Studies and Analyses

Why do political theories so often fail the test of common sense? And why do individual political studies often seem to stop short of providing general guidance about political matters?

James Granato and Frank Scioli, National Science Foundation (NSF), managers of the political science program, write in the newly published June issue of Perspectives on Politics that the separation of theory and real-world tests often sharply limit the usefulness of each. They identify three methods commonly

Two dozen volunteers bravely exposed their arms to jellyfish tentacles as part of a new Stanford University School of Medicine study to test a topical, over-the-counter cream designed to protect against stinging nettles. Fortunately for the volunteers, the cream appeared to be relatively effective.

“It didn’t completely inhibit the stings, but it came pretty darn close,” reported Alexa Kimball, MD, MPH, an assistant professor of dermatology who directed the study. The study appears in

UCSF scientists are publishing sweet results of a study examining chocolate’s effects on blood vessel function in healthy people. The team reports that small daily doses of flavonoid-rich dark chocolate consumed over a two-week period improved blood vessels’ ability to dilate, or expand. They also report that a particular flavonoid thought to be beneficial for blood vessel function, epicatechin, was absorbed at high levels in the blood.

“This is the longest clinical trial to date to show i

Evidence based practice is currently in vogue, and basing medical practice on published evidence is clearly a good idea, but what if the published findings are inaccurate? An article published this week in BMC Medical Research Methodology shows that a large proportion of articles in top science and medical journals contain statistical errors, 4% of which may have caused non-significant findings to be misrepresented as being significant. Thirty-eight percent of the Nature papers and a quarter

OHSU study finds tiny crystals also help brain lesion tissue to be viewed under microscope

A research team from Oregon Health & Science University and the Portland Veterans Affairs Medical Center is demonstrating some of the world’s first clinical applications for nanometer-size particles in the brain.

The OHSU scientists have shown that an iron oxide nanoparticle as small as a virus can outline not only brain tumors under magnetic resonance imaging, but also other lesi

Werewolves notwithstanding, the full moon does not influence the frequency of epileptic seizures, reports a University of South Florida study.

“Contrary to the myth, epileptic seizures are not more common during a full moon,” said Selim Benbadis, MD, associate professor of neurology and neurosurgery at the USF College of Medicine. “In fact, we found the number of epileptic seizures was lowest during the full moon and highest in the moon’s last quarter.”

The study, to be publi