24 June 2012 by Melany Hamill
Hey there skeptifans. Here are the Fails and Wins you sent me this week. Soldier’s mystery illness solved in 15 minutes It’s been a while since I’ve posted a case of woovertising. This one plugs a naturopath by telling the story of a man suffering chronic pain. The naturopath figured out he had worms by [...]
Posted in Skeptical Fails and Wins1 Comment
05 March 2012 by Melany Hamill
Hey there skeptifans. Here are the media Fails and Wins you sent me this week. Study suggests smelling rosemary aromas can boost brain performance Art sent in this fail. Apparently smelling rosemary boosts your “brain performance”. What exactly does this mean? Well, the article won’t tell you. It only mentions researchers saw improvements on “speed [...]
Posted in Skeptical Fails and Wins9 Comments
15 January 2012 by Melany Hamill
Hey there skeptifans. Vancouver finally got some snow. And not just the light dusting that disappears an hour later, but the kind you can roll up into a snowman. This of course means that we are all trapped inside our houses because we don’t know how to operate in these wild conditions. Luckily the power [...]
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08 January 2012 by Melany Hamill
Hey there skeptifans. I hope you are surviving the winter. The new year is rung in with lots of new woo. Cleanse-crazy We all overeat during the holidays which prompts a lot of articles on losing holiday pounds, and where there is weight loss, there is woo. A slough of holiday detox articles came out [...]
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09 December 2011 by Marion Kilgour
Most of the cell phone / Wi-Fi hysteria seems to me like it’s been coming from the eastern provinces, although Edmonton has had some short-lived and ineffective campaigns to get Wi-Fi out of schools. But, this summer I got my first taste of local activism about cell towers. Initially, I was on board with the [...]
Posted in Alberta, Health Policy, Pseudoscience, Skepticism15 Comments
16 October 2011 by Melany Hamill
Hello skeptifans. Here are the Fails and Wins in the media last week. Cellphone call limits suggested by Health Canada Many of you sent in articles regarding Health Canada’s move to recommend people limit their cellphone talk time. This one was sent in by Marion. Although the recommendation is a very soft one there is [...]
Posted in Skeptical Fails and Wins3 Comments
28 September 2011 by Steve Thoms
Concerns about the safety of WiFi, particularly around school children, has continued to be a contentious issue in small towns across Canada, and Ontario especially. Supporters of the technology have mountains of scientific data on their side, opponents have screaming, hysteria, and the precautionary principle. Even Green Party of Canada Leader Elizabeth May unwittingly [...]
Posted in Canada, Logic and Fallacies, Media, Ontario, Skepticism36 Comments
31 July 2011 by Melany Hamill
Hello skeptifans. I hope that those of you who have a long weekend this weekend are enjoying it so far! Here are the Fails and Wins in the media last week. Jonathan Kay: Elizabeth May’s wireless problem A lot of you sent in links on this story. Elizabeth May has unfortunately bought in to the [...]
Posted in Skeptical Fails and Wins6 Comments
01 May 2011 by Melany Hamill
Hello Skeptifans. Here’s the Fails and Wins in the media for this week. Police dress up as doctors to test citizens Dave from North Bay, Ontario sent in this story. Police in Turkey decided to test how gullible citizens would be to a confidence scam. They dressed up as doctors and went door to [...]
Posted in Skeptical Fails and Wins2 Comments
19 December 2010 by Melany Hamill
Hello skeptifans! Are you all ready to celebrate Festivus? I’ve started compiling my list of grievances to air. Needless to stay, some of those grievances involve the lack of critical thinking in news reporting. Here are the Fails and Wins for this week. Schools study wireless networks Radio waves used in internet connections are a cause for concern for some [...]
Posted in Skeptical Fails and Wins5 Comments
