Science or Bunk: How to Tell the
Difference
Why I care if You Waste Your Money
What is Science?
A process, not a recipe:
• Get curious.
• Ask a question.
• Decide how to figure out an answer.
• Do an experiment. Make sure you understand
what you are doing.
• Figure out what the results of the experiment
mean. Have you answered your question? If you
made a hypothesis, was it confirmed or refuted?
• Keep on going!
What is Pseudoscience?
Something that sounds “scientific” but is missing
one or more key ingredients:
• Thoughtful testing by experienced scientists
• Peer review by other experienced scientists
• Consistency with known scientific laws and
facts
Next we will look at some warning signs of
pseudoscience; not everything that exhibits
these signs is nonsense, but the more there
are the tighter you should grasp your wallet.
Warning Signs of Pseudoscience
The discoverer pitches his or her claim directly
to the media, bypassing scientific review.
Particularly beware of paid infomercials…
Example: Cold fusion. The original
announcement in 1989 contained little
information useful to scientists who wished to
replicate the results; they have in fact never
been replicated. (At this point, even if they
are, Pons and Fleischmann won’t get credit).
Warning Signs of Pseudoscience
A powerful establishment is supposedly trying
to suppress the work.
Example: Magniwork
Warning Signs of Pseudoscience
The scientific effect is at the limit of detection.
Example: Cryptozoology (Loch Ness monster,
Bigfoot, etc)
Many alternative health schemes fall into this
category as well (homeopathy).
Warning Signs of Pseudoscience
Evidence for a discovery is anecdotal.
The plural of “anecdote” is not “data”; data
need to be collected in a thoughtful,
reproducible way.
Example: cryptozoology again; alternative
remedies are particularly susceptible to this
one. The placebo effect is real, and needs to
be understood before you believe claims for
any remedy.
Warning Signs of Pseudoscience
The discoverer claims a belief is credible
because it has endured for centuries.
Sorry, but we have learned a lot in the past 100
years or so! Much of what our ancestors
believed about astronomy, biology, history,
psychology…. was wrong.
Examples: Doomsday 2012; alternative
medicine; astrology
Warning Signs of Pseudoscience
The claim requires new laws of nature, often in
serious contradiction to well-established
knowledge.
Examples: homeopathy; magniwork and other
free energy devices; astrology
I’m not a scientist; how can I
figure out what’s what?
First – see what the scientists are saying. Go to
original sources as much as possible. If you are on
the Web, .gov and .edu sites are best. Next are
.info and .net; last are .com .
Second – if someone makes a claim, ask “How do
you know?” Learn how to evaluate the response.
Third – beware of “scientifical” or “sciency”
arguments. Especially beware of anything with
“quantum” in the title that doesn’t involve partial
differential equations, and anything that invokes
vibrations, frequencies, or energy flow.
Useful Resources
Health:
Quackwatch, www.quackwatch.com
Snake Oil?
http://www.informationisbeautiful.net/play/snak
e-oil-supplements/
Energy:
Popular Science, www.popsci.com
Wired Science,
http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/
General:
Mythbusters, Discovery Channel and
www.mythbusters.com
Useful Resources
Blogs:
• Respectful Insolence,
http://scienceblogs.com/insolence/
• Bad Astronomy,
http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/badastron
omy/
• Pharyngula,
http://scienceblogs.com/pharyngula/
• Scientopia blogs, http://scientopia.org/blogs/
• Science blogs, www.scienceblogs.com