For the following inductive arguments, identify what the conclusion is and what the premise indicator/s are.

Put your answers in the comments!

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Today’s episode is the revision of the book reviews on skepticism from the past week — you can support the 365DaysOfPhilosophy podcast by visiting www.patreon.com/kyliesturgess and review previous episodes at www.365daysofphilosophy.com.

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Another great Australian-centric book for the study of skepticism is Dr Martin Bridgstock’s Beyond Belief: Skepticism, Science and the Paranormal. Published in 2009, this has been used as a textbook in a number of colleges that I know of (the author himself was a professor in the field, with an extremely popular course at Griffith University on the subject), with a grounding in not only the analysis of popular beliefs in Australia and beyond but the author’s own work in critically engaging with pseudoscientific beliefs worldwide. 

As a general reference book, it’s topical and detailed, but would be of best use for anyone who is hoping to do further and more detailed work into the range of popular beliefs that exist, as it outlines the basics of skepticism and raises awareness of how pervasive some claims are. 

This interview previously aired in 2015. In Science Vs, science journalist Wendy Zukerman dissects the latest fad framing itself as scientific fact, wading through the mass of information so you don’t have to. Do women and men have different brains? Is porn changing the way we have sex? Does race exist? Is sugar really that bad for you? Short, sharp-minded and enjoyable, the show has been storming up the iTunes list and even eclipsing the famous Dr Karl. Subscribe at https://gimletmedia.com/science-vs/.

This is an interview I conducted in 2013. The cover of Abominable Science!: Origins of the Yeti, Nessie, and Other Famous Cryptids may resemble a 1920’s-era science fiction magazine, but the contents are educational, entertaining and downright skeptical.

With years of experience in investigating paranormal claims and teaching critical thinking, the combined powers of Daniel Loxton and Donald Prothero present the arguments for and against the existence of the most famous (and debated) monsters in history. Abominable Science takes on the likes Bigfoot, the Loch Ness monster and Mokele Mbembe (or the Congo dinosaur) — all delivered in a colourful and analytical fashion.

If you ever had any questions about the psychology and cultural influences behind the stories that had you captivated as a kid (and for some, still believing in their existence now), then this is the book you need on your shelf.

Flim-Flam! Psychics, ESP, Unicorns, and Other Delusions by James Randi is a book I learned about via another investigator of skeptical claims, Dr Richard Wiseman, who mentioned it as one of the very first books he sought out on the topic. It was published in 1980, and covers a number of popular strange beliefs and claims, such as the never-ending stories about the Bermuda Triangle, water dowsing, Cottingley Fairies and more.

I originally didn’t find this book engaging to start with, but as you continue to read, it becomes less historically-dry and certainly very useful as a teaching resource, particularly the sections on testing horoscope claims and features a very useful map on how to run a dowsing trial.

James Randi himself was responsible for demonstrating how even science labs and scientists can be fooled by magic tricks as in the case of the Project Alpha Hoax. As a reference text, Flim-Flam! is pretty much considered a classic in the field, and a great source of the kinds of claims that require a skeptical eye. 

Further Resources:

Going back to the sources of what is known about scepticism is the focus of this book, examining the theory of knowledge and just how proofs and justifications have been developed by a number of thinkers. Scepticism and the Possibility of Knowledge by A.C Grayling is a detailed text, and it’s useful to take this one at a measured pace, in comparison to some of his other works like The Meaning of Things or What is Good, which are comprised of slightly more general discursive essays.

This work aims to investigate whether there is such a thing as absolute knowledge, using Berkeley and Russell, Quinne and Wittgenstein. It seems to follow on from an earlier work, The Refutation of Scepticism, such as investigating evidence for an external world and what weight we should give to such arguments. Overall, it’s a useful reference book, one that I probably wouldn’t suggest as an introduction to the fantastic range of topics A.C Grayling has written on more recently, but as a historical reference and grounding in philosophical scepticism, it’s worth taking a look at.

For Patreon subscribers, there’s further revision questions by heading to www.patreon.com/kyliesturgess.

This is the full interview with Dr Paola Magni, which will feature on RTRFM community radio Perth tomorrow, as a part of RadioThon and National Science Week. You can find out more about National Science Week here and if you’re interested in supporting the future of community radio, check out the RTRFM fundraiser at this link. Thanks to all of my Patreon supporters who help keep this podcasting going!

Dr Paola Magni is a forensic biologist who focuses on the natural science of crime scene investigation. This includes the analysis of entomology (insects), taphonomy (decomposition until fossilisation) and aquatic biology. She works in both land and aquatic environments.

Trained in Australia and Europe, and USA (FBI Human Remains Recovery School) Dr Magni has 10 years of experience as researching, teaching and acting as an expert witness in the Italian Courts.

She is the developer of ‘SmartInsects — Forensic Entomology’, the smartphone App designed to facilitate the work of law enforcement agencies and pathologists at crime scenes. She is the scriptwriter for the Italian version of CSI.