045: Fact Today, Fiction(?) Tomorrow | Sam Arbesman and the Half-Life of Facts

Collection of old encyclopedias, which see regular updates and replacement as our collective knowledge grows and changes.

Our understanding of the world today is constantly changing. What was once considered truths and facts can, in hindsight, be seen as misguided or wrong. It may be challenging to accept but becomes evident over time that the things we learn today may become irrelevant or superseded in the future and this is particularly relevant to medicine.

Scientometrics is the study of quantitative study of science and the rate at which change occurs. Today, we discuss this topic with scientist and author Sam Arbesman, to ask the following question: what is the rate of change of facts in the field of medicine?

Our special guest is Sam Arbesman who is a scientist and author of Overcomplicated: Technology at the Limits of Comprehension and The Half-Life of Facts.


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