How to Spot Bad Science about COVID-19

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Should we restart the economy because COVID-19 is no big deal?

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ABOUT: Rebecca Watson is the founder of the Skepchick Network, a collection of sites focused on science and critical thinking. She has written for outlets such as Slate, Popular Science, and the Committee for Skeptical Inquiry. She's also the host of Quiz-o-tron, a rowdy, live quiz show that pits scientists against comedians. Asteroid 153289 Rebeccawatson is named after her (her real name being 153289).

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[ambulocetusnatans]

When one of the conspiracy mongers says something like "you can't criticize the(video/article) unless you (watch/read) it ", I say to them "I don't have to smell the dog shit to avoid stepping in it"

[rcpatterson]

"Death is severe!" Such an obvious statement and its disturbing that it needed to be restated.

[roselandron]

As a college student that has easy access to thousands of scientific peer reviewed studies thanks to my school's subscription, I've been privileged to the practice of knowing how to deconstruct articles, what makes something reputable or not, and being critical of the background credentials of the author(s) and publishers. I'm looking forward to the day that people who write these clickbait "articles" that really read more like a highschool blog posts, are seen for the unscientific entertainment that they really are. I can't wait to see the next generation surpass us... or something hopefully uplifting like that.

[TheTeratophile]

3 former Breitbart writers have a problem with this video.

[patrickelliott]

I swear, this crisis is going to drive me nuts, for many reasons, including my "in a grocery store" coworkers. The latest of which was rambling about how "Sylvia Brown predicted a 'respiratory virus' for 2020, so.. wow! She not only 'predicted the future', but since the book its from, apparently, was some sort of apocalyptic prediction things (is this her thing?), 'the end of times is coming'." :head-desk:


I mean.. seriously, there is a enough freaking crazy where I live as it is, I don't need everyone to show me more!

[DahVoozel]

Personally I love graphs that show the exact opposite of the author's point.

[thewittyusername]

Honest Title: "Silicon Valley Marketing Guy suggests reductions in reasonable caution in an attempt to bolster company stock viability at the expense of public health and safety."

[preciousinfinity]

I feel like I've spoken to this guy on Twitter, as the one I spoke to said that most of us have already probably had it, and those that do just need to stay indoors. When questioned what we do about those who refuse to stay indoors or those who are asymptomatic, he said it was too late for if's and but's.

[errrkt]

Worst case scenario: everyone is infected and dies...a bell curve.

[davidspears]

Thank you Ms. Watson for using the pejorative "Dum-Dum", I have also heard Natalie Wynn use this term, I hope it makes a comeback.

[edbeecher]

I had a thought this morning and thought I would run it by you before making the corrolation. Comapiring Covid-19 disease wise to; The Spanish and the Mayans, smallpox and the Native American population. I am so happy I found your site.

[leelooparks]

i wish there were more federal judges with your clarity of mind and thorough research...not to mention righteous politics and wonderfully snarky remarks about dumb dumbs trying to posture as smarty pants.

[myoung]

My MIL sent me an article from Medium and as I was reading it I was like, who the hell wrote this?! They were trying to talk about a scientific topic from a point of view. I lost it when I read “shit hit the fan” in a supposed scientific article. I looked into Medium as a website, and it doesn’t regulate who can write which articles and who gets published. They are an editorial website and I now take articles on it as just that, the author’s opinion. Thanks for talking about this!

[dennissmith]

William Lane Craig does the Gish Gallop so well, he almost deserves to have a version named just for him. Love it!

[Jaspertine]

Love your zombie analogy, especially where it's literally the ending to Shawn of the Dead.
Great minds and all that.

[hunnybadger]

Ive always had a nack for stats... I got 99% or over (extra credit) on every stats test I've ever taken, a A in each class and Ive tutored stats in college... Stats are kinda my thing and in the first stats class i took first thing the professor taught us was how to fudge the numbers... That lesson changed my life and gave me one hell of a B.S. o meter... Well I have an advocay position where I'm supposed to inform people on the MHSA, act as a bridge between clients and professionals and hold the county accountable on how MHSA gets spent... Well the county develops a 3 year plan... And it was a piece of Absolutely beautiful to look at I could put that up on a wall and stand in front of it and look very professional... But as actual data, showing how effective programs actaully are, or where the money was actaully going and how it was spent.... It was about as useful as a screen door on a submarine and just as dangerous... It was a piece of art and nothing more... Millions of dollars since 2012 have been given to my county from the state... For mental health related programs and projects... I have no idea what they are actaully doing with the money cuz with a budget like that and absolutely no real change in services over the years... Since my position is volunteer and Im disabled like all their advocates in the program are.... They probably assume that no one like us was going to be able to spot the little games they were playing and actually understand what all the pretty pictures actaully ment.... Well they really f'ed up this time... Cuz yeah Im nuts not stupid... Well i decided to test the waters and called the head of Advisory and accountability board... She's the one that has final say on what and where the money goes... So I half assed kinda said that the info, conclusions and results seemed a little iffy... And she jumped on me so fast it would have made your head spin... So i played stupid, stroked her ego and she calmed down.... But this isn't over.... So im biding my time feeling my way around and Im not going to let this stand.... So yeah bad science and bad math have real world consiquences that few realize... Wide rangings policy decisions that have effected million have more than once been made at all levels of government on misrepresented data and pretty graphs and charts... Policy makers use this stuff all the damn time... Sometimes purposely and maybe sometimes not... But as a mental health client in my county I have been at the mercy of the substandard care they provide and I was beyond livid when I found that the entire time They had had millions of dollars at their disposal and I couldn't even get help with the basics beyond a script for my pills... I was on the streets for over five years, my mental health in shambles and received pretty much nothing but a middle finger and wish you the best of luck... They had millions at their disposal... Wtf are they doing with this Im gonna find out and im gonna blow the roof off my County... I will not let this stand... So wish me luck Im gonna piss a ton of very important people off but F them they've been doing the same thing to me for years.... So yeah educate yourself about this stuff.... So you won't fall for this crap when you come across it and build your own b.s. o meter you're gonna need it now more than ever....

[missmelodies]

It is worthwhile to clarify "don't panic." If you feel panicked, that's natural and okay. It's fine to have those feelings and that stress. It's a stressful time. However when it comes to action, we need to listen to experts rather than our feelings and put community health first.

[Chipiliro]

*'...is a Silicon Valley marketing guy'*

Oh dang, I was guessing that Medium article was gonna be written by a cruise line PR person

[WildJourneyOfLife]

thanks for your beautiful work... especially in this time...😎👍👍👍👍👍👍👍

[recklessroges]

scientist: #2 click the links

computer security:
I'm off to build a zombie-"hamster"-wheel power station. "Our energy is as green as our workers."