Skeptical Inquirer - July-August 2022

70 Pages·2022·11 MB·English

The Mandela Effect | Quantum Mechanics | Dunning-Kruger Effect | Hunting Nazis | CFI Sues Homeopathy Maker
Vol. 46, No. 4 | July/August 2022
The Piddingtons:
Why Postwar Britain
Believed in Telepathy
Challenging Australian
Alternative Medicine

Mothman and the
Crane
Fallibility of
Human Vision
$5.99 CAN/US
Special Report:
Skeptics in
2022 Russia
Committee for Skeptical Inquiry | www.skepticalinquirer.org
Robyn E. Blumner,* President and CEO Joe Nickell, Senior Research Fellow Benjamin Radford, Research Fellow
Barry Karr,* Executive Director Massimo Polidoro, Research Fellow Richard Wiseman, Research Fellow

Fellows
James E. Alcock*, psychologist, York Univ., Toronto Connecticut State Univ. Lawrence Kusche, science writer Massimo Polidoro, science writer, author, executive
Marcia Angell MD, former editor-in-chief, Krista Federspiel, medical journalist, author, Nathan H. Lents, professor of biology, City director of CICAP, Italy
New England Journal of Medicine folklorist University of New York Anthony R. Pratkanis, professor of psychology,
Kimball Atwood IV MD, physician, author, Newton, Kevin Folta, molecular biologist. Professor and Stephan Lewandowsky, psychologist, researcher, Univ. of California, Santa Cruz
MA chairman of the Horticultural Sciences Department Univ. of Bristol, United Kingdom Donald R. Prothero, paleontologist, geologist,
Banachek, professional magician/mentalist magic at the University of Florida Jere Lipps, Museum of Paleontology, Univ. of CA, author, National History Museum of Los Angeles
consultant/producer Barbara Forrest, professor of philosophy, Berkeley County
Stephen Barrett MD, psychiatrist, author, consumer SE Louisiana Univ. Elizabeth Loftus, professor of psychology, Univ. Benjamin Radford, investigator; research fellow,
advocate, Pittsboro, NC Craig A. Foster, professor of psychology at SUNY of CA, Irvine Committee for Skeptical Inquiry
Robert Bartholomew, sociologist and investigative Cortland, and writer William M. London, professor of public health, Amardeo Sarma*, chairman, GWUP, Germany
journalist, Botany College in Auckland, Andrew Fraknoi, astronomer, U. of San Francisco California State University, Los Angeles Richard Saunders, Life Member of Australian
New Zealand. Kendrick Frazier*, science writer, editor, SKEPTICAL Leighann Lord, standup comedian, author, host of Skeptics; educator; investigator; podcaster;
Jann Johnson Bellamy, attorney, writer for Science- INQUIRER skeptic events and Skeptical Inquirer Presents Sydney, Australia
Based Medicine blog, Tallahassee, FL Christopher C. French, professor, department of Daniel Loxton, writer, artist, editor, Skeptic
Joe Schwarcz, director, McGill Office for Science
Kenny Biddle, investigator, writer, podcaster, public psychology, and head of the Anomalistic Psychology magazine
and Society
speaker Research Unit, Goldsmiths College, Univ. of London Michael E. Mann, distinguished Professor of
Eugenie C. Scott*, physical anthropologist, former
Irving Biederman, psychologist, Univ. of Southern Julia Galef, writer, podcaster, public speaker Atmospheric Sciences and director of the Earth
executive director (retired), National Center for
CA Luigi Garlaschelli, chemist, Università di Pavia Systems Sciences Center Penn. State Univ.
Science Education
Sandra Blakeslee, science writer; author; New York (Italy), research fellow of CICAP, the Italian skeptics David Marks, psychologist, City Univ., London
Seth Shostak, senior astronomer, SETI Institute,
Times science correspondent group Michael Marshall, investigator, activist, podcaster,
Mountain View, CA
Susan Blackmore, visiting lecturer, Univ. of the West Maryanne Garry, professor, Dept. of Psychology, and editor of The Skeptic (U.K.)
of England, Bristol University of Waikato, New Zealand Mario Mendez-Acosta, journalist and science Simon Singh, science writer; broadcaster; UK
Alejandro Borgo, journalist and writer, Buenos Susan Gerbic, founder and leader of the Guerrilla writer, Mexico City Dick Smith, film producer, publisher, Terrey Hills,
Aires, Argentina Skepticism on Wikipedia (GSoW) project Tim Mendham, executive officer and editor of The N.S.W., Australia
Mark Boslough, physicist, Sandia National Thomas Gilovich, psychologist, Cornell Univ. Skeptic, Australian Skeptics, Sydney Keith E. Stanovich, cognitive psychologist;
Laboratories (retired), Albuquerque, New Mexico David H. Gorski, cancer surgeon and researcher Kenneth R. Miller, professor of biology, Brown Univ. professor of human development and applied
Glenn Branch, deputy director, National Center for at Barbara Ann Karmanos Cancer Institute, Wayne David Morrison, space scientist, NASA Ames psychology, Univ. of Toronto
Science Education State University School of Medicine Research Center Karen Stollznow, linguist; skeptical investigator;
Henri Broch, physicist, Univ. of Nice, France Natalie Grams-Nobmann, medical doctor, Richard A. Muller, professor of physics, Univ. of writer; podcaster
Jan Harold Brunvand, folklorist, professor Heidelberg, Germany CA, Berkeley Jill Cornell Tarter, astronomer, SETI Institute,
emeritus of English, Univ. of Utah David Robert Grimes, physicist, cancer researcher, Joe Nickell, senior research fellow, CSI Mountain View, CA
Sean B. Carroll, molecular geneticist, vice author, Dublin, Ireland Jan Willem Nienhuys, mathematician, Waalre, The Carol Tavris, psychologist and author, Los Angeles,
president for science education, Howard Hughes Wendy M. Grossman, writer; founder and first Netherlands CA
Medical Institute, Madison, WI editor, The Skeptic magazine (UK) Lee Nisbet, professor emeritus of philosophy, David E. Thomas, physicist and mathematician,
Thomas R. Casten, energy expert; chair, Myno Susan Haack, Cooper Senior Scholar in Arts and Medaille College Socorro, NM
Carbon Corp., Hinsdale, IL Sciences, professor of philosophy and professor of Matthew C. Nisbet, professor of communication, Leonard Tramiel, physicist, science communicator,
Timothy Caulfield, professor of health law and Law, Univ. of Miami public policy, and public affairs, Northeastern Palo Alto, California
policy, University of Alberta, Canada Harriet Hall MD, family physician, investigator, University, Boston Neil deGrasse Tyson, astrophysicist and director,
K.C. Cole, science writer, author, professor, Univ. Puyallup, WA Steven Novella MD, assistant professor of Hayden Planetarium, New York City
of Southern California’s Annenberg School of Raymond E. Hall, professor of physics, California neurology, Yale Univ. School of Medicine James Underdown, writer, investigator, founder
Journalism State University, Fresno Bill Nye, science educator and television host, of Center for Inquiry Investigations Group (CFIIG),
John Cook, Center for Climate Change Michael Heap, clinical and forensic psychologist Nye Labs Los Angeles
Communication, George Mason University, Virginia and lecturer (ret.), Sheffield, U.K. James E. Oberg, science writer Joseph Uscinski, political scientist, University
Frederick Crews, literary and cultural critic, David J. Helfand, professor of astronomy, Columbia Paul Offit, physician, author, researcher, professor, of Miami
professor emeritus of English, Univ. of CA, Berkeley Univ. Univ. of Pennsylvania Bertha Vazquez, science teacher, director of the
Richard Dawkins, zoologist, Oxford Univ. Terence M. Hines, prof. of psychology, Pace Univ., Naomi Oreskes, geologist, science historian, Teacher Institute for Evolutionary Science (TIES)
Geoffrey Dean, technical editor, Perth, Australia Pleasantville, NY professor, Harvard University Indre Viskontas, cognitive neuroscientist, tv and
Daniel C. Dennett, Univ. professor and Austin B. Douglas R. Hofstadter, professor of human Loren Pankratz, psychologist, Oregon Health
podcast host, and opera singer, San Francisco, CA
Fletcher Professor of Philosophy, director of Center understanding and cognitive science, Indiana Univ. Sciences Univ.
Marilyn vos Savant, Parade magazine contributing
for Cognitive Studies at Tufts Univ. Gerald Holton, Mallinckrodt Professor of Physics Jay M. Pasachoff, Field Memorial Professor of
editor
Ann Druyan, writer and producer; CEO, Cosmos and professor of history of science, Harvard Univ. Astronomy and director of the Hopkins Observatory,
Stuart Vyse*, psychologist, professor, author
Studios, Ithaca, NY Deborah Hyde, folklorist, cultural anthropologist, Williams College
Mick West, writer, podcaster, investigator, debunker,
Sanal Edamaruku, president, Indian Rationalist and former editor in chief of the UK-based Natalia Pasternak, microbiologist, writer, president,
Folsom, CA
Association and Rationalist International magazine The Skeptic Instituto Questão de Ciência, São Paulo, Brazil
Richard Wiseman, psychologist, Univ. of
Taner Edis, professor of physics, Truman State Ray Hyman*, psychologist, Univ. of Oregon John Paulos, mathematician, Temple Univ.
University Stuart D. Jordan, NASA astrophysicist emeritus, Clifford A. Pickover, scientist, author, editor, IBM Hertfordshire, England
Mark Edward, mentalist, skeptic, author, Salinas, former science advisor to Center for Inquiry Office T.J. Watson Research Center Benjamin Wolozin, professor, department of
CA of Public Policy, Washington, D.C. Massimo Pigliucci, professor of philosophy, City pharmacology, Boston Univ. School of Medicine
Edzard Ernst, emeritus professor, Complementary Barry Karr, executive director, Committee for Univ. of New York–Lehman College
Medicine, Peninsula Medical School, Universities of Skeptical Inquiry, Amherst, New York Steven Pinker, cognitive scientist, Harvard Univ.
*Member, CSI Executive Council
Exeter and Plymouth, Exeter, UK Edwin C. Krupp, astronomer, director, Griffith
(Affiliations given for identification only.)
Kenneth Feder, professor of anthropology, Central Observatory, Los Angeles, CA
The SKEPTICAL INQUIRER (ISSN 0194-6730) is published bimonthly Manuscripts, editorial inquiries, and books for review should be To subscribe or change address go to skepticalinquirer.org. Or
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Skep ti cal In quir er
July/August 2022 | Volume 46 No. 4
FEATURES COLUMNS
37 FROM THE EDITOR
The Social Dynamics of Conspiracy Sociology of Conspiracy; Skeptics in Russia ........4
Rumors: From Satanic Panic to
NEWS AND COM MENT
QAnon
CFI Sues Homeopathy Maker Boiron for
A sociological approach can help us understand Deceiving Consumers with Junk Meds / Science
how conspiracy rumors work. This approach Communication during the Ukraine War / CFI
focuses on the influences of history, culture, and Creates Office of Consumer Protection from
politics rather than on personality psychology. 37
Pseudoscience / Age of Greenland Crater Deals
JEFFREY S. VICTOR Blow to Younger Dryas Impact Hypothesis / E.O.
Wilson Follow-Up: Race and ‘Vigilantism,’ Ants and
42 Spiders / 'Huggy Wuggy’ Media Scare Goes Viral /

Science Tackles Misinformation in Special Section /
The Telepathic Piddingtons: How New Yorker Profile of Loftus Wins Magazine Award /
Post-War Britain Came to Believe in Michael Mann Moving to University of Pennsylvania
Telepathy / QAnon Followers Focus on Migrant Children at
Southern Border/ Science Friction Documentary
In 1949, a young Australian telepathy act, the
Piddingtons, broadcast on BBC radio and took Released........................................................................5
Britain by storm, leading to an upsurge of popular
belief in the paranormal. POSTCARDS FROM REALITY
42
Feeling Grateful for Science
PAUL ZEDANE ROBYN E. BLUMNER .......................................................18
47 INVESTIGATIVE FILES

Unmasking a Monster: My Role as a
Jelly Beans and Bull: Challenging Nazi Hunter
Alt-Med in Australia JOE NICKELL ..................................................................20
Ten years ago, a cancer survivor joined forces THE PHILOSOPHER'S CORNER
with four professors to fight against government- What Does It Mean to ‘Interpret’
legitimized health fraud in Australia. This is her
Quantum Mechanics?
story. MASSIMO PIGLIUCCI ......................................................23
LORETTA MARRON REALITY IS THE BEST MEDICINE 47
Medical Tests to Avoid
52 HARRIET HALL ................................................................25
The Mothman and the Crane: A NOTES ON A STRANGE WORLD
Contemporary Perspective
The Mandela Effect: How False Memories
Are Created
is the sandhill crane the most likely candidate for
Mothman sight ings in the late 1960s? MASSIMO POLIDORO ......................................................28

DANIEL A. REED BEHAVIOR & BELIEF
Yes, The Dunning-Kruger Effect Really Is Real
57 STUART VYSE ..................................................................29

52
THE PRACTICAL SKEPTIC
What Everyone Should Know about
An Inconvenient Counterexample
Human Vision
MICK WEST ....................................................................32
REVIEWS
Learning a little about how we see can go a long
SKEPTICAL INQUIREE
way toward avoiding self-deception.
Replication in Skeptical Investigation On the Ball
GUY P. HARRISON BENJAMIN RADFORD .....................................................35 GLENN BRANCH .................................................59
Off the Edge: Flat Earthers, Conspiracy Culture,
SPECIAL REPORT NEW AND NOTABLE BOOKS .................................63
and Why People Will Believe Anything
13 LET TERS TO THE ED I TOR ......................................64 By Kelly Weill
How to Be a Skeptic in Russia COMMENTARY A Feminist Guide to Rethinking
What has life been like for skeptics in Russia since 16 Menopause
ittasl kin avbaosiuotn t hoef Ufekarar ianned? rTehprerees sRiuosns tiahna ts dkoemptiincsa te The German Heilpraktiker: A Relic JULIA LAVARNWAY ...............................................61
their lives. of the Past The Menopause Manifesto: Own Your Health
with Facts and Feminism
PAVEL ŠMEJKAL EDZARD ERNST By Dr. Jen Gunter
Committee for Skeptical Inquiry
“... promotes scientific inquiry, critical investigation, and the use
of reason in examining controversial and extraordinary claims.”
Skep ti cal In quir er
[ FROM THE EDITOR ™
THE MAGA Z INE FOR SCIE NCE AND REAS ON
Sociology of Conspiracy; Skeptics in Russia ED I TOR Kend rick Fra zi er
DEPUTY ED I TOR Ben ja min Rad ford
People do things in groups that they wouldn’t as individuals. Understand- MAN A GING ED I TOR Julia Lavarnway
ASSISTANT EDITOR Nicole Scott
ing human behavior requires attention not just to individuals but to the
ART DIRECTOR Alexander Nicaise
social groups that influence them, notes Jeffrey A. Victor. As author of WEBMASTER Michael Powell
our cover article, “The Social Dynamics of Conspiracy Rumors,” the retired PUB LISH ER’S REP RE SENT A TIVE Barr y Karr
sociology professor brings his perspective to help us understand the conspir- ED I TO RI AL BOARD James E. Alc ock, Robyn E. Blumner,
Harriet Hall, Ray Hym an, Barry Karr, Elizabeth Loftus,
acy ideas so prevalent today. He prefers the term rumors to theories: “a rumor
Joe Nickell, Am ard eo Sar ma, Eugenie C. Scott, David E.
requires the participation of many people; it is a social phenomenon.” As he Thomas, Leonard Tramiel, Stuart Vyse
CON TRIB UT ING ED I TORS Harriet Hall, David Morrison, Joe
notes, social groups are driven by forces beyond the individual personalities
Nickell, Matthew C. Nisbet, Massimo Pigliucci, Massimo
involved; the people who attacked the U.S. Capitol on January 6 acted in ways Polidoro, David E. Thomas, Stuart Vyse, Mick West, Rich-
ard Wis e man
they probably would not act alone. Published in association with
Victor should know. He originated the term satanic panic with his 1993
book of that title (and two SI articles before that), an analysis of the panics
about Satanic cults that caught up so many people of the time. It was “a fasci-
nating social phenomenon,” he found. It all starts with a rumor, “a collaborative CHAIR Edward Tabash
story telling process” and “collective group creation.” People share juicy rumors PRESIDENT AND CEO Robyn E. Blumner
CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER Barry Karr
as a form of bonding. People in different communication networks “live in
COR PO RATE COUN SEL Nicholas J. Little,
different social worlds,” and that has worsened today with social media. This all Brenton Ver Ploeg
leads to “the consensus validation of reality,” where people in a particular group SUBSCRIPTION DATA MANAGER Jacalyn Mohr
hear the same story over and over from their friends. The rumors play on COMMUNICATIONS DIRECTOR Paul Fidalgo
DI RECT OR OF LI BRAR IES Timo t hy S. Binga
fear. The dominant fear now is of unfamiliar people, a result of demographic
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, RICHARD DAWKINS FOUNDATION
changes in America—leading to white Christian nationalism. Another key is FOR REASON & SCIENCE Robyn E. Blumner
this sociological principle: “If people believe that something is real, it is real in DIRECTOR, DIGITAL PRODUCT AND STRATEGY
Michael Powell
its consequences.” Satanic cult rumors hurt a lot of people, and today QAnon
DIRECTOR OF GOVERNMENT AFFAIRS
conspiracy rumors are even more dangerous because “they pose the threat of Azhar Majeed
large-scale violence.” In the end, “Attempts to control dangerous conspiracy DIRECTOR OF EDUCATION; DIRECTOR, TEACHER INSTITUTE
FOR EVOLUTIONARY SCIENCE
rumors must deal with them as a social phenomenon and not simply an ex- Bertha Vazquez
pression of the personality quirks of individuals.” SYSTEM ADMINISTRATOR
Cody Hashman
* * * BOARD OF DIRECTORS Edward Tabash (chair), Vinod
What is it like to be a skeptic today in war-torn Ukraine? Or, for that matter, Bhardwaj, David Cowan, Richard Dawkins, Brian Engler,
Kendrick Frazier, Barry A. Kosmin, Bill Maxwell, Julia
in Russia, the aggressor, where state oppression has extinguished all remaining Sweeney, J. Anderson Thomson Jr., Leonard Tramiel.
Honorary: Rebecca Newberger Goldstein, Susan Jacoby
free expression? In our news and comment section, Stuart Vyse shows how
STAFF Melissa Braun, Aubrey Cook, Matthew Cravatta, Roe
skeptics in Ukraine quickly switched from classic skeptical topics to war-re- Giambrone, Aaron Green, Cynthia Kazaroff, Paul Paulin,
lated ones. And in our moving special report, Czech skeptic Pavel Šmejkal Eric Shaver, Vance Vigrass, Shaun White
contacted a skeptic friend in Russia and got us three first-person reports. They
vary but all are heart-breaking. “It is hard to talk about any support for science
and critical thinking when the power in the country belongs to crazy, inhuman
conspiracy theorists,” says one. “Almost nowhere else do they have such power.
… In Russia, Putin has no deterrents.”
“I think that, in general, everyone is shocked,” a second Russian skeptic
writes. “The younger generation, in my opinion, is for the most part categori-
cally against the war—and depressed.” He is considering emigrating.
“Of course, critical thinking still exists in Russia,” a third writes, but if
you touch on anything related to criticism of the current regime, “you are in
danger.” He concludes, “I would like to wish for all readers of S I-
 that fear will never invade your homes. Cherish the freedom to think
critically, study, and pass on your knowledge. … And hold onto each other.”
—K F
Original cover art for SI by Alex Nicaise
CFI Mission: The Center for Inquiry strives to foster a secular society based on reason, science, freedom of inquiry, and humanist values.
Our Vision: A world where people value evidence and critical thinking, where superstition and prejudice subside, and where science and compassion guide public policy.
4 Volume 46 Issue 4 | SkepticaOl Iunqr uViraelrues: Integrity, Courage, Innovation, Empathy, Learning, and Wonder.
[ NEWS AND COMMENT
CFI Sues Homeopathy Maker Boiron for Deceiving Consumers with Junk Meds
P F
The Center for Inquiry (CFI) has scientifically detectable active ingredi-
filed a groundbreaking lawsuit against ent, Boiron falsely promises consum-
Boiron, Inc., one of the largest man- ers that each item will treat and cure
ufacturers of homeopathic products a particular illness, injury, or health
in the world, for deceiving vulnera- condition.
ble consumers with useless products “Boiron sells little pills of sugar with
dressed up to look like real medicine. grandiose claims. It’s hard to believe
CFI, which fights on behalf of con- anyone would try to pass off such junk
sumers against pseudoscience, says as a surefire way to treat painful skin
Boiron routinely makes false claims problems, heal mental health issues,
about what its products will treat and even to counteract menopause,”
and heal, misleading the public about said CFI Staff Attorney Aaron D.
the absurd pseudoscientific basis for Green. “But Boiroin has been doing
Boiron products and even lying about just that by tricking consumers into
the ingredients their products contain. risking their health and throwing
CFI and its Committee for Skep- away their money on its fancy faux CFI VP and Legal Counsel Nicholas LIttle
tical Inquiry publish the Skeptical ‘medicines.’ It’s time for Boiron and
Inquirer. all homeopathy hucksters to be held ucts they know are useless, CFI says
“The facts could not be more clear. accountable.” Boiron also misrepresents the prod-
Boiron profits massively by deceiving ucts’ ingredients. Four Boiron products
consumers in their time of need,” said were analyzed by an independent lab,
CFI Vice President and Legal Coun- and not only were no traces of the sup-
“Boiron knows its
sel Nicholas Little. “Boiron knows its posed active ingredient found, one of
products are worth-
products are worthless junk, so they the inactive ingredients could not be
do everything they can to obscure the less junk, so they do scientifically detected.
truth in order to offload their snake oil The Center for Inquiry is currently
everything they can to
upon the unwitting, the ill-informed, engaged in other lawsuits regard-
obscure the truth.”
and the vulnerable. They can’t be al- ing homeopathy, including consumer
lowed to get away with it any longer.” protection cases against megaretailers
—CFI's Nicholas Little
Adherents of homeopathy claim, CVS and Walmart for their sale and
without evidence, that a substance that marketing of homeopathic products, a
causes harm to a healthy person will matter recently heard by the D.C.
cure anyone else suffering the same In its complaint, CFI notes, for Court of Appeals. CFI is also engaged
type of harm. In homeopathic prod- example, that Boiron sells Saccharum in an active Freedom of Information
ucts, the “active” ingredients are highly officinale as a treatment for “nervous Act lawsuit that demands the U.S. De-
diluted mixtures of the so-called cures; agitation in children after overindul- partment of Health and Human Ser-
the ingredient ends up so diluted that gence.” However, Green notes, “Most vices grant the public access to the Ho-
often literally no trace of the original parents would rightfully be skeptical of meopathic Pharmacopoeia of the United
substance remains. Manufacturers such this product if Boiron told them what States, upon which federal regulation of
as Boiron then sell minuscule amounts Saccharum officinale actually is: Table homeopathy is based. The industry re-
of the already incredibly diluted ingre- sugar.” stricts access to this “bible of homeop-
dients, promising astounding results. According to recent industry ac- athy” to those willing to pay thousands
In its lawsuit, brought under the counts, 85 percent of consumers who of dollars for the privilege. • 
District of Columbia Consumer Pro- purchased homeopathic products did
tection Procedures Act, CFI alleges not realize they were homeopathic,
that Boiron sold a plethora of mate- and nine out of ten consumers did Paul Fidalgo is CFI’s communications
rially identical products, each made up not even know what the term homeo- director. He has recently been named ed-
of sugar pills and powders. Despite no pathic meant. Apart from selling prod- itor of Free Inquiry.
Skeptical Inquirer | July/August 2022 5
Science Communication during the Ukraine War
CFI Creates Office of
S V
Consumer Protection
from Pseudoscience
The Center for Inquiry has estab-
lished a new arm in its battle
A Google translated screenshot taken from the Kunsht website on March 26, 2022. against quackery, bringing all its
efforts in this arena together under
In August 2021, I was contacted by an I discovered that the one proverbial roof.
editor at Kunsht (https://kunsht.com. On April 15, CFI announced
Kunsht group had trans-
ua/), a Ukrainian media group that cov- the launch of its Office of Con-
ers science and technology “to promote formed their site to pro- sumer Protection from Pseudosci-
critical thinking among Ukrainian ence. It will bring legal action, issue
vide useful science-based
youth.” Kunsht interviewed me for a warning letters, and seek to educate
podcast series on magical thinking in information for a country and inform the public and legisla-
relation to astrology and numerology, tors—both state and federal—to
under siege.
and although doing the interview over properly protect the public from
Skype was a very enjoyable experience, the harms of these scam products
I promptly forgot about it. I contacted two of Kunsht’s editors, and “treatments.”
In March 2022 after Russia’s Vlad- who said they had moved their opera- The website to the new office
imir Putin invaded Ukraine, I was re- tion to safe locations. They seemed to includes a contact section for con-
minded of the group and took another be in remarkably good spirits but had sumers to tell CFI where they see
look at its website. What I saw was both quite obviously seized the opportunity pseudoscience being used to de-
heartbreaking and enormously impres- to employ their expertise in science to fraud.
sive. With the help of Google Translate, provide practical, potentially lifesaving “Core to CFI’s mission is chal-
I discovered that the Kunsht group had information for their fellow citizens. lenging pseudoscience,” CFI Vice
transformed their site to provide useful One of the editors told me, “We are, President and Legal Counsel Nick
science-based information for a country of course, optimists, so we moved our Little said in announcing the new
under siege. Prior to the attack, Kunsht ‘ordinary’ materials to mid-April.” By office. “It’s not enough just to be
was featuring articles such as “Preserve publication time, their optimistic hopes right in these situations. As skep-
the Youth: How to Study Vaccines for for a quick end of the war had not been tics and humanists, we have an
Children” and “Back in the Past: Can realized, but their valiant science com- obligation to protect people from
We See the Big Bang?” After the war munication effort continued. the harm pseudoscience represents.
broke out, its articles had titles such as If you would like to support Kunsht’s Now we are doing it under a new
“Food during War: What and How to work, you can do so at https://kunsht. name and a single organization—
Cook,” “Russian Troops Control Two com.ua/druzi/. • the Office of Consumer Protection
Nuclear Power Plants: What Is the from Pseudoscience.” •
Threat?,” and “What Is Botulism and Stuart Vyse is a psychologist and SI’s “Be-
How to Safely Eat Canned Food.” havior & Belief” columnist.
6 Volume 46 Issue 4 | Skeptical Inquirer
[ NEWS AND COMMENT
Age of Greenland Crater Deals Blow to Younger Dryas Impact Hypothesis
M B
“This is the way science works and
should work,” said Kurt Kjær, a geol-
ogist at the Natural History Museum
of Denmark and codiscoverer of the
Hiawatha Crater under the Greenland
Ice Sheet. He and colleagues recently
determined the crater is 58 million
years old, far older than proponents of
a controversial hypothesis had hoped
(Science, March 11, 2022, p. 1076).
When the crater’s discovery was an-
nounced in 2018, the mere possibility
that it could have been formed only
a geologic eyeblink ago (say, around
12,800 years ago) and therefore could
have caused a climate shift and extinc-
tion led to exuberant reporting (see
Boslough, “Crater Discovery Story NASA digital elevation model with the ice sheet removed to show surface of bedrock in the region around the Hiawatha Glacier.
Credit: NASA's Scientific Visualization Studio
Flawed by Premature Link to Specu-
lative Impact Hypothesis,” Skeptical
A few shards of glass from a volcanic crater being millions of years old.”
Inquirer, March/April 2019).
eruption are enough to stop an ice- YDB impact enthusiasts, who had
Proponents of the Younger Dryas
core processing line so the workers argued that their hypothesis should be
Boundary (YDB) impact hypothesis can take pictures, even getting selfies
promoted to a “theory,” were disap-
made bold predictions: “I’d unequivo- with it. Nothing showed up in any
pointed. Devotees had considered the
cally predict that this crater is the same cores in the Younger Dryas. An
Hiawatha Crater their smoking gun
age as the Younger Dryas,” pronounced impact near the coast that threw
despite expert opinion. Their hopes now
James Kennett of the University of Cal- material up to Summit would have
hinge primarily on their own definition
left chain-saw-dulling material at
ifornia, Santa Barbara (Science, Novem-
Pakitsoq near the coast, but nothing of impact markers that contradicts long-
ber 14, 2018).
showed up. standing mineralogic and geochemical
Subject matter experts were more
criteria established by impact specialists
circumspect. Christian Koeberl (Uni-
Elizabeth Silber (Sandia National (Jaret and Harris, Nature Scientific Re-
versity of Vienna) noted the lack of
Laboratories, adjunct at the University ports, March 25, 2022).
evidence: “There should be thick ejecta
of Western Ontario) published simula- Responding to the new paper, Ken-
layers in all ice cores nearby. Yet there’s
tions of impacts into ice to see if a crater nett said, “I don’t think it’s related to
nothing” (Popular Science, November 16, could have formed without leaving ev- the Younger Dryas now.” But he says
2018). idence in ice cores, despite only “occur- the team still believes in their impact
Clark Chapman (Southwest Re- ring once every 2 million years.” Her hypothesis and will continue to do re-
search Institute) highlighted the im- models, under carefully specified condi- search on what they still think is impact
probability compared to something as tions that assume∼d thick Pleistocene ice, evidence. “It’s all alive and well and very
old as two million years, noting that “It couldn’t rule out a young age (< 2.6 mil- active” (Science, March 11, 2022). •
would be at least a hundred times less lion years; see ArXiv:20-4:07909). She  
likely that it could have happened so acknowledged the physical possibility of
recently as to have affected the Younger an improbably young crater. Now, after Mark Boslough is an impact physicist at
Dryas” (Science News for Students, Janu- coauthoring the confirmation of its an- Los Alamos National Laboratory and fac-
ary 2, 2019). cient age, she told me, “Our modelling ulty member at University of New Mexico.
Greenland ice core and paleoclimate results indeed support the slow ero- He is a fellow of the Committee for Skep-
expert Richard Alley told me: sional rates and are consistent with the tical Inquiry.
Skeptical Inquirer | July/August 2022 7
E.O. Wilson Follow-Up: Race and ‘Vigilantism,’ Ants and Spiders
K F
eSKEPTIC, April 5, 2022. defend himself anymore.”
Hölldobler kindly gave S * * *
I permission to quote from it. On a far lighter note, our family friend
“It is clear to me that Ed could not Susanne Page has shared with me some
have paid much scrutiny to Rushton’s memories that show E.O. Wilson’s
work but rather was motivated by the human side, and she agreed I might share
impression he got from Rushton’s own them with you. She, a noted professional
description of his plight, namely, that he photographer, and her late husband Jake
was being persecuted by far-left wing Page, then a writer, editor, and columnist
ideologues, as Wilson himself had been for Smithsonian magazine, once went
after publication of Sociobiology,” Höll- on a trip to the Amazon with Wilson.
dobler writes. The occasion was to report on a World
“Wilson’s positive response to Rush- Wildlife Fund project by Smithsonian
ton’s pleas appears to me naïve. I assume biologist Thomas Lovejoy, but Wilson
that he realized this later too, because to came too. They were camped some-
Bert Hölldobler (left) and Edward O. Wilson. Photo by Kathy my knowledge he never cited Rushton’s where outside of Manaus, Brazil.
Horton, courtesy of Hölldobler. work nor mentioned it in conversations I “It was dark, after dinner, with an oil
had with him.” lantern for light and sleeping hammocks
My lead article in our seven-page memo- Hölldobler concludes: “Given Wil- in the background shadows, and we were
rial section for the late biologist and CSI son’s numerous articles, books, lectures, sharing a wee bit of warm Brazilian beer,”
Fellow E.O. Wilson (May/June 2022) and public statements, which contain she says.
included a long paragraph about recent nothing even remotely supportive of “In the middle of general discussions,
accusations of racism against Wilson racism, it seems unfair to zero in on this an ant marched across the rough-hewn
due to a letter he once wrote in support limited correspondence with a single table, and Ed paused, squinted … and
of controversial Canadian psychologist colleague to be waved like a red flag to announced its Latin name,” she recalls.
J. Philippe Rushton. I ended, “Of course tarnish a scholar’s reputation. … Such “At another point a very large, hairy spi-
Wilson is no longer here to respond to self-righteous vigilantism is highly unjust der wandered up the post by which I was
the accusations.” and distortive.” sitting, about three inches from my arm.
Maybe not, but one of his most es- Hölldobler also says Wilson wrote in Ed rushed over and identified it, then
teemed collaborators, biologist Bert a note to Nature (Vol. 289, February 19, went on with the conversations.”
Hölldobler, has strongly responded. Now 1981), “I am happy to point out that no One time a parrot that just hung
a Regents Professor at Arizona State justification for racism is to be found in out near the camp “really did land on
University, Hölldobler was Professor of the truly scientific study of the biological Ed’s head, then Tom’s head.” She thinks
Biology and Alexander Agassiz Profes- basis of social behaviour.” Smithsonian used that image in its article.
sor of Zoology at Harvard from 1973– Hölldobler tells the S I- “To bathe, we had a nearby creek with a
1990, where, like Wilson, he studied  his “Self-Righteous Vigilantism” swimming hole, and the water was filled
social organization in insects, especially piece went through multiple versions. with neon tetras,” she recalls.
ants. He is a member of both the U.S. He first submitted it to the New York She says Wilson talked a lot on that
and German National Academies of Sci- Review of Books, which has published trip about how he regretted that biol-
ences. He coauthored with Wilson the recent criticisms of Wilson as well as ogists were never portrayed in movies
Pulitzer Prize–winning book The Ants, those way back in the Sociobiology years other than as dweebs. He wished instead
and subsequently they coauthored three that caused Wilson such anguish. They they could be shown as sexy, and he had
other books, most recently The Leaf- declined. He reframed it, had it critically a lot of fun talking about perfect actors
cutter Ants (2011). Hölldobler has now reviewed, and resubmitted it. They again for the job. “The conversation was very
published a vigorous defense of Wilson, rejected it. But now it has seen the light jolly.” •
“Self-Righteous Vigilantism in Science: of day, and he is grateful for whatever at-
The Case of Edward O. Wilson.” The tention it might get. He tells SI, it is “my Kendrick Frazier is editor of the Skeptical
2,500-word text is available online at defense of my friend Ed, who cannot Inquirer.
8 Volume 46 Issue 4 | Skeptical Inquirer
[ NEWS AND COMMENT
‘Huggy Wuggy’ Media Scare Goes Viral

B R
A panic circulated in schools and online tent, not official content. Once a fic-
in early April 2022, but it was no April tional character is released to the public,
Fool’s Day prank. The fear was over a it becomes in a sense public domain—
thin, towering, cartoonish, fluffy blue not legally but folklorically. Any fig-
figure with a gaping maw and terrifying ure—from Harry Potter to James Bond
teeth named Huggy Wuggy. to Spock to Darth Vader—appears in
As to what, exactly, the threat was, it everything from fan art to costumes to
depended on what version of the story videos to slash fiction. Those concerned
you saw. Some said that the threat was about Huggy Wuggy conflated the two,
merely scaring children (or misleading mistakenly thinking that the real-but-
them into embracing a terrifying fig- rare versions of the figure seen on kids’
ure); others said that Huggy Wuggy platforms were placed there to harm
encouraged children to kill each other, kids.
siblings, or their parents. One British Because the character was never in-
school administrator, David Hegarty, tended for children, the concern that the
posted a warning on social media: character is “deceiving” is misguided at
best. This taps into perennial parental
It has been brought to my atten-
tion that a character named “Huggy fears about deceptive marketing, espe-
Wuggy” is being viewed by our cially to children. However, the figure
children online. … The character is patently frightening and unlikely to
can be easily viewed on YouTube
be mistaken for one of the Muppets. In
channels and is a teddy bear with
its proper context—which is off limits
razor-sharp teeth that sings worry-
ing songs about hugging and killing. to anyone under twelve—it’s clear what
In one of the videos, the bear asks Huggy Wuggy is: a villainous target in a
the viewer to take their last breath. It first-person shooter game. Most impor-
is a very deceiving character, as hugs
tantly, despite the hype and fear, there is
should be seen as something kind
no evidence that the character inspired
and loving.
any violent acts in homes or schoolyards
On April 7, the Sheriff’s Office in around the world.
Lafayette County, Wisconsin, issued Many S I read- Wuggy—or to the presumed impres-
a warning “due to a series of videos ers will recognize the Huggy Wuggy sionable youth who watched content
surrounding … Huggy Wuggy. The scare as the latest in a long line of in- featuring it—police and parents pre-
warnings are due to the character’s ini- ternet-based moral panics, including dictably used it as teachable moment.
tially child-friendly visuals, which very the Blue Whale Game and the Momo Chief Inspector Joanne Gibson issued
quickly turn nightmarish.” Challenge (see “The Rise and Fall of a statement:
Misinformation was rampant, and— the ‘Momo Challenge’ Online Suicide
I urge parents and guardians to
as with many scares—there was a grain Game Conspiracy” in the May/June continue to talk to their children
of truth to the rumors. Huggy Wuggy is 2019 SI). The evidence for these threats and young people about being safe
a character in a 2021 horror video game is built largely on rumor and conjecture. online, while also ensuring they are
fully aware of what they are view-
called Poppy Playtime. But despite the It’s also part of a long tradition of pa-
ing. It’s important to make your
concerns of parents and school officials, ternal fear over seemingly innocuous
child aware of online dangers and
the character was never marketed, nor kids games that allegedly have a sin- make sure they know they can speak
intended to appeal, to children. Poppy ister side, including trick-or-treating, to someone if anything or anyone
Playtime is not available on age-re- Ouija boards, Dungeons and Dragons, online causes them concern or upsets
them. •
stricted platforms, though it’s true that and the Charlie Charlie Challenge (see
Huggy Wuggy appeared on some media Massimo Polidoro’s column in the No-
accessible to children, such as YouTube. vember/December 2015 SI). Despite Benjamin Radford is deputy editor of
However, that was user-generated con- no credible threat posed by Huggy Skeptical Inquirer.
Skeptical Inquirer | July/August 2022 9
Science
Tackles Misinformation in Special Section
It is not just skeptics anymore. The entire endangers the well-being of the planet, and
scientific community is becoming increas- threatens public health.” He and others, in
ingly concerned about misinformation the same issue of PNAS, called upon re-
and disinformation as a serious national searchers to study misinformation as “a
problem. Scientists increasingly must crisis discipline” and learn how to stop it.
overcome lies and half-truths about their • “In the Line of Fire: Scientists Have
work as well as online harassment and, Been Harassed for Years. But a Science
sometimes, even threats once it is pub- Survey Shows the Pandemic Has Made
lished. This is especially true when deal- Things Worse for Some” by Cathleen
ing with hot-button issues. Evolutionary O’Grady. With six graphics: “An Out-
biologist Karl Bergstrom believes that break of Harassment,” showing that 38
“bullshit” spread online has become one percent of COVID-19 researchers report
of the biggest threats facing humanity in being harassed; “A New Wave of Abuse”;
the twenty-first century and that studying “Views That Draw Vitriol”; “The Effect of
it and learning how to combat it is as Exposure”; “A Serious Toll”; and “Coping
important as climate science. Mechanisms” (the top three of which were
The journal Science published a special block or mute individuals on social media,
section on “The Social Media Storm” in inciting hate, and endangering democracy.” stop reading comments online, and turn
its March 25, 2022, issue (vol. 375, Issue • “On the Trail of Bullshit: Studying down some opportunities for publicity).
6587). The eighteen-page illustrated sec- • “Riding the Twitter Wave: Enthu-
Misinformation Should Become a Top
tion examined a wide variety of challenges. siasm for the Social Media Platform
Priority, Says Biologist Carl Bergstrom” by
There is too much to summarize here, but Changed Science Communication during
Kak Kjupferschmidt. “Misinformation has
we recommend that all scientific skeptics the Pandemic. But Will It Last?” by Jeffrey
reached crisis proportions,” Bergstrom and
check it out. Contents include: Brainard.
University of Washington colleague Jevin
• “Inside the Vortex” (introduction) by The issue’s introduction concludes:
West wrote in a 2021 paper in the Pro-
Martin Enserink. “Facebook, Twitter, and “The social media storm isn’t calming
other platforms may have given everyone a ceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. down. How we cope with it in the years
voice, but they’ve also unleashed a storm of “It poses a risk to international peace, in- ahead may determine whether we end up in
negative effects—spreading disinformation, terferes with democratic decision-making, a better place—or one that’s far worse.” •
New Yorker
Profile of Loftus Wins Michael Mann Moving to University
Magazine Award of Pennsylvania
A lengthy profile of CSI Fellow Elizabeth Loftus, “one Michael Mann is set to leave Pennsylvania State
of the most influential psychologists of the twentieth University, where he is Distinguished Professor of
century,” has won its author a major magazine award. Atmospheric Science, and on September 1 assume
New Yorker staff writer Rachel Aviv won an “Ellie” in the a new position at the University of Pennsylvania.
Profile Writing category for what the magazine called According to a University of Pennsylvania news
her “nuanced” portrait of Loftus, one of the world’s lead- release, Mann, a fellow of the Committee for
ing experts on memory who has researched and shown Skeptical Inquiry, will become a Presidential
that memories are reconstructed and very fallible. The Distinguished Professor in the Department of
article, “How Elizabeth Loftus Changed the Meaning Earth and Environmental Science and a fellow
of Memory” (April 5, 2021), described her innovative of the Kleinman Center for Energy Policy. He
research and showed how it came into conflict with con- will also become the inaugural director of a new
temporary moral issues. In what seemed controversial and Penn Center for Science, Sustainability, and the
uncomfortable for many, it also delved rather deeply into Media and a distinguished research fellow at the
Loftus’s own family and personal life. • Annenberg Policy Center. •
10 Volume 46 Issue 4 | Skeptical Inquirer