key: cord-301888-f1drinpl
authors: Raoult, Didier
title: Lancet gate: A matter of fact or a matter of concern
date: 2020-09-22
journal: New Microbes New Infect
DOI: 10.1016/j.nmni.2020.100758
sha: 
doc_id: 301888
cord_uid: f1drinpl

nan

has been the split between the pro and con chloroquine proponents who represented the split 18 for or against Trump, for or against Bolsonaro, rich European and American countries against 19 the Eastern or African countries that use it in the majority. As a matter of fact, chloroquine 20 and hydroxychloroquine have been recommended in countries covering more than half of the 21 world population, not recommended in some parts of Western Europe and the United States, 22 and even banned in France. This shows that hic et nunc (here and now), there is not a single 23 truth, but at this stage there are opinions, each one having data that it analyzes in the most 24 appropriate way with the method considered best to answer yes to the hypothesis (3). We 25 should not forget that Husserl clearly explained that mathematical methods are the clothes of 26 ideas (4) and sophisticated models should not dissimulate rough data. Moreover, the growing 27 use of "big data" is revealed here. In practice, the use of data collected in a more or less 28 professional way for another use, retreated to make an adjustment (propensity score), 29 allowing a comparison of the different groups to evaluate strategies. This gives the illusion of 30 J o u r n a l P r e -p r o o f being more credible because of the large numbers. In fact, the studies reported by the physicians themselves may correct dubious data by their own experience, the computer will 32 not. In practice, under these conditions, nothing is verifiable anymore and a painful 33 experience has just shown us this with the episode of Surgisphere who managed to publish in 34 the two best journals of the medical world, series whose sources are unknown, whose 35 methods are unknown and were retracted. A simple analysis of the elements, that I carried 36 myself, immediately showed that these studies were just impossible, either arranged or purely 37 invented. In one study, death number was superior to the whole deaths of the country (5), in 38 the other it was claimed that ethnicity was recorded in all cases including France where it is 39 illegal (6).

In these conditions, we see the realization of the prediction of the birth of hyperreality, written 41 by Baudrillard (Simulacra and Simulations) in the seventies (7), which describes a world 42 where digital reality no longer represents a distortion of reality but simply another reality that 43 no longer has anything to do with tangible reality. That was also predicted in science fiction 44 books by P. Dick (8). The most extreme case was recently revealed in London, where the 45 most rated restaurant on TripAdvisor called "The Shed at Dulwich" did not exist, and which 46 was, in fact, pure farce fuelled by false comments placed on TripAdvisor. How a restaurant that didn't exist could become the most popular restaurant in London in 6 months is also part

Epidemies: vrais dangers et fausses alertes. Michel Lafon ed. 2020. 89 (2) J.Hopsins. Coronavirus resource center