Archive for May 2009

It’s Difficult to Say Nice Things About NDs

May 27th, 2009 | By | Category: Dear Science Column, Response to Critique

A recent column of mine responded to a question/rant about naturopathic medicine: A dear friend of mine is about to enter a prestigious program of naturopathic medicine. There—in exchange for hundreds of thousands of dollars and five years of his life—he will study homeopathy, osteopathy, water therapy, etc. Apparently, after gaining his ND credential, he […]



Influenza

May 4th, 2009 | By | Category: Medicine

As a pathogen, influenza is the cat’s pajamas; influenza puts the ortho in orthomyxovirus, the segments in its RNA genome and the misery in sneeze droplets everywhere. Let’s unpack H1N1 and H5N1. The ‘N’ in both stands for neuraminidase, a fancy way for saying “snot eating enzyme.” The virus needs to get to the juicy […]