Terminology – The Science PT

Why a Quad Index Matters

Post Author:Erik Meira
Post published:August 19, 2018
Post Category:Biomechanics / Knee / Terminology

I test the quads on every knee patient who is returning to sport. Actually, I test a lot of things but it all starts with the quads. As I have…

Tru Dat!

Post Author:Erik Meira
Post published:June 13, 2017
Post Category:Critical Thinking / General Science / Terminology

What is “truth” or “knowledge”? Can we have “alternative facts”, my reality vs your reality, or are ideas a simple black and white true or false? As with many things…

Jump out of what without a what?!

Biomechanics Matter Even When They Don’t

Post Author:Erik Meira
Post published:February 23, 2017
Post Category:Biomechanics / Psychology / Terminology

I know. The title sounds confusing. Also, biomechanics can be scary to a lot of people. It always made sense to me but I remember the more “humanities oriented” students in physical therapy school having a hard time with understanding biomechanics. Sadly, I find that a lot of physical therapists don’t seem to know exactly what “biomechanics” even means. Of course now with Pain Science™ being a thing, some people have decided to stop thinking about biomechanics all together. This is…concerning…for certain populations. (more…)

The False Dichotomy of Open vs Closed Kinetic Chain

Post Author:Erik Meira
Post published:September 6, 2016
Post Category:Exercise / Interventions / Knee / Terminology

Open kinetic chain (OKC) vs closed kinetic chain (CKC); we have heard it all before. There are arguments that OKC is more dangerous (it’s not) or that it puts more…

Measuring Outcomes is the Least We Can Do

Post Author:Erik Meira
Post published:August 9, 2016
Post Category:Critical Thinking / Interventions / Terminology

Whenever an intervention is applied in a medical interaction it results in outcomes. Mind you, not just one outcome, but many. Take surgery for example. There are biological outcomes (new…

Ketchup is gross

Sure, But What Does It Predict?

Post Author:Erik Meira
Post published:October 22, 2015
Post Category:Critical Thinking / General Science / Terminology

He takes a bite of his bacon cheeseburger, “Medical providers don’t know how science works.” “Tell me about it!” I'm having dinner in a noisy sports bar in the Midwest…

What Is Your Razor?

Post Author:Erik Meira
Post published:September 17, 2015
Post Category:Critical Thinking / Interventions / Terminology

"Often myths arise because a single claim or research finding has particular intuitive appeal. The claim makes sense, it supports a popular argument, and soon it is cemented as taken-for-granted fact…

From @TheTweetofGod

Does God Exist?

Post Author:Erik Meira
Post published:May 7, 2014
Post Category:Critical Thinking / General Science / Terminology

ARE YOU FREAKING KIDDING ME??? IS HE REALLY GOING TO TAKE ON THIS QUESTION??? Easy now, fella. This is just a thought experiment about scientific questions and has almost nothing…

Simple Feedback By Trevithj (Own work) [CC-BY-SA-3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)], via Wikimedia Commons

Getting Rid of Something Positive

Post Author:Erik Meira
Post published:April 9, 2014
Post Category:Critical Thinking / Terminology

That title is a little misleading. Remember “positive” does not mean “good” when we talk science. It means “additive”. In my opinion, physical therapy is most effective at removing something positive from our patients. Let me explain… (more…)

Does Positive Mean What You Think It Means?

Post Author:Erik Meira
Post published:February 21, 2014
Post Category:Critical Thinking / Terminology

When chatting with others, we all understand what someone means when they say positive or negative. Positive usually falls in line with the idea of the “bright side” as in being an optimist and having a positive attitude. Negative on the other hand usually refers to the idea of the “dark side” as in being a pessimist and having a negative attitude.

Although these are examples of proper uses of these words, thinking about them this way can be confusing when trying to apply them in scientific discussions. For example, whenever I hear someone say something like, “I am a big believer in positive reinforcement,” I know that that person doesn’t know what they are talking about… (more…)