Stepping in the Same River Twice ─ Replication in Biological Research

Without replication, the trustworthiness of scientific research remains in doubt. Although replication is increasingly recognized as a central problem in many scientific disciplines, repeating the same scientific observations of experiments or reproducing the same set of analyses from existing data is remarkably difficult. In this important volume, an international team of biologists, philosophers, and historians of science addresses challenges and solutions for valid replication of research in medicine, ecology, natural history, agriculture, physiology, and computer science.

After an introduction to important concepts and historical background, the book offers paired chapters that provide theoretical overviews followed by detailed case studies. These studies range widely in topic, from infectious-disease and environmental monitoring to museum collections, meta-analysis, bioinformatics, and more. The closing chapters explicate and quantify problems in the case studies, and the volume concludes with important recommendations for best practices.

Ayelet Shavit, a philosopher of science, is a senior lecturer and head of the philosophy program at Tel Hai College. She lives at Kibbutz K'far Giladi, Israel. Aaron M. Ellison is the senior research fellow in ecology, Harvard University, Harvard Forest. He lives in Royalston, MA.