La science et l'hypothèse / Henri Poincaré

Collection : Les sillons littéraires ; 7

Surrogate science: The idol of a universal method for scientific inference

The application of statistics to science is not a neutral act. Statistical tools have shaped and were also shaped by its objects. In the social sciences, statistical methods fundamentally changed research practice, making statistical inference its centerpiece. At the same time, textbook writers in the social sciences have transformed rivaling statistical systems into an apparently monolithic method that could be used mechanically. The idol of a universal method for scientific inference has been worshipped since the "inference revolution" of the 1950s. Because no such method has ever been found, surrogates have been created, most notably the quest for significant p values. This form of surrogate science fosters delusions and borderline cheating and has done much harm, creating, for one, a flood of irreproducible results. Proponents of the "Bayesian revolution" should be wary of chasing yet another chimera: an apparently universal inference procedure. A better path would be to promote both an understanding of the various devices in the "statistical toolbox" and informed judgment to select among these.

Indicadores de calidad de la producción en la Web of Science de diez profesores del Área de Personalidad, Evaluación y Tratamiento Psicológico: aportaciones adicionales al estudio de Olivas-Ávila y Musi-Lechuga

Los rankings de productividad científica resultan cada vez más relevantes, tanto a nivel individual como institucional. Garantizar que se basan en información confiable y exhaustiva es, por tanto, importante. Este estudio indica que la posición de los individuos en esa clase de ranking puede cambiar sustancialmente cuando se consideran diversos indicadores bibliométricos internacionalmente reconocidos. Se usa, como ilustración, el caso de los diez profesores del área de ‘Personalidad, Evaluación y Tratamiento Psicológico’ consignados en el reciente análisis de Olivas-Ávila y Musi-Lechuga (Psicothema 2010. Vol. 22, nº 4, pp. 909-916).

Sant Llorenç del Montsec (La Noguera): un despoblat medieval

The medieval deserted village of St. Lloreng, a fortified place in the west lands of Catalonia, in Lleida, near Aragon, is studied from its origins in 11th. century unti1 14th.C. The growth and evolution of population during this time is shown by the houses, placed between the castle and the church, some so simply with only one room, some wider. The authors don't know why the village became deserted, but they indicate the possible move of the population into the limits of the Ager valley.

La noció d'Espanya a la Catalunya medieval

A partir de la necessitat de conèixer les bases del propi present i d'assolir puntals on arrelar els discursos de futur, ara i adés les diferents col·lectivitats es remeten als orígens, "l'obsessió pels orígens" deia Marc Bloch. I aquests, en una Europa que parla de l'Edat Mitjana com la infantesa de la pròpia identitat, s'aboquen a una època medieval on conflueixen -en el que des de la llunyania de la nostra quotidianitat pot semblar una amalgama poc destriada- tant les realitats gresoladores dels actuals signes d'identitat culrurals, socials i lingüístics, com les projeccions que delerosament hi cerquen les justificacions del present i els condicionants del furur. Així doncs, convé apamar bé l'espai físic i conceptual per definir adientment la realitat existent en aquells moments que han alimentat les arrels d'identitats que, travessant diferents estímuls al llarg de la història, han menat fins als nostres dies.

El naixement d'un vilar medieval: Moredell (Gironès) en època carolíngia

This is the description of the birth, development and transformations of a small rural community in carolingian epoch through the written documentation and the analysis of the landscape.

Entorn al testament de Brunissèn d'Alentorn i alguns costums funeraris de la Lleida medieval

In this research from the late medieval period, we want to analyze diferent aspects related to funerary world through Brunissèn d’Alentorn’s will. The document is compared with other wills from Lleida’s area that acquire knowledge to these customs, for instance, the draps d’or’s uses. These were provided of deceased’ heraldry, and were comissioned to cover the tomb. Also, in Lleida’s case, they were used to decorate the ancient cathedral’s presbitery during the main festivities, and the patrons’ wedding bed. Artistic patronage, social prestige, family arms ostentation, pomp and devotion are other aspects that would be emphasized in this tour, just as the private devotions in the chapels and altars that were founded regarding this topic.

De la guerra de l'Empordà (1128) a la mortaldat de 1131: gènesi, extensió i extinció d'una fam. Per a una història de les crisis alimentàries a la Catalunya medieval

In the history of food shortages and subsistence crises which affected the Catalan counties during the eleventh and twelfth centuries, the famine of 1129-1131 deserves special mention. Originating in the war of 1128 involving the Empordà and neighboring counties, this famine affected the city of Barcelona and other points of Catalonia (Winter, 1131) and created conditions for the spread of a deadly epidemic (July 1130 -January 1132).