Fiona’s Take on Richie’s New Book: ‘Science Fictions–How Fraud, Bias, Negligence, and Hype…’

I haven’t read this book–it won’t reach here for a while–but Fiona has written a critique that’s certainly worth reading. Out this week in Nature, you can find her assessment here.

From Fiona’s review:

“Together with his overview of the replication crisis, this introduction would be useful for undergraduates or general readers.

“Fraud, bias, negligence and hype are the themes of Science Fictions. Some of the cases Ritchie presents… are intriguing and disturbing combinations of all four. 

“This comprehensive collection of mishaps, misdeeds and tales of caution is the great strength of Ritchie’s offering.” 

Then come the really interesting bits, including discussion of Richie’s interpretation of the problem and his view of what science should be and what he sees it as having become. Fiona can expertly set that all in perspective, as a scholar of the history and philosophy of science, and now metascience. Definitely worth the read. She’d recommend the book also, despite some flaws.

Geoff

Richie, S. (2020). Science fictions: How fraud, bias, incompetence, and hype undermine the search for truth. Metropolitan Books.