Ben Goldacre

Bad Science

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 bullshit? 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.

Quacks, Hacks, and Big Pharma Flacks

Keven Wang

The informative and witty expose of the "bad science" we are all subjected to, called "one of the essential reads of the year" by New Scientist. We are obsessed with our health. And yet -- from the media's "world-expert microbiologist" with a mail-order Ph.D. in his garden shed laboratory, and via multiple health scares and miracle cures -- we are constantly bombarded with inaccurate, contradictory, and sometimes even misleading information. Until now. Ben Goldacre masterfully dismantles the questionable science behind some of the great drug trials, court cases, and missed opportunities of our time, but he also goes further: out of the bullshit, he shows us the fascinating story of how we know what we know, and gives us the tools to uncover bad science for ourselves. From the Hardcover edition.

Marius Masalar

While it preaches to the choir to a certain extent, many incisive and eye-opening facts are presented in a very engaging manner.

The core message of the book is that the vast majority of what is written and read today about "health" and "diets" and other similar subjects concerning our well-being are in actual fact supported by claims that have utterly vacuous science behind them — if any at all. If you're into homeopathy or any New Age-y methodologies for improving your quality of life, you're in for some rude awakenings.

One subject that is thankfully covered in detail is the complexity of the placebo effect. Because many of the readers of Goldacre's critique will quickly fire back the expected "but they DO work for me!" arguments, he has taken the time to explain what the placebo effect actually is — why it "working" may not mean quite what you expect — and how truly fascinating the science behind it is.

He is also quick to point out that the placebo effect, carefully dressed, is also what has allowed the book's villainous charlatans to mislead and exploit the gullible, the tired, the sick, and the stupid for so long.

As far as a pop-lit critique of modern scientific marketing goes, I consider it required reading. As a scholarly effort, it's not without its problems, but those neither diminish its value nor cloud the integrity of its point. 

The world would be a better place if all highschool students had "Bad Science" on their mandatory reading lists.

madina

thank god for statistics & science & critical thinking but i really wished the author didn't trashtalk humanities majors & jobs & accuse them of wanting to be ""smart"" implying that its value is below the sciences. i could've written it off as a humorous joke the first time it gets said but i alr got tired of it the third time it was mentioned. overall it was a good book - just plz stop it with the stem elitism.

André Nóbrega

I ordered Bad Science because it was recommended by Amazon.co.uk. I knew nothing about this book or Ben Goldacre before reading it but I risked it because the description and people's reviews piqued my curiosity. Right from its cover one understands the author proposes to clarify a lot of the supposedly science-based bullshit going on in the mass-media and health market nowadays. Being a recently graduated doctor does mean that I am aware of most of it already, but its still interesting both to read about it from someone who just wants to clear stuff up, explain basic statistics and expel the drama associated with most health news today and also to get to know some of the most strikingly absurd examples of such nonsense. After reading it during my vacations - which means I had the concentration and attention span needed to understand and be critical about it - I must say that Ben Goldacre nailed it.
But first things first: a nice way to get to know what the book is about is a talk by the author at TEDGlobal 2011 (go watch it as soon as possible). I admit he sounds a bit deranged, as he often does in the book, although there he has more space to explain, provide reference and overall be less hurried which is much more rewarding to the reader.
Bad Science - the book - includes comments on people who consistently advertise conclusions based on bad science and on some of the most reported cases of the same bad science in the media. But what I consider the true achievement of the book and the reason why I recommend it is the way the author takes from these examples and explains the scientific method applied to health issues, its benefits and its flaws and how they are exploited to take advantage of the general public and sometimes ignored by the so called science reporters. After this, the reader will be armed with enough knowledge to appraise claims of scientific proof and decide for themselves whether they are total bullshit, just not enough to believe or something to be trusted, at least enough to consult someone who has more information about them. Of note are chapters such as "Homeopathy", "The Placebo Effect", "How the Media Promote the Public Misunderstanding of Science", "Why Clever People Believe Stupid Things", "Bad Stats" and "Health Scares". To further celebrate Ben Goldacre's achievement I'll just add, as an example, that he isn't limited to telling you how the placebo effect influences the results of studies or fakes the consequences of apparently awesome treatments. That's what you can get by reading the first result of a google search on the placebo effect. He goes from there to predict how the knowledge of what generates such effect might be used in the medical practice, for example in the way health care is organized, how treatments are explained, how health care personnel talks to patients. 
His real purpose seems not only to be the disillusionment of the people who are cheated by those who take advantage of bad science but also the utilization of the knowledge gained to improve our quality of life. All in all a very informative and interesting read which deals with concepts that all people in contemporary society should master while discrediting astonishing health scares and false propaganda.

This review was adapted from my original publication on my blog.

Ervin Szerdocz

I don't give it 5 stars because, at times, I felt like there was too much focus on specific individuals, rather than discussing actual science, which I could learn more from.

That being said, I've learned a lot, and, yet again, I've been made aware of the f* up world we live in... .
It's hard to keep on losing trust in the world, but better that than blindly buying in stuff anyone says. 
From journalist, to actual doctors, this book makes you painstakingly aware of the misconceptions they can bring in your life. Sometimes, not even by mistake... 

In a world where "alternative" facts increase, trust your own research!

Les Reynolds

Pulls back the curtain on a lot of the medical nonsense we read in the media. Very informative.

manav 

Beth Benbow

A. D. Knapp

Sherry

Oliver Magnanimous

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Shalini Basu

ananya

Jehan Chawla

Daniel Kilby

Georgi Mitrev

Wilde

Andy

Gavin

Justin Jerome Price

Ben Goldacre’s wise and witty bestseller, shortlisted for the Samuel Johnson Prize, lifts the lid on quack doctors, flaky statistics, scaremongering journalists and evil pharmaceutical corporations.

Bad Science

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