Category: Commentary
A Culture of Standards Matters
Perhaps the most dangerous effect of the alternative medicine movement has been an erosion of the culture of dedication to science and standards within medicine. This has to change.
Where Are We With the Replication “Crisis”
The replication problem is not as bad as the sensational reporting has suggested. But it is still a legitimate issue that needs to be addressed.
Answering Our Critics – Again!
Critics of Science-Based Medicine keep making the same old tired arguments, despite the fact that their arguments have been repeatedly demolished. Here is a list of recurrent memes, with counterarguments.
What Not To Write in an E-mail to SBM
What to do, and what not to do, when sending a critical e-mail to SBM or elsewhere – assuming you want to be taken seriously.
Infiltrative Pseudoscience
If you don't think that CAM is the enemy of science in medicine, then you don't understand CAM and its proponents. Don't be fooled by their marketing. They want a return to the pre-scientific days when health gurus could sell any snake oil they want at exorbitant prices, with any hyped claims that they want, without going through all that tedious science.
SBM Progress Report
Science-Based Medicine has been operating for a decade. While we have been successful by many measures, the challenges we face remain great. Here is a look at the mission of SBM, and a call for support to our readers.
Is Mindfulness Meditation Science-Based?
Existing research has not yet clearly defined what mindfulness is and what effect it has. The hype clearly has gone beyond the science, and more rigorous research is needed to determine what specific effects there are, if any.
Zombie Science
Retractions of scientific studies do not always mean that the studies die a deserved death. Sometimes they live on as zombie studies, continuing to be cited by other researchers and having an effect on the scientific discussion. We can fix this.
A right to science
Unless forced to do so, the state and federal governments will continue to base law and policy on bad science. Maybe it's time for a constitutional amendment guaranteeing a "right to science."