CReSA researcher Dr. Anna Albas’s thoughts following a research visit to the Centre for Veterinary Epidemiological Research , University Prince Edward Island ( UPEI ), Canada.

… passing through Kathmandu and Hong Kong, I started to think about how many of us are conocerned about knowing what is going on around us in order to know what to do. “ Do”? What’s the goal? “To have a better life”.

To define “a better life” is not easy. Typically one thinks “those who have health and are richer live better”… “health, money and love” is often the aim.

To learn what is going on around us we spend countless hours describing what is out there and how does it changes. We collect data (who, when, where, how, this and that…). Since so many of us who are looking, and there is so much to describe, thousands…milions… billions of data ara generated.

Hong Kong

So what do we do with all the data? … we pack them in tables…we filter them…group them… present them in graphs, figures and maps and we do statistics, simple or more elaborate, to show that this is somehow associated to that or maybe to something else. Everything is interpeted and analysed to try to convert data to information… to know what to do, to prevent risks or errors that might carry us away from our goal. All this information might be well comunicated, or dispersed, or even lost depending on the media and love to the fellow.

Each one of us, in our own realities, does it in his own way, in the best way we know and the best way we can. And today with the globalisation of comunication networks we, apparently, know and can do more then ever.

In my opinion research is needed everywhere to know what to do in order to: 1. “live longer, but look younger” and 2 . “be confortable but without wasting natural resources”. And then lots of love towards the neigbour… to be able to share all the knowledge. Maybe with so manyh networks this will be easier?

Katmandú

” thankful to be able to leave, to visit and to return home. Too bad it could not be done on a bike!”

About the author of this post:

Ana Alba

Investigadora del Subprograma d'Epidemiologia. Programa de Sanitat Animal. IRTA-CReSA. ana.alba@irta.cat

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