James Randi addresses congressional representatives at the Rayburn Building, Washington, D.C., March 18th, 1999. This address appeared in Skeptic magazine volume 17, number 1 that year, in his regular column ’Twas Brillig….
Skeptic: Examining Extraordinary Claims and Promoting Science
Results for the keyword:
homeopathy
From the Reading Room
James Randi on Quackery
and the Need for Science Education
eSkeptic for 10-03-31
In this week’s eSkeptic, we present an article culled from the archives of Skeptic magazine Volume 3, Number 1: Pseudomedicine. Herein, we reprint the position statement on homeopathy of the National Council Against Health Fraud. More than 15 years since its publication homeopathics are still widely available, reminding skeptics that our jobs are never done.
eSkeptic for 09-05-20
So much has been written and said about the placebo effect. In this week’s eSkeptic, we thought we should put our SkepDoc on the trail of finding out what is fact and what is myth about placebos and their effects. You will be surprised by some of Dr. Hall’s findings.
eSkeptic for 09-01-14
In this week’s eSkeptic, Harriet Hall, MD explains why “homeopathy is about as silly as it gets. Silly wouldn’t matter if it worked, but it doesn’t. People think it works because they get placebo effects and the homeopath keeps them entertained while they get better on their own.”
Past Lecture at Caltech
Superstition: Belief in the Age of Science
From uttering a prayer before boarding a plane, to exploring past lives through hypnosis, why has superstition become so pervasive in an age of science? Robert Park, the University of Maryland physics professor and the best-selling author of Voodoo Science, asks why people persist in superstitious convictions long after science has shown them to be ill-founded…
eSkeptic for 08-05-28
In this week’s eSkeptic, Daniel Loxton digs into a protest campaign that is fighting to block enforcement of Canada’s purity, safety, and labeling laws for natural health products — and discovers a shadowy business interest behind the faux consumer watchdog site organizing those protests.
eSkeptic for 08-03-19
In this week’s eSkeptic, Harriet Hall, M.D, a.k.a. “the SkepDoc”, reviews R. Barker Bausell’s book entitled Snake Oil Science: The Truth About Complementary and Alternative Medicine.
eSkeptic for 06-10-25
In this week’s eSkeptic, Fraser Cain interviews particle physicist Simon Singh about the dodgy topic of homeopathy and Amos Esty of American Scientist interviews Michael Shermer about debating advocates of intelligent design, the importance of understanding evolution, and why Americans, in particular, are troubled by this fundamental tenet of science.
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The Believing Brain
(now in paperback)
Get the autographed paperback
In this, his magnum opus, Dr. Michael Shermer presents his comprehensive theory on how beliefs are born, formed, nourished, reinforced, challenged, changed, and extinguished. Sam Harris calls The Believing Brain “a wonderfully lucid, accessible, and wide-ranging account of the boundary between justified and unjustified belief.” Leonard Mlodinow calls it “a tour de force integrating neuroscience and the social sciences.”
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Top 10 Myths About Evolution (and how we know it really happened)
This concise pamphlet provides answers to common objections to evolution, such as: If humans came from apes, why aren’t apes evolving into humans?; Only an intelligent designer could have made something as complex as an eye; The second law of thermo-dynamics proves that evolution is impossible; Evolution can’t account for morality; and more…
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Top 10 Things You Should Know About Alternative Medicine
Harriet Hall, MD (aka the SkepDoc), shares her wit and wisdom about alternative medicine including: chiropractic, the placebo effect, homeopathy, acupuncture, and the questionable benefits of organic food, detoxification, and ‘natural’ remedies.
FREE PDF Download
Learn to be a Psychic in 10
Easy Lessons
Psychic readings and fortunetelling are an ancient art — a combination of acting and psychological manipulation. While some psychics are known to cheat and acquire information ahead of time, these ten tips focus on what is known as “cold reading” — reading someone “cold” without any prior knowledge about them.