Editor’s note: This article is excerpted from chapter 4, “The Pros,” in the forthcoming book Science under Siege: How to Fight the Five Most Powerful Forces That Threaten Our World by Michael E. Mann and Peter J. Hotez. We are grateful to the authors and Public Affairs, an imprint of Hachette Book Group, Inc., for …| Skeptical Inquirer
Breakthroughs in medicine that transform patients’ lives for the better depend on adequately funding basic research, the kind of research that aims to understand how things work. This funding is provided largely by the National Institutes of Health (NIH), with other global funding sources for health research not even coming close (Gaind 2025). As of …| Skeptical Inquirer
The current assault on science, research, and academia is calculated. Pulling federal funding from universities, labs, and entire agencies may allow the Trump Administration to claim they are “saving money,” but it also has another side effect that I suspect is the real reason: scientists, researchers, and academics are arbiters of truth and reality, and …| Skeptical Inquirer
Editor’s note: Bill Nye gave the following speech on March 7, 2025, as part of the Stand Up for Science rally held on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C. Hello, Washington! It is so good to see you all. Greetings, greetings, greetings. Thanks for joining us today. We are gathered to insist …| Skeptical Inquirer
As director of ScienceSaves—CFI’s campaign to promote appreciation for the role of science in our lives—I’ve had the incredible privilege of watching the entries for this year’s scholarship contest, in which high school seniors create thirty-second videos to answer the question: “What has science done for me or someone I know?” Watching the 451 entries …| Skeptical Inquirer
In January 2011, Penn State political scientists Michael Berkman and Eric Plutzer released the shocking results of their research into how public high school biology teachers across America taught evolution. Their analysis revealed a “cycle of ignorance” in which the anti-evolution beliefs and attitudes of communities are perpetuated and reinforced by educators within those communities. …| Skeptical Inquirer
I became an anti-quackery activist in 1987 when I started planning a one-day conference on “Taking the Fraud out of Health” to be held at Kent State University on April 18, 1988. The conference turned out to be the launching pad for the Ohio Division of the already established but now defunct National Council Against …| Skeptical Inquirer
Nestled in the central region of the Appalachian Mountains in the eastern United States lies West Virginia, a state that has spawned countless stories featuring strange and mysterious creatures. The most famous legends from the Mountain State include the eldritch Flatwoods Monster (1952) and Mothman (1966–1967), both of which have become para-celebrities of Fortean fame. …| Skeptical Inquirer
Note: This press release was issued by CFI on May 14, 2025. Karr’s last day was July 3. After a storied career spanning more than four decades, one that began as a college kid stuffing envelopes and eventually led to a distinguished tenure as executive director of the Committee for Skeptical Inquiry (CSI), Barry Karr has announced …| Skeptical Inquirer
The Committee for the Scientific Investigation of Claims of the Paranormal (CSICOP) started in 1976, thanks largely to the organizational and inspirational ...| skepticalinquirer.org
