Biomedical subjects
Allan Mazur
Publications and source records attributed to Allan Mazur.
Believers and disbelievers in evolution.
BACKGROUND: Citizens of the United States are less likely than are citizens of Europe and several non-European nations to believe that humans evolved from an earlier species. Several theories have been proposed to explain Americans' disbelief in human evolution, but empirical investigation has been sparse. METHODS: Data on belief in evolution, on scientific knowledge unrelated to evolution, on socioeconomic status, on Christian religiosity, and on political polarity were identified in the General Social Surveys (GSSs) for 1993, 1994, and 2000. These data were then analyzed in bivariate and multivariate tests of theories about evolutionary and anti-evolutionary views. FINDINGS: Christian religiosity was the strongest correlate of disbelief in evolution. Low educational attainment was another positive, but weaker, correlate, though disbelief in evolution was not related to general measures of scientific knowledge. Political liberalism and political conservatism predicted evolutionary belief even after controlling for religiosity, education, and other potential confounders. Subcultural differences in belief -- those between blacks and whites, rural dwellers and urban dwellers, Southerners and non-Southerners, dogmatists and non-dogmatists -- became insignificant under appropriate controls. CONCLUSION: Christian religiosity, especially in a fundamentalist variety, was the primary correlate of disbelief in evolution. Lack of education was an important but lesser factor. Independent of religiosity and education, political conservatism predicted disbelief.
Testosterone supplementation in the aging male: which questions have been answered?
PURPOSE: There is no consensus on possible benefits and risks of testosterone supplementation. Here we review various controlled studies of testosterone supplementation in aging males. METHODS: We performed a PubMed search using the terms "testosterone/therapeutic use" with the limits " > 65 years of age", "randomized controlled clinical trials", and "male gender", starting in 1999. RESULTS: Forty-three articles have been published since 1999. Some of these studies also included patients in middle-age or younger. Findings reported in these articles were not entirely consistent. After weighting studies by the number of patients, hints are found that testosterone supplementation increases bone mass, lean body mass, muscle mass and hematopoiesis, and improves sexual functioning and perhaps mood, but does not affect serum lipids, cardiovascular parameters, prostate-specific antigen level, or cognition. Considering studies including only men older than 65 years, and in which testosterone supplements were compared with placebo treatment, slightly different results are obtained. In these patient groups, testosterone does not improve sexual function or mood. CONCLUSION: The overall benefit of testosterone supplementation for the aging male remains unclear. Any supplementation in men with age-normal testosterone levels only on grounds of subjective symptoms is not advisable.
Let no one split asunder: controversy in human genetic engineering.
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Allegations of dishonesty in research and their treatment by American universities.
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