Thursday Science and Policy Roundup….
Revere of Effect Measure promotes naturalized epistemology ? specifically, a special supplement to the American Journal of Public Health about scientific evidence and public policy:
This is the first full scale attempt by scientists and science scholars to come to terms with the new rules on scientific evidence spawned by the 1993 Daubert decision which requires federal trial courts to make a preliminary determination whether evidence presented by scientists is “relevant and reliable.” In making the trial judge the “gatekeeper,” Daubert places a burden on the judiciary to make judgments about science they may or not be better equipped to make than a jury. In two subsequent Supreme Court decisions the trial court’s judgment has been made difficult or impossible to reverse on appeal and the procedure extended to include testimony by all manner of experts, not just scientists.
Contributors to this volume include epidemologists, cognitive scientists, philosophers, and legal scholars. Many of the papers from the supplement are also available for free through the Project on Scientific Knowledge and Public Policy (SKAPP).
Orac hosts the 13th Skeptics Circle at Respectful Insolence.
Jordan of Confined Space offers helpful hints for differentiating between your friendly local OSHA inspector and ICE impostors.
Chris of Mixing Memory on gender, math, stereotype threat, and testosterone.
Clive of Collision Detection on the Octodog, a clever kitchen gadget to reduce the risk of hot dog-induced choking in small children (the 4th leading cause of accidental death in children under 5).
