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Antivaccine nonsense Bad science Cancer Homeopathy Medicine Pseudoscience Quackery Skepticism/critical thinking

Orac basks in the adoration of Gary Null (revised and greatly expanded)

Orac loves to bask in the adulation of his “fans.” This time around, one of the “grand old men” of quackery, Gary Null, has decided that he really, really doesn’t like science-based medicine. Orac was sufficiently amused to revise, update, and expand his previous post providing Null with some not-so-Respectful Insolence.

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Bad science Clinical trials Integrative medicine Medicine Quackery

PLOS ONE publishes a howler of a bad acupuncture network meta-analysis

Meta-analyses can sometimes suffer from the “GIGO problem” (garbage in, garbage out). The publication of a “crappy” acupuncture “network meta-analysis” for acupuncture and chronic constipation illustrates the GIGO problem on steroids a.nd reveals a problem with peer review at PLOS ONE, where it was published

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Antivaccine nonsense Autism Bad science Medicine Politics Pseudoscience Quackery

Thank you, Chelsea Clinton, for speaking out against Andrew Wakefield and driving antivaxers crazy

Earlier this week, Chelsea Clinton spoke out against Andrew Wakefield and in support of vaccines. Hilarity ensued as antivaxers lost their mind in rage and faux disappointment in her.

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Antivaccine nonsense Autism Bad science Medicine Pseudoscience Quackery Science Skepticism/critical thinking

Jennifer Margulis: Another rising star in the antivaccine movement

I’ve mentioned Dr. Paul Thomas before as a rising star in the antivaccine movement. A month and a half later, it occurs to me that I haven’t given proper due to his co-author, Jennifer Margulis, as an equally prominent rising star in the same crank movement. Here, I rectify that oversight.

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Bad science Cancer Medicine Naturopathy Quackery

The quackademic avalanche: Is it too late for the pebbles to vote?

I’ve documented the infiltration of quackery into academic medicine through the “integration” of mystical and prescientific treatment modalities into medicine. Here, I look at a seemingly small incident, a veritable pebble in the quackademic avalanche. Is it too late for the pebbles to vote?