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.
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A summary of what I’ve learned on nutrition and health
Beth McDaniel’s paint captures carbon
Dr. Joel Fuhrman says we can eat our way to better health
Dr. Valter Longo Advocates Intermittent Fasting to Live Longer
Science Communication in a Crisis with Dr. Christopher Reddy
Dr. Antonio Cabrales on the AI revolution and UBI
Can we afford [not] to have Universal Basic Income? (re-release)
The alcohol controversy
How should we tackle magical thinking?
Can we ’manifest’ our future? with Kevin Scott
Are we about to lose control of AI?
Cosmology, art and outreach with Dr. Paul Sutter
Dr. Robert Gale talks about treating Chernobyl victims
Dr. Traci Mann explains why your diet didn’t work
Dr. Peter Butt defends tightened alcohol guidelines
Dr. Edzard Ernst debunks detox diets
Professor Matthew Neidell says the precautionary principle is poor public policy
The politics of food with Dr. Marion Nestle
Intro to the science behind nutrition
A psychedelic trip into the mind with Dr. Anil Seth
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