Medical Brief:The Median Isn’t the Message
Stephen J. Gould was one of the most influential authors of popular science. He was a paleontologist, evolutionary biologist and historian of science.
The “Median Isn’t the Message” is an essay written by Stephen J. Gould in 1991 as part of his book Bully for Brontosaurus: Reflections in Natural History. The essay has been reprinted many times for many different audiences. In 2013 it was reprinted in the American Medical Association Journal of Ethics. I believe that Stephen J. Gould’s message is as relevant today as it was when he originally wrote it. I thought this essay so important and so well written, that it was required reading for every one of my residents over the past 20 years.