Doses of reality
The good thing about science is, it’s true whether you believe it or not.
— Neil DeGrasse Tyson
I t’s been said that we live in a “post-truth” age — a time in which skepticism abounds and the rejection of knowledge is worn by some as a badge of honour.
As we have seen during the COVID-19 pandemic, the undermining of science can have deadly consequences. When facemask mandates or new vaccines are seen by some as a globalist plot, it puts real lives at risk.
Which brings me to our cover story, “Insulin at 100,” written by John Lorinc. The dramatic tale of the discovery of an effective diabetes treatment reminds us that great things can happen when scientists are encouraged to test new theories and to challenge old assumptions.
Prior to insulin, a diagnosis of diabetes was akin to receiving a death sentence. There were no effective treatments and no cures. Some medical experts believed the best course of treatment for diabetics was to deny them food. Starvation diets subjected patients to extreme hardships with only a minimal impact on life expectancies.
The Canadian research team’s breakthrough came as a result of innovative research, perseverence amid conflict, and even some luck. The end result, a century later, is that insulin has extended the lives of tens of milllions of diabetics worldwide.
Elsewhere in this issue, we recall the tragic life of a Canadian heavyweight boxer, learn how revelations of a Russian spy ring in Ottawa thrust Canada and the West into a new cold war, and explore the lives of the residents of “the Ward,” Toronto’s first immigrant neighbourhood.
By the time you read this magazine, the most vulnerable Canadians should be receiving the first waves of vaccinations against COVID-19. At the same time, in laboratories and hospitals across Canada, researchers continue to hunt for cures and new treatments for the diseases that plague us. Indeed, as we sent this issue to print, news broke of a medical discovery at the University of Alberta that might someday lead to the holy grail of diabetes research — an actual cure for the disease.
In a post-truth world, it’s easy to succumb to cynicism. But there’s reason for hope. Thanks to scientists everywhere, including in Canada, we’re actually living in the age of miracles.