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4.09 AVERAGE
4.09 AVERAGE
Bad Science is a book that is fascinating and depressing in equal measure. It is fascinating to see how effective the placebo effect is. The minds ability to affect the body is miraculous. It also goes a long way to explain how some of this hokum has lived so long. I mean, take homoeopathy. We all know it is absolute nonsense, but when it is explained how little of the 'active ingredient' is in it, wow, it's a game-changer!
The depressing part comes from how certain (read most) media institutions distort the truth with devastating effect. Whether they do this for the sake of balance, sheer laziness or more often out of desperation to make something into a story, the impact is the same. Some scumbag makes a fortune while other people suffer. See pro-plague MMR people selling magic fairy dust while these terrible diseases, which were practically extinct, make a comeback. Grr, it makes my blood boil.
The author does a decent job of keeping the dry statistics and scientific method to a minimum and making them as interesting as possible. That said, the meaning comes through loud and clear. Engage your brain before believing anything you read, and if in doubt, do some digging before clicking share, and the world will be a better place.
The depressing part comes from how certain (read most) media institutions distort the truth with devastating effect. Whether they do this for the sake of balance, sheer laziness or more often out of desperation to make something into a story, the impact is the same. Some scumbag makes a fortune while other people suffer. See pro-plague MMR people selling magic fairy dust while these terrible diseases, which were practically extinct, make a comeback. Grr, it makes my blood boil.
The author does a decent job of keeping the dry statistics and scientific method to a minimum and making them as interesting as possible. That said, the meaning comes through loud and clear. Engage your brain before believing anything you read, and if in doubt, do some digging before clicking share, and the world will be a better place.
Not the type of book I usually read, but a very good book. It was an easy read as far as flow of the information.
Witty, smart, funny, and much more serious than it seems. An unfortunate, real-world conclusion that despite his and many other scientific arguments, bad science wins out.
I liked this book, although I'm still not sure if I would have liked it more or less if I was not a scientist. I found myself going back and forth between "Yes! Yes! True! So true! Thanks for saying that out loud" to "OMG. Why are you repeating this?!? I know this already." I assume that if I was not a scientist I probably wouldn't have had the same reaction.
"Have you ever wondered how one day the media can assert that alcohol is bad for us and the next unashamedly run a story touting the benefits of daily alcohol consumption? Or how a drug that is pulled off the market for causing heart attacks ever got approved in the first place? How can average readers, who aren’t medical doctors or Ph.D.s in biochemistry, tell what they should be paying attention to and what’s, well, just more bullshit?"
-written on the back of the book
I don't know if I was quite the audience (since I'm shooting for that thus far elusive goal of a PhD in biochemistry...) for this book but I enjoyed it nonetheless. It's a little scary how people don't know how to think scientifically (or even logically really) about things. The fact that a lot of people don't even know how to go about finding the original articles scientific studies are published in is a little unnerving (granted with the process the way it is, even if they could find the papers, they probably wouldn't be able to access them...unless they were willing to pay a lot of money...just another thing I think is messed up about science in general).
This book brought a lot of my fears to the forefront. People forget to think for themselves. I don't know if it because they get caught up in the media storm, if they don't want to, or if they really are that immune to scientific evidence. It's a scary thought. And when it goes from harmless to harmful (not just to a single person, but the community at large) it gets even more scary (the MMR vaccine or the anti-HIV people in South Africa to name a few).
Unfortunately, I don't think this book is really going to change anyone's minds. Because that's one thing about human beings...we tend to make up our minds and stick stubbornly to it...even if the evidence is against us...even if our worldview comes crashing down around us. I hope that it did reach a few people. But what I've gained from reading this book, is that I, as a scientist, have a job to teach people around me about the scientific method, to teach them how research is done, to help them understand good and bad research (and that it isn't always black and white on which is which). Not everyone spends 5 years in grad school learning "how to think" so those of us who do should try to pass it along. Who knows, maybe someone will listen.
"Have you ever wondered how one day the media can assert that alcohol is bad for us and the next unashamedly run a story touting the benefits of daily alcohol consumption? Or how a drug that is pulled off the market for causing heart attacks ever got approved in the first place? How can average readers, who aren’t medical doctors or Ph.D.s in biochemistry, tell what they should be paying attention to and what’s, well, just more bullshit?"
-written on the back of the book
I don't know if I was quite the audience (since I'm shooting for that thus far elusive goal of a PhD in biochemistry...) for this book but I enjoyed it nonetheless. It's a little scary how people don't know how to think scientifically (or even logically really) about things. The fact that a lot of people don't even know how to go about finding the original articles scientific studies are published in is a little unnerving (granted with the process the way it is, even if they could find the papers, they probably wouldn't be able to access them...unless they were willing to pay a lot of money...just another thing I think is messed up about science in general).
This book brought a lot of my fears to the forefront. People forget to think for themselves. I don't know if it because they get caught up in the media storm, if they don't want to, or if they really are that immune to scientific evidence. It's a scary thought. And when it goes from harmless to harmful (not just to a single person, but the community at large) it gets even more scary (the MMR vaccine or the anti-HIV people in South Africa to name a few).
Unfortunately, I don't think this book is really going to change anyone's minds. Because that's one thing about human beings...we tend to make up our minds and stick stubbornly to it...even if the evidence is against us...even if our worldview comes crashing down around us. I hope that it did reach a few people. But what I've gained from reading this book, is that I, as a scientist, have a job to teach people around me about the scientific method, to teach them how research is done, to help them understand good and bad research (and that it isn't always black and white on which is which). Not everyone spends 5 years in grad school learning "how to think" so those of us who do should try to pass it along. Who knows, maybe someone will listen.
Very informative and eye opening insight into bad information around the health industry. I’ve learnt lots about how misinformation gets into the public domain, some I knew, but the part ‘health’ journalism plays is shocking. I also learnt a lot about how industry can skew research. Wish it had been written post covid too, as I’d love to hear his views on everything that’s happened more recently. Whilst it’s clearly explained, I did have to keep re-listening (audiobook) when my attention drifted at some parts, but that might say more about me than the book!
Que j'aie aimé ce livre témoigne sûrement de ma très mauvaise maîtrise des sciences naturelles. (Pas sûre que j'aurais trippé autant si j'avais pas été aussi ignorante et, euhm, facilement impressionnable.) À la fois informatif et caustique, Bad Science reste cependant un livre que j'ai envie de recommander à tout le monde. Même si j'ai parfois eu l'impression de lire une série d'essais un peu décousus plutôt qu'un vrai ouvrage cohérent (d'où l'étoile en moins), j'ai sincèrement appris des tonnes & des tonnes de choses, me suis sentie plus intelligente de les avoir apprises, & épluche maintenant les articles scientifiques dans les journaux avec un regard acéré de néo-pseudo-scientifique. (Ou c'est ce que j'aime croire, anyway.)
De façon accessible (& un brin corrosive), Goldacre s'attaque aux petits charlatans de certaines médecines alternatives, aux squelettes dans les placards des grandes compagnies pharmaceutiques & aux faux scandales scientifiques qui inondent les médias. Par la bande, il éclaire aussi plusieurs détails méthodologiques : les vraies bonnes étapes d'une vraie bonne étude, les biais possibles, les interprétations faussées, pourquoi et comment il faut faire attention à l'heure de prendre connaissance des résultats d'une étude. & pour la scientifique sociale que je suis (...ha!), c'est comme étrangement rafraîchissant d'entendre parler d'essais en laboratoire & de tests clinique. (Plutôt que d'entretiens semi-dirigés et de sessions d'observation participante, genre.)
« You cannot reason people out of positions they didn't reason themselves into », indique Goldacre dans la préface de Bad Science. J'ai tendance à penser que c'est très vrai. & sûrement que cet ouvrage a le potentiel de froisser toute une trâlée de gens. Mais si vous vous êtes déjà demandé si vos enfants avaient plus de risques de devenir autistes après avoir été vaccinés, je pense que ce livre est pour vous.
De façon accessible (& un brin corrosive), Goldacre s'attaque aux petits charlatans de certaines médecines alternatives, aux squelettes dans les placards des grandes compagnies pharmaceutiques & aux faux scandales scientifiques qui inondent les médias. Par la bande, il éclaire aussi plusieurs détails méthodologiques : les vraies bonnes étapes d'une vraie bonne étude, les biais possibles, les interprétations faussées, pourquoi et comment il faut faire attention à l'heure de prendre connaissance des résultats d'une étude. & pour la scientifique sociale que je suis (...ha!), c'est comme étrangement rafraîchissant d'entendre parler d'essais en laboratoire & de tests clinique. (Plutôt que d'entretiens semi-dirigés et de sessions d'observation participante, genre.)
« You cannot reason people out of positions they didn't reason themselves into », indique Goldacre dans la préface de Bad Science. J'ai tendance à penser que c'est très vrai. & sûrement que cet ouvrage a le potentiel de froisser toute une trâlée de gens. Mais si vous vous êtes déjà demandé si vos enfants avaient plus de risques de devenir autistes après avoir été vaccinés, je pense que ce livre est pour vous.
I think this one will hang out in my top 10 for 2015.
informative
reflective
medium-paced
4 1/2 stars
I LOVED this!!!
The premise of the book is that the author shows the Bad Science from the Good and I will recommend this to anyone who has ever been to a homeopath, considered detox products or for that matter taken supplements.
Each chapter deals with a different issue ranging from my (former) beloved Patrick Holford, Brain Gym initiatives in Britain schools, Omega 3 supplements for kids and the explanation of what constitutes a valid research trail and so much more.
Herewith an excerpt of his comments on Brain Gym to give you an idea of his dry slightly sarcastic writing style:
“Children can be disgusting, and often they can develop extraordinary talents, but I’m yet to meet any child who can stimulate his carotid arteries inside his ribcage. That’s probably going to need the sharp scissors that only mummy can use.”
The chapter on South Africa and that highly embarrassing incident most of us will remember when our health minister proclaimed that beetroot and African potatoes can cure HIV together with our then President Thabo Mbeki announcing that HIV does not cause Aids brought home just how dangerous misinformation can be!
There are some scary stats and facts revealed in this book and even though I highly recommend this be warned that there are a few sections that focus a lot on the technicalities of research methodology and the correct way to publish scientific findings so this may not be for everyone.
I LOVED this!!!
The premise of the book is that the author shows the Bad Science from the Good and I will recommend this to anyone who has ever been to a homeopath, considered detox products or for that matter taken supplements.
Each chapter deals with a different issue ranging from my (former) beloved Patrick Holford, Brain Gym initiatives in Britain schools, Omega 3 supplements for kids and the explanation of what constitutes a valid research trail and so much more.
Herewith an excerpt of his comments on Brain Gym to give you an idea of his dry slightly sarcastic writing style:
“Children can be disgusting, and often they can develop extraordinary talents, but I’m yet to meet any child who can stimulate his carotid arteries inside his ribcage. That’s probably going to need the sharp scissors that only mummy can use.”
The chapter on South Africa and that highly embarrassing incident most of us will remember when our health minister proclaimed that beetroot and African potatoes can cure HIV together with our then President Thabo Mbeki announcing that HIV does not cause Aids brought home just how dangerous misinformation can be!
There are some scary stats and facts revealed in this book and even though I highly recommend this be warned that there are a few sections that focus a lot on the technicalities of research methodology and the correct way to publish scientific findings so this may not be for everyone.
I do not know how this book has only 300 pages, the digital version seems much longer. Probably the printed one is written with a font of 2px.
Anyway, this is a must read. I read the 2008 edition and it felt so fresh, especially after the pandemic.
Sadly the people who should read this book will not read it and I am not smart enough to share the ideas in this book in a comprehensive manner.
Anyway, this is a must read. I read the 2008 edition and it felt so fresh, especially after the pandemic.
Sadly the people who should read this book will not read it and I am not smart enough to share the ideas in this book in a comprehensive manner.