Science vs. Pseudoscience

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Amardeo Sarma is the founder and chairman of the German Society for the Scientific Investigation of Para-Sciences (GWUP), chairman of the European Council of Skeptical Organisations (ECSO), and fellow and Executive Council member of the Committee for Skeptical Inquiry (CSI). Sarma has written, lectured, and debated on dowsing, methods of investigation, the Shroud of Turin, homeopathy, and the goals of skeptical organizations.

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World Skeptics Congress: Promoting Science and Critical Thinking in a World of Uncertainty.

Why do people turn to pseudoscience for help? What makes alternative medicine so attractive - and how can we find out what really works? Why is it so difficult for us to deal with risk and uncertainty in a rational way? Can we teach children to think critically and scientifically? And how can academic disciplines like biology or psychology protect themselves from pseudoscientific contamination?

The 6th World Skeptics Congress in Berlin was an intellectually stimulating three-day event dealing with paranormal and supernatural claims, fringe science issues, and scams. Major topics at this event were science and pseudoscience in education, in particular anti-evolution claims and origin myths, and the problems of risk and benefit assessment, especially in alternative medicine.

Gerd Antes, Wim Betz, Johan Braeckman, Edzard Ernst, Chris French, Luigi Garlaschelli, Harriet Hall, Ray Hyman, Chris Mooney, Simon Perry, Massimo Polidoro, James Randi, Gita Sahgal, Eugenie Scott, Simon Singh, Samantha Stein, Kylie Sturgess, Rebecca Watson, Tomasz Witkowski are just some of the world-renowned presenters who took part, taking apart the claims and conspiracies of the modern world.

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Keywords: Science Pseudoscience World Skeptics Congress 2012 fringe scams education critical thinking alternative western eastern traditional chinese medicine paranormal supernatural claims national political religious Berlin Opening Amardeo Sarma founder chairman GWUP ECSO European Council of Skeptical Organisations CSI Committee for Skeptical Inquiry WSC
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[AtheistOnTheEdge]

"What do you call alternative medicine that actually works? Medicine." LOL, I like that.

[FFreeThinker]

Sure. Please see links at the end of the video.

[montanaxxx]

2. "I don't see where science tells us that a higher intelligence is involved."

"I can tell you as a result of my research about atoms this much: There is no matter as such. All matter originates and exists only by virtue of a force which brings the particle of an atom to vibration and holds this most minute solar system of the atom together. We must assume behind this force the existence of a conscious and intelligent mind. This mind is the matrix of all matter." - MAX PLANCK (FATHER OF QM)

[DavidAndrewsPEC]

I know a fair bit in neuroscience. The activity seen in the background when imaging brain activity is 'noise' in the sense that we don't want it, but it is essential activity that keeps us alive. This is the stuff we filter out of images of the activity we focus on. Some is actually quite random, but hopefully not too much of it!

Subconscious is a Freudian term not used in neuropsychology.

My analogy isn't that flawed really. I trained in medical physics and psychology.

[DblOSmith]

Such a great point. I never thought of it that science is just science and is universal despite religion, region, culture, or place on an atlas. Great point.

[yatter]

Damn right, it amazes me that people still feel "pride" for something that has bugger all to do with them, well said.

[RavenBlaze]

"alternative medicine that has been shown to work"= medicine, "alternative medicine that has been shown to help" = still being researched.

[psychobollox]

Some of it is below a given threshhold - the threshhold implemented for the purpose for which the fMRI is taken. Also, in fMRI studies, a labelled substance is often injected, and background activity is filtered out. This way, we can focus on the activity we're interested in. So everything we do uses all of our brains, but the levels of activity vary according to task and over time. In uncorrected fMRI, this would come through as background noise, and impede interpretation of the fMRI.

[Drekora]

When relating to brain power, here's a base element to look at, electricity. In electricity, electrons are bonding to each other but when applying magnetism you get a pattern or a web of electrons. Each neural synapse or node connects waves and each section of the brain is the web. The connection though has to be limited to not overwork the organs and the entire body. There's a reason cells do this, to keep our bodies working throughout time and to prevent a much quicker aging.

[sushanalone]

Human beings collaborate for mutual benefit, once the rewards of collaboration fall short of meeting the liabilities and costs, or threaten one individual more than others, you will see that collaboration fall to pieces even with " (people that carry similar genes) and not distant foreginers is normal. "

[DblOSmith]

Sounds like a great talk. I'd love to see the rest of the speech.

[edtExodus]

Mutation that can create a new allele (a variation of a gene) happens in the first stage of meiosis where the DNA is coped to create the gamete (it's basically a copying error). Many of those will destroy the gene and not create any offspring. It is not to be confused with recombination which accounts for the genetic variation but does not create new alleles. So the mutation occurs during a part of the reproduction process. Mutation during general cell division has nothing to do with that.

Probably not originating there but I first heard that and loved it in Tim Minchin's Storm.

[Drekora]

When we impose ego, like believing we have all the knowledge necessary and go along with creating not based off of the complete science, we ultimately oppose nature. Nature to me, is the science, and the foundation for science.

As for me though, it's important to study the individual parts as well as piecing them all together and understanding the whole. I prefer analysis over creations that aren't in it's nature

[eggplnt]

Thumbs up for Tim Minchin! The Video is called "Storm"

[NickyC]

Thank god this conference is going on.. Just hope they do it right

[edtExodus]

I asked a colleague of mine about that (because I am not a physicist) and he said that just like most other theistic scientists Max Planck, too, fell back on the god explanation when he faced areas where he couldn't find a better explanation. Makes sense. It's the god of the gaps argument. On a small sidenote: arguments from authority mean nothing in science. It's not science telling us about that intelligent mind, it's a theist's claim without evidence. Not what he won his nobel prize for.

[Cecile]

I think that a10fjet has a valid point. The Pharmaceutical industry is interested ONLY in developing medicinal products under a patent under which they can forecast a certain profitability during the patent period. They are not the least bit interested in discovering an easily available plant that either alleviates or cures given conditions. That's not their fault. That's the Capitalistic model under which we operate. But, you can't look to them for the truth about natural alternatives.

[edtExodus]

That's about right. In very simple terms. In terms of evolution, the random mutation that creates new alleles happens during meiosis.

[Dyslexic-Artist-Theory-on-Time]

Nice video!
This is an invitation to see an artist theory on the physics of light and time!
This theory is based on two postulates
1. Is that the quantum wave particle function Ψ represents the forward passage of time ∆E ∆t ≥ h/2π itself
2. Is that Heisenberg’s Uncertainty Principle ∆×∆p×≥h/4π that is formed by the w- function is the same uncertainty we have with any future event that we can interact with turning the possible into the actual!