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How Sloppy Science Creates Worthless Cures, Crushes Hope, and Wastes Billions

Evan Hayes

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Published in Rigor Mortis: How Sloppy Science Creates Worthless Cures Crushes Hope And Wastes Billions

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Rigor Mortis: How Sloppy Science Creates Worthless Cures, Crushes Hope, and Wastes Billions

by Richard Harris

4.5 out of 5

Language	:	English
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Sloppy science is a major problem in the medical research industry. It leads to worthless cures, crushed hope, and wasted billions. This article investigates the causes and consequences of sloppy science and offers solutions to improve the quality of medical research.

Causes of Sloppy Science

There are a number of factors that contribute to sloppy science, including:

Pressure to publish. Researchers are under pressure to publish their findings in order to advance their careers. This pressure can lead to researchers cutting corners and publishing results that are not fully supported by the data.
Lack of funding. Medical research is expensive, and there is often a lack of funding for rigorous studies. This can lead to researchers using smaller sample sizes and less rigorous methods, which can increase the risk of false positive results.
Conflicts of interest. Researchers who have financial ties to the pharmaceutical industry may be more likely to publish positive results, even if the data do not support those results.

Consequences of Sloppy Science

Sloppy science has a number of negative consequences, including:

Worthless cures. Sloppy science can lead to the development of worthless cures that do not work or even harm patients.
Crushed hope. When patients learn that a cure they were hoping for is worthless, it can crush their hope and make it difficult for them to continue fighting their disease.
Wasted billions. Sloppy science wastes billions of dollars that could be used to fund more rigorous research.

Solutions to Sloppy Science

There are a number of things that can be done to improve the quality of medical research and reduce the risk of sloppy science, including:

Increase funding for medical research. This would allow researchers to conduct more rigorous studies with larger sample sizes.
Reduce the pressure to publish. This would give researchers more time to conduct thorough studies and ensure that their results are fully supported by the data.
Eliminate conflicts of interest. This would reduce the risk of researchers publishing biased results.
Require researchers to register their clinical trials. This would make it more difficult for researchers to hide negative results.
Encourage open access to research findings. This would allow other researchers to review and replicate studies, which would help to identify and correct errors.

Sloppy science is a major problem in the medical research industry. It leads to worthless cures, crushed hope, and wasted billions. However, there are a number of things that can be done to improve the quality of medical research and reduce the risk of sloppy science. By increasing funding, reducing the pressure to publish, eliminating conflicts of interest, requiring researchers to register their clinical trials, and encouraging open access to research findings, we can help to ensure that medical research is used to develop effective cures and treatments for diseases.

Rigor Mortis: How Sloppy Science Creates Worthless Cures, Crushes Hope, and Wastes Billions

by Richard Harris

4.5 out of 5