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First the link to this week's complete list as HTML and as PDF.
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MacIntyre et al. and Klompas et al. are two studies I found cited as proof against mandatory mask wearing in public with claims of proving the uselessness of that measure. They do nothing of the sort, their subject matter is entirely different. These being valid studies from reputable sources they can turn out a dangerous misconception far more insidious than nonsense spouted by obvious idiots. With mainstream media doing their utmost to muddle and confuse and with their withholding all useful data, citations like these are just what the educated and critical public will turn to.
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Alright, the Solutrean hypothesis is out. Although I liked it a lot, I accept the compelling facts and arguments against. But then, how else do we explain Becerra-Valdivia & Higham's extended figure 4? If this finding is indeed valid, of which I'm still not quite convinced, what other hypothesis could explain it? Initial entry from the north-west, from Alaska, doesn't fit – whatever route and mode of travel we assume.
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Liu et al. is one more example for strong anthropogenic climate change and another one demonstrating the influence to be multifaceted, local, and not down to one single causal mechanism.
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Different people at different places and in different times have the same ideas. That is not new. If a technology is successful and works, more than one inventor will come up with it. Just this has obviously happened with fluted point technology in southern Arabia and was reported as such by Crassard et al. – unambiguously stated in their subtitle. Of course the inevitable had to happen and Heritage Daily reports: “Native American Stone Tool Technology Found in Arabia”
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Sometimes writing this blog makes me feel like a parrot, noting the very same things week after week. So it's quite gratifying not to repeat myself but quote Wagenmakers instead: “When researchers claim an association between two variables, it is good practice to show the scatter plot of data points. Otherwise, it is almost impossible to assess whether the claimed relation might be nonlinear, or the result of outliers, or due to unexpected clusters. To paraphrase statistician Frederick Mosteller: although it is easy to lie with data visualization, it is even easier to lie without it.”
Why do editors keep accepting articles with glaring omissions of the most important parts required of decent scientific reporting?
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