/oss/taxonomy/term/5455/all en /oss/article/medical-health-and-nutrition/osteopathy-needs-science-lend-hand <p>Every year, I’m an invited lecturer at the University of Ottawa to talk to future science communicators about pseudoscience. I use a number of increasingly muddied examples to show these students that there is no clear demarcation between science and pseudoscience; rather, it’s a spectrum, and figuring out where something lies can be tricky.</p> Fri, 14 Oct 2022 10:00:00 +0000 Jonathan Jarry M.Sc. 9262 at /oss /oss/article/pseudoscience-history/you-should-have-your-head-examined <p>In the 18th century, Viennese physician Franz-Joseph Gall claimed that personality and intelligence were determined by the shape of the brain, which in turn was reflected by the shape of the skull. Examining the hills and valleys of the cranium supposedly gave clues about character traits and intellectual function. Murderers, for example, featured a particular type of skull protrusion, which differed from the bumps on the head in the intellectually gifted.</p> Wed, 30 Jun 2021 22:27:11 +0000 Joe Schwarcz PhD 8772 at /oss /oss/article/covid-19-health-pseudoscience/upside-down-doctor <p>Dr. Joe Mercola, an osteopathic physician who has made an impressive fortune selling supplements through his online store, has a new book out about the COVID-19 pandemic, a book which he co-authored with Ronnie Cummins, an organic food crusader. This book, as well as Mercola’s decades of peddling health misinformation on the Internet, exemplifies the dangerous blind spot of the wellness movement.</p> Fri, 04 Jun 2021 20:40:54 +0000 Jonathan Jarry M.Sc. 8757 at /oss