Mindblown: a blog about philosophy.

  • Bluster or Breakthrough? How the Public Should Evaluate Medical Reporting

    Bluster or Breakthrough? How the Public Should Evaluate Medical Reporting

    ROBERT GUTHRIE A world of instant information and over-reporting can flood us with potentially vital but often trivial health information. Understanding the credibility of the study at the source can help you eliminate the static and recognize the relevant. Recently, I saw a small study published in a very obscure medical journal covered on a […]

  • Is Aging the Next Cholesterol?

    Is Aging the Next Cholesterol?

    DAVID T. NASH, MD About three generations ago, most physicians learned very little about cholesterol during their medical school and in-hospital training, other than the history of very early work by a Russian researcher feeding cholesterol to rabbits, creating an atherosclerotic-like lesion. Many practicing physicians one generation ago doubted the value of treating elevated levels, […]

  • Meditations on War and Circumstance

    Meditations on War and Circumstance

    JACOB WORRELL It was raining. People are often surprised to hear that it rains in Iraq. When people imagine the daily discomforts of soldiers deployed in Iraq, they think about facing imminent death, frying in the desert sun, and the dull monotony of daily routine. Anything but rain. But in northern Iraq in 2005, for […]

  • The Sugar Men

    The Sugar Men

    The pursuit of great wealth and the burden it bequeathed.

  • The Polarization of the American Dream

    The Polarization of the American Dream

    MUGAMBI JOUET In times of doubt and discord, a country often turns to its national ideals in hope that they will provide guidance and common ground. The lingering economic problems, concerns about American decline, and bitter polarization that have marked the Obama presidency have therefore led Americans to focus on one of the United States’ […]

  • ADHD: It’s Not Just For Kids

    ADHD: It’s Not Just For Kids

    ANNE CHILDRESS, M.D. AND LINDA FRANTOM, PH.D. When one hears the words attention-deficit/ hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), the images of a misbehaving child who is darting in and out of line, climbing inappropriately, interrupting the teacher, and having trouble paying attention may come to mind. Although these symptoms certainly can describe ADHD, which is often diagnosed during childhood, […]

  • Learning to Love the Job You’re With

    Learning to Love the Job You’re With

    DR. LYNN JOHNSON Jacob owes school loans amounting to $155,000. He does have a law degree, though and, with associates in good firms earning $135,000 to start, he wasn’t worried. Two years later and earning substantially less than predicted, he has learned that he hates being an attorney. I help a bar association coach attorneys […]

  • The Fantasy Football Injury Report

    The Fantasy Football Injury Report

    DR. VONDA WRIGHT Greater than 1.5 million young men participate in American football across all levels in the United States. They will sustain more than 1.2 million football-related injuries this year. Injury is an inherent part of football, a product of the game’s brutal nature and the alternate side of the coin that is American […]

  • Breaking Down Stroke: Practices and Preventions

    Breaking Down Stroke: Practices and Preventions

    DR. ROBERT GUTHRIE Stroke, or cerebrovascular accident as it is properly known, is a common manifestation of the diseases of the arterial system that I have been discussing in previous columns. Stroke involves a blockage in the arterial system that supplies blood to the brain, or a bleeding (hemorrhage) from one of the arteries into […]

  • The Children’s Champion

    The Children’s Champion

    TOM CONWAY Education is without question one of the most complicated topics in America. Once glorified for production of some of the globe’s finest minds, our public school system has been slipping in world rankings for some time and faces constant criticism. Many people blame teachers, or least the few bad apples within this noble […]

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