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PubMed1994

What if alcoholism had not been invented? The dynamics of American alcohol mythology.

This essay speculates on what might have been had alcoholism not been invented. The invention is viewed as a product of the ongoing myth-making process whereby society continuously defines and redefines alcohol, seeking to integrate it into the culture in ways that allow enjoyment of its pleasures with minimum pain. Had alcoholism not been invented, (a) the myth-making process might have yielded another simplistic explanation of drunkenness, but more likely alcohol would have remained the supposed cause; (b) the per capita alcohol consumption uptrend of some 50 years standing might not have reversed as it did in 1982; (c) chronic drunkards might still be denied life-saving hospitalization which gains them more time for the natural reform process to work for them; and (d) local communities nationwide might have taken common-sense actions to facilitate the natural rehabilitation process and provided more benefit to more alcoholics for less cost than treating alcoholism. It is expected that Americans will continue to drink and will continue to seek a more harmonious relationship with alcohol. The informal social controls will continue to largely constrain individual appetites for alcohol's pleasures, and most alcoholics will continue to gain control of their excessive drinking in the natural course of events with or without exposure to alcoholism treatment.

Alcohol Drinking↗
PubMed1997

The mythology of hormone replacement therapy.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the literature on contraindications contained in pharmaceutical data sheets of five currently available oestrogen replacement preparations (HRT). These contraindications include cardiovascular disease, diabetes, liver diseases, otosclerosis, endometriosis, melanoma and hormone-dependent tumours. DESIGN: Systematic review. INTERVENTIONS: Oestrogen replacement regimens. RESULTS: The contraindications to the five HRT preparations have been taken uncritically from the data sheets of oral contraceptives. In some of these conditions not only is HRT not contraindicated, it is indicated. The data sheets for the HRT preparations all state that cardiovascular disease is a contraindication, but systematic review shows that ischaemic heart disease, hypertension and hyperlipidaemia are not contraindications, and in ischaemic heart disease HRT may actually be indicated. Similarly, systematic review shows that diabetes, chronic liver disease, endometriosis, some cases of treated cancer of the endometrium and breast, melanoma and otosclerosis are not contraindications to HRT. CONCLUSIONS: The information in the pharmaceutical data sheets of HRT regimens should be modified as more accurate information could influence how these preparations are prescribed by doctors as well as affect patient compliance.

Breast Neoplasms↗
PubMed1991

The mythology of threshold variations as a function of electrode surface area.

It has been established that the chronic thresholds of cardiac pacing leads vary as a function of the (spherical) electrode's radius or (geometric) surface area and the thickness of fibrotic encapsulation. Where the radius of the electrode is equal to the thickness of the fibrous capsule (about 0.7 to 1 mm for polished surfaces), threshold should be at a minimum. Where the radius of the electrode is larger or smaller than the thickness of the fibrous capsule, then thresholds should increase since the electric field strength required to stimulate decreases as the square of the distance between the electrode's surface and stimulatable tissue. In addition, it has become (incorrectly) accepted that small electrodes do not sense well. About 8-mm electrodes, therefore, became the "standard" surface area, providing the best tradeoffs between pacing and sensing. Analysis of 18 years of canine data in our laboratory, however, suggest that these relationships may be overemphasized for the surface areas of clinical interest. In fact, new small porous and steroid-eluting electrodes do not have high thresholds, are efficient, and their sensing is excellent.

Animals↗
PubMed2005

The prokaryote-eukaryote dichotomy: meanings and mythology.

Drawing on documents both published and archival, this paper explains how the prokaryote-eukaryote dichotomy of the 1960s was constructed, the purposes it served, and what it implied in terms of classification and phylogeny. In doing so, I first show how the concept was attributed to Edouard Chatton and the context in which he introduced the terms. Following, I examine the context in which the terms were reintroduced into biology in 1962 by Roger Stanier and C. B. van Niel. I study the discourse over the subsequent decade to understand how the organizational dichotomy took on the form of a natural classification as the kingdom Monera or superkingdom Procaryotae. Stanier and van Niel admitted that, in regard to constructing a natural classification of bacteria, structural characteristics were no more useful than physiological properties. They repeatedly denied that bacterial phylogenetics was possible. I thus examine the great historical irony that the "prokaryote," in both its organizational and phylogenetic senses, was defined (negatively) on the basis of structure. Finally, we see how phylogenetic research based on 16S rRNA led by Carl Woese and his collaborators confronted the prokaryote concept while moving microbiology to the center of evolutionary biology.

Bacteria↗
PubMed1984

Membrane mythology: technical versus conceptual developments in the progress of research.

The historical development of membrane research can be divided into three periods: "Early Membraneology" (approximately 1850-1940), "Classical Membraneology" (1940-1970), and "Modern Membraneology" (1970 to date). The "Early Period" is characterized by imaginative conceptual leaps based on technically simple experiments. Each of the latter periods is characterized by substantial increases in activity as measured by numbers of membrane-oriented investigators and of published papers. The transition into each new period is based on technical rather than conceptual breakthroughs. It is concluded that, in membrane research, technical advances tend to precede conceptual advances and that new technologies allow new directions in experimentation, leading to new levels of understanding.

Adenosine Triphosphate↗
PubMed1993

The bionic ear and the mythology of paediatric implants.

Parents face a daunting task when deciding whether an implant is an optimal, or even a viable choice for their deaf child. Much of the confusion is as a result of vested interest by both proponents and critics of cochlear implantation.

Bionics↗