The World's Best Book Summaries
How much is the Earth warming? What’s the cause? What does the future hold? With all of the information about climate change available at your fingertips, you probably still have unanswered questions. In Unsettled, former energy industry scientist Steven E. Koonin provides his answers to three of the biggest questions in the conversation. Continue reading for three climate change questions and answers from Koonin.
Why are sea levels rising? What do the data say? Can we know for sure? “Climate Scientists Unsure Whether Rising Sea Levels the Result of Human Influences” isn’t a click-worthy headline. But, former energy industry scientist Steven E. Koonin argues that it would be more accurate than what we typically see in the news. Read on to learn what we know—and don’t know—about the cause of rising sea levels.
Do both sides of an argument warrant the same amount of consideration? What’s the difference between correlation and causation? You’ve probably experienced this: You hear something that sounds great. But, when you think it through, it doesn’t make a whole lot of sense. A fallacy could be to blame. The more you know about fallacies, the better you’ll be able to evaluate information and arguments. Continue reading for a brief overview of three different types of fallacies.
When you’re making medical decisions, what do you consider? How do you evaluate your options? Medical decisions are some of the most important decisions you make. Neuroscientist Daniel J. Levitin argues that you shouldn’t try to intuit such decisions because your brain just isn’t good at it. He recommends using a fourfold table to analyze the information you’re working with. Continue reading to learn how to use this process for informed decision-making in healthcare.
What’s the best way to measure climate change and its impact? What does temperature have to do with wealth? According to progressive media and politicians, climate change constitutes an existential threat to humanity, requiring drastic cuts in carbon dioxide emissions to avoid catastrophe. According to Bjorn Lomborg, climate change poses a significant threat, but it’s not cataclysmic. Keep reading to understand the methods and measures Lomborg uses in his analysis.
Does global warming cause extreme weather? Are floods, droughts, fires, and hurricanes worse than ever? If so, what’s the cause? Bjorn Lomborg writes that climate alarmists all echo the same sentiment: Climate change leads to more extreme weather. Opposing this view, he argues that climate change has had relatively little impact on extreme weather. Keep reading to understand how Lomborg arrives at this conclusion.
What does cherry-picking data mean? Why do many companies in healthcare do this? There are some drug and healthcare companies that cherry-pick results, referencing the positive and ignoring the negative. In Bad Science, Ben Goldacre expresses how this is an unethical practice. Let’s look at why cherry-picking data isn’t advised.
What is selection bias in research? How does it affect scientific findings? Selection bias is when researchers sort participants into different groups to get their desired result. According to Ben Goldacre in Bad Science, this unethical tactic can cause a systematic error that could’ve been avoided with randomization. Let’s look at why selection bias in research is a growing issue.
What are scientific controls? Why are they instrumental in experiments? In Bad Science, Ben Goldacre explains that scientific studies are designed to test one treatment at a time, without any influence from other factors. To do this, good researchers make use of scientific controls. Let’s go into more detail on a scientific control’s role in studies.
What is data manipulation in research? What are methods of data manipulation you should avoid? Unfortunately, some researchers manipulate data to fit their hypothesis. In Bad Science, Ben Goldacre discusses the ethics of altering data in an unprofessional way. Check out how to spot data manipulation in research.