New Year’s Day 2021

Now that 2020 is officially a matter for historians, it’s worth reflecting that we’ve seen two general reactions to the year’s passing. The first is “good riddance”, and the second is the sober realization that 2020 is gone, but everything else that made it a difficult year—COVID included—is still with us.

Thursday Review: “History in a Crisis — Lessons for Covid-19”

There’s an everyday meaning and a technical meaning to the word “crisis”. There’s the usual meaning of a difficult or intense moment. On the other hand, the “crisis” in a story is when a climax becomes unavoidable. In other words, if a story reaches a crisis, there’s no walking away: when the story is over, […]

Thursday Review: “‘Spanish Flu’: When Infectious Disease Names Blur Origins and Stigmatize Those Infected”

As important as any given fact is, it may be more important to notice what we’re being asked to do with the information. In the American Journal of Public Health, Trevor Hoppe uses the simple fact that there is nothing inherently Spanish about the “Spanish flu” to talk about the rhetoric of naming diseases. It […]

Thursday Review: “Talking Sense”

For something a little different, this February, the Thursday Reviews will be dedicated to a few of Richard Asher’s classic articles from the late 1950s: February 1: “Why Are Medical Journals So Dull?” The Talking Sense trilogy: February 8: “Clinical Sense” February 15: “Making Sense” February 22: “Talking Sense” Richard Asher’s writings have stuck around […]

Thursday Review: “Making Sense”

For something a little different, this February, the Thursday Reviews will be dedicated to a few of Richard Asher’s classic articles from the late 1950s: February 1: “Why Are Medical Journals So Dull?” The Talking Sense trilogy: February 8: “Clinical Sense” February 15: “Making Sense” February 22: “Talking Sense” It’s no wonder that Asher’s lecture […]

Thursday Review: “Clinical Sense”

For something a little different, this February, the Thursday Reviews will be dedicated to a few of Richard Asher’s classic articles from the late 1950s: February 1: “Why Are Medical Journals So Dull?” The Talking Sense trilogy: February 8: “Clinical Sense” February 15: “Making Sense” February 22: “Talking Sense” On February 9, 1959, Richard Asher […]

Thursday Review: “Why Are Medical Journals So Dull?”

For something a little different, this February, the Thursday Reviews will be dedicated to a few of Richard Asher’s classic articles from the late 1950s: February 1: “Why Are Medical Journals So Dull?” The Talking Sense trilogy: February 8: “Clinical Sense” February 15: “Making Sense” February 22: “Talking Sense” Writing in the British Medical Journal […]