Although i've not been posting regular News round-ups since August '12, reality has continued to happen. What a surprise!
Here is a glimpse at what's gone on, in the last few months.
And here's my most-recent mini-essay, on the standards we should apply to pseudo-science proponents: Click here
Sections - Ben Goldacre; broad articles; specific articles - good news, then bad; WDDTY magazine; Doubtful News round-up by Swift of the JREF
Ben Goldacre:
Ben Goldacre's new book is out! I have already received this wondrous creation, via Winterval, but have yet to start reading it. Damn my FIFO principle!
http://www.badscience.net/2012/09/holy-crap-i-just-touched-my-new-book/
Here's the foreword:
http://www.badscience.net/2012/09/heres-the-intro-to-my-new-book/
And he's been on TED too -- the trouble with forgetting negative results
http://www.badscience.net/2012/09/i-did-a-talk-at-ted-about-drug-companies-and-hidden-data/
Broad articles:
'Regulation of alternative medicine: why it doesn’t work, and never can'
http://www.dcscience.net/?p=5562
How self-deception into pseudo-science works:
'Acupuncture, the Navy, and Faulty Thinking'
http://www.sciencebasedmedicine.org/index.php/acupuncture-the-navy-and-faulty-thinking/
What To Do If Your Doctor Sells Woo
http://www.randi.org/site/index.php/swift-blog/1919-what-to-do-if-your-doctor-sells-woo.html
The food allergy and intolerance myth buster. Do you know the facts about allergies and intolerances?
http://www.nhs.uk/Tools/Pages/Food-allergy-myth-buster.aspx?
Leo Igwe: 'A manifesto for a skeptical Africa'
When we think of
Africa, many in The North ('The West' is an erroneous term) think of a backward place, rife with superstition, and
dwelling in ignorance - but there are some Africans who are vying to
change this. Leo Igwe is a key man, working to save his fellow
Africans from their cultural mire. He outlines their predicament, here:
"Many
irrational beliefs exist and hold sway across the region. These are
beliefs informed by fear and ignorance, misrepresentations of nature and
how nature works.
These misconceptions are often instrumental in causing many absurd incidents, harmful traditional practices and atrocious acts.
For
instance, not too long ago, the police in Nigeria arrested a ‘robber’
goat which they said was a thief who suddenly turned to a goat. A
Nigerian woman was reported to have given birth to a horse. In Zambia, a
local school closed temporarily due to fears of witchcraft. In Uganda,
there are claims of demonic attacks in schools across the country.
Persecution
and murder of alleged witches continue in many parts of the continent.
Many Africans still believe that their suffering and misfortune are
caused by witchcraft and magic. In Malawi, belief in witchcraft is
widespread. Ritual killing and sacrifice of albinos and other persons
with disabilities take place in many communities, and are motivated by
paranormal belief.
Across Africa people still believe in the potency
and efficacy of juju and magic charms. Faith-based abuses are
perpetrated with impunity. Jihadists, witch-hunters and other militants
are killing, maiming and destroying lives and property. Other-worldly
visions and dogmatic attitudes about the supernatural continue to
corrupt and hamper attempts by Africans to improve their lives."
http://www.randi.org/site/index.php/component/content/article/37-static/1891-leo-igwe.html
'“Antioxidant” is not a synonym for “healthy”'
The idea that
"anti-oxidant" means "healthy" is bunk. If you put effort into eating
foods because they have 'anti-oxidants' in them, you could well be
corrupting your diet toward ill health. "Healthy, balanced diet" -
recognise that clause? It feels like it's been the standard Scientific
dietary advice since time immemorial!
"we at Cancer Research UK
(along with many others) have been pointing [this] out for years. Large
studies have repeatedly shown that, with the possible exception of
vitamin D, antioxidant supplements have negligible positive effect on
healthy people, at least in terms of important things such as preventing
people getting cancer or dying prematurely. And some supplements –
notably vitamins A, E and beta-carotene – even seem to slightly raise
the risk of disease and early death."
http://doubtfulnews.com/2013/01/antioxidant-is-not-synonym-for-healthy/
'The continuing saga of Holland and Barrett'
Despite claiming to
wilfully comply with medicinal advertising regulations, Holland &
Barrett stores still show 'indications' for Nelson's homeopathics
(adverts telling people how to use it).
I'm really not that surprised
- H&Bs stocks a wide variety of quackery - mostly herbal
non-medicine, but including (obviously) homeopathy, which is still nothing but shaken water.
But then, i don't expect them to care - quacks do what they do through business interests - not through medical interests.
http://www.nightingale-collaboration.org/news/133-the-continuing-saga-of-holland-and-barrett.html
'Chelation for Autism - Putting the Cart before the Unicorn'
(Chelation is a process which extracts metals from the blood-stream - whether they should be there or not)
"There
is a cottage industry of so-called "biomedical" treatments for ASD -
they treat ASD as a biological disease that can be cured or at least
significantly ameliorated. This conflicts with the current scientific
consensus regarding ASD, that it is a neurodevelopmental disorder (a
result of brain wiring), and not an active disease. Legitimate
interventions focus on improving function. Critics of biomedical
treatments (myself included) argue that such treatments are
unscientific, exploit parental desperation, and even victimize children
with ASD."
http://www.randi.org/site/index.php/swift-blog/1936-chelation-for-autism-putting-the-cart-before-the-unicorn.html
Specific articles:
The good news
'A 180 degree turn on GMOs. Thank science.'
I'm drawing attention to
this one because the anti-GM superstition is so pervasive, and yet bunk.
Mark Lynas - a leading environmental activist - has seen science about
GMOs.
"Lynas has changed his mind—and he’s not being quiet about it.
On Thursday at the Oxford Farming Conference, Lynas delivered a blunt
address: He got GMOs wrong.
To vilify GMOs is to be as anti-science
as climate-change deniers, he says. To feed a growing world population
(with an exploding middle class demanding more and better-quality food),
we must take advantage of all the technology available to us, including
GMOs. To insist on “natural” agriculture and livestock is to doom
people to starvation, and there’s no logical reason to prefer the old
ways, either."
http://doubtfulnews.com/2013/01/a-180-degree-turn-on-gmos-thank-science/
The ethical case for Pink Slime (the stuff burgers are made from)
http://www.randi.org/site/index.php/swift-blog/1880-the-ethical-case-for-pink-slime.html
Are we all getting dumber?
I don't think so - we're just taking on tougher tasks than we did 2000 years ago.
http://doubtfulnews.com/2012/11/becoming-dumb-have-you-seen-all-the-things-i-have-to-figure-out-today/
The Bermuda Triangle, you say? It doesn't even exist! Even i thought
there were some kind of anomalously high accident record - but not even
that is true.
http://skeptoid.com/episodes/4337
The bad news
'Wacky celebrity fads of 2012'
http://bodyodd.nbcnews.com/_news/2012/12/28/16213010-wacky-celebrity-fads-of-2012-dried-placenta-pills-oxygen-shots?lite
Homeopaths offer to rebrand damp sugar pills as confectionery:
Because, nudge nudge, wink wink, everyone will know that the sugar pills are actually homeopathy. The homeopaths are threatening to subvert medical regulations, and continue selling their damp sugar pills, but relabelled. Reasons this won't work:
- It's a bluff. They know only a tiny minority really cares enough about homeopathy to buy sugar pills, with a nudge nudge, wink wink.
- They really are sugar pills, but without flavouring. They will taste like shit sweets, and give their manufacturers a bad reputation.
- Their move to do so would get them more unwanted media attention, exposing them to scorn for deception, and for doing homeopathy (due to the improved awareness that will ensue)
{Four months on, and they haven't carried out their threat. I'm guessing they've either given up on the idea, or they're incredibly slow workers}
http://www.guardian.co.uk/science/the-lay-scientist/2012/aug/02/1?INTCMP=SRCH
More on homeopathic superstition - 'homeopathic vaccines'
http://www.nightingale-collaboration.org/news/139-homeopathic-vaccines.html
Read my mini-essay on why homeopathy can't work. It's helpfully titled 'Why Homeopathy CAN'T Work'
'Neti Pot: Safe and Effective?'
Only if it's done with a sterile applicator, and saline -- otherwise, it's a low-risk, but high-hazard superstition.
http://youtu.be/ztnpOHJjWig
Death threats for criticism. Sound familiar? Superstition engenders intolerance of criticism, resulting in personalised attacks (offence).
http://www.randi.org/site/index.php/swift-blog/1918-dr-karen-stollznow-jref-research-fellow.html
Shark cartilage is a quack product that recently came to my attention. You're probably familiar with the idea that sharks don't get cancer - they do. But they don't get bone cancer. Of course not - they don't have any bones. They do, however, get cartilage cancer, and it is this supposedly-uncancerrable material that charlatans sell as an expensive non-cure for cancer.
http://www.cancerresearchuk.org/cancer-help/about-cancer/treatment/complementary-alternative/therapies/shark-cartilage
They might annoy you, but that doesn't mean they annoy the mosquitoes
'High-frequency mosquito repellents don't work, study finds'
http://www.cbc.ca/news/story/2007/04/18/mosquito-repellent.html
'What Doctors Don't Tell You' magazine
'What Doctors Don't Tell You' is a
magazine produced by pseudo-scientist proponents of quackery. It makes
all kinds of egregious, and dangerous claims, stating nonsense to be
medicine, and medicine to be nonsense/conspiracy. The Nightingale Collaboration has
devoted an entire series of investigations and subsequent reports to it, because it makes so many hazardous
claims, which have all been filed to the ASA. The series so far:
'WDDTY #1 - The First of Many'
http://www.nightingale-collaboration.org/news/134-wddty-1-the-first-of-many.html
WDDTY #2 - The Second Wave
http://www.nightingale-collaboration.org/news/135-wddty-2-the-second-wave.html
WDDTY #3 - Strike Three
http://www.nightingale-collaboration.org/news/136-wddty-3-strike-three.html
WDDTY #4 - Feeling the heat?
http://www.nightingale-collaboration.org/news/137-wddty-4-feeling-the-heat.html
WDDTY #5 - A Poisonous Problem?
http://www.nightingale-collaboration.org/news/138-wddty-5-a-poisonous-problem.html
WDDTY #6 - The Missing Link?
http://www.nightingale-collaboration.org/news/140-wddty-6-the-missing-link.html
Doubtful News round-up, by Swift of the JREF. These are usually quite fun :)
16-22/1/13
www.randi.org/site/index.php/swift-blog/1992-this-week-in-doubtful-news.html
9-15/1/13
http://www.randi.org/site/index.php/swift-blog/1982-this-week-in-doubtful-news.html
2-8/1/13
http://www.randi.org/site/index.php/swift-blog/1979-this-week-in-doubtful-news.html
26/12-1/1/13
http://www.randi.org/site/index.php/swift-blog/1970-this-week-in-doubtful-news.html
19-25/12/12
http://www.randi.org/site/index.php/swift-blog/1963-this-week-in-doubtful-news.html
12-18/12/12
http://www.randi.org/site/index.php/swift-blog/1953-this-week-in-doubtful-news.html
5-11/12/12
http://www.randi.org/site/index.php/swift-blog/1947-this-week-in-doubtful-news.html
28/11-4/12/12
http://www.randi.org/site/index.php/swift-blog/1940-this-week-in-doubtful-news.html
21-27/11/12
http://www.randi.org/site/index.php/swift-blog/1931-this-week-in-doubtful-news.html
14-20/11/12
http://www.randi.org/site/index.php/swift-blog/1921-this-week-in-doubtful-news.html
7-13/11/12
http://www.randi.org/site/index.php/swift-blog/1914-this-week-in-doubtful-news.html
31/10-6/11/12
http://www.randi.org/site/index.php/swift-blog/1867-this-week-in-doubtful-news.html
24-30/10/12
http://www.randi.org/site/index.php/swift-blog/1903-this-week-in-doubtful-news.html
17-23/10/12
http://www.randi.org/site/index.php/swift-blog/1893-this-week-in-doubtful-news.html
10-16/10/12
http://www.randi.org/site/index.php/swift-blog/1886-this-week-in-doubtful-news.html
3-9/10/12
http://www.randi.org/site/index.php/swift-blog/1876-this-week-in-doubtful-news.html
26/9-2/10/12
http://www.randi.org/site/index.php/swift-blog/1858-this-week-in-doubtful-news.html
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