How to Tell an Imitation from an Antique

Is it Old, or Just a Little Beat Up?

Telling an imitation from an antique requires more than a good eye

Techniques for roughing up a sculpture to make it look older than it actually is have been around ever since an inspired ancient Roman sculptor made a copy of an ancient Greek state. Like art forgeries, subtle restorations in the style of even the finest antiques can challenge the eye of discriminating collectors. Even repairs and replaced parts can substantially reduce a piece’s value.

But how can you tell? An educated eye and a knowledge of history help. George Read, who once oversaw Sotheby’s English furniture department in New York and now leads workshops on buying antique furniture, says he can tell whether a mahogany chair is old from across the room. When Europeans first began gathering mahogany from the forests of the new world, he explains, they harvested the easy-to-reach trees near the shore. Those trees, subjected to harsher weather from the ocean, grew slowly, giving the wood a complex, close grain. Decades later, after the seaside trees were depleted, sailors were forced to collect faster-growing trees from up-river, trees with a wide and less pleasing grain.

Read never leaves home without a postage stamp-sized magnifying glass with its own light to check for the tiny flaws that can give away a forgery. He offers some tips below for fledgling furniture sleuth on how to spot them as well.

Shrinkage: Wood shrinks across the grain. If a round tabletop is actually round when measured in two dimensions, it’s new. If the table is old, there should be a difference of about 1/8 inch per foot. Marqutry, too, tends to contract irregularly, usually sinking below the rest of the surface. If a piece with marquetry has a perfectly smooth surface, the marquetry was probably added much later to add flash or “tar up” the object, as dealers like to say.

Expert quote: “People are not buying a liquid investment when they buy antiques. It’s like good real estate; it takes time to liquidate. You’re not going to call a broker tomorrow and sell the highboy to put a kid through college” (Harold Sack, New York antique dealer). Telling an imitation from an antique. Photo by Elena

Upholstery: Always lift the edge of the fabric underneath upholstered pieces to see whether there are several sets of nail holes – you should figure a change of fabric every 50 years or so. You might have to pry up a nail or two, but in an auction, it’s likely that a previous viewer has already done so for you. If the fabric is in good condition and you don’t see nail holes, be especially wary – you may be looking at a fake.

Surfaces: “A really good patina might account for 50 percent of the value of a piece,” Read says. Though you might be disappointed to find dents or bleached spots on a beautiful piece, however, they do have an upside. Bleaching on one side of an object – indicating that the piece sat for years with a window to one side – is very hard to fake convincingly, and it’s a good sign of age. So are the hairline cracks in the surface and the irregular, slight buckling from underneath that come only from true age.

For pieces of furniture that sell for less than $5,000, Read says, fakers cannot afford to take the time to create a convincing patina. Instead they either simply paint the piece and rub off the paint in sections, or else, before painting, they treat the wood with a chemical that makes a uniform “alligator” crackle over the entire object. As for the surface of a table or chest, when you shine a flashlight over it, it should look like a pond blown by the wind – a perfectly smooth surface means either a replaced top or sloppy, destructive restoration.

Hardware: To tell whether brass handles or keyhole covers have been changed, take them off and look at the fade outline – if the hardware is original, the line will be cookie-cutter sharp. Also look inside to see whether there are extra screw holes from previous hardware.

If the piece is American, good hardware is critical to collectors. American furniture made in the 18th century was valued very highly at the time it was made, and it got little wear and tear compared with European works of the same vintage. Dealers in American furniture value original hardware highly. While replaced hardware might not affect the value of a European antique, it is significant in an American one.

Also look at the screw heads. Screws were not made with a tapered edge before 1840. Parallel edges on the screws of an object aren’t definitive, but they serve as another useful clue about an object’s age. Beware of using old screws and hardware as proof of age, however. Fakers keep large stores of antique hardware to dress up new pieces.

Mirrors and Gilding: Original mirrors are extremely rare, so a replaced mirror won’t hurt the value much, as long as it looks attractive. Likewise, re-guilding was common and shouldn’t reduce a frame’s value much if it was done well. To tell if a mirror is genuinely old, though, there is an easy test: touch a pencil tip or business card to the surface in several places, and note the distance between the tip and its reflected image. In old glass, the distance should vary visibly across the mirror because the glass has become less flat. Also, in old glass you may see a beveled edge, but you will just barely feel it. With glass made in the Victorian era or later, you can feel a very sharp bevel.

Dovetails: Dovetailing is the tongue-ingroove technique carpenters use to join boards at an angle. The grooves used in 18th-century dovetails were particularly wide, as much as three-eighths of an inch. Although they continued to be made by hand through the middle of the 19th century, tools and skills grew finer, and dovetails made in 1830 may be as small as one-eighth of an inch.

Chandeliers: Chandeliers made before about 1860 have solid arms. After that, they began to have hollow arms so as to allow gas to be pumped into them from ducts in the ceiling. As for telling whether those shiny teardrops hanging from the chandelier’s arms are really crystal or are just cut glass, Read says there is a fail-safe test: “If you hold one of the teardrops in your hand and it gets colder as you hold it, you will know it’s crystal. Bu if it’s glass, it will get warmer.”

Fact file: A totally fake antique: Pseud-antiques are especially common among country pine furniture. Furniture makers get that handsome worn look by using old wood, often from 18th century barns or houses. To make a table, for instance, they will take four posts from a banister for legs, the top of the banister for rails, and floorboards or wall paneling for the top. “They’re very nice pieces. I like them myself,” says antique expert George Read. “But they are not antiques.”

Who votes in the U.S.

Vote in the U.S. - Who Votes

Why doesn't anybody vote in the U.S.?

Turnout has been down since 1960, but it may be turning around (text first published back in 1995)

Women vote in greater numbers than men. White Americans vote more often than Blacks and Hispanics, and more senior citizens than than those in their 20s go to the polls. Yet as a nation, Americans are far more likely to avoid the ballot box than citizens of most other industrial democracies.

The greatest voter turnout in an American election was in 1980, when 63 percent of eligible voters went to the polls. Since then, voter turnout has slipped. The 1992 presidential election, however, was something of an aberration – 55 percent of eligible voters turned out, the highest percentage since 1960. Optimists cite the '92 vote as evidence of the renewed interest of the American electorate. Others aren't convinced. Off-year election turnout figures are significantly lower.

In Western Europe, turnouts of 75 to 90 percent are the norm. In May 1995, more than 85 percent of French voters went to the polls to choose a new president. Voter participation declines significantly in Germany between 1976 and 1990 from 91 percent to 76 percent – still significantly higher than the U.S. numbers. According to the Congressional Research Service of the U.S. Congress, which measured voter turnout in industrial nations in the mid-1980s, the United States was surpassed by only Switzerland (28.9 percent turnout in 1985) in voter lethargy. America was dwarfed by such civic-minded nations as Belgium (93.6 percent turnout in 1985) and Australia (94.2 percent turnout in 1994). Voting is compulsory in both countries.

Experts attribute the difference in voter participation partly to the fact that the United States is a less class-oriented society than Europe. Fewer Americans see the significance in the triumph of one party over another, as the American society doesn't have class-based parties. People think they can pick themselves up by their bootstraps, which lessens their stake in the outcome of elections.

A street in Manhattan. Photo by Elena

It probably doesn't help that historically it's been harder to register to vote in the United States. However, voter turnout rates have stayed lower even as it has gotten easier to cast a ballot. Civil rights legislation, of course, wiped out discriminatory voting requirements such as literacy tests.

The new Motor Voter law enacted at the beginning of 1995, which guarantees registration by mail and at cerrtain mobile sites, should make registration easier still in most states.

Besides, demographic trends seem to favor increased voter participation. Generally the higher the level of education, the greater the degree of residential stability, and the older the electorate, the higher the voter turnout will be. The U.S. Population generally is better educated, staying put, and graying - but, except for the 1992 blip, still shying away from the ballot box. Only one conclusion is left. You've got to say that the decline of participation has to do with motivation. In a word, apathy.

All segments of the American electorate, however, aren't equally apathetic. In every presidential election since 1980, both the number and proportion of eligible women voters that vote has exceeded those of men, according to figures from the Center for the American Woman and Politics at Rutgers University. And U.S. Census figures show that college-educated Americans are twice as likely to vote as those without a high school diploma.

What will motivate the rest of America to vote? Experts suggest that an attempt at civil political dialogue and voter education could help decrease the level of cynicism. Politicians who are in touch with and responsive to the needs of ordinary Americans might be just the ticket.

How to Get into Politics

Well, you might try voting – or giving money to the candidates of your choice

The process of registering to vote just got easier – at least for the residents of the 46 states to which the recently passed Motor Voter bill applies. The new law, which took effect on January 1, 1995, mandates states to allow eligible voters to register by mail, at motor vehicle registries by mail, at motor vehicle registries (hence the name), and at certain other state agencies including bureaux of public assistance. Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Wyoming were exempt from the law because they offer Same day registration on Election Day already, according to Matt Farrey, Project Manager of the League of Women Voters Education Project in Washington, D.C., North Dakota, which does not bother registering its small voting population, also was exempt.

Three states, Virginia, Vermont and Arkansas, have been given an extra year to reconcile their state laws to be in compliance with the bill. Eight states – including California, Illinois and Pennsylvania – have filed suits against the law, claiming they can't afford to comply with it without federal funds, However, the California suit has already been rejected by a federal court, and the challenges are considered unlikely to prevail.

Eligible voters should contact their State Secretary's office, town hall or county election office, or local League of Women Voters branch for more information. For those who are housebound or will be out of their district on voting day, absentee ballots usually are available from the same sources.

So You Want to Give Money

Money seems to amplify the voice of the electorate substantially, so you may want to consider supporting the candidate that supports your views. But before you write a check to your favorite candidate or political party, you better know the rules limiting campaign donations.

According to Federal election laws, individuals may give no more than as follows: $1,000 to each candidate or candidate committee in an election (primaries and general elections count separately), $20,000 to a national party committee per calendar year, and $5,000 to any other political committee per calendar year. Foreign nationals are prohibited from donating to campaigns in the United States.

Museums and Galleries in Iceland

Museums and Galleries in Iceland

For such a small city, Reykjavík abounds with museums. It’s no wonder, since the country’s history is unique and the artistic spirit of its inhabitants is almost like a force of nature. You can discover a quirky young artist at the Living Art Museum, get a look at Iceland’s outlandish national costumes at the National Museum, and finish up the day with a lesson on how to properly milk an Icelandic cow at Arbaer Open Air Museum.

Hafanhus

Leading venue for contemporary art

The old harbour warehouse Hafnarhus, offers a progressive exhibition program with local and international contemporary artists.

The work of current notables, art canons and newcomers are presented in six galleries. Hafnarhus is also home to the works of Erro (b. 1932), a significant player in the international pop art scene.

Hafnarhus is located in the oldest part of Reykjavík, where the town’s boats and first docks lay. The building was erected in the 1930s and at the time it was one of the largest buildings in the country. It was renovated by Studio Grandi architects in 1998-2000 to house the Reykjavík Art Museum.

The museum shop is intriguing and the small cafe on the 2nd floor has a great view overlooking Mt. Esja and the old harbour.

Tryggvagata 17, 101, Reykjavík

Kjarvalsstadir

Architectural gem housing art of the past and present

Named after the beloved Icelandic painter, Johannes S. Kjarval (1885 – 1972) Kjarvalsstador was built to house the extensive collection of his work and as an exhibition venue for modern and contemporary art and design.

The artist’s love for nature has inspired Icelanders to consider the landscape in different scales and dimensions. Kjarval paints not only what is visible to the naked eye, but also reveals hidden worlds of folklore and personal mysticism.

Inspired by Nordic modernist design and built in 1973, the museum building faces a large city park, which makes for a delightful view through the floor-to-ceiling windows.

A unique art destination with a refined exhibition program, interesting museum shop, abd a café offering delicious light meats.

Flokagata 24, 105 Reykjavík

Asmundarsafn

Icelandic Lava Stones. Photo by Olga

Utopian artist’s studio

The sculptor Asmundur Sveinsson  (1893 – 1982) designed, worked and lived in this beautiful building, which now serves as part of the Reykjavík Art Museum.

The white dome structure is surrounded by Sveinsson’s sculptures in the garden, both his earlier massive figures and his later light abstract compositions. The inside of the building offers a unique experience as the artist’s design, inspired by vernacular Mediterranean architecture, is a work of art in its own right.

Asmundur Sveinsson was truly a modern man and took part in building a modern society in Iceland through his art and his opinions. Sveinsson’s work is always on display at Asmundarsafn.

A perfect visit on a walk through the Laugardalur area, with its nearby thermal pool, botanic garden and the Reykjavík Park and Zoo.

Flokagata 24, 105 Reykjavík

Arbaer Open Air Museum

A day out of time

Reykjavík’s open air museum, where you can stroll through the past and experience the way we lived.

Fun, fascinating and full of surprises, this living museum takes you on a journey through time.

Reykjavík’s early history is preserved in a series of lovingly restored homes, where you’ll encounter costumed guides, grazing animals and traditional crafts.

Exhibitions, demonstrations and tours reveal how Reykjavík came to life, from a few scattered farms to a vibrant capital city.

Arbaer Open Air Museum is part of Reykjavík City Museum : one museum in five unique places.

Kistuhylur 4, 110 Reykjavík.

The Settlement Exhibition

Step into the Viking Age

An open excavation where Viking ruins meet digital technology.

Just below ground in downtown Reykjavík, this open excavation uncovers the city’s Viking Age history.

Discovered during construction work, then carefully excavated, these remnants of the past are the earliest evidence of human settlement in the city.

Family friendly, including a children’s activity area, this multimedia exhibition uses creative technology to immerse you in the Viking Age.

The Settlement Exhibition is part of Reykjavík City Museum : one museum in five unique places.

Adalstaeti 16, 101 Reykjavík.

Reykjavík Museum of Photography

Capturing the moment, then and now

Reflecting the contemporary, while archiving the past – this is Reykjavík’s home of photography.

Reykjavík’s main photography museum offers an ongoing programme of contemporary and historical exhibitions, and an onscreen archive of thousands of images from the past.

New work from Iceland and abroad reflects where photography is now, while extensive archives from 1860 – 2000 give an insight into Iceland’s changing culture and society overmore than a century.

Reykjavík Museum of Photography is part of Reykjavík City Museum : one museum in five unique places.

Tryggvagata 15, 101 Reykjavík.

Reykjavík Maritime Museum

How the ocean formed a nation

A harbour museum exploring Iceland’s dramatic relationship with the sea.

The survival of a nation depended on generations of brave fishermen heading into the unknown. Over the centures, methods of catching and working with fish transformed into a sciencethat helped create a modern nation.

Exhibitions and artefacts bring our ocean history to life, from battling the waves to the Cod Wars, and beyond. Plus the chance to climb aboard the Odinn, a 900-ton coastguard ship, with its own stories to tell!

Reykjavík Maritime Museum is part of Reykjavík City Museum : One museum in five unique places.

Grandagardur 8, 101 Reykjavík.

Gljufrastein – Laxness Museum

Halldor Laxness was one of Iceland’s most respected authors and was prolific in his writing, producing 62 books over 68 years. He was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1955.

Gljusfrasteinn was the home and workplace of Halldor Laxness and his family for more than half a century. In 2004 it was opened to the public as a museum, unchanged from when Laxness lived there.

In the reception building you can watch a multimedia presentation dedicated to Laxness’s life and work. Tickets for admission, books and souvenirs are also sold there. In the beautiful countryside around Gljufrasteinn, visitors can take walks as part of their visit, to see where Laxness spent his childhood and later in life sought his inspiration.

Audio tours of the house are available in Icelandic, English, German, Swedish and Danish and a folder in French. Gljufrasteinn is only about 25 minutes distance from Reykjavík city center and is on the way to Pingvellir National Park.

Frikirkjuvegur 7, 101, Reykjavík.

National Gallery of Iceland

The National Gallery of Iceland established in 1884, is the principal art museum of Iceland. Its art collection consists mainly of works of 19th and 20th century art. In its possession are many of the keystones if Icelandic art history, as well as a growing collection of works from other countries.

The National Gallery’s main rôle is to collect, preserve, research and exhibit Icelandic art and offer education about it. A considerable emphasis is also laid on showing Icelandic art in context with international art. The museum sees it as one of its priorities to educate visitors about exhibitions and single art works, by means of texts, guidance, meetings with artists and a databank which is accessible through computers in the National Gallery’s education center.

Frikirkjuvegur 7, 101 Reykjavík.

National Museum of Iceland

The National Museum of Iceland is the oldest museum in the country and celebrated its 150th birthday in 2013. At the museum you can explore the permanent exhibition. Making of a Nation – Heritage and History in Iceland, which is intended to provided insight into the history of the Icelandic nation from the Settlement to the present day.

The exhibition is conceived as a journey through time: it begins with the ship, in which medieval settlers crossed the ocean to their new home; it ends in a modern airport, the Icelanders’ gateway to the world. The museum caters to all ages and you can find games, play dresses up and explore the museum via interactive touch screens and audio-guides which complement the exhibitions.

Guided tours in English are offered three day a week from May to Mid September.

Sudurgata 41, 101 Reykjavík.

The Culture House

Built as a library in the beginning of the 20th century, the Culture House is one of the most beautiful houses in Reykjavík. It has had had many roles through the years, but today it houses the permanent exhibition Points of Ivew.

Points of View is a unique exhibition as it focuses, not on art or history separately, but rather on exploration of the aesthetic vision of Iceland and the Icelanders through the years. The exhibition is not chronological, but instead mixes modern art and media with historical artefacts, photographs, documents and other objects and the result is a unique snapshot of the cultural history of Iceland.

The exhibition is a collaboration between six Icelandic cultural institutions, the National Museum of Iceland, the National Gallery of Iceland, The National Library of Iceland, the Arni Magnusson Institute of Icelandic Studies, The National Archives and the Museum of Natural History.

Hverfisgata 15, Reykjavík.

Volcano House

Iceland is one of the most interesting places in the world, geologically speaking. The island is constantly changing, and on average there is a volcanic eruption every 4-5 years, occasionally even threatening inhabited areas.

Along with a mineral exhibition, the Volcano House has an hourly Volcano Show, featuring two documentaries on two of Iceland’s biggest eruptions. The first is about the eruption in the Vestmannaeyjar Islands in 1973. The small fishing community was capsized when a crack in the earth opened up in the middle of the night, spewing fire and brimstone. The eruption broke out in an inhabited area and nearly 5,000 locals had to be evacuated from their homes.

The second film documents the infamous eruption in Eyjafjallojökull 2010. This massive eruption caused thousands of flight cancellations, leaving millions of people stranded. The film shows gripping footage of the eruption, allowing you to experience those momentous eruptions from the comfort of the in-house cinema.

The mineral exhibition gives an overview of Iceland’s geological history and volcanic systems. A large collection of semi-precious rocks and minerals, ash, and lava, is also on a display.

Tryggvagata 11, 101 Reykjavík.

Aurora Reykjavík

Take a walk through history and learn how people and cultures around the world saw the Northern Lights via legends and myths connected to this amazing phenomenon. There are interactive displays as well as a specially equipped photo booth where you can learn how to adjust your camera’s settings should you want to try your hand at capturing the auroras yourself.

The high point of your visit to the center will certainly be their theatre where a continuously running HD film plays throughout the day. Projected onto a 7 metre wide screen, you can sit back and enjoy this 13-minute fil,m, which features some of the most magnificent auroral displays seen over Iceland. The film is accompanied by soft music in surround-sound, making this a therapeutic and restful experience. You’ll feel like you have just come back from a blissful holiday.

The knowledgeable and friendly staff are on hand to answer any questions you may have about the lights and about Northern Lights photography.

The gift shop stocks a unique selection of high quality handmade items by young Icelandic designers, photographers and artists.

Grandagardur 2, 101 Reykjavík.

Gerdarsafn

Gerdarsafn is an ambitious modern and contemporary art museum in Kopavogur. It’s dedicated to the memory of Gerdur Helgadottir (1928 – 1975) and opened in 1944, the first museum in Iceland to be dedicated to the life and work of a woman. Gerdur focused on sculptures and was a pioneer in three-dimensional abstracts and glasswork in Iceland. The museum’s collection contains 1400 works by Gerdur as well as collections of the works of Barbara Arnason, Magnus A Arnason, Valdergdur Briem and several other contemporary artists.

The museum’s exhibitions are diverse, with the works of Icelandic as well as international contemporary artists regularly on display along with exhibitions from the museum’s collection. The giftstore features souvenirs specially made for the museum, which are based on the works of Gerdur Helgadottir, as well as books on art and other subjects.

Hamraborg 4, 200 Kopavogur.

Kopavogur Culture Centre

The cultural heart of Kopavogur lies in the Hamraborg area. Not only is it home to the Kopavogur art museum, Gerdarsafn, but several other cultural institutions as well.

Kopavogur Natural History Museum: The Kopavogur Natural History Museum is one of the leading natural science institutions in Iceland. The museum hosts exhibitions, with an emphasis on geology and Icelandic wildlife, including the arctic fox and numerous species of fish and birds. It also has an extraordinary(as described by David Attenborough, when he visited in 2005) exhibition of Japanese style Marimo lake balls?

Salurinn Concert Hall: The Kopavogur Concert hall is the first one in Iceland to be specifically designed to host concerts. The building is one of a kind, with roots in Icelandic nature, partly clad with driftwood, collected at Langanes in the northeast of Iceland, and the hall is equipped with two grand pianos, a Steinway and a Bosendorfer.

The Kopavogur Public Library: In the same building as the Natural History Museum is the Kopavogur Public Library. The library is open to everyone and is a sort of a community centre for the town, where people have a chat over a cup of coffee, read the papers and get the newest books.

The Living Art Museum

The newly renovated Marshall building by the old harbour is the new home of the Living Art Museum. This non-profit, artist-run museum and association was founded in 1978 to showcase experimental and ground breaking contemporary art, at a time when Icelandic art authorities had stagnant views of what onstituted art and art history.

The living Art Museum’s collection consists entirely of donations from artists and individuals and though the past four decades the collection has grown to feature works from the most inspiring Icelandic artists of our time.

Since its foundation, the Living Art Museum has been an important forum in the Icelandic art community for introducing, reflecting, and debating the role of contemporary art. It offers a varied programme that extends performances, film and video screenings, live music, lectures and symposiums, poetry readings, and theatre.

The Marshall Building Grandagardur 20, Reykjavík

Other Museums

Einar Jonsson Museum: Eiriksgata 101 Reykjavík.

Hafnarborg: Centre of Culture and Fine Art vStrandgata 35, 200 Hafnarfjördur.

Hannesarholt Cultural House. Grundarstig 10, 101 Reykjavík.

Museum of Design and Applied Art. Gardartorgi, 1, 210 Gardabaer.

Museum of Hafnarfjördur : Vesturgata 8, 220 Hafnarfjördur.

National Archives : Laugavegur 162, 105 Reykjavík.

Nordic House : Sturlugata 5, 101 Reykjavík.

Numismatic Museum : Einholt 4, 105 Reykjavík.

Saga Museum : Grandagordi 2, 101 Reykjavík.

The Icelandic Phallological Museum (The Penis Museum) : Laugavegur 116, 101 Reykjavík.

Grondalshus : Vesturtgata 5b, 101Reykjavík.

Business Savvy

Business Savvy

Critical business thinking, a required course in most accredited university commerce programs, teaches one to evaluate evidence instead of simply accepting it. Dyer proposes six criteria that, ideally, must be satisfied to consider evidence credible: sufficiency, precision, accuracy, authoritativeness, representativeness and clarity of expression.

Sufficiency simply refers to whether the author of a given affirmation has provided enough evidence to support his or her assertion, the amount required may vary depending on the claim’s contestability and on its implications (i.e. a contention potentially serving as the basis for implementing a new policy necessitates substantially more justification than a benign statement aimed not to influence any outcomes, but merely to describe).

In this context, precision refers to the use of statistics, exact numbers and dates, and direct quotes. Saying that hundreds of students smoke on a daily basis sounds different than stating that out of 320 students surveyed, 210 admitted to consistently smoking at least one cigarette during a period of 24 hours (imaginary data, to illustrate). However, one must be cautious because there is the trap of over-precision, emphasizing that a wild-type mouse measures exactly 9.53827366432 centimeters (3.75522597226 inches) from head to tail is probably uncalled for, unless of course, the matter has to do with some growth hormone experiment where the measure is crucial.

Accuracy often gets confused with precision, which is to be expected since most of these categories lack unambiguous separations between them. Evaluating whether a claim is accurate can be a daunting task, but is made easier by relying on the other five concepts.

Business Savvy Gun. I firmly believe that success lies in the combination of both talent and business savvy, and that the magic comes through partnership between both. (Delphine Arnault). Photo by Megan Jorgensen (Elena)

As international students wishing to perfect their second language know, in grammar and syntax, it is often the case that a rule has an exception, so it is important to avoid absolute rigidity. For instance, in a paper on organizational structure, Greiner (1998) asserts that companies’ evolution and growth happens in stages, that each phase culminates in a crisis, and that it is this disruption (or the successful resolution thereof) that leads the firm to the next step. Further, companies that fail to resolve the turbulences, usually by lack of flexibility, by failure to change and adapt, either fail to grow or cease to exist altogether.

In the article, the author presents little undiluted supporting evidence of the claims presented, but they are nonetheless judged as trustworthy for the following several reasons. First and foremost, the work was published in a highly respected academic journal, thus a reader may instantly assume that the publication ascertains quality. Second, the author is an accomplished professor and an expert in the field. Third, the arguments do flow logically and one can recognize how the points are arrived at. Consequently, despite the fact that pretty much only the authoritativeness criterion is satisfied, the source and theory are deemed credible.

Finally, representativeness is simpler to grasp if one contemplates statistical methods. From analyzing statistics, one comprehends that it would be wrong to generalize to a whole population based on a biased, too small, or unrepresentative sample. While the last but not least item, clarity of expression, speaks for itself.

Prozac

Prozac’s Can and Can’t-Do Powers

The drug doesn’t alter personality, it relieves depression

So many claims have been made for Prozac’s powers that its reputation as a wonder drug is hardly surprising. We put some of those claims into perspective here:

What does Prosac do? – In medical terms, it increases the level of a neurotransmitter called serotonin at the interspace between neurons at the mid-brain – in the center of the brain underneath the cortex.

What you see clinically is an improvement in a depressed mood. It increases one’s sense of well-being, counteracting tendencies to depression.

 When should a doctor prescribe Prozac? – It should be prescribed when there are indications that one is significantly depressed.

What are the advantages of Prozac over other antidepressants? – Prozac has two advantages over the many other kinds of antidepressants. It seems to have fewer side effects, and it is more of a true antidepressant. Many find that others just put a floor on depression – make it more tolerable – whereas Prozac seems to relieve the depression, That is also true for the other serotonin enhancers, which slow down the reabsorption of serotonin.

The power of the crowd. Photo by Elena

Is Prozac the wonder drug it has been described as being? – Prozac is not a wonder drug. People on Prozac do not have unusual or sensational results, but they do have good antidepressant effects. It’s a very useful antidepressant.

The drug has been said to alleviate several other conditions, from bulemia to attention deficit disorder. Are those reports accurate? – Prozac has been approved by the FDA for treatment of bulemia and for obsessive compulsive disorders. It is occasionally used for panic disorders and more infrequently for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. It has also recently been identified as a useful treatment for PMS.

Does Prozac alter the personality? – No. There is no way to create something that wasn’t there. Doctors do find that a great number of people who are chronically depressed, after taking the drug, say they suddenly feel as if they were a different person. But it does not change their underlying personality.

Is it overprescribed? – It may be overprescribed. It is used widely by general practitioners. A doctor may conclude that his patient’s chronic backache is related to depression and prescribe Prozac, especially since there is no risk involved. A doctor may prescribe Prozac for anything associated with depressed mood, even without a diagnostic work-up. It is important for anyone to get a thorough work-up before being prescribed Prozac, or any antidepressant.

What are the drug’s side effects? – The side effects of the antidepressant drugs are ranked on a scale from zero to four. Zero indicates that a side effect is absent or rare. Four indicates that it is relatively common. Prozac can cause increased agitation, similar to caffeine jitters. Some complain of headaches or nausea. And there are reports of decreased sexual function, delayed or, eventually, complete inhibition of orgasm in women; and, in men, prolonged ejaculation or decreased or no ability to have a penile erection. In addition, there are some people, possibly quite a few, who complain that when on the drug they don’t care very much about things that used to matter quite a bit. They sometimes get detached.

What risks are associated with Prozac? – The only real risk is for someone with a fairly serious liver disease. Prozac is metabolized in the liver. There is also a very small risk for someone with diabetes or a seizure disorder.

What about the claims that Prozac causes aggressive behavior or even suicides? – The people who become more aggressive on Prozac are probably those who have been suppressing aggressive tendencies. And there have been extremely few cases or suicide.

How long should one stay on Prozac? – One should stay on Prozac at least 6 months, and possibly up to 10 to 12 months. If, at that point, everything is stable in their lives, they can taper off and see how they do. Some people, however, may need to be off and on the drug for quite a while. It is not yet know if being on the drug for a longer period of time causes damage.

The Great Depression

One U.S. Public Health Service review found that depression affects one in eight people in a lifetime and 14 million Americans each year. But most people who could benefit from treatment never get it. A limited course of psychotherapy works for over half of those with mild to moderate depression, but if therapy produces no effect by 6 weeks or nearly full remission by 12 weeks, the agency strongly recommends medication treatment.