Saturday, February 8: 8:30am to 7pm
Full Conference Schedule
100 Swan Way
Oakland, California, 94621‑1428
Map and Directions
Co-Sponsored with the National Association of Scholars
Many headline scientific findings in recent years have turned out to be false. They can’t be reproduced—and if you can’t reproduce a result, it isn’t science. The headlines are just the tip of the iceberg. A huge amount of ordinary scientific findings published in peer-reviewed journals doesn't replicate. Something has gone terribly wrong in contemporary scientific procedures.
Science’s failure is called the Irreproducibility Crisis. It is the result of improper use of statistics, arbitrary research techniques, lack of accountability, political groupthink, and a scientific culture biased toward producing positive results. By some estimates, half of recent scientific research could be irreproducible.
“Fixing Science” brings together scholars from several disciplines to talk about practical ways to fix how science works. Panelists will suggest how research, scientists, academics, government officials, and philanthropists should reform scientific research. Special panels will describe how the irreproducibility crisis affects specific disciplines, including economics and climate science. Other panels will examine topics such as groupthink and falsifiability. Throughout, “Fixing Science” will focus on which reforms have worked so far, to help us craft and propose initiatives going forward. The conference will help advance practical solutions to the Irreproducibility Crisis by scientists, civil society, and lawmakers.
Elliott D. Bloom: Professor Emeritus, Kavli Institute for Particle Astrophysics and Cosmology at Stanford University
Louis Anthony Cox, Jr.: Professor of Biostatistics and Informatics, University of Colorado
James E. Enstrom: President, Scientific Integrity Institute
Tim C. Edgell: Principal, Environmental Services, Stantec, Inc., Canada
Daniele Fanelli: Fellow in Quantitative Methodology, Department of Methodology, London School of Economics and Political Science
Lee Jussim: Chairman, Department of Philosophy, Rutgers University
Yuri A. Lazebnik: Professor, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory; Co-founder and Chief Science Officer, Scite, Inc.; Founder, Lerna Consulting, LLC
David M. Levy: Professor of Economics, George Mason University
Deborah G. Mayo: Professor Emerita of Philosophy, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
Patrick J. Michaels: Senior Fellow, Competitive Enterprise Institute
David Randall: Director of Research, National Association of Scholars
Mark D. Regnerus: Professor of Sociology, University of Texas at Austin
Nathan A. Schachtman: Of Counsel, Ulmer & Berne LLP; former Lecturer in Law, Columbia School of Law
Michael Shermer: Presidential Fellow, Chapman University
Barry Smith: SUNY Distinguished Professor of Philosophy and Julian Park Chair, Philosophy Department, University at Buffalo
David J. Theroux: Founder and President, Independent Institute
David Trafimow: Professor of Psychology, New Mexico State University
Anastasios Tsonis: Distinguished Professor of Mathematical Sciences, University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee
Richard K. Vedder: Senior Fellow, Independent Institute; Distinguished Emeritus Professor of Economics, Ohio University
Graham H. Walker: Executive Director, Independent Institute
Ronald L. Wasserstein: Executive Director, American Statistical Association
Peter Wood: President, National Association of Scholars
S. Stanley Young: Chief Executive Officer, CGStat, LLC
