literacy in the 21st century: word, web, woo

Literacy in the 21st Century

Dr Brian HughesSchool of Psychology, NUI Galway

@b_m_hughes

28%

http://www.gallup.com/poll/19558/Paranormal-Beliefs-Come-SuperNaturally-Some.aspx

http://goo.gl/Dkp8F

“Sittin’ on the sidelines...cribbin’ an’ moanin’...”“...I don’t know how people who engage in

that don’t commit suicide”

Policy-makers’ reticence towards academic debate

http://www.ronanlyons.com

2007 General Election

1st preferences

Seats

http://goo.gl/MyPaH

Popular right now: The Internet

Data: http://www.gapminder.org

Hours per day spent on selected leisure pursuits, by age (2010)

Age-group ReadingRelaxing/ thinking

Computer use (for leisure)

15-19 .12 .11 .8520-24 .16 .28 .6525-34 .13 .18 .3735-44 .16 .24 .2945-54 .24 .25 .1955-64 .35 .26 .2965-74 .62 .55 .3875+ .85 .64 .49

(US) Bureau of Labor Statisticshttp://www.bls.gov/news.release/atus.t11.htm

@Th

reeShip

sMedia

 HTTP://XKCD.COM/386/

February 28, 1998

BMJ (2011), 8 Jan & 15 Jan

“Failed in your duties”

“Acted against the interests of your patients”

Lancet paper was “dishonest”, “irresponsible”, and “misleading”, in several respects and overall

Overall finding of “serious professional misconduct”

28 January 2010

www.ageofautism.com, 16 February 2010

The 10 worst anti-science websitesvia skeptoid.com

Burden on claimant, not criticReversed burden of proof

Prioritization of parsimonyLack of parsimony

Emphasis on refutationConfirmation bias

Unproven as false = unprovenUnproven as false = true

Accuracy in measurementVagueness in measurement

Valorises falsifiabilityAvoids falsifiability

SciencePseudoscience

Differences of principle

Science vs. Pseudoscience

Differences of practice

Shared endeavourExaggerated importance of key persons

Acceptance of paradigmsLack of theoretical agreement

Appeals to reductionismAppeals to holism

Empirical evidenceAnecdotal evidence

Argument “ad rem” Argument “ad hominem”

Peer reviewScience by press conference

Publication of dataSecrecy of data

SciencePseudoscience

Science vs. Pseudoscience

Pseudoscientific features in the MMR-autism controversy

• Science by press conference

• Secrecy of data• Vagueness in

measurement• Confirmation bias• Reversed burden of

proof• Exaggerated importance

of key contributors• Argument “ad

hominem”• Anecdotal evidence

Today’s milieu of mis-information presents many chances to put the concept

of ‘information’ into context

The online space provides means, motive, and

opportunity to engage and cultivate learners’ analytic

skills

THE END