So I’ve stuck it in “General�, though it could have been in several other forums.
Look up “Lönnstedt and plastic micro beads� to illustrate the problem.
Incompetence and fraud together create a borderland of confusion in the sciences. Articles in prestigious journals appear to speak with authority on matters that only a small number of readers can assess critically. Non-specialists generally are left to trust that what purports to be a contribution to human knowledge has been scrutinized by capable people and found trustworthy. Only we now know that a very significant percentage of such reports are not to be trusted. What passes as “knowledge� is in fact fiction. And the existence of so many fictions in the guise of science gives further fuel to those who seek to politicize the sciences. The Lönnstedt and Muller cases exemplify not just scientific fraud, but also efforts to advance political agendas. All of the forms of intellectual decline in the sciences thus tend to converge. The politicization of science lowers standards, and lower standards invite further politicization.
