Clinical Trials

Clinical Research from ECRAN project on Vimeo.

Using Relevant Evidence to Make Trade Offs

Today in class we spent a good deal of time analyzing Dr. Goldberger's investigation of Pellagra. Writing an analysis of a scientific investigation is quite difficult; you need to be able to identify key evidence with the appropriate number of facts, data, and observation.  We practiced recognizing relevant evidence in class.  For homework, use relevant evidence and identify trade offs to support your opinion on the question below.  Remember that a trade off is giving up something in order to gain something.  Before any decision is made, you need to look at the trade offs and make sure it's all worth it.  Use the trade off rubric (same as the one in your journal) as a guide to answer the following question:

To investigate his hypothesis, Dr.Goldberger had prisoners volunteer to be fed a poor diet; as a result 7 out of 11 of the prisoners developed Pellagra.  What do you think about Dr. Goldberger's decision to experiment on people?  Support your answer with evidence and identify the trade-offs of your decision. 

 Make sure you write this on a GoogleDoc

Hint: To write a complete answer, first give an explanation of the experiment and state your opinion. Provide two or more pieces of evidence that support your opinion.  Then consider all sides of the issue and identify the trade-offs of your decision.

Studying People Scientifically

From Saving Fred to The Chopstick Challenge, approaching problems involves well thought out methods.

What if you're studying people instead of solving a problem like we did in class today?  Does the problem solving method change?  Do you need to think about what's ethical with human testing? What's right and wrong? Next class we will be looking into one doctor's attempt at solving a serious health problem which existed in the Southern United States in the 1900s.  Watch the video (click on Dr. Goldberger's picture) and think about these questions:
1.  What was the problem of pellagra?
2.  What did people think caused pellegra?
3.   What evidence did Dr. Goldberger observe or collect about pellegra?
4.  What did Dr. Goldberger conclude about the cause of pellegra?
5.  What are your thoughts about the right and the wrong in Dr. Goldberger's testing to solve this problem?

For more information on Dr. Goldberger and Pellegra - see  http://sepuplhs.org/students/sali/