Biggest Convention Ever!

Look for more coverage of the biggest Convention ever in the July/August issue of the Observer.

APS President Asks ‘Who Owns Science?’ Scientists from Diverse Perspectives Reply

The question is as expansive and provocative as were the answers provided at the Presidential Symposium of the twenty-fourth annual convention of the Association for Psychological Science.

APS president Douglas Medin called for “diverse perspectives” when he posed the profound, three-word question “Who owns science?”

How to Spot Pseudoneuroscience and Biobunk

When it comes to pseudoscience, social psychologist and writer Carol Tavris is a self-appointed curmudgeon.

“I have spent many years lobbing hand grenades at psychobabble — that wonderful assortment of pop psycho ideas that permeate our culture in spite of having no means of empirical support,” said Tavris at the 24th APS Annual Convention.

In her APS-David Myers Distinguished Lecture on the Science and Craft of Teaching Psychology, Tavris turned her sights on the “biobunk” that has been perpetuated in neuroscience.

Largest Collaborative Project Known to Humankind: APS Wikipedia Demo

Steve Joordens of the University of Toronto Scarborough, Canada kicks off the APS Wikipedia Initiative Special Event Wikipedia in the Classroom: Initial Responses to the Call to Action Friday May 25.

Convention Video: Opting-In Versus Opting-Out in Healthcare (APSSC Award Winner)

Trishna Narula from Emory University and Chethan Ramprasad from Rice University presented their research at the APS 24th Annual Convention in Chicago, Illinois, USA. This was an APSSC Student Research Award-winning poster. The current study examines whether a default, opt-out appointment scheduling system will increase show-up rates for colonoscopy procedures. Results found that participants are less likely to show up to an appointment automatically scheduled by their physician’s office, which contrasts results from similar studies with organ donation and flu vaccines.