The Studies Show

This week, as a gift for New Year’s Eve, we’re opening up a previously-paywalled episode so that everyone can listen. It’s our episode from April 2024 on “Youth gender medicine & the Cass Review”. Since the show notes were previously behind the paywall, they’re copied below.If you’d like to listen to all our paywalled episodes—which are of course ad-free, like this one—you can subscribe by visiting thestudiesshowpod.com.Normal service will be resumed next week. Happy New Year!Show notes* The Cass Review’s final report* List of systematic reviews from University of York researchers that were commissioned by the Cass Review* Hannah Barnes on why the Tavistock gender identity clinic was forced to close* VICE interview with a Tavistock doctor, including information on patient numbers* Original Dutch single-case study on puberty blockers* Somewhat larger Dutch study of puberty blockers from 2011* The “Early Intervention” study from England (not published until 2021)* Article that’s critical of the “cis-supremacy” in the Cass Review* BMJ editorial on the Cass Review* Billy Bragg claims that the Cass Review only included 2 studies out of 102* Owen Jones’s video where he claims studies were “arbitrarily” excluded from the report* Fact-checking post from Benjamin Ryan, covering some of the criticisms of the Cass Report* Hilary Cass interviewed by The Times* Episode of BBC More or Less that addresses some of the criticisms* 2020 study on the small proportion of medical treatments where there’s strong evidence* More recent (2022) study by the same authors finding an even more depressing picture: “More than 9 in 10 healthcare interventions studied within recent Cochrane Reviews are not supported by high-quality evidence, and harms are under-reported”* The book Medical Nihilism* The BMJ review of the book, quoted in the episodeCreditsThe Studies Show is produced by Julian Mayers at Yada Yada Productions. This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.thestudiesshowpod.com/subscribe

In this final episode of 2024, Tom and Stuart talk about the most exciting scientific breakthroughs of the year… but temper it with some of the worst episodes of scientific fraud and misconduct, too. Then, just as a bonus, they address some of the biggest errors made in episodes of The Studies Show in 2024, too.Thank you so much for listening in 2024. If you aren’t one already, please consider becoming a paid subscriber to support the podcast and get access to all the episodes. In any case, we’ll see you for more The Studies Show in the New Year!The Studies Show is sponsored by GiveWell, the non-profit aimed at making charitable donations as effective as possible. If you’re the kind of person who wants solid evidence that the money you donate is having an important effect on people’s lives, GiveWell is where you should be looking.You can get your donation matched up to $100 if you’re a first-time donor on GiveWell. Just go to the website (GiveWell.org), then click “Donate”. When you make your donation, say you heard about GiveWell on a podcast, and enter “The Studies Show” to let them know we sent you. Then you’ll see the donation matched. Show notes* Saloni Dattani’s “Five Medical Breakthroughs in 2024” post* Gavin Leech’s “Breakthroughs of 2024” thread on Twitter* Stuart’s monthly bad science newsletterCreditsThe Studies Show is produced by Julian Mayers at Yada Yada Productions. This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.thestudiesshowpod.com/subscribe

In this “fun”, festive episode of The Studies Show, Tom and Stuart discuss two ways—one man-made, one natural—that our species might be wiped off the planet.The first is “mirror life”, a science-fiction-sounding threat that hardly anyone had heard of until last week, when a group of concerned scientists wrote an open letter arguing that this is a technology that should never be developed. The second is the eruption of a supervolcano, which has a scarily high likelihood of happening in the next century… and for which scientists say we’re “woefully underprepared”. Have a cheery Christmas!Here’s your chance to do some clear, measurable good this Christmas. We’re pleased to say that we’re being sponsored by GiveWell, the non-profit organisation who use evidence to work out which charities are the most impactful and effective. The really good news is that they’ll match any donation up to $100 for first-time donors who tell them at the checkout that they heard about GiveWell on a podcast, and then choose THE STUDIES SHOW. Go to GiveWell.org and click “donate” to get started.Show notes* Mirror life:* The 300-page full Stanford report* Science perspective piece on the risks of mirror life* Asimov Press explainer article* Supervolcanoes:* I HATE ICELAND!* Nature piece from 2022 about our “woeful” level of preparation for a massive volcanic eruption* 1816, the “year without a summer”* Evidence against the idea that Mt. Tambora nearly drove humans to extinction* 2024 paper that’s sceptical of global cooling beyond 1.5 degrees C* 2023 paper with a much more pessimistic scenario* Two useful discussions (first, second) of the effects of supervolcanoes on the Effective Altruism forum* 2018 article on what interventions might prevent or mitigate supervolcanic eruptionsCreditsThe Studies Show is produced by Julian Mayers at Yada Yada Productions. This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.thestudiesshowpod.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.thestudiesshowpod.comRather unexpectedly, the idea of separate sports for males and females has become massively controversial—a major flashpoint in the culture wars, and even in the recent US election.So what does the evidence say? Is it fair if trans women (who are biologically male) compete with females in sports like swimming, or even boxing? How much sporting performance does a lifetime of testosterone grant you? In this paid-only episode of The Studies Show, Tom and (confirmed sport-hater) Stuart look at the evidence on male vs. female sport performance—and discuss whether the argument is really more about ethics and politics than scientific evidence.