Carregue numa fotografia para ir para os Livros Google.
A carregar... Fads and fallacies in the name of science (original 1957; edição 1957)por Martin Gardner
Informação Sobre a ObraFads and Fallacies in the Name of Science por Martin Gardner (1957)
A carregar...
Adira ao LibraryThing para descobrir se irá gostar deste livro. Ainda não há conversas na Discussão sobre este livro. Martin Gardner, always delightful, in his seminal work. This book has withstood the passage of time, partly because many of the fallacies he describes have managed to continue in spite of being evidence free. Highly recommend reading this book, especially if you believe that the aura of nonsense surrounding the world is something that's risen very recently. An interesting and enjoyable read, but like the somewhat similarly themed Extraordinary Popular Delusions and the Madness of Crowds it suffers from a few noteworthy issues. The first is the lack of references. Quotes occur often, but the exact location they are drawn from is not always attributed. Now, I will admit that I'm unlikely to track down any of the works mentioned (OK, maybe some of the Hollow Earth ones), but at the same time a reference as to where and when a quote was stated would make the book seem a bit less light and allow a somewhat better chronological structuring of the surveyed cranks' changes in opinions. The second is that, nearly 60 years after the first edition and more than 50 since the second, the book is quite simply dated. Many cultural references that would have been common knowledge in 1952 whiz by without nary a spark in the memory. The same goes for various fads that are referenced with the expectation that the reader knows what they are, but not covered in more detail. In summary: interesting, but desperately in need of an editor to go through and add explanatory notes for those of us who weren't alive in the early '50s or commentary for when various facets of the information presented have changed drastically. Amusing side-note: the number of science fiction authors and editors, often fairly recognizable names, who show up in here as proponents of the various beliefs is certainly something. A classic of the genre. A witty and engaging exploration of human gullibility. Written in 1956 the author would be disappointed to note that gullibility is still around and indeed many of the types of woo he exposes as such are still around and still fleecing those unable to use critical thinking skills to protect themselves. In fact some of the woo factories have gone on to expand their influence ( and their bank balances ) beyond any recognition from the fifties. Scientology in particular is exposed as tosh and yet here we are with their vastly swollen coffers funding a worldwide expansion programme. Well written in an easy to read and engaging style, the best of the early days of scepticism. I will be getting more of his books. sem críticas | adicionar uma crítica
Pertence à Série da EditoraÉ resumida emÉ uma versão expandida de
Referências a esta obra em recursos externos. Wikipédia em inglês (28)This fair and witty appraisal examines some of the crazes and quackeries that have masqueraded as science. Discussions include hollow earth theories; Charles Fort and the Fortean Society; Wilhelm Reich and orgone sex energy; dianetics; flying saucers; food and medical fads; much more. "A very able and even-tempered presentation." -- The New Yorker. Não foram encontradas descrições de bibliotecas. |
Current DiscussionsNenhum(a)Capas populares
Google Books — A carregar... GénerosSistema Decimal de Melvil (DDC)508Natural sciences and mathematics General Science Natural historyClassificação da Biblioteca do Congresso dos EUA (LCC)AvaliaçãoMédia:
É você?Torne-se num Autor LibraryThing. |
One anecdote related to one of Gardner's targets: 15 years ago, a friend asked if I had ever heard of Immanuel Velikovsky. I was surprised anyone else had heard of him! Anyway, the friend gave me a copy of Worlds in Collision. Suddenly, I had access to an obscure text!
From flat earthers, to Wilhelm Reich's orgone, to medical cults like chiropractic, Gardner spared none of the cranks he examined. I think my favorite was his cover of L. Ron Hubbard's dianetics, the precursor of Scientology.
I'll highlight here something from the introduction, and then something from the conclusion. Gardner says that a crank's - a "sincere pseudo-scientist's" - paranoid tendencies are likely to be exhibited as:
1. He considers himself a genius.
2. He regards his colleagues, without exception, as ignorant blockheads.
3. He believes himself unjustly persecuted and discriminated against.
4. He has strong compulsions to focus his attacks on the greatest scientists and the best-established theories.
5. He often has a tendency to write in a complex jargon, in many cases making use of terms and phrases he himself has coined.
I leave the original gender as is. Gardner, however intelligent, was still a product of his times. And from the conclusion...
Remembering this was published in 1952...and in the 63 years since it is only worse, with the Deepak Choprahs of today peddling twaddle, and Senators Inhofes abandoning reason... Nevertheless, we were/are fortunate to have had Carl Sagan, Bill Nye, Michio Kaku, and to some extent Brian Greene to help popularize science in that span.
As to why we should continue to endure pseudo-science nonsense, Gardner puts it well:
Required reading for all skeptics. ( )