the official site of Michael Shermer

Expelled Exposed

A film challenging evolution, by game show host & financial analyst Ben Stein, is a case study in antiscience propaganda “Should I be worried … (Jun 08)

A New Phrenology?

Metaphors, modules & brain-scan pseudoscience The atom is like a solar system, with electrons whirling around the nucleus like planets orbiting a … (May 08)

Wag the Dog

Emotions are as much a product of our evolutionary heritage as they are our environmental circumstances The next time you come face to face with a … (Apr 08)

Faith Healing

A torrid tale of quackbusting in 1920s America sheds light on modern medical scares A review of Pope Brock’s Charlatan. America’s Most … (Feb 08)

Design, Inc.

A review of Michael Ruse’s Darwin & Design: Does Evolution have a Purpose?. Psalms 19:1 declares: “The heavens declare the glory of God; … (Jul 04)

Survival of the Fittest Religion

The following book review of Mark Oppenheimer’s Knocking on Heaven’s Door: American Religion in the Age of Counterculture (Yale University … (Apr 04)

Money, Markets & Morality

Are markets moral? Is our hunter-gatherer brain geared for modern capitalism, & do economies work like evolutionary organisms? The rise of … (Aug 08)

Sexpelled: No Intercourse Allowed

Anticipating success with their feature film Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed, Producers Mark Mathis, Logan Craft & Walt Ruloff have already … (Apr 08)

Authors @ Google presents Michael Shermer

Michael Shermer discusses his book The Mind of the Market as part of the Authors @ Google series. How did we evolve from ancient hunter-gatherers to … (Jan 08)

Anti-science propaganda: how Ben Stein’s new ‘documentary’ film entitled Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed equates evolution with Nazism. Was anyone really fired for their belief in Intelligent Design? Read these four articles and listen to the Skepticality podcast to find out!

1. Ben Stein’s Blunder
2. The Richard Sternberg Affair
3. The Expelled Case
   of Caroline Crocker
4. Was Guillermo Gonzalez Expelled?
5. READ Dawkin’s open letter to a victim of Ben Stein’s propaganda
6. WATCH a parody of the film
   on RichardDawkins.net: Sexpelled: No Intercourse Allowed

Listen to the following Skepticality episodes that deal with the subject.

• episode 74
• episode 76
• episode 77

Scientology, Anonymous

Imagine reading the following press release: Hello, Jews. We are anonymous. Over the years, we have been watching you. Your campaigns of … (Feb 08)

Why People Don’t Trust Free Markets

The new science of evolutionary economics offers an explanation for capitalism skepticism In his magnum opus on the power of free markets, Human … (Jan 08)

Why We Should Trade with Cuba

The new science of neuroeconomics offers new insights into old political problems The 19th-century French economist Frederic Bastiat expressed a … (Jan 08)