# The scientist and the rabbit hole: How epidemiologist Simon Thornley became

**URL:** <https://discourse.peacefulscience.org/t/the-scientist-and-the-rabbit-hole-how-epidemiologist-simon-thornley-became/13754>\
**Category:** Conversation\
**Tags:** Science, Society\
**Created:** [May 21, 2021, 5:47am UTC](https://discourse.peacefulscience.org/t/the-scientist-and-the-rabbit-hole-how-epidemiologist-simon-thornley-became/13754 "2021-05-21T05:47:09Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 6\
**Page:** 1

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Tim](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/discourse.peacefulscience.org/tim/32/9381_2.png) [@Tim](https://discourse.peacefulscience.org/u/Tim)\
**Post date:** [May 21, 2021, 5:47am UTC](https://discourse.peacefulscience.org/t/the-scientist-and-the-rabbit-hole-how-epidemiologist-simon-thornley-became/13754/1 "2021-05-21T05:47:09Z")

</div>

> **[The scientist and the rabbit hole: How epidemiologist Simon Thornley became...](https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/health/coronavirus/125035835/the-scientist-and-the-rabbit-hole-how-epidemiologist-simon-thornley-became-an-outcast-of-his-profession)**
>
> While the evidence on Covid-19 mounts against the views of epidemiologist Simon Thornley, he digs in, ever deeper.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Michael\_Okoko](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/discourse.peacefulscience.org/michael_okoko/32/13148_2.png) [@Michael\_Okoko](https://discourse.peacefulscience.org/u/Michael_Okoko)\
**Post date:** [May 21, 2021, 3:24pm UTC](https://discourse.peacefulscience.org/t/the-scientist-and-the-rabbit-hole-how-epidemiologist-simon-thornley-became/13754/2 "2021-05-21T15:24:10Z")

</div>

And so he fell, from science to pseudoscience.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Tim](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/discourse.peacefulscience.org/tim/32/9381_2.png) [@Tim](https://discourse.peacefulscience.org/u/Tim)\
**Post date:** [May 21, 2021, 4:39pm UTC](https://discourse.peacefulscience.org/t/the-scientist-and-the-rabbit-hole-how-epidemiologist-simon-thornley-became/13754/3 "2021-05-21T16:39:11Z")

</div>

Yes, a good scientist is dogged. But take that admirable trait a couple of steps too far, and it can take you to a bad place and bad company.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Michael\_Okoko](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/discourse.peacefulscience.org/michael_okoko/32/13148_2.png) [@Michael\_Okoko](https://discourse.peacefulscience.org/u/Michael_Okoko)\
**Post date:** [May 21, 2021, 6:22pm UTC](https://discourse.peacefulscience.org/t/the-scientist-and-the-rabbit-hole-how-epidemiologist-simon-thornley-became/13754/4 "2021-05-21T18:22:25Z")

</div>

TBH, I too shared a similar view with Simon at the start of the pandemic. When I heard most people recover from the virus, I was like, phew! the chances of me getting the virus and falling seriously ill was low. However, as time progressed and the pandemic raged, it became quite obvious the virus was more dangerous than I thought. How a trained epidemiologist couldn’t see the same thing is sure baffling. He probably caught a variant of the “Nobel disease”.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Mercer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e274bd/32.png) [@Mercer](https://discourse.peacefulscience.org/u/Mercer)\
**Post date:** [May 22, 2021, 10:40pm UTC](https://discourse.peacefulscience.org/t/the-scientist-and-the-rabbit-hole-how-epidemiologist-simon-thornley-became/13754/5 "2021-05-22T22:40:33Z")

</div>

Scientists, when driven to it by ego, can be very effective pseudoscientists.

See the clues here:  
Baker goes to evidence:

> “…“almost scandalous” and “patently absurd”; a piece both poorly argued and reliant on cherry-picked _ **evidence** _.”

Thornley, instead, ignores evidence and uses pseudoscientific rhetoric:

> “They’re trying to shut down _ **alternative views** _ which have already been _ **proven** _ correct.”

I’m interested in whether @thoughtful can see these differences when (I think) she agrees with the scientist in this argument…

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![system](https://us1.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/uploads/peacefulscience/original/2X/6/6b7bf72453a5c60b0919b6b89a27dc18bc52382c.png) [@system](https://discourse.peacefulscience.org/u/system)\
**Post date:** [May 29, 2021, 10:40pm UTC](https://discourse.peacefulscience.org/t/the-scientist-and-the-rabbit-hole-how-epidemiologist-simon-thornley-became/13754/6 "2021-05-29T22:40:50Z")

</div>

This topic was automatically closed 7 days after the last reply. New replies are no longer allowed.