re: #169 Blind Frog Belly White

One of the most important things my crazy ex-boss taught me was “Always be your own harshest critic,” or put another way, “Never believe your own bullshit.”

Scientists are people. We have human failings. We love our own hypotheses, and don’t want to see them proved false. But it’s our job to do our damnedest to prove ourselves wrong.

This is why Science is supposed to be about the data, not the person, and why every error in Science is ultimately self-correcting.

This. Over the years I’ve been asked for my thoughts on AGW (beyond those in my field) and other issues for support or non-support. My stock answer is:

1. I have not seen all of the data.
2. If I had seen the data, it is not my field of expertise so my conclusions are not trust-worthy.
3. At this point I accept the conclusions of the majority of experts in that field. And so should you.