Social Science Tool RandomiseMe Launches
In digital circles the use of trials is well known. Developers and marketers regularly utilize tools such as Google Optimizer to run randomized trials, so they can determine with good accuracy the popularity and effectiveness of what they do.
A new online tool developed by British scientist Ben Goldacre could achieve a similar outcome for more social experiments. The tool, known as RandomiseMe, takes users on a step by step guide to creating a randomized control trial (RCT).
The tool, supported by UK innovation charity Nesta, is set to revolutionize the way RCTs are set up and run.
Goldacre has long criticized the poor use and understanding of randomized trials in the scientific world, and this tool sets out to ensure that they are used much more than is currently the case.
The online tools aims to strip out much of the complexities involved in setting up a trial, thus allowing both individuals and groups to set up their own experiments.
Ben Goldacre is a widely acclaimed broadcaster, writer, academic and physician. Ben is well known for his Guardian column 'Bad Science' and as the author of 'Bad Pharma' and 'Bad Science'. Ben Goldacre is a trained physician and is currently a research fellow in epidemiology at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine. Randomise Me was built by Better Data, a non-profit health IT company run by Ben Goldacre and Carl Reynolds.