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December 2, 2011
Seven Eight Warning Signs of Junk Science
Rhetoric that mixes science with the tropes of eschatological panic.When the argument for theory X slides from "theory X is supported by evidence" to "a terrible catastrophe looms over us if theory X is true, therefore we cannot risk disbelieving it", you can be pretty sure that X is junk science. Consciously or unconsciously, advocates who say these sorts of things are trying to panic the herd into stampeding rather than focusing on the quality of the evidence for theory X.Rhetoric that mixes science with the tropes of moral panic.
When the argument for theory X slides from “theory X is supported by evidence” to “only bad/sinful/uncaring people disbelieve theory X”, you can be even more sure that theory X is junk science. Consciously or unconsciously, advocates who say these sorts of things are trying to induce a state of preference falsification in which people are peer-pressured to publicly affirm a belief in theory X in spite of private doubts. -- -- Armed and Dangerous
Posted by gerardvanderleun at December 2, 2011 9:26 AM. This is an entry on the sideblog of American Digest: Check it out.