Tag Archives: science
Joanna Blythman: Please Read the Data Appendices About Organic Food Before Conjuring ‘Cancerous Conspiracies’: Part 1
Joanna Blythman and the Soil Association accuse the Food Standards Agency of ignoring the statistics in its own review for differences in nutrient levels between organic and conventionally produced food. We suggest, respectfully, that Blythman and the Soil Association are wrong and refer them to the original data. Continue reading
Filed under Current events, nutrition
Science So What? So Everything. Freedom of Information request and blog comment
We have previously posted some criticisms of aspects of the Science So What? So Everything? campaign. Elliot from the campaign has now responded to our guest post on Science: So What and science communication. We are grateful to him for … Continue reading
Filed under patrick holford
9 Lessons and 8 Carols for Godless People: Quantity Is Not Always a Substitute for Quality
Review of 9 Lessons and 8 Carols for Godless People with: Phil Harris, Stewart Lee, Phil Jupitus, Simon Singh, Darren Hayman, Ricky Gervais, Richard Dawkins, Phil Jeays, Robyn Hitchcock, Josie Long, Jo Neary, Isy Suttie and Gavin Osborn, Mark Thomas, Christina Martin, Colin Watson, Natalie Haynes, Andrew Collins, Peter Buckley Hill, Ben Goldacre, Chris Addison, Tim Minchin, Carl Sagan and Robin Ince. Continue reading
Filed under Ben Goldacre
How to Make Science Entertaining: Neuroskeptic on Science Journalism
In which I recount my early efforts as a childhood Barnum and find some startling correspondences with current media coverage of science and health stories. Pious hopes that the extension of registration to those qualified in nutritionism does not encourage PCTs to offer them as an alternative to Registered Dietitians. Continue reading
Filed under patrick holford
The Elmhurst Epidemic: classic example of the cultural and scientific clash between CAM and medicine
Dr Scott Gottleib reviews Simon Singh and Edzard Ernst’s Trick or Treatment? Alternative medicine on trial. He recounts the interesting story of the Elmhurst Epidemic of liver failure that seems related to a herbal remedy that patients were taking. We examine the political and social pressure that led to trials of the Di Bella Multitherapy. The cultural and scientific clash between CAM and medicine can create far-reaching ripples of harm and has many casualties. Continue reading
Filed under complementary and alternative medicine
Will Science Blogging Absolve the Mainstream Media of the Need to Provide Science Coverage?
Nick Davies and Ben Goldacre have each, in their own way, argued that the state of specialist journalism, including science and health, is lamentable. There have been some half-hearted suggestions that science blogging is a form of niche journalism that might partially absolve mainstream journalism of the responsibility to cover science appropriately. There is little chance that this is feasible. Clay Shirky and Nick Carr point the way to some internet experiments. Continue reading
Professor Patrick Holford and the Mainstream Media: A Love Story?
Holford Myths has asked an interesting question: Why Do Mainstream Media Promote Patrick Holford? We, too, are stumped by this. Of course, many journalists who have profiled Professor Holford of Teesside University have all but stated that he has fragrance, … Continue reading
Filed under Ben Goldacre, Holford, patrick holford
