About this item
Maybe you know someone who swears by the reliability of psychics or who is in regular contact with angels. Or perhaps you're trying to find a nice way of dissuading someone from wasting money on a homeopathy cure. Or you met someone at a party who insisted the Holocaust never happened or that no one ever walked on the moon. How do you find a gently persuasive way of steering people away from unfounded beliefs, bogus cures, conspiracy theories, and the like? This down-to-earth, entertaining exploration of commonly held extraordinary claims will help you set the record straight. The author, a veteran journalist, has not only surveyed a vast body of literature, but has also interviewed leading scientists, explored "the most haunted house in America," frolicked in the inviting waters of the Bermuda Triangle, and even talked to a "contrite Roswell alien.
About the Author
I am a human who warns humans about being human. I use my imperfect brain to talk and write about the human brain's imperfections. I try to overcome my irrational beliefs and subconscious miscues so that I may better teach others about the problems of irrational belief and subconscious miscues.
I write about many things but my primary focus is on science and skepticism. I believe that our world could be a little better - and a lot less crazy - if more people simply understood how science works and appreciated the protective value of skeptical thinking in everyday life.
I've held numerous positions in the news industry, including editorial writer, world news editor, sports editor, photographer, page designer, and columnist. I'm a veteran travel writer, having visited and written about more than 25 countries on six continents. I have also had some very rewarding jobs teaching history and science to bright kids. My degree is in history and anthropology (University of South Florida) . I've won some big awards for my writing, including the WHO (World Health Organization) Award for Health Reporting and the Commonwealth Media Award for Excellence in Journalism, but doubt anyone really cares about that stuff other than my sweet mother.
What I am most proud of in relation to my work is that my writing has touched many people. I receive messages from around the world and it's always rewarding to learn that my words have inspired one more person to think in new ways and become a good skeptic. This is what all my books to date are about: encouraging readers to turn away from the madness in order to live more sensible and honest lives, both for themselves and for the world.
When I'm not staring at a blank computer screen hoping that words will appear, I'm likely to be running, hiking, reading a science or history book, working out at a gym, or teaching critical life lessons to my children via repeated viewings of Star Trek. When normal people are consumed with thoughts about politics, economics, and the Kardashian family, I'm likely to be daydreaming about time travel, the singularity (nerd rapture) ancient Greece, extremophiles, the possibility of extraterrestrial life, and robots.
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A FEW WORDS ABOUT THINKING
One of the biggest mistakes we can make in life is to ignore or reject the possibility that we might be dead wrong about something that is very important to us.
Don't do this!
Question everything. Embrace doubt. Second guess conclusions. Be humble; after all you could be wrong. You might be the first perfect person in all of history and prehistory who is incapable of being fooled by the mistakes, lies and delusions of others. But I doubt it. You might be the first ever to rise above and see through all the deceptive quirks, traps and biases that come standard with a human brain. B
