Smoking: Quitting is Cheap, Keeping is Not

Advice is Cheap : Information is Not ! ∗

An entrepreneur contracts with a consultant, who is protected by limited liability, to supply information about the state of a project prior to investing in it. For a given level of investment, a good project succeeds with higher probability than a bad one. The entrepreneur makes an upfront payment that the consultant can either invest in information acquisition (work) or divert for private ben...

P-value: What is and what is not

The misinterpretation and misuse of p-value have been increasing for decades. In March 2016, the American Statistical Association released a statement to warn about the use and interpretation of p-value. In this study, we provided a definition and discussion of p-value and emphasized the importance of its accurate interpretation.    

"Quitting smoking is easy. I've done it a thousand times".

this comment on the lighter side. However, it aptly describes the serious situation that majority of 1.3 billion current smokers are facing. One in every two of these smokers will succumb to tobacco related causes.1,2 The economic toll is equally colossal; estimates for next year are marked at half a trillion dollars.1 Complete cessation is the only way to abate these afflictions in the shortan...

Breath Holding Predicts Reduced Smoking Intake but Not Quitting

Introduction: Cigarette smokers who attempt to quit may or may not relapse. Previous research has shown that breath-holding ability predicts successful quitting, and it has been suggested that breath-holding ability may be a marker of tolerance for uncomfortable physiological symptoms. Methods: We measured breath-holding ability and smoking in a large general-population birth cohort from age 21...

Quitting smoking: the benefits