How Science Goes Wrong

Business interests like to think of themselves as taming science, selecting among the discoveries and presenting them to the world. Scientific research ultimately instigates new trends, comforts, life-saving treatments, new businesses and more. “But success can breed complacency,” suggests an essay in the Economist. “Modern scientists are doing too much trusting and not enough verifying – to the detriment of the whole of science, and of humanity.” According to the Economist, the challenges for science include ruthless competition, analysis that cannot be replicated, wasteful spending, career pressures to publish and the temptations of media attention. The essay urges research protocols to be posted in advance, preventing tinkering and cherry-picking along the way, as well as tightening standards and statistical analysis. Science is complex, and funding is scarce. Better self-policing within scientific fields could lead to greater understanding and more useful results. – YaleGlobal