Science and nonscience: The limits of scientific research

"American education research has turned a corner. The 2002 creation of the Institute of Education Sciences (IES), the ascendance of accountability, and the No Child Left Behind act's demand for "scientifically based research" have radically altered an educational research culture that just a few years ago bridled at the "medical model" and too often championed ethnographies, action research, "critical narrative," "discourse analysis," and other approaches that provided parents, practitioners, or policy makers with little useful information...Amidst this good news, however, lurks the risk that the pendulum will swing too far, that the lure of "scientifically based research" will cause certain methods of study—especially randomized field trials—to be demanded even when ill-suited for the issue at hand." by Frederick Hess.

Science Goes Tabloid

"In scientific journals, if it bleeds, it leads" by Iain Murray.

Diminishing Biodiverse Returns

"It took 20 tortuous years to get from the bark of the Pacific Yew tree to a medication for breast cancer. But now Taxol is a common treatment for women with early breast cancer, and despite the false leads and blind alleys in the laboratory, researchers and pharmaceutical companies had incentive to pursue the cure. That could change drastically if rules for patenting new discoveries derived from natural molecules (like those found in the yew plant) are changed." by Sally Satel.

Author Michael Crichton Discusses the Politics behind Climate Science

"At a January 28 AEI-Brookings Joint Center event, bestselling author, medical doctor, and Emmy and Oscar recipient Michael Crichton addressed the quality of science employed in environmental policy--a topic he explores in his latest novel, State of Fear."

Red & Green: Is the president cutting enough environmental fat?

"The environmental bureaucracy needs to go on a diet." by Angela Logomasini.

Ballistic Fingerprinting's a Dud: Another Failed Gun-Control Strategy

  
"A recent report by the Maryland State Police's forensic-sciences division shows that the systems in both states have been expensive failures. New York is spending $4 million per year. Maryland has spent a total of $2.6 million, about $60 per gun sold. But in the over four years that the systems have been in effect neither has solved a single crime. To put it bluntly, the program 'does not aid in the mission statement of the Department of State Police.'" By John Lott for National Review.

Climate Glacier Politics

"Hiking on the receding, I mean advancing, Franz Josef Glacier." by Roger Bate for TechCentralStation.