Bad Science: Quacks, Hacks, and Big Pharma FlacksThe informative and witty exposé of the "bad science" we are all subjected to, called "one of the essential reads of the year" by New Scientist. We are obsessed with our health. And yet—from the media's "world-expert microbiologist" with a mail-order Ph.D. in his garden shed laboratory, and via multiple health scares and miracle cures—we are constantly bombarded with inaccurate, contradictory, and sometimes even misleading information. Until now. Ben Goldacre masterfully dismantles the questionable science behind some of the great drug trials, court cases, and missed opportunities of our time, but he also goes further: out of the bullshit, he shows us the fascinating story of how we know what we know, and gives us the tools to uncover bad science for ourselves. |
Contents
Matter | 3 |
Brain Gym | 15 |
The Progenium XY Complex | 23 |
Homeopathy | 30 |
The Placebo Effect | 65 |
The Nonsense du Jour | 87 |
The Doctor Will Sue You Now | 131 |
Is Mainstream Medicine Evil? | 147 |
Why Clever People Believe Stupid Things | 172 |
Bad Stats | 186 |
The Medias MMR Hoax | 208 |
And Another Thing | 253 |
Notes | 259 |
Further Reading and Acknowledgments | 271 |
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