100 books like The Design of Experiments in Neuroscience

By Mary E. Harrington,

Here are 100 books that The Design of Experiments in Neuroscience fans have personally recommended if you like The Design of Experiments in Neuroscience. Shepherd is a community of 11,000+ authors and super readers sharing their favorite books with the world.

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Book cover of Science Fictions: How Fraud, Bias, Negligence, and Hype Undermine the Search for Truth

Gary Smith Author Of Distrust: Big Data, Data-Torturing, and the Assault on Science

From my list on science’s eroding reputation.

Why am I passionate about this?

I am the Fletcher Jones Professor of Economics at Pomona College. I started out as a macroeconomist but, early on, discovered stats and stocks—which have long been fertile fields for data torturing and data mining. My book, Standard Deviations: Flawed Assumptions, Tortured Data, and Other Ways to Lie with Statistics is a compilation of a variety of dubious and misleading statistical practices. More recently, I have written several books on AI, which has a long history of overpromising and underdelivering because it is essentially data mining on steroids. No matter how loudly statisticians shout correlation is not causation, some will not hear.

Gary's book list on science’s eroding reputation

Gary Smith Why did Gary love this book?

Ritchie was part of a team that attempted to replicate a famous study led by a prominent psychologist, Daryl Bem, claiming that people did better on a word memorization test if they studied the words after taking the test.

Ritchie and his co-authors attempted to replicate this study and found no evidence supporting Bem’s claim. This is but one example of a scientific crisis in that attempts to replicate influential studies published in top peer-reviewed journals fail nearly half the time. Ritchie explains and illustrates the reasons for the current replication crisis in science.

By Stuart Ritchie,

Why should I read it?

3 authors picked Science Fictions as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

An insider’s view of science reveals why many scientific results cannot be relied upon – and how the system can be reformed.

Science is how we understand the world. Yet failures in peer review and mistakes in statistics have rendered a shocking number of scientific studies useless – or, worse, badly misleading. Such errors have distorted our knowledge in fields as wide-ranging as medicine, physics, nutrition, education, genetics, economics, and the search for extraterrestrial life. As Science Fictions makes clear, the current system of research funding and publication not only fails to safeguard us from blunders but actively encourages bad…


Book cover of Beyond Significance Testing

Geoff Cumming Author Of Introduction to the New Statistics: Estimation, Open Science, and Beyond

From my list on open science better research with better statistics.

Why am I passionate about this?

I gradually shifted my statistics teaching from significance testing — traditional but bamboozling — to estimation (confidence intervals), which I called "the new statistics" because, although not new, relying on it would, for many researchers, be very new. It’s more informative, makes sense, and is a pleasure to teach and use. I "retired" to write Understanding the New Statistics. Then Open Science arrived—hooray! Robert Calin-Jageman joined me for an intro textbook with Open Science and The New Statistics all through. Our first edition came out in 2017. The second edition has wonderful new open-source software (‘esci’), which is also ideal for more advanced students and researchers. Enjoy!

Geoff's book list on open science better research with better statistics

Geoff Cumming Why did Geoff love this book?

You may have heard of ‘significance testing,’ and the magical ‘p < .05,’ which somehow makes a research result ‘significant,’ which is often taken as (almost) ‘true.’ Even if you haven’t heard of all that, Kline explains clearly why significance testing has been disastrous for science, leading to misleading conclusions and much valuable research not even being reported.

He draws on my work to explain how ‘the new statistics’ (estimation) is a much better way to understand results. The first chapter is fairly easy to read. Later chapters are also terrific but get more technical as Kline explains lots of ways to do things better. As I’m quoted on the back cover, “Read this book and see the future!” Happily, the future is increasingly looking as Kline recommended.

By Rex B. Kline,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Beyond Significance Testing as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Traditional education in statistics that emphasises significance testing leaves researchers and students ill prepared to understand what their results really mean. Specifically, most researchers and students who do not have strong quantitative backgrounds have difficulty understanding outcomes of statistical tests.

As more and more people become aware of this problem, the emphasis on statistical significance in the reporting of results is declining. Increasingly, researchers are expected to describe the magnitudes and precisions of their findings and also their practical, theoretical, or clinical significance.

This accessibly written book reviews the controversy about significance testing, which has now crossed various disciplines as…


Book cover of Research Methods in Psychology: Evaluating a World of Information

Geoff Cumming Author Of Introduction to the New Statistics: Estimation, Open Science, and Beyond

From my list on open science better research with better statistics.

Why am I passionate about this?

I gradually shifted my statistics teaching from significance testing — traditional but bamboozling — to estimation (confidence intervals), which I called "the new statistics" because, although not new, relying on it would, for many researchers, be very new. It’s more informative, makes sense, and is a pleasure to teach and use. I "retired" to write Understanding the New Statistics. Then Open Science arrived—hooray! Robert Calin-Jageman joined me for an intro textbook with Open Science and The New Statistics all through. Our first edition came out in 2017. The second edition has wonderful new open-source software (‘esci’), which is also ideal for more advanced students and researchers. Enjoy!

Geoff's book list on open science better research with better statistics

Geoff Cumming Why did Geoff love this book?

Yes, this is a textbook, but if you are seeking a research design and methods text for psychology or a related discipline, this is easily my top choice.

There are lots of references to topical stories to keep everything relevant for students. There’s a truckload of valuable stuff online to support both teachers and learners. This fourth edition is right up-to-the-moment, Chapter 3 especially so, as it explains three types of scientific claims, and four types of validity that researchers should aim to achieve. That may sound forbidding, but Morling’s examples and explanations are pleasingly accessible.  

By Beth Morling,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Research Methods in Psychology as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Featuring an emphasis on future consumers of psychological research and examples drawn from popular media, Research Methods in Psychology: Evaluating a World of Information develops students' critical-thinking skills as they evaluate information in their everyday lives. The Fourth Edition of this best-selling text takes learning to a new level for both consumers and producers by offering new content, interactive learning, and online assessment to help them master the concepts.


Book cover of A Student's Guide to Open Science: Using the Replication Crisis to Reform Psychology

Geoff Cumming Author Of Introduction to the New Statistics: Estimation, Open Science, and Beyond

From my list on open science better research with better statistics.

Why am I passionate about this?

I gradually shifted my statistics teaching from significance testing — traditional but bamboozling — to estimation (confidence intervals), which I called "the new statistics" because, although not new, relying on it would, for many researchers, be very new. It’s more informative, makes sense, and is a pleasure to teach and use. I "retired" to write Understanding the New Statistics. Then Open Science arrived—hooray! Robert Calin-Jageman joined me for an intro textbook with Open Science and The New Statistics all through. Our first edition came out in 2017. The second edition has wonderful new open-source software (‘esci’), which is also ideal for more advanced students and researchers. Enjoy!

Geoff's book list on open science better research with better statistics

Geoff Cumming Why did Geoff love this book?

Charlotte Pennington eagerly started her PhD but became anxious and depressed when her experiments "didn’t work’" and were refused publication. She read about the replication crisis — many published studies won’t replicate—and Open Science. Soon, it was her passion to teach about Open Science and what’s needed to achieve efficient research and trustworthy research literature.

The result is A Student’s Guide to Open Science. It’s short, clear, and highly readable. She’s well-informed and covers the story in engaging detail. There are practical guides to using Open Science practices and numerous links to follow as you wish. Statistical issues are mentioned but are not her focus.

By Charlotte Pennington,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked A Student's Guide to Open Science as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

"Dr Charlotte R. Pennington has pulled off a remarkable trifecta of being clear, concise, and comprehensive in covering the origins of the open science movement and practical advice for adopting the behaviors"

Professor Brian Nosek, Executive Director, Center for Open Science; University of Virginia, US

"My hope is that every psychology student will finish their degree with a heavily annotated, well-thumbed copy of this important and timely book!"

Dr Madeleine Pownall, University of Leeds, UK

"This book should be on the reading list for all university science degrees and on all library bookshelves. It is concise, accessible, and remarkably interactive,…


Book cover of The Seven Deadly Sins of Psychology: A Manifesto for Reforming the Culture of Scientific Practice

Rick Szostak Author Of Integrating the Human Sciences: Enhancing Progress and Coherence across the Social Sciences and Humanities

From my list on reforming the social sciences and humanities.

Why am I passionate about this?

I am proud to be a human (social) scientist but think that we could collectively achieve a much more successful human science enterprise. And I believe that a better human science would translate into better public policy. Most human scientists focus on their own research, paying little attention to how the broader enterprise functions. I have written many works of a methodological nature over the years. I am pleased to point here to a handful of works with sound advice for enhancing the human science enterprise.

Rick's book list on reforming the social sciences and humanities

Rick Szostak Why did Rick love this book?

Though this book focuses on psychology, it has lessons for all social sciences.

Chambers, like me, is critical of certain practices and yet deeply respectful of what has been accomplished. He devotes much of his attention to the problem of confirmation bias. We as humans are more likely to accept results that conform to prior beliefs.

Journals are also more likely to publish such results. Scholars play with their findings, adding or removing data points to achieve a target level of statistical significance. The result is that we are often more confident in scholarly consensus than we should be. Chambers explains complex ideas clearly, and is passionate about the need for reform.

By Chris Chambers,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The Seven Deadly Sins of Psychology as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Why psychology is in peril as a scientific discipline-and how to save it

Psychological science has made extraordinary discoveries about the human mind, but can we trust everything its practitioners are telling us? In recent years, it has become increasingly apparent that a lot of research in psychology is based on weak evidence, questionable practices, and sometimes even fraud. The Seven Deadly Sins of Psychology diagnoses the ills besetting the discipline today and proposes sensible, practical solutions to ensure that it remains a legitimate and reliable science in the years ahead. In this unflinchingly candid manifesto, Chris Chambers shows how…


Book cover of How to Take Smart Notes: One Simple Technique to Boost Writing, Learning and Thinking

Kourosh Dini Author Of Workflow Mastery: Building from the Basics

From my list on people who want to do work they find meaningful.

Why am I passionate about this?

I love playing music and games, helping others in therapy, being a father and husband, among other things. It’s taken me some time to figure out how to not only stay on top of them all, but to enjoy myself along the way. The answer to doing so is about finding and guiding play in work. Picasso's statement rings true: "Every child is an artist. The problem is how to remain an artist once he grows up." Mastery and feelings of success flow when work is imbued with play. As a psychoanalyst and now as a writer, I work with both clients and readers to help them find meaning and mastery in the day-to-day.

Kourosh's book list on people who want to do work they find meaningful

Kourosh Dini Why did Kourosh love this book?

Ahrens opened up my eyes to a method of building on, diving into, and creating notes without them getting lost. I love feeling productive whether I agree or disagree with something. I now have a way to connect my ideas together and gather them when creating articles, books, and courses. It didn't use to be fun to take notes, but now it is since I know I can get back to and update things for however long I like without ever feeling obligated to them.

By Sonke Ahrens,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked How to Take Smart Notes as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

This is the second, revised and expanded edition. The first edition was published under the slightly longer title "How to Take Smart Notes. One Simple Technique to Boost Writing, Learning and Thinking - for Students, Academics and Nonfiction Book Writers".

The key to good and efficient writing lies in the intelligent organisation of ideas and notes. This book helps students, academics and other knowledge workers to get more done, write intelligent texts and learn for the long run. It teaches you how to take smart notes and ensure they bring you and your projects forward.
The Take Smart Notes principle…


Book cover of The Philosopher's Toolkit: A Compendium of Philosophical Concepts and Methods

Marianne Talbot Author Of Critical Reasoning: A Romp through the Foothills of Logic for the Complete Beginner

From my list on to learn how to argue well better.

Why am I passionate about this?

I taught philosophy (in particular critical reasoning!) for the colleges of Oxford University between 1987 and 2021. But, aged 15, I was thrown out of school (for truancy and disruption). Between the ages of 18 and 23 I travelled the world, hitch-hiking through Asia, living in Australasia, then travelling back through Africa. By the time I got home, starved of intellectual stimulation, I started an Open University Course and discovered logic. It was the hardest thing I had ever done. But also the most enjoyable. I loved getting to grips with difficult distinctions and concepts and having to use them precisely. Getting the answers right felt like an achievement. Getting them wrong, a challenge. I’ve loved logic ever since!

Marianne's book list on to learn how to argue well better

Marianne Talbot Why did Marianne love this book?

As with any other academic discipline, philosophy has its own language. This is not jargon (or it shouldn’t be!). It is a technical terminology. To look at something very closely, as any academic discipline does, is to record distinctions that might otherwise have gone unnoticed. Immediately two names are needed where only one was needed before. This book will talk you through the most important of these distinctions. The book also looks at the methodology of philosophy, the most important of which, of course, is logic. 

By Peter S. Fosl, Julian Baggini,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The Philosopher's Toolkit as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

A new edition of the bestselling guide to the study of philosophy: the ideal intellectual 'toolkit' for sharpening analytical skills and building philosophical acuity

Whether used as a guide to basic principles or a resource for key concepts and methods, The Philosopher's Toolkit equips readers with all the intellectual 'tools' necessary for engaging closely with philosophical argument and developing fluency in the methods and language of philosophical inquiry. Featuring accessible explanations, practical examples, and expert guidance, this text empowers readers to understand traditional philosophical thinking and to engage with new ideas.

Focuses on the practical methods and concepts necessary for…


Book cover of Descriptive Translation Studies - and beyond

Iris Idelson-Shein Author Of Between the Bridge and the Barricade: Jewish Translation in Early Modern Europe

From my list on translation and culture.

Why am I passionate about this?

I have been studying Jewish translation for over a decade now. I’m fascinated with the way translation enables dialogue between different languages and cultures without eliminating the differences that make such dialogue worthwhile. Most of my work has been dedicated to translation between Christians and Jews, but I’m also interested in the ways in which translation functioned (and continues to function) within Jewish culture as a means of conversation between different communities, classes, genders, and generations. 

Iris' book list on translation and culture

Iris Idelson-Shein Why did Iris love this book?

I studied at Tel Aviv University, where the name Gideon Toury was uttered in reverent tones. I never met Toury in person, and it was only towards my graduation that I finally got around to reading this iconic book.

To say that it is a smooth or engaging read would be a gross misrepresentation. Toury was a devout structuralist and a firm believer in the importance of scientific inquiry in the humanities. Accordingly, this is a book one reads in a staggered mode, one dense section at a time. This makes for an unusual reading experience, but there is something addictive about it, especially for contemporary readers.

We have grown so distant from this kind of extreme positivism, this undaunting belief in the possibility of unbiased scholarship, that for a brief moment, the numerous charts, formulas, and abbreviations that adorn the pages of Toury’s book seem almost amusing. But this…

By Gideon Toury,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Descriptive Translation Studies - and beyond as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

This is an expanded and slightly revised version of the book of the same title which caused quite a stir when it was first published (1995). It thus reflects an additional step in an ongoing research project which was launched in the 1970s. The main objective is to transcend the limitations of using descriptive methods as a mere ancillary tool and place a proper branch of DTS at the very heart of the discipline, between the theoretical and the applied branches.
Throughout the book, theoretical and methodological discussions are illustrated by an assortment of case studies, the emphasis being on…


Book cover of At the Limits of History: Essays on Theory and Practice

Theodor Pelekanidis Author Of How to Write About the Holocaust: The Postmodern Theory of History in Praxis

From my list on Books to make you reconsider what you know about history.

Why am I passionate about this?

I am a historian and author, passionate about how the past influences current ideas and perceptions. While reading for my Ph.D. in Historical Theory, I started to realise that it is not the past that influences us, but we that actually create it. The books in the list came up at different points in my life and research and made me think and rethink the concept of historical knowledge, how we acquire it, how we narrate it, and what we retain from it.

Theodor's book list on Books to make you reconsider what you know about history

Theodor Pelekanidis Why did Theodor love this book?

When I first read this book as a history student, it just blew my mind.

Keith Jenkins is an expert at criticizing the roots of historiography in the clearest but also most hilarious way. I learned so much about understanding historical texts and was excited by Jenkin’s urge to move historical thinking beyond narratives of good and evil.

Main lesson learned: Don’t take things too seriously, especially if they already happened!

By Keith Jenkins,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked At the Limits of History as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

"Why bother with history? Keith Jenkins has an answer. He helps us re-think the "end of history", as signalled by postmodernity. Readers may disagree with him, but he never fails to provoke debate about the future of the past."

Joanna Bourke, Professor of History, Birkbeck College

Keith Jenkins' work on historical theory is renowned; this collection presents the essential elements of his work over the last fifteen years.

Here we see Jenkins address the difficult and complex question of defining the limits of history. The collection draws together the key pieces of his work in one handy volume, encompassing the…


Book cover of The Knowledge Machine: How Irrationality Created Modern Science

Andrew Shtulman Author Of Scienceblind: Why Our Intuitive Theories about the World Are So Often Wrong

From my list on the cognitive foundations of science.

Why am I passionate about this?

I’m a professor of psychology at Occidental College, where I direct the Thinking Lab. I hold degrees in psychology from Princeton and Harvard and have published several dozen scholarly articles on conceptual development and conceptual change. I’m interested in how people acquire new concepts and form new beliefs, especially within the domains of science and religion. My research investigates intuitions that guide our everyday understanding of the natural world and strategies for improving that understanding.

Andrew's book list on the cognitive foundations of science

Andrew Shtulman Why did Andrew love this book?

Science has revolutionized the way we live and the way we understand reality, but what accounts for its success? What method sets science apart from other forms of inquiry and ensures that it yields ever-more accurate theories of the world? Strevens argues that the scientific method is not a special kind of logic, like deriving hypotheses from first principles or narrowing hypotheses through falsification, but a simple commitment to arguing with evidence. Strevens shows, with historical case studies, how this commitment is seemingly irrational, as it provides no constraints on what counts as evidence or how evidence should be interpreted, but also incredibly powerful, fostering ingenuity and discovery.

By Michael Strevens,

Why should I read it?

3 authors picked The Knowledge Machine as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

* Why is science so powerful?
* Why did it take so long-two thousand years after the invention of philosophy and mathematics-for the human race to start using science to learn the secrets of the universe?

In a groundbreaking work that blends science, philosophy, and history, leading philosopher of science Michael Strevens answers these challenging questions, showing how science came about only once thinkers stumbled upon the astonishing idea that scientific breakthroughs could be accomplished by breaking the rules of logical argument.

Like such classic works as Karl Popper's The Logic of Scientific Discovery and Thomas Kuhn's The Structure of…


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