An experiment on the impact of a neonicotinoid pesticide on honeybees: the value of a formal analysis of the data

摘要

BackgroundWe assess the analysis of the data resulting from a field experiment conducted by Pilling et al. (PLoS ONE. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0077193, ) on the potential effects of thiamethoxam on honeybees. The experiment had low levels of replication, so Pilling et al. concluded that formal statistical analysis would be misleading. This would be true if such an analysis merely comprised tests of statistical significance and if the investigators concluded that lack of significance meant little or no effect. However, an analysis that includes estimation of the size of any effects—with confidence limits—allows one to reach conclusions that are not misleading and that produce useful insights.