Wrong
by David H. Freedman · first published 2010
13mentions
6recommended by
6HN commenters
2011–2021first – last mentioned
100% recommend
Why HN recommends it
Covers why expert advice and published research so often go wrong, including publication bias and how people game the system; suited to readers who want a critical look at science and media claims.
Summarised by Claude from recommending comments
why experts keep failing us--and how to know when not to trust them
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On the topic of journals, and what gets published, "Wrong" by David H. Freedman should be required reading. Fascinating book, he documents how hard it is for researches to get negative results published (i.e. 10 studies on a new drug, 9 studies show it does…
on “ScienceLeaks” ↗…released and is full of cartoons and we have an obvious promotional push going on. But I simply must recommend the (possibly) more mundane (no comics) but nonetheless excellent David H. Freedman book: "Wrong: Why experts keep failing us--and how to know when not to trust them Scientists, finance wizards, doctors, relationship gurus, celebrity CEOs, ... consultants, health officials and more" https://www.amazon.com/Wrong-us-Scientists-relationship-cons...…
on “You Want to See My Data? I Thought We Were Friends” ↗No way! Look at the book "Wrong: Why experts* keep failing us--and how to know when not to trust them" by David H. Freedman https://www.amazon.com/Wrong-us-Scientists-relationship-cons... to see why. Experts and expert organizations,…
on “Never Again: We Need Science Based Government” ↗It's not actually. This book argues for the position that expert advice is wrong more often than not: https://www.amazon.com/Wrong-us---Scientists-relationship-co... The dubious reliability of much advice presented in the media as expert advice is one of the impending themes of…
on “Radical Swiss financial reform campaign faces defeat” ↗The book "Wrong!" by David H. Freedman describes in detail how this occurs in hundreds of cases. We've been blinded by institutional science and experts for decades. I've had to put the book down repeatedly out of dismay…
on “They Blinded Us with “Science” (Regarding Covid-19)” ↗Wrong: Why Experts Keep Failing Us - and How to Know When Not to Trust Them by David H. Freedman - Painfully relevant to the current pandemic. Explains why the experts aren't! The End of Average by Todd Rose…
on “Ask HN: Please suggest some good books you have read recently” ↗I recommend the book "Wrong", which talks about a number of failings in our current research system, why invalid results persist, and how people game the system to get the results they want. https://www.amazon.com/Wrong-us-Scientists-relationship-cons...
on “Why “Trusting the Science” Is Complicated” ↗It's a lot worse than the title claims: almost NO experts ANYWHERE in government are good at their jobs. And it isn't limited to governments of course. The book "Wrong: Why Experts* Keep Failing Us" by David H. Freedman shows that government, academic and private industry are quite lacking in "expertise". The current pandemic cock-ups with the CDC, "epidemiology experts",…
on “Bugger: Maybe the real state secret is spies aren't good at their jobs (2013)” ↗…each other, make up statistics, report obvious common sense as "findings", are hugely over-confident in their own predictive abilities, mis-use statistics and so on. A good book to read on the topic is "Wrong" by David Freedman: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8134625-wrong He's a former journalist and so has direct experience of this problem. He cites many examples where expert testimony caused misleading…
on “All models are wrong, but some are completely wrong” ↗I suggest the book "Wrong: Why experts* keep failing us--and how to know when not to trust them" by David H. Freedman, the author of that Atlantic piece. It's a book length treatment, and very damning in many ways.
on “Is Psychology About to Come Undone?” ↗ciarannolan says "Doctors at the NIH, scientists at the Department of Energy, biologists at USAMRIID, etc etc etc. All bad at their jobs?" Yes. See the book "Wrong: Why Experts Keep Failing Us" by David H. Freedman. Meanwhile... "No lesson seems to be so deeply inoculated by the experience of life as that you never should trust experts." - Lord Salisbury
on “Bugger: Maybe the real state secret is spies aren't good at their jobs (2013)” ↗No. What it's saying is that data based decisions are not always right and may in fact often be more wrong than an emotional decision. The argument can be found in much greater detail in the book "Wrong" by David Freedman: https://www.amazon.com/Wrong-us-Scientists-relationship-cons... and is explored from…
on “At Least 70 Countries Have Had Disinformation Campaigns, Study Finds” ↗In his book "Wrong: Why Experts Keep Failing Us"* David H. Freedman lists "Eleven Simple Never-Fail Rules for Not Being Misled by Experts". One is: >"It's supported by ... animal studies. ... I recommend treating as interesting…
on “A combo of fasting plus vitamin C is effective for hard-to-treat cancers in mice” ↗