This week's episode of Ask Science Mike not only contains science faith in life, but adult themes and mature content.

Coming to you from Cascade Church in Portland, Oregon, it's Ask Science Mike live. He's got answers even though he may not understand.

He'll talk anyway.

He won't solve there.

But I'm talking talking talking to the blue in the face.

Science, faith, and life.

Ask Science Mike.

Welcome to Ask Science Mike, the weekly podcast where I answer your questions about science, faith, and life,

and this week it's a live edition. The questions are unscreened, the answers unrehearsed,

and I have no idea what will happen. Tickets for the liturgist

gathering in Denver and Chicago just went on sale. We'll tell you more about that

at the end of the program but for now we've got a podcast to do so let's get it started.

My name is Caitlin I'm from Seattle. Hi. Hi, it's good to see you. My question pertains to the placebo effect. It is my great insecurity that I might be duped by the false or foolish, whether it's in science,

faith, or life, and the idea that something counterfeit can become authentic or real merely through a thought or belief is incredibly unnerving for somebody who's interested in the empirical

So can you explain the physiology of this effect and provide your thought on how to then trust or test the validity or credibility of our own thinking,

perhaps only certain areas of our brain

are susceptible to this response.

Thank you for everything that you do.

Wow, that is a phenomenal question.

beginner's guide to skepticism and the placebo effect. So, well, let's start with an assumption, right?

So because of what I do, I have this weird thing

or the people who listen to me are a strange coalition.

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