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+--- Thread: Evolutionary forces are causing a boom in bad science (/thread-2613.html)
Evolutionary forces are causing a boom in bad science - C C - Jul 11, 2016
https://www.newscientist.com/article/2096542-evolutionary-forces-are-causing-a-boom-in-bad-science/
EXCERPT: Call it a crisis. Researchers are finding it harder to replicate each other’s findings, while the rate of retractions of published studies is rapidly rising. But why is this happening? It’s difficult to determine to what extent the retraction trend is caused by more studies reporting false findings, and how much is down to the fact false findings are now more likely to be identified. Some speculate that the internet has made it far easier for scientists to scrutinise each other’s work, and plagiarism can now be detected automatically.
However, new research supports the idea that, in fact, we are encouraging poor scientific practices by accident. Paul Smaldino and Richard McElreath at the University of California Davis used an evolutionary theory-based computational model to analyse the problem of bad science. They found that “the most powerful incentives in contemporary science actively encourage, reward and propagate poor research methods and abuse of statistical procedures”. In short, it’s natural selection for shoddy science....
RE: Evolutionary forces are causing a boom in bad science - Magical Realist - Jul 15, 2016
The Internet may also provide more opportunity to plagiarize and/or rely on rumored study results that haven't exactly been peer reviewed. It follows that in this realm of hyperinformedness the risk for being misinformed goes up, calling for greater discrimination and care in what passes for "objective" knowledge.