Thoughts from a Lab Rat

For those of you who use your cell phones to access the internet, you may know that many sites do not load properly on the smaller screens. I just discovered OperaMini which is available for many phones including Blackberries, Palms and smart phones. You can view a full list of supported devices at the bottom of this post as well as a link to the site.

What makes OperaMini different from built in browsers is that rather than accessing the site directly and then downloading the entire page and then formatting it to the device, OperaMini sends the page to one of its servers where it knows what phone you have and optimzes the page, then downloads a smaller version to your phone which is much faster and can load many more pages than standard browsers.

Using my Blackberry Tour (non-camera edition of course!), I am able to access PPD’s site which I previously was unable to. The current version 4 works great but the 5 beta has a few bugs in it but brings ‘tabbed’ browsing as well as a thumbnail start screen you can place you favorite sites.

It’s not a cure all, but it has definately opened up new avenues for my surfing.
If you haven’t tried it yet, give it a shot!

http://www.opera.com/mini/
Device list

One of the biggest questions or concerns people have about clinical research is the side-effects. Am I concerned about it? Well, of course. When you see a TV commercial for a medication, the narrator will rattle off a mile long list of potential side-effects. It is important to remember that these are all of the side-effects that may have occurred during the clinical trials. It does not mean that everyone had all of the side-effects. Different people tolerate, absorb and have different reactions to drugs. While a certain pain medication will work wonders for most, there are some people who won’t have any effect from it. That said, the entire purpose of conducting clinic research studies is to see what side-effects occur and how effective a drug is.

In order to advance medical science, there is no other way to prove a drug than “the proof is in the pudding” as in doing the research studies. The people who participate in these studies should be commended for their willingness to help medical science. It is also important that the people who do these studies understand the risks involved. While some people would be willing to do almost anything for money, the vast majority see volunteering as a meaningful way to earn some extra money.

Wishing everyone a happy and prosperous 2010!
Paul Clough
Owner of Just Another Lab Rat!