This is an article that Steve passed around the other day about the different schools of thought as far as medicine and technology go. You’ve got people who want their doctors to use cutting edge technology like (this is actual language from the article) “proton beam therapy” which can vaporize tumors with little damage to surrounding tissue, and you’ve got people who are happy to just keep things simple with cheaper technologies like x-rays.
Here’s something I never really thought of (or just took for granted) when I read this article: Toilets are one of the key components to disease control. SARS was caused by faulty plumbing in a seventh-floor bathroom in Hong Kong. SARS, people. That disease that killed all those people, yeah. Three cheers for sanitation!