Critics like to say the government should audit foreign aid. Guess what it already did. There are 10x more evaluations per £ of aid spend then there are of the rest of government spending.

Researchers piloted, tested via RCT, and scaled up a pedagogy program that raised learning levels across Kenya. So why did the Kenyan government opt to put its money behind a different program -- One Laptop per Child -- that had been shown *not* to work? cc Benjamin Piper

Professional update: In June, I’ll be joining the Center for Global Development as a Senior Fellow. I’m enthusiastic to generate and disseminate policy-actionable research with fabulous colleagues under @RGlenner’s leadership.

Honestly, I think our new paper has serious implications for experimental econ 22–27% failed comprehension in the Dictator and Ultimatum games In the Trust Game and Public Goods Game, that number hit 70% and 52% These are foundational tools of exp econ doi.org/10.1016/j.jebo… 🧵

Research scandals make headlines, but that AI materials science paper is still just the tip of the iceberg Ryan Briggs walks through the gauntlet of issues in the research published in even our most reputable peer-reviewed journals

New piece with Rafael Dib applying prioritisation frameworks to science funding. How should a grantmaker aiming at health impact pick areas to fund, when science is so hard to predict? We argue you can get pretty far, because today's spending is weird: blog.jacobtrefethen.com/vaccines/

We're trying to raise money to bring Mindfulness-based Mental Fitness training to Ukraine. We'll be doing a study to measure and improve its effectiveness. Any amount you can donate would be helpful -- thanks in advance! gofund.me/df1b6362

A word?!?

Is a word, thanks anthro major

𝐊𝐞𝐧𝐲𝐚 𝐏𝐫𝐢𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐳𝐞𝐬 𝐇𝐞𝐚𝐥𝐭𝐡 𝐈𝐧𝐧𝐨𝐯𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐓𝐡𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡 𝐏𝐨𝐥𝐢𝐜𝐲 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐅𝐢𝐧𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐢𝐧𝐠 Kenya is stepping up efforts to scale health innovations by aligning policy, financing, and advocacy with the country’s health priorities. At the inaugural

2. Most people don't really read. They skim or scan. You need to write for this reality. Corrolary 2a: Important numbers go up first in the text. If it's not in the title, abstract, or *maybe* first two paragraphs of the introduction, it will get lost. (see Rayhan Momin)

6. Many of the most useful things for industry or policy are summary statistics or simple regressions, maybe with a simple model. But referees like tests, especially causal ones. So try to rephrase your results in a way that makes them into a test.

Health Cabinet Secretary Hon. Aden Duale, together with Principal Secretaries Dr. Ouma Oluga (Medical Services) and Ms. Mary Muthoni (Public Health & Professional Standards), joined the 13th Development Partnership Forum hosted at the Official Residence of H.E. the Deputy

CNN put together a clip of RKF Jr denying today he linked antidepressants and mass shootings, followed by a clip of RFK Jr last week linking antidepressants and mass shootings

The pretty draft is now online (free)

In the last few years we've seen: - The plot to kidnap Gretchen Whitmer - The Storming of the Capitol and pipe bombs left at the RNC and DNC - The break-in to kidnap Nancy Pelosi and the brutal on Paul Pelosi - Multiple assassination attempts against Trump - The assassination

And like always, Trump goes all in with ugly partisanship, divisiveness & hate. Trump uses a political assassination to attack half the country. He quite literally is the divider in chief. He’s such a danger to this country. I so worry about where this is heading.

"We're not just sharing science -- we're sharing respect." In an #OpEd, Sara Gorman PhD MPH and Heather Lanthorn | improving health systems present five communication principles, illustrated with real-world examples of how acetaminophen-ASD research has been communicated (or miscommunicated). medpagetoday.com/opinion/second…

"As we know, vaccines don't save lives; vaccinations do. Vaccines sitting on shelves don't protect anyone." Read the #OpEd on how to communicate vaccination to patients from Heather Lanthorn | improving health systems, Heather Mercer of @immunizeAR, and Robert Hopkins at: medpagetoday.com/opinion/second…

A point worth making: Suppose a policy would make everyone worse off but increase fairness. An economist would typically say we shouldn’t do it, and they may be right. But it is important to recognize that even that is a value judgment and not merely technical expertise.