One of the most important parts of writing a thesis is the introduction. It is important to tell the reader what the thesis is about and what they can expect to find in the succeeding pages. Unless the introduction is written properly the reader would get lost in the maze of numbers, data and analysis that normally make up a project report. 

The writer should keep the introduction simple. He should not complicate it so much that the reader gets confused about the project even before he comes to the main body of the report. Academic language should be used, but at the same time the content should be simple enough for even a layman to understand. The author needs to explain to the readers why the subject is important and what relevance it has to the related academic field. The goal of the project, what the author aims to prove through this body of work and why he undertook this endeavour should be explained in the introduction. 

There are few dissertations which are completely original in nature. But chances are that most of them are an improvement of an earlier body of work or a variation of something that was investigated earlier. If this is so the author should make a reference to those earlier bodies of literature and explain how his project is an improvement of all the work that was done before. This will also help him avoid charges of plagiarism in case he has inadvertently used any material written by other authors. 

One of the most important things that the author needs to keep in mind is that he should not include the conclusion, advertently or inadvertently, in the introduction. If he were to do this, then the whole point of writing the report and getting the author to read it would be lost. The whole idea of doing a project and writing it in a step by step manner is to tell the reader exactly what the researcher aims to prove, show how he has collected the data, write the analysis and finally put down his conclusions. In this regard it would be worthwhile if the writer were to put down in brief the research methodology behind the work that he has accomplished. It is essential for the report to start off on a good note; this way the reader would be tempted to continue reading the rest of the thesis. 

It is juvenile to even question what role medical research plays in society – rather if one were to see its breadth of usefulness, one would ask – is there anything at all that medical research cannot do? 

From research and development to newer scientific explorations – the outcome of medical research has far reaching effects on society. Whether it is exploration of a new gene, an evolving disease or virus, a breakthrough in treatment or therapy for fatal illnesses or evolution of advanced medical instruments – these assessments into the unknown alleys of medicine, environment and the human body is producing tremendous results for the betterment of society.

While most endeavours in medical science have been applauded, a number of methods in testing and research have raised pertinent doubts as well. Funding for example, for long-drawn research initiatives - whether they are from the government or through charitable donations - have often been questioned, more specifically due to the pressing question about the outcome or effect of the research. 

The problem with medical research is that there is no formula to evaluate impact – success is gauged through trial and error, and which is usually time-consuming. For governments and society at large the success of a research is however exclusively based on its impact on mortality and morbidity. For instance, some recent forays into study of cardiovascular-related medical interventions show the time gap between original, key research and tangible results on health was at least 17 years.

Despite these hiccups, the exceptional value that medical research has had on society cannot be doubted. Discoveries made in the domain of medicine have made lives simpler, and it has cleared the complex web of several unknown diseases. From the discovery of x-ray machines, to in-vitro fertilization and further into gene therapies and technological aids in medicine – the ever new and ever unknown frontiers of medicine are yet to be explored. 

Moral and humanitarian questions have however often been raised from several quarters, including governments and humanitarian agencies, on various forms of research – vis-à-vis use of animals for testing; gauging the efficacy of new and yet-unpatented drugs on the underprivileged in underdeveloped countries and the complex issue of patents for traditional and new discoveries. 

Apart from the social, cultural and scientific impact of medical research, it has a huge bearing on economy as well. In the research chain are involved several key players, including governments, firms and the research organisation themselves. While the goal of any innovation initiative should be on health, medical learning and additional benefits to society – often these are guided by purely profit and business motives; and that’s where medical research begins to tread a rather fragile ground.