The debunk squad of voodoo science

Last summer I saw by chance a presentation by dr. Michael Shermer on TED.com (Technology, Entertainment, Design). Shermer presents himself a the founder of the Skeptic society and editor-in-chief of Skeptic Magazine. The Skeptic Society is a non-profit organisation, consisting of academics, scientists, historians, magicians and volunteers who are interested in reseaching and investigating controversial ideas, extraordinary claims, revolutionary ideas and the advancement of science. The mission of the Skeptic Society is to investigate controversial ideas and to reveal pseudo science. Everybody is invited to contribute. As Shermer says in his speech: We are the debunk squad of pseudo, voodoo, junk and bad science.

Continue reading The debunk squad of voodoo science

January 24th, 2010 | Tags: , , , | Category: Teaching material, Videos | Leave a comment

Food for thought: Mark Learmonth’s view on evidence-based management

In my exploratory search for the state of the art of the evidence based management movement, I stumbled on this short paper by dr. Mark Learmonth, Associate Professor in Organization Theory at the University of Nottingham. This is a must read for all the evidence based management enthusiasts. Maybe not always what you want to hear or read, but definitely food for thought on the freedom of conducting research and the politics which are involved in securing research grants and the pursuit of a academic career. Although, criticizing the EBM proponents by challenging their intellectual credibility does not make his case stronger.

Continue reading Food for thought: Mark Learmonth’s view on evidence-based management

January 23rd, 2010 | Tags: , , , , | Category: General | Leave a comment