The Skeptic
Bedrock Ā· Polish Ā· Evidence
Controls for the controls. Reviewer 2 is scared of you.
You might be a Skeptic if
- Your abstract has four p-values and no conclusion.
- You have been Reviewer 2. You were right.
- āIt dependsā is your answer, and you can say exactly what it depends on.
Strength and blind spot
Superpower. Your data holds up. You have already run the control the reviewer is about to ask for.
Blind spot. The finding is buried. Your abstract reads like a methods section.
Reviewer 2 will write: āThe significance of these findings for the broader field is not clear.ā
How to work with a Skeptic
- Feedback
- Show me the data first. Then argue.
- Before a deadline
- I will meet it, with a list of caveats.
- As a co-author
- I will check every number. Someone else writes the first paragraph.
- From my PI
- Permission to say the finding plainly, in one sentence.
Who a Skeptic works best with
Best partner: The Headliner. They make your results matter. You keep their claims honest.
Two of them on one paper: Airtight, unreadable, and still in revision. The paper will be beautiful, eventually. Put a submission date in the calendar today.
The fix: The Here-We-Show Test
- Write one sentence that starts āHere we show thatā, in 25 words or fewer, with the measured result.
- Make every other sentence of the abstract set it up or follow from it.
- If you cannot write the sentence, the claim is not settled yet.
Not a clinical personality test. A mirror for publishing habits, which you can change.