It’s a small world. One that requires some joined up thinking. We need to see the contours among the shadows, to extract the signal from the noise, to construct synchrony from the chaos. You know what I mean. We need to become pattern detectors. (Just nod. I am going somewhere […]
Science
Todd Akin’s empirical question
So, as you may have heard, Mr Akin, the Republican Party Senate candidate in Missouri (hi, Missouri!) has some weird views on rape, conception, and abortion. Basically, this is what the Todd Akin t-shirts are going to be saying this November: It seems to me, from what I understand from […]
Be careful where you put that paywall
So, lots of people (in the UK at any rate) are pleased at proposals to provide free access to the results of publicly funded research. Here’s George Monbiot’s tweet: This is great news: free access to British scientific research within two years http://t.co/RSZwkDAZ#academicpublishing #academicspring — George Monbiot (@GeorgeMonbiot) July 16, […]
Forthcoming: On ‘The Written Word’
I’ve been invited to speak at this conference next week — The Written Word: Writing, Publishing, and Communication in Higher Education — organised by the Centre for Excellence in Learning and Teaching at NUI Galway. There’s quite an eclectic line-up of speakers with backgrounds in popular science writing, education, and broadcasting, so I’m […]
Remember, there are no right answers…
For college students enrolled in science-based courses, ‘Research Methods’ classes can often be something of a mixed bag. The same is true for Research Methods textbooks. And I feel I should know. As I work professionally (so to speak) in this area, I get sent samples of such textbooks by […]
Is there actually evidence for anti-ageing creams?
Here is a short piece I wrote for Tuesday’s Irish Independent. It was part of their ‘Science For Life’ supplement (not available online), in which scientists provide answers to “some of life’s big questions“. I was asked to respond to a question raised by current affairs broadcaster Miriam O’Callaghan (@miriamocal), who […]
Recent Posts
That BMJ review of Long Covid therapies does not show what it says it does
My submission on the new Canadian draft recommendations for Long Covid
The cries for help are getting louder. And that’s a good sign
“A science that does not allow opposing opinions abolishes knowledge.” Er, kind of
Getting it Right: Addressing Myths about the 2021 NICE Guideline for ME/CFS
