Dr. Weeks’ Comment: I have always seen around the corner – that is where I put my attention and my mentors saw farther than I. Both my friends Abram Hoffer, MD who cured people with schizophrenia for 50 years and had his medical license revoked and David Horrobin MD who revolutionized our understanding of essential fatty acids eventaully had to found their own scientific journals to get their thinking published : Journal of Orthomolecular Medicine and Medical Hypothesis respectively. Both were paradigm shifting scientists whose transformative thinking terrorized middle management scientists. But the world is better for their courageous thinking. Joining them is my neighbor at U. Washington Gerald Pollack PhD whose brilliant research on water is so disruptive that his funding has been cut. He teaches about water having a 4th phase: exclusion zone water H3O2 and his lectures on youtube and this 2 minute summary are ESSENTIAL reading for anyone who wants to penetrate mysteries of health. Then buy his book The Fourth Phase of Water and join the revolution!
Below is one of his best peer-reviewed scientific publications on the nature of really thinking. It is a joy to read!
Transformative research: definitions, approaches and consequences
“We all agree that your theory is crazy, but is it crazy enough?
—Niels Bohr.
“A new scientific truth does not triumph by convincing its opponents and making them see the light, but rather because its opponents eventually die, and a new generation grows up that is familiar with it”
—Max Planck.
“No amount of experimentation can ever prove me right; a single experiment can prove me wrong.”
—Albert Einstein.
Introduction
In this perspective, we advance a definition of transformative research (TR) and provide details and examples as to how this type of research can be implemented. We also address how original scholarship can be assessed. There are those who are comfortable with the status quo, those who are indifferent, and others who will embrace a transformative approach. Profound discoveries through research are the objectives. It should also be noted that for every transformative idea there must be hundreds of misconceptions that lead nowhere. Referring to the quote by Niels Bohr above, then, only a few “crazy theories” in hundreds will prove to be transformative. The challenge will be in how to provide an appropriate incubator to foster the production of such TR.
Some of the most profound transformative advances have been made in the biological sciences. Some examples include, the cell as the basic unit of life, the invention of the microscope, the theory of evolution, a classification system, anatomy, brain functions, the discovery of the structure and function of DNA, the genetic code, reproduction in diverse species, photosynthesis, antibiotics, vaccines, restriction enzymes, genetic engineering, genome sequencing, site-directed mutagenesis and the polymerase chain reaction (PCR). These bioscience discoveries were also moved ahead by the use of mathematics (which is used in all sciences), computing, advanced microscopes, fluorescent methods and a better understanding of how light interacts with matter. As the distinctions between biosciences and other disciplines are removed, our knowledge becomes less fragmented and knowledge gaps start to be filled. Problems associated with transferring and linking knowledge and methods from one discipline to another still exist, however, these can be addressed by team collaborations, improved instrumentation, new technologies and better communications via on-line journals, texts and e-mail. Profound, new transformative discoveries will be made that encompass many disciplines.
This article is applicable to many, if not all areas of research. We view it as a conduit to a wider debate on TR that will benefit both basic and applied scholarship. More importantly, we hope it will benefit humanity through the alteration of conventional thought patterns. The ideas presented may help scientists distinguish between insightful theories reflecting reality from those that have no useful function.