A NASA spokesperson has dismissed a major critique of the Science arsenic bug paper based not on the criticism’s merits, but on its venue — it appeared in a blog rather than a peer-reviewed journal. Apparently ideas are valid (or not) based not on their content, or even the reputation of the author, but on […]
Continue reading →You know that arsenic-loving bacteria briefly mistaken for an alien? The bug, which roiled the science press earlier this week when it rode an unusually high and steep hype parabola, endured a firey re-entry today when University of British Columbia bacteriologist Rosie Redfield ripped into both the research and the paper — and was quickly […]
Continue reading →Been a lot of hype over some strange life forms found in Lake Mono, encouraged, unfortunately, by some breathless, teasing press releases from NASA. But amid the muddle you can find some nuanced clarity in two stories in particular, from Nature News and Not Exactly Rocket Science. First, Alla Katsnelson brings some good balanced coverage […]
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