Turn Cowen’s personal‑scepticism recommendation into policy: require that controversial or high‑impact findings trigger pre‑specified robustness checks (replication, negative controls, sibling/family designs) and a consensus threshold before they inform major public programs or mandates. This makes provisional science a formal policy pipeline rather than ad‑hoc political ammunition.
— Embedding replication and consensus gates into policymaking reduces premature adoption of fragile findings, protecting public programs from reversal and politicized science.
Arnold Kling
2026.01.05
100% relevant
Tyler Cowen’s quoted advice to reserve judgement until broader scientific agreement — applied here as a procedural rule for agencies, legislatures and major funders.
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