re nih offers exploratory grants for alternative medicine in article apr island com green island com robert greenstein writes in article pitt uucp geb cs pitt edu gordon banks writes one problem is very few scientists are interested in alternative medicine so gordon why do you think this is so probably because most of them come packaged with some absurd theory behind them e g homoeopathy like cures like the more you dilute things the more powerful they get even if you dilute them so much there is no ingredient but water left chiropractic all illness stems from compressions of nerves by misaligned vertebrae such systems are so patently absurd that any good they do is accidental and not related to the theory the only exception is probably herbalism because scientists recognize the potent drugs that derive from plants and are always interested in seeing if they can find new plants that have active and useful substances but that isn t what is meant by alternative medicine usually if you get into the qi accupuntunce charts etc you are now back to silly theories that probably have nothing to do with why accupuncture works in some cases perhaps another reason they are reluctant is the rhine experience rhine was a scientist who wanted to investigate the paranormal and his lab was filled with so much chacanery and fakery that people don t want to be associated with that sort of thing gordon banks n jxp skepticism is the chastity of the intellect and geb cadre dsl pitt edu it is shameful to surrender it too soon
