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This is a data-driven society, or at least, it claims to be. “The surveys said” or “Research indicates,” or “Studies show” are assumed to be _proof_, but a famous politician observed that “There are lies, and there are damn lies, and there are statistics.”
How can we look at news of the latest polling or study and begin to discern what may be valid, and what may be false, in the daily flood of data? How can we sort out science from propaganda? How can we avoid being deceived or just misled by bad methods or bad intent? Dr. Brian Ray, the founder and head researcher for the National Home Education Research Institute, talked with Hal at the HSLDA National Home School Leadership Conference, about things we should understand when confronted with “research.” |
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National Home Education Research Institute
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I just finished a book that is quite relevant to this topic. It is written from a humanist point of view so she assumes evolution is fact but that doesn’t have a big impact on the book’s value. It’s called Lies, D*mned Lies and Science: How To Sort Through The Noise Around Global Warming, the Latest Health Claims, and Other Scientific Controversies. The author’s name is Sherry Seethaler and when I got it on Amazon the kindle version was free. Her guidelines for understanding scientific research and sorting the hype from the truth are really helpful. A worthwhile read for parents and high school aged kids.