I recently ran a pair of episodes investigating claims of the health effects of deuterium, a stable heavy isotope of hydrogen. The first interview was with a Naturopath, and the second was with a real medical doctor publishing peer reviewed papers on the topic. And my focus in this effort is on drilling through the BS to get to what the evidence says. This takes sustained skepticism, and it doesn’t always make friends. Many people are turned off by the methods of science. It reminds me of why I never liked the TV series X-files. The scientist was always being appropriately skeptical of phenomena that have, at best, only breathless anecdotal support. But she was constantly being shamed by the male character for not ‘believing’ that the truth is out there. But believing extraordinary claims without sufficient evidence makes you gullible. You have the choice of being a friendly fool in believing that astrology or alternative medicine, homeopathy, or other superstitions should be given equal standing with experimentally tested scientific knowledge.
So in this episode I want to give you some tools to identify bafflegab, gobbledygook, and pseudo-science, while reviewing some of the reactions I received.
Support the podcast at patron.podbean.com/TheRationalView
Give me your feedback on Facebook @TheRationalView
Twittter @AlScottRational
Is nuclear energy good for the climate?
Why we need a Rational View
Alexander Wong on the new AI ChatGPT
Consuming rationally with Dr. Marko Kovic
Rationality requires managing your cognitive biases
Valerie Alexander on how to outsmart our unconscious biases
Dr. Daniel Kahneman on how we think
Dr. Andrew Budson has a new theory of consciousness
Will fusion save us? A summary
We need a rational assessment of nuclear energy
Dr. Mark Winfield discusses hydrogen, carbon and sustainable energy
D.J. LeClear-The Rad Guy discusses nuclear radiation
Stéphane Germain on GHGSat methane leak discoveries
Dr. Fulvio Militello discusses the MAST-U fusion program
Online convenience vs. customer service
Lutz Jaitner proposes a scientific basis for Cold Fusion
A review of Low Energy Nuclear Reactions (Cold Fusion) with Dr. Edmund Storms
Is Cold Fusion pathological science?
Laser Fusion Ignition with Drs. Hurricane and Zylstra
Dr. Larry Katz on why we are too competitive
Create your
podcast in
minutes
It is Free
Just Dumb Enough Podcast
Freakonomics Radio
Criminal
The Why Files: Operation Podcast
Sweet Bobby