About the Author

Stuart Ritchie is a faculty member at the Social, Genetic and Developmental Psychiatry Centre at King's College London. His writing has appeared in the Washington Post, the Times, the Spectator, Literary Review, Aeon, and Wired, among other publications.

Reviews

"A highly readable and competent description of the problems facing researchers in the 21st century... An excellent primer for anyone who wants to understand why and how science is failing to live up to its ideals."
--Wired

"An impressive achievement... A handy guide to what can go wrong in science, nicely blending eye-popping anecdotes with comprehensive studies."
--National Review

"An unnerving yet much-needed analysis... Frighteningly well-documented... A timely, hair-raising must-read."
--Kirkus Reviews (starred review) "Liberally documented with amazing stories... An uncompromising examination of the collision between the ideals of science and the realities of scientific publishing. Highly recommended for popular science readers curious about what lurks behind science headlines."
--Library Journal (starred review) "A bracing indictment... Thorough and detailed, this is a sobering and convincing treatise for anyone invested in the intellectual credibility of science."
--Publishers Weekly "Excellent... A fascinating study... Sure, some scientists are corrupt. Some are negligent. Some are biased. But that does not mean we need less science. It means we need better science. That's why books like this are so important."
--Evening Standard (London) "We should listen to this warning about how neophilia and hype is ruining research... Ritchie has a gift for turning boring statistical processes into thrilling detective stories."
--The Times (London) "A desperately important book. Stuart Ritchie's much-needed work brilliantly exposes the fragility of the science on which lives, livelihoods, and our whole society depend. Required reading for everyone."
--Adam Rutherford, author of A Brief History of Everyone Who Ever Lived "An engagingly accessible set of cautionary tales to show how science and scientists can be led astray, in some instances with fatal consequences, as well as a clear-eyed and chillingly accurate view of how current funding and publishing practices are leading to more of the same mistakes. As we rely now more than ever on science to solve the world's problems, Science Fictions should be compulsory reading for anyone involved in the communication of science to policy makers and to the public."
--Gina Rippon, author of The Gendered Brain