really think they’ve done the right thing. They’ve li... DC's goodscience blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3429197 Thu, 01 Apr 2010 06:37:46 +0100 3429197 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3429230&cid=t_99079_109_f&fid=34752&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FPsychsplash%2F%7E3%2F30jpkfKWKuQ%2F URL: http://www.parentwonder.com/Parent Wonder is here to help parents to enjoy parenthood, nurture our little bundle of joy to be the best, and not forgetting to live a happy and fulfilling life for ourselves as parents. For: Consumers, Students, TeachersTopics: Abnormal, Academia, Anger, Aspergers, Attachment, Autism, Behaviour Management, Child and Adolescent, Clinical Psychology, Educational Psychology, Family Therapy, Fatherhood, General Science, Health and Social Services, Life, Lifestyle, Parenting, Pediatric Depression, YouthFeatures: Articles, Collaborative News, Commentary and Blogs, Information, RSS Feeds, e-learningWe parents were never taught how to be one. It’s quite a risk to be a mom or dad without being “trained”? Don’t you think? We jump into fatherhood or motherh... PsychSplash blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3429230 Wed, 31 Mar 2010 17:00:23 +0100 3429230 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3424911&cid=t_99079_109_f&fid=34752&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FPsychsplash%2F%7E3%2FIOvCO14psAA%2F URL: http://www.ncld.org/This site provides information on various learning disabilities. An extensive list of links, organized by topic, is also provided. For: Anyone, ConsumersTopics: ADHD, Academia, Autism, Behaviour Management, Child and Adolescent, Clinical Psychology, Cognitive Behaviour Therapy, Educational Psychology, Teaching, Teaching Psychology, YouthFeatures: Articles, Collaborative News, Information, LinksThis site provides information on various learning disabilities. An extensive list of links, organized by topic, is also provided. NCLD provides essential information to parents, professionals and individuals with learning disabilities, promotes research and programs to foster effective learning, and advocates for policies to protect and strengthen educational rights and opp... PsychSplash blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3424911 Tue, 30 Mar 2010 17:00:09 +0100 3424911 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3382883&cid=t_99079_109_f&fid=34752&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FPsychsplash%2F%7E3%2FjoaNcbaZVbM%2F URL: http://www.nasponline.org/The National Association of School Psychologists (NASP) is the premier source of knowledge, professional development, and resources, empowering school psychologists to ensure that all children and youth attain optimal learning and mental health. For: Anyone, StudentsTopics: ADHD, Academia, Addiction, Behaviour Management, Child and Adolescent, Cognitive Behaviour Therapy, Cognitive Fitness, Depression, Educational Psychology, Lifestyle, Parenting, Psycho-education, YouthFeatures: Advertising, Articles, Careers, Collaborative News, Commentary and Blogs, Community and Social Networking, Conferences, Forums, Information, Journals, Links, Societal or Organizational Membership, e-learningThe National Association of School Psychologists (NASP) is the premier source... PsychSplash blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3382883 Fri, 19 Mar 2010 17:00:21 +0100 3382883 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3358979&cid=t_99079_90_f&fid=36413&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.dcscience.net%2F%3Fp%3D2829 JJump to follow-up Update 12 March. Nine more dimwits signed. An‘early day motion1 (EDM 908) has been tabled in parliament which opposes the conclusions of the science and technology committee report on the evidence for homeopathy. After two weeks it has been signed by an amazing 49 MPs. That is 7.6% of all 646 MPs.  Nothing shows more clearly the scientific illiteracy that prevails in the House of Commons (and, perhaps, the results of the mass mailing of MPs by homeopaths, who are clutching at straws).. These MPs are all people who have difficulty with the idea that pills which contain nothing can have no effect above placebo.  It isn’t rocket science. Those of us who spend quite a lot of unpaid time trying to communicate the joy of science to the public, rather res... DC's goodscience blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3358979 Fri, 12 Mar 2010 08:55:56 +0100 3358979 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3342666&cid=t_99079_99_f&fid=34593&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2Fscienceblogs%2FAyaJ%2F%7E3%2FkwWXoNrbKc4%2Fchilean_earthquake_and_science.php There is so much tragedy and sadness in the wake of the earthquakes in Haiti and Chile that to bemoan the fate of research projects there seems kind of trivial. But if you are scientist your heart really goes out to your Chilean colleagues. Jocelyn Kaiser and Antonio Regalado have some details at ScienceInsider, Science Magazine's science blog: Read the rest of this post... | Read the comments on this post... (Source: Effect Measure) Effect Measure blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3342666 Mon, 08 Mar 2010 11:20:16 +0100 3342666 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3322413&cid=t_99079_109_f&fid=34752&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FPsychsplash%2F%7E3%2FYqurn2KYRHQ%2F URL: http://www.ifred.org/ iFred is dedicated to Bringing Depression Hope. iFred’s primary purpose is to Bring Depression Hope. iFred brings energy and information together from a variety of existing sources to educate, inform and change the way we look at depression today. We need to foster an environment where people feel comfortable getting help, they feel good about openly celebrating an individual’s ability to recover from a depressive episode, and support and applaud them in moving forward in a battle similar to that of any other illness. For: AnyoneTopics: Academia, Depression, Emotional Health, Lifestyle, PsychiatryFeatures: Advertising, Articles, Collaborative News, Conferences, Information, Links, Research, e-learning The International Foundation for Research and Edu... PsychSplash blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3322413 Tue, 02 Mar 2010 17:00:48 +0100 3322413 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3318437&cid=t_99079_109_f&fid=34752&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FPsychsplash%2F%7E3%2FDqxuGwkgZxA%2F URL: http://www.add.org/mc/page.do;jsessionid=B658664123E606E0F32B75B46476FB0F.mc0?sitePageId=92488The Attention Deficit Disorder Association (ADDA) is the world’s leading adult ADHD organization. Our mission is to provide information, resources and networking opportunities to help adults with Attention Deficit/ Hyperactivity Disorder (AD/HD) lead better lives. We are an international non-profit organization, founded twenty years ago by adult ADHD support group leaders to share information, resources and provide support for one another. In the 20 years since its inception, ADDA has grown to become the source for information and resources exclusively for and about the adult ADHD community. For: AnyoneTopics: ADHD, Academia, Behaviour Management, Developmental, Educational Psychology, Gene... PsychSplash blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3318437 Mon, 01 Mar 2010 17:00:05 +0100 3318437 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3298461&cid=t_99079_122_f&fid=36582&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FSharpBrains%2F%7E3%2FF2DhcXaUKsY%2F Here you have the February edition of our monthlyeNewsletter covering cognitive health and brain fitness topics. Please remember that you can subscribe to receive this Newsletter by email, using the box in the right column. The recent SharpBrains Summit witnessed the convergence of Benjamin Franklin’s words (”Man is a Tool-Making Animal”)  with neuroscientist Santiago Ramon y Cajal’s  (”Every man can, if he so desires, become the sculptor of his own brain.”) The neuroplasticity revolution that may well transform education, training, healthcare, aging, is under way. New Tools Will the Apple iPad Be Good for your Brain: Prof. Luc Beaudoin lays out key criteria to assess Apple iPad’s potential value for our cognitive fitness, and judges the iPad aga... SharpBrains blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3298461 Mon, 22 Feb 2010 20:24:23 +0100 3298461 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3283535&cid=t_99079_90_f&fid=36413&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.dcscience.net%2F%3Fp%3D2764 I had never intended to write about climate. It is too far from the things I know about. But recent events have unleashed a Palin-esque torrent of comments from people who clearly know even less about it than I do. In any case, it provides a good context to think about trust in science, Earthrise from moon. (click to enlarge) My interest in it, apart from little matters like the future of the planet, lies in the reputation of science and scientists. I have been going on for years now about the lack of trust in science, and the extent to which it is a self-inflicted problem. The latest reactions to the developments at the University of East Anglia and the IPCC may show the nature of the problem with dreadful clarity, Many of us came into science because, apart from the sheer be... DC's goodscience blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3283535 Thu, 18 Feb 2010 14:09:04 +0100 3283535 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3266931&cid=t_99079_90_f&fid=36413&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.dcscience.net%2F%3Fp%3D2747 Every single request for information about course materials in quack medicine that I have ever sent has been turned down by universities, It is hardly as important as as refusal of FoI requests to see climate change documents, but it does indicate that some vice-chancellors are not very interested in openness. This secretiveness is exactly the sort of thing that leads to lack of trust in universities and in science as a whole. The one case that I have won took over three years and an Information Tribunal decision against the University of Central Lancashire (UCLAN) before I got anything. UCLAN spent £80,307.95.(inc VAT at 17.5%) in legal expenses alone (plus heaven knows how much in staff time) to prevent us from seeing what was taught on their now defunct “BSc (Hons) homeopa... DC's goodscience blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3266931 Fri, 12 Feb 2010 11:59:15 +0100 3266931 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3239620&cid=t_99079_109_f&fid=34752&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FPsychsplash%2F%7E3%2FWHPNnG7kCJI%2F URL: http://www.easy-dream-interpretation.com/index.htmlThis site will show you how to remember, record and analyze your dreams easily and effortlessly. It will also teach you how to use your own resources and not rely on dream dictionaries or other people to analyze your dreams for you. For: AnyoneTopics: Academia, Behaviour Management, General Psychology, Mental HealthFeatures: Articles, Case Studies, Clinical Tools, Databases, Dictionary, File Sharing, Information, Journaling, Links, Mood Tracking, Personal Records Management This site will show you how to remember, record and analyze your dreams easily and effortlessly. It will also teach you how to use your own resources and not rely on dream dictionaries or other people to analyze your dreams for you. Dream analysis is best do... PsychSplash blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3239620 Thu, 04 Feb 2010 17:00:52 +0100 3239620 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3231793&cid=t_99079_149_f&fid=35776&url=http%3A%2F%2Fpipeline.corante.com%2Farchives%2F2010%2F02%2F02%2Fa_pile_of_malaria_leads_for_the_taking.php I kept meaning to write last week about GlaxoSmithKline's decision to open up a database of possible lead compounds against malaria. These were hits from a larger screen that the company ran, and been made unusually public. (Here's the press release as a PDF). There are about 13,500 structures, apparently. The company is to be commended for doing this, naturally, but I wish that the press coverage would emphasize a few things that it hasn't so far. For one, these are not antimalarial compounds, at least not to a medicinal chemist. Some of them might be, but for now, they're all potential antimalarials, with a long, long way to go. This is all in what most drug discovery organizations call the "hit to lead" stage. Some of these compounds may well be screening artifacts. Others will turn ou... In the Pipeline blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3231793 Tue, 02 Feb 2010 13:28:46 +0100 3231793 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3216642&cid=t_99079_109_f&fid=34752&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FPsychsplash%2F%7E3%2FsOyaJ1tSuzY%2F URL: http://www.behavioralhealthce.com/This Behavioral Health online CE web site focuses on the biopsychosocial aspects of health and illness. For: CliniciansTopics: Abnormal, Academia, Behaviour Management, Clinical Psychology, Educational Psychology, Emotional Health, General Psychology, Lifestyle, Medico-Legal, Mental Health, Psychology and TechnologyFeatures: Articles, CE Activities, Databases, Information, Links, Online Research, Training, e-learning This Behavioral Health online CE web site focuses on the biopsychosocial aspects of health and illness.  Although it provides CE courses, the unique feature is that all of the course can be read for free.  The site was developed not only for CE but also as an educational service to all health care professionals and the general publi... PsychSplash blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3216642 Thu, 28 Jan 2010 17:00:31 +0100 3216642 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3156509&cid=t_99079_109_f&fid=34752&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FPsychsplash%2F%7E3%2FWflDhCvAlgo%2F URL: http://www-usr.rider.edu/~suler/psycyber/psycyber.htmlThis hypertext book explores the psychological aspects of environments created by computers and online networks. It presents an evolving conceptual framework for understanding how people react to and behave within cyberspace: what I call “the psychology of cyberspace” - or simply “cyberpsychology.” For: AnyoneTopics: Academia, Educational PsychologyFeatures: Articles, Databases, Information, Links, Online Research, e-learning, ebook This hypertext book explores the psychological aspects of environments created by computers and online networks. It presents an evolving conceptual framework for understanding how people react to and behave within cyberspace: what I call “the psychology of cyberspace&#8... PsychSplash blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3156509 Fri, 08 Jan 2010 17:00:52 +0100 3156509 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3153425&cid=t_99079_109_f&fid=34752&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FPsychsplash%2F%7E3%2FmZ814SwzSHk%2F URL: http://www.siop.org/default.aspxWelcome to the Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology’s (SIOP) Web site. For: Anyone, Clinicians, Researchers, Students, TeachersTopics: Abnormal, Academia, Bipolar, Chronic Disease, Health Psychology, InsomniaFeatures: Welcome to the Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology’s (SIOP) Web site.  We are pleased to introduce you to the field of industrial and organizational (I-O) psychology.  SIOP is the premier membership organization for those practicing and teaching I-O psychology.  While an independent organization with its own governance, SIOP is also a division within the American Psychological Association and an organizational affiliate of the Association for Psychological Science. (Source: PsychSplash) PsychSplash blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3153425 Fri, 08 Jan 2010 13:59:09 +0100 3153425 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3153616&cid=t_99079_149_f&fid=35776&url=http%3A%2F%2Fpipeline.corante.com%2Farchives%2F2010%2F01%2F08%2Freasons_not_to_go_to_grad_school.php There's an article in the Chronicle of Higher Education that's been getting a lot of recent attention. It's titled "Grad School in the Humanities: Just Don't Go". The author, clearly (and to my mind, justifiably) embittered about what he sees happening, is an associate professor of English who sees no need to produce a huge surplus of people who want to go on to become associate professors of English. Some of his warnings don't apply to the sciences. The biggest difference is that there have always been many more places to find work with a science degree other than academia, which is not so true if you've concentrated your graduate studies on the life of Rainer Maria Rilke. Another key factor is that we don't generally come out of grad school with academic debts. To be sure, a Rilke schol... In the Pipeline blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3153616 Fri, 08 Jan 2010 13:47:59 +0100 3153616 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3149064&cid=t_99079_90_f&fid=36413&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.dcscience.net%2F%3Fp%3D2628 The purpose of this post is to reveal a few samples of things that are taught on a homeopathy ‘degree’ course. The course in question was the "BSc Hons homeopathy course at the University of Central Lancashire (UCLAN). Entry to this course was closed in 2008 and, after an internal review, UCLAN closed almost all of the rest of its courses in alternative medicine too. The university is to be commended for this . The purpose of making public some of what used to be taught is not to embarrass UCLAN, which has already done the sensible thing, but to make it clear that the sort of thing taught on such courses is both absurd and dangerous, in the hope of discouraging other courses .Three years after I first asked for teaching materials, the Information Commisioner ruled th... DC's goodscience blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3149064 Wed, 06 Jan 2010 17:56:33 +0100 3149064 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3135514&cid=t_99079_90_f&fid=36413&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.dcscience.net%2F%3Fp%3D2618 Can’t resist another bit of straight plagiarism. In this week’s Times Higher Education, the inimitable Laurie Taylor wrote this. Rock around the clock Professor Georgina Kunzite, the Head of our Department of Crystal Healing, has reacted strongly to the recent High Court ruling that the University of Central Lancashire must hand over teaching materials from its defunct homeopathy course to a campaigning sceptic. Speaking to our reporter, Keith Ponting (30), she said she had no intention of acceding to any similar request for materials from her own oversubscribed course in crystal therapy. Such a move, she argued, risked undermining the power of the crystals, which were notoriously wary of attempts to question their curative validity. She had initially been disconcerted by... DC's goodscience blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3135514 Thu, 31 Dec 2009 22:08:32 +0100 3135514 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3129536&cid=t_99079_109_f&fid=34752&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FPsychsplash%2F%7E3%2FupenHYnlzXw%2F URL: http://www.understandingprejudice.org/Welcome to UnderstandingPrejudice.org, a web site for students, teachers, and others interested in the causes and consequences of prejudice. For: AnyoneTopics: Abnormal, Academia, Behaviour Management, Clinical Decision Making, Clinical Psychology, Common Factors, Educational Psychology, Emotional Health, General Psychology, Life, LifestyleFeatures: Welcome to UnderstandingPrejudice.org, a web site for students, teachers, and others interested in the causes and consequences of prejudice. In these pages you will find more than 2,000 links to prejudice-related resources, as well as searchable databases with hundreds of prejudice researchers and social justice organizations. To the right, you’ll also find a variety of interactive exercises... PsychSplash blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3129536 Tue, 29 Dec 2009 17:00:47 +0100 3129536 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3124530&cid=t_99079_90_f&fid=36413&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.dcscience.net%2F%3Fp%3D2584 There is no topic more widely discussed than what one should eat in order to stay healthy. And there are few topics where there evidence is so lacking in quality. This post isn’t about quackery, but about something much more important. it is about the real science (if it merits that description) behind dietary advice.  I’m not an expert in nutrition, but I do know a bit about the nature of evidence. I’m continually astonished by the weakness of the evidence for some things that have become received truths, and nowhere is that more true than in nutrition. The BMJ used my review of Gary Taube’s book, The Diet Delusion, to start off their new Round Table feature [full text link to BMJ]. The published version had some big cuts so I publish the original version... DC's goodscience blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3124530 Mon, 28 Dec 2009 13:10:39 +0100 3124530 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3118877&cid=t_99079_90_f&fid=36413&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.dcscience.net%2F%3Fp%3D2544   Snow on December 18th                             Roaring fire Lindy contributes acute comments regularly here.  She is also an accomplished musician.  She has kindly allowed me to post here four of her re-written carols. Adam lay ybounden  |  Hark the Herald  |  Holly and the Ivy  |  Merry Gentlemen Adam lay ybounden The Middle English dialect is not easy to follow, so the original is reproduced in the right hand column.  The original, sung by choir of King’s College Chapel, is on YouTube. Atoms lay y’bounden In primordial soup; Six billion years did pass A’fore they coul... DC's goodscience blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3118877 Wed, 23 Dec 2009 17:40:12 +0100 3118877 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3100999&cid=t_99079_132_f&fid=35013&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2Fpedrobeltrao%2F%7E3%2FZFPUrw6KItw%2Fname-that-lab.html In the last editorial in Nature, the need for an author ID is introduced with the simple notion that each one of us has specific sets of skills: In his classic book Management Teams, UK psychologist Meredith Belbin used extensive empirical evidence to argue that effective teams require members who can cover nine key roles. These roles range from the creative 'plants' who generate novel ideas, to the disciplined 'implementers' who turn plans into action and the big-picture 'coordinators' who keep everyone working together.From this perspective the author ID is a tool that might help us get appropriate credit for skill sets that are currently undervalued. This sort of argument reminds me of a discussion I had several times in the past about the management structure of academic labs. Why... Public Rambling blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3100999 Thu, 17 Dec 2009 17:24:00 +0100 3100999 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3089470&cid=t_99079_131_f&fid=34994&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.gnxp.com%2Fblog%2F2009%2F12%2Fwho-argues-most-from-authority.php Google results for +"nobel laureate" +X, where X is one of the following:Chemistry: 317,000Physics: 415,000Medicine: 467,000Economics: 484,000Of course, there are more winners to refer to in Physics than in Economics, so we should control for that. Dividing the number of Google results by the number of winners gives these per capita rates:Chemistry: 2032Physics: 2231Medicine: 2395Economics: 7446If the intellectual merit of a body of ideas is not so well established, you're more likely to deflect attention by reassuring everyone that, hey, it can't be that crazy -- after all, the guy is a Nobel laureate. Perhaps that's why physics ranks above chemistry here, what with string theory etc. taking it further into speculation compared to more grounded chemistry. (Source: Gene Expression) Gene Expression blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3089470 Mon, 14 Dec 2009 21:00:00 +0100 3089470 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3071160&cid=t_99079_90_f&fid=36413&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.dcscience.net%2F%3Fp%3D2485 Conclusion 62 It is for these reasons that we uphold the Decision Notice. We record our gratitude for the helpful and succinct submissions of counsel on both sides and the incisive contribution of Professor Colquhoun. We wish to add that, whilst we have not accepted the great majority of the arguments advanced by UCLAN, we do not in any way seek to cast doubt on the veracity of the evidence of its witnesses, nor the honesty and loyalty with which they have sought to serve its interests. 63 Our decision is unanimous. Signed David Farrar Q.C.   Watch this space to see what can now be revealed. Follow-up (Source: DC's goodscience) DC's goodscience blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3071160 Tue, 08 Dec 2009 19:34:49 +0100 3071160 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3063268&cid=t_99079_99_f&fid=34589&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2Fscienceblogs%2Faetiology%2F%7E3%2FSWEjRv54oEI%2Fthe_science_boys_club_strikes.php Recently, a bit of a kerfuffle has sprung up around the choice of entries included in The Oxford Book of Modern Science Writing, edited by Richard Dawkins. The book contains 83 examples of the "finest writing by scientists." However, DrHGG noted: Of 83 texts Professor D has selected 3 written by women. That's about 3.6%. How hard could it be to find a handful more? Like 10%? It would still be a wiener fest. She also notes that of those 3, one is even left out of the "Featured Writers" section, as it was co-written with her husband (who received all the credit). Sheril brought this up on her blog, and Dawkins replied, noting that "it is a regrettable fact that the great majority of distinguished scientists of the past 100 years, as measured by Nobel Prizes, Fellowships of the Royal Soci... Aetiology blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3063268 Mon, 07 Dec 2009 00:00:00 +0100 3063268