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No Nonsense

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Anti-pseudoscience, anti-woo, pro science, pro critical thinking, no conspiracy theories, no spin. Count the logical fallacies. No Nonsense!

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"Keep an open mind – but not so open that your brain falls out" -unknown

"Extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence." -- Carl Sagan

"What can be asserted without evidence can also be dismissed without evidence." -- Christopher Hitchens

What is a logical fallacy? All arguments have the same basic structure: A therefore B. They begin with one or more premises (A), which is a fact or assumption upon which the argument is based. They then apply a logical principle (therefore) to arrive at a conclusion (B). An example of a logical principle is that of equivalence. For example, if you begin with the premises that A=B and B=C, you can apply the logical principle of equivalence to conclude that A=C. A logical fallacy is a false or incorrect logical principle. An argument that is based upon a logical fallacy is therefore not valid. It is important to note that if the logic of an argument is valid then the conclusion must also be valid, which means that if the premises are all true then the conclusion must also be true. Valid logic applied to one or more false premises, however, leads to an invalid argument. Also, if an argument is not valid the conclusion may, by chance, still be true. For a more thorough discussion of logical fallacies and how to structure a logical argument, see the New England Skeptical Society's article, How To Argue.

Top 20 Logical Fallacies (in alphabetical order) taken from -

The Skeptics' Guide To The Universe

The New England Skeptical Society The Skeptics' Guide To The Universe Science-Based Medicine
The James Randi Educational Foundation
Propaganda
snopes.com
Bad Science by Ben Goldacre
Simon Singh and his fight to mend British libel laws
Professor Richard Wiseman
PZ Myers' Pharyngula
Dr. Phil Plait and Bad Astronomy
Skeptic Blog
Michael Shermer's Baloney Detection Kit
The Demon-Haunted World: Science as a Candle in the Dark by Carl Sagan
The Skeptics' Dictionary
List of cognitive biases
Don Watson - Weasel Words
QuackWatch
A List of Fallacious Arguments

Chat #NoNonsense

"No skeptic, to my knowledge, ever made a major scientific discovery or advanced the welfare of others."

-- Deepak Chopra (yes, he actually said that)

"The most exciting phrase to hear in science, the one that heralds the most discoveries, is not "Eureka!" (I found it!) but That's funny..." -Isaac Asimov

The scientific world view is full of awe and wonder. Understanding how truly awesome the universe is – in its elegant complexity, its staggering beauty, and the many intricate systems of which it is comprised – gives a profound feeling of connectedness and sparks the imagination. And it has the advantage of being real. -Steven Novella

The glory which is built upon a lie soon becomes a most unpleasant incumbrance. How easy it is to make people believe a lie, and how hard it is to undo that work again.
— Mark Twain

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Comment by Sarah Walton on March 4, 2012 at 1:09am: Hi everyone! I'm new to the group. I see I have a lot of reading to do, as there are many discussions I'm interested in just based on the titles. Don't be strangers!

Comment by Shane Smith on November 15, 2011 at 9:47am: 3rd episode of Skeptics in Mormonville is up. We had a guest-host who was in a break off group of the FLDS! Strange enough he was allowed to drink coffee and booze. WTF?
Check it out here: skepticinmormonville

Comment by Shane Smith on November 3, 2011 at 11:26am: Creating a Skeptic group in Utah. Check out the site! For those of you not in Utah, Lucky you! And you may like the podcast either way.

Coming up this weekend: An interview with a paranormal investigator!
https://sites.google.com/site/skepticinmormonville/

Comment by Susan Stanko on October 17, 2011 at 2:03pm: Nah, I was just curious.

Comment by Joseph P on October 17, 2011 at 1:24pm: Yeah, I was wondering about the 10p. That's British terminology.

Comment by Dallas the Phallus on October 17, 2011 at 1:15pm: Someone posted it on another site, but I changed it from pounds to dollars. Do you need me to track down the original link?

Comment by Susan Stanko on October 17, 2011 at 1:06pm: Where did you get it?

Comment by Steph S. on October 17, 2011 at 12:56pm: That's funny Dallas!

Comment by Joseph P on October 17, 2011 at 12:44pm: Heh heh heh heh heh. Nice.

Comment by Dallas the Phallus on October 17, 2011 at 12:43pm: Homeopathic economist suggests injecting ‘up to $1’ into economy

Renowned homeopathic economist Doctor Stephen Harliton has criticized recent attempts to solve the international financial crisis. “Conventional treatments don’t work, asking people to spend less is too rational.”

Harliton has calculated that $1 invested properly will completely cure the world economy. “The key is to find the correct dilution.”, explained Harliton, “I know $1 sounds a lot but if it’s introduced in 10p doses throughout the year, the economy will soon return to a balanced state. I’ve already written a series of post-dated prescriptions from my chakra book.”

Doctor Harliton denied that his treatment was a licence to print money.