Philosophy
Richard Feynman once defined science as that which we do to avoid fooling ourselves. We humans are universally prone to the cognitive bias known as selection (or confirmation) bias: instead of looking at the big picture, hits and misses alike, we have a natural tendency to look for evidence that confirms the things we already believe, and we tend to ignore and/or forget evidence that would contradict our view of the world.
This is why if you're a liberal, you watch MSNBC, and if you're a conservative, why you watch Faux News. In both cases, you're not really looking for information: you're looking for confirmation. You're listening to people who are going to tell you that the way you see the world is exactly how you think it is. Yes, it's extremely self-congratulatory. This is why you might believe in homeopathic remedies or alternative medicine: you count every time they "worked," and are completely unaware of the much greater amount of times when they don't, and so you think they count as real medicine.
And science, and scientific thinking in general, are supposed to be an antidote against confirmation bias, but as Ben Goldacre explains in the following chilling TEDTalk, there is a major problem with selection bias in the reporting and publishing of scientific studies regarding the health effects of various drugs: the studies that tend to get published are those that find a positive effect, while studies that find no effect, or even an adverse effect, tend not to see the light of day. And if your doctor is prescribing some medication based on this incomplete amount of information (through no fault of his own), it's your health that is ultimately at risk...
- Placebos, Doctors, And Patients
We know that the placebo effect is real. Some people will actually get better if they think they are being treated. It is not that they think they're getting better, they actually are. So, if I am ill and my doctor thinks that given what he knows...
- Biased Reality
Philo asks, "It is said "reality has a well-known liberal bias." [http://tr.im/owWY] Is it the case that reality "votes" for liberals more so than for conservatives, or is it "fair and balanced"?"The line is used frequently by Stephen Colbert as a play...
- Merv Griffin And Prostate Cancer
Sad news today. Merv Griffin died yesterday of prostate cancer. Originally diagnosed in 1996 and treated, the cancer came back and claimed the life of the famed talk show host and brain behind Jeopardy among many other great game shows. Prostate cancer...
- Ben Goldacre - Battling Bad Science
It's hard to understate the number of misleading health reports and health advice out there. First there's the problem of alternative-medicine quacks (visit the Enemies of Reason tag to learn more about them); then there are also problems with...
- Salt And Prozac...the Debate Continues
Statistics can be misinterpreted. "What Salt and Prozac Have in Common" by Maia Szalavitz July 15th, 2011 Time Recently, two medical controversies have made headlines: the question of whether too much salt is bad for your health and the debate over...
Philosophy
Ben Goldacre - What Doctors Don't Know About the Drugs They Prescribe
This is why if you're a liberal, you watch MSNBC, and if you're a conservative, why you watch Faux News. In both cases, you're not really looking for information: you're looking for confirmation. You're listening to people who are going to tell you that the way you see the world is exactly how you think it is. Yes, it's extremely self-congratulatory. This is why you might believe in homeopathic remedies or alternative medicine: you count every time they "worked," and are completely unaware of the much greater amount of times when they don't, and so you think they count as real medicine.
And science, and scientific thinking in general, are supposed to be an antidote against confirmation bias, but as Ben Goldacre explains in the following chilling TEDTalk, there is a major problem with selection bias in the reporting and publishing of scientific studies regarding the health effects of various drugs: the studies that tend to get published are those that find a positive effect, while studies that find no effect, or even an adverse effect, tend not to see the light of day. And if your doctor is prescribing some medication based on this incomplete amount of information (through no fault of his own), it's your health that is ultimately at risk...
- Placebos, Doctors, And Patients
We know that the placebo effect is real. Some people will actually get better if they think they are being treated. It is not that they think they're getting better, they actually are. So, if I am ill and my doctor thinks that given what he knows...
- Biased Reality
Philo asks, "It is said "reality has a well-known liberal bias." [http://tr.im/owWY] Is it the case that reality "votes" for liberals more so than for conservatives, or is it "fair and balanced"?"The line is used frequently by Stephen Colbert as a play...
- Merv Griffin And Prostate Cancer
Sad news today. Merv Griffin died yesterday of prostate cancer. Originally diagnosed in 1996 and treated, the cancer came back and claimed the life of the famed talk show host and brain behind Jeopardy among many other great game shows. Prostate cancer...
- Ben Goldacre - Battling Bad Science
It's hard to understate the number of misleading health reports and health advice out there. First there's the problem of alternative-medicine quacks (visit the Enemies of Reason tag to learn more about them); then there are also problems with...
- Salt And Prozac...the Debate Continues
Statistics can be misinterpreted. "What Salt and Prozac Have in Common" by Maia Szalavitz July 15th, 2011 Time Recently, two medical controversies have made headlines: the question of whether too much salt is bad for your health and the debate over...