Michael Shermer: Baloney Detection Kit

The first video from RDF TV! With a sea of information coming at us from all directions, how do we sift out the misinformation and bogus claims, and get to the truth? Michael Shermer of Skeptic Magazine lays out a “Baloney Detection Kit,” ten questions we should ask when encountering a claim. The 10 Questions: 1. How reliable is the source of the claim? 2.Does the source make similar claims? 3. Have the claims been verified by somebody else? 4. Does this fit with the way the world works? 5. Has anyone tried to disprove the claim? 6. Where does the preponderance of evidence point? 7. Is the claimant playing by the rules of science? 8. Is the claimant providing positive evidence? 9. Does the new theory account for as many phenomena as the old theory? 10. Are personal beliefs driving the claim? Download Quicktime version (Small): cdn.cloudfiles.mosso.com Quicktime Large: cdn.cloudfiles.mosso.com Mp3 audio only: cdn.cloudfiles.mosso.com Get the RDF TV podcast through iTunes! itunes.apple.com If you enjoy the video, and would like to help us make more videos like this, please consider donating (or any other amount you’d like) to The Richard Dawkins Foundation for Reason and Science. Donate here: richarddawkinsfoundation.org Presented by The Richard Dawkins Foundation for Reason and Science ( http ) Directed by Josh Timonen Produced by Maureen Norton Animation by Pew 36 Animation Studios ( www.pew36.co.uk ) Music by Neal Acree ( www.nealacree.com ) Post Production Sound by …
Video Rating: 4 / 5