Science's Rotten Underbelly

Science Vs

Spotify Studios

Science, Education, Health & Fitness

4.4 • 12.4K Ratings

🗓️ 22 March 2019

⏱️ 33 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

During a golden age for scientific progress, a group of scientists were given free rein to do whatever they wanted to their human lab rats. We got new drugs, and learnt exciting new things. But some researchers took it too far... And what seemed like a scientific fantasy turned into one of the largest American science scandals. Check out the full transcript here: http://bit.ly/2MLBX6u Selected references: The 1976 report from the National Commission for the Protection of Human Subjects of Biomedical and Behavioral Research Allen Hornblum’s book Acres of Skin (1998)2007 report from the Institute of Medicine Committee on Ethical Considerations for Research The Experimental Scurvy in Man 1969 study Credits: This episode was produced by Wendy Zukerman with help from Rose Rimler, Meryl Horn and Michelle Dang. Our senior producer is Kaitlyn Sawrey. We’re edited by Blythe Terrell and Caitlin Kenney. Fact checking by Michelle Harris and Michelle Dang. Mix and sound design by Peter Leonard. Music by Peter Leonard, Emma Munger and Bobby Lord. A huge thanks to all the researchers we got in touch with for this episode including Professor Karen Lebacqz, Michael Yesley. Also thanks to Sruthi Pinnamaneni, the Zukerman Family and Joseph Lavelle Wilson. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	Hi, I'm Wendy Zuckerman and you're listening to Science Versus from Gimlet.
0:05.8	Today, a very different kind of episode.
0:14.8	We're taking you back to a time where a group of scientists had free reign
0:19.0	to do whatever they wanted to their human guinea pigs.
0:23.6	It was basically the Wild Wild West of science.
0:26.8	And out of this time, we got new medicine.
0:29.8	Made scientific progress, but things spiraled out of control
0:34.8	when researchers took it too far.
0:41.8	We're starting our story with a man who stumbled into this world decades ago.
0:46.8	So, let me get you some coffee and then we can...
0:49.8	His name is Sigmund Weitzmann or Sigm.
0:52.8	He's a jolly guy, loves to laugh.
0:55.8	And as we sat down for coffee...
0:58.8	Zig told me about growing up in Philadelphia in the 50s and 60s.
1:01.8	His family was working class, no one had been to college.
1:04.8	But Zig had big dreams. He'd always wanted to be a doctor.
1:08.8	So I finished college and I was going to start medical school.
1:11.8	First though, he needed a summer job.
1:14.8	And I thought, well, it'd be interesting to do something that might have some relationship
1:19.8	with what I was going to do in the future.
1:22.8	And I thought, well, maybe there's some research or medical research,
1:27.8	or either any kind of research.
	...

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