Difference between revisions of "Talk:1526: Placebo Blocker"

Explain xkcd: It's 'cause you're dumb.
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I think we've entirely overlooked the idea of using a control group that doesn't know what the word placebo means.  With such a control group, one could not tell them any lies at all "I've invented this new drug called placebo that will cure your rheumatism".[[User:Seebert|Seebert]] ([[User talk:Seebert|talk]]) 18:57, 18 May 2015 (UTC)
 
I think we've entirely overlooked the idea of using a control group that doesn't know what the word placebo means.  With such a control group, one could not tell them any lies at all "I've invented this new drug called placebo that will cure your rheumatism".[[User:Seebert|Seebert]] ([[User talk:Seebert|talk]]) 18:57, 18 May 2015 (UTC)
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:Why do you have to include the world placebo? Any new made up name like turgidax or pragmanol or frogans or vulpix or bligdrine will work. What is wrong with saying to the patient in the control group,"You are testing a pill of bligdrine." The patient may or may not know what placebo is, but they will certainly be not aware of bligdrine. [[Special:Contributions/173.245.48.163|173.245.48.163]] 20:21, 18 May 2015 (UTC)BK201

Revision as of 20:21, 18 May 2015

Placebome

The title of the referenced paper introduces the 'Placebome', the collection of genes which lead to the placebo effect. This is an absolutely ridiculous word, and would be worthy of Jonathan Eisen's Worst New Omics Word Award. Quantum7 (talk) 08:31, 18 May 2015 (UTC)

Title text bottle

It seems more plausible to me that the "they" and "same bottle" in the title text refer to the sugar pills for headache. The title text would then be an organic continuation of the immediately preceding dialogue. Angew (talk) 09:01, 18 May 2015 (UTC)

Agreed. Take two sugar pils. The second will boost the effect of the first. It could work if you believe it.--Kynde (talk) 12:14, 18 May 2015 (UTC)
Agreed, updated. -- Phyzome (talk) 13:47, 18 May 2015 (UTC)

I'm confused about why this explanation is a stub. Personally, I think it explains the comic well, but I'll refrain from removing the incomplete tag in case most people think that the explanation isn't adequate. Caeleste Alarum (talk) 15:21, 18 May 2015 (UTC)

Wouldn't you find a malady that can be treated via placebo, like a headache, give control group A a headache pill, control group B a placebo and tell them it was a headache pill and give the test group a placebo blocker as the placebo and tell them it is a headache pill?

A placebo blocker would be really useful in medical testing to find out which medicines are actually effective and which are simply producing a stronger placebo effect through a noticeable side effect. 173.245.48.125 15:46, 18 May 2015 (UTC)

How to do it.

Compound two sets of placebos. The control set is just sugar pills. The other set would be the blocker. Unless the active dose is massive, it'd also be partially a sugar pill already.

Present both as a possible treatment for some malady.

Each group would then only get one pill, and be ignorant that there was potentially a placebo blocker in their dose. 108.162.238.160 17:09, 18 May 2015 (UTC)


I would guess that there would have to be at least 6 groups. Groups 1 and 2 would be the traditional experiment with a drug and a placebo, groups 3, 4, 5, and 6 are given two pills one of which they told is a drug, the other is a placebo blocker which may prevent the first drug from helping you. groups 3 and 4 are given the real placebo blocker, groups 5 and 6 are given another placebo. This would be an interesting experiment in that you could test the psychological effects of telling someone who took a real drug that "it may not work." 108.162.238.188 18:36, 18 May 2015 (UTC) Veggiet

I think we've entirely overlooked the idea of using a control group that doesn't know what the word placebo means. With such a control group, one could not tell them any lies at all "I've invented this new drug called placebo that will cure your rheumatism".Seebert (talk) 18:57, 18 May 2015 (UTC)

Why do you have to include the world placebo? Any new made up name like turgidax or pragmanol or frogans or vulpix or bligdrine will work. What is wrong with saying to the patient in the control group,"You are testing a pill of bligdrine." The patient may or may not know what placebo is, but they will certainly be not aware of bligdrine. 173.245.48.163 20:21, 18 May 2015 (UTC)BK201