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phs318uyesterday at 9:38 PM1 replyview on HN

Or perhaps “journalists” shouldn’t wildly and sensationally extrapolate from the most nuanced of findings in research to create unrealistic and unjustified expectations, especially when there exists other research drawing somewhat different conclusions.

Maybe people need a better education in science, the scientific method, logic, and reasoning.


Replies

LorenPechteltoday at 1:49 AM

Yeah, most "scientific" wild claims upon investigation are journalists ignoring the nuances.

Admittedly, sometimes the scientists involved are complicit--consider the oft-reported claim that 2/3 of bankruptcies are due to medical debt. No, what the study actually said is that 2/3 involve medical debt. Well, duh, when someone's going bankrupt think they don't have unpaid bills?? The fact that the majority have an unpaid medical bill doesn't mean the medical bill caused the bankruptcy. It's only a few percent that are mostly medical in nature. I think it was crafted to get journalists to make this mistake.

And all too often the real issue is something caused both medical bills and a loss of income.