Nonsense on stilts
Subtitle: how to tell science from bunk
By: Massimo Pigliucci.
Publisher: The University of Chicago Press; University Of Chicago Press; University of Chicago Press
Published: 2010
Place of publication: Chicago; London
Language: eng
Number of pages: 332
ISBN-13: 9780226667850; 9780226667867
Subjects: Pseudoscience -- History; Science -- History
Description: "Creationists who dismiss Darwin's theory of evolution. Parents who refuse to vaccinate their children. Climate change deniers who dismiss the warming planet as a hoax. These are just some of the groups that, despite robust scientific evidence, embrace pseudoscientific beliefs and practices. Why do they believe bunk? And how does their ignorance threaten us all? Noted skeptic Massimo Pigliucci sets out to separate the fact from the fantasy in this entertaining exploration of the nature of science, the borderlands of fringe science, and--borrowing a famous phrase from philosopher Jeremy Bentham--the nonsense on stilts. Covering a range of controversial topics, Pigliucci cuts through the ambiguity surrounding science to look more closely at how science is conducted, how it is disseminated, how it is interpreted, and what it means to our society. The result is in many ways a "taxonomy of bunk" that explores the intersection of science and culture at large"--Publisher description.
Notes: Includes bibliographical references and index.
Table of contents: title: Introduction: science versus pseudoscience and the "demarcation problem"; title: Hard science, soft science; title: Almost science; title: Pseudoscience; title: Blame the media?; title: Debates on science: the rise of think tanks and the decline of public intellectuals; title: Science and politics: the case of global warming; title: Science in the courtroom: the case against intelligent design; title: From superstition to natural philosophy; title: From natural philosophy to modern science; title: The science wars I: do we trust science too much?; title: The science wars II: do we trust science too little?; title: Who's your expert?; title: Conclusion so, what is science after all?