Bad Science

By Ben Goldacre,

Book cover of Bad Science: Quacks, Hacks, and Big Pharma Flacks

Book description

Have you ever wondered how one day the media can assert that alcohol is bad for us and the next unashamedly run a story touting the benefits of daily alcohol consumption? Or how a drug that is pulled off the market for causing heart attacks ever got approved in the…

Shepherd is reader supported. When you buy books, we may earn an affiliate commission.

Why read it?

2 authors picked Bad Science as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?

A book about pharmaceutical corruption and manipulative science can rarely make me laugh out loud, but Bad Science does just that.

Not only did the book make me a better advocate for my health by teaching me what red flags to look out for in research and shady science journalism, but it kept me consistently entertained to the point where I was disappointed when the book ended. It should be required reading in all high school science classes. 

This practical, informative, and hugely entertaining book is mainly about the role of journalists, big pharma, “nutrition experts” and others in generating our many false beliefs about medicine and our health. Along the way, though, Goldacre paints a vivid picture of why sloppy, irrational thinking, along with confirmation bias and social bias and framing effects, so deeply infect so much science even before it gets twisted and misreported by outsiders. A goldmine of useful cases and examples, with a simple moral: how much harder it is than it lookseven for those crowned with a doctorate!to think…

Want books like Bad Science?

Our community of 11,000+ authors has personally recommended 100 books like Bad Science.

Browse books like Bad Science

5 book lists we think you will like!

Interested in the scientific method, pseudoscience, and psychiatrists?

Pseudoscience 21 books
Psychiatrists 63 books