RE: Comments on "Science Without Sense"?

[Free Spirit <FRANK@rover.bsd.uchicago.edu>]

>From:	SMTP%"radsafe@romulus.ehs.uiuc.edu" 31-JAN-1996 08:31:23.80
>Subj:	Comments on "Science Without Sense"?
>
>By now most who have ordered "Science Without Sense: The Risky Business of
>Public Health Research" should have received their copy of the book. Almost
>2,000 books have been distributed in the last month.

>Any comments for PUBLIC consumption? Love it? Hate it? Truth? Fiction?

	I am not surprised by the general public's inability to deal with
	statistics, but many scientists and/or medical workers also don't have
	enough working grasp of the subject. We need many more books at the 
	basic level, such as Science without Sense. 

	Yes, the book is one-sided, but I really feel the opposition has had 
	too much plublicity already, (at least in the public's and the
	government's eyes and ears.)

	For anyone who wants a simple introductory text on Medical Statistics,
	try Introductory Medical Statistics by R F Mould. (ISBN 0-85274-382-3)
	Available from Medical Physics Publishing.

	The author's sense of humor, (you have to have some humor to put up
	with some of the chicken littles in science,) really appears in one
	graph. It shows the population of Oldenburg Germany for the years
	1930-1936, plotted against the number of storks observed. The data
	shows a REAL correlation, but the author quotes Hunter, "Anyone who
	draws the incorrect causal conclusion that storks bring babies and
	proceeds to shoot storks in the hopes of reducing the population will
	be disappointed."

Frank R. Borger - Physicist     ___      "Rain, sleet, snow, and dark of night
Michael Reese - U of Chicago   |___       don't bother us, but we have a lot
Center for Radiation Therapy   | |_) _    of trouble with closets, basements,
net: Frank@rover.uchicago.edu    | \|_)   car trunks and viaducts."
ph: 312-791-8075 fa: 791-2517       |_)   - New Chicago Post Office Motto.
					  (and now add fake Unabomer Bombs.)