Results The neurosurgeons showed significantly higher scores than the aerospace engineers in semantic problem solving (difference 0.33, 95% confidence interval 0.13 to 0.52). No difference was found between groups in domain scores for memory (−0.18, −0.40 to 0.03), spatial problem solving (−0.19, −0.39 to 0.01), problem solving speed (0.03, −0.20 to 0.25), and memory recall speed (0.12, −0.10 to 0.35). Introduction“It’s not rocket science” and “It’s not brain surgery” are common phrases that describe concepts or tasks that are easily understood or performed. In a sketch by UK comedians David Mitchell and Robert Webb,5 a boastful neurosurgeon is put in his place by a rocket scientist who says “Brain surgery . The large existing dataset also enabled us to benchmark both professions against the general population.9The secondary aim of our study was to question whether public perceptions of rocket science and brain surgery are borne out in reality.

Source: The Guardian December 13, 2021 23:56 UTC