Tip:
Highlight text to annotate it
X
I'm joined today by Rebecca Watson she is founder of the skeptic blogging also
cohost the skeptics guide to the universe
podcast a fellow Massachusetts
college graduate be you I went to grad school
at Bentley University I think the UN Bentley arrivals and some sport but I
just have I didn't really pay attention in a
possibly and be you had zero
school pride so I wouldn't be able to pick a rival at Allina
so how did you first become involved in the skeptic movement there or how did
you first
start having skeptic leanings I was actually in college
I A was working as a magician and obviously
I as one does and I had to pay my
mind that big be you bill somehow cell ad
yeah a with the big banner magicians they Penn and Teller
and James the meeting Randy and his do Andy actually that I
really gone bob he is an escape artist
and magician who has for a long time now offered a million dollar prize to
anybody who can prove that they have paranormal abilities
and I was a big fan of his into RadioShack Ireland and only two people
also there's an incredible video
above James Randi and a guy who said he can move
paper I think it is with his mind NJ and Randy very quickly identifies the guys
blowing on the paper so we put a bunch of styrofoam peanuts
around the book and the guy all the sudden can't do any point into the
lights and saying there's some kinda
issue with the later something it the men amazing video that people can look
at
yeah and he's done a lot of great stuff like back as he has that magicians mind
and there's a big overlap between magicians and skeptics because
you know there's so many people out there who are just using magic tricks to
try to
fool people and take their money and that includes guys like that I'll
or even psychics who are preying upon people who have lost loved ones and
things like that
the tissues magic tricks and they tell them that they have these mission
supernatural abilities
and its it can be really awful in terms that
taking people's money and also plane with their
memories of their loved ones in with their emotions so if you were getting it
now
name the three or four most problematic areas where lack of critical thinking
are
falling for so-called magic as the case may be
is leading to misinformed people and having a real
back you know I could think I've climate change on evolution on whatever the case
is what what are the three or four that you are most worried about right now
at we've named to at my top Wednesday through any
and so-called politicized science things like creationism creeping into schools
and what happens with the Texas State Board of Ed constantly trying to sneak
creationism and and
and you know there there are things happening right now in a
had where was it and of the time I had him pick up with state it is but someone
else is just introduced a new bill to
force teachers to teach the controversy
oh that's right that's so that South Carolina yeah we're yes proved
a lot and stuff for the new curriculum except for the teaching of evolution is
science
exactly and so that's a bad one climate change is a huge one because that's
something that is going to have
it is currently have been AT&T death toll
and is going to have more of one in the future what's interesting to me about
the climate change one is that the problem
is media driven in the sense that if people got their news
from science they would see that disproportionately
there is a consensus on that issue but when you get your news
from you have to talking heads here's one person who says
humans are a factor here's another person who says humans are not a factor
in climate change
it sounds pretty balanced to me i guess its controversial
yes the problem of mass balance and we see it not just with climate change but
with pretty much
any skeptical topic another huge one that we focus on at skeptic
is vaccine denial right nest that's another one where you see
at B's articles about vaccines in the present this idea that on one side there
are people who believe back scenes are safe and effective
and on the other equal side there are people who believe that they're
dangerous
in cause autism the sides are not equal and
all of the evidence we have shows us that vaccines
are safe and effective and and
for the better good at society and there's a very small but vocal group
and mostly scientifically ignorant people
who are arguing that vaccines cause autism
there's absolutely nothing to suggest that that is true know obviously you
could have only come to that conclusion because the government has told you that
that's the message you're supposed to be on and they're probably even paying you
to be part of the establishment
yeah apparently I get quite a big paycheck from Big Pharma
which is news to me because Big Pharma's something that I have
fought viciously in the past I used to be in activists were keen to you
and to improve medicare to include prescription medication
and lobbyists from Big Pharma where exactly who I was fighting
but fast forward a few years and been accused of being in Big Pharma's pocket
and that is one of the problems though present in this kinda fast the laminates
like well you're either on Big Pharma side
or you're on a little guys side be a look at most
alternative medicine out there this is being produced by Big Pharma
the people who are making millions of dollars of the pattern did medicine
art trying to you you know they don't have some
and some hope for humanity that that the evil big pharma company doesn't have
they are the big pharma companies although these you know you can have
opened the door now it to me
asking about homeopathy we had a little segment a couple weeks ago where I said
what are some of the
the biggest scams we know other than my producer and I discussed that
and by scams we mean something that legal but is either dis
deceptive or it's not what it is or it's a way for people to take your money and
I listed
in a long list of things homeopathy saying when you actually look at
active ingredients in homeopathy there's almost nothing there
it's like the looting at a teaspoon of salt in a big swimming pool or even more
and that James Randi took a whole bottle love love some kinda
up homeopathic sleeping medicine and he not only didn't
feel sleepy he should have been in the hospital that were true how effective it
was
so I got a bunch of flak for this saying David homeopathy helped me and it has
helped others
I'm thinking about the placebo effect but what do you know about this supposed
controversy over homeopathy
well you're absolutely right a lot of people
and confused homeopathy with naturopath the cell
that's one thing to get a out-of-the-way and at the start
what homeopathy is is literally
nothing a sugar pill some water
there is add the definition a homeopathy is that there is no active ingredient
and they're basically two rules to homeopathy one is that the more you
dilute something the strong great get
well let let heard about that one when I heard that I said how is it that
all love the basic fundamentals up science
and a where else would it applied that the more you dilute something it
stronger imagine if you put
some salt in a dish and in a soup for example
and then you double the amount of water and you say well how is that possibly
going to make it saltier
rate yeah it makes 0 sense
and any child should be able to
debunk that one and it's not even just diluting it its you know wat
the example you gave a spin it's all in a swimming pool
is would be one of the weakest dilutions that homeopathy
could offer weakest and because their standard
dilution is is something like a single Adam
other thing in olive the oceans honor
and you know you will not get that you are getting more
at fish poop in your water then you're getting any kind homeopathy
in homeopathic treatment and that's just one roll the other rule
is the idea that like cures like so
for instance if you have poison ivy
and it's very itchy then you should find something else that makes you eighty
and eat it and this whole something
so example like if you have a soy allergy
and you get poison ivy you should have some saw a together to the poison ivy
yet exactly I'm a dancer very minute bit of thought
right add to the point where they're is no actual so year
and you know we're back when homeopathy you was invented
it actually was pretty successful just because
doctors at the time a be medicine at the time
was you know using leeches and and things like that so
not tree Dina a minor illness
was actually better than going in getting it treated
and so by taking sugar pills incentive
going and getting leached you could do a lot better for yourself
I would assume combining the non-destructive
backed above the sugar pills with possible placebo effect your
you're gonna do okay yet the other thing is the placebo effect which is a really
fascinating topic and one that I recommend people read up on because
every time you think you understand the placebo effect you find something else
out about it that makes it even weirder and more amazing
but yeah and the placebo effect can
and account for quite a number people who
take alternative medicines and seem to get better and sometimes even actually
do get better
all right we've been speaking with Rebecca Watson founder of the skeptic
blog
also cohost I've the skeptics guide to the universe podcast
great to talk to you thanks for joining us thanks for having me on great started
to