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I'm not outraged by Theranos, but I do feel that stuff like this makes it all the harder for legitimate science to get investment, by "raising the bar" on the n
by timr 11y ago
I'm not outraged by Theranos, but I do feel that stuff like this makes it all the harder for legitimate science to get investment, by "raising the bar" on the number of stupid, oversimplified, breathless claims you need to make to get noticed.
Real science is too messy to be able to compete with a press release from a sufficiently motivated huckster -- and investors love a huckster in lab coat.
- yeukhon 11y ago> by "raising the bar" Don't worry. Theranos failed even some of the simplest tests so how is that going to raise the bar at all? Work safety should not be a casual business gesture. It is as if you expect you raise money and you don't provide some insurance for your startup hires. No way. Anyone doing laboratory work should be careful with regulations. Wearing goggles and no smoking in the lab should be really basic. I don't expect anyone following the whole manual, but common sense yes. Simple tests, yes. Standard procedures should still be practiced.
- andygates 11y agoDoesn't real science ... publish real papers? Or at least file patents. It's the secret sauce that's so suspcious. To a skeptical outsider, it whiffs of e-Cat.
- timr 11y agoYeah, but investors don't often read papers...let alone have the expertise to know if they're any good. It's pretty common for investors to commit money based on good spin and social proof. Theranos has excelled at both.