The Book: Bad Science (2008), by Ben Goldacre. 288 pages
Free event!
What if I have not finished reading this book, or have not read it at all?
That's okay! We hope you will come to this book club meeting, no matter how much of the book you have read. This book features many compelling themes and ideas that will be fascinating to discuss. Everybody who comes to this book club meeting will be able to participate and enjoy the discussion.
About the Book: Have you ever wondered how one day the media can assert that alcohol is bad for us and the next unashamedly run a story touting the benefits of daily alcohol consumption? Or how a drug that is pulled off the market for causing heart attacks ever got approved in the first place? How can average readers, who aren't medical doctors or Ph.D.s in biochemistry, tell what they should be paying attention to and what's, well, just more B.S.? Ben Goldacre has made a point of exposing quack doctors and nutritionists, bogus credentialing programs, and biased scientific studies. He has also taken the media to task for its willingness to throw facts and proof out the window. But he's not here just to tell you what's wrong. Goldacre is here to teach you how to evaluate placebo effects, double-blind studies, and sample sizes, so that you can recognize bad science when you see it. You're about to feel a whole lot better.
About the Author: Ben Goldacre is a British physician, academic and science writer. He is the first Bennett Professor of Evidence-Based Medicine and director of the Bennett Institute for Applied Data Science at the University of Oxford. He is a founder of the AllTrials campaign and OpenTrials, aiming to require open science practices in clinical trials. Goldacre frequently delivers free talks about bad science; he describes himself as a "nerd evangelist".
What to Bring? You do not need to bring anything. Simply read the book OR listen to the audio book. It can be useful if you bring your physical or digital copy of the book.
Who? This is a fun book club event that men and women from the neighborhood potluck list are invited to, along with everybody else who is interested.
Fun Book Club: This will be the 53rd monthly meeting of this book club. We had so much fun at the all of the meetings so far, with wonderful, fascinating discussions with great neighbors and new friends. If you like books or interesting discussions... or simply want to have fun meeting new people, I highly recommend RSVP-ing for this event.
To RSVP, use your standard PotluckDinner.org RSVP buttons, or use the form at the top of this page, or email: rsvp@potluckdinner.org [or] text: 480-269-5823