Junk science: how to recognize it
These days we are all very much aware of the positive role science plays in our lives. However, like every endeavour involving humans, there is potential for abuse. How can you spot doubtful or low quality science? There are no hard and fast rules, but the following observations are of help in this regard. Robert Park, a physicist at the University of Maryland, has developed what he calls the seven warning signs of ‘voodoo’ science (see Park, R. (2000) Voodoo Science: the Road from Foolishness to Fraud. Oxford University Press, Oxford). They are (adapted from the draft of an article by Robert Park for Think, the journal of the Royal Institute of Philosophy):
1. A discovery is pitched directly to the media.
2. A powerful establishment is said to be suppressing the discovery.
3. An effect is always at the very limit of detection.
4. Evidence for a discovery is anecdotal.
5. A belief is said to be credible because it has endured for centuries.
6. An important discovery is made in isolation.
7. New laws of nature are proposed to explain an incredible invention.