No Limits to Technology

Yesterday I was listening to Radio France Internationale (RFI) in my car, a programme on the benefits of technology for sharing information between plastic surgeons located in different countries, even continents. The several guests in the studio - French surgeons themselves - were telling how nice it is to make a consultation with their colleagues overseas in real time.

Then, it was time for questions from the listeners (obviously sent by e-mail). The first question that the journalist picked was from a man from Abidjan 'I suffer from constipation. Is it possible to make the diagnosis through a video conference?' Then the plastic surgeon exploded into laughter (and so did I) which he tried to conceal heroically. His answer was 'There is no need for new technologies in this case. You'd better go and see a doctor in the nearby hospital'.



There are two explanations for this situation:
- either the man from Abidjan (rhymes well, doesn't it?) was seriously pulling their leg and then the journalist is to blame for picking such a question; or
- the man from Abidjan really suffers from terrible constipation and after having tried all possible local Abidjani treatments he just needed a plastic surgeon from overseas to have a 'look' at the problem.