Terence Hines | Skeptical Inquirer (original) (raw)
Exploring the World’s Cryptids and Mythical Creatures
Skeptical Inquirer Volume 48, No. 6
November/December 2024
Terence Hines
An encyclopedia should serve two purposes. First and foremost, it should provide accurate and unbiased information. Second, it should contain sufficient references to allow an interested reader to know where to obtain additional information on any specific topic. Regarding these two criteria, Margo DeMello’s new book Bigfoot to Mothman: A Global Encyclopedia of Legendary Beasts …
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Skeptical Inquirer Volume 48, No. 4
July/August 2024
Terence Hines
Kendrick Frazier, the longtime editor of this magazine, has written an excellent book on pseudoscience as it contrasts with real science. The book is different from others in that it does not emphasize detailed descriptions of studies showing that this, that, or the other pseudoscience is bogus. Oh, there are references to be sure, but …
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A Foolproof Defense against Misinformation?
Skeptical Inquirer Volume 48, No. 2
March/April 2024
Terence Hines
Fake news and misinformation in the media—especially social media—is obviously a serious problem, not only in the United States but worldwide. But what to do about it? There have been numerous suggestions over the years, most advocating better education in some form or other. While better education would no doubt be helpful, it seems a …
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Astrology under the Microscope
Skeptical Inquirer Volume 47, No. 5
September/October 2023
Terence Hines
Most readers of this magazine probably thought that the scientific validity of astrology was settled science, with the conclusion that astrology is completely invalid. It would follow from this conclusion that research on astrology would have come to a halt. It is certainly the case that the issue of astrology’s validity and its ability to …
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Skeptical Inquirer Volume 46, No. 6
November/December 2022
Terence Hines
The 2009 National Academy of Science report Strengthening Forensic Science in the United States: A Path Forward first brought to public attention the serious problems with the forensic sciences. Now, well over ten years later, the state of forensic science in the United States still leaves much to be desired. Brandon L. Garrett, a law …
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Skeptical Inquirer Volume 46, No. 2
March/April 2022
Terence Hines
William of Occam is a hero of the skeptical movement, and the importance of Occam’s razor to skeptical analysis is well known to readers of this magazine. But just who William of Occam actually was and what he actually said is less well known. Johnjoe McFadden’s book not only provides a biography of William but …
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UFO Believers: A Sympathetic Look at Tangled Connections
Skeptical Inquirer Volume 45, No. 3
May/June 2021
Terence Hines
Science journalist Sarah Scoles’s book can be divided into three sections. The first covers the background of the story that military pilots had taken videos of flying saucers in 2004, videos that became known as the Tic Toc videos. Then there is a short section on the Mutual UFO Network (MUFON), which blends nicely into …
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Examining a 3,000-Year-Old Pseudoscience
Skeptical Inquirer Volume 44, No. 6
November / December 2020
Terence Hines
Feng Shui: Teaching about Science and Pseudoscience. By Michael R. Matthews. Berlin, Germany: Springer. 2019. ISBN 978-3-030-18821-4. 340 pp. Hardcover, $119.99. If you think of feng shui (which translates literally as “wind water”) as nothing more than a silly furniture-arranging gimmick gussied up with bogus Eastern trappings, you’ll be surprised, as I was, that …
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Scamming the Public by Direct Mail
Skeptical Inquirer Volume 44, No. 1
January / February 2020
Terence Hines
A Deal with the Devil. By Blake Ellis and Melanie Hicken. Atria Books, 2018. ISBN 9-781501-163845-53600. 290 pp. Hardcover, $26. Most people, when they think of psychic scams, think of the street-corner psychic who takes the casual passerby for a few hundred dollars and who may occasionally score big and take a repeat “customer” for …
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When Athletes Fall for Bogus Gimmicks
Skeptical Inquirer Volume 43, No. 4
July / August 2019
Terence Hines
Good to Go. By Christie Aschwanden. New York: W.W. Norton. 2019. ISBN 978-0-393-25433-4. 302 pp. Hardcover, $27.95. The more desperate people are to achieve some goal, the more likely they are to fall prey to quack and pseudoscientific treatments or aids. Thus, the seriously ill are often easy targets …
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An Early ‘Monster’ with an Older History
Skeptical Inquirer Volume 42, No. 5
September / October 2018
Terence Hines
In cryptozoological terms, the Jersey Devil doesn’t have the cachet of the Loch Ness monster, Bigfoot, or even the chupacabra.
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Are Racist Beliefs Pseudoscientific, and What Do We Do About Them?
Skeptical Inquirer Volume 42, No. 1
January / February 2018
Terence Hines
What might work? Certainly being violent back won’t help — it will just egg the racists on.
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The Interplay of Science Fiction and Pseudoscience
Skeptical Inquirer Volume 42, No. 1
January / February 2018
Terence Hines
Pseudoscience and Science Fiction. By Andrew May. Springer, New York, 2017. ISBN 978-3-319-42604-4. 181 pp. Softcover, $19.99. Although I don’t know of any specific data on the point, I suspect that there is some overlap between the science fiction fan community and the skeptical movement, at least to the extent that science fiction readers and …
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Houdini’s Remarkable Female Detective
Skeptical Inquirer Volume 41, No. 5
September / October 2017
Terence Hines
Houdini’s ‘Girl Detective’: The Real-Life Ghost-Busting Adventures of Rose Mackenburg. Compiled and introduced by Tony Wolf. 2016. ISBN: 9-781537-143965. 93 pp. Paperback, 8.00;Kindleedition,8.00; Kindle edition, 8.00;Kindleedition,6.00. Rose Mackenberg was a female private detective in the 1920s, an unusual occupation for a woman even today. She worked very closely with Harry Houdini in exposing mediums and …
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Skeptical Inquirer Volume 41, No. 4
July / August 2017
Terence Hines
Geoffrey Kabat debunks elusive health risks in his new book.
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The Return of Facilitated Communication
Skeptical Inquirer Volume 39, No. 4
July / August 2015
Terence Hines
Review of The Horse That Won’t Go Away: Clever Hans, Facilitated Communication, and the Need for Clear Thinking by Thomas E. Heinzen, Scott O. Lilienfeld, and Susan A. Nolan
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The Lake Monster That Predates Nessie
Skeptical Briefs Volume 24.1
Terence Hines
A review of The Untold Story of Champ: A Social History of America’s Loch Ness Monster, by Robert E. Bartholomew.
Skeptical Inquirer Volume 37, No. 2
March / April 2013
Terence Hines
The intent of Medusa’s Gaze and Vampire’s Bite is to provide scientific explanations for various monsters found in historical legend and literature up through the monsters of today as seen, mostly, in film. Had Kaplan succeeded in this task, he would have produced an exciting and interesting book.
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SHAM; One Nation under Therapy
Skeptical Inquirer Volume 30, No. 3
May / June 2006
Terence Hines
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Skeptical Inquirer Volume 26, No. 5
September / October 2002
Terence Hines
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Skeptical Inquirer Volume 23, No. 5
September / October 1999
Terence Hines
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Skeptical Inquirer Volume 21, No. 6
November / December 1997
Terence Hines
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Skeptical Inquirer Volume 19, No. 4
July / August 1995
Terence Hines
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Skeptical Inquirer Volume 18, No. 3
Spring 1994
Terence Hines
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Skeptical Inquirer Volume 18, No. 3
Spring 1994
Terence Hines
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The Unnatural Nature of Science
Skeptical Inquirer Volume 18, No. 2
Winter 1994
Terence Hines
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