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Antivaccine nonsense Autism Bad science Medicine Pseudoscience Quackery

Adventures of a science-based mole at an antivaccine crankfest (part one)

Last week antivaxers Shannon Kroner and Britney Valas held an antivaccine quackfest known as One Conversation. It had started as a “balanced” debate/conversation/panel/roundtable, or whatever, but rapidly devolved into an antivaccine crankfest as the pro-vaccine scientists invited declined. A brave minion attended and is now reporting back.

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Antivaccine nonsense Medicine Popular culture Pseudoscience Quackery

The One Conversation public debate/ discussion devolves into an antivaccine crankfest

One Conversation was originally sold as a public debate or discussion about vaccine that would represent “both sides.” When the real scientists who had been enticed by Britney Valas and Shannon Kroner’s seeming sincerity found out about the antivaxers on the panel and just what they do and believe, things fell apart. Now what’s left is an antivaccine crankiest.

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Medicine Science Skepticism/critical thinking

On “doing your own research”

Ethan Siegel at Forbes argues that you “must not ‘do your own research.’” While the title grates, Siegel is correct that most of us are not really capable of “doing our own research” about most scientific and medical questions because we lack the necessary background. We must therefore be humble and be very, very careful about “doing our own research.”

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Autism Bad science Cancer Medicine Pseudoscience Quackery Skepticism/critical thinking

One Conversation: Three legitimate medical authorities ensnared in the trap of appearing on a panel with antivaxers

I was invited to discuss vaccines with antivaxers for a panel called One Conversation. Recognizing an antivaccine trap, I politely declined. Unfortunately, other legitimate medical authorities did not, thus enabling the illusion of legitimization of antivaccine views.

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Antivaccine nonsense Bad science Pseudoscience

Gayle DeLong responds to the retraction of her dumpster fire of a study on HPV vaccination and fertility

Gayle DeLong finally responds to the retraction of her incompetent paper linking HPV vaccination to lowered fertility in women in—of course—the antivaccine propaganda blog Age of Autism. It doesn’t go well.