Edge is a forum where great minds can meet and discuss their ideas; the quality of the content is first rate, though unlike a TED talk, they are less structured, less tight, and thus, more fill.
In this video, Richard Nisbett talks about why he dislikes multiple regression analysis, which in fact is a dislike for the abuse of the tool; and for poor research design. Worth listening to, also when he goes on to talk about why the lack of replication need not be such a bad thing in the social sciences, as it helps point to the importance of contextual factors. It is the wealth and range of experiments that show the robustness of a concept, not a single example of it.
Worth watching 🙂
The Crusade Against Multiple Regression Analysis
In the case of health data, the big problem is something that’s come to be called the healthy user bias, because the guy who’s taking Vitamin E is also doing everything else right.