… and in particular, some areas of knowledge change significantly over time. This is a good thing–it tells us that we’re learning more about how the world works.

Medical knowledge, in particular, is often subject to a dizzying shift in perspective with time. What’s recognized as true in one era might easily be overturned just a few years later.

To get a sense of this, let’s take a look at a few pieces of medical knowledge that were once-upon-a-time widely accepted.

(I should say that I’m not picking on Medicine as a field–it’s just a nice illustration of how much our knowledge of the world shifts over time. You could ask these same questions of physics, or chemistry, or biology. Medicine is a bit simpler to study for SearchResearch purposes.)

As you know, the Nobel Prize is awarded annually for outstanding contributions in a number of areas, including Medicine.

So I’m curious: how many of the results that have been rewarded with a Nobel Prize in Medicine can withstand the test of time?

Your Challenge for this week:

1. If we look at the Nobel Prizes awarded in the field of Medicine in the 1920s, how many of those highly acclaimed results from the 20s are still believed to be true?

This sounds like a crazy hard Challenge, but it’s simpler (and more surprising!) than you think.

As often happens with these Challenges, the subject matter may seem intimidating, but when you look at it in a little detail, it’s fascinating.

I hope you have as much fun with this Challenge as I did. There’s great joy to be had in just looking this stuff up!

Stay curious, my friends.

Search on.