Skeptical Inquirer Audio Edition

Stephen Hupp recounts his first paranormal investigation, during which various devices and phone apps attempted to communicate with spirits. While skeptical of the random word-generating apps used during the session, Hupp contemplates the potential future of paranormal investigations if artificial intelligence were employed to create seemingly logical and context-aware interactions, raising questi...

Skeptical Inquirer Audio Edition is a production of Skeptical Inquirer and the Center for Inquiry. About the Author: Rob Palmer has had a diverse career in engineering, having worked as a spacecraft designer, an aerospace project engineer, a computer programmer, and a software systems engineer. Rob became a skeptical activist when he joined the Guerrilla Skepticism on Wikipedia team in 2016, and b...

The concept of "healthy eating" remains elusive due to the lack of long-term, randomized controlled trials proving the benefits of any specific diet. While short-term studies exist, they cannot establish definitive cause-effect relationships between diet and disease, making dietary recommendations largely observational rather than scientific certainties. Read this article and find accompanying ref...

Shortly after Malaysian Airlines Flight MH370 vanished in 2014, speculative theories emerged, including a claim that it was abducted by UFOs. This theory gained traction in 2023 when Redditors revisited two faked videos purporting to show orbs teleporting the plane. Despite overwhelming evidence, including matches to stock images and effects, some believers, fueled by influencers and conspiracy th...

This article includes two excerpts from chapter 5 (titled "The Subjects of Pseudoscience") of Kendrick Frazier's fantastic new book Shadows of Science (2024). The first excerpt is the beginning of the chapter, and the second excerpt is the last three paragraphs of the chapter. We are grateful to Ruth Frazier and Prometheus Books for granting reprint permission and to Ken for sharing this key part...

John Hendrix, a self-proclaimed prophet from rural Tennessee, allegedly predicted the rise of Oak Ridge and its role in the Manhattan Project decades before it happened. While his visions were later embraced by journalists and propagandists of the era, early accounts lack written evidence, suggesting the story evolved as part of local folklore rather than documented foresight. Read this article an...

The claim that we've explored only 5 percent of the ocean is misleading, as it depends on definitions of "explored" and "known." While detailed high-resolution mapping of the entire ocean floor is incomplete due to cost and logistical challenges, scientific techniques like sonar and satellite altimetry have provided a broad understanding of seafloor features, with military archives holding additio...

Recent court cases highlight the rise of pseudo-healthcare professions, where individuals without proper credentials claim First Amendment protections to operate in regulated medical fields. The wellness industry's growth, fueled by social media and distrust in traditional healthcare, has led to unqualified influencers dispensing health advice, raising concerns about misinformation, public safety,...

Susan Gerbic recaps her experience at CSICon 2023 and makes the case for why you should attend our next conference! Read this article and find accompanying references at: https://skepticalinquirer.org/2024/02/come-for-the-speakers-return-for-the-community/ About the Author: Affectionately called the Wikipediatrician, Susan Gerbic is the cofounder of Monterey County Skeptics and a self-proclaimed s...

Robyn E. Blumner critiques the influence of social justice dogmatism and identitarianism on science, arguing that these ideologies hinder scientific progress by prioritizing identity over merit. She highlights cases like the opposition to golden rice, the push to equate indigenous knowledge with scientific principles, and ideological biases in STEM publishing, warning that such trends undermine ob...

Mick West explores the history of the chemtrails conspiracy theory and offers an explanation for why you might not have heard much about it lately... Read this article and find accompanying references at: https://skepticalinquirer.org/2023/12/what-happened-to-chemtrails/ About the Author: Mick West is a writer, investigator, and debunker who enjoys looking into the evidence behind conspiracy theor...

Craig A. Foster, McKenna Duff, and Paige Hatfield enter the "Time Warp" and revisit  Skeptical Inquirer  Volume 2. Number 2 to discuss the phenomenon of biorythms. Read this article and find accompanying references at: https://skepticalinquirer.org/2023/12/when-pseudoscience-dies-a-biorhythm-case-study/ About the Author: Craig A. Foster is a CSI fellow and director of research and evaluation at No...

Joe Nickell's article investigates the mysterious circumstances surrounding Edgar Allan Poe's death in 1849, which has spawned numerous theories, including murder, cooping, and rabies. Nickell critically examines the claims of foul play and suggests a new theory regarding Poe's death. Read this article and find accompanying references at: https://skepticalinquirer.org/2023/12/whodunit-the-murder-o...

Katie Suleta explores the case of Heather Kokesch Del Castillo, which highlights the tension between free speech and professional credentialing in healthcare. After being barred in Florida from operating as a nutritionist due to the state's licensing laws, Del Castillo claimed her First Amendment rights were violated. The Supreme Court ultimately declined to hear the case, emphasizing the importan...

Benjamin Radford critiques Tim Ballard and Operation Underground Railroad (OUR), the group depicted in  The Sound of Freedom , for its misleading and unethical practices. Allegations include sexual misconduct by Ballard, reliance on psychics for dubious rescue missions, and exaggeration of their success in combating child trafficking, all while diverting resources from legitimate anti-trafficking...

Reynold Spector provides a "progress report" on cancer, detailing the current scientific understanding of the disease and its treatements. Read this article and find accompanying references at: https://skepticalinquirer.org/2023/12/war-on-cancer-an-updated-progress-report-for-skeptics/ About the Author: Reynold Spector, MD has served as a professor of medicine (and pharmacology and/or biochemistry...

Sharps et al. examine anomalies in the judicial process where decisions deviate from pure evidence and logic, influenced by psychological factors such as the just-world hypothesis, imagination, and dissociation. Through experimental studies, the article highlights how violence in crime scenarios and dissociative tendencies affect judgments, demonstrating that cognitive biases can distort attributi...

Benjamin Radford reviews the evidence for the existence of bigfoot. Read this article and find accompanying references at: https://skepticalinquirer.org/2023/12/is-bigfoot-dead/ About the Author: Benjamin Radford, M.Ed., is a scientific paranormal investigator, a research fellow at the Committee for Skeptical Inquiry, deputy editor of the Skeptical Inquirer, and author, co-author, contributor, or...

Bigfoot, a long-standing figure of folklore and cryptozoology, is declared symbolically "dead" in Ben Radford's Skeptical Inquirer cover story, which traces Bigfoot's rise in popular culture and the decline of true belief in its existence. With decades of skeptical analysis revealing hoaxes and diminishing public credulity, the article concludes that Bigfoot's cultural relevance now resides more i...

Skeptical Inquirer Audio Edition is a production of Skeptical Inquirer and the Center for Inquiry. About the Author: Kenny Biddle is the Chief Investigator at the Committee for Skeptical Inquiry, a science enthusiast who investigates claims of paranormal experiences, equipment, photos, and video. He promotes science, critical thinking, and skepticism through his blog I Am Kenny Biddle . He frequen...

Skeptical Inquirer Audio Edition is a production of Skeptical Inquirer and the Center for Inquiry. About the Author: Adrienne Hill, a former high school mathematics teacher, currently dedicates her time to various roles and interests. She serves as a board member for the nonprofit organization About Time, founded by Susan Gerbic. Additionally, she holds positions as a board member, presenter, and...