{"id":42813,"date":"2017-06-13T14:25:11","date_gmt":"2017-06-13T20:25:11","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/admin.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/?p=42813"},"modified":"2017-06-13T14:31:42","modified_gmt":"2017-06-13T20:31:42","slug":"cant-trust-academic-journals-tell-scientific-truth","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/2017\/06\/cant-trust-academic-journals-tell-scientific-truth.html","title":{"rendered":"“Why we can’t trust academic journals to tell the scientific truth”"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"Can<\/a>
The Sphinx Observatory \u2014 an astronomical research facility \u2014 can just barely be seen on the saddle located between the peaks of the M\u00f6nch, on the left, and the Jungfrau, on the right.
(Wikimedia Commons public domain photo)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s attacking science!\u201d at least one frequent commenter on my blog will exclaim, as predictably as if he were one of Pavlov\u2019s dogs, when he sees this note. \u00a0\u201cHe\u2019s attacking science!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

I\u2019m not, of course.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

I\u2019m simply pointing out that science, being a human enterprise, is subject (in its own unique ways) to the same human factors \u2014 including sloppiness, psychological quirks, uncontrolled ambition, haste, deceit, ideological bias, and sheer incompetence \u2014 that affect all other human enterprises.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cAh, but,\u201d some will say, \u201cscience<\/em> is self-correcting<\/em>. \u00a0Unlike theology and religion<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

I\u2019ve said nothing here about theology and religion, of course. \u00a0Their response will be irrelevant, as it always has been. \u00a0And I don\u2019t deny that theology is a human enterprise, just as science is.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

But the evidence is beginning to indicate beyond any reasonable quibble that science\u2019s self-correction mechanisms, while very good and in many ways quite unparalleled, may not be working nearly as well in reality as they invariably do\u00a0in idealized models and sanitized histories:<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/higher-education-network\/2017\/jun\/06\/why-we-cant-trust-academic-journals-to-tell-the-scientific-truth<\/a><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

Posted from Grindelwald, Switzerland<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u201cHe\u2019s attacking science!\u201d at least one frequent commenter on my blog will exclaim, as predictably as if he were one of Pavlov\u2019s dogs, when he sees this note. \u00a0\u201cHe\u2019s attacking science!\u201d \u00a0 I\u2019m not, of course. \u00a0 I\u2019m simply pointing out that science, being a human enterprise, is subject (in its own unique […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1019,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-42813","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"\n"Why we can't trust academic journals to tell the scientific truth"<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"    "He's attacking science!" at least one frequent commenter on my blog will exclaim, as predictably as if he were one of Pavlov's dogs, when\" \/>\n<meta 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