alt Hacker NewsI definitely noticed that, but if the goal was to convey a serious point, then would that be best served by humorous delivery?
That's the confusion I was trying to express by saying: "Although, maybe the author's point was serious?"
Replies
nikanj • last Wednesday at 7:43 PM
His target audience is not the patients, its other doctors. Just like any other professions, the best talks / articles are the ones that are a pleasant audience experience. A dead-dry paper just gets skimmed and changes nobody's mind
The point the author is making seems to be against the consensus of other hand specialists (this is at least my perception, as someone who has an index finger issue and has asked specialists "can't I just cut it off?").
The author is basically (and provocatively) saying "Are you kidding me? You really think it's useful for people to continue to be burdened with non-functional appendages?" to his colleagues, and I think the humor is likely to get them to engage with his thesis rather than dismiss it off hand.
I have sent this to several doctor friends, and the writing style prompted them to send it to several more, so, I think it's quite likely that tone served the author's point.