Char Charred, A Good Move, The Other Way Around, Censorship in India, I Didn't Know That, Correction, That "Assignment," Wisdom From Sylvia - Book Review, The Dreaded Randi Doll, and In Closing..
Reader and frequent correspondent Dr. Jan Willem Nienhuys reports that I just appeared on Dutch TV – on one of the public, not the commercial, stations – in a program named “Zembla.” This program staff visited the JREF recently to video a session in which I disassembled a Char Margolis performance of the same old "cold reading" process on her highly-popular TV program in Holland. Writes Dr. Nienhuys:
[Your input] was combined with comments by a professor of psychology, Prof. Dr. J.A.P.J. Janssen, who is in Cultural and Religious Psychology at the University of Nijmegen. He said all the kinds of things that skeptics say. He was invited to have a reading done – on camera – at the house of Robbert van den Broeke, another Dutch “psychic.” [See several references on SWIFT] He wasn’t impressed.
This program Zembla did go to great lengths to expose Char, traveling all the way to interview you. They also did some research and located a few disgruntled people who were not so positive about their readings. One of them, Marian van den Hul, had a reading that was broadcast on the Char show. Marian's husband had died and she was left with two young children. Marian was not convinced that Char contacted her dead husband:
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CHAR CHARREDReader and frequent correspondent Dr. Jan Willem Nienhuys reports that I just appeared on Dutch TV – on one of the public, not the commercial, stations – in a program named “Zembla.” This program staff visited the JREF recently to video a session in which I disassembled a Char Margolis performance of the same old "cold reading" process on her highly-popular TV program in Holland. Writes Dr. Nienhuys: [Your input] was combined with comments by a professor of psychology, Prof. Dr. J.A.P.J. Janssen, who is in Cultural and Religious Psychology at the University of Nijmegen. He said all the kinds of things that skeptics say. He was invited to have a reading done – on camera – at the house of Robbert van den Broeke, another Dutch “psychic.” [See several references on SWIFT] He wasn’t impressed.
Marian says that the actual reading lasted three quarters of an hour, though in the Char broadcast it lasted only seven minutes. According to Marian, the segments where Char failed with her questions were edited out.
Because of this advance conference he became suspicious, a fact which was clearly visible during the camera session:
That was reason for the program to delete him altogether from the broadcast. Randi comments: So, in effect, the man is still in the garbage business, except that he now delivers rather than collects it…? Dr. Nienhuys continues: I don’t quite believe what the professor says about religion, because this psychic business is doing very well in the USA – even better than in the Netherlands – and one can’t really say that the influence of the churches is waning there, compared to Holland. The medium business in the Netherlands is partly fueled by the TV people themselves, who try to earn a quick buck by providing yet another form of no-brain emotional stuff.
I don't agree. True, people don't like to give up any belief, once acquired. Giving a failed hypotheses the boot is a habit that doesn't come naturally, and it requires some kind of detachment. But what one can do is try to prevent people getting addicted to this rubbish. Amen, brother. I mean, right on! And that’s what we try to do, every day, here at the JREF... My astute readers will now see that Char is doing more than “cold” reading to impress her Dutch viewers! Since she has her lackeys ask questions – that is, “interview” the victim who’s about to be “read” – she’s using “hot reading” techniques, where she reveals to the victim details that have already been provided, as well as pumping him/her for additional material. Any “reader,” given the opportunity, will of course choose this method. Char Margolis is so admired by her audience, because she’s using standard – and advanced – methods of misdirection and trickery No surprise there, at all. But her followers in the Netherlands will continue to support her, and her producers and agents will continue to lie and swindle… |
A GOOD MOVEAs if it just occurred to Canadian officials that there might be some quackery being offered to their citizens via the Internet, Ottawa has cracked down on dozens of Canadian-based scams promising cancer cures or treatments that do nothing for the naïve other than separating them from their money and potentially harming their health by luring them away from legitimate medical care. Of course, this seeming lethargy applies to the USA and every other country on Earth, as well… Canada says it has forced 92 per cent of the dubious websites to either modify or remove their unproven claims, and they’re still working on getting the remainder to comply. So far it’s only been warning the scam artists; no penalties are involved, neither fines nor criminal charges. After all, we wouldn’t want to offend the crooks, would we? The Canadian government has also launched “Project False Hope,” in an attempt to teach people how to avoid online scams, websites advertising medicines, herbal remedies, other supplements and treatment regimes of questionable value. It’s said that health information is the third-most-searched topic online, and an estimated 8.7 million Canadians have – very unwisely – turned to the Internet for medical advice. Last fall, Canadian investigators swept the Internet for what looked like cancer cons and detected nearly 100 suspicious websites. They sent letters to operators of those sites asking them to provide evidence of scientific testing to prove their claims. In response, either the claims were removed from those websites or the websites disappeared entirely, but no clinical studies were submitted to support the claims. But why were these operators allowed to practice their scam for so long without providing evidence? Among many others, the JREF has been advertising this sort of racket every week, and naming names; are the Canadians trying to emulate US federal and state inertia? At www.competitionbureau.gc.ca is posted the anatomy of a typical health scam and tips about how to avoid it. It’s run by the Canadian “Competition Bureau,” an independent law enforcement agency that rides herd on the Bad Guys out there – which makes me wonder if the USA has an equivalent unit… In any case, we’re told that similar Internet sweeps of fraudulent health claims are now also being conducted in the USA and Mexico as part of a continent-wide initiative to root out scams. Agencies in each country also target misleading medical advertising in all forms, and the penalties can be substantial. We’ll see… |
THE OTHER WAY AROUNDReader Bruce McElhinney writes: An article in the Chronicle-Herald newspaper in Halifax claims that a dinosaur that looks like the Loch Ness Monster has been discovered in Alberta. Isn’t that like saying that James Randi looks like Santa Claus? See www.thechronicleherald.ca/Canada/1044856.html. |
CENSORSHIP IN INDIAReader Amit Kumar, editor of the Punjabi Magazine “Vigiyan Jot,” brings this to our attention. In Indian states in India where the Bhartiya Janta Party – backed by Right-wing Hindu fundamentalist organizations or their allies – are in power, it has been a common practice to attempt to silence voices of dissent and rational thought, to ban literature and documentary films, and to silence the writers and journalists through state political machinery. Punjab, a northern Indian state, is the most recent example of this undemocratic act. Megh Raj Mitter, founder of the Tarksheel (Rationalist) Society and a prominent Punjabi writer honored with the Punjab state’s highest award for writers, is the latest to bear the brunt. Rationalist Megh Raj Mitter appeals to us to condemn this heinous act at every possible level. For any inquiries you can contact the Rationalist web site: www.tarksheel.com, or click on the following link for news about the ban on books: news.in.msn.com/national/article.aspx?cp-documentid=1300279. |
I DIDN’T KNOW THATReader Rob Lucke gives us information on a widely-accepted but very wrong notion about our sensory system: As always, I settled down on Friday to read your latest version of SWIFT. I decided to follow the link given in “COMMENDABLE!” [see tinyurl.com/2xfs4u] to the article about Ridel glassware. Of course the whole thing is remarkably similar to the audio cable fiasco (an Italian word, referring to another piece of glassware, but I digress). Nestled in the article is this paragraph:
I refer you to the part describing the “tongue taste maps” related to taste. Any time this “fact” comes up in an article, my skeptic sense starts prickling, er, I mean my brain recognizes another potential phony at work – where there’s some bunk, there might be more. A brief quote from Scientific American should serve my purpose, here:
Taste researchers have known for many years that these tongue maps are wrong. The maps arose early in the 20th century as a result of a misinterpretation of research reported in the late 1800s, and they have been almost impossible to purge from the literature. Another, more detailed analysis is this one actually citing scientific literature on the subject. Note also that the author, Richard Gawel, is talking about tasting wine:
My conclusion about the “tongue taste map”? Just another example of how easy it is to establish a totally incorrect factoid in literature, and how charlatans and the lazy will seize as evidence anything that apparently supports their efforts. In this case, “It helps me sell expensive glassware, so it must be correct.” One has to wonder what the rest of “science” behind the design of the wondrous glassware is, given the misunderstanding of the taste aspects. Mr. Gawel again:
Now, which of the articles is trying to sell something and which is actually interested in teaching? I think the answer is fairly obvious upon critical analysis. Thank you, Rob! I’d seen that tongue-map several times before, and as you can see from the illustrations, it’s been copied and re-copied – and published! – without anyone checking up on it. I myself had never suspected that it might be a farce. After all, the fingers have been rather thoroughly mapped for variations in touch perception… You can do an interesting experiment on this matter. Tape two toothpicks to a pencil, as shown in this illustration. Blindfold your subject and experiment by pressing down with both points on various parts of the hand and forearm, asking each time how many points were felt. I think you’ll be quite surprised to find out that very definite areas of the skin will register only one point, rather than two. In fact, it’s very interesting to mark the areas of the skin where only one point was registered, using a felt tip pen. You’ll find out, through simple experimentation, some very interesting data about various areas of the body. On the back, for example, the two points can be widely separated and still register as only one. Grab the toothpicks and the tape, get a pencil, and go to work! Note: though the illustration shows green toothpicks being used, blue and black are equally effective. Just kidding…. |
CORRECTIONRichard Wiseman caught an error from last week, at randi.org/joom/swift/swift-march-21-2008.html#i6. There, I cited the work of Dr. Michael Persinger on the strange effect of strong electromagnetic fields on the encephalon, so well described by Dr. Susan Blackmore. Richard wrote: I am sure loads of people will email you, but in case they don’t, the research is probably that conducted by the late Vic Tandy at Coventry University. It wasn’t electromagnetic stuff, but rather low frequency infrasound. I followed up his infra sound stuff at: www.spacedog.biz/infrasonicexperiment.html. Yes, I was referring to the EM material, not the infra-sound experiments. I thank Richard for spotting this – but though he notified me immediately about this error, and I acknowledged it promptly, I decided to leave it in place just to see how many other readers might pick up on it. Result: zero. I’m disappointed… |
THAT “ASSIGNMENT”In contrast to the foregoing, the response to the SWIFT item entitled “An Assignment” – see http://www.randi.org/joom/swift/swift-march-14-2008.html#i6 – was quite gratifying. Our readers proved themselves very capable at spotting errors in the conclusions arrived at by the chap who wrote me asking, “Please, Mr. Randi, how did she do it?” Here’s a discussion of the errors, assembled from those reader responses: First: We are all rather familiar with the technique of “cold reading.” It’s the process of throwing out guesses, words, names of persons or cities, ideas, initials, and/or numbers, and encouraging Nick – the victim – to try to relate to them. These items are either offered as questions – “Why am I saying Harry?” – or as statements – “I’m seeing an old automobile.” The account of this session sounds as if it fits exactly into this category. Second: One’s memory of what was said – particularly a recollection from 35 years previously! – can be garbled, hyperbolized, or altered to fit a preferred or imagined situation. Nick said that the medium asked the question, “Does the name ‘Dearlove’ mean anything to you?” Since this wasn’t written down, it might equally well have been, “Does ‘dear love’ mean anything to you?” This would cover the name Dearlove – which several readers pointed out was a rather common name of that era and area – or a possible salutation beginning a letter, or a simple address of affection. Also, the word “anything” can cover a lot of possibilities: the name of a product, lawyer, friend, relative, neighbor, business proprietor, debtor or creditor, insurance agent, newspaper reporter – in short, just that: anything. One reader offered this little story that illustrates just how poorly we can sometimes recall an event: There used to be a quaint little teahouse in my hometown, where my friends and I would go every so often, and there was a resident fortune-teller. There was one particular thing she said that amused me. She told me that I worked in “education or health care.” Wow, I thought afterwards, what a great guess to make when doing a reading for a young woman – name two vaguely-defined, female-dominated fields. I gave her credit for the hit, however, because I was training as a speech-language pathologist, a profession with close ties to both health care and education. Third: As several readers noted, the victim did all the work, as the “cold reader” expected him to do; he cudgeled his brain to discover any and all possible connections or similarities between the medium’s guesses and reality. Remember that phrase: “…but more came to light with research.” So, it was Nick who had the “hit,” not the psychic. Fourth: We are not told how many hits and how many misses there were in this guessing game, over all the sessions that Nick attended. That’s essential, if a proper assessment is to be made. The victim always tends to ignore and then to forget the out-and-out-misses, but remembers and cherishes the apparent hits. It’s a selective procedure that works to the advantage of the scam-artist. Fifth: As one reader so well expressed it: Perhaps the “psychic” was expecting a reply in the form of, “Yes, my grandmother called me that [dear love],” or something similar, giving her an opening to work her cold reading? When the reply was a simple “Yes,” she anticipated a skeptic who knew not to feed her information, so she cut the conversation short with “He’s watching over you.” She thought she was getting herself out of a fix, and didn’t even realize that her “dear love” remark had proved a hit... I’d say that this was a major fumble by the medium, who could have totally ensnared Nick, had she perceived the possible eventual impact of her guess… Sixth: Nick – the victim – says that he attended at least one prior event, perhaps several. The medium, seeing his interest, might have inquired about him and thus obtained some information about him. Since the person named Dearlove had also dated Nick’s mother and later ran a local pub, that name could have been well-known to the medium. Seventh: As a reader pointed out: The guy appears to have read far more into the meaning than was there, and to have done it from a very “egocentric” [narcissistic] perspective – clearly reading into a remark amounting to next-to-nothing just what he wanted and/or needed relative to depressive feelings about certain recent personal events at the time. Of course the medium wouldn’t respond – why bother? And more factual detail may not have been available. Another reader wrote: I’m a 52-year-old Londoner and I’ve heard of “Dearlove, the East End insurance agent” even though I’m from the South end of town. The pseudium [Randi: I love this invented and ever-so-clever word!] may have picked up a London inflection. Other readers suggested that the domestic might have tipped off the psychic, since there can be a lot of money in that racket, and a “finder’s fee” could be forthcoming. Also, she seemed a bit overeager to get the two young men to the “reading.” Another reader suggested that since the gentleman in question believes in thought transference rather than in the simple coincidence of people in the same circumstances and with the same information coming to similar conclusions contemporaneously – it’s fair to say that he may not be quite as critically minded as he thinks he is. All in all, the clues that were present in the victim’s description were perceived by readers, and this assignment was well accomplished. Next week’s assignment: come up with a word that describes an invented word like “pseudium,” even if you have to invent one… |
WISDOM FROM SYLVIA – BOOK REVIEWWe recently received yet another Sylvia Browne item at the JREF Library. This one is “Topic 3, Tools for Protection” – by which Sylvia means, of course, protection from those dreadful psychic emanations and vibrations – from the 16-book series “Journey of the Soul.” It’s a spiral-bound 112-page book, one that I strongly suspect was actually written by Browne herself, since the spelling, grammar, and content are so vapid and juvenile. I turned at random to three spots in the document, and on page 33 – punctuation, spelling, and grammar exactly as in the original – I got: Moon Cycles Now, it’s obvious that no one who invests in such a book – or who writes it! – has any notion of what magnetite, electromagnetic energy, magnetic fields, or vibrations, are. These are buzz-words used to attract the naïve and ignorant. Magnetite, for example, is a magnetic iron ore – FeFe2O4 – that has nothing to do with blood, nor with platelets. Next, on page 61, I was treated to another fuzzy set of instructions, this time with a few words from “Francine,” one of the “higher” spirits with whom Sylvia regularly chats, she says. Again, no changes; this is what she wrote: I want to explain to you how you can make in your homes what they call, a “Crucelle.” A crucelle was a word that was adopted by Catholicism. Unfortunately, it did not come from that. It came from what is known as a “Triangular Point of Healing.”
To make a Crucelle, you should have one green candle, one white candle, one purple candle, one gold candle .... The one green candle goes at your feet, the one white candle goes to your right, the purple candle goes to your left, and the yellow or gold candle goes to your back. You sit in a position in a chair or on the floor, cross-legged in this triangular form of candles. When you are seated in this position with palms upward, ask that St. Michael, the Archangel, attend you in healing. With your palms upward on your thighs sitting in this position in which you form this triangular Crucelle, you will then ask for all the positive Archangels, Archetypes, St. Michael to walk across this barrier. Anything that is negative stays on the outside and is dissolved by the flames of these fires burning on these candles; any negative force, any attack, any Dark Entity [stays on the outside]. Then, on page 104 under “TOOLS FOR PROTECTION” – again, with punctuation, spelling, and grammar exactly as in the original – we read this hilarious bit: Novena For Assistance From Mother Azna: No further comment needed… |
THE DREADED RANDI DOLLI heard that a young lady, the sister of our media manager (Bianca Montalvo) working in an office here in Fort Lauderdale – a modern, 21st-century office – had discovered that her employers were disturbed by the fact that a Randi Doll was present among them. I asked her for details: I’m told that you wanted some details on what people at my office are doing, because after almost a year of having your doll in my office they decided to notice it. Check your calendars, folks. Yes, it’s really 2008, we have flowing water and air conditioners, and very few people are still being burnt at the stake for heresy or witchcraft. However, I see that the JREF missed a commercial opportunity to sell anti-hex candles locally… |
IN CLOSING…I’ve had many requests for details about my forthcoming visit to the UK in April. Sorry, I can’t give you details just yet, but all will be revealed as soon as final plans are made… I’m at the MIT Media Lab – a wondrous place! – on April 1st (that figures) and next week I’m at the Conference on World Affairs in Boulder, Colorado. Try to get around to meeting me, if you can. I’m always happy to meet SWIFT readers…! Here’s a hilarious video in which P. Z. Meyers and Richard Dawkins discuss their attempt to attend a screening of Ben Stein’s latest foray into creationism, a movie titled, “Expelled.” It’s 9 minutes of discussion on a fiasco that will have you roaring… Go to:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0hEIeitxhLA |