Consumers of scientific information should be skeptical of an apparent scientific consensus. Consider: How politicized is this topic? What are the career incentives for the scientists? How easy would it be for scientists to selectively report only the favorable results? Would a study have been published if it had found the opposite result or a null result? The answers to these questions will not definitively tell us whether the scientific consensus is right or wrong, but they should help us…
According to Steven Koonin, when it comes to climate change, the media, politicians, and other prominent voices have declared that “the science is settled.” Koonin avers that the long game of telephone from research to reports, to the popular media, is corrupted by misunderstanding and misinformation. Koonin says that core questions about the way the climate is responding to our influence, and what the impacts will be remain largely unanswered.
In episode 228, Michael Shermer speaks with Steven Koonin about what climate science tells us, what it doesn’t, and why it matters, based on his book Unsettled. Plus, we annouce a 6-hour seminar with Bart Ehrman on Dec 5, and recap Michael Shermer’s Substack posts this week.
Michael Shermer and Gary Taubes discuss: why consensus science doesn’t always work • replication crisis and nutrition science • Newtonian mechanical model and why it doesn’t work with human bodies • physics model of calories and why it’s misleading for dietary advice and obesity • how difficult it is to collect accurate data on what people eat • the complicating variables in determining dietary recommendations • what, precisely, is wrong with the long-standing recommendations about what we should eat •…
In The Michael Shermer Show # 167, Dr. Shermer speaks with Gary Taubes about The Case for Keto: Rethinking Weight Control and the Science and Practice of Low-Carb/High-Fat Eating. PLUS: Save 40% on new digital subscription to Skeptic Magazine via Pocketmags.com, now through April 4, 2021!
In episode 164 of The Michael Shermer Show, Dr. Shermer speaks with Neil deGrasse Tyson about his new book Cosmic Queries: StarTalk’s Guide to Who We Are, How We Got Here, and Where We’re Going. Enjoy this thought-provoking conversation on life, the universe, and everything, as Neil deGrasse Tyson tackles the world’s most important philosophical questions about the universe with wit, wisdom, and cutting-edge science.
In episode 164 of The Michael Shermer Show, Dr. Shermer speaks with Neil deGrasse Tyson about his new book Cosmic Queries: StarTalk’s Guide to Who We Are, How We Got Here, and Where We’re Going. Enjoy this thought-provoking conversation on life, the universe, and everything, as Neil deGrasse Tyson tackles the world’s most important philosophical questions about the universe with wit, wisdom, and cutting-edge science.
Shermer and Prothero discuss: flat earth theories and how we know the earth is round • hollow earth theories and how we know it’s not hollow • the return of Ptolemy and an earth-centered solar system model (and how we know it’s wrong) • how science deals with anomalies and fringe claims • Were humans in the San Diego area 130,000 years ago? • flood myths • the age of the earth and how geologists determined it, and more…
We are pleased to announce Skeptic’s 100th issue (25.4) which focuses on QAnon in conspiratorial context. Instantly download the digital edition or order the print edition today. PLUS: In Science Salon podcast # 146, Michael Shermer speaks Donald Prothero about his new book Weird Earth: Debunking Strange Ideas About Our Planet.
Incredible health claims are being made for coconut oil — from reversing Alzheimer’s, heart and liver disease, to treating epilepsy, slowing aging, and reducing asthma. Marketing hype has triumphed over scientific evidence. In this column from Skeptic magazine 24.3 (2019), Harriet Hall, M.D. looks at the evidence for some of these extraordinary claims.
Science Salon # 84 Michael Shermer speaks with Christof Koch about his new book The Feeling of Life Itself: Why Consciousness is Widespread but Can’t Be Computed; PLUS, Harriet Hall, M.D. looks at the evidence for some of the extraordinary claims for coconut oil.
In this week’s eSkeptic, David Priess reviews Red Team: How To Succeed by Thinking Like the Enemy by Micah Zenko.
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