Baloney Detection Kit

People tend to believe in a variety of things, to be credulous and just accept stuff that appeals to their emotions and biases at face value. So is there something wrong with being a believer of something? Yes there is if we don't think critically about these things.

Carl Sagan, one of my favorite astronomer, science writer and popularizer, succinctly summed up with the following quotes why we humans are susceptible to believe just about anything:


“You can't convince a believer of anything; for their belief is not based on evidence, it's based on a deep seated need to believe”


"Where we have strong emotions, we're liable to fool ourselves."


In his New York Times best seller book "Demon-Haunted World", Carl Sagan provided the fine art of critical thinking and skepticism that people can use to tell if a claim is authentic or just deception and baloney. One of the best chapters in the book is entitled "The Fine Art of Baloney Detection" where Carl Sagan laid down the fundamentals of critical thinking and skepticism. It's an excellent jump start guide for anyone willing to arm themselves with the tools on detecting pseudoscience and other false claims. Unfortunately, the book is rare in the local bookstores here in the Philippines. I was fortunate to have bought the book at Fully Booked at Greenbelt 5. Personally I find it sad that such book like the Demon-Haunted World is not so much a common book that you can find in bookstores here in the Philippines.

Michael Shermer, a well known science writer and skeptic, offered an extension of the baloney detection kit based on Carl Sagan's original version. It's also a good reference and I highly recommend people to watch the YouTube video below:



From the video, Michael Shermer discussed 10 questions that should be ask to verify certain claims:


1. How reliable is the source of the claim?
2. Does the source make similar claims?
3. Have the claims been verified by somebody else?
4. Does this fit with the way the world works?
5. Has anyone tried to disprove the claim?
6. Where does the preponderance of evidence point?
7. Is the claimant playing by the rules of science?
8. Is the claimant providing positive evidence?
9. Does the new theory account for as many phenomena as the old theory?
10. Are personal beliefs driving the claim?


So if you're someone who believes on the stories from these books:

think critically and apply the baloney detection kit. You may realize that you're just wasting your money on these junk books.