What is being proved

....when specialists in a given area make the claim that "the science is settled" or "just trust us on this one"? Contemplate this in light of the basic scientific (and logical) principle of reproducibility; a good researcher provides, in his communication, the tools that a skeptic or other interested party can use to duplicate his results.

So the specialist here is more or less denying the principle of reproducibility by doing this, showing himself to be not a scientist or even an educated man, but rather a technician--even if sporting a Ph.D. and status as a full professor.

This is something to watch out for in any academic setting, I dare say. It's all too easy to achieve the highest academic and professional credentials and yet be utterly uneducated.