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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.”

Categories
Antivaccine nonsense Bad science Medicine

Bell’s palsy, syncope, and death: The impending antivax tsunami of fake COVID-19 vaccine “adverse reactions”

Reports of Bell’s palsy and syncopy after vaccination with RNA-based COVID-19 vaccines remind us how antivaxxers will weaponize anything bad happening after vaccination. Sadly, I predict an impending tsunami of confusing correlation with causation.

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Antivaccine nonsense Medicine Popular culture Television

False balance on vaccines in Portland, courtesy of KATU and Genevieve Reaume

False balance is the bane of a science communicator’s existence. KATU’s Genevieve Reaume provided false balance in abundance in a story about the measles outbreak and the antivaccine movement.

Categories
Antivaccine nonsense Bad science Medicine Pseudoscience Skepticism/critical thinking

Brucellosis: The latest and (maybe) silliest COVID-19 conspiracy theory yet!

Just when I thought I’d heard every amazingly wacky COVID-19 conspiracy theory, James Grundvig of Vaxxter comes up with an even sillier one than interference by flu vaccines: Brucellosis!

Categories
Medicine Popular culture Pseudoscience Quackery Television

Jennifer Block and Elisa Albert in the NYT: “Misogyny and the patriarchy are why skeptics attack Goop!”

Jennifer Block and Elisa Albert defend the quackery and pseudoscience and quackery sold by Goop by accusing its critics of misogyny and engaging in whataboutism. It does not go well.