The Skeptics' Guide to the Universe
The Skeptics' Guide to the Universe

Author: Dr. Steven Novella

Publisher: Grand Central Publishing

Published: 2018-10-02

Total Pages: 505

ISBN-13: 1538760517

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An all-encompassing guide to skeptical thinking from podcast host and academic neurologist at Yale University School of Medicine Steven Novella and his SGU co-hosts, which Richard Wiseman calls "the perfect primer for anyone who wants to separate fact from fiction." It is intimidating to realize that we live in a world overflowing with misinformation, bias, myths, deception, and flawed knowledge. There really are no ultimate authority figures-no one has the secret, and there is no place to look up the definitive answers to our questions (not even Google). Luckily, The Skeptic's Guide to the Universe is your map through this maze of modern life. Here Dr. Steven Novella-along with Bob Novella, Cara Santa Maria, Jay Novella, and Evan Bernstein-will explain the tenets of skeptical thinking and debunk some of the biggest scientific myths, fallacies, and conspiracy theories-from anti-vaccines to homeopathy, UFO sightings to N- rays. You'll learn the difference between science and pseudoscience, essential critical thinking skills, ways to discuss conspiracy theories with that crazy co- worker of yours, and how to combat sloppy reasoning, bad arguments, and superstitious thinking. So are you ready to join them on an epic scientific quest, one that has taken us from huddling in dark caves to setting foot on the moon? (Yes, we really did that.) DON'T PANIC! With The Skeptic's Guide to the Universe, we can do this together. "Thorough, informative, and enlightening, The Skeptic's Guide to the Universe inoculates you against the frailties and shortcomings of human cognition. If this book does not become required reading for us all, we may well see modern civilization unravel before our eyes." -- Neil deGrasse Tyson "In this age of real and fake information, your ability to reason, to think in scientifically skeptical fashion, is the most important skill you can have. Read The Skeptics' Guide Universe; get better at reasoning. And if this claim about the importance of reason is wrong, The Skeptics' Guide will help you figure that out, too." -- Bill Nye

The Skeptic's Guide to the Paranormal
The Skeptic's Guide to the Paranormal

Author: Lynne Kelly

Publisher: Allen & Unwin

Published: 2004

Total Pages: 282

ISBN-13: 9781741140590

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Guaranteed to liven up any dinner party, this delightful, highly readable book offers color photos and scientific case-by-case explanations for 27 phenomena that appear to defy known science, including ghosts and poltergeists, the predictions of Nostradamus, and yogic levitation.

When Skeptics Ask
When Skeptics Ask

Author: Norman L. Geisler

Publisher: Baker Books

Published: 2013-03-15

Total Pages: 0

ISBN-13: 9780801014987

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When skeptics ask tough questions, believers can turn to this helpful, user-friendly guide for thoughtful, up-to-date answers. Readers will also learn to identify and respond to the misuse of Scripture by nonbelievers and help detractors see the fullness, beauty, and truth of Christianity.

A Skeptic's Guide to the Mind
A Skeptic's Guide to the Mind

Author: Robert A. Burton, M.D.

Publisher: St. Martin's Press

Published: 2013-04-23

Total Pages: 272

ISBN-13: 125002840X

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What if our soundest, most reasonable judgments are beyond our control? Despite 2500 years of contemplation by the world's greatest minds and the more recent phenomenal advances in basic neuroscience, neither neuroscientists nor philosophers have a decent understanding of what the mind is or how it works. The gap between what the brain does and the mind experiences remains uncharted territory. Nevertheless, with powerful new tools such as the fMRI scan, neuroscience has become the de facto mode of explanation of behavior. Neuroscientists tell us why we prefer Coke to Pepsi, and the media trumpets headlines such as "Possible site of free will found in brain." Or: "Bad behavior down to genes, not poor parenting." Robert Burton believes that while some neuroscience observations are real advances, others are overreaching, unwarranted, wrong-headed, self-serving, or just plain ridiculous, and often with the potential for catastrophic personal and social consequences. In A Skeptic's Guide to the Mind, he brings together clinical observations, practical thought experiments, personal anecdotes, and cutting-edge neuroscience to decipher what neuroscience can tell us – and where it falls woefully short. At the same time, he offers a new vision of how to think about what the mind might be and how it works. A Skeptic's Guide to the Mind is a critical, startling, and expansive journey into the mysteries of the brain and what makes us human.

The Atheist Debater's Handbook
The Atheist Debater's Handbook

Author: B. C. Johnson

Publisher: Prometheus Books

Published: 2010-09-09

Total Pages: 136

ISBN-13: 1615924086

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This handbook is an attempt to offer a concise set of rejoinders for use by atheists in their formal (and informal) debates with theists. Older, more traditional, arguments are included as well as original arguments. The result is a short book, yet one that contains an unrelenting presentation of argument and analysis.For some time now atheists have been in need of firm grounds upon which to base their position. This handbook offers them this foundation.

One-Minute Answers to Skeptics
One-Minute Answers to Skeptics

Author: Charlie H. Campbell

Publisher: Harvest House Publishers

Published: 2010-01-01

Total Pages: 130

ISBN-13: 0736937145

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Speaking all over the United States about apologetics issues, Charlie Campbell has heard just about every question skeptics have to offer. In this concise, reader-friendly handbook, he provides brief responses to the top-40 questions that keep people from the faith, such as... What evidence do you have that God exists? How do you know the Bible is actually true? What about those who have never heard of Jesus? Will they be condemned to hell? If God is so loving, why does He allow evil and suffering? How can you say Jesus is the only way to heaven? Don’t all religions basically teach the same thing? Aren’t a lot of churchgoers hypocrites? With a gracious introductory note to skeptical readers and a generous sprinkling of inspiring quotes throughout, this handy resource is an enjoyable read as well as a powerful evangelistic tool.

How to Talk to a Skeptic
How to Talk to a Skeptic

Author: Donald J. Johnson

Publisher: Baker Books

Published: 2013-10-15

Total Pages: 261

ISBN-13: 1441262911

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Share Your Faith Effectively in a Cynical and Skeptical Age Talking about faith with friends and family members can be a daunting prospect. What do you say if they have questions you can't answer or if they're outright hostile toward God? Actually, you don't have to have all the right answers, just the right questions--and a willingness to listen. As trust and understanding grow, the door to fruitful dialogue will open. How to Talk to a Skeptic shows you how to: · Ask probing questions and avoid being on the defensive in spiritual conversations. · Tell God's story of the world in a winsome and easily understood way. · Gently respond to the most common misunderstandings skeptics have about God. Here's a natural, relational approach to evangelism and a proven way to reach out to an unbelieving world.

Meditation For Fidgety Skeptics
Meditation For Fidgety Skeptics

Author: Dan Harris

Publisher: Hachette UK

Published: 2018-07-12

Total Pages: 252

ISBN-13: 1473691400

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*As heard on the Tim Ferriss Show podcast* 'Meditation for Fidgety Skeptics is well researched, practical, and crammed with expert advice and it's also an irreverent, hilarious page-turner.' - Gretchen Rubin ABC News anchor Dan Harris used to think that meditation was for people who collect crystals, play the pan pipes, and use the word namaste without irony. After he had a panic attack on live television, he went on a strange journey that ultimately led him to become one of meditation's most vocal public proponents. Science suggests that meditation can lower blood pressure, mitigate depression and anxiety, and literally rewire key parts of the brain, among numerous other benefits. And yet there are millions of people who want to meditate but aren't actually practising. What's holding them back? In this guide to mindfulness and meditation for beginners and experienced meditators alike, Harris and his friend Jeff Warren, embark on a cross-country quest to tackle the myths, misconceptions, and self-deceptions that stop people from meditating. They rent a rock-star tour bus and travel across the US, talking to scores of would-be meditators, including parents, police officers, and even a few celebrities. They create a taxonomy of the most common issues ("I suck at this," "I don't have the time," etc.) and offer up science-based life hacks to help people overcome them. The book is filled with game-changing and deeply practical meditation instructions. Amid it all unspools the strange and hilarious story of what happens when a congenitally sarcastic, type-A journalist and a groovy Canadian mystic embark on an epic road trip into America's neurotic underbelly, as well as their own.