Robert Todd Carroll, the author of The Skeptic’s Dictionary, has a new book out: The Critical Thinker’s Dictionary: Biases, Fallacies, and Illusion and what you can do about them. Since some of our commenters and most of the CAM advocates we critique are constantly committing logical fallacies, a survey of logical fallacies is a… read more "How to Think"
Tribalism and Medical Ethics
Science is intended to discover the “is”, not the “ought;” facts, not values. Science can’t tell us whether an action is moral; it can only provide evidence to help inform moral decisions. For instance, some people who believe abortion is immoral reject birth control methods that prevent implantation of a… read more "Tribalism and Medical Ethics"
Philosophy Meets Medicine
Note: This was written as a book review for Skeptical Inquirer magazine and will be published in its Jan/Feb 2014 issue. Medical Philosophy: Conceptual Issues in Medicine by Mario Bunge. World Scientific Publishing, 2013. 300 pages. Price $48; Kindle version $25.19. ISBN 978-9814508940 Medicine is chock-full of philosophy and doesn’t know it. Mario… read more "Philosophy Meets Medicine"
Faith Healing: Religious Freedom vs. Child Protection
We have written a lot about people who reject science-based medicine and turn to complementary/alternative medicine (CAM), but what about people who reject the very idea of medical treatment? Faith healing is widely practiced by Christian Scientists, Pentecostalists, the Church of the First Born, the Followers of Christ, and myriad… read more "Faith Healing: Religious Freedom vs. Child Protection"
Chiropractic Abuse: An Insider’s Lament
There is a new book critical of chiropractic: Chiropractic Abuse: An Insider’s Lament. The author, Preston Long, DC, PhD, is a chiropractor who says he made a big mistake when he chose chiropractic as a career. He has written an intriguing book explaining his mistake and the experiences that resulted from… read more "Chiropractic Abuse: An Insider’s Lament"
Brainwashed: Neuroscience and Its Perversions
Sally Satel and Scott Lilienfeld have written a new book, Brainwashed: The Seductive Appeal of Mindless Neuroscience. Its purpose is not to critique neuroscience, but to expose and protest its mindless oversimplification, interpretive license, and premature application in the legal, commercial, clinical, and philosophical domains. The brain is a wondrous thing:… read more "Brainwashed: Neuroscience and Its Perversions"
What Doctors Feel
Doctors are often accused of being unfeeling technicians who treat their patients like cases of disease rather than people (think Dr. House). We were taught in medical school to remain detached, not get too close to patients, and not show our emotions. That attitude was epitomized in William Osler’s essay Aequanimitas. But doctors have… read more "What Doctors Feel"
The Business of Baby and the Monkey Business of Margulis
A correspondent asked for my opinion of a new book by journalist Jennifer Margulis that is apparently getting a lot of attention in some circles: The Business of Baby: What Doctors Don’t Tell You, What Corporations Try to Sell You, and How to Put Your Pregnancy, Childbirth, and Baby Before Their… read more "The Business of Baby and the Monkey Business of Margulis"
Visiting a Victorian Duckpond
Ever heard of George Augustus Scott? Probably not. Although he was once touted as “Man of the Century,” he was actually a charlatan who sold electric hairbrushes. (No, an electric hairbrush isn’t a device that will brush your hair for you; it’s a hairbrush that supposedly produces a “permanent electric… read more "Visiting a Victorian Duckpond"
Do You Believe in Magic?
Dr. Paul Offit, a pediatrician and professor of vaccinology at the University of Pennsylvania, codeveloped a rotavirus vaccine that has saved hundreds of lives. His previous books Autism’s False Prophets and Deadly Choices examined the misinformation spread by the anti-vaccine movement following Andrew Wakefield’s infamous vaccine/autism study. Now he turns… read more "Do You Believe in Magic?"