How to read and understand a scientific paper: a guide for non-scientists
Sensible advice overall, but I completely disagree with these:<p>> Before you begin reading, take note of the authors and their institutional affiliations.<p>and<p>> Beware of questionable journals.<p>Institutional affiliation and journal imprimatur should have no bearing in science. These are shortcuts for the lazy, and they introduce bias into evaluation of the paper's contents.<p>Even more than that, dispensing advice along these lines perpetuates the myth that scientific fact is dispensed from on high. If that's the case, just let the experts do the thinking for you and don't bother your pretty little head trying to read scientific papers.<p>If the author's approach to reading a paper only works by checking for stamps of approval, maybe the approach should be reconsidered.