17. The Internet as a source of
possible errors
The Internet naturally promotes a
certain kind of bias; mostly for the sensational.
Search engines like Google even optimize their
returned results based on your prior searches, showing you what they think you
want to see. This can make it difficult to branch out from a certain niche, and
exacerbates confirmation bias, the reception of data that confirms what we
already think. In addition, there is always a lot of low-quality noise
associated with any concept or idea. Even quality journals like Nature
cannot necessary be trusted, as peer review is fraught with all kinds of
bias—for sensational results, for results that operate within a certain
scientific paradigm, results that adhere to the framing of a dominant
scientist, and so on. Older scientists receive all the grant money, meaning
they dictate the flavor of much of contemporary research. Max Planck's old
saying comes to mind: ÒScience advances one funeral at a time.Ó Of course, the
wider amount of content on the Internet means that if there is good content,
and if someone is diligent about searching for it, it will eventually be found.
The Internet also improves the speed of research, allowing a researcher to
cycle through poor research more quickly and cheaply than may otherwise have
been possible.