Don't Let Math Pull the Wool Over Your Eyes(online.wsj.com)
online.wsj.com
Don't Let Math Pull the Wool Over Your Eyes
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887323374504578219873933502726.html
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887323374504578219873933502726.html
"Other research has shown that even those who should be especially clear-sighted about numbers—scientific researchers ... are often uncomfortable with, and credulous about, mathematical material."
Followed less than a paragraph later by discussing the results of adding a spurious mathematical model to an abstract:
"Those with degrees in math, science or technology rated the abstract with the tacked-on [math] as slightly lower-quality than the other."
I worry that this is just another example of science being poorly interpreted by media outlets. More importantly I'm not clear why I should be surprised that busy professors who don't have a close relationship with mathematics should be expected to evaluate an abstract (NOT a whole paper) less favorably because it includes a model.
We live in a world where the scientific method is more frequently under assault from parties who's interest lie in viewing it as mere opinion. This doesn't help.