Why People Believe Weird Things: Pseudoscience, Superstition, and Other Confusions of Our Time is a book by Michael Shermer published in 1997 by Henry Holt and Company ISBN 0805070893. The foreword of the revised edition is by Stephen Jay Gould. Michael Shermer Michael Shermer Ph. ... Michael Shermer Michael Shermer Ph. ... Stephen Jay Gould Stephen Jay Gould (September 10, 1941 – May 20, 2002) was an American paleontologist, evolutionary biologist, and historian of science. ...

Shermer details and refutes popular pseudoscience and superstition including creationism, Holocaust denial, the Hundredth Monkey, alien abductions, near death experiences, modern witch hunts, and cults. The Creation of Light by Gustave Doré. Creation refers to the concept that all humanity, life, the Earth, or the universe as a whole was created by a deity (often referred to as God). ... Richard Harwoods Did Six Million Really Die? Holocaust denial is the claim that the mainstream historical version of the Holocaust is either highly exaggerated or completely falsified. ... The Hundredth Monkey Effect is the name for a supposed phenomenon in which a particular learned behaviour spread instantaneously from one group of animals, once a critical number was reached, to all related animals in the region or perhaps throughout the world. ... The Abduction Phenomenon is as umbrella term used to describe a number of kidnap individuals--sometimes called abductees--usually for medical testing or for sexual reproduction procedures. ... A near-death experience (NDE) is the perception reported by a person who nearly died or who was clinically dead and revived. ... A witch-hunt was traditionally a search for witches or evidence of witchcraft, which could lead to a witchcraft trial involving the accused person. ...

Chapters

• Foreword by Stephen Jay Gould
• Introduction to Paperback Edition
• Prologue: "Next on Oprah"

Part 1: Science and Skepticism The Oprah Winfrey Show is the longest-running daytime television talk show in the United States, and is hosted, produced and owned by Oprah Winfrey. ...

1. I am Therefore I Think: A Skeptic's Manifesto
2. The Most Precious Thing We Have: The Difference Between Science and Pseudoscience
3. How Thinking Goes Wrong: 25 Fallacies That Lead Us to Believe Weird Things

Part 2: Pseudoscience and Superstition

1. Deviations: The Normal, the Paranormal, and Edgar Cayce
2. Through the Invisble: Near death experiences and the quest for Immortality
3. Abducted: Encounters with Aliens
4. Epidemics of Accucations: Medieval and Modern Witch Crazes
5. The Unlikeliest Cult: Ayn Rand, Objectivisim, and the Cult of Personality

Part 3: Evolution and Creationism Edgar Cayce (March 18, 1877 – January 3, 1945) (pronounced or Casey) was an American psychic who claimed to channel answers to questions on subjects such as health, astrology, reincarnation, and Atlantis while in trance. ... It has been suggested that The Ayn Rand Collective be merged into this article or section. ... Billboard of Joseph Stalin. ...

1. In the Begining: An Evening with Duane Gish
2. Confronting Creationists: 25 Creationist Arguments, 25 Evolutionist Answers
3. Science Defended, Science Defined: Evolution and Creationism at the Supreme Court

Part 4: History and Pseudohistory Duane Gish Duane Tolbert Gish (born February 17, 1921) is an American young earth creationist, and former vice-president of the Institute for Creation Research. ...

1. Doing Donahue: History, Censorship, and Free Speech
2. Who Says the Holocaust Never Happened, and Why Do They Say It? (An Overview of the Movement)
3. How We Know the Holocaust Happened: Debunking the Deniers
4. Pigeonholes and Continuums: An African-Greek-German-American Looks at Race

Part 5: Hopes Springs Eternal Phil Donahue Phillip John Donahue (b. ...

1. Dr. Tipler Meets Dr. Pangloss
2. Why Do People Believe Weird Things?
3. Why Do Smart People Believe Weird Things?

Frank J. Tipler is a professor of mathematical physics at Tulane University, New Orleans, physicist, theologian and cornucopian philosopher. ... Pangloss is a character in Voltaires novel Candide. ...

External links

• Why People Believe Weird Things review from Skepdic
• Why People Believe Weird Things review from Reason magazine