I find this exchange very interesting, and it points up a major
problem caused by the burgeoning of scientific knowledge and the limitations
of the individual. As scientists, we believe (have faith) that the
scientific method is the best means of arriving at truth about the natural
world. Even if the method is error-prone in some ways, and is subject to
various forms of manipulation, it is historically self-correcting.
The problem is that no individual has enough time, knowledge, and
background to know if the scientific method is being properly by all those
who claim to be doing so. We hear someone cite a suspicious-sounding fact
(i.e., a fact that doesn't correspond to our perhaps-erroneous
understanding), and we want to know if it is based on real science or
pseudo-science. So what to we do? We ask if the supporting research
appeared in a peer-reviewed journal (i.e., has this been vetted by the
old-boys network?). This sounds a little like the response of the people
who first heard the teachings of Jesus. They didn't ask "How do we know
this is true?" They asked "By whose authority do you speak?"
These two questions should never be confused, yet the questions "Did
it appear in a peer-reviewed journal" and "Is that journal REALLY a
peer-reviewed journal?" skate perilously close to this confusion. We are
looking for a short-cut, for something we can trust so we don't have to be
experts in every branch of science and read every journal ourselves. I
don't know the answer to this dilemma, and perhaps there is none, but we
should be looking for something better than "Does this have the stamp of
approval of people who think like I do?" We should be looking for something
that is not just an encodement of "Does this violate the doctrine of my
faith?" The pragmatic necessity of letting others decide whether certain
research is valid should be no excuse for relaxing our personal vigilance
and skepticism. Otherwise, we fall into the same trap that ensnares the
religionists who are trying to undermine science because it threatens their
faith.
Martin M. Meiss
2009/7/8 Kerry Griffis-Kyle <[email protected]>
> I am teaching a Sophomore/Junior level evolution course at Texas Tech
> (where a significant proportion of my students believe evolution is
> anti-God). One of the activities I have them do is take three creationist
> claims about science and use the peer-reviewed scientific literature to find
> evidence to support or refute the claim. It makes them really think about
> the issues; and if they follow the directions, it does a better job than any
> of my classroom activities convincing them that the claims against evolution
> are just a bunch of hooey. Unfortunately, there are journals claiming
> peer-review status that are not. It can be very frustrating.
>
> Like Raphael, I also wonder if there is a good source the students can use
> as a rubric for telling if a journal article is peer-reviewed.
>
> *****************************
> Kerry Griffis-Kyle
> Assistant Professor
> Department of Natural Resources Management
> Texas Tech University
>
> --- On Tue, 7/7/09, Raphael Mazor <[email protected]> wrote:
>
>
> From: Raphael Mazor <[email protected]>
> Subject: [ECOLOG-L] "real" versus "fake" peer-reviewed journals
> To: [email protected]
> Date: Tuesday, July 7, 2009, 5:03 PM
>
>
> I've noticed a number of cases lately where groups with a strong political
> agenda (on topics like climate change, evolution, stem cells, or human
> health) cite "peer reviewed" studies in journals that are essentially
> fabricated for the purpose of advancing a specific viewpoint.
>
> What's a good way to tell when a journal is baloney? Of course, it's easy
> for a scientist in his or her own field to know when a journal is a sham,
> but how can we let others know it's obviously fake? For example, are only
> "real" journals included on major abstract indexing services?
>
> -- <><><><><><><><><>
> Raphael D. Mazor
> Biologist
> Southern California Coastal Water Research Project
> 3535 Harbor Boulevard, Suite 110
> Costa Mesa, CA 92626
>
> Tel: 714-755-3235
> Fax: 714-755-3299
> Email: [email protected]
>
>
>
>
>
