THE ORIGIN, PERSISTENCE AND FAILINGS OF HIV/AIDS THEORY
by Henry H. Bauer;
McFarland Publishers, 2007, ISBN 0-7864-3048-6
McFarland Publishers, 2007, ISBN 0-7864-3048-6ContentsAcknowledgmentsList of FiguresList of TablesA Note on Sources and the Structure of the BookPart I: Does HIV Cause AIDS?
1.MALES AND FEMALES [The male-to-female ratio for AIDS is quite different from that for HIV]
MALES AND FEMALES [The male-to-female ratio for AIDS is quite different from that for HIV] Males and females--inconclusive 2.UNIFORM TRENDS [HIV-positive rates vary regularly with sex, age, race]
UNIFORM TRENDS [HIV-positive rates vary regularly with sex, age, race] Inherited characteristics vs. acquired behavior HIV is unlike a sexually transmitted infection Clinching data 3.FALSE POSITIVES OR CONTAMINATED SAMPLES? [The data are not artifacts]
FALSE POSITIVES OR CONTAMINATED SAMPLES? [The data are not artifacts] 4.HIV IS NOT AN INFECTION [HIV is endemic, a constant background]
HIV IS NOT AN INFECTION [HIV is endemic, a constant background] Interlude: ethics in clinical HIV/AIDS research 5.HIV DISCRIMINATES BY RACE [The data are unequivocal and uncontested]
HIV DISCRIMINATES BY RACE [The data are unequivocal and uncontested] 6.WHAT IS IT ABOUT RACE? [Surely genetics, not behavior!]
WHAT IS IT ABOUT RACE? [Surely genetics, not behavior!] Statistics: global and misleading? Racial correlates of F(HIV) Geographic distribution of HIV explained Further corroboration: HispanicsThe global picture 7.RACISM [Why would a behavioral explanation be countenanced?]
RACISM [Why would a behavioral explanation be countenanced?] Stereotypical mistakes 8.WHAT DO HIV TESTS DETECT? [A non-specific immune reaction]
WHAT DO HIV TESTS DETECT? [A non-specific immune reaction] HIV-positive is not specific to HIV Interpreting incidence of new HIV-positives Deficiencies of HIV tests HIV-positive does not necessarily lead to AIDS HIV-positive may be only temporary Correlation of F(HIV) with race Does “non-specific” mask specificities? 9.HIV AND AIDS ARE NOT CORRELATED [And therefore one did not cause the other ]
HIV AND AIDS ARE NOT CORRELATED [And therefore one did not cause the other ] AIDS without HIV HIV without illness Males and females Black and white Changes over time HIV and venereal diseases Geography Why any semblance of a correlation? More “AIDS-defining” diseases Inventing new epidemics10.AIDS [Survey of suggestions made by others]
AIDS [Survey of suggestions made by others] Non-African AIDS African AIDS NoceboPart II: Lessons from History
[Science is trial-and-error, continually self-correcting]
11.MISSTEPS IN MODERN MEDICAL SCIENCE
MISSTEPS IN MODERN MEDICAL SCIENCE Ulcers and bacteria Gene therapy and the central dogma of molecular biology Magic Bullets Kuru and lentiviruses Heart disease Mistakenly inferring an infectious cause Some other deficiencies of medical science Relevance to HIV/AIDS12.HOW SCIENCE PROGRESSES
HOW SCIENCE PROGRESSES The scientific method Thomas Kuhn and scientific revolutions Resistance and prematurity in science Karl Popper and falsifiability Progressive and regressive research Ad Hockery Alternative theories13.RESEARCH CARTELS AND KNOWLEDGE MONOPOLIES
RESEARCH CARTELS AND KNOWLEDGE MONOPOLIES [In the era of “Big Science”, errors take longer to correct]
Part III: How HIV/AIDS Theory Took and Kept Hold
[The sub-headings below seem self-explanatory]
14.IT’S A VIRUS
IT’S A VIRUS Notes on the literature The viral theory Misguided classifications Wishful thinking and its consequences Discovering the virus Viral consequences The dissidents Guesstimates--getting the desired numbers15.MAINTAINING THE MONOPOLY
MAINTAINING THE MONOPOLY Vested interests Controlling the data Censoring Evading, misrepresenting, and ad hominem attacks Ignorance of how science works Shibboleths and urban legends Media16.THE END OF THE BEGINNING
THE END OF THE BEGINNING HIV/AIDS theory has failed Practical matters Needed knowledge The larger pictureSourcesIndex