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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

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"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 Ann on September 15, 2010 at 2:56pm: Hm, questionable aerodynamics.

Comment by JayBarti on September 15, 2010 at 2:48pm: I just thought it was a very ugly puffin.

Comment by Michel Poisson on September 15, 2010 at 2:45pm: It's either Magic or Photoshop.

Comment by Sentient Biped on September 15, 2010 at 2:42pm: Jason, you should always compliment people on how smart and handsome their dog is. Insulting their dog is far worse than insulting their spouse or children.

Michel, once you have an explanation please share.

Comment by Michel Poisson on September 15, 2010 at 2:10pm: I feel an urge to explain that flying hippo picture.

Comment by Jason Spicer on September 15, 2010 at 2:01pm: Daniel, that is the ugliest dog I have ever seen.

Comment by Sentient Biped on September 15, 2010 at 11:18am: Proving that QotD is WAY too deep for me.

Comment by Glenn Sogge on September 15, 2010 at 9:53am: QotD: "Few people would deny the need to explain unusual phenomena (e.g., flying hippos), but fewer would demand an explanation for what is common and ordinary (e.g., time), and it is precisely here where the task of the philosopher begins, first in making us de-familiarize ourselves with, and question the nature of, the ordinary, and then in attempting to explain it." ~ Article on The Principal of Sufficient Reason in the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy.

Comment by sacha on September 13, 2010 at 11:45pm: quote of the day:

"If I had a world of my own, everything would be nonsense. Nothing would be what it is, because everything would be what it isn't. And contrary wise, what is, it wouldn't be. And what it wouldn't be, it would. You see?"

(From Alice In Wonderland)

Comment by Sentient Biped on September 13, 2010 at 10:50am: Many in China distrust vaccines - no Zhenny McCarthy yet tho. China mass measles vaccination plan sparks outcry.

A few thoughts-
distrust of vaccines is not just an effete syndrome of silly coddled Westerners. some lessons for us.
Underlying causes of that distrust are an issue - see article.
China is ascendant - will replace US as dominant world power in this century (my opinion, but I think others feel that way). It's an aggressive nation and there is reason for concern. I always feel some schadenfreude when I see articles like this. Bad me.