Full disclosure (almost)

(updated Feb '07)

Hsien over at Genetics and Health proposed a while back that medical and health bloggers should introduce "full disclosure" to help visitors evaluate the resources on each site.

The vast majority of posts on Flags and Lollipops are pitched at people working in bioinformatics or computer science who hopefully can already critically evaluate science writing. Some of the questions still apply, though, so in the interests of openness:

1. Who runs this site?

Me (Stew). I work for Nature Publishing Group in the web publishing department. Sorry for the pseudo-anonymity. I started off blogging that way and it seems wrong to stop.

2. Who pays for the site?

I do, out of my own pocket. It doesn't cost much.

3. What is the purpose of the site?

To talk about new developments in bioinformatics, genomics and science on the web; to highlight interesting topics in those areas; to provide a forum for my long inarticulate rants.

4. Where does the information come from?

Chats with colleagues, buzz at conferences, posts on other blogs, literature searches - I also keep an eye on del.icio.us, newspapers, that kind of thing.

5. What is the basis of the information?

You have to rely on my interpretation of the facts, bearing in mind that my molecular biology is mostly self-taught. If there's a peer reviewed paper to be referenced then I'll include the link.

6. How is the information selected?

To borrow a paragraph from Hsien:

Unlike a scientific journal, magazine, or newspaper, there is no editor for [Flags and Lollipops]. Hence, like most other blogs, there is no fact checker other than myself. I rely on you, my readers, to correct me when I'm mistaken and to share your experiences. I welcome all comments whether you agree with me or not.

7. How current is the information?

Bioinformatics is a fast moving area. The information on this site is current as of the date that the information was posted.

8. How does the site choose links to other sites?

If I like a site enough to subscribe to its RSS feed then I include it on the linkbar on the right hand side of the screen. I'm interested in any bioinformatics related blog though I try and keep the list down to those which are regularly updated (twice a month, say).

I don't do any background checks on sites that I link to from posts, but in general they should be relatively trustworthy. Sometimes I link to Wikipedia for background information on a topic, but it's usually to fairly uncontroversial science related pages.

9. What information about you does the site collect, and why?

I use Google Analytics, so this site collects information about your web browser, screen resolution and whether or not you use Javascript. In theory it also tells me how long you spend on the site and that sort of thing, but I don't actually look at all that stuff: it's too depressing. Last year I discovered that most people reach the site via searches for 'lollipops' or the 'biggest breasts in Europe' and so only stay for a few seconds.

10. How does the site manage interactions with visitors?

You can comment on most posts, or email me directly. Feel free to be critical of posts - I won't remove anything unless it's truly heinous (or spam).