This surprising finding by Mariana Brussoni in BC and colleagues in Wales rings true with me; in the last 20 or so years I have had a fractured nose from being doored, a fractured clavicle from having fallen down stairs at Sydney Airport (or was I pushed?), and a fractured heel from a fall in […]
Category: Offbeat
Road use and the vision-impaired pedestrian
I was shocked to read in a recent media release by the Guide Dogs of Australia that half their vision impaired and blind clients had a near miss with a vehicle whilst they tried to cross the road at some time in the past five years, with 1 in 15 clients reporting they had actually […]
Open access: I told you so
I have often inveighed against open access journals, or at least urged readers of this blog to be alert to predatory journals. Recently Retraction Watch posted an item from Science that greatly strengthens my concerns. The posting describes a paper sent to over 300 OA journals that was accepted by over one half. The only […]
Non-reporting: An additional challenge for injury prevention
We all know that injury prevention research and intervention is frequently at the beck and call of funding by governments and policy-makers, industry and research councils. Funding decisions are often informed by statistics, such as prevalence and incidence, therefore it is vital that injury prevention researchers and practitioners have access to – and report – the most complete […]
Anti helmet legislation revisited… and why replication is important
Another anti helmet legislation argument bites the dust When Ian Walker’s paper appeared in Accid Anal Prev in 2007 purporting to show that cars drove closer to helmeted than unhelmeted cyclists, it was quickly used as another argument against helmet legislation. But for me as a long time cyclist, something did not ring true. Jake […]
In search of a prize
As do many others, I like to collect prizes. So in my continued pursuit I checked this years IgNoble prizes but failed to find my name. Here are two that did turn up that readers may find of interest: SAFETY ENGINEERING PRIZE: The late Gustano Pizzo [USA], for inventing an electro-mechanical system to trap airplane […]
Conferences and collaborations
Last week I had the privilege of attending and presenting at two conferences in Brisbane, the capital of my home state of Queensland, Australia. The 20th conference for the International Council on Alcohol, Drugs and Traffic Safety was followed by the Road Safety, Research, Policing and Education Conference 2013. In case you had not previously considered attending conferences, […]
Beware the predatory OA journal!
For some time I have been corresponding with three WAME (World Association of Medical Editors) colleagues about our shared concern arising from the proliferation of predatory journals. These are those journals, almost invariably Open Access, that invite you to submit your best paper and assure you prompt peer review and quick publication. What they often […]
Dumb ways to die
I wanted to take a different approach to my blog today, and thought I would share a light-hearted approach to a really important injury prevention problem – rail safety. I am sure many of you are familiar with the Dumb ways to die campaign launched by Metro Trains in Victoria last November, particularly after it […]
Segway safety in the spotlight down under
The controversy-riddled state government in Queensland, Australia, has decided to allow segways to travel on footpaths, infrastructure which until now has been out of bounds to all but pedestrians and children bicyclists. Consistent with bicycle legislation, segway riders will be required to wear helmets. In addition, they must not exceed the soon-to-be mandated speed limit […]