One main reason that people are attracted to herbal medicines is that they are “natural therefore safe”. This, of course, is a dangerous assumption and is completely wrong. There are two main reasons why ‘natural’ does not necessarily mean safe:

1. Naturally occurring drugs.
   
   If a herbal remedy does work (and almost all of them don’t) then it will be because the herb contains naturally occurring drugs. It doesn’t actually matter whether a drug is manufactured in a test tube or inside a plant, if it has a physiological effect on the body then it may well work; however, this also means it may also have unintended effects – dangerous side effects.
   
   
2. Medical drugs added during manufacture (adulteration).
   
   As most herbal remedies do not work, unscrupulous manufacturers will sometimes add medicinal drugs to their products so that they do get results. The danger here being that the person taking such ‘herbal’ remedies will not be aware of what’s in them and will be prone to possibly dangerous side effects without realising it. (more…)

---

John Jackson © UK-Skeptics

---

C onfirmation bias is where we look for reasons, or supporting evidence, that matches our belief or thesis whilst disregarding or placing less weight on disconfirming reasons or evidence against it.

As a hypothetical example, let’s look at someone’s belief that hypnotherapy helps people to stop smoking. People do go to hypnotherapists and subsequently give up smoking and there are many people who will anecdotally state that hypnotherapy worked for them. It seems convincing, but is this proof that hypnotherapy really helps people to give up smoking? (more…)

---

John Jackson © UK-Skeptics

---

“I’m entitled to my opinion”, “you’re entitled to your opinion”. Both of these expressions come up frequently in debates but what do people mean by them and are they of any relevance in a debate?

(more…)

All over the media last week were reports of the finding that drinking coffee can lead to people seeing ghosts. Headlines such as:

• Three cups of brewed coffee a day ‘triples risk of hallucinations’;
• ‘Visions link’ to coffee intake; and the alarmist
• Danger from just 7 cups of coffee a day.

all had the same theme: that drinking coffee can lead to an increased risk of hallucination and therefore seeing ghosts or sensing dead people around you. (more…)

See: Critical Thinking petition.

A new petition has been started to petition the Prime Minister to introduce Critical Thinking as part of the core curriculum in primary and secondary schools.

From the petition’s creator:

(more…)

---

vbloke © 2006

---

Let’s assume for a minute that astrology actually works. No questions, it just does. Now, when the astrological signs were drawn up originally, it was done around 600BC. Each sign (e.g.: Scorpio) are exactly 30° wide – they are measured eastward along the ecliptic from the vernal equinox, which is the intersection of the elliptic and the celestial equator and is the zero point.

When the system was originally set up, the zero point was in Aries and was called the “first point of Aries”. (more…)

Claims are often put forward by proponents of alternative remedies and therapies stating that they have tested their treatment and it has passed the test: proof that it works. Skeptics, however, insist that unless a treatment has passed a double-blind, placebo-controlled study, it is not valid.

Why is this? What is so special about the double-blind, placebo-controlled test? To find the answer, we need to look at the different ways that treatments can be tested and what the pitfalls are. (more…)

---

An examination of the question: can skeptics be skeptical of skepticism?

John Jackson © 2008

---

---

vbloke © 2006

---

Western (Zodiacal) astrology relies on the position of the Sun, Moon and planets at the time of your birth to determine your personality. Each planet has a particular “personality” and affects different aspects of your personality.

How this happens is never really explained, why it kicks in at the time of your birth instead of the time of conception is also never really explained either. Is there something in the womb that shields you from the astrological effects?

If it is a “force” that emanates from the astronomical bodies that effects you, then it is an entirely new force unknown to science. We only have four forces to work with – gravity, electromagnetic , the strong nuclear force and weak nuclear force. The last two only work at atomic levels (they keep atoms held together and can only be felt if you’re about the size of an atom), so they can’t be any use. (more…)

---

Open Mind: A mind open to new ideas, lacking in prejudice, not dogmatic.

John Jackson © 2004.

---

It is very common for people who are putting forward a claim to say something like, “you must consider this with an open mind“, or if their claim is rejected they will say something like, “well of course you don’t believe it, you’re closed-minded“.

There are many ways that this ‘appeal to open mindedness’ manifests itself, so let’s have a look at why it is not usually a valid argument: (more…)