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Skepticism 101: How to Think like a Scientist
Despite our best efforts, we're all vulnerable to believing things without using logic or having proper evidence-and it doesn't matter how educated or well read we are.
But there is a method for avoiding such pitfalls of human nature, and it's called skepticism. By using rational inquiry and seeing subjects from a scientific perspective, we can approach even the most sensitive claims with clear eyes to ultimately arrive at the truth.
During 18 lectures that will surprise, challenge, and entertain you, you will learn how to think, not just what to think-and you'll come to understand why extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence.
You'll discover how skepticism can help differentiate between real science and pseudoscience, as well as between "scientific" history and pseudohistory-distinctions that have serious educational and political implications.
Fascinating case studies illustrate how you can apply the methods of skepticism to detect specious claims and faulty logic in any scenario you encounter such as:
•The methodology employed by Holocaust deniers
•Arguments made by proponents of creationism
•The biology of near-death experiences and the sensed-presence effect
•Psychic abilities and other "paranormal" phenomena.
As you learn how our brains work to form beliefs, you'll examine the classic fallacies of thought that lead us to experience mistakes in thinking and to form bad arguments in favor of our beliefs.
Is there a God? Is there life after death? Is there a basis for morality without God? Skepticism 101 doesn't shy away from controversial questions, nor does it give final answers. What it offers are methods and hard evidence for rationally evaluating various claims and positions, and an opportunity to understand why you believe what you believe.
Listening Length: 9 hours and 10 minutes. Narrated by the author.
But there is a method for avoiding such pitfalls of human nature, and it's called skepticism. By using rational inquiry and seeing subjects from a scientific perspective, we can approach even the most sensitive claims with clear eyes to ultimately arrive at the truth.
During 18 lectures that will surprise, challenge, and entertain you, you will learn how to think, not just what to think-and you'll come to understand why extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence.
You'll discover how skepticism can help differentiate between real science and pseudoscience, as well as between "scientific" history and pseudohistory-distinctions that have serious educational and political implications.
Fascinating case studies illustrate how you can apply the methods of skepticism to detect specious claims and faulty logic in any scenario you encounter such as:
•The methodology employed by Holocaust deniers
•Arguments made by proponents of creationism
•The biology of near-death experiences and the sensed-presence effect
•Psychic abilities and other "paranormal" phenomena.
As you learn how our brains work to form beliefs, you'll examine the classic fallacies of thought that lead us to experience mistakes in thinking and to form bad arguments in favor of our beliefs.
Is there a God? Is there life after death? Is there a basis for morality without God? Skepticism 101 doesn't shy away from controversial questions, nor does it give final answers. What it offers are methods and hard evidence for rationally evaluating various claims and positions, and an opportunity to understand why you believe what you believe.
Listening Length: 9 hours and 10 minutes. Narrated by the author.
10 pages, Audiobook
First published July 8, 2013
14 people are currently reading
855 people want to read
About the author
Michael Shermer
101 books1,171 followersMichael Brant Shermer (born September 8, 1954 in Glendale, California) is an American science writer, historian of science, founder of The Skeptics Society, and Editor in Chief of its magazine Skeptic, which is largely devoted to investigating and debunking pseudoscientific and supernatural claims. The Skeptics Society currently has over 55,000 members.
Shermer is also the producer and co-host of the 13-hour Fox Family television series Exploring the Unknown. Since April 2004, he has been a monthly columnist for Scientific American magazine with his Skeptic column. Once a fundamentalist Christian, Shermer now describes himself as an agnostic nontheist and an advocate for humanist philosophy.
more info:
http://us.macmillan.com/author/michae...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_...
Shermer is also the producer and co-host of the 13-hour Fox Family television series Exploring the Unknown. Since April 2004, he has been a monthly columnist for Scientific American magazine with his Skeptic column. Once a fundamentalist Christian, Shermer now describes himself as an agnostic nontheist and an advocate for humanist philosophy.
more info:
http://us.macmillan.com/author/michae...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_...
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 66 reviews
May 26, 2017
This book presents, for the most parts, why being skeptical is a necessary surviving skill. It utilizes many different real-life examples, to make abstract taught rather more tactile; while not using them as a proof at the same time.
I would argue that its greatest flaw is his lack of knowledge or preciseness when it comes to morality and animals. He explains normative ethics (Study of what people generally think they ought to do), as ethics in general (What we ought to do, regardless of our intuition), and calls it absolute truth, which was the problem with Sam Harris's book on ethics. He goes on about how animals have pre-ethical abilities while associating same abilities as "The absolute morality". Ironically, he immediately uses Frans Du Waal's works, as an anecdote to his perception, which is absolutely ridiculous, as Frans Du Waal has been utterly against calling other animals anything but parallel to us in historic terms.
Nevertheless, I enjoyed this book. It was an easy read and a fun and general introduction to what should be a scientific skepticism in the twenty-first century.
I would argue that its greatest flaw is his lack of knowledge or preciseness when it comes to morality and animals. He explains normative ethics (Study of what people generally think they ought to do), as ethics in general (What we ought to do, regardless of our intuition), and calls it absolute truth, which was the problem with Sam Harris's book on ethics. He goes on about how animals have pre-ethical abilities while associating same abilities as "The absolute morality". Ironically, he immediately uses Frans Du Waal's works, as an anecdote to his perception, which is absolutely ridiculous, as Frans Du Waal has been utterly against calling other animals anything but parallel to us in historic terms.
Nevertheless, I enjoyed this book. It was an easy read and a fun and general introduction to what should be a scientific skepticism in the twenty-first century.
March 21, 2016
These are eighteen lectures intended to teach listeners to be open-minded enough to accept new ideas without making fools of themselves by believing apparent truths that are actually false. As indicated by the title, these lectures encourage scientific and skeptical thinking.
Thinking skeptically doesn’t come naturally to the human brain which has been hardwired by evolution to be a belief engine. Our early ancestors while walking across the African Savanna had to quickly develop an image of possible causes for a sound behind a nearby bush; was it a predator or the wind? Those who waited around to collect more data in order to be certain about the cause ended up being victims who didn’t pass along their genes.
Thus today we have brains that naturally look for and find patterns of possible meanings from the flow of sensory data flowing into our brains. One process used by our brains is what the lecturer, Shermer, calls “patternicity” which is the tendency to find meaningful patterns in both meaningful and meaningless data. Another process of our brains is what he calls “agenticity” which is the tendency to infuse patterns with meaning, intention, and agency.
Our brains were evolved to connect the dots of our world into meaningful patterns that explain why things happen. We can’t help it, it’s just what our brains do. These meaningful patterns become beliefs, and these beliefs shape our understanding of reality. To keep these brain processes from leading to false conclusions Shermer quotes Rachard Feynman as saying, “The first principle is that you must not fool yourself--and you are the easiest person to fool.”
One interesting fact noted is that, “Students that scored well on these [science knowledge] tests were no more or less skeptical of pseudoscientific claims than students that scored very poorly.” The reason for this failing according to Shermer is that students are taught facts about science, but not how to do science.
The title “Skepticism 101: How to Think Like a Scientist” is actually the name of a freshman foundation course taught by Shermer at Chapman University. When I did an on-line search I found the syllabus for the class at the following link:
http://www.skeptic.com/downloads/Skep...
The following list of lecture titles and their descriptions give a pretty good idea of the topics covered by these lectures.
LIST OF LECTURE TITLES AND DESCRIPTIONS
(These descriptions are copied from The Great Courses)
1. The Virtues of Skepticism: As the professor introduces you to the definition of skepticism and the concept behind the larger skeptical movement, learn how myths like the Hundredth Monkey Phenomenon get started, why scientists aren’t able to effectively debate pseudoscientists, and why smart people believe in what skeptics call “weird things."
2. Skepticism and Science: What is the difference between a theory and a construct? How does skepticism relate to science? How do we know anything is true? Answer these and other questions as you explore how science works, what it means to think like a scientist, and the essential tension between skepticism and credulity.
3. Mistakes in Thinking: We All Make From coincidences and false reasoning to tautology and false analogies, there are a number of classic thinking fallacies and biases that interfere with our ability to reason clearly and rationally. This lecture provides an overview of the 12 most prevalent types of fallacies of thought that can lead us to make mistakes in our thinking.
4. Cognitive Biases and Their Effects: Once we form beliefs and commit to them, we reinforce them through powerful cognitive heuristics-otherwise known as rules of thumb or cognitive biases-that guarantee we are always correct. Explore the various types of biases we allow to influence us and learn how they can both help and hinder how we understand the world.
5. Wrong Thinking in Everyday Life: Has the status-quo effect ever led you to complacency? Have you ever held onto a stock too long because its value fell below what you paid for it? Explore the research on how people behave irrationally when it comes to money and which cognitive biases and fallacies of thought most interfere with our ability to make rational decisions about purchases and investments.
6. The Neuroscience of Belief: We all have a natural tendency to find meaningful patterns in both meaningful and meaningless noise. Learn why we’re hardwired to be superstitious and prone to making false positive errors through an investigation of the evolutionary origin of superstition and magical thinking. Discover how the brain’s neural networks drive the two central processes-patternicity and agenticity-that lead to the formation of beliefs.
7. The Paranonnal and the Supernatural: According to Professor Shermer, there is no such thing as the paranormal or the supernatural. There is just the normal, the natural, and the mysteries we have yet to explain. Discover how faulty neural activity and anomalous neural firing can lead to paranormal, supernatural, and extraordinary experiences, then consider scientific explanations for these natural phenomena.
8. Science versus Pseudoscience: Who has the burden of proof in science-the person making the claim or the person hearing about the claim? Delve into human psychology, the need to believe, and the age-old techniques psychics use to lure people into believing that paranormal powers are real. Then, see how the preconceived notions of scientists can skew research results.
9. Comparing SETI and UFOlogy: What is the difference between scientists engaged in SETI-the search for extraterrestrial intelligence-and proponents of the existence of UFOs? Make a distinction between science and pseudoscience through an analysis of the supposed alien crash-landing at Roswell, physiological explanations for the experience of alien abduction, and an exploration of the attempt to answer the question “are we alone?".
10. Comparing Evolution and Creationism: From the 1925 Scopes “Monkey” trial to the 2006 Dover trial over the theory of Intelligent Design, look at the history of the evolution and creationism debate, which has important political and cultural ramifications for science and education. Break down the “God of the Gaps" argument and consider why people shouldn’t fear evolution.
11. Science, History, and Pseudohistory: How can we tell the difference between scientific history and pseudohistory? What is the difference between historical revisionism and historical denial? Find out in this lecture that looks at the methodology of alternative historians and revisionists, specifically people who deny the Holocaust despite an overwhelming convergence of evidence. Conclude with an example of good historical science.
12. The Lure of Conspiracy Theories: Why do people believe conspiracy theories?Address the larger topic of conspiracies and conspiracy theories by contrasting erroneous claims surrounding Princess Diana’s death, the terrorist attacks of September 11, and the assassination of President Kennedy with the true conspiracy that led to the murder of Archduke Franz Ferdinand. Learn the characteristics that indicate a conspiracy theory is unlikely to be true.
13. Inside the Modern Cult: See how the power of belief and other strong psychological forces can override the rational mind and lead people to become members of cults. Learn the many characteristics that define a cult, from veneration of a leader to isolation from friends and family, then examine Heaven’s Gate as a case study for a modern cult.
14. The Psychology of Religious Belief: Investigate the issues of God, morality, and the afterlife through the eyes of a skeptic. Why do so many people across cultures believe in some form of God? What role do evolution and our cultural history play in the tendency to be religious? Look at dramatic parallels in the mythology of one religion to another as you consider the many cultural and historical factors that go into the world's religions and their varying beliefs about God.
15. The God Question: The question of God's existence has plagued humanity since ancient times, but it’s no less important a topic for skeptics to consider today. Using the Christian conception of God, examine the best arguments for and against his existence and judge the answer for yourself.
16. Without God, Does Anything Go?: If we hypothesize that God does not exist, is morality as we know it null and void? Consider why humans are and should be moral, independent from religion and an all-knowing God. Delve into the evolutionary theory of morality through a discussion of the Natural Law theory, the cross-cultural endorsement of the Golden Rule throughout history, and evidence of pre-moral sentiments in animals and how these gave rise to real moral emotions in humans.
17. Life, Death, and the Afterlife: Polls show that the vast majority of people believe in an afterlife. In this last lecture on science and religion, learn the primary psychological reasons why this may be the case, and consider the dualistic nature of most religions, where the soul is separate from the body. Explore biological explanations for near-death experiences-and why the events seem so real to people who report having them.
18. Your Skeptical Toolkit: Extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence. Explore this skeptic’s motto and assemble a “skeptical toolkit” of general principles that you can use for what the late great astronomer and skeptic Carl Sagan called “the fine art of baloney detection." Conclude with two broad observations about science and skepticism that illustrate just how important these modes of thinking are to our lives and to our society.
Thinking skeptically doesn’t come naturally to the human brain which has been hardwired by evolution to be a belief engine. Our early ancestors while walking across the African Savanna had to quickly develop an image of possible causes for a sound behind a nearby bush; was it a predator or the wind? Those who waited around to collect more data in order to be certain about the cause ended up being victims who didn’t pass along their genes.
Thus today we have brains that naturally look for and find patterns of possible meanings from the flow of sensory data flowing into our brains. One process used by our brains is what the lecturer, Shermer, calls “patternicity” which is the tendency to find meaningful patterns in both meaningful and meaningless data. Another process of our brains is what he calls “agenticity” which is the tendency to infuse patterns with meaning, intention, and agency.
Our brains were evolved to connect the dots of our world into meaningful patterns that explain why things happen. We can’t help it, it’s just what our brains do. These meaningful patterns become beliefs, and these beliefs shape our understanding of reality. To keep these brain processes from leading to false conclusions Shermer quotes Rachard Feynman as saying, “The first principle is that you must not fool yourself--and you are the easiest person to fool.”
One interesting fact noted is that, “Students that scored well on these [science knowledge] tests were no more or less skeptical of pseudoscientific claims than students that scored very poorly.” The reason for this failing according to Shermer is that students are taught facts about science, but not how to do science.
The title “Skepticism 101: How to Think Like a Scientist” is actually the name of a freshman foundation course taught by Shermer at Chapman University. When I did an on-line search I found the syllabus for the class at the following link:
http://www.skeptic.com/downloads/Skep...
The following list of lecture titles and their descriptions give a pretty good idea of the topics covered by these lectures.
LIST OF LECTURE TITLES AND DESCRIPTIONS
(These descriptions are copied from The Great Courses)
1. The Virtues of Skepticism: As the professor introduces you to the definition of skepticism and the concept behind the larger skeptical movement, learn how myths like the Hundredth Monkey Phenomenon get started, why scientists aren’t able to effectively debate pseudoscientists, and why smart people believe in what skeptics call “weird things."
2. Skepticism and Science: What is the difference between a theory and a construct? How does skepticism relate to science? How do we know anything is true? Answer these and other questions as you explore how science works, what it means to think like a scientist, and the essential tension between skepticism and credulity.
3. Mistakes in Thinking: We All Make From coincidences and false reasoning to tautology and false analogies, there are a number of classic thinking fallacies and biases that interfere with our ability to reason clearly and rationally. This lecture provides an overview of the 12 most prevalent types of fallacies of thought that can lead us to make mistakes in our thinking.
4. Cognitive Biases and Their Effects: Once we form beliefs and commit to them, we reinforce them through powerful cognitive heuristics-otherwise known as rules of thumb or cognitive biases-that guarantee we are always correct. Explore the various types of biases we allow to influence us and learn how they can both help and hinder how we understand the world.
5. Wrong Thinking in Everyday Life: Has the status-quo effect ever led you to complacency? Have you ever held onto a stock too long because its value fell below what you paid for it? Explore the research on how people behave irrationally when it comes to money and which cognitive biases and fallacies of thought most interfere with our ability to make rational decisions about purchases and investments.
6. The Neuroscience of Belief: We all have a natural tendency to find meaningful patterns in both meaningful and meaningless noise. Learn why we’re hardwired to be superstitious and prone to making false positive errors through an investigation of the evolutionary origin of superstition and magical thinking. Discover how the brain’s neural networks drive the two central processes-patternicity and agenticity-that lead to the formation of beliefs.
7. The Paranonnal and the Supernatural: According to Professor Shermer, there is no such thing as the paranormal or the supernatural. There is just the normal, the natural, and the mysteries we have yet to explain. Discover how faulty neural activity and anomalous neural firing can lead to paranormal, supernatural, and extraordinary experiences, then consider scientific explanations for these natural phenomena.
8. Science versus Pseudoscience: Who has the burden of proof in science-the person making the claim or the person hearing about the claim? Delve into human psychology, the need to believe, and the age-old techniques psychics use to lure people into believing that paranormal powers are real. Then, see how the preconceived notions of scientists can skew research results.
9. Comparing SETI and UFOlogy: What is the difference between scientists engaged in SETI-the search for extraterrestrial intelligence-and proponents of the existence of UFOs? Make a distinction between science and pseudoscience through an analysis of the supposed alien crash-landing at Roswell, physiological explanations for the experience of alien abduction, and an exploration of the attempt to answer the question “are we alone?".
10. Comparing Evolution and Creationism: From the 1925 Scopes “Monkey” trial to the 2006 Dover trial over the theory of Intelligent Design, look at the history of the evolution and creationism debate, which has important political and cultural ramifications for science and education. Break down the “God of the Gaps" argument and consider why people shouldn’t fear evolution.
11. Science, History, and Pseudohistory: How can we tell the difference between scientific history and pseudohistory? What is the difference between historical revisionism and historical denial? Find out in this lecture that looks at the methodology of alternative historians and revisionists, specifically people who deny the Holocaust despite an overwhelming convergence of evidence. Conclude with an example of good historical science.
12. The Lure of Conspiracy Theories: Why do people believe conspiracy theories?Address the larger topic of conspiracies and conspiracy theories by contrasting erroneous claims surrounding Princess Diana’s death, the terrorist attacks of September 11, and the assassination of President Kennedy with the true conspiracy that led to the murder of Archduke Franz Ferdinand. Learn the characteristics that indicate a conspiracy theory is unlikely to be true.
13. Inside the Modern Cult: See how the power of belief and other strong psychological forces can override the rational mind and lead people to become members of cults. Learn the many characteristics that define a cult, from veneration of a leader to isolation from friends and family, then examine Heaven’s Gate as a case study for a modern cult.
14. The Psychology of Religious Belief: Investigate the issues of God, morality, and the afterlife through the eyes of a skeptic. Why do so many people across cultures believe in some form of God? What role do evolution and our cultural history play in the tendency to be religious? Look at dramatic parallels in the mythology of one religion to another as you consider the many cultural and historical factors that go into the world's religions and their varying beliefs about God.
15. The God Question: The question of God's existence has plagued humanity since ancient times, but it’s no less important a topic for skeptics to consider today. Using the Christian conception of God, examine the best arguments for and against his existence and judge the answer for yourself.
16. Without God, Does Anything Go?: If we hypothesize that God does not exist, is morality as we know it null and void? Consider why humans are and should be moral, independent from religion and an all-knowing God. Delve into the evolutionary theory of morality through a discussion of the Natural Law theory, the cross-cultural endorsement of the Golden Rule throughout history, and evidence of pre-moral sentiments in animals and how these gave rise to real moral emotions in humans.
17. Life, Death, and the Afterlife: Polls show that the vast majority of people believe in an afterlife. In this last lecture on science and religion, learn the primary psychological reasons why this may be the case, and consider the dualistic nature of most religions, where the soul is separate from the body. Explore biological explanations for near-death experiences-and why the events seem so real to people who report having them.
18. Your Skeptical Toolkit: Extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence. Explore this skeptic’s motto and assemble a “skeptical toolkit” of general principles that you can use for what the late great astronomer and skeptic Carl Sagan called “the fine art of baloney detection." Conclude with two broad observations about science and skepticism that illustrate just how important these modes of thinking are to our lives and to our society.
February 20, 2020
I hadn't connected Shermer with Skeptic Magazine, but I should have. I had a subscription for a year some years back. It was good, but pricey & I didn't have time to read it properly. Anyway, he's the guy that started it. He's been knocking down all sorts of bunk for a long time. He mentions quite a bit of it in his lectures. I don't know how he manages to actually hang around with some of these nut jobs. Might be that he is one himself since he was in the first & several other runnings of the Race Across America, a 3000 mile bike race. My crotch hurts just thinking about it.
The lectures are well done. Nothing earth shattering, but just a very good overview of how to think properly & skeptically. He's a good speaker & makes his points well. The Table of Contents says the rest pretty much. It's from the PDF that accompanied the course. I didn't need to refer to it very often. I'll just put in a few notes, mostly further suggested reading. Highly recommended.
LECTURE 1
The Virtues of Skepticism ...................................................................4
LECTURE 2
Skepticism and Science ...................................................................11
He never mentions William Kingdon Clifford or The Ethics of Belief! Incredible since he's practically recreated the text in the first 2 lectures.
LECTURE 3
Mistakes in Thinking We All Make ....................................................20
LECTURE 4
Cognitive Biases and Their Effects ...................................................28
I recommend reading Brain Bugs: How the Brain's Flaws Shape Our Lives, too. It goes into more detail.
LECTURE 5
Wrong Thinking in Everyday Life ......................................................37
LECTURE 6
The Neuroscience of Belief ..............................................................45
Up to this point, he's shown just how flawed our thinking & memories are. He's also pointed out the correct methods for determining the facts or thinking like a scientist. From this point on, he starts taking on the major areas where people get fooled & showing how.
LECTURE 7
The Paranormal and the Supernatural .............................................53
LECTURE 8
Science versus Pseudoscience .......................................................62
LECTURE 9
Comparing SETI and UFOlogy .........................................................70
LECTURE 10
Comparing Evolution and Creationism .............................................79
LECTURE 11
Science, History, and Pseudohistory ................................................87
LECTURE 12
The Lure of Conspiracy Theories .....................................................95
LECTURE 13
Inside the Modern Cult ...................................................................102
LECTURE 14
The Psychology of Religious Belief ................................................111
LECTURE 15
The God Question ..........................................................................119
LECTURE 16
Without God, Does Anything Go?...................................................127
LECTURE 17
Life, Death, and the Afterlife ...........................................................135
LECTURE 18
Your Skeptical Toolkit......................................................................143
If this lecture is too long, the Debunking Handbook by John Cook is only 6 pages long & available for free from SkepticalScience.com. I read it a couple of years ago & gave it 5 stars.
The lectures are well done. Nothing earth shattering, but just a very good overview of how to think properly & skeptically. He's a good speaker & makes his points well. The Table of Contents says the rest pretty much. It's from the PDF that accompanied the course. I didn't need to refer to it very often. I'll just put in a few notes, mostly further suggested reading. Highly recommended.
LECTURE 1
The Virtues of Skepticism ...................................................................4
LECTURE 2
Skepticism and Science ...................................................................11
He never mentions William Kingdon Clifford or The Ethics of Belief! Incredible since he's practically recreated the text in the first 2 lectures.
LECTURE 3
Mistakes in Thinking We All Make ....................................................20
LECTURE 4
Cognitive Biases and Their Effects ...................................................28
I recommend reading Brain Bugs: How the Brain's Flaws Shape Our Lives, too. It goes into more detail.
LECTURE 5
Wrong Thinking in Everyday Life ......................................................37
LECTURE 6
The Neuroscience of Belief ..............................................................45
Up to this point, he's shown just how flawed our thinking & memories are. He's also pointed out the correct methods for determining the facts or thinking like a scientist. From this point on, he starts taking on the major areas where people get fooled & showing how.
LECTURE 7
The Paranormal and the Supernatural .............................................53
LECTURE 8
Science versus Pseudoscience .......................................................62
LECTURE 9
Comparing SETI and UFOlogy .........................................................70
LECTURE 10
Comparing Evolution and Creationism .............................................79
LECTURE 11
Science, History, and Pseudohistory ................................................87
LECTURE 12
The Lure of Conspiracy Theories .....................................................95
LECTURE 13
Inside the Modern Cult ...................................................................102
LECTURE 14
The Psychology of Religious Belief ................................................111
LECTURE 15
The God Question ..........................................................................119
LECTURE 16
Without God, Does Anything Go?...................................................127
LECTURE 17
Life, Death, and the Afterlife ...........................................................135
LECTURE 18
Your Skeptical Toolkit......................................................................143
If this lecture is too long, the Debunking Handbook by John Cook is only 6 pages long & available for free from SkepticalScience.com. I read it a couple of years ago & gave it 5 stars.
March 24, 2016
Michael Shermer, founder of the Skeptics Society and editor-in-chief of its magazine Skeptic, has written the book on skepticism — literally now, with Skepticism 101: How to Think Like a Scientist, a series of lectures on science, pseudoscience, and the in-between. He does the same service for history, pseudo-history, and historical revisionism. I was fortunate enough to listen to these lectures on the Audible edition released by The Teaching Company.
Skepticism 101: How to Think Like a Scientist doesn’t quite measure up to Shermer’s excellent The Borderlands of Science: Where Sense Meets Nonsense, with which it shares some material. However, readers will find the lectures a surprisingly entertaining read and definitely worth it.
Skepticism 101: How to Think Like a Scientist doesn’t quite measure up to Shermer’s excellent The Borderlands of Science: Where Sense Meets Nonsense, with which it shares some material. However, readers will find the lectures a surprisingly entertaining read and definitely worth it.
July 26, 2017
Excellent introduction to the skeptical way of viewing the world. Open minded people will enjoy this presentation which provides.a useful toolset for understanding the world. With ever greater numbers of charlatans and odd beliefs along with a deteriorating media (to mediate news, not that they're always perfect!) this kind of education is really important. Highly recommended
April 2, 2023
This seems to be a book cobbled together from the lecture notes of Shermer’s university course. Good in that it provides some discussion questions and gives ideas for further reading, but this could be skipped if one has read his (better fleshed-out) Why People Believe Weird Things.
December 13, 2019
How important it is think critically and to question everything. It's okay to say, "I don't know. Let me do some research and get back to you." It's okay not to know everything and to ask questions. Look at both sides of the argument and come to your own conclusions but keep in mind that a new piece of information may arise and completely change your view. To pursue knowledge and understanding is to swim in a river with a gentle current -- it's always in flux and a new scene will present itself around every bend. To think like a scientist is to constantly ask and receive answers, to do research and experimentation to come to a conclusion, always learning something new. A static mind doesn't grow.
The teacher of this course Mr. Shermer seems to be a big fan of the poetic scientist Carl Sagan and so he will find a good friend in me! He mentions how some of those who are pious will make the claim that skeptics and scientists lack spirituality. I'll quote Mr. Sagan who can put it more eloquently than I ever could,
“Science is not only compatible with spirituality; it is a profound source of spirituality. When we recognize our place in an immensity of light‐years and in the passage of ages, when we grasp the intricacy, beauty, and subtlety of life, then that soaring feeling, that sense of elation and humility combined, is surely spiritual. So are our emotions in the presence of great art or music or literature, or acts of exemplary selfless courage such as those of Mohandas Gandhi or Martin Luther King, Jr. The notion that science and spirituality are somehow mutually exclusive does a disservice to both.”
If that doesn't evoke some emotion in both the religious and the atheistic, I don't know what will.
The teacher of this course Mr. Shermer seems to be a big fan of the poetic scientist Carl Sagan and so he will find a good friend in me! He mentions how some of those who are pious will make the claim that skeptics and scientists lack spirituality. I'll quote Mr. Sagan who can put it more eloquently than I ever could,
“Science is not only compatible with spirituality; it is a profound source of spirituality. When we recognize our place in an immensity of light‐years and in the passage of ages, when we grasp the intricacy, beauty, and subtlety of life, then that soaring feeling, that sense of elation and humility combined, is surely spiritual. So are our emotions in the presence of great art or music or literature, or acts of exemplary selfless courage such as those of Mohandas Gandhi or Martin Luther King, Jr. The notion that science and spirituality are somehow mutually exclusive does a disservice to both.”
If that doesn't evoke some emotion in both the religious and the atheistic, I don't know what will.
April 12, 2021
An interesting take on skepticism. However, this is more an addendum to “The Demon-Haunted World” by Ann Druyan and Carl Sagan rather than a separate position.
In many places, the author is oversimplifying things too much but on the other hand, provides discussion on the currently most popular disbelief in the world.
For instance, he presents the concepts of creationism and intelligent design in a sort of straw man fashion, by quickly summarizing it all as being a part of the supernatural, so unexplainable and therefore, unscientific.
Nevertheless, I do like his take on conspiracies vs. conspiracy theories and how easily manipulated people can be about those things. He also shares some wisdom re: the practical ways of being a skeptic at the end of the series. I do think that part should have been more emphasized with more time and detail. It felt a bit rushed.
In many places, the author is oversimplifying things too much but on the other hand, provides discussion on the currently most popular disbelief in the world.
For instance, he presents the concepts of creationism and intelligent design in a sort of straw man fashion, by quickly summarizing it all as being a part of the supernatural, so unexplainable and therefore, unscientific.
Nevertheless, I do like his take on conspiracies vs. conspiracy theories and how easily manipulated people can be about those things. He also shares some wisdom re: the practical ways of being a skeptic at the end of the series. I do think that part should have been more emphasized with more time and detail. It felt a bit rushed.
April 25, 2015
These lectures are like an extended edition of Shermer's book Why People Believe Weird Things. I particularly liked the chapter on arguments for and against god. Spoiler alert, the against arguments are way more convincing.
April 1, 2016
I usually like the courses from the Great Courses. This one would be better titled as I Hate Religion and you're stupid for believing in God. Any relevant or useful information could have been provided in a much shorter format.
December 17, 2020
A lousy attempt to use the name of skepticism to stamp out any political or scientific skepticism. I couldn’t believe that the study of scientific methods, the science of the sciences, a philosophy to encourage ppl to think science more as a theory that needs periodic revolutionary restarts, has deteriorated into a pendantic tool that tells a student of science they can only think in one way but not in any another, a tool that the professor used favorably and constantly to “disprove” political rumors about Obama and Romney, degrading the “conspiracy theorists” who believe there might be an alternative truth to what’s presented by MSM or attacking religion in general. Also the teacher quotes “statistically speaking” all the time but fails to successfully display any grasp of knowledge of Bayesian thinking. The teacher’s “scientific standards” of thinking show his own lack of deep understanding of mathematics/statistics which is the foundation of all sciences.
Don’t listen to this. If you have time, read Kuhn’s original writings, or some introductory book on statistical or Bayesian thinking. Dude is a fake. Strong disrecommend. He is a true anti-skeptic, use the name of skepticism to stamp out and demean any one who dares to voice any skepticism against “well-accepted” scientific “truths”, and refuses to think inside the box laid out by their peers, the “experts” and society. Be aware. Don’t be fooled.
Enjoy your own unconventional thinking. Always seek out an angle or a perspective that no one has tried before. No matter how crazy it sounds. Riemann refused to think inside the box, challenged the core beliefs of Euclidean geometry and came up with a brand new form of mathematics, which was the mathematical foundation of Einstein's theories of relativity. Einstein was not a great mathematician who invented a whole new branch of mathematics to describe the world in the way he needed, but he had a mathematician friend who had heard of Riemann's work and didn't think he was crazy. This is why ppl always said that great mathematicians and physicists produce their best work before they are 35, when they're still at the peak of their creativity (or when they are too inexperienced to be boxed in by orthodox thinking or too rebellious to think only in the way they are told to).
Enjoy your creativity. Enjoy your independent individualistic thinking. That's what makes this world so beautiful! Don’t ever let other people’s skepticism stop you, no matter how “scientific” they claim themselves to be.
Don’t listen to this. If you have time, read Kuhn’s original writings, or some introductory book on statistical or Bayesian thinking. Dude is a fake. Strong disrecommend. He is a true anti-skeptic, use the name of skepticism to stamp out and demean any one who dares to voice any skepticism against “well-accepted” scientific “truths”, and refuses to think inside the box laid out by their peers, the “experts” and society. Be aware. Don’t be fooled.
Enjoy your own unconventional thinking. Always seek out an angle or a perspective that no one has tried before. No matter how crazy it sounds. Riemann refused to think inside the box, challenged the core beliefs of Euclidean geometry and came up with a brand new form of mathematics, which was the mathematical foundation of Einstein's theories of relativity. Einstein was not a great mathematician who invented a whole new branch of mathematics to describe the world in the way he needed, but he had a mathematician friend who had heard of Riemann's work and didn't think he was crazy. This is why ppl always said that great mathematicians and physicists produce their best work before they are 35, when they're still at the peak of their creativity (or when they are too inexperienced to be boxed in by orthodox thinking or too rebellious to think only in the way they are told to).
Enjoy your creativity. Enjoy your independent individualistic thinking. That's what makes this world so beautiful! Don’t ever let other people’s skepticism stop you, no matter how “scientific” they claim themselves to be.
October 9, 2025
I read the entire guidebook to this Great Course (181 pages) again and watched the accompanying 18 thirty-minute lectures. I enjoyed learning to think like a scientist: critically and with skepticism and based on evidence. This was my third time doing this Great Course (2013, 2019, 2025).
November 15, 2023
This is an audio course in the library. The material covers the “skeptics” approach to issues and tres to define ne a “scientific approach” to various issues.
He address topics like extraterrestrial life, God, morale beliefs, t of body experiences, etc. He reviews evidence around the topics and a “sceptics” analysis of the claims.
He address topics like extraterrestrial life, God, morale beliefs, t of body experiences, etc. He reviews evidence around the topics and a “sceptics” analysis of the claims.
October 8, 2014
This should be a mandatory High School course. Critical Thinking skills are fundamental to our daily lives, and not many outline them better than Skeptic Magazine founder Michael Shermer.
Shermer is The Skeptic Society’s Executive Director, the Founding Publisher of Skeptic magazine, a monthly columnist for Scientific American, the host of The Skeptics Society’s Distinguished Science Lecture Series, and Adjunct Professor at Claremont Graduate University and Chapman University. He has written 12 books including: The Believing Brain, Why Darwin Matters, The Science of Good and Evil, and Why People Believe Weird Things. He has appeared on such shows as The Colbert Report, 20/20, Dateline, Charlie Rose, Larry King Live, Tom Snyder, Donahue, Oprah, Leeza, Unsolved Mysteries, among others. He has been interviewed in countless documentaries aired on PBS, A&E, Discovery, History Channel, Science Channel, and Learning Channel.
If you have read "The Believing Brain" or "Why People Believe Weird Things", you will be familiar with much of the curriculum covered in this course, but it's a great refresher with plenty of new angles and stories to enjoy. If you have yet to read any of Shermer's books, you'll get even MORE from these courses.
If you only take one course this year, it should be Skeptcism 101..!
Shermer is The Skeptic Society’s Executive Director, the Founding Publisher of Skeptic magazine, a monthly columnist for Scientific American, the host of The Skeptics Society’s Distinguished Science Lecture Series, and Adjunct Professor at Claremont Graduate University and Chapman University. He has written 12 books including: The Believing Brain, Why Darwin Matters, The Science of Good and Evil, and Why People Believe Weird Things. He has appeared on such shows as The Colbert Report, 20/20, Dateline, Charlie Rose, Larry King Live, Tom Snyder, Donahue, Oprah, Leeza, Unsolved Mysteries, among others. He has been interviewed in countless documentaries aired on PBS, A&E, Discovery, History Channel, Science Channel, and Learning Channel.
If you have read "The Believing Brain" or "Why People Believe Weird Things", you will be familiar with much of the curriculum covered in this course, but it's a great refresher with plenty of new angles and stories to enjoy. If you have yet to read any of Shermer's books, you'll get even MORE from these courses.
If you only take one course this year, it should be Skeptcism 101..!
February 3, 2015
Fell short on the "how" part of the subtitle. Most of the time was on the author's view on specific topics. However much I might agree with the position he takes on the topics, it does not address the how... how does one overcome these natural human fallacies in logic. Identification of logic fallacies and how to overcome them are different learning objectives. I wanted the latter and was therefore disappointed
September 6, 2016
This was kind of fun and definitely brought up some good points, but the author was very clearly heavily to the left, which shows several times throughout the book (who ever heard of a liberal professor!?). In itself that isn't bad, but when you're trying to promote critical thinking, it should be done so from a politically neutral stance.
3/5
3/5
April 4, 2018
Having listened to Your Deceptive Mind: A Scientific Guide to Critical Thinking (Great Courses by Steven Novella), I did not find this to be nearly as useful.
If you are considering this set of lectures, I suggest that you try Your Deceptive Mind.
If you are considering this set of lectures, I suggest that you try Your Deceptive Mind.
November 13, 2018
Important skills to have in the world of fake news.
Also really interesting to learn how some of our natural assumptions evolved and why we have them.
Also really interesting to learn how some of our natural assumptions evolved and why we have them.
March 3, 2020
Useful information, but I found his monist, materialist assumptions had too much influence.
June 12, 2020
The quality is not what i expected from the great course series. And content have too much cites from other sources.
June 18, 2023
Great review for a lot of things I'd already known. It had all the logical fallacy awareness I picked up in philosophy. I was pleased by the addition of human psychology studies to shed light into how our cognition can bend our realities, even using those same critical thinking skills laid out in logic, to fit the needed narrative. He goes over some different applicable flawed thinking for views such as UFOs, conspiracy theories, and religion. I wasn't so much a fan of his treatment of the latter, even though I agree with him. I think I just get uncomfortable about scholars making the conclusion for us rather than tackling one facet of it or the path to it. Regardless, I wish for all people to read this.
December 24, 2020
A while back, when I first became interested in the subjects of skepticism and critical thinking, I picked up a Michael Shermer book and didn't like it. That was about a year ago, and after reading numerous other books on the subjects, his name kept coming up, so I decided to give him another try, and he blew me away. I'm officially a fan after going through his Skepticism 101 course. He is extremely well-versed on why people believe in the supernatural and paranormal, and he has great strategies for scientific thinking. I'm super excited that I gave his work another chance because he has a ton of books that I can't wait to read.
January 3, 2021
If you are new to this subject, you will probably enjoy this course more than my husband and I did. We listened to this course over lunches, one lecture per meal, and it was as entertaining as the radio would have been, although we were tempted to cut a couple of the lectures short. It was well presented, and there were some interesting examples and a few insights ,but for someone who has read a bit on the subject already, e.g., Dan Ariely, there is nothing new here.
In addition, there is not as much reference to scientific method as one might expect. There are a lot of references to scientific studies, however, like the Milgram study, which would be quite interesting if you do not already know them.
A minor but annoying flaw, surprising in someone like Shermer, who does a lot of public cpeaking, is his frequent (often multipl per lecture) mispronunciation of words. Admittedly, I am sometimes unsure how to pronounce a term I have only read, but if I were going to use the term in lectures, I would take the trouble to learn the proper pronunciation.
In addition, there is not as much reference to scientific method as one might expect. There are a lot of references to scientific studies, however, like the Milgram study, which would be quite interesting if you do not already know them.
A minor but annoying flaw, surprising in someone like Shermer, who does a lot of public cpeaking, is his frequent (often multipl per lecture) mispronunciation of words. Admittedly, I am sometimes unsure how to pronounce a term I have only read, but if I were going to use the term in lectures, I would take the trouble to learn the proper pronunciation.
July 10, 2022
I took this course because I wanted to learn how to become a better skeptic. I found the discussion of cognitive biases helpful in challenging my own thinking. I was disappointed but not surprised that the author and self proclaimed atheist, which he was sure to mention more than once, spent a good deal of time discussing his views of why religion, God, and the afterlife are irrational. There are many that believe in a higher power and this should be respected. Surely there are other examples that could be used to illustrate the same points.
July 26, 2022
An excellent, if brief, course.
Shermer shines when he breaks down common thought fallacies. He draws useful distinctions between science and pseudoscience, history and pseudo-history. His analysis of cult psychology is superb.
I once considered the moral argument for God's existence one of the best, but his rebuttal was forceful. Similarly, with his discussion of the fine-tuning argument. However, his response to the cosmological argument was insufficient due to his misunderstanding the Thomistic conception of God.
👏
Shermer shines when he breaks down common thought fallacies. He draws useful distinctions between science and pseudoscience, history and pseudo-history. His analysis of cult psychology is superb.
I once considered the moral argument for God's existence one of the best, but his rebuttal was forceful. Similarly, with his discussion of the fine-tuning argument. However, his response to the cosmological argument was insufficient due to his misunderstanding the Thomistic conception of God.
👏
September 26, 2025
I’ve been occasionally disappointed with Shermer’s books, but this lecture is excellent. A listener is going to learn how and why we believe what we believe, and will be given a short course on neurology, social psychology, critical, thinking, and magic… and how they all explain our often mindless credulity.
That’s my term, not his.
The only flaw I could find with the book was that he seems to be very fond of a quote that he attributes to Aristotle, that Aristotle never made. He’s done it in writing too.
But I recommend it strongly.
That’s my term, not his.
The only flaw I could find with the book was that he seems to be very fond of a quote that he attributes to Aristotle, that Aristotle never made. He’s done it in writing too.
But I recommend it strongly.
February 6, 2018
This Great Courses audiobook is excellent. Michael Shermer is meticulously balanced and courteous in explaining scientific thinking and how to apply it to contentious issues. Ironically, no one who believes in conspiracy theories, attends seances, denies the existence of the Holocaust, or believes in UFOs will ever listen to it. It will help the rest of us, however.
June 16, 2019
وكما هي حال كتب مايكل شيرمر هذا الكتاب عميق ومخلص بشكل جميل ورائع
الكتاب عبارة عن محاضرات في "التشكيك skepticism”
ويهدف الى جعل القارئ يفكر كعالم. ويحلل الامور. بطريقة موضوعية
بيدا الكاتب بالتعريف بالعلم، والتشكيك، وطريقة التفكير ومغالطاته الى عملية الايمان من الناحية النفسية ثم يعرج الى العلوم الزائفة
يتناول مواضيع مختلفة :
١- العلم الزائف
٢- الاطباق الطائرة
٣- الخلق المستقل
٤- الاله
٥- الدين
٦- الحياة الاخرى
٧- كيف تكتشف العلوم الزائفة
انصح به بشدة
الكتاب عبارة عن محاضرات في "التشكيك skepticism”
ويهدف الى جعل القارئ يفكر كعالم. ويحلل الامور. بطريقة موضوعية
بيدا الكاتب بالتعريف بالعلم، والتشكيك، وطريقة التفكير ومغالطاته الى عملية الايمان من الناحية النفسية ثم يعرج الى العلوم الزائفة
يتناول مواضيع مختلفة :
١- العلم الزائف
٢- الاطباق الطائرة
٣- الخلق المستقل
٤- الاله
٥- الدين
٦- الحياة الاخرى
٧- كيف تكتشف العلوم الزائفة
انصح به بشدة
July 6, 2019
Not a great guide on how to think, but a good guide to why scepticism is so, so important in our 'information' overload culture.
These are eighteen lectures written by Michael Brant Shermer - Scientific America writer founder of The Skeptics Society, asking readers to be critical in their thinking, self checking and open-minded. Not so open minded your brain falls out.
Detect false claims and challenge yourself.
These are eighteen lectures written by Michael Brant Shermer - Scientific America writer founder of The Skeptics Society, asking readers to be critical in their thinking, self checking and open-minded. Not so open minded your brain falls out.
Detect false claims and challenge yourself.
December 29, 2020
There were interesting bits and some useful information, but his whole persona is that of middle-class White male privilege, particularly the stock he puts in the value of the IQ test as a measure of intelligence. His own narration is so superior and it's difficult to like him enough to want to learn from him.
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