[OT] Looking for this kind of list, but on the topic of...

["McLauchlan, Kevin" <Kevin -dot- McLauchlan -at- safenet-inc -dot- com>]

Ok, this will sound screwy... 

Is anybody aware of a list, similar in structure and approach to this one, that discusses the workings (and failures to work) of the human body? 

Or, perhaps [faintly] more realistically, a group of lists that discuss major aspects - possibly but not necessarily arranged under headings that might be familiar to medical practitioners or other "geeks" and pros in the field of physical health, sport performance / sport injury, etc? 

What I'm getting at are discussion groups where there tend to be a high percentage of educated and experienced people, but where:

a) they allow "newbies" (not necessarily newly-human, but at least new to the interest...)

b) they aren't closed professional or proprietary lists and forums (if you aren't a member of the such'n'such college of physicians, go away)

c) they don't allow themselves to be taken over by shills or one-note industry powers (like pharma or HMO reps)

d) they aren't totally compartmentalized - such that a question asked about a condition or novel observation would not get replies limited to ONLY the surgeon perspective, or ONLY the osteopath perspective, or ONLY the <fill-in-the-blank> perspective?  In otherwords, cross-discipline.

I mean, for technical communication stuff, I find this list  (techwr-l) to be generally enjoyable, and a major resource. A wide variety of viewpoints - usually intelligent and thoughtful - are available (just try to stop 'em) on almost any topic, with Eric being notably gentle and even-handed about overall enforcement (in other words, he's spanked me only a couple of times in 15 years...). 

I'd like to find something similar that addresses health, fitness, performance, etc., would let me participate, and would not charge me on a per-answer basis. A discussion forum/list for finding out about what ails ya, or about approaches to achieving physical goals (be they athletic, rehab, other)... 

When I want specialized tool-related info, I go for the Framers or WordPC or OOo[Users], etc., lists. But this is my generalist list.

Google has not been entirely rewarding - possibly a confession of my Google-fu shortcomings. 

I've encountered _many_ fora [?] where everybody is groping in the dark, each participant less informed than the last. Others (sometimes the same) where every thread gets hijacked by a pusher for some herbal or mlm miracle.  I've found many places where you can ask a "real live" doctor about something, but it's a single transaction - no ongoing discussion and either you pay for the transaction or you pay to be a member of the site. Even that isn't so bad except, the possibilties for inquiry are extremely narrow and not cross-discipline. 

There are some (I think the Mayo site might have been one) where you can ask about this-or-that, AND there's opportunity for any members to comment following the guru response, but none of the experts take part in each others' forumseseses (fora?) - the physiotherapist is unlikely to ever jump in on a question that was asked of the nutritionist. Nor would the ophthalmologist ever chime in. You might get a good answer to a question about ergonomics, but you'd get just one perspective... unless they don't have a category for that, in which case, you don't have a "general" discussion option to even broach the topic.

Basically, I want this list - and maybe the HATT list and maybe CE-L - in a medical/health/performance flavor. 

Granted, nobody has really written the Owner's Manual for the human body (some have tried), but then nobody on this list has written THE definitive guide to being a techwriter - yet that doesn't stop the conversations here from being informed, free-wheeling, and sometimes... funny as hell.  

I can, by way of example, connect to an organization's mailing list/forum where the topic is nominally Real Estate Investing, but the questions and discussions range all over the map and involve realtors, lawyers, home inspectors, contractors, mortgage brokers, commercial landlords, residential landlords, people who rehab and flip properties, people who convert apartments to condos or condos to apartments, people doing lease options, people developing raw land, people suing, people being sued, fire-fighters, plumbers, electricians, and ... oh, yeah... investors and wanna-be investors.  But I don't know where I'd find an equivalent organization dedicated to the trials, tribulations, and opportunities surrounding owning and operating a human body.... so I'm looking for an untethered forum/list, or one that's loosely tethered, yet with a reasonable signal-to-noise ratio.   

Anybody?


 - Kevin



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