August 20, 2004 |
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Nonsense in High Places, Cataclysm in Greece Predicted, Ghost of a Bug, Magnetize Your Wine, Apology & Correction Department, Poo in a Horn, The Stupid Stones Are Back, On Further Consideration, Radin's At It Again Again, Welsh Scrappers, Those Brave Ghost Hunters, and In Conclusion....
Table of Contents:
The July, 1947, "Roswell Incident," in which a previously-top-secret US spy balloon device fell in the desert near Roswell, New Mexico, has been once again resurrected by that state's Governor Bill Richardson, he who chaired the recent Democratic convention in Boston. He says in his foreword to a new book:
Governor, that old story has been well blown apart and away. Do some reading. Dr. Andrew Fraknoi, noted astronomy popularizer and critic of pseudoscience in New Mexico, called Richardson's foreword unbelievable. "This continues to confirm that election or appointment to high office does not guarantee wisdom in all areas of human thought," he said. Dave Thomas, president of New Mexicans for Science and Reason in Albuquerque, responded to the governor's statement: "We're kind of disappointed in Richardson for perpetuating the mythology of that thing." Philip J. Klass, the grand master of skeptical UFO investigators, said:
But Glen Graves, the executive director of the New Mexico Republican Party took Richardson's side. A native of Roswell, Glen just hopes that the truth about all this won't be too disillusioning, because the saucer legend is very good for the local economy. Figures. Truth doesn't enter into consideration here, at all.
Several readers alerted me and thus, you of this dire prediction. A man named R.W. Welch wrote a book in 2000 titled, "Comet of Nostradamus." As I sit at my computer writing this, I wish to make a prophecy based on what Mr. Welch has written; more of that in a moment. In his book, Welch predicted that a gigantic comet predicted by Nostradamus, he said would hit Earth around August 19th, 2004, in the Aegean Sea off the coast of Greece. Quoting him:
The Nostradamus quatrain from which Welch got this nutty notion is Century III, #3, and his translation and interpretation of the quatrain, also from an excerpt from his book:
Mars and Mercury, and the silver (moon) joined Welch states that this quatrain means that a comet will fall in the Aegean Sea between Corinth (modern Kórinthos) and Ephesus western Turkey. That would put it at about 100 kilometers east of Athens, which could really disturb the 28th Olympiad! The "drought," he says, refers to the heat effect of the comet as it passes over southern France. The trembling of the earth, to Welch, predicts more than just the explosion of the comet. Its impact evidently triggers an earthquake, as well. The presumption, naivety, and ego of these "interpreters" of the doggerel of the Prophet of Salon, were never better demonstrated than by this amateur philosopher, Welch. Please refer to the illustration here, taken from a very early edition of Nostradamus. It reads in case it's not clear first in French, then in English translation:
Mars and Mercury, and Silver joined together,
Towards the South a great drought,
In the bottom of Asia shall be an Earth-quake,
Corinth and Ephesus shall then be in perplexity. Well, the translator of this 1672 (Garencieres) edition in our library disagrees with most other fumblers who have attempted to bring meaning to this series of four-line hoaxes. He divines that the first two lines of this quatrain define an alchemical formula for gold(?), while the last two are simply a prediction of an Asian earthquake. In my opinion, this is just another of many such references to a planetary configuration of Mars, Mercury, and the Moon, in this case this one to a time of drought in the south of some country or other, and an earthquake somewhere in south Asia. This almost-correct arrangement of the planets and the Sun will happen from time to time, so this particular date is not specified, at all. Wow! As usual, the revelation is precise, meaningful, and accurate! True, Mars, Mercury and the Sun are all together in the constellation Leo, on this date, though the Moon has moved on. At least Welch got that partly right. Here, as promised above, is my own, personal, prediction: My vast experience in examining this sort of prediction tells me that there will be no earthquake in the Aegean on that date, that a comet will not fall on the Earth at that time, and that Mr. Welch along with all the other Nostradamians will be dead wrong again. Reader Martin Del Vecchio alerts us to a Boston Globe article dealing with an event that recently took place in Chestertown, Maryland. A security officer there was startled to see what appeared to be a ghost haunting Kent County Court House. On July 29, for a little more than an hour, a security camera showed a round, translucent, white object that seemed to walk up and down a set of stairs inside the newer wing of the courthouse. Much to the disappointment of the woo-woo crowd, that "ghost" turned out to be a very out-of-focus bug walking about on the camera lens a not-unheard-of cause for such an anomaly. But devout believer Beverly Lipsinger, president of the Maryland Ghost & Spirit Association, and thus unbiased, immediately discarded any approach to sanity, saying that the descriptions she'd heard didn't sound at all like a bug. "It's a ghost," she said, "They [the authorities] don't want to believe, so they're coming up with something." Yes, I believe that they did come up with something, Bev: it's called reality, rationality, logic, and other things. It's a real solution. Ms. Lipsinger only heard a second-hand description of the image seen on the security camera videotape, yet she can confidently declare that there is definitely a ghost there. To her, those who have investigated the tape and have provided a more testable explanation, are just "coming up with something." Okay....
Reader Daniel Rutter tells us:
Yes, Daniel, I am astonished to know that someone is advertising and selling something that does not work! What's the world coming to? Next thing you know, some opportunist will be trying to talk us into putting magnets in our shoes to help circulation, or drinking magic water to cure diseases! Daniel's review can be seen at www.dansdata.com/wineclip.htm. It's an interesting read.
APOLOGY AND CORRECTION DEPARTMENT I received the following letter from a Mr. Glenn Hill of West Bridgford, Nottingham, England. He's the son of Elsie Wright, one of the two "Cottingley Fairies" girls who duped Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and a good portion of the rest of the world back in 1917 when they produced photos that purported to show these critters flitting about near their home in Leeds. Wrote Mr. Hill:
Many years ago, my mother showed me a copy of a rather rude letter she had written to you and I told her I disapproved of it. She had been annoyed at the familiarity of your correspondence that said "Now come off it Elsie and tell the truth" or something similar.
My mother later went public with an admission and apology for keeping the practical joke going too long. She had waited until after the death of Gardner, who died at the age of over 100.
Incidentally, Mother was 5ft. 10in. tall, an art student at the time of the first photos not a little girl as shown in the daft film. Mr. Hill refers here to the film, "Fairy Tale: A True Story," in which Harvey Keitel played the best Houdini ever shown on screen, and Peter O'Toole looked as unlike Sir Arthur Conan Doyle as any actor possibly could. I refer to the Cottingley story at www.randi.org/library/cottingley/ and to the movie at www.randi.org/library/cottingley/movie.html. The "Gardner" he mentions was Edward L. Gardner, a Theosophist therefore a firm believer in fairies and a photographer who fancied himself an expert in that art. Called in by Conan Doyle as a consultant, he had thoroughly endorsed the validity of the photographs. It's good to know that Elsie was concerned enough with Gardner's feelings that she spared him the inevitable embarrassment that would have resulted from her confession. I responded to Glenn Hill:
You know, I had a lot of correspondence with Elsie, and none of it was at all acrimonious. She had a great sense of humor, and I teased her about her prank while trying to get her to confess. Now you tell me that she was sparing Gardner, and I have to admire her for that.
I wonder: would you care to have photocopies of that correspondence? I'd be happy to send it to you, and I know that we'll both hear Elsie chuckling in the distance....
Yes, that dreadful film certainly did not portray Elsie and Francis nor Sir Arthur! as they actually looked, that's very true. O'Toole looks as much like Conan Doyle as I resemble Tony Blair! However, the Keitel portrayal of Houdini was brilliant though the girls, Houdini, and Conan Doyle never met, as was claimed by the film.
Truly, thank you for giving me this opportunity to correct an error about a lady I never met, but respected and liked. She was a character, I'm sure you'll agree. Appropriate corrections will be made in the text appearing at www.randi.org/library/cottingley/movie.html. Where it says, "Elsie, hounded in England by the press, fled to America, to the state of Maine, where she made an unhappy marriage with a wealthy industrialist, a situation that broke up quickly and caused her to return to the U.K. once again" will appear, "Elsie moved to America, to the state of Maine, where she met and married Frank Hill, on leave from India, on July 28, 1926, and they remained married all their lives. As I knew her, she was a feisty lady, quick and bright, but always vainly nurturing the vision of opening on Broadway with her life story. She died in 1988, at the age of 88."
We've just heard of one of the more bizarre "biodynamic practices" known "Preparation 500," not to be confused with "Preparation H." This consists of burying cow horns stuffed with manure in the earth at the Fall Equinox on "ley lines" where "astral influences" cross. This scheme is designed to aid the growth of grape vines, for the wine trade which can be very mystical even without such props. The horns are to be dug up at the Spring Equinox, at which time their contents are to be diluted with rainwater. This preparation must be "dynamized" stirred in alternate directions for an hour before being spread on the vines. The system is advertised as transferring the "life giving" forces of the Earth to the vines, making them healthier. Right. Sounds logical.... Many of the top wine estates in France have subscribed to this practice, which was an offshoot of principles developed by Rudolf Steiner (1861-1925), the Austrian philosopher who founded Anthroposophy and the Waldorf schools. Steiner couched his theories in scientific jargon, but there are no scientific studies behind his conjectures. It's all mysticism. The present leader of the biodynamic movement is Nicolas Joly, who says, as only he can:
Biodynamics also specifies times for official wine-tasting, too. The biodynamic growers want their wines tasted only on "fruit" or "flower" days, but of course not on "leaf" or "root" days. The determination of which category any given day falls into, is yet another mystical, anthoposophical, process, equally boring and nonsensical.
In response to my appearance on an audiophile web forum, where the JREF million-dollar challenge was being discussed in relation to the "Shakti Stones" farce, I heard from a Dave Clark, who at once began assuming the usual fallacies about the challenge. He ran on and on about his total misinterpretation of the challenge, then declared that he is simply "not interested." I responded:
You state that "the money [is] not really an issue." Really? You're fabulously wealthy, then? You also complain that, "More money equals more headaches!" Ah, but just think of the aspirins you could buy with a million dollars and have lots left over! Let's examine a couple of your other comments: "with regards to the restrictions that he applies to others..." Since you're obviously perhaps purposefully ignorant of my work, you've no way of knowing anything about any "restrictions" I might have ever "applied" to any tests. However, logical, definitive, simple, straightforward, and rational, may be "restrictive" elements to you, so you wouldn't want to get involved, and I fully understand.
You also suggest: " . . . perhaps Ben Piazza of Shakti could do it. Has he [Randi] made the offer to Ben?" Dave, you silly rascal, you know that this offer is open to anyone and everyone, in any country, any age, and any I.Q. level. Mr. Piazza certainly qualifies! Perhaps you'd be so kind as to personally forward my offer to him, then? Wow! This is exciting! Ben, where are you? And I should add, Dave, that yes, I specifically did challenge Ben, via e-mail and on my web page where an average of 90,000 daily page hits are entered, internationally. And Ben won't respond. Why do you suppose this is so, Dave?
Hello, Ben? You out there somewhere? Call Dave!
Dave, you're the ONLY one in the audio field who has responded to my challenge in these audio matters, even though you weren't one of those I specifically contacted. And you're "not interested"? Gee, we have to wonder why. I'd ask those on the audio forum to put pressure on those others I specifically challenged on these matters....! Dave Clark responded briefly to pressure from the forum:
No application, no ability, no guts, no hope, Dave. I agree. Ah, but one Robert Young, AIA, Senior Associate of an architectural firm in NYC, has decided that he wants the million dollars for telling us whether or not Shakti Stones are being used. Says he, confidently, "i'll [sic] be practicing this weekend." Yes, and on Monday we'll hear that he's found this sort of thing doesn't work under pressure, that he's decided he's too busy, that he now doesn't want the million, or that he's not going to humor us by winning the prize. Betcha!
Reader Pat Kelley makes a discovery:
The next day he walked up to me and apologized. He'd watched, and the Egyptologists had made cautious statements about what they had learned, while the author had asserted with absolute certainty that he was right, and that what he was stating must be the truth.
So I found out there is some purpose in prodding others to question, and not simply keeping quiet. I hope I never see the day when science is dictated by majority opinion and force of personality. Way to go, Pat!
At http://health.discovery.com/schedule/episode.jsp?episode=0&cpi=106910&gid=0&channel=DHC they advertise a Discovery Health Channel program titled "Electric Man," where viewers can
Reader Josh Allen tells us that
The protagonist does eventually visit a real hospital and gets a magnetic scan of his brain. The real scientists discovered that he was completely normal. What was especially disgusting was the way that pseudoscience and quackery were given equal status with real science, not to mention, a good deal of credibility. In fact, the quacks were probably given more credibility than actual experts, due to the way the show was presented. The producers gave a minute or two to a psychologist who was even able to mention selective memory, but he was treated mostly as an afterthought.
The show did however feature some astonishing footage of street lights actually going out. Wow. I'd have to drive around for a few nights in a row to get footage like that. It really causes me to wonder what we're coming to. Josh, these "electric" people are pretty common. And the street lights that go out are usually one of two kinds: those that are programmed to go out by a timer, and those that are set to react to the infra-red field of a person or a car. Note that the blurb for the program specifies that the scientists they called in used various devices to test Janusz without any common sense (which is much cheaper) being employed, and note, too, that his MRI tests were normal; if they'd been in any way strange, that fact would be celebrated as significant, yet, to them, a "normal" chart can looked upon as being just as remarkable. I can just hear them: "All these magical powers, yet his brain looks quite normal! Wow!" Funny, but we didn't get an application from Janusz nor from Dean Radin. But Radin's far too dignified to win a million dollars, in spite of the fact that this sort of power would win it easily. Next week, we'll discuss more of those "magnetic" people who seem to get popular about every six months when the media find that a lull in pseudoscience is losing them readers/viewers.
Reader Lee Pullen and his brother are activists when it comes to pursuing the promotion of quackery. Lee recently was gifted with a membership in the JREF by his friend Adam Ulivi. He tells us that he wears his JREF T-shirt with pride. Says Lee about an alarming situation he's come upon:
"Reflexology is based on the unsubstantiated belief that each part of each foot is a mirror site for a part of the body." (www.skepdic.com/reflex.html) This theory has no basis in fact, and far from "curing" people, can have detrimental effects. What if practitioners encouraging these medicinal foot massages dissuade patients from seeking proper medical treatment? What if patients spend vast amounts of money seeking cures which reflexologists promise? Placebos can have side effects too.
The University of Glamorgan should be dedicated to educating people, but not in ridiculous fields such as reflexology. Next you'll be running courses on astrology, dowsing and feng shui. How can a supposedly legitimate establishment endorse such preposterous notions?
I eagerly await your response to this e-mail, and would like to know what action you will be taking. Perhaps you could replace the reflexology course with lessons in common sense.
While I appreciate that reflexology and associated so-called "alternative" medicines are growing in popularity, I have to admit to being more than a little dismayed at your holding of such a course.
Reflexology has been shown many times to have no benefit beyond placebo; indeed, the science behind it (that areas of the foot map to areas of the body) is not based on well known biological facts, as a trip to Glamorgan University's biology department would confirm to you.
Since your establishment is a university you have a social responsibility to provide quality and accurate education to students, both regular and that of the summer school. Reflexoloy is a pseudoscience not based in reality and it is disappointing that Glamorgan University would deem it necessary to promote such a subject, giving it a legitimacy that it does not deserve. Even the most basic background fact checking of reflexology shows it is a subject not to be taken all together seriously.
Here are references to three clinical studies into the effectiveness of reflexology for your information. There is a lot more literature out there concerning such studies. In all properly executed double blind clinical experiments, reflexology has been shown to have no more effect than a placebo, ie: it does not work.
Foot reflexology massage:
A blinded investigation into the accuracy of reflexology charts:
Reflexology and bronchial asthma, Allergy Unit National University Hospital, National University Hospital, Copenhagen, Denmark:
I understand that due to the promotion of "alternative" medicines in media outlets, especially those directed at women, you will likely not find it difficult to fill the spaces in the course and I'm sure you will make a profit from it. However, it's a sad day when an education establishment values profits above accurate learning for its pupils.
Randi comments: I felt that I should also inform the University of the risk they are taking in promoting and teaching pseudoscience. I fired off this e-mail letter:
Readers will of course be informed if either the Pullens or I have any response from the University of Glamorgan in Wales, UK, concerning this matter. At this writing it has been 34+ days that we've been awaiting a response. If past experience is any indicator, we'll hear nothing from them, they'll ignore this caveat, and the quackery course will fill up with eager, paying, students who have learned a discredited notion of no value to those to whom their services will be rendered. But I'm willing to be proved wrong either on that expectation, or on the validity of reflexology via instructor Lewis. Stay tuned.
Reader J. Nash found this news item: http://uk.news.yahoo.com/040811/344/f02cf.html and commented:
Oh, I'm sorry, I hadn't read the next paragraph: "[The kit] includes motion and humidity detectors, a temperature monitor and electromagnetic meter to spot subtle changes in the room which could show a ghost is present."
I see. Well, since we all know that these are definitive indicators of ghostly presence and that all houses, particularly old ones, stay one exact temperature, and humidity level from spot to spot and from day to day, then this system should be foolproof. I don't really know much about "electromagnetic" readings so I can't comment about that, but it seems to me that these companies bank on most people being ignorant of scientific jargon, and so throw it in there just to distract them. I am curious to know how the testing goes, because they will obviously need a real ghost in order to do proper double-blind test. Perhaps they'll put out a want ad? Mr. Nash, though I've no notion what an "electromagnetic meter" might be, I know it's hard to believe, but this is the same sort of over-instrumentation that such "experts" as ghost-chaser Loyd Auerbach dearly love, because it gives them lots of variables in which to find significance. Loyd says he has been personally informed by an actual ghost that these wraiths are "balls of energy," so masses of meters and detectors would seem essential to such investigations. Any draft, odor, bit of suspended dust, a thump, or creaking, tips off these sensitive scientists that a spirit is obviously in residence. And probably, a sensation in the thumbs will do that for the really experienced. Remember?
By the pricking of my thumbs,
- MacBeth, Act IV
We're working on a small alteration to the JREF Challenge, which will go up very shortly. With so much complaining that we won't test certain claims that are just too damn silly, we'll have an insert that explains and limits the range of claims that we'll accept. You'll be notified right here.
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