From: Brett Paatsch (bpaatsch@bigpond.net.au)
Date: Wed Jul 23 2003 - 01:05:23 MDT
Gina Miller who brings us the nanogirl news ( thank you ! )
now provides the following provocative heading and link:
> LIVING TO 120 WITH EASE
> New drug could fight Alzheimer's, lung disease, even
> aging http://www.nupr.neu.edu/7-03/ceremedix.html
---- Now *this* looks like a choice example of anti-aging hype :-) [Back in Trinity College (high school), they used to try and teach us critical thinking (part of the English curriculum) by first familiarising kids with a bunch of concepts like rationalisation, generalisation, anecdotal evidence, non-sequitors, dubious appeals to authority, checking sources, understanding how statistics and inferences could be used to put a particular 'spin' on things etc. And, I reckon to their credit, they'd get kids to practice these critical thinking skills by giving us an article or a press release from somewhere and throw us the challenge of identifying and enumerating the "gotchas". Given the topic is anti-aging (something likely to be of interest to many of us) I'd guestimate that in the above article there are at least 20 gotchas. Anyone reckon they can find more? Here's a start. 1) This is not actually an article from an independent source it is a *press release* from North Eastern University's Communications and Public Relations dept. Bias. 2) The article refers to CereMedix a biotech start-up "at" Northeastern University - biotech start-ups require money More Bias. 3) Northeastern University is a private university. It is funded by students the plug for students is at the bottom. More Bias. 4) The heading is "Living to 120 with Ease". Yet that anyone will actually live to 120 with ease is not a claim made explicitly *anywhere* within the article itself. In fact the CEO "is wary of" :-) claiming that they have "discovered the fountain of youth". 5) The researcher points out that humans are genetically capable of living between 120 and 160 years. There are *no* reliable records of anyone living to 160. 6) The only attack that is made on aging is made on the basis of using anti-oxidants. 7) Geriatric mice that received the drug were *permanently* rejuvenated. (The rejuvenation is already permanent :-) ... Regards, Brett
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