NEEDING TO UNDERSTAND RESEARCH LINGO

If research funds are to be granted, 'may eventually lead to new insight' seems to be a must.  It covers 'we've tried everything else we can think of but a shot in the dark just might make it'.  There has been an incredibly useful amount of research on the brain, neurotransmitters, anomalies in brain structure, what parts of the brain do what, and what would have totally boggled the mind even five years ago.

Protocols must be written to show the experience of the lead researcher and all others working on the project.  It must be written in language understandable to non-scientists and anything to human subjects must be written in a vocabulary an 8th grader can understand.  (This is nearly impossible for some of the very technical research projects I have read).

Occasionally a research project looks similar to one already done.  However, reading the fine print, it is clear that results must be reproducible and true understanding covers some repetitious paths.  The average person usually does not understand the difficulties faced by the honest researcher.  I say the 'honest researcher' because we have all read about those who fudge their results.  However, in most programs, it is difficult to get beyond the many committees who review all research done in any facility.

References must be carefully reviewed to make sure research is not being plagiarized and unnecessarily repeated and that all, current as possible has been explored.  For humans there are all sorts of informed consent forms and HIPAA forms to be signed for human research.  Animals are unable to give permissions, so there are extra cautions for those who cannot speak for themselves.  Contrary to what PETA advocates assume, those who use animals in research have very strict guidelines about humane treatment of subjects.

What the public at large needs to understand is ,even if research proves something works, there is a very long line of agencies who need to sign off permitting research of products to be used being used pharmaceutically, or commercially, especially if they are to be ingested or in any way could prove to be detrimental for not having been studied long enough for subsequent side effects.  Occasionally something will slip through which is, truly unavoidable for even the best scientific minds, but the public does not take kindly to those circumstances.

Research not using human or animal subjects is much less frightening with such tight controls.  The basic goal  is to prove the outcomes and harm no one.  Without research we would not advance as a civilization...and advance is what we are doinhg at an alarmingly fast rate.  It is difficult for those of us not used to all these 'conveniences' to stay abreast of the times.

.