On Tue, 10 Oct 2000, Michael Sylvester wrote:
> As you might have read/heard by now the Nobel Prize for Medicine was
> awarded
> to scientists researching nerve cell communication factors.
> What I find interesting is that those awards in Medicine usually
> cite the practical applications of those discoveries.
> It does not appear that just doing basic research -kmowledge
> for knowledge sake- is sufficient.
> After all ,there is extensive data on the dopamine neurotransmitter.
> Just a thought as to if basic research without practical implications
> amount to much.
> Comments invited.
As it happens, I was just preparing a few PowerPoint slides for
my class in physiological psychology on the just-announced
prizewinners in physiology. The Nobel Committee was thoughtful in
announcing the award for neuroscience work I had just finished
reviewing in class during the previous week. You can see the
Nobel annoucement with some handy graphics at:
http://nobel.sdsc.edu/announcement/2000/medicine.html
In response to Michael, one of the three prizewinners was Arvid
Carlsson, who first identified dopamine as a brain
neurotransmitter. But the Nobel Committee also explicitly cited
him for his work in recognizing that Parkinson's disease was
caused by a lack of dopamine in the basal ganglia, and that
l-dopa could be used as a treatment for it. It is still the
single most important means of slowing the progress of the
disorder. Carlsson was also cited for the fact that his work led
to the development of antipsychotic drugs, notably against
schizophrenia. Both of these achievements are certainly practical
ones.
-Stephen
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Stephen Black, Ph.D. tel: (819) 822-9600 ext 2470
Department of Psychology fax: (819) 822-9661
Bishop's University e-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
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Canada Department web page at http://www.ubishops.ca/ccc/div/soc/psy
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