The Art of Planning—How many samples are enough?

Abstract

The Art of Planning-How many samples are enough?'Plan for what is difficult while it is easy, do what is great while it is small.' 1

Bridging the gap: The dichotomy between measurement and reality in physiological research

“…21 Despite these challenges, the field of physiology continues to advance, fueled largely by these very limitations. Issues such as the reproducibility crisis in research, the struggle to find the appropriate statistical approach, setting up a valid experiment, 22 and the challenge in differentiating between effect and significance may complicate the picture. 23 Yet, it is through confronting and overcoming these difficulties that we stimulate scientific progress.…”

Protection of the environment in relation to armed conflict—50 years of effort, and no end in sight

“…In 1993, the ICRC proposed ''Guidelines'' on the subject, to which the UN General Assembly (UNGA), however, provided a third-class burial. 13 New factual developments, however, increased the political interest in environmental protection in relation to armed conflict. These were the two first Gulf Wars which resulted in heavy oil pollution of the Persian Gulf.…”

“…14 As a result of the second Gulf War in the early 1990s, the Security Council established the United Nations Claims Commission 15 , which, inter alia, awarded compensation for environmental damage caused by the war-which constituted an important clarification of the evaluation of environmental damage in international law. 16 An important step was also the practice of the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP), started in 1991, to provide a stock-taking of the environmental consequences of certain conflicts, a practice rendered politically possible by the fact that UNEP refrained from any legal evaluation, confining itself to the description of the situation, including the need for rehabilitation. 17 This has provided a clearer picture of various types of environmental degradation caused by armed conflict.…”

Relativistic aspects of physiology: Expanding our understanding of conventional control loops

“…How to recalibrate expected outcomes of measurements to account for these changes? Do conventional methods and locations of measurement continue to hold relevance? 13 Do we need different approaches to evaluate measurement accuracy? 14–16 These considerations challenge our understanding of physiology and have implications for therapeutic strategies and pathomorphological considerations 11,17,18 …”