Weather and Climate change

[Dill]

(08-08-2019, 12:00 PM)oncemoreuntothejimbreech Wrote: Quote:I think you're fully aware that non-findings aren't typically published.  And I'm sure you can understand there isn't research invalidating a non-public model that was never validated.  That's not how science works, and I think you know this.

That's just not true.  That's exactly how Andrew Wakefield's research linking a specific MMR vaccine to autism was discredited.  By publishing studies of "non-findings" which refuted the link.  Basically, the studies proved a negative; there is no link.

Excellent point.

Independent replication of results is essential to experimental method.  And replication often does result in "non-findings," which are important for a research community in assessing findings. Only after replication and correlation to other results can "findings" be judged knowledge and integrated with existing theory. The process of earning a PhD in any field I can think of consists in the process of mastering "the literature" in the field, the published results, including non-findings, which enable a young scientist to evaluate new research and to do original research him/herself, i.e., to see which areas of the field are yet "unplowed."

However, such replication is typically made public in conference papers presented to other specialists and in discipline or field specific journals--the latter one typically finds in databases (e.g., Beaker's article linked above) and academic/research libraries. JustWin's link to Chapter 9 of the IPCC report, which discusses evaluation of climate studies, is full of references to "non-findings," which are listed in its bibliography.

JustWin is correct, however, if he means "non-findings aren't typically published" in newspapers and on websites and message boards. The latter is where one typically finds people throwing up individual, de-contextualized studies or news articles "proving" that global warming or evolution or vaccine-induced autism is or is not "true." It's in this sphere that one finds sweeping, theologically framed invitations to "find out the truth for yourself" about global warming or evolution etc . . . .