On February 12, 1809, Charles Darwin was born. Along with Alfred Russel Wallace, he formulated the theory of evolution, according to which the struggle for life leads to the survival of the species most fit to their environment. If you are skeptical about evolution (“it’s just a theory!”) or if you know people who are … Continue reading
The Patient Education Office of the McGill University Health Centre has just released a video to educate the public on the importance of vaccination. And who guides us through the mechanism of action of one of our most effective public health measures? Dr. Christopher Labos… in cartoon form. If … Continue reading
I have interviewed Dr. Christopher Labos on the topic of integrative medicine for my podcast, Within Reason. A cardiologist by training, he is studying to become a medical journalist. Like me, he has a passion for bringing scientific facts to the public in spite of the tidal wave of misinformation that washes us all up every … Continue reading
It is one thing for scientists to agree on the evidence, but what is the gap between scientific consensus (or near-consensus) and public acceptance of these same facts? “Asked whether genetically modified food is safe, 88 per cent of the scientists say Yes, but only 37 per cent of the public agreed. That’s a gap … Continue reading
Originally posted on Moutons No More:
Jonathan Jarry hosts another edition of Within Reason, the podcast that looks at contentious issues from a rational perspective. This month, is scientific research inefficient or have we grossly oversimplified the situation? We begin with a mad comedic dash through the life of a young scientist to the sound of…
The First Nations girl with leukaemia who had refused to continue her course of chemotherapy and instead elected to be treated with blatant pseudoscience in Florida has passed away. She was 11 years old when the story was first reported half a year ago. The typical question one gets when criticizing wishful thinking and pseudoscience is, … Continue reading
Here’s an interesting look at the various weight-loss pills available on the market, published recently in the Montreal Gazette: “This benefit has to be weighed against the risks, which are considerable. Any pill that ‘boosts your metabolism’ will put more strain on your heart. Blunting appetite is all well and good until you realize that most … Continue reading
A recent exchange on Twitter brought back to mind a hilarious British comedy sketch show entitled That Mitchell and Webb Look, starring David Mitchell and Robert Webb. If you are not familiar with it (or want to watch clips of it again), here are some skits of theirs that pertain to pseudoscience and medicine: Continue reading
The only good drug is the one the patient can afford. WNYC radio show and podcast extraordinaire RadioLab most recently did an episode entitled “Worth” in which the show’s hosts and producer investigated the worth of an extra year of human life. They stumbled upon a very interesting story centred on the cost of cancer drugs in … Continue reading
If you understand French and need an evidence-based resource to help navigate food-related pseudoscience, you may be interested in Extenso. I stumbled upon it recently and, while I have not looked at it thoroughly, a decent skimming of its short articles reassured me that this Université de Montréal project is based on solid science. They … Continue reading
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