Skeptoid #506: Bad Skepticism: Why You Should Challenge Popular Assumptions

Skeptoid

Brian Dunning

Skeptic, Social Sciences, Skepticism, Paranormal, Conspiracy Theories, Urban Legends, Science, History

4.6 • 3K Ratings

🗓️ 16 February 2016

⏱️ 14 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

From swamp gas and waterspouts to alternative medicine, the harm of not challenging popular assumptions.

Transcript

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0:00.0	Have you ever heard that frogs and fish can fall out of a clear blue sky and then been
0:08.2	told that water spouts are the scientific explanation behind it?
0:12.8	Well if you have, you've been fooled by an incredibly bad popular assumption.
0:18.9	That doesn't happen.
0:20.5	But it's only the tip of the iceberg.
0:22.4	We're surrounded by terrible, sciency-sounding explanations for things.
0:28.5	It's because too many of us fail to challenge them.
0:32.8	Challenging popular assumptions is up next on Skeptoid.
0:58.5	You're not even your old car can be donated to Skeptoid and turned into more of the
1:04.4	podcast that you love.
1:05.8	Want to find out more?
1:07.1	Visit Skeptoid.com-giving or call 877-215-0277 today.
1:14.4	That's 877-215-0277 or Skeptoid.com-giving.
1:21.2	S-K-E-P-T-O-I-D.com-slashgiving.
1:29.5	You're listening to Skeptoid.
1:31.6	I'm Brian Dunning from Skeptoid.com.
1:35.2	Bad skepticism.
1:36.9	Why you should challenge popular assumptions.
1:41.2	When I was in film school, I saw a trailer for a student documentary called Devil Stone
1:46.6	about a dry lake bed in Death Valley where the rocks leave long trails in the dry mud
1:51.4	as if they've moved around by themselves.
1:54.0	I was hooked.
	...

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