Tuesday 9 February 2010

Fraud and forgery in paleoanthropology

The fraud surrounding Piltdown man is well documented. In a recent article from the Answers Research Journal Jerry Bergman notes that not only fraud, but also abysmal science, infects the historical science of paleoanthropology.
Abstract

A review of the history of paleoanthropology leads to the conclusion that the discipline is far less objective than that for physics, chemistry, or even biology. The field is rife with controversy and fraud, including outright faking. Classic examples include Piltdown man and Hesperopithecus, but many other less well-known examples exist that are reviewed in this paper. Several well-documented examples are cited in some detail to illustrate the types of problems encountered, and the results of fraud in paleoanthropology.
The article is interesting not only for documenting the sorry state of alleged human evolution but also raging controversy arising from the hubris and self-aggrandisement of the players in this field. Bergman concludes,
In a field based on little empirical evidence, many assumptions, and strong personalities, the bone wars illustrate the conflicts common among scientists in this area. The unprofessional and at times even fraudulent behavior of the leading participants is far from what one would expect from highly trained professionals.

5 comments:

  1. Mind you, if you want to find fraud I gues Theology as a subject is hard to beat.

    Creation "science" is just a subset of a weird wing of theology, anyway. But one in which fraud is the expected mode.

    ReplyDelete
  2. That may be true, yet you fail to point to any examples.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Sorry, it just has to be done!

    Mind you, if you want to find fraud I gues(sic) Global Warming as a subject is hard to beat.

    Climate Change "science" is just a subset of a weird wing of political ideology, anyway. But one in which fraud is the expected mode.


    There, that reads SO much better. Of course for all the supposed harm done by Creation Science, it PALES in comparison to the cost to the economies of the world as well as in human lives that have been sacrificed to the god of AGW

    ReplyDelete
  4. This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete
  5. All science is creation science; at least I don't know of any scientist that really believes that leaving randomly chosen chemicals churning away over a stove on "high" will actually achieve anything constructive.

    ReplyDelete

Labels

abortion (8) absurdity (1) abuse (1) accountability (2) accusation (1) adultery (1) advice (1) afterlife (6) aid (3) alcohol (1) alphabet (2) analogy (5) analysis (1) anatomy (1) angels (1) animals (10) apologetics (47) apostasy (4) apostles (1) archaeology (23) architecture (1) Ark (1) Assyriology (12) astronomy (5) atheism (14) audio (1) authority (4) authorship (12) aviation (1) Babel (1) baptism (1) beauty (1) behaviour (4) bias (6) Bible (41) biography (4) biology (5) bitterness (1) blasphemy (2) blogging (12) blood (3) books (2) brain (1) browser (1) bureaucracy (3) business (5) calendar (7) cannibalism (2) capitalism (3) carnivory (2) cartography (1) censorship (1) census (2) character (2) charities (1) children (14) Christmas (4) Christology (8) chronology (54) church (4) civility (2) clarity (5) Classics (2) classification (1) climate change (39) coercion (1) community (3) conscience (1) contentment (1) context (2) conversion (3) copyright (5) covenant (1) coveting (1) creation (5) creationism (39) criminals (8) critique (2) crucifixion (14) Crusades (1) culture (4) currency (1) death (5) debate (2) deception (2) definition (16) deluge (9) demons (3) depravity (6) design (9) determinism (27) discernment (4) disciple (1) discipline (2) discrepancies (3) divinity (1) divorce (1) doctrine (4) duty (3) Easter (11) ecology (3) economics (28) education (10) efficiency (2) Egyptology (10) elect (2) emotion (2) enemy (1) energy (6) environment (4) epistles (2) eschatology (6) ethics (36) ethnicity (5) Eucharist (1) eulogy (1) evangelism (2) evil (9) evolution (13) examination (1) exegesis (22) Exodus (1) faith (22) faithfulness (1) fame (1) family (5) fatherhood (2) feminism (1) food (3) foreknowledge (4) forgiveness (4) formatting (2) fraud (1) freewill (29) fruitfulness (1) gematria (4) gender (5) genealogy (11) genetics (6) geography (3) geology (2) globalism (2) glory (6) goodness (3) gospel (4) government (18) grace (9) gratitude (2) Greek (4) happiness (2) healing (1) health (7) heaven (1) Hebrew (4) hell (2) hermeneutics (4) history (24) hoax (5) holiday (5) holiness (5) Holy Spirit (3) honour (1) housing (1) humour (36) hypocrisy (1) ice-age (2) idolatry (4) ignorance (1) image (1) inbox (2) inerrancy (17) infinity (1) information (11) infrastructure (2) insight (2) inspiration (1) integrity (1) intelligence (4) interests (1) internet (3) interpretation (87) interview (1) Islam (4) judgment (20) justice (25) karma (1) kingdom of God (12) kings (1) knowledge (15) language (3) lapsology (7) law (21) leadership (2) libertarianism (12) life (3) linguistics (13) literacy (2) literature (21) logic (33) love (3) lyrics (9) manuscripts (12) marriage (21) martyrdom (2) mathematics (10) matter (4) measurement (1) media (3) medicine (11) memes (1) mercy (4) Messiah (6) miracles (4) mission (1) monotheism (2) moon (1) murder (5) names (1) nativity (7) natural disaster (1) naval (1) numeracy (1) oceanography (1) offence (1) orthodoxy (3) orthopraxy (4) outline (1) paganism (2) palaeontology (4) paleography (1) parable (1) parenting (2) Passover (2) patience (1) peer review (1) peeves (1) perfectionism (2) persecution (2) perseverance (1) pharaohs (5) philanthropy (1) philosophy (34) photography (2) physics (18) physiology (1) plants (3) poetry (2) poison (1) policing (1) politics (31) poverty (9) prayer (2) pride (2) priest (3) priesthood (2) prison (2) privacy (1) productivity (2) progress (1) property (1) prophecy (7) proverb (1) providence (1) quiz (8) quotes (637) rebellion (1) redemption (1) reformation (1) religion (2) repentance (1) requests (1) research (1) resentment (1) resurrection (5) revelation (1) review (4) revival (1) revolution (1) rewards (2) rhetoric (4) sacrifice (4) salt (1) salvation (30) science (44) self-interest (1) selfishness (1) sermon (1) sexuality (20) shame (1) sin (16) sincerity (1) slander (1) slavery (5) socialism (4) sodomy (1) software (4) solar (1) song (2) sovereignty (15) space (1) sport (1) standards (6) statistics (13) stewardship (5) sublime (1) submission (5) subsistence (1) suffering (5) sun (1) survey (1) symbolism (1) tax (3) technology (12) temple (1) testimony (5) theft (2) toledoth (2) trade (3) traffic (1) tragedy (1) translation (19) transport (1) Trinity (2) truth (27) typing (1) typography (1) vegetarianism (2) vice (2) video (10) virtue (1) warfare (7) water (2) wealth (9) weird (6) willpower (4) wisdom (4) witness (1) work (10) worldview (4)