Skepticism, in the sense that we use the word, is an approach of critical inquiry. It does not claim that we can know nothing. Nor is it opposed to belief. We all have and need beliefs to get through life.
What we’re up against: The issues skeptics examine
Article by:
ASR Resources Department @
3:42 pm |
August 8, 2007
Filed under: Critical Thinking,Skepticism
Filed under: Critical Thinking,Skepticism
The prophecies of Malachy
Part of “Pseudoscience A to Z”, a series of articles in the Skeptics Canada newsletter.
Malachy O’Morgair is known today as Saint Malachy, and like many saints, he had humble beginnings.
Tags: Prophecies, Pseudoscience A to Z —
Reverse-reading a psychic, or Can I con a con artist?
Note: Some details in the following article, such as names, have been altered to allow for further investigations.
Cold Reading: Confessions of a ‘psychic’
This article is based on an interview with OSSCI executive member Timothy Campbell.
A diligent channel surfer should notice a new trend in TV talk shows: psychic guests supposedly channeling the dead relatives of audience members, often conveying information they could not possibly have known in advance. Can psychics really divine the future by speaking to the dead, or do they, as skeptics insist, just use an old magician’s parlour trick called “cold reading”?
Tags: Cold Reading —
A closer look at psychics
On February 13, 2004, Toronto-area skeptics attended a reenactment of highlights from the December 3, 2003 instalment of Larry King’s phone-in show. Skeptic Deirdre Breton, sporting a blonde wig, played purported psychic Sylvia Browne. David Gower wore Larry King’s suspenders. Francesca Groves stood in for the callers by adopting a variety of accents.
Tags: Cold Reading —
A magician’s perspective on ‘real’ magic
Long-time skeptics are well aware of the important role that magicians play within the skeptical community. A professional magician’s skills (used solely for purposes of entertainment) enable him or her to develop a keen awareness of the pitfalls and foibles of those darker, more malicious forms of deception, paranormal and pseudoscientific fraud. Granted, both the trained skeptic and the scientifically astute magician are able to view the world through a clearer lens of understanding than that of the average person. But the magicians, by virtue of their training, see a certain dark side to human nature: the illegitimate claim of self-proclaimed psychics to have been blessed with paranormal talents. This is truly an extraordinary claim, demanding extraordinary proof. These alleged talents (“gifts” as they are sometimes reverentially referred to) are akin to “black magic”: no scientific explanation is offered, and indeed no logical explanation is even considered possible.
Falling for ley lines
Part of “Pseudoscience A to Z”, a series of articles in the Skeptics Canada newsletter.
Tags: Ley Lines, Pseudoscience A to Z —
The Ica Stones
Part of “Pseudoscience A to Z”, a series of articles in the Skeptics Canada newsletter.
Tags: Ica Stones, Pseudoscience A to Z —
Hollow Earth
Older Posts » Part of “Pseudoscience A to Z”, a series of articles in the Skeptics Canada newsletter.
Tags: Hollow Earth, Pseudoscience A to Z —