It is now almost 18 months since Madeleine McCann went missing in Portugal. As is usual with high profile cases of missing persons, there’s a plethora of ‘gifted’ psychics and mediums eager to involve themselves with the case so that if it is ever solved they can claim to have ‘helped’. It is taking advantage of others’ misfortune in a most despicable way yet it seems to help their profile – amongst believers at least.

We saw many interventions and predictions about this case from many psychics last year and two things stand out: none of them came up with a story that matched any other psychic’s (wouldn’t they all be the same if their ability was real?); and none of them came up with anything that was of the least bit of use. (more…)

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John Jackson © UK-Skeptics

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Spontaneous combustion is scientifically defined as the ignition of any chemical product or material that is not initiated by direct application of a flame or direct source of ignition.

Spontaneous Human Combustion is the proposed phenomenon whereby human beings spontaneously combust without any external source of ignition, often burning away most of the body, yet leaving surrounding materials unburned. (more…)

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John Jackson © UK-Skeptics

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In the UK, there is currently interest in the polygraph, popularly known as the lie detector. It is regularly featured on a daytime television show where it is used to ascertain if specific guests are lying to their relatives and it is being proposed by the government to ameliorate control of known criminals in society; notably for the screening of paedophiles. (more…)

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Chillzero © 2006

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Catherine (Chillzero) writes from the perspective of scepticism, with an established background of belief in the paranormal. Having examined how psychics arrive at their predictions – from both sides of the fence – Catherine reveals here how they perform. It may be worth highlighting here that any psychic who appears on the media is granted permission to do so only under the laws that govern entertainment, and so the word perform is most appropriate.

I used to believe I had psychic abilities. I gave tarot readings, I consulted my spirit guide, and believed in the spirit of nature as being a force in all things. I would not consider the old me to be a con artist – I was not intentionally deceiving people. I honestly believed I was given the ability to interpret signs, and that I was using it for good. So I believed I was genuine, as did plenty of other people. I could read the traffic around me uncannily well, knowing when a driver was about to turn suddenly, or not turn where they signalled to. I was good at reading tarot cards and at helping people come to decisions about events in their lives. I would spook people by telling them who was calling when the phone rang, or that someone we were waiting for had just come into the bar although my back was turned to the door – that sort of thing. (more…)

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John Jackson © UK-Skeptics

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On the face of it, alternative medicine does not have a lot going for it. The treatments and remedies are often expensive, have various associated risk factors, have to rely on mystical and magical forces to explain how they are supposed to work, and the vast majority of them fail to show any effect in clinical trials. The bottom line is: they do not work.

When looked at logically, alternative remedies make no sense. Why then are so many people placing their faith in these treatments that, essentially, do nothing? (more…)

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Errors in skeptical debates: Argumentum ad Derren Browniam.

John Jackson © 2008

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OK, this is not a serious attempt to introduce a newly named logical fallacy! However, I would like to address the usage of the argument whereby people, and often skeptics, try to convince others that what psychics do isn’t real because Derren Brown can do the same things. I jokingly refer to this as the ‘Argumentum ad Derren Browniam’. (more…)

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THE MURDER DETECTIVES AND THE MEDIUM: A TRUE STORY.

Emma-Louise Rhodes © 2008. (See: www.emmalouiserhodes.com)

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On February 26, 1980, the body of twenty year old Elizabeth McCabe was found in a clearing at Templeton Woods outside Dundee. Twenty-seven years later, in October 2007, Vincent Simpson went on trial, charged with her murder. On November 7, 2007, the jury at the High Court in Edinburgh heard that during the initial investigation, detectives took part in a séance at the house of a local medium, in order to try and find out who had killed Miss McCabe.

Although police forces across Britain generally deny using psychic mediums, this incident illustrates the motivation behind such rare involvement (from a police point of view), as well as with the obvious outcome. (more…)

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John Jackson © 2008

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This is a report of the programme broadcast by Channel 5 in the UK on 25^th September 2008. The programme featured self-proclaimed psychic Derek Ogilvie, ‘The Baby Mind Reader’, undergoing formal testing of his claimed ability; notably for the JREF $1,000,000 paranormal challenge. This is an overview of the programme commenting mainly on the tests done, why they were done as they were, and what they actually mean. (more…)