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There are concerns w.r.t. the scientific value of this kind of DIY experimentation though. First, there are the sample size and control problems, but more crit
by thaw13579 10y ago
There are concerns w.r.t. the scientific value of this kind of DIY experimentation though. First, there are the sample size and control problems, but more critically, the experiment is meant to change the brain of the experimenter. That's quite a bias! However, one feature of these kind of experiments is that they can push the limits past what would normally be allowed by an institutional review board...
- jjeaff 10y agoI'm grateful there are people out there willing to push past what is "allowed" by review boards and regulatory agencies. Some of the data provided may be dubious, but if it weren't for unsafe, seat of the pants DIYers out there willing to take risks, I think we would be in a much less advanced world.
- thaw13579 10y agoThere are historical examples that justify the review boards though: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unethical_human_experimentation_in_the_United_States https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unethical_human_experimentatio... Personally, I'd chose to trade those events for whatever scientific advancements were gained. But I think you're probably referring to things besides human subjects research, which is a different story.
- BurningFrog 10y agoWell, that shows the review boards have benefits. You can't determine if they're justified until you've also looked at their costs.
- benchaney 10y agoAll of the relevant examples from that link are about experiments performed on people other than the experimenter. That is a pretty big difference from what is being discussed.