Writer, Historian, Retired Dentist
Daniel E. Long
I am a writer, historian, and retired dentist. I grew up in northeast Colorado (think corn and wheat fields), went to college at Brigham Young University (Rise and Shout!), dental school at Georgetown University (Hoya Saxa!), and received my master of arts in military history, World War II, from American Military University (American Public University System). During my undergraduate studies, I had the opportunity to spend two fantastic years in Spain.
My wife is Cara, and we have eight wonderful children (Daniel II, Erin, Michael, Rachel, Trevor, Amylynn, Kenneth, and Xander), one faux daughter (Rikki), and fourteen grandchildren. I am a life-long nerd and love Star Trek, Marvel Comics, Colorado Rockies baseball, and tropical fish, and have a warped sense of humor that apparently only I appreciate (according to my family). Additionally, I am a staunch conservative. Currently, I call Alaska home, on the beautiful Kenai peninsula. About the only things I miss living here are my Colorado Rockies season tickets and a nearby comic book store.
I have loved military history in general, and World War II history specifically, all my life, so once I couldn’t play dentist anymore, it was only natural that I go into history and writing. I hope you find my writings interesting.
INTERESTING HAPPENINGS
Another beautiful day in paradise.
THE SAGA OF PUBLISHING IN A PEER REVIEW ENVIRONMENT
As I continue my writing endeavors, and eagerly await the publication of my book, I am reminded of the adage, “Publish or Perish.” I also remember a paper I tried to get published in the Journal of the American Dental Association (https://jada.ada.org/). I’m not saying whether it should or should not have been published. I am saying that one of the reviewers, with an obvious chip on his/her shoulder, decided that there was no way that he/she would ever allow it to be published. With that in mind, I print these articles on the current state of peer review of scientific articles, and point out that such blatant bias renders the whole process of peer-review a worthless endeavor.
The rise and fall of peer review
As the article points out, peer review is hardly foolproof. One of the most infamous examples of this is the article linking vaccines to autism (PEOPLE, VACCINATE YOUR KIDS. It’s child abuse to not do so.). Note that it has been RETRACTED, so please stop trying to use it to point out the supposed link between the two.
Retracted article supposedly linking vaccines and autism
Why do I write about this now? I’m considering going back to school to get my PhD in history. If I do, I obviously will have to write a dissertation along with a multitude of other papers, all of which will be expected to be published. So what is a person to do? One person, by themselves, cannot buck the system. I have no option other than to follow the system. My purpose of this rant, is merely to point out that the system is severely flawed, and needs to be fixed. Wish me luck in my endeavors.
Additional readings:
Peer review is meant to prevent scientific misconduct. But it has its own problems.
Feel free to email me at dlongddsma@gmail.com
Daniel E. Long 