the unwary, the ideologically blinded, and lovers of pseudoscience. Like Sayer Ji. Of course, with this long, drawn-out lead up, you know we're fast approaching the climax, and, if you're familiar with cranks like Ji, you know what that climax probably is going to be. I can't say I was too surprised when I came upon that climax: Ultimately, Ioannadis' findings reflect an inborn and potentially fatal error at the very heart of modern science itself: namely, a tendency towards scientism. Scientism is the idea that natural science is the most authoritative worldview or aspect of human education, and that it is superior to all other interpretations of life. Furthermore, scientism accepts as real and valid only those things which it can confirm empirically; those things it does not or cannot confirm it is skeptical about, e.g. homeopathy, the existence of the soul, an innate intelligence in the body, or worse, outright denies as unscientific, or "quackery." That's right. If you can't prove your woo works through science, accuse your critics of "scientism"! Works every time. Well, not really. It's one of the oldest, most transparent gambits in the book. It's also hilarious in that it is clearly designed to cut science down a notch or two, to make it just one of any other "ways of knowing." So how do cranks do that? They liken science to a religion! Yet they blather on and on about "soul," "innate intelligence of the body," and other spiritual, mystic, or outright religious