Chris Blattman

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The first control trial?

Apparently the first reference to comparing treatment and control groups is in the Book of Daniel in the bible, where King Nebuchadnezzar orders his people to eat only meat and drink only wine (for their health). When some object, he allows them to eat only legumes and drink only water for 10 days, after which he compares their health to the “control” group of meat-eaters. They do better, so he allows them to continue their diet. Note, however, the lack of randomization and hence the possibility of a strong selection effect. The king appears to implicitly understand this, since he does not order everyone to switch to the new diet.

 Via Julian Jamison.

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