Matt Nisbet | Skeptical Inquirer (original) (raw)
Hooked on Mindfulness: Hidden Design Tricks Make Meditation Apps Addictive
Skeptical Inquirer Volume 46, No. 2
March/April 2022
Matt Nisbet
The pandemic has turned mobile mindfulness into a booming industry, as millions of Americans download meditation apps hoping to boost their attention, mood, and sleep. Major companies concerned about worker productivity have also contracted with app makers to provide their employees with free subscriptions to the services (Lowery 2021). With the average American meditation app …
This article is available to subscribers only.
Subscribe now or log in to read this article.
The Piltdown Hoax Revisited: History’s Most Famous Scientific Fraud
Skeptical Inquirer Volume 45, No. 6
November/December 2021
Matt Nisbet
In 1912, the lawyer and amateur archaeologist Charles Dawson sent a letter to his friend Arthur Smith Woodward, head of geology at the prestigious British Museum. He told Woodward about a skull fragment he had found in a gravel pit near Piltdown Common, England. The fragment resembled the “Heidelberg Man”—a Neanderthal unearthed by workmen in …
This article is available to subscribers only.
Subscribe now or log in to read this article.
Confronting Radical Uncertainty:A More Contemplative Way of Life in Our Post-Pandemic World
Skeptical Inquirer Volume 44, No. 4
July / August 2020
Matt Nisbet
Across a few weeks in mid-March, American life was remade—whether temporarily or permanently, no one could say for sure. To stem the spread of the COVID-19 virus, states and cities closed schools and nonessential businesses, ordering more than 280 million Americans to shelter at home. With much of the economy coming to a sudden halt, …
This article is available to subscribers only.
Subscribe now or log in to read this article.
The Science of Science Communication
Tony Robbins Next Door: Personal Coaches Are The New High Priests of Self-Help
Skeptical Inquirer Volume 44, No. 3
May / June 2020
Matt Nisbet
In a new column focused on “The Examined Life,” Matthew Nisbet investigates the twisted messages about human happiness and flourishing that dominate popular culture, offering readers a skeptical dose of anti-self-help advice. A few years ago, I moved with my wife and son to an upper-middle-class community north of Boston. As I walked around town, …
This article is available for free to all.
The Science of Science Communication
The Mindful Climate Writer: Finding My Voice in a Culture of Extremes
Skeptical Inquirer Volume 44, No. 2
March / April 2020
Matt Nisbet
I spend most of my time studying and writing about climate change politics. It is often a paralyzing experience; not only is climate change a grave threat, but it is also one of America’s most polarized political debates. I have come to appreciate that avoiding the easiest, most comfortable narrative—one that narrowly appeals to a …
This article is available to subscribers only.
Subscribe now or log in to read this article.
The Science of Science Communication
Against Climate Change Tribalism: We Gamble with the Future by Dehumanizing Our Opponents
Skeptical Inquirer Volume 44, No. 1
January / February 2020
Matt Nisbet
This column is adapted from a speech delivered at the 2019 American Climate Leadership Summit held in Washington, D.C., May 1–2, 2019. Robbers Cave State Park in Oklahoma may be best known today for its picturesque lakes and trails, but for three weeks in 1954 the park was also the setting for one of …
This article is available for free to all.
The Science of Science Communication
Skeptical Inquirer Volume 43, No. 5
September / October 2019
Matt Nisbet
From scientific meetings to corporate boardrooms, many leaders of society are deeply concerned about what they perceive as a loss of public faith in technological innovation and the scientific enterprise. Rising tensions over issues such as automation, gene editing, and the transition away from fossil fuels are rooted in broader conflicts related to globalization, modernization, …
This article is available for free to all.
The Science of Science Communication
DNA Is Not Destiny: Challenging the Hype over Genetic Testing
Skeptical Inquirer Volume 43, No. 4
July / August 2019
Matt Nisbet
“Genetic Code of Human Life Cracked by Scientists” was the June 27, 2000, front-page headline of The New York Times. The previous day, in an event held at the White House, President Bill Clinton was joined by Francis Collins, director of the National Human Genome Project, and Craig Venter, president of Celera Genomics, to announce …
This article is available to subscribers only.
Subscribe now or log in to read this article.
The Science of Science Communication
The Science of Why Yoga Quiets the Mind: Fitness Industry Hype Obscures Yoga’s True Benefits
Skeptical Inquirer Volume 43, No. 2
March / April 2019
Matt Nisbet
I had been practicing yoga for a decade, but it took an unexplained injury to push me toward turning yoga into a daily routine. I had spent a brutally cold winter battling unexplained nerve pain in my legs, which doctors after a series of diagnostic tests eventually characterized as related to “muscle tension.” For years …
This article is available for free to all.
The Science of Science Communication
Talking Science and Society at Church
Skeptical Inquirer Volume 43, No. 1
January / February 2019
Matt Nisbet
Let’s Put Aside Differences to Tackle Society’s Biggest Challenges
This article is available for free to all.
The Science of Science Communication
Skeptical Inquirer Volume 42, No. 6
November / December 2018
Matt Nisbet
A New Way of Thinking about Climate Change and Human Progress
This article is available for free to all.
The Science of Science Communication
Skeptical Inquirer Volume 42, No. 6
November / December 2018
Matt Nisbet, Traducido por Alejandro Borgo
Una nueva forma de pensar sobre el cambio climático y el progreso humano
This article is available for free to all.
The Science of Science Communication
Skeptical Inquirer Volume 42, No. 2
March / April 2018
Matt Nisbet
Harnessing the Power of Opinion-Leaders Across Communities
This article is available for free to all.
The Science of Science Communication
Skeptical Inquirer Volume 42, No. 1
January / February 2018
Matt Nisbet
Why We Need a New Dialogue about Science, Inequality, and Society
This article is available for free to all.
The Science of Science Communication
Skeptical Inquirer Volume 42, No. 1
January / February 2018
Matt Nisbet, Traducido por Alejandro Borgo
Cuando pensamos en las raíces del antagonismo sobre la pericia científica en los Estados Unidos, a menudo nos enfocamos en el partidismo o en las diferencias religiosas.
This article is available for free to all.
The Science of Science Communication
Evolution in the College Classroom: Facilitating Conversations about Science and Religion
Skeptical Inquirer Volume 41, No. 5
September / October 2017
Matt Nisbet
As surprising as this might sound, the unfortunate reality is that in many high schools across the country evolution is often avoided or covered superficially as part of a crammed science curriculum, taught by teachers who are underqualified and poorly supported.
This article is available for free to all.
The Science of Science Communication
Skeptical Inquirer Volume 41, No. 4
July / August 2017
Matt Nisbet
Partisan protests put public trust in scientists at risk.
This article is available for free to all.
The Science of Science Communication
Skeptical Inquirer Volume 41, No. 3
May / June 2017
Matt Nisbet
How a Buddhist Practice Evolved into a Scientific Approach to Life…
This article is available for free to all.
The Science of Science Communication
Skeptical Inquirer Volume 40, No. 6
November / December 2016
Matt Nisbet
Hint: Focus on Community-Based Strategies and Avoid Denigrating Parents.
This article is available for free to all.
The Science of Science Communication
Skeptical Inquirer Volume 40, No. 5
September / October 2016
Matt Nisbet
Why really smart people are often the most biased in their opinions…
This article is available for free to all.
The Science of Science Communication
The Superbug Crisis: False Beliefs about Antibiotics Are a Global Threat
Skeptical Inquirer Volume 41, No. 1
January / February 2017
Matt Nisbet
Each year at least 2 million Americans battle serious bacterial infections that are resistant to one or more antibiotics, and at least 23,000 die annually as a direct result of those infections.
This article is available for free to all.
The Science of Science Communication
Skeptical Inquirer Volume 40, No. 4
July / August 2016
Matt Nisbet
Political Divisions Will Affect American Beliefs about the Zika Threat.
This article is available for free to all.
The Science of Science Communication
Skeptical Inquirer Volume 40, No. 3
May / June 2016
Matt Nisbet
Certainly if the food industry were to support mandatory GM labeling, the precise impact on consumers remains unkown. But to continue to battle against labeling rules is also risky business.
This article is available for free to all.
The Science of Science Communication
Shifting the Conversation about Climate Change
Skeptical Inquirer Volume 40, No. 2
March / April 2016
Matt Nisbet
As we educate the public about scientific consensus, evidence suggests we also need to reframe the focus of debate. Americans tend to view climate change as a scientific or environmental issue, but not as a problem that affects them personally or that connects to issues that they already perceive as important.
This article is available for free to all.
The Science of Science Communication
The X-Files Effect? Research Suggests We Shouldn’t Worry so Much over the Hit TV Series
Skeptical Inquirer Volume 40, No. 1
January / February 2016
Matt Nisbet
These findings came with an important caveat: The relationship between TV viewing and belief was only significant among those viewers who reported prior personal experience with the paranormal.
This article is available for free to all.
Ben Stein’s Trojan Horse: Mobilizing the State House and Local News Agenda
June 2, 2008
Matt Nisbet
In April, as the documentary Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed premiered in more than a 1,000 theaters across the country…
Moving Beyond Gore’s Message: A Look Back (and Ahead) at Climate Change Communications
January 9, 2008
Matt Nisbet
Conventional wisdom pegs 2007 as the long awaited tipping point in waking the public up to the urgency of global warming.
August 3, 2006
Chris Mooney, Matt Nisbet
Can Scientists and Journalists Work Together to Improve Coverage of the Hurricane-Global Warming Controversy?
August 3, 2006
Chris Mooney, Matt Nisbet
Can Scientists and Journalists Work Together to Improve Coverage of the Hurricane-Global Warming Controversy?
Avian Flu and the Surveillance Function of the News Media
April 26, 2006
Matt Nisbet
Avian flu remains a topic heavy with scientific uncertainty, yet high in potential risk.