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Antivaccine nonsense Autism Complementary and alternative medicine Medicine Pseudoscience Science Skepticism/critical thinking

The University of Wollongong issues a PhD in antivaccine pseudoscience

I remember my PhD thesis. In particular, I remember the years of work that went into it. I remember being grilled (with good, constructive intent) by my thesis committee a couple of times a year as I worked on it. I remember the many, many hours spend writing it. And, above all, I remember the […]

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Medicine Politics Popular culture Science Skepticism/critical thinking

“Transparency” should not equal a license to harass scientists

Kevin Folta was subject to an abusive FOIA request for his emails by US Right To Know, an anti-GMO group seeking to harass him for his advocacy for GMOs. Paul Thacker, a journalist, used those emails without pointing out the true nature of the source of the FOIA request, and has argued for an expansive view of FOIA that is basically a license for groups like USTRK to harass scientists.

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Medicine Politics Science Skepticism/critical thinking

How the Michigan state government poisoned the children of Flint

This post will be different than my usual post. Let’s just say that it has to do with quackery of a different kind than I usually write about here. It’s about a public health disaster that was entirely preventable and had nothing to do with vaccines. It has to do with government malpractice on an […]

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Clinical trials Complementary and alternative medicine Medicine Pseudoscience Science Skepticism/critical thinking

NCCIH research: Nothing much there behind the curtain

It’s an understatement to say that I’m not exactly a fan of the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH), the institute formerly known as the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM) and, even a year after its name change, probably still better known by its old moniker. Just type “NCCAM” or […]

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Clinical trials Medicine Science Skepticism/critical thinking

Fixing peer review

I’ve frequently noted that one of the things most detested by quacks and promoters of pseudoscience is peer review. Creationists hate peer review. HIV/AIDS denialists hate it. Anti-vaccine cranks like those at Age of Autism hate it. Indeed, as blog bud Mark Hoofnagle Mark Hoofnagle, pointed out several years ago, pseudoscientists and cranks of all […]