Embracing more rigorous scientific methods would mean getting science right more often than we currently do. But the way we value and reward scientists makes this a challenge.
Science works in ways that reflect our rationality.
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There’s a big difference between science and pseudoscience. But if people don’t understand how science works in the first place, it’s very easy for them to fall for the pseudoscience.
Overfishing can teach us valuable lessons about ecosystem resilience.
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Large-scale natural experiments such as oil spills, tsunamis and climate change are things you wouldn’t want to do on purpose. But that doesn’t mean they’re not scientifically useful experiments too.
Science explains how people are changing our natural systems, but we need to recognize the importance – and power – of emotions and the spiritual world in charting a course to the future.
The climate is startlingly complex, as is the immune system.
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Where once scientists used to be solitary creatures, today science is a highly collaborative affair, and the latest research in ecology is no exception.
Children are natural scientists. They learn from their mistakes, then try something new.
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Everyone loves a study that turns one of our favourite vices into a health benefit. Before you reach for a Mars bar or a Dairy Milk, let’s take a step back.
Every academic journal article is rigorously screened by other experts in the field.
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Peter C. Doherty, The Peter Doherty Institute for Infection and Immunity
Peer review is not infallible, but it’s central to how science works. In this extract from Peter Doherty’s new book, The Knowledge Wars, he explains how it works in practice.
Curiosity saved the butterfly.
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Some activists use open records requests to bully researchers – distracting them from their actual work and silencing others who don’t want to draw attention.
Professor of Management & Organizations; Professor of Environment & Sustainability; Professor of Sustainable Enterprise at the Ross School of Business and School of Environment and Sustainability, University of Michigan