Jelmer Raaijmakers We think it is self-evident that women make sure that they do not get pregnant, but is that a rational way of thinking? We might have been conditioned to think in that manner. It could be because women get pregnant, women give birth, and women use contraceptives. However, is it not weird and illogical to think of it that way? Might men be able to play a role in this? Women carry the burden of carrying the (unborn) child; there is nothing we can do to change that. … [Lees meer...]
Why mass media is captivated by coronavirus
Larissa Govers, BSc Not a day goes by that you are not confronted with coronavirus, albeit on the news, as a joke or because you got an email about it from your employer. The world is currently completely captivated by this disease, which shows symptoms such as cough, dyspnea fever and bilateral lung infiltrates [1]. But here I wonder, why does a flu-like disease have the ability to affect the global economic growth, while other diseases with significantly higher burdens get by unnoticed? For … [Lees meer...]
Is blinding not so important after all?
Larissa Govers, BSc When you want to study the effect of a therapeutic intervention, randomisation is the most reliable method to assess the real effect of the intervention. Randomisation is the process of assigning participants or experimental units to a certain treatment in a way that every unit has a known (equal) chance of being assigned to any of the groups. However, the results from these studies could still be biased due to systematic differences. Already from early on in our … [Lees meer...]
Pathological Laughing and Crying
Elisah Geertman If you have seen the movie ‘Joker’ in theatres, there is a big chance you will recognise the card as the one carried around by the film’s main character, Arthur Fleck (better known as The Joker), who suffers from a variety of mental illnesses. One of his conditions causes him to have involuntary and extreme outbursts of (horrifying) laughter at the most inappropriate moments. But what is the real-life condition behind the Joker’s laugh? The outbursts of laughter displayed … [Lees meer...]
Thirteenth edition of RAMS is now available!
The thirteenth edition is now available! From now on you can read this edition online. Download the PDF or get it in real life at the medical faculty building (in the bookshelf near the stairs at the entrance or at the study square). In this edition you can read about the effects of physical exercise and some articles that are intertwined with the topic of this year's Summer School, which focuses on cardiology. Curious what else you can find in our thirteenth edition? Grab your RAMS from the … [Lees meer...]