Evaluating Information Resources

Existing research methods textbooks emphasize the mechanics of HOW to conduct research studies. However, many students fail to see WHY it is important to learn about research because they will never conduct research studies. These students do not become engaged in learning and believe that research courses and textbooks are useless. They do not see the need of developing "research literacy" to understand the applications and limitations of research to their daily lives. This book engages students with a nonmathematical presentation that includes real examples of the consequences of research errors in daily life. This is a research methods textbook for students who fear research textbooks. This should be the first book for all students to introduce research and develop "research literacy".

In this lucid, readable book Trisha Greenhalgh provides the basics of evidence based medicine: how to find a medical research paper, assess it for its scientific validity, and where relevant, put the findings into practice. Written for anyone, medically qualified or not, who wishes to understand and apply evidence based medicine, How to Read a Paper makes seemingly obscure concepts clear and relevant, using practical examples and considering all the main types of research paper. This book is a comprehensive introduction to the usefulness and potential applications of evidence based medicine in the clinical setting.

Why should we care about having true beliefs? And why do demonstrably false beliefs persist and spread despite bad, even fatal, consequences for the people who hold them? Philosophers of science Cailin O'Connor and James Weatherall argue that social factors, rather than individual psychology, are what's essential to understanding the spread and persistence of false beliefs. It might seem that there's an obvious reason that true beliefs matter: false beliefs will hurt you. But if that's right, then why is it (apparently) irrelevant to many people whether they believe true things or not? The Misinformation Age, written for a political era riven by "fake news," "alternative facts," and disputes over the validity of everything from climate change to the size of inauguration crowds, shows convincingly that what you believe depends on who you know. If social forces explain the persistence of false belief, we must understand how those forces work in order to fight misinformation effectively.

There is growing awareness about how social media circulate extreme viewpoints and turn up the temperature of public debate. Posts that exhibit agitation garner disproportionate engagement. Within this clamour, fringe sources and viewpoints are mainstreaming, and mainstream media are marginalized. This book takes up the mainstreaming of the fringe and the marginalization of the mainstream.

This complete package of textbook, interactive exercises, and real research articles is designed for use alongside Journal Clubs conducted in medical, nursing, and other health professions programs, as well as in evidence-based medicine courses. It employs the authors' proven, step-by-step framework, and strengthens students' and residents' ability to recognize a meaningful study, identify potential study flaws, and apply solid evidence in clinical decision making.

We live in the Information Age, with billions of bytes of data just two swipes away. Yet how much of this is mis- or even disinformation? A lot of it is, and your search engine can't tell the difference. As a result, an avalanche of misinformation threatens to overwhelm the discourse we so desperately need to address complex social problems such as climate change, the food and water crises, biodiversity collapse, and emerging threats to public health. This book provides an inoculation against the misinformation epidemic by cultivating scientific habits of mind.