Now on ScienceBlogs: Why Look for Life on Mars?
Jake Young is a MD/PhD student at Mount Sinai School of Medicine in NYC getting a PhD in Behavioral Neuroscience. He holds a BS and MS in Biological Sciences from Stanford University. If a volcano were to erupt Pompei-style in Central Park, his body would be preserved in a scoliotic posture over his lab desk. Archeaologists would later conclude that he spent most of his day training rats to perform tricks, until he went blind building electrical equipment by hand using a dissecting microscope. But, still, he died happy...because science is cool.
Pure Pedantry is a blog about science -- social sciences and otherwise -- as well as academic and scientific culture. No one can live on science alone, so I also like to dwell on pop culture, periodically explore the humanities, and indulge in other types of geeky goodness.
DISCLAIMERS: 1) Jake Young is not a licensed physician (yet). He is merely a medical student. The information published on this site is not intended for use in medical decision-making. Please seek advice from a licensed, medical professional before making any health decisions. 2) The opinions expressed are my own. They do not represent the views of SEED magazine or the educational establishments I currently attend or attended in the past.
Category: Medicine
In honor of President's day I have some interesting Presidential pathology to present. I want to talk about Andrew Jackson and his myriad of diseases. To say that Andrew Jackson had medical problems would be the understatement of the century....
Posted by NotoriousLTP at 11:22 AM • 1 Comments •
Category: History
People do remember what they use to do at CSHL, right?
Posted by NotoriousLTP at 9:50 AM • 7 Comments •
Category: Economics
Nicholas Wade reports in the NYTimes about a UCD professor, Gregory Clark, and his theory of the Industrial Revolution. His answer is that high fertility rates in the upper classes caused them to steadily supplant lower classes. They brought productive...
Posted by NotoriousLTP at 10:18 AM • 9 Comments •
Category: Books
A controversial portrait -- possibly of the writer Jane Austen -- was put up for auction at Christie's yesterday. (Actually it failed to sell.) The controversy is over whether the picture is actually of her. (A photo of the portrait...
Posted by NotoriousLTP at 10:38 AM • 12 Comments •
Category: History
The Nation has an interesting review about a book on the history of vegetarianism. The book is The Bloodless Revolution by Tristram Stuart. It argues that vegetarianism is important not only as an ethical stance but because it became entangled...
Posted by NotoriousLTP at 10:16 AM • 0 Comments •
Category: History
Most of us probably haven't read the whole speech, but we should. I hadn't remembered this part: But there is something that I must say to my people, who stand on the warm threshold which leads into the palace of...
Posted by NotoriousLTP at 3:10 PM • 1 Comments •
Category: Medicine
I meant to post this early, but the Neurophilosopher has an excellent history of Alois Alzheimer, for whom the disease is named: On November 25th, 1901, a 51-year-old woman named Auguste Deter (below right) was admitted to the hospital, and...
Posted by NotoriousLTP at 10:48 AM • 0 Comments •
Category: Politics
Whatever you think about Michael Barone's personal views, he knows more about the history of American politics than any man alive. Here is an article he wrote in the WSJ about the history of party changes in Congress during second-term...
Posted by NotoriousLTP at 9:39 PM • 5 Comments •
Category: History
As the Nobel Prize announcements are due to come out soon, it would be good if you knew your Nobel history. Lawrence Altman for the NYTimes has an excellent article on it. Money quote: Yet in a little known story,...
Posted by NotoriousLTP at 4:34 PM • 0 Comments •
Category: Evolution
Apparently today will be poetry day. I found this poem in a book I was reading. It is by a man named Mortimer Collins (1860): Life and the Universe show spontaneity: Down with ridiculous notions of Deity! Churches and creeds...
Posted by NotoriousLTP at 1:34 PM • 4 Comments •
