Jun 13, 2023 02:24 PM
The scientific fraud behind the “discovery” of element 118
https://www.quantamagazine.org/a-new-exp...-20230612/
During the Cold War, the United States and the Soviet Union raced to discover superheavy elements. For years, UC Berkeley was the undisputed leader in this race — until they weren’t. Eager to reclaim its lost prestige, the university launched rigorous investigations to discover how the scientific fraud was carried out.
The shaky evidence for medical cannabis
https://www.skeptic.org.uk/2023/06/the-s...-cannabis/
EXCERPTS: There are two disclaimers I have to put forth: the first is that in the US and the UK; legal restrictions on the substance have made it difficult to even research it for medical reasons. In the UK this restriction was repealed in 2018, while in the US the problem varies between jurisdictions but as a drug, it remains a schedule 1 — the most serious of classifications, which renders research into it very legally odious to conduct.
The second is that I am not anti-marijuana. I personally don’t care for it, and as someone with a PhD in Philosophy I know that I’m in the minority of non-pot smokers in my discipline. My position is similar to Mill’s: do what you want, as long as everyone consents, and no one is being harmed.
The concept of medical marijuana seemed to be nothing more than a gateway argument. It was a way to open the door to full legalisation. I thought it was similar to the way that people, during the American experiment with alcohol prohibition, could get medical whiskey prescriptions (including a certain UK Prime Minister). Yet smokers assured me that it had benefits that were as good, if not better, than their pharmaceutical counterparts. Given the fervour by which they advocate for its effectiveness, it felt like the evidence must exist.
[...] To conclude, more research is certainly needed. The restrictions on running studies on the substance are being slowly chipped away and its placement as a schedule 1 drug in the US is an absurdity. However, as Science Based Medicine has written, the current state of the science does not provide the conclusions that advocates have claimed... (MORE - missing details)
COVERED: Glaucoma .... Cancer .... Pain
https://www.quantamagazine.org/a-new-exp...-20230612/
During the Cold War, the United States and the Soviet Union raced to discover superheavy elements. For years, UC Berkeley was the undisputed leader in this race — until they weren’t. Eager to reclaim its lost prestige, the university launched rigorous investigations to discover how the scientific fraud was carried out.
The shaky evidence for medical cannabis
https://www.skeptic.org.uk/2023/06/the-s...-cannabis/
EXCERPTS: There are two disclaimers I have to put forth: the first is that in the US and the UK; legal restrictions on the substance have made it difficult to even research it for medical reasons. In the UK this restriction was repealed in 2018, while in the US the problem varies between jurisdictions but as a drug, it remains a schedule 1 — the most serious of classifications, which renders research into it very legally odious to conduct.
The second is that I am not anti-marijuana. I personally don’t care for it, and as someone with a PhD in Philosophy I know that I’m in the minority of non-pot smokers in my discipline. My position is similar to Mill’s: do what you want, as long as everyone consents, and no one is being harmed.
The concept of medical marijuana seemed to be nothing more than a gateway argument. It was a way to open the door to full legalisation. I thought it was similar to the way that people, during the American experiment with alcohol prohibition, could get medical whiskey prescriptions (including a certain UK Prime Minister). Yet smokers assured me that it had benefits that were as good, if not better, than their pharmaceutical counterparts. Given the fervour by which they advocate for its effectiveness, it felt like the evidence must exist.
[...] To conclude, more research is certainly needed. The restrictions on running studies on the substance are being slowly chipped away and its placement as a schedule 1 drug in the US is an absurdity. However, as Science Based Medicine has written, the current state of the science does not provide the conclusions that advocates have claimed... (MORE - missing details)
COVERED: Glaucoma .... Cancer .... Pain