I have a new favorite word. Yesterday, in the comments after my post on cranks attacking the concept of a scientific consensus, a reader named Craig wrote: We don’t talk about consensus on these issues today merely because the consensus is so strong that only a dedicated guanophrenic would ever question them. “Guanophrenic”? I love […]
It has often been written on this blog and elsewhere that the mark of a true crank is hatred of the scientific consensus, be it consensus regarding the theory of evolution, the science that says homeopathy is impossible, anthropogenic global warming; various areas of science-based medicine; or the safety and efficacy of vaccines. Perhaps the […]
Every so often, real life intrudes on blogging. This is one of those times. So enjoy this bit of Classic Insolence from back in April 2007 and be assured that I’ll be back tomorrow. Remember, if you’ve been reading less than three years, it’s new to you, and, even if you have been reading more […]
Every so often, real life intrudes on blogging, preventing the creation of fresh Insolence, at least Insolence of the quality that you’ve come to expect. This is one of those times. So enjoy this bit of Classic Insolence from back in November 2007 and be assured that I’ll be back tomorrow. Remember, if you’ve been […]
Here we go again. Every so often, it seems, the media has to recycle certain scare stories based on little or no science. Be it vaccines and whether they cause autism or not (the don’t) or various environmental exposures supposedly linked to various cancers or other diseases in which the science is far more complex […]
