Distrust: Big Data, Data-Torturing, and the Assault on Science

There is no doubt science is currently suffering from a credibility crisis. This thought-provoking book argues that, ironically, science's credibility is being undermined by tools created by scientists themselves. Scientific disinformation and damaging conspiracy theories are rife because of the internet that science created, the scientific demand for empirical evidence and statistical significance leads to data torturing and confirmation bias, and data mining is fuelled by the technological advances in Big Data and the development of ever-increasingly powerful computers.Using a wide range of entertaining examples, this fascinating book examines the impacts of society's growing distrust of science, and ultimately provides constructive suggestions for restoring the credibility of the scientific community.

Table of Contents:
Introduction: Disinformation, Data Torturing, and Data Mining Part I - Disinformation 1: The Paranormal Is Normal 2: Flying Saucers and Space Tourists 3: Elite Conspiracies 4: A Post-Fact World Part II - Data Torturing 5: Squeezing Blood from Rocks 6: Most Medicines Disappoint 7: Provocative, but Wrong Part III - Data Mining 8: Looking for Needles in Haystacks 9: Beat the Market 10: Too Much Data Part IV - The Real Promise and Peril of AI 11: Overpromising and Underdelivering 12: Artificial Unintelligence Part V - The Crisis 13: Irreproducible Research 14: The Replication Crisis 15: Restoring the Luster of Science

About the Author :
Gary Smith is the Fletcher Jones Professor of Economics at Pomona College. He received his Ph.D. in Economics from Yale University and was an Assistant Professor there for seven years. He has won two teaching awards and written (or co-authored) more than 100 academic papers and 15 books. He is the author of The AI Delusion (OUP 2018) and co-author with Jay Cordes of The 9 Pitfalls of Data Science (OUP 2019), which won the 2020 Prose Award for Excellence in Popular Science & Popular Mathematics by the Association of American Publishers.

Review :
Gary Smith has done it again. Distrust is a wild ride that derails the Big Data hype train with force, style, and above all sardonic humour. Smith is a master of illustrating by example-examples that are fresh, unexpected, at times shocking, and at times hilarious. Come along on Smith's tour of statistical snake-oil and you'll never look at AI or data science the same way again. Any fan of Carl Sagan's The Demon Haunted World will love this book. Like Sagan, Smith discusses the challenges to human progress that result from a lack of critical thinking skills, and he does so with a Sagan-esque keen eye and eloquent voice. Smith also makes clear how the threats to sound judgment and effective decisions are more formidable than those of Sagan's day, as faulty thinking is now aided and abetted by an internet-fuelled distrust of science, viral misinformation, and venomous conspiracy theories. The wisdom in this book is desperately needed. It turns out that, unlike the mythical hero, AI has two Achilles' heels. Not only are the technologies not intelligent, more perniciously, neither are too much of the statistics and data use on which AI and big data rely. Gary Smith provides a brilliantly executed counter against pseudo-science and the accumulating garbage we misleadingly call information, including timely and important warnings and ways forward for policy-makers, practitioners, academics, and citizens alike. An immensely readable look at why we need science more than ever, but also why and how science needs to clean up its act. Recommended for anyone who occasionally wonders whether that 'outspoken' family member on Facebook might just have a point. Smith marvellously illustrates the evolution of disinformation. He richly demonstrates how blind faith in technology enables more misrepresentations of the truth. Distrust articulates a humbling view of how we should think critically about new findings from hyped technology trends. The lessons of Distrust are very much needed. Distrust is a veritable page-turner, and I finished it in a few sittings. On a higher level, it is a call for common sense, for scepticism, for methodological rigour and for epistemic modesty. I suspect most scientists will love it. Meta Malcolm Gladwell fans will likely enjoy. The book is great fun. It's lovely to watch Smith demolish the fraud in every medium. Using a wide range of entertaining examples, this fascinating book examines the impacts of society's growing distrust of science, and ultimately provides constructive suggestions for restoring the credibility of the scientific community. Smith's Distrust is a strikingly readable exploration of several interrelated threats to the credibility of science...The book can serve as both a guide to helping readers better spot bogus scientifc claims and a warning as to the individual and institutional failings that threaten the credibility of science. Distrust: Big Data, Data-Torturing, and the Assault on Science is a highly recommended book for anyone interested about current, and future, issues related to what science is and how it is done.