Download or read book Pseudoscience and the Paranormal written by Terence Hines and published by Prometheus Books. This book was released on 2010-09-30 with total page 516 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Television, the movies, and computer games fill the minds of their viewers with a daily staple of fantasy, from tales of UFO landings, haunted houses, and communication with the dead to claims of miraculous cures by gifted healers or breakthrough treatments by means of fringe medicine. The paranormal is so ubiquitous in one form of entertainment or another that many people easily lose sight of the distinction between the real and the imaginary, or they never learn to make the distinction in the first place. In this thorough review of pseudoscience and the paranormal in contemporary life, psychologist Terence Hines teaches readers how to carefully evaluate all such claims in terms of scientific evidence.Hines devotes separate chapters to psychics; life after death; parapsychology; astrology; UFOs; ancient astronauts, cosmic collisions, and the Bermuda Triangle; faith healing; and more. New to this second edition are extended sections on psychoanalysis and pseudopsychologies, especially recovered memory therapy, satanic ritual abuse, facilitated communication, and other questionable psychotherapies. There are also new chapters on alternative medicine, which is now marketed in our drug stores, and on environmental pseudoscience, with special emphasis on the evidence that certain technologies like cell phones or environmental agents like asbestos cause cancer.Finally, Hines discusses the psychological causes for belief in the paranormal despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary. This valuable, highly interesting, and completely accessible analysis critiques the whole range of current paranormal claims.
Download or read book Pseudoscience and Extraordinary Claims of the Paranormal written by Jonathan C. Smith and published by John Wiley & Sons. This book was released on 2011-09-26 with total page 287 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Pseudoscience and Extraordinary Claims of the Paranormal: A Critical Thinker's Toolkit provides readers with a variety of "reality-checking" tools to analyze extraordinary claims and to determine their validity. Integrates simple yet powerful evaluative tools used by both paranormal believers and skeptics alike Introduces innovations such as a continuum for ranking paranormal claims and evaluating their implications Includes an innovative "Critical Thinker's Toolkit," a systematic approach for performing reality checks on paranormal claims related to astrology, psychics, spiritualism, parapsychology, dream telepathy, mind-over-matter, prayer, life after death, creationism, and more Explores the five alternative hypotheses to consider when confronting a paranormal claim“/li> Reality Check boxes, integrated into the text, invite students to engage in further discussion and examination of claims Written in a lively, engaging style for students and general readers alike Ancillaries: Testbank and PowerPoint slides available at www.wiley.com/go/pseudoscience
Download or read book Science Confronts the Paranormal written by Kendrick Frazier and published by Prometheus Books. This book was released on 2011-01-27 with total page 382 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This collection of critical essays and investigative reports examines virtually every area of fringe science and the paranormal from a refreshingly scientific and clear-minded viewpoint. All bring to the task a determination to sift sense from nonsense and fact from fiction in an area notorious for misinformation, misperception, self-delusion, and wishful thinking.
Download or read book Scientific Perspectives on Pseudoscience and the Paranormal written by Timothy J. Lawson and published by Prentice Hall. This book was released on 2007 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: For courses in Introductory Psychology, Critical Thinking and Scientific Reasoning. This topically organized text integrates naturally with the flow of all introductory psychology courses presenting the differences between science and pseudoscience in a fun and interesting way. Timothy Lawson uses original sources to address the numerous pseudoscientific claims that students are exposed to through the media, the Internet and pop psychology books.
Download or read book Critical Thinking written by Jonathan C. Smith and published by John Wiley & Sons. This book was released on 2017-07-26 with total page 408 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Comprehensive and engaging, this extensively revised edition of a student and instructor favorite introduces the basics of critical thinking using the claims of pseudoscience and the paranormal. Guides readers through the critical thinking process by considering different types of support (sources, logic, and scientific observation) and ruling out alternative explanations Allows students to practice and apply their new critical thinking skills on claims of extraordinary cures including energy treatments, complementary/alternative medicine and faith healing as well as four paranormal claims of consequence: astrology, spiritualism and the afterlife, parapsychology, and creationism. Couples a conversational, nontechnical narrative with student-friendly pedagogical tools, including critical thinking questions and a study guide for each chapter. Provides clear and open-minded discussions of the paranormal spectrum, belief justification surveys, the placebo effect, and the relationship between religion and critical thinking
Download or read book Critical Thinking written by Jonathan C. Smith and published by John Wiley & Sons. This book was released on 2017-09-05 with total page 320 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Comprehensive and engaging, this extensively revised edition of a student and instructor favorite introduces the basics of critical thinking using the claims of pseudoscience and the paranormal. Guides readers through the critical thinking process by considering different types of support (sources, logic, and scientific observation) and ruling out alternative explanations Allows students to practice and apply their new critical thinking skills on claims of extraordinary cures including energy treatments, complementary/alternative medicine and faith healing as well as four paranormal claims of consequence: astrology, spiritualism and the afterlife, parapsychology, and creationism. Couples a conversational, nontechnical narrative with student-friendly pedagogical tools, including critical thinking questions and a study guide for each chapter. Provides clear and open-minded discussions of the paranormal spectrum, belief justification surveys, the placebo effect, and the relationship between religion and critical thinking
Download or read book Religion Supernaturalism the Paranormal and Pseudoscience written by Homayun Sidky and published by Anthem Press. This book was released on 2019-11-30 with total page 520 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "Religion, Supernaturalism, the Paranormal, and Pseudoscience" provides a comprehensive rejoinder to the challenges posed to science, scientific anthropology, evolutionary theory and rationality by the advocates of supernatural, paranormal, and pseudoscientific perspectives and modes of thought associated with the current rise of irrationalism, antiintellectualism, and emboldened religious fundamentalism and violence. Drawing upon H. Sidky’s scientific anthropological background and ethnographic field research of supernatural and paranormal beliefs and practices in several cultures over three decades, the book answers several important questions: Why do humans have a proclivity for the supernatural and paranormal thinking? Why has humanity remained shackled to sets of ideas inherited from a violent past that have no basis in reality and which bestow an illusionary solace, promote bloodshed, endless cruelties and fervent hatreds, and have come at a high cost? Why have ancient superstitions been held as sacred, inviolate truths while other aspects of the archaic belief systems of which they were a part have long been discarded? Why have not humans outgrown religion and paranormal beliefs?
Download or read book Paranormal Borderlands of Science written by Kendrick Frazier and published by Rowman & Littlefield. This book was released on 2023-10-17 with total page 484 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Headlines and television news reports feature accounts of reincarnation, the predictions of astrologers, and psychic "miracles." Citizens report UFO sightings. Police departments call on psychics to provide clues in baffling crimes. From every available information source, the public is bombarded with unsubstantiated claims of paranormal phenomena. How much of the evidence is reliable? What is the truth behind these claims? Paranormal Borderlands of Science is an exciting, well-informed examination of the most publicized and exotic claims of astrology, ESP, psychokinesis, precognition, UFOs, biorhythms, and other phenomena. Written by respected psychologists, astronomers and other scientists, philosophers, investigative journalists, and magicians, the 47 articles in this superb collection present a skeptical treatment of pseudoscientific claims - an aspect often sorely neglected in sensationalized media reports. This book is an effort to help readers sort fact from fiction and sense from nonsense among the astonishing variety of assertions labeled "paranormal." Never before published in book form, the essays in this anthology originally appeared in the Skeptical Inquirer, a leading magazine devoted to the critical investigation of pseudoscience from a scientific viewpoint. Among the contributors are: Isaac Asimov (distinguished science fiction author), Martin Gardner (Scientific American columnist), James Randi (The Amazing Randi), Philip Klass (noted UFO skeptic), Scot Morris (Omni), and James Oberg (NASA). An essential contribution to skeptical literature, this book will be of lasting value to all those wishing to balance the case for paranormal claims by reading the dissenting critics.
Download or read book Pseudoscience and Deception written by Bryan Farha and published by University Press of America. This book was released on 2013-12-24 with total page 195 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Pseudoscience and Deception is a compilation of some of the most eye-opening skeptical articles pertaining to extraordinary claims and pseudoscience. The articles explore paranormal, extraordinary, or fringe-science claims and reveal logical explanations or outline the deceptive tactics involved in convincing the vulnerable. Topics include claims of astrology, psychic ability, alternative medicine, after-death communication, psychotherapy, and pseudoscience. The contributors to this book are among the most accomplished critical thinkers, scientists, and educators in the world and tackle their respective topics from a rational, logical, and skeptical perspective. Most students are seldom excited to study “critical thinking”—with the exception of allegedly paranormal phenomena as the subject matter. Educators must seize this golden opportunity to witness and experience students’ genuine engagement in studying critical thinking.
Download or read book Ingenious Nonsense written by Fouad Bishay Michael and published by AuthorHouse. This book was released on 2012-05-30 with total page 120 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Dr. Michael presents to us an overview of the three fundamental branches of science, physics, chemistry and biology, in a simple and easy to understand fashion. With this basic knowledge, he leads us to re-evaluate the alternative explanation of the natural world as envisioned by religion, philosophy and pseudoscience with their abstract ideas that have dominated human culture for thousands of years. The result is an intellectual journey to reach the truth and achieve the thought-after well-being of mankind and global peace.
Download or read book Science in the New Age written by David J. Hess and published by Univ of Wisconsin Press. This book was released on 1993 with total page 260 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Hess examines the arguments of people who accept the paranormal as part of a spiritual quest, parapsychologists who are seeking scientific explanations for a narrow range of paranormal phenomena, and skeptics who pooh-pooh the very notion. He finds that, despite their disagreements, they are forging a shared culture. Written for the nonspecialist. Paper edition (unseen), $17.95. Annotation copyright by Book News, Inc., Portland, OR
Download or read book Debunked written by Georges Charpak and published by JHU Press. This book was released on 2004-04-29 with total page 170 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: During the most scientifically advanced period in human history, belief in the paranormal and the supernatural is alarmingly common. Nobel Prize winner Georges Charpak and physics professor Henri Broch team up to show you the tricks of the trade and sleight of hand that keep astrologers, TV psychics, and spoon benders in business. Using only the simplest of science, the authors explore the effectiveness of horoscopes--the blander the better--and why, with a television audience in the millions, any strange, unlikely prediction is almost certain to come true. Not merely an exposé of magic tricks, this book demonstrates how pseudoscientists use science, statistics, and psychology to bamboozle an audience--sometimes for fun, sometimes for profit. Entertaining and enlightening, Debunked! is the antidote, vigorously asserting the virtues of doubt, skepticism, curiosity, and scientific knowledge.--From publisher description.
Download or read book Pseudoscience and the Paranormal written by Terence Hines and published by . This book was released on 1988 with total page 372 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Examines the evidence behind many types of paranormal and pseudoscientific claims and explains, through an analysis of the psychology of belief, why people continue to believe in the reality of the supernatural
Download or read book Future Science written by John Warren White and published by . This book was released on 1977 with total page 612 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book The Demon Haunted World written by Carl Sagan and published by Ballantine Books. This book was released on 2011-07-06 with total page 474 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A prescient warning of a future we now inhabit, where fake news stories and Internet conspiracy theories play to a disaffected American populace “A glorious book . . . A spirited defense of science . . . From the first page to the last, this book is a manifesto for clear thought.”—Los Angeles Times How can we make intelligent decisions about our increasingly technology-driven lives if we don’t understand the difference between the myths of pseudoscience and the testable hypotheses of science? Pulitzer Prize-winning author and distinguished astronomer Carl Sagan argues that scientific thinking is critical not only to the pursuit of truth but to the very well-being of our democratic institutions. Casting a wide net through history and culture, Sagan examines and authoritatively debunks such celebrated fallacies of the past as witchcraft, faith healing, demons, and UFOs. And yet, disturbingly, in today's so-called information age, pseudoscience is burgeoning with stories of alien abduction, channeling past lives, and communal hallucinations commanding growing attention and respect. As Sagan demonstrates with lucid eloquence, the siren song of unreason is not just a cultural wrong turn but a dangerous plunge into darkness that threatens our most basic freedoms. Praise for The Demon-Haunted World “Powerful . . . A stirring defense of informed rationality. . . Rich in surprising information and beautiful writing.”—The Washington Post Book World “Compelling.”—USA Today “A clear vision of what good science means and why it makes a difference. . . . A testimonial to the power of science and a warning of the dangers of unrestrained credulity.”—The Sciences “Passionate.”—San Francisco Examiner-Chronicle
Download or read book Spooky Science written by John Grant and published by Union Square + ORM. This book was released on 2015-10-20 with total page 296 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A hilarious lampoon of scientific inquiry into the psychic. Life after death, spirit communication, the astral plane, reincarnation: on the relatively rare occasions when scientists have tried to apply their methods to the paranormal, they’ve often ended up embarrassed—fooled by obvious charlatans, deluded into making irrational and unsubstantiated claims, or frustrated in their attempt to find something that just isn’t there. John Grant—author of Discarded Science and Corrupted Science—investigates the pseudoscience of spooky stuff to fascinating and humorous effect. From scamming mediums, to poltergeist fakery, to heavenly hallucinations, Grant spares ardent believers and gullible thinkers no mercy in this rollicking history of psychic “phenomena.”
Download or read book Secrets of the Psychics written by Massimo Polidoro and published by Prometheus Books. This book was released on 2012-06-14 with total page 302 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This intriguing examination of the bizarre and the strange by a topnotch investigator will interest both skeptics and believers alike. Illustrations.
