Two pieces of news this past week offer a very interesting possibility for coordination of Federal research efforts in improving our diagnosis and treatment of major mental diseases. The first was in an article published in the highly respected New England Journal of Medicine that an extensive study by The [...]

When you merge your life with someone else’s, there are all sorts of things you must learn and change – either about yourself or the one who is lucky enough to have you. You have to befriend their friends. You have to learn what toilet paper they like. You have [...]

Many Americans would be surprised to learn that chimpanzees are still being used in biomedical research and that millions of other animals are utilized in consumer product and toxicity testing. Others may find a sense of security in knowing that this practice continues to provide information on which chemicals and [...]

Although we just had an election, Rick Santorum, as tireless as he is tiresome, is already stumping in Iowa to prepare for his next defeat. His willful ignorance and woeful arrogance personifies why the GOP is losing the next generation of voters. Santorum, for instance, attacked marriage equality and foolishly [...]

There could be no better illustration for the totally abject dysfunction of U.S. politics today than the tortured process that’s been occurring on Capitol Hill over doing something that 90 percent of the U.S. population wants. In light of all the slaughters of innocents that have taken place on U.S. [...]

It’s 8 p.m. on an idle Monday night. The pruning sheers cut through the stems of the roses, hydrangeas, and assorted annoying nameless blossom flowers of this week’s arrangement with ease. As with the last three daily pruning sessions, this one is a success. Each flower has been arranged, returned [...]

A dramatic performance of the composer Richard Strauss’ symphonic tone poem, “Death and Transfiguration,” by the National Symphony Orchestra at the Kennedy Center last weekend revealed the amazing prescient nature of the work. Surprisingly, Strauss was only 25 when he composed it, first performed in 1889, a compelling 14-minute work [...]

This past Tuesday, we recognized World Autism Day, a time to raise awareness and understanding about Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). ASD is the fastest growing serious developmental disorder in the United States, affecting nearly two million Americans. One in 88 children is on the autism spectrum by age 8, and [...]

A broad consensus has emerged in New Jersey that clinical attempts to change one’s sexual orientation is harmful and ineffective. It is a waste of time and money and can leave permanent psychological scars. For example, the editorial board of The Star-Ledger acknowledges that so-called conversion (aka reparative) therapy “is [...]

This week is a historic one. The Supreme Court heard the cases of the California gay marriage ban, or Proposition 8, and the federal Defense of Marriage Act. As a gay man, I am used to arguments about my way of life and my apparent “choice” to become gay but [...]