Philosophy
When it comes to the human body, it's taken a few millennia to have a pretty good understanding of the basic anatomy and physiology involved, but by now we do know many of the mechanisms at work. Here is a short history of the study of the nervous system, for instance.
When it comes to the mind however, and especially to the relationship between mind and body, we're still pretty clueless. The placebo effect is a case in point: your mind can trick itself into feeling better all by itself and without realizing it (and it can even produce physical effects, like changes in plasma levels in your body). Though we are learning more and more about the correlation between our expectations and certain outcomes, we still have no clue precisely how this happens.
Nevertheless, the discoveries currently being made are still fascinating. You might not think so, but as the following animation by Dr. Funk shows, it turns out placebo capsules are stronger than placebo pills, placebo injections are stronger than placebo capsules, and placebo surgeries are more powerful than placebo injections... and of course, they're all fake, but the effects are real. Weird, isn't it?
And if you want to learn about the Nocebo effect (the placebo effect's evil twin), check out this ridiculously fun exposition by Ben Goldacre.
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- Passing The Plate: Smart Joke Edition
Friends, Today is Einstein's birthday and in his honor, let's pass the plate. Other religions asks for monetary donations, but Comedists tithe jokes. So, for uncle Albert, let's do smart jokes of any variety. My favorite new physics joke:...
- Placebos And Autonomy
A new study finds that about half of American doctors prescribe placebos for their patients. In order for the placebo effect to work, the patient must believe that the prescribed treatment is generally effective, something the doctor knows to be false....
- Ben Goldacre - Battling Bad Science
It's hard to understate the number of misleading health reports and health advice out there. First there's the problem of alternative-medicine quacks (visit the Enemies of Reason tag to learn more about them); then there are also problems with...
- Paul Bloom - Essentialism And The Origins Of Pleasure
If I tried to sell you the painting to the right for a hefty sum, I'm pretty sure you'd think it wasn't worth your time, or that I was trying to pull your leg. Never mind the artistic talent and effort that indubitably went into the piece,...
- Ben Goldacre - The Placebo And Nocebo Effects
You're probably familiar with the concept of the placebo effect: you pretend to provide some sort of treatment to a patient (sugar pill, saline shot, shaman chicken dance, homeopathic elixir, etc.), and because there is no actual medicine or treatment,...
Philosophy
The Strange Power of the Placebo Effect
When it comes to the human body, it's taken a few millennia to have a pretty good understanding of the basic anatomy and physiology involved, but by now we do know many of the mechanisms at work. Here is a short history of the study of the nervous system, for instance.When it comes to the mind however, and especially to the relationship between mind and body, we're still pretty clueless. The placebo effect is a case in point: your mind can trick itself into feeling better all by itself and without realizing it (and it can even produce physical effects, like changes in plasma levels in your body). Though we are learning more and more about the correlation between our expectations and certain outcomes, we still have no clue precisely how this happens.
Nevertheless, the discoveries currently being made are still fascinating. You might not think so, but as the following animation by Dr. Funk shows, it turns out placebo capsules are stronger than placebo pills, placebo injections are stronger than placebo capsules, and placebo surgeries are more powerful than placebo injections... and of course, they're all fake, but the effects are real. Weird, isn't it?
And if you want to learn about the Nocebo effect (the placebo effect's evil twin), check out this ridiculously fun exposition by Ben Goldacre.
.
- Passing The Plate: Smart Joke Edition
Friends, Today is Einstein's birthday and in his honor, let's pass the plate. Other religions asks for monetary donations, but Comedists tithe jokes. So, for uncle Albert, let's do smart jokes of any variety. My favorite new physics joke:...
- Placebos And Autonomy
A new study finds that about half of American doctors prescribe placebos for their patients. In order for the placebo effect to work, the patient must believe that the prescribed treatment is generally effective, something the doctor knows to be false....
- Ben Goldacre - Battling Bad Science
It's hard to understate the number of misleading health reports and health advice out there. First there's the problem of alternative-medicine quacks (visit the Enemies of Reason tag to learn more about them); then there are also problems with...
- Paul Bloom - Essentialism And The Origins Of Pleasure
If I tried to sell you the painting to the right for a hefty sum, I'm pretty sure you'd think it wasn't worth your time, or that I was trying to pull your leg. Never mind the artistic talent and effort that indubitably went into the piece,...
- Ben Goldacre - The Placebo And Nocebo Effects
You're probably familiar with the concept of the placebo effect: you pretend to provide some sort of treatment to a patient (sugar pill, saline shot, shaman chicken dance, homeopathic elixir, etc.), and because there is no actual medicine or treatment,...