Jim looked at the plain-ish woman who walked in. She was wearing a community college sweatshirt. She had the air of someone who had dropped out.
Lab Coat Guy asked her to sit and proceeded to ask two dozen questions about her health, allergies, when she last ate, and so on.
Jim wondered if everyone who agreed to be in a focus group for a drug was desperate for money. Her clothes all looked second-hand. As the man in a lab coat read out the instructions she was just staring at him and nodded. Jim wondered if she was just thinking about the $40 check.
Finally, Lab Coat put his clipboard down. "Now Ms. Zeikos, when you drink this fluid, please drink all of it. You don't have to gulp it down all at once, but you need to drink it all. Once you've done that, please describe for us in as much detail as possible the taste of the product, the way it makes you feel, and any and all sensations you get. No detail is too small. OK?"
"Gotcha."
"Fine. Here you go. Take your time."
The man in the lab coat presented Mrs. Zeikos with a small glass bottle. He took the top off of it.
Ms. Zeikos lifted up the bottle and sniffed. "Smells funny. Kinda like lemon, kinda like moss. Weird, like an earthy tropical drink. " She sipped and wrinkled her nose. "It's got a bit of a pong to it. A little oily. Kind of like really cheap vodka."
Ms. Zeikos paused, then took another sip. "Kinda makes me feel warm. Don't like the aftertaste." Then she downed the bottle.
Ms. Zeikos...
Thu Jun 06 07:35:48 2013