23 October 2010

Callibrating cow poo

Being as how I keep drawing your attention to reports of new research, it only seems fair to share this:
How to Set the Bullshit Filter When the Bullshit is Thick | Wired Science�| Wired.com
In fact, it seems that the things to keep in mind are the kind of thing that I and at least some of my readers actually do tend to use to weigh up what we read:
"... the corollaries or risk factors that Iaonnidis sets out in that 2005 paper. Useful in adjusting your BS filter and in identifying the sorts of disciplines and fields and findings that deserve more skepticism.

Those corollaries:
Corollary 1: The smaller the studies conducted in a scientific field, the less likely the research findings are to be true.
Corollary 2: The smaller the effect sizes in a scientific field, the less likely the research findings are to be true.
Corollary 3: The greater the number and the lesser the selection of tested relationships in a scientific field, the less likely the research findings are to be true.
Corollary 4: The greater the flexibility in designs, definitions, outcomes, and analytical modes in a scientific field, the less likely the research findings are to be true.
Corollary 5: The greater the financial and other interests and prejudices in a scientific field, the less likely the research findings are to be true.
Corollary 6: The hotter a scientific field (with more scientific teams involved), the less likely the research findings are to be true.

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