COMMENT:About bad science rather than pseudoscience. Begins with a lively high-school level explanation of the scientific method, characterizing bumbling scientists as akin to Mickey Mouse, the sorcerer's apprentice in Disney's Fantasia. Good scientists are contrasted as true sorcerers. This unfortunate metaphor persists throughout the book. Dewdney lambasts bad physics (N-rays, cold fusion), bad social science (IQ testing, Freudian psychology, and "The Bell Curve"), and bad PR masquerading as environmental science (Biosphere 2). There is an uninteresting chapter on bad information theory (neural networks). The criticism of IQ and Freud is worthwhile, since both get far too little of it. His inclusion of the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence (SETI) is disappointing; Dewdney seems to miss the point that some science, like the work of the great 19th century naturalists, is purely descriptive and is not hypothesis-driven. His objections to SETI are based in his own funding priorities rather than scientific criticism. A good recreational read, also appropriate for young readers (e.g., as an introduction to scientific method), but awfully slim for the price.
DATE:19990628
KEYWORDS:pseudoscience science
MISC:163p.
PUBLISHER:John Wiley & Sons
SUBMITADDR:swhite@cyberg8t.com
SUBMITNAME:Scott White
TITLE:Yes, We Have No Neutrons: An Eye-Opening Tour Through the Twists and Turns of Bad Science
