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Havana Syndrome Hysteria and the Great Wild Goose Chase: Classified documents reveal skepticism of foreign actors & bolster the role of psychogenic illness

Robert Bartholomew | October 8, 2021

Have foreign agents been committing nefarious deeds, targeting dozens of American and Canadian diplomats and their families with an energy weapon, or is Havana Syndrome a social panic aided by sensational journalism, dubious science, and social media conspiracy theories? The contents of a U.S. Government investigation into “Havana Syndrome” released under the Freedom of Information Act, concluded that mass psychogenic illness likely played a major role.

Illustration of a woman carrying a man on her back (by Pat Linse)

Inequality: Why Women? A Plausible Sociocultural Explanation for the Persistence & Universality of Gender Inequality Over Thousands of Years

Dolores Newton & Jefferson M. Fish | September 16, 2021

Do you believe that men have greater power and privilege because they are stronger, more aggressive, and smarter than women (and don’t have babies)? Think again. Dolores Newton & Jefferson Fish present a plausible sociocultural explanation for the persistence and universality of gender inequality over thousands of years.

Osteopathy Then and Now

Harriet Hall, M.D. | July 17, 2021

What is osteopathy? What is the difference between an MD, a DO, and an osteopath in the US? Why do students choose a DO school? Should the DO degree be abolished? Find out what Harriet Hall, M.D. says in this column from Skeptic magazine 26.1 (2021).

Mark Twain and Alternative Medicine

Harriet Hall, M.D. | June 29, 2021

In this column from Skeptic magazine 26.2 (2021), Harriet Hall, M.D. recounts that Mark Twain was an enthusiastic proponent of “alternative medicine” long before the term was coined — and much of it remains the same as in his time.

Detail of cover of Irreversible Damage, by Abigail Shrier

Trans Science: A review of Abigail Shrier’s Irreversible Damage: The Transgender Craze Seducing Our Daughters

Harriet Hall, M.D. | June 17, 2021

A review by Dr. Harriet Hall of Abigail Shrier’s 2020 book Irreversible Damage: The Transgender Craze Seducing Our Daughters was originally published on Science-Based Medicine’s website and later removed and put under review by SBM’s Editors “due to concerns expressed over its scientific accuracy and completeness.” Skeptic is publishing here because, if skepticism means anything, there are no sacred cows, no political sensitivities of topics to prohibit open discussion and review, no censorship of ideas that don’t toe a political

US Government Says UFOs are “Real”: An Analysis of the 60 Minutes Investigation

Mick West | May 17, 2021

Has the US government admitted that UFOs are “real” and that the military is investigating them? Mick West presents an analysis of the 60 Minutes episode that aired May 16, 2021.

Metaphors & Mindsets: How to ‘Update’ Beliefs

Michael Shermer | April 24, 2021

Admitting our beliefs are false can feel like a failure, a sign of weakness. Instead, we should look at changing our mind as an ‘update.’ The following is a review by Michael Shermer of The Scout Mindset: Why Some People See Things Clearly and Others Don’t by Julia Galef (Portfolio).

Red Alert: Anti-Vaccination in the Age of COVID-19

Raymond Barglow & Margret Schaefer | April 3, 2021

Raymond Barglow and Margret Schaefer discuss the anti-vaccination movement in the age of COVID-19.

The Skeptic’s Chaplain: Richard Dawkins as a Fountainhead of Skepticism

Michael Shermer | March 26, 2021

A tribute to Richard Dawkins by Michael Shermer. The following essay was commissioned by Oxford University Press to be included in a volume entitled Richard Dawkins. How a Scientist Changed the Way We Think: Reflections by Scientists, Writers, and Philosophers, edited by Alan Grafen and Mark Ridley (biologists and former graduate students of Dawkins) and published in 2006 to mark the 30th anniversary of the publication in 1976 of Dawkins’ influential book, The Selfish Gene.

Was Cleopatra Black?

Skeptic | February 11, 2021

John Henrik Clarke Says Yes From African Warrior Queens “More nonsense has been written about Cleopatra than about any other African queen, mainly because it has been the desire of many writers to paint her white. She was not a white woman until the emergence of the doctrine of white superiority, Cleopatra was generally pictured […]

Afrocentric Pseudoscience & Pseudohistory

Michael Shermer |

There is a lot of high-quality, constructive Afrocentric scholarship. As in most fields, however, there are fringe groups and extraordinary claims that grab our attention because of their extremism, and, occasionally, their absurdity. Since it is our job at Skeptic magazine to track these groups and claims, we bring them to our reader’s attention. This is not to imply that all or most African-American scientists and historians believe such claims. The recent surge of these beliefs, however, especially when supported

Beyond Race: Fallacies of Reactive Afrocentrism

Kwame Anthony Appiah |

Since one of the themes of Skeptic is the study of the power of belief systems to shape our interpretation of nature and history, the Afrocentric paradigm should be treated no different from others. That is, a healthy dollop of skepticism and critical thinking is appropriate.

Stolen Legacy (or Mythical History?) Did the Greeks Steal Philosophy From the Egyptians?

Mary Lefkowitz |

“It is of course possible to sympathize with James, and with his anger at a society that has paid little tribute to real African achievement. Unfortunately Stolen Legacy not only does not help the Afrocentric cause, it hinders it.” Since its publication in 1954 Stolen Legacy, by George G. M. James, has been a best-seller […]

QAnon Is Just a Warmed Over Witch Panic — and It’s Also Very Dangerous

Daniel Loxton | January 14, 2021

In this cover story article (written in October 2020) for Skeptic magazine 25.4 (December 2020), Daniel Loxton considers the unsavory origins and rising threat of the QAnon conspiracy theory. Written prior to the deadly QAnon-led occupation of the Capitol Building in Washington, DC on January 6, 2021, this analysis exposes the conspiracy theory as baseless, unoriginal, and harmful for believers and society at large.

Lizard People, 5G and the Nashville Bomber

Tim Callahan | January 5, 2021

Perhaps one of the most bizarre beliefs rampant in modern times is that malign, shape-shifting reptilian extraterrestrial invaders, disguised as human beings, secretly control the governments of the world. It is possible that we recently experienced a violent consequence of that belief.

Psychological Risks with COVID-19 Vaccines

Robert E. Bartholomew & Kate MacKrill | December 21, 2020

Reports about allergic reactions to COVID-19 vaccines will undoubtedly cause anxiety in people. Robert E. Bartholomew & Kate MacKrill remind us that, if history is a guide — and given the large number of people to be vaccinated — a mass anxiety event is not improbable.

Havana Syndrome Skepticism

Robert E. Bartholomew | December 10, 2020

A report by the National Academy of Sciences says microwaves caused an array of mysterious health complaints at the American embassy in Cuba. Robert E. Bartholomew reminds us why we should be skeptical. It was probably psychogenic.

Respecting Nature, Respecting People: A Naturalist Model for Reducing Speciesism, Racism, and Bigotry

Mark W. Moffett | October 27, 2020

During a time when racism, bigotry, and even speciesism has become a topic of national conversation, evolutionary biologist and National Geographic photographer Mark Moffett @DoctorBugs considers how we might reduce them through what we’ve learned about how individual organisms within a species came to develop these characteristic.

A Report from the Paranormal Trenches

James “The Amazing” Randi | October 24, 2020

A classic lecture on skepticism was given by James Randi on March 22, 1992 at the inaugural session of the Distinguished Science Lecture Series hosted by Michael Shermer and presented by The Skeptics Society in California (1992–2015). With wit and wonderfully illustrative examples, Randi teaches us several lessons on the scientific investigation of unusual claims.

Replicating Milgram: A Study on Why People Commit Evil Deeds

Michael Shermer | October 2, 2020

Dr. Michael Shermer, working with Chris Hansen and Dateline NBC producers in 2010, replicated a number of classic psychology experiments, including Stanley Milgram’s famous shock experiments. Here’s a summary of that research along with the two-part video from the Dateline NBC show, called “What Were You Thinking?”

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