Bishop Hill Comedy of AAAS
Jun 29, 2011 FOI The American Association for the Advancement of Science has issued a somewhat overwrought statement, parts of which look like a despairing plea for the Mann emails to be kept under wraps:
The sharing of research data is vastly different from unreasonable, excessive Freedom of Information Act requests for personal information and voluminous data that are then used to harass and intimidate scientists. The latter serve only as a distraction and make no constructive contribution to the public discourse.
Of course, personal information is not subject to FOI requests in the UK. Excessive, intimidating and harassing requests can likewise be rejected - I assume it is no different in the USA
So I wonder which jurisdictions the AAAS is talking about.
This bit made me laugh too:
The scientific community takes seriously its responsibility for policing research misconduct, and extensive procedures exist to protect the rigor of the scientific method and to ensure the credibility of the research enterprise.
It's hard not to recall the Penn State investigation into Michael Mann, which, if I recall correctly, concluded that he could have done nothing wrong because he had brought in so much grant money.
They have a sense of humour at the AAAS I think.
Reader Comments (51)
Enlightenment?
Theories, Blind men-Elephant And Peer-Review
A. Theory, the first of several definitions:
http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/theory
The analysis of a set of facts in their relation to one another.
B. Enlightenment, a philosophical movement of the 18th century, characterized by belief in the power of human reason and by innovations in political, religious, and educational doctrine.
http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/enlightenment
C. The tale re the blind men and elephant:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blind_men_and_an_elephant
D. Peer-review:
http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/peer%20review
A process by which something proposed (as for research or publication) is evaluated by a group of experts in the appropriate field.
E. AAAS peer-review:
http://universe-life.com/2011/01/25/hope-for-2011-science/
http://universe-life.com/2011/06/11/for-a-scientism-culture/
F. What kind of enlightenment can re-evolve in a counter-enlightenment culture, in which scientific theories postulated by “blind men” are selectively “certified” or “rejected” by an omnipotent blind-men trade-union-association?
Dov Henis (comments from 22nd century)
http://universe-life.com/2011/12/13/21st-century-science-whence-and-whither/