Bullshit Detection – “Evidence not Credentials”

by

As far as Bullshit Detection goes, I appear to be on a bit of a roll at the moment. I blogged here about spotting woo words a week ago, and that resulted in some interesting debate in reddit, so I’ve added an update to that original woo-words posting.

OK then, so what else can we add to our “Bullshit detection kit”? Well how about developing a healthy respect for evidence and learning to be skeptical about claims that are backed with nothing except credentials.

You do of course appreciate that you can obtain a degree in just about anything without actually studying or passing any exams; just pay the appropriate fee and become instantly accredited. A great example is Thunderwood college. This is a site run by Brian Dunning of Skeptoid and offers you free instant degrees. Brian is not attempting to con anybody, he simply designed the site to drive home the point that many credentials are bogus and meaningless. The mainstream academic community will of course issue valid degrees as proof that the recipient has acquired a specific level of knowledge. Unfortunately, there are also thousands of others churning out worthless credentials not recognized by the academic community, so unless the credentials are from an institution that is recognised by the mainstream academic community as an accredited organization, its meaningless.

Read more

Does Jesus make you fat?

by

If you believe the media, then apparently being a religious believer also makes you fat.

In the UK we have the Daily Mail claiming … (and they even have a picture offering you proof) …

U.S. researchers say Sunday worship can be just bad for your health as burgers and chips.

Experts at a Chicago university found those who worship regularly were 50 per cent more likely to be obese by middle age compared to non-religious people.

They are not quite sure why, though some say that because eating during church services has traditionally been allowed, worshippers were inclined to munch their way through the sermon.

Read more

Real Skeptics vs fake skeptics

by

Today’s Uk Telegraph has what can be best described as a rant from James Delingpole. Just to give you an idea of what I’m on about, here are a few choice snippits from it …

The aspect of it which I have particularly enjoyed is the sanctimonious and hypocritical rage of a vociferous lobby group of self-styled “skeptics.” (See here, here and here.) Though mostly based in Britain, they spell themselves in the American style to distinguish themselves from “sceptics” like me. That’s because, unlike proper sceptics they – get this! – are card-carrying members of the Church of Climate Change.

Now least you wonder, buried in that rant among the Ad-Hominem is his delusional belief that a “true” skeptic is somebody who is a climate-change skeptic. Little things like reality and scientific fact don’t count. Note the use of the term “Church” in a vain attempt to label climate change as a religious belief.

If curious, and you are prepared to tolerate a considerable degree of utter stupidity, then you can read his full rant here.

His main theme is that these “fake” skeptics have committed the horrendous crime of not agreeing with him … gasp, what a shock.

Read more

Living Longer … what really works?

by

If you wish to live to a ripe old age, in fact if you want to age well, then what do you actually need to do, what makes a real difference? here is a popular list:

• Don’t sweat the small stuff.
• Wear sun block daily.
• Drink plenty of green tea and water.
• Reduce stress.
• Be cheerful and optimistic about life.
• Get a pet.
• Marry.

Does that all sound familiar? Of course it does, because if asked, then it is a list that most of us might have come up with simply because we all face a constant stream of information from a wide variety of sources insisting that this is what you need to do. Tragically these are all myths, there is no long-term data to backup many of these claims. In fact, it now turns out that much of this is simply wrong and will guarantee that you live a shorter life, not a longer one.

Read more

See James Randi in Norway – Live Online Video on Monday

by

I’ve simply cut and pasted this from here where the original was (well) written by Sadie Crabtree. It hit my “Oh thats cool” button, and yes indeed, I’m a JREF fan and 100% support all that they do. If you are not familiar with the JREF you may be interested in checking them out, I do highly recommend you to do so.

James Randi is traveling throughout Norway for a public awareness campaign sponsored by the Norwegian Humanist Association. Friday night he gave a lecture to a packed theater in Oslo, where more than 2,500 lined up to get one of the 1,000 seats for his free presentation.

Randi’s next talk in Trondheim will be broadcast live online by the University student association Studentersamfundet, beginning at 1:00 p.m. Eastern (10:00 a.m. Pacific) on Monday. Bookmark this link and tune in on Monday to watch.

Randi has given nearly a dozen interviews to Norwegian TV, radio, podcasts and daily newspapers—about homeopathy, Uri Geller’s recent visit, and the strange beliefs of the Norwegian Princess Märtha Louise. We’ll put some of these online when they’re available in English, along with video of Randi’s lectures.

If you’re in Norway, you can find Randi’s tour schedule here.

Read more