Comments on: House – episode 8

By: Chris

Chris — Tue, 29 Nov 2011 05:22:08 +0000

ecoli>

That’s some strange logic.

Any country that has the scientific know-how to develop novel chemical weapons are specifically going to design them so that any specific cures won’t work. It’s not particularly hard to do either.

Not to mention that American sell their weapons to allies pretty much all the time.

By: ecoli

ecoli — Fri, 14 Oct 2011 22:39:22 +0000

I am not an expert of organophosphates, but could these “experimental drugs” have been some that work at single doses ( thus saving space) but only on specific organo-Ps?
However, i doubt that the Army of any country ( I am Swiss) would set such drugs free that easily. What if the enemy discovers these drugs and develops a toxin against which no drugs exist yet?!

By: Diseraph

Diseraph — Tue, 12 Oct 2010 06:07:08 +0000

“If you had trusted your son, then why did you do the drug test?”

My favourite quote in the episode and I reckon they could have milked it more since the mother really didn’t have a leg to stand on there.

By: lennka

lennka — Tue, 26 Jan 2010 17:16:07 +0000

And of course I didn’t read the other comments before posting… Sorry!

By: lennka

lennka — Tue, 26 Jan 2010 17:08:24 +0000

Interesting…

Ever read “The Man Who Mistook His Wife For A Hat” by the neuropsychiatrist Dr. Oliver Sacks? The book is a composition of his most interesting case reports. One of them deals with an 80-something year old woman whose syphilis (contracted in her early 20’s while she worked in a brothel) flared up again, causing neurological symptoms that exactly match those from this House episode. In fact, the two stories show such remarkable similarities (the patient was reluctant to accept treatment as she enjoyed the effects of her condition, and the statement “I like feeling sexy again!” is basically a direct quote) that I think the writers may have let themselves be “greatly inspired” by Dr. Sacks.

P.S. Very interesting book for anyone interested in neurology.

By: Kai

Kai — Sun, 25 Oct 2009 16:33:49 +0000

Thank you for your posts, it’s first time I looked behind ‘House’. I’d just like to agree about this medicine fiction thing. I even think it’s dangerous, though I have seen even worse series. I still like House but it should be stated more clearly that these cases are purly fictional. (if they are)

By: roy

roy — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 22:21:29 +0000

I read the first Berton Roueche book and virtually every story was similar to the first season of House. Great books.

By: Bill

Bill — Wed, 26 Nov 2008 02:34:01 +0000

uh, it’s a television show…. supposed to be entertaining and the rest of the stuff is peripherals (sp?). I love the show, I’ve been watching it from the beginning… very entertaining even if the plot lines are not always credible. The dialogue between actors is what makes the show. I would let them be my doctors anytime! LOL

By: The Duke of Waltham

The Duke of Waltham — Wed, 18 Jun 2008 00:09:15 +0000

How well-known are those books, though? I assume that the screenwriters expected to basically get away with ripping off some stories because these would be relatively obscure.

I agree with Mazal as far as the medicine is concerned—it does not look absurd to people not trained in medicine. Poetic licence, I suppose, to make for an interesting episode, but I hope it doesn’t happen too often.

Not that I’d notice before coming here, hehe. Unless they really over-do it, that is.

By: Jane

Jane — Mon, 07 Apr 2008 02:02:59 +0000

And the whole “poisoned pants” plot was straight out of a epidemiological mystery that got written up by Berton Rouche. (”The Dead Mosquitoes”, in _The Medical Detectives_)