Can 'anecdote' ever be research?

Can viruses ever be useful?

M ost of the terms used for computer viruses arc metaphors: they have a largely medical origin, and are seductive if not literally sexy. The very real worries WC have about AIDS, for example, no doubt colour the way we talk about computer viruses. At the extreme, abstractly viruses arc clearly just algorithms, and like any other algorithm they arc good for some things and not good for others. T...

Can medication-free research ever be ethical in older people with psychotic disorders?

The history of medicine demonstrates that apparently logical ideas sometimes prove to be inaccurate when subjected to empirical research. In psychopharmacology, repeated antipsychotic discontinuations (drug-free intervals) used to be strongly recommended for treating patients with schizophrenia with the presumption that they would prevent tardive dyskinesia. Yet, a subsequent empirical study fo...

Can Research be Taught?

The word “researcher” is loaded and often confusing. It takes years to become one and to master all of its aspects. In this paper, we investigate whether or not this process of “becoming” can be catalyzed through education. The focus will be on wireless communications, though the same principle could very well be replicated to other disciplines.

Burst Imaging—Can It Ever Be Useful in the Clinic?

Burst is an ultra-rapid imaging sequence that works by excitation of magnetization using a series of regularly spaced, low flip-angle pulses, applied at the same time as a gradient in the read direction. In the original concept, this gradient is constant, and multiple echoes are refocused under a constant-read gradient. This article brings together the previous literature on the subject, placin...

Can hospital mortality comparisons ever be fit for purpose?