I’ve heard that this is the last season for Monster Quest on the History Channel. There are efforts afoot to try and save the show but, I’m not going to […]
Category: Sham Inquiry
Continuing miseducation classes
Where can you learn Photoshop, CPR and Civil War history all in one place at a reasonable price? Continuing education offerings at local community colleges include useful courses in computer and […]
Coelacanth not a cryptid
Cryptozoological websites continue to promote the coelacanth as the icon of cryptozoology. I heartily disagree. You can see my post about it here: The coelacanth is a red herring. This […]
The emotionally and cognitively satisfying anecdote
I used to have a cat. That cat was pretty mean. He hated other people and animals. He messed up my house. I’ll never have another cat because they don’t […]
New PA bigfoot sighting? Set your skeptical flags flying.
Oh, dear. Out of the news loop for a day or two and another Bigfoot sighting comes along. This time, it was reported very close to me. I don’t know […]
Ghost hunting entertainment – Paranormal State lecture
Penn State’s Harrisburg campus hosted a presentation by Paranormal State’s Ryan Buell (with Sergey along) on October 2. The event attracted over 60 people of all ages. Primarily, the crowd […]
Pennsylvania bigfoot sighting – just a story?
Cryptomundo is reporting a bigfoot (or dogman-type creature) sighting the occurred in western Pennsylvania on July 10. The report should say “Jumonville” not Jammonville. This area east of Uniontown is […]
Will The Othersiders just scare themselves?
The Othersiders is a new show on Cartoon Network where teen friends visit alleged haunted locations and perform so-called investigations, similar to the Ghost Hunters and Ghost Trackers. It’s fun […]
The red herring
Conclusion to “Sham Inquiry” The coelacanth is a red herring Mainstream science, which is respected and functions very well with its current methodology, excludes those fields who don’t pass muster. […]
Elbowing in
Continuing with “Sham Inquiry” Elbowing in on good science The Journal of Scientific Exploration is the published by the Society for Scientific Exploration which describes itself as “a professional organization […]
Ghost Hunting – Sham Inquiry
Thousands of eyewitnesses report ghostly encounters from ancient history to modern times. Contact with the dead is very much part of our modern culture. With the expansion of television content […]
Cryptozoology – Sham Inquiry
Cryptozoology is “the study of hidden animals” (called ‘cryptids’). More precisely, it is the pursuit of animals that science does not recognize as existing and, in some situations, be considered […]
Pretend science
Playing Pretend Science In order to be technical, like science, pseudoscientists engage in a method of data gathering that is not haphazard or lazy. Intricate collection and analysis is often […]
Weak evidence
Quality of evidence A frequent complaint from the fringe is that the scientific community is dismissive of the actual evidence for their extraordinary claim. Proponents of psi or UFOs will […]
Using Subterfuge
Using subterfuge to build a case Pseudoscience proponents may resort to desperate measures to support and preserve a beloved theory – another sure sign that the theory does not qualify […]
Fancy jargon
Fancy jargon and complexity Science is loaded with jargon which serves as an efficient way to get a complex idea across in a neat package. Scientists name everything and give […]
Unorthodox and proud of it
The category of unconventional theories is labeled “maverick”, “fringe”, “frontier” and “exploration” in front of the word “science” to describe the work. (This community is featured on The Anomalist website […]
Sour Grapes
“If you aren’t trying to get to the truth, you aren’t really inquiring” -S. Haack [1] A case of sour grapes We live in a world of science. Because of […]