Some of the writers here at SIN have contributed to an anthology called 13 Reasons to Doubt, with chapters ranging over many aspects of skepticism. Here s the description:
Extraordinary claims and extraordinary evidence.
The mainstream and social media feed our minds a diet of fringe science and outright pseudoscience. They relentlessly stream paranormal, supernatural, and otherwise extraordinary claims. Where do all these come from? They’re spread by shysters and charlatans, by corporate propagandists with cynical eyes on the bottom line, by priests and preachers of all kinds, by axe-grinding cranks and ideologues, and frequently by well-meaning dupes.
This may be a scientific age, but all too often, science, well-grounded scholarship, evidence, and logic are ignored—or even denied.
Scientific skepticism offers a corrective: skeptics defend science and reason, while demanding the evidence for extraordinary claims.
In this volume, we offer you thirteen ways to scientific skepticism: thirteen reasons to doubt extraordinary claims. The authors discuss groupthink and cognitive biases, science denialism, weird archeology, claims about religion and free will, and many other topics. Within these pages, there is something for anyone who wants to avoid biases and fallacies, cut through the masses of misinformation, and push back against fakers and propagandists.
The chapters are as follows:
INTRODUCTION
A BRIEF HISTORY OF DOUBT: GREAT SKEPTICS FROM ANTIQUITY TO THE RENAISSANCE
PETER FERGUSON
SKEPTICISM IN AN AGE OF IDEOLOGY
RUSSELL BLACKFORD
ARE YOU A SKEPTIC?
MARIA MALTSEVA
WHY YOU CAN’T TRUST YOUR BRAIN
CALEB W. LACK
BEING SUSPICIOUS OF OURSELVES: GROUPTHINK’S THREAT TO SKEPTICISM
JACQUES ROUSSEAU
SCIENCE: A MECHANISM FOR DOUBTING; A SOURCE OF RELIABILITY
KEVIN MCCARTHY
SCIENCE IS PREDICATED ON THE NON-MAGICAL NATURAL WORLD ORDER
JOHN W. LOFTUS
THE POWER OF HUME’S ON MIRACLES
ZACHARY SLOSS
ON DOUBTING THE EXISTENCE OF FREE WILL, AND HOW IT CAN MAKE THE WORLD A BETTER PLACE
JONATHAN M.S. PEARCE
PSEUDOARCHAEOLOGY: SEVEN TIPS
REBECCA BRADLEY
THE NEW WORLD ORDER IS COMING FOR YOU!
STAKS ROSCH
WHY BELIEFS MATTER
DAVID OSORIO
SCIENCE DENIALISM AT A SKEPTIC CONFERENCE: A CAUTIONARY TALE
EDWARD K CLINT
APPENDIX: SCIENCE DENIALISM AT A SKEPTIC CONFERENCE
AUTHOR BIOGRAPHIES
They are all fantastic contributions of varying length and subject matters. Unfortunately, erstwhile commenter here, JoeG, has taken it upon himself, with well-known Amazon sockpuppet Jake, to post 1 star reviews straight away without having read the book.
It is available on Amazon Kindle, Kobo and Nook now, with paperback and iTunes to follow. We would love it if you could get hold of it and post a positive review to balance the books!
Click the image for buying options. Thanks!
