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In the last post, I described some common misconceptions and problems with the use of null-hypothesis significance tests and P-values. In this post, I'll show more common ways that P-values are often misapplied, including how a significant result under alpha = 0.05 can have more than a 50% chance of being wrong.
A couple of months after a flurry of papers saying you could never find a fish deeper than 7km, found one at 8km. Flurry of papers saying that is physiological limit. Just found a fish at 10km #IMCC5
— Craken MacCraic (@Craken_MacCraic) June 28, 2018
The practice of statistics in the sciences often takes the form of drawing scientific conclusions from cargo-cult application of inappropriate or outdated statistical methods, often to the exclusion of prior evidence or plausibility. This has serious consequences for reproducibility and reliability of scientific results. Perhaps the number one issue is the over-reliance and lack of understanding of null-hypothesis significance testing, and blind faith in the reliability of the P-values these tests provide.
By Spencer Showalter
Mark your calendars for 2020—it could be the beginning of the largest dam removal project in American history. While dams in California have been used for generations to stabilize long-term water availability to settlers, their inherent role of restricting flow affects humans and ecosystems downstream. Because of these impacts, four dams in the Klamath River Basin are slated to be removed in a $450 million project that would re-open 500 miles of spawning grounds to coho and Chinook salmon. The gains from the removal could be huge. Reopening spawning grounds would help rebuild depleted salmon fisheries, and higher flow would mean cleaner water with fewer viral infections and toxic algae blooms. Because the future costs of upkeep of the dams represent a net loss to their owner, PacifiCorp, removal would be economically positive in a corporate sense. Additionally, the water and salmon fisheries were historically used by native tribes of the Klamath Basin, including the Yurok and Karuk Tribes, who stand to regain clean water and increased harvests if the dams are removed.
By Samantha Farquhar
Take a breath….and thank the trees.
Now take another breath…..but this time thank the ocean.
Yes, the ocean. It has been estimated that 50% of the global oxygen supply comes from the ocean.
How does the ocean do this? By providing a home to plant-like organisms called phytoplankton.
By Ashley Bagley
I’m avidly following my steelhead’s migration down the Skokomish River—so far it has migrated 34 miles from its rearing site, headed for the Pacific Ocean!
By Danielle Edelman
By Danielle Edelman
A few weeks ago, I found myself sitting behind a table covered in bottles of sea water, pH-test kits, and posters with pictures of pitted and dissolving snail shells. I had a coffee in one hand and a bowl of steamed clams and mussels in the other. As I looked around at the booths next to mine, I spotted a family with two kids. I smiled and asked “would you like to do a science experiment?” The two kids glanced at my booth, then looked away and walked with their parents toward the ice cream stand.
By Katie Keil and Kaitlin Lebon
This story is part III of the Simply Science Series, where we’re delving into research conducted in our own backyard
By Katie Keil
On April 26, 2018, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved an application for a genetically engineered (GE) salmon facility in Indiana, paving the way for “frankenfish” to be commercially produced on US soil for the first time. These “frankenfish”, containing genetic information from three different species, were first demonstrated in 1989 but have had difficulty garnering consumer support.