Happy Birthday, James Randi!
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Happy 84th birthday to James Randi from your team at the JREF. You inspire us everyday with your decades of tireless work to free people from the shackles of unreason. We hope you enjoy celebrating this special day with your longtime partner Deyvi Pena, and we wish we could all join you for the party.
This Week In Doubtful News
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- Written by Sharon Hill
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Here is a rundown of the top stories in pseudoscience, anomalies and paranormal news from the past week courtesy of Doubtful News.
We hereby dubbed last week WEIRD ANIMAL SIGHTINGS WEEK. Check it out!
A new picture of the "Loch Ness Monster" surfaced. But since certain pieces didn't fit. It left us with more questions about what this picture actually shows.
Lake monster fever was high in Norway, where sightings were captured in both Lake Seljord and Lake Hornidal. Good thing we have an in-house Norwegian translator!
Something snaky was going on in a New Jersey backyard as two non-native and quite scary snakes showed up. Then, there was the announcement of a new, rather…phallic looking, amphibian that the media just couldn't resist.
Animal Planet, who capitalizes on shows about Bigfoot and Mermaids, encapsulates the monster phenomena by showing us it's all about money.
Last Week At Science-Based Medicine
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- Written by Dr. Harriet Hall
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Here is a recap of the stories that appeared last week at Science-Based Medicine, a multi-author skeptical blog that separates the science from the woo in medicine.
The perils and pitfalls of “patient-driven” clinical research (David Gorski) http://www.sciencebasedmedicine.org/index.php/the-perils-of-patient-driven-clinical-research/ Patients with serious diseases like cancer and ALS are often tempted to try untested treatments, and now they are claiming to be collaborating on “research.” They don’t understand that it is impossible to tell whether a drug works by analyzing a bunch of testimonials from a group of self-selected patients self-medicating with therapies in an unblinded fashion with no proper control group.
Therapy or Injury? Your Tax Dollars at Work (Harriet Hall) http://www.sciencebasedmedicine.org/index.php/therapy-or-injury-your-tax-dollars-at-work/ The Army is hiring acupuncturists to do things they are not trained to do, like prescribing orthotics and things that bruise and burn the skin (moxibustion and cupping). The described duties (and acupuncture itself!) are incompatible with the stated job requirement to “offer the most current evidence based approaches.”
Kinesio Taping - The Latest Sports Fad
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- Written by Dr. Steven Novella
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Famous athletes, whether professional or amateur, are symbols of talent, skill, hard work, and dedication. During the Olympics, for example, we often marvel at the many years of incredible sacrifice and persistent training that it takes for any athlete to get to the Olympic Games, let alone contend for a medal.
Unfortunately, athletes have also become a symbol for something else - gullibility, superstition, and exploitation. While watching sporting events you are likely to see athletes sporting the latest pseudoscientific device that is meant to give them a performance edge. Even worse - many athletes become paid shills for these bogus devices, using their fame and success to sell snake oil.
Over the years we have seen athletes wearing copper bracelets, those little tabs across the bridge of their nose, and those magical rubber and plastic wrist bands. All useless.
Remembering The AntiPope
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- Written by Dr. Romeo Vitelli
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Attending the 2012 Amazing Meeting in Las Vegas was an amazing experience (hence the name, presumably). Not only did it allow me to interact with personal idols such as James Randi, Steve Novella, D.J. Grothe, and Ben Radford, but I was also able to bring myself up to date on skeptical matters around the world. In addition to the various festive occasions was one somber event commemorating the various members of the skeptical community who had died in the past year. Along with familiar names such as Christopher Hitchens and Robert Buckman, there were also well-known members of the JREF forum including Jeffrey A. Wenning, Peter Johansson and Brian Isbell. As well, the In Memoriam presentation also provided more unconventional names for us to remember. That included a range of unique, and at times bizarre, characters whose activities brought them to the attention of skeptics everywhere. Along with the various cult leaders, “alternative medicine” mavens and cryptozoologists who died recently, one name stood out for me. Then again, how often do you commemorate the death of an anti-pope? Not to mention a Canadian one?
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