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EDUCATIONAL
RESOURCE AREA
COURSE MATERIAL
BACK TO: EDUCATIONAL RESOURCE AREA
Skepticism, Pseudoscience
and the Scientific MethodInstructor: Eric Carlson
Physics Department
Wake Forest University
http://www.wfu.edu/~ecarlson/skeptic/TABLE OF CONTENTS
TENTATIVE WEEKLY SCHEDULEWEEK ONE: Introduction, The Scientific Method
WEEK TWO: Forming Multiple Hypotheses: Deception and Magicians
WEEK THREE: Designing an Experiment: Controls, Placebos, Blind, and Double-Blind Experiments
�The Placebo Effect,� by Walter A. Brown, Scientific American, January 1998, pp. 90-95.
�The Mysterious Placebo,� by John Dodes, Skeptical Inquirer, Jan./Feb. 1997, pp. 44-45.
�The Spin Doctors,� by Nicholas Wade, New York Times Magazine, Jan. 1, 1996, p. 16.
WEEK FOUR: Gathering Data: Memory and Eyewitness Testimony
"Reflections in a Curved Mirror,� from Searching for Memory by Daniel L. Schechter.
"Into the Air, Junior Birdmen!", from Flim-Flam, by James Randi, chapter 4 (pp. 55-92)WEEK FIVE: Case Study: Aliens and Alien Abductions
Shermer, Chapter 6.
"Autopsy or Fraud-topsy?" from Time magazine (handout)WEEK SIX: Case Study: Lights in the Sky
WEEK SEVEN: Introduction to Statistics
Huff, Chapters 2, 3, and 4WEEK EIGHT: Review, Midterm
WEEK NINE: Case Study: Horoscopes and Biorhythms
Huff, Chapters 1, 8, and 9.WEEK TEN: More about Statistics
Shermer, chapters 4, 9, and 10,
Randi, chapters 7
* You may also find it helpful and to read Randi, chapter 13.WEEK ELEVEN: Interpreting the Data: Systematic Errors
WEEK TWELVE: Case Study: Ghosts and Near-Death Experiences
WEEK THIRTEEN: Case Study: Homeopathic Remedies
WEEK FOURTEEN: The Media and Pseudoscience
Shermer, chapters 3, 13 and 14
"That's Entertainment - TV's UFO Coverup", from the Skeptical Inquirer.WEEK FIFTEEN: Ethical Issues in Pseudoscience
WEEK SIXTEEN: Final Exam
Provides definitions and basic equations for working with statistics.
An excel table for recording results.
An excel file that provides a graph to record results of experiment.
An excel table for recording results of experiement.
Required Text:
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