The European Skeptics Podcast - The ESP

Every Swede has celebrated Valborg (Walpurgis / Walpurga) this week although no one really knows why, and András reports from Sicily on volcanic activities. In TWISH we hear about Pierre Teilhard de Chardin, a theologian so controversial that popes nowadays still cannot agree on what to think of him. Then it’s time for this week’s news:

Vaccination efforts have saved over 150 million lives over the last 50 years, and therefore Maurice Hilleman gets a Really Right Award as a representative of those who dedicate their lives to the cause.

Enjoy!

Segments: Intro; Greetings; TWISH; News; Really Right; Quote and Farewell; Outro; Out-Takes

0:00:27 Intro

0:00:53 Greetings

0:08:45 TWISH

0:14:10 News

0:34:02 Really Right

0:37:38 Quote And Farewell

0:39:49 Outro

0:41:04 Out-Takes

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It is European Immunization Week! Get your boosters and jabs folks, and make you and the people around you are safe! In TWISH this week we hear about John Oliver, British comedian who (whether you like him or not) understands science and the need for healthy skepticism. Then we of course take a look at the news:

The Really Wrong Award this week goes to NutriLight with their silly “Red Light Therapy”

Enjoy!

Segments: Intro; Greetings; TWISH; News; Really Wrong; Quote and Farewell; Outro; Out-Takes

0:00:27 Intro

0:00:51 Greetings

0:08:01 TWISH

0:12:56 News

0:35:09 Really Wrong

0:43:28 Quote And Farewell

0:45:42 Outro

0:46:57 Out-Takes

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The report on DISC analysis and Thomas Erikson from last week generated some good feedback, it’s time for the John Maddox prize again and Susan Gerbic has a new YouTube channel that you should definitely check out. Don’t forget to book your ticket for the European Skeptics Congress in Lyon! In TWISH we hear about Norbert Schobert, the Hungarian fitness guru that seems to keep asking for a Flat Earth award. Then, we look at the news:

Back to Hungary for the Really Wrong Award, where a public Hungarian Hospital in Orosház is offering Reiki treatment to patients.

Enjoy!

0:00:27 Intro

0:00:51 Greetings

0:15:28 TWISH

0:21:12 News

0:32:59 Really Wrong

0:38:30 Quote And Farewell

0:40:36 Outro

0:41:51 Out-Takes

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A bit of a correction first, regarding earthquakes. Then we get some Vatican news with speculation about a Swedish ‘papabile’, plus idiotic statements about genders. In TWISH we hear about Paolo Frisi, an Italian university dropout who in the 18th century went on to become a polymath. Then we have a look at the news:

Long time charlatan Thomas Erikson finally gets his dues when he receives a Really Wrong Award as his latest book on nonsense personality types is published.

Enjoy!

Segments: Intro; Greetings; TWISH; News; Really Wrong; Quote and Farewell; Outro; Out-Takes

0:00:27 Intro

0:00:51 Greetings

0:12:20 TWISH

0:18:19 News

0:29:16 Really Wrong

0:41:31 Quote And Farewell

0:43:24 Outro

0:44:39 Out-Takes

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There are two great European skeptical events to sign up for this year – European Skeptics Congress in Lyon (30 May- 2 June) and QED in Manchester (18 – 20 October) – there is still time to catch the Early Bird discounts for both! In TWISH we hear about the earthquake in L’Aquila in Italy in 2009, that not only shook the ground but also the trust in science. Of course, we also give our take on the news:

This week we hopefully hand out our last PiS related Really Wrong Award. More specifically it goes to Polish president Andrzej Duda who did a doo-doo and vetoed access to women’s health care.

Enjoy!

Segments:

0:00:27 Intro

0:00:49 Greetings

0:06:36 TWISH

0:16:35 News

0:40:22 Really Wrong

0:45:54 Quote And Farewell

0:46:58 Outro

0:48:12 Out-Takes

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Who knew that Hungarian intellectuals where numerologists – András reveals all! We have correction from last week and also reflect over the illness of Princess Kate, naturally we wish her well. In this weeks TWISH we hear about Percy Shelley and how his atheism ruined his academic career – to the benefit of mankind. Then, it’s time for the news:

This week’s Really Right goes to the EU parliament though we until the last minute we thought they had messed up.

Enjoy!

Segments: Intro; Greetings; TWISH; News; Really Right; Quote and Farewell; Outro; Out-Takes

0:00:27 INTRO

0:00:49 GREETINGS

0:10:45 TWISH – THIS WEEK IN SKEPTICAL HISTORY

0:17:58 NEWS

0:41:10 REALLY RIGHT

0:46:43 QUOTE AND FAREWELL

0:47:58 OUTRO

0:49:12 OUT-TAKES

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Flying unicorns exist in Portugal and you can vote for your favorites on the Portuguese Skeptics’ web site (COMCEPT) before 1 April. By coincidence this is also the deadline for getting the Early Bird discount for the European Skeptics Congress in Lyon, so sign up in time! On a sadder note, Annika will have to take a few months off from the podcast, but she promises to return in June. But before that, we have a whole lot of news to go through:

For a change we have a Really Weird Award to hand out – the man who got hundreds of covid shots just to be on the safe side (we suppose). Luckily he seems to be OK.

Enjoy!

Segments: Intro; Greetings; TWISH; News; Really Weird; Quote and Farewell; Outro; Out-Takes

0:00:27 Intro

0:00:52 Greetings

0:12:42 TWISH

0:22:23 News

0:49:49 Really Weird

0:56:34 Quote and Farewell

1:00:51 Outro

1:02:06 Out-takes

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Brian Eggo is certainly bo no stranger to this podcast. Relentless in his quest to spread the skeptical world, he is known as the main force behind the Glasgow Skeptics,one of the great people behind Skeptics in the Pub - Onlinand a frequent speaker and guest on several podcasts. This week we interview him about the time when the big C came to his family and he decided to find out what the internet would have to recommend someone in his position. While a lot of the advice he got was likely given in good faith, it was nevertheless pretty bad. Hear him tell all about everything from totally ineffective "cures" like homeopathy to downright dangerous modalities like black salve and MMS.

Enjoy! (if that's the word)

Segments: 

0:00:26 INTRO

0:00:49 GREETINGS

0:02:19 INTERVIEW

0:46:02 FAREWELL

0:47:03 OUTRO

0:48:03 OUT-TAKES

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We start with some listener feedback and corrections regarding Tridentinosaurus Antiquus – the origin of its name was wrong and despite what we said, it wasn’t a a dinosaur. In TWISH we hear about Gerardus Mercator, the man behind most world maps. Then we get to the news:

The UK government gets this week’s Really Wrong Award for covering up the statistics about the deaths of homeless people.

Enjoy!

Segments: Intro; Greetings; TWISH; News; Really Wrong; Quote and Farewell; Outro; Out-Takes

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This week we have the great pleasure to interview our friend Prof. Chris French! We hear a lot about his research into the paranormal – or Anomalistic Psychology as he prefers to call it.

Chris has a new book coming out on 19 March. It’s called “the Science of Weird Shit” and we cannot recommend it enough! (we were lucky enough to get a sneak peek)

Enjoy!

Segments: Intro; Greetings; Interview; Farewell; Outro; Out-Takes

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This week we’ve had some feedback regarding AI – always glad to hear from our listeners! In TWISH we hear about Charles Clermont-Ganneau, famous French archeologist with a flare for spotting fake artifacts. Then we turn to the news:

Good news for once! The French National Assembly has adopted a new law aimed at charlatans, and sects or sect leaders who tries to influence their followers to reject science based medicine. We think that is worth a Really Right Award!

Enjoy!

Segments: Intro; Greetings; TWISH; News; Really Right; Quote and Farewell; Outro; Out-Takes

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Luna sits in for András(!) and we talk about conspiracy theories regarding the earthquake in Turkey last year, a new study about peoples worldview and in TWISH we get into the curse of Tutankhamun – what really was going on? Then we have a look at the news:

The German Federal Ministry is funding the SCAM institute ARCIM and for that they are Really Wrong.

Enjoy!

Segments: Intro; Greetings; TWISH; News; Really Wrong; Quote and Farewell; Outro; Out-Takes

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King Charles III is ill and although we seldom agrees with him we still whish him a speedy recovery. Marcus Wandt, the Swedish astronaut, took time off his busy schedule and gave a called via link with students at a Swedish school – the teacher setting it up is active in VoF, the Swedish skeptics. Well done, Philippe! Marcus has been stuck on the ISS for several days but as this episode comes out he is finally on his way back to Earth. We remind everyone to sign up for the European Skeptics Congress in Lyon, France, 30 May – 3 June! Speakers include Massimo Polidoro, Karolina Lisslö Gylfe and Edzard Ernst! In TWISH we hear about Peter the Great who despite obvious flaws also happened to be quite a fan on the enlightenment. Then, it’s time for the news:

The NHS in Kent is supporting unscientific alternative treatments and gets this week’s award for being Really Wrong, and to round up the episode we go to Iceland for the Word of the Week. Who can guess what ‘Bóluefni’ means? Tune in to find out!

Enjoy!

Segments: Intro; Greetings; TWISH; News; Really Wrong; Word of the Week; Quote and Farewell; Outro; Out-Takes

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We start with some listener feedback and ponder the wonders of European languages before we turn to TWISH, where we hear about Bertrand Russell and his teapot. Then we go into the news:

Scotland keeps burning as much peat as ever despite the climate crises, and for that they receive this week’s Award for being Really Wrong.

Enjoy!

Segments: Intro; Greetings; TWISH; News; Really Wrong; Quote and Farewell; Outro; Out-Takes

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This week we interview the fabulous Anja Harrison (no relation to any of the hosts) about a great initiative – The Collaborative Library. Having met Anja at QED last year, we decided we just had to get her on the show. The ambitious plan of the Collaborative Library is to make scientific research much more accessible for the public, by making sure that there is a lay summary of as many papers as possible.

Enjoy!

Segments: Intro; Greetings; Interview; Farewell; Outro

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By the time this episode comes out, Sweden hopefully has its third and latest astronaut in space! Marcus Wandt is schedule for launch on Wednesday, (nope) Thursday evening, European time. For a little more down-to-Earth skeptical fun, sign up for the European Skeptics Congress, 30 May – 2 June, in Lyon, France. Registrations are now open! No TWISH today in this slightly shorter than usual episode, but we still take a look at the news:

Karl Lauterbach, the German Health Minister, seems finally to ramp up for withdrawing homeopathy from state funded health care, and for that he is Really Right!

Enjoy!

Segments: Intro; Greetings; News; Really Right; Quote and Farewell; Outro; Out-Takes

https://theesp.eu/podcast_archive/theesp-ep-410.html

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Sorry for the delay guys, but we’re back! We have a host of tips for our listeners to get engaged in in the new year. In this week’s TWISH we hear about the Basel Massacre in 1349, gruesome stuff. Then we look at the news:

The Really Wrong aware goes to so-called “Energy Healer” Jean-Maurice Latsague, not just an alt-med scammer but also a sex abuser.

Happy new year!

Segments: Intro; Greetings; TWISH; News; Really Wrong; Quote and Farewell; Outro; Out-Takes

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Suddenly Poland emerges as a possible example against populism in Europe – strange times indeed. In TWISH we hear about Marconi‘s groundbreaking radio transmission over the Atlantic – not very long ago when you think about it, and pretty cool since he didn’t really know how radio waves work! In the news this week we look at these items:

Enjoy!

Segments: Intro; Greetings; TWISH; News; Really Wrong / Really Right; Quote and Farewell; Outro; Out-Takes

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First we mention that the prestigious Heinz Oberhummer Award has just been given to Die Sendung mit der Maus which we recently called out for being Really Wrong. Annika puts that into perspective for us. It is time to plan the trip to next year’s European Skeptics Congress, this time in Lyon France, 30 May to 2 June. We then ask if Pope Frankie is planning his ‘Endgame’; some things point in that direction. After that we take a look at the news:

Russia’s Supreme Court is rewarded with this week’s Really Wrong Award for classifying the ‘International LGBT movement’ and an extremist ‘organisation’. The Word of the Week is ‘Vrăjitoare’. Tune in to find out what it means!

Enjoy!

Segments: Intro; Greetings; Pontus Pokes the Pope; News; Really Wrong; Word of the Week; Quote and Farewell; Outro; Out-Takes

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In TWISH this week we hear about Claude Lévi-Strauss who put together a structuralist theory to analyze myths. We also hear that Pope Frankie is sick but still plans to attend the COP-28 meeting in Dubai – we cannot help wondering why. Then it’s time for the news:

The Word of the Week is Dobhar-Chú. No spoilers! You’ll have to listen to find out what on Earth that means!

Enjoy!

Segments: Intro; Greetings; TWISH; Pontus Pokes the Pope; News; Word of the Week; Quote and Farewell; Outro; Out-Takes

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In this week’s TWISH we hear about Trofim Lysenko before we look into the news:

Naturopaths selling Miracle Mineral Supplements (MMS) are promoting a life threatening substance with no possible benefit. This came to a class call recently when a toddler coudl have died as a result. We hand out a Really Wrong Award for this completely irresponsible action. In Word of the Week we looking into how to talk about scams and frauds in Finnish.

Enjoy!

Segments: Intro; Greetings; TWISH; News; Really Wrong; Word of the Week; Quote and Farewell; Outro; Out-Takes

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Despite the numerology, this episode CAN be found wherever you get your podcasts. We will give you tips about The Conspiracy Test, the Humanist UK 2024 Convention, the latest Skeptical Inquirer interview and Skepticon 2023 in Australia – all good things to check out! In TWISH we hear about one of Darwin’s buddies, the groundbreaking (pun intended) geologist Charles Lyell, born this week in 1797. Pope Frankie has been given a free pass for too long and therefore gets poked before we get to the news:

The Antivaxx movement gets a Really Wrong award for trying to exploit the tragic death of Matthew Perry and in Who’s Quacking? we hear about Norbert Schobert, Hungarian spreader of disinformation.

Enjoy!

Segments: Intro; Greetings; TWISH; Pontus Pokes The Pope; News; Really Wrong; Who’s Quacking?; Quote And Farewell; Outro; Out-Takes

Show notes here: https://theesp.eu/podcast_archive/theesp-ep-404.html

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After the normal meet and greet, we have an interview with Norbert Aust – German skeptic and one of the initiators of INH, Information Network Homeopathy. He brings us up to date on what’s going on and reports on the fight to get fraudulent and incorrect ‘scientific’ papers retracted. We later get a ‘TWISH’ about the ‘Festival of Reason’, a failed and misguided attempt to get rid of religion during the French revolution. Then, it’s time for the news:

This week’s Really Wrong Award goes to the BBC and to Michael Mosely for spreading nonsense on the ‘Just One Thing’ podcast.

Enjoy!

Segments: Intro; Greetings; Interview; TWISH; News; Really Wrong; Quote And Farewell; Outro; Out-Takes

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– with Paula Dahlberg Full length episode, plus an interesting interview this week. We first note that science has discovered the “Pontus plate” (much to our liking) and also that if you are quick you can still apply to give a talk at SkepKon in Augsburg in May. Then we hear about the sad passing of Peter Olausson, prominent skeptic and former president of VoF.

After that we have our interview with Paula Dahlberg who takes us through the most common myths about the legal system. Then, we take a look at the news:

SWITZERLAND: SCAM doesn’t work against diabetes

WALES: Cancer patient dead after taking herbal mixture containing mistletoe

FRANCE: Negative correlations between conspiracy beliefs and the use of conventional medicine

To round off we present Apple TV (of all services) with this week’s Really Right Award for putting out a factual documentary about the Enfield Poltergeist. We also have a tongue twisting Word of the week from the Netherlands.

Enjoy!

Segments: Intro; Greetings; Interview; TWISH; Pontus Pokes The Pope; News; Really Right; Word Of The Week; Quote And Farewell; Outro; Out-Takes

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Starting off our next 400 episodes, we interview the amazing Cara Santa Maria of Talk Nerdy and Skeptic Guide to the Universe fame. We get into things about her that you may not be aware of – how she rebelled against her Mormon upbringing, her passion for social injustices, and why she cannot always be allowed to speak her mind on the Skeptics Guide.A brilliant science communicator with a background in television, podcasting, and more, Cara is also a clinical psychologist and recently received her Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology with a concentration in Social Justice and Diversity.Enjoy!Segments: Intro; Greetings; Interview; Farewell; Outro; Out-Takes

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The band is back together for episode 400! Watch out for Gerson therapy, confusing Synods and of course, this week’s news:UK: Phones in schoolsPOLAND: End of the PiS party reign(?)BELGIUM: Catholic University of Leuven stops UFO ‘conference’SWITZERLAND: Another tumor ‘treated naturally’UK: ‘Relaxed’ climate change policies in the UK, but also elsewhereUK: University of Exeter offers degree in Magic and the occultThe Reichsbürger movement get (another!) Really Wrong Award for creating fake Jewish communities to get government funding and hide their terrible agenda. Then we have the Word of the Week, in which we try to take the confusion out of the word ‘Synod’.Enjoy!Segments: Intro; Greetings; TWISH; Pontus Pokes The Pope; News; Really Wrong; Word Of The Week; Quote And Farewell; Outro; Out-Takes

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SkepKon 2024 is coming up in May 2024! It will be held in Augsburg and there is a call for papers out, see link in the show notes. This episode comes out on Friday the 13th, so in TWISH we explore where this superstition comes from. We have an interview with Dr Holm Hümmler who tells us what really went down at the presentation of Das Goldene Brett Award in Vienna last week, and then we take a look at the news:SWEDEN: Macchiarini found guilty of falsified research – again!GERMANY: Raids with ReichsbürgerSWEDEN / ESTONIA: Estonia disaster – renewed interest in conspiracy theories due to new documentary and coming TV dramaGERMANY: New video by Janos Hegedüs about Sucharit BhakdiUKRAINE: Does Ukraine supply Hamas with American weapons? – New conspiracy theory from US RepublicansThe German children’s TV-show ‘Sendung mit der Maus’ gets this week s Really Wrong Award for promoting homeopathy and anthroposophy to kids.Enjoy!Segments: Intro; Greetings; Interview; TWISH; News; Really Wrong; Quote And Farewell; Outro; Out-Takes

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This is the second part of our reporting from QED 2023. Before we get into the interviews we comment on the brand new Nobel Prizes in Medicine, Physics and Chemistry, all awarded for fascinating progress in science! Then we have four new interviews to share from QED.Enjoy!Segments: Intro; Greetings; Interview; Additional Interviews; Farewell; Outro; Out-Takes

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Last week was QED, and boy did we enjoy it! Fantastic talks, great happenings and wonderful people!This episode is part 1 of our interviews with some of the people we met.Enjoy!Segments: Intro; Greetings; Interview; About Qed; Additional Interviews; Farewell; Outro; Out-Takes

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…science communicator extraordinaire! This week we are talking to Florian Aigner, an Austrian physicist, science editor, author, science communicator and skeptic. He lives in Austria and works at the TU Vienna (Technical University). He is also on the jury of Das goldene Brett. He has written three popular science books and held the keynote speech at the European Skeptics Congress in 2022 in Vienna titled “Why we can trust in science”. He is also a member of GWUP (the German Skeptics) where he was a board member from 2012 to 2016.Enjoy!Segments: Intro; Greetings; Interview; Outro; Out-Takes

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Annika has been to the esoteric fair and gives a report and dowsing is apparently used by employees at Scottish Water. In TWISH we celebrate the International Day of Democracy, and boy do we need it. And then there is the news:INTERNATIONAL: Toddlers can reason!SWEDEN / UK: Believing in personal gut feelings and falling for conspiracy theoriesGERMANY: New developments regarding Satanic PanicSWEDEN: Pontus Pokes the Politicians: Thousands marching against mandatory reporting of paperless personsCrossRef and Retraction Watch do great work and for that they share this week’s award for being Really Right.Enjoy!Segments: Intro; Greetings; TWISH; News; Really Right; Quote And Farewell; Outro; Out-Takes

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Several awards and gatherings to be on the look-out for: the Ockham Award, the Rusty Razor, the Bent Spoon and Das Goldene Brett. The feast of Santa Rosalia is the topic for TWISH and Pope Frankie is nostalgic about the Mongolian invasion (wtf?). Then, we have this week’s news:GERMANY: Follow-up on the Reichsbürger movementINTERNATIONAL: Prediction of 1 billion+ deaths related to climate change by 2100SCOTLAND: Issues with science publishing – Researcher finds his name on editorial boards of journals he hasn’t even heard ofSWEDEN / INTERNATIONAL: New measles cases in StockholmUK: Country can no longer be considered christianSwedish science journalist Maria Gunther gets the award for being Really Right and in Word of the Week Carl Sagan get translated to Norwegian: ‘påstander’ means ‘claims and ‘bevis’ means ‘evidence’.Enjoy!Segments: Intro; Greetings; TWISH; Pontus Pokes The Pope; News; Really Right; Word Of The Week; Quote And Farewell; Outro; Out-Takes

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…and Nessie goes ‘gloop’ We’re happy to announce that the ESP Shop is now available in the US, Canada and Australia. We also want you to know that nominations for Das Goldene Brett is still open. In TWISH we hear about an encounter of the third kind and Frankie insists India don’t look the congregation in the eye more than half of the time. Then we get into the news:SCOTLAND: Nessie hunters hear sounds but fail to record themUK: Full Fact study – Hundreds of hoax posts circulating in Facebook groupsINTERNATIONAL: Scientific journal retracts article that claimed there is no evidence of climate crisisINTERNATIONAL: Study reveals connection between support for SCAM and vaccine hesitancy among physicians in four European countriesWe award Swedish activist Ia Anstoot a Really Right for calling out the unscientific stance of Greenpeace when it comes to nuclear power.Enjoy!Segments: Intro; Greetings; TWISH; Pontus Pokes The Pope; News; Really Right; Quote And Farewell; Outro; Out-Takes

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…sleep restriction for insomnia? A lot of great talks are coming up for Skepticamp at QED in September – with András, Pontus and Claire among the speakers! In TWISH we hear about an almost 200 year old fake news about the moon and then we take a look at the news:UK: Asparagus fails to predict the futureSCOTLAND: Loch Ness might be ‘home to spirit entity’ that can be disturbed by searchUK: Meghan Markle wears ‘miracle antistress patch’INTERNATIONAL: WHO promotes alternative medicine (again!)INTERNATIONAL: Where skeptics go wrongMedical journal the Lancet gets this week Award for being Really Wrong a new article about insomnia. Word of the Week is the Danish word vrøvl.Enjoy!Segments: Intro; Greetings; TWISH; News; Really Wrong; Word Of The Week; Quote And Farewell; Outro; Out-Takes

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…Uri Geller strikes again… There are now streaming tickets for QED! In TWISH we hear about the three wise guys, sorry, the three wise men, and how they ended up in Cologne in Germany. No pope this week, so we head right in for the news:UK: Voter databank hacked and according to experts can potentially be used to target voters with disinformationINTERNATIONAL: YouTube starts mass takedowns of videos promoting ‘harmful or ineffective’ cancer curesUK: Classroom environmental education doesn’t seem to change attitudes…UK: Infertility clinics exploiting patients with SCAMSWEDEN: MD who helped patient to end his life wants his license backINTERNATIONAL: BBC broadcast – the terrible abusive practices of spiritual healersINTERNATIONAL: Uri Geller shares ‘proof’ that aliens exist – a photo from X-FilesHUNGARY: Government spends taxpayer’s money on a catholic educational centreThe Italian Prime minister of Italy, Giorgia Meloni, wants to commemorate fascists and for that she receives this week’s prize for being Really Wrong.Enjoy!Segments: Intro; Greetings; TWISH; News; Really Wrong; Quote And Farewell; Outro; Out-Takes

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…and the deep fakes grows deeper We start with listener feedback regarding burning the Quran and the best ways to boil a frog… We also announce our newly created merch store and there is still time to get your ESP t-shirt before QED. 15% off if you hurry!. In TWISH we hear about Sea Org day celebrated by scientologists and the pope gets poked for his “excluded but-not-excluded policy” towards women and the LGBTQ+ community.Then, it’s time for the news:INTERNATIONAL: Happy birthday, Retraction WatchUK: Humans unable to detect over a quarter of deepfake speech samplesINTERNATIONAL: How the World Federation of Chiropractic introduces new guidelines, but fails to make sense of itFRANCE: Link between belief in alternative medicine and vaccine hesitancySCOTLAND: Plan to find Nessie using dronesUK: Government shits on their own climate goalsThe Really Wrong Award goes to Irish conspiracy nut Gemma O’Doherty.Enjoy!Segments: Intro; Greetings; TWISH; Pontus Pokes The Pope; News; Really Wrong; Quote And Farewell; Outro; Out-Takes

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…might get you pregnant?Another record with July being the hottest month ever. It may not matter since AI is here to finish us off before the climate crisis does… But the show must go on and in TWISH we hear about Alexander Fleming who was born this week in 1881, Pope Frankie is in Portugal for his own Woodstock, hoping that no one talks too much about sex. Then it’s time for then news:RUSSIA / GERMANY: ‘Heil Zelenskiy’: Russian actors identified in purported German video against Ukraine aidDENMARK / SWEDEN: Burning holy books: Denmark considers law changeUK: Humanists UK releases concerning info on faith schoolsUK: Sense About Science and UK parliament holds Evidence Week 2023UK: King Charles’ holistic fertility courseNETHERLANDS: Ferry on fireINTERNATIONAL: So, will the Gulf Stream collapse?POLAND: PiS party pushes through ‘Russian influence law’ – EU says it can be used to ban political oppositionGB News presenter Neil Oliver gets this week’s Award for being Really Wrong due to his baseless claims about the BBC falsifying heat wave temperatures.Enjoy!Segments: Intro; Greetings; TWISH; Pontus Pokes The Pope; News; Really Wrong; Quote And Farewell; Outro; Out-Takes

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…BTW, a ‘rutgängare’ uses a ‘slagruta’ in their professionThis week in TWISH we hear about Rosalind Franklin and Pope Frankie is on a diplomatic mission from God. In the news, we hear about:SWEDEN: Greta Thunberg gets fined for disobeying police, goes back to protest and confront police the same dayAUSTRIA: Wanted holocaust denier gets stopped by the police – with the body of his wife in the trunkSWEDEN: Estonia sinking: Ramp from ferry recovered raised after 29 yearsITALY: Climate Crisis: Italy wildfires encircle Palermo as temperatures hit 47CEUROPE: Heatwaves ‘virtually impossible’ without climate changePutin gets a new Really Wrong Prize for his collection and we have two words of the week: slagruta and rutgängare.Enjoy!Segments: Intro; Greetings; TWISH; Pontus Pokes The Pope; News; Really Wrong; Word Of The Week; Quote And Farewell; Outro; Out-Takes

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This week, as we are finally all back together to record, we start by lamenting on the latest heatwaves and why we might be doomed, especially when we consider the current political stage in countries like Germany.We then interview Stefan Uttenthaler about the yearly 'Das Goldenes Brett' satirical award, before moving on to TWISH, in which we commemorate the birthday of Hungarian engineer and promoter of all things UFO and weird energies György Egely...After Pontus Pokes the Pope for trusting the inquisition with a perv, we move on to the news, where:In ITALY, the government is doing close to nothing to tackle climate change, while downplaying its severety.A new conspiracy on the rise claiming that sunscreens are toxic and should not be used.In GERMANY, anesthesiologist leads the board in retractions with 184 of them to his name.WHO puts aspartame into the possible carcinogen category after all.German Heilpraktiker gets 4 years 3 months in prison for scamming people.While the New York Times gets this week's Really Wrong prize for their puff piece on Uri Geller, we bring the Hungarian word 'Kamu' to the Word of the Week.Enjoy!Segments: Intro; Greetings; Interview; TWISH; Pontus Pokes The Pope; News; Really Wrong; Word Of The Week; Quote And Farewell; Outro; Out-Takes

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…holiday on Crimea? This war is no vacationSweden seems clear for NATO, but there is still time for Erdogan to trip things up. Two Skeptical awards are coming up, das Goldene Brett and the Ockham Awards. We have a special interview with international skeptic extraordinaire, Adrienne Hill! After that, we hear how Pope Frankie is packing the papal court, and then we take a look at the news:SWEDEN: Millions of views for fake videos concerning SwedenUK: British GP-homeopath’s statements on vaccines amounted to misconduct – so, she was struck off the registerRUSSIA: Russia still advertizes holidays on Crimea.SWEDEN: Major criticism against homes for the elderlyIrish psychic Debbie Paget gets a jail sentence as well as this week’s Really Wrong Award, and then we have two Australian Words of the Week: Furfy and Fairdkinum.Enjoy!Segments: Intro; Greetings; Interview; Pontus Pokes The Pope; News; Really Wrong; Word Of The Week; Quote And Farewell; Outro; Out-Takes

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…plus Nicola Throp tells all about QED!This week we’re saved once again by Brian Eggo, as we suddenly find ourselves very short on staff. What a guy!Some initial info is followed by an interview with Nicola Throp, one of the brilliant members of the QED organizing team. In TWISH we hear about Carl Vogt, the German scientist, philosopher and, not least, politician who was born this week in 1817. In Pontus absence, Brian Bashes the Bishop (luckily, not exactly what it sounds like), after which we turn to the news:SWITZERLAND: Alternative medicine on the decline?INTERNATIONAL / UK: June is hottest month on record, in the UK and globallyINTERNATIONAL: Aspartame to be feared and avoided?Yet another Heilpraktiker, this one known only as Torben K., receives a well deserved Really Wrong Award as well as penal consequences due to his penile and lethal mistreatment of a customer. We end by a quote by Jane Marcet, a feminist and a science advocate who were at least a century before her time.Enjoy!Segments: Intro; Greetings; Interview; TWISH; Brian Bashes The Bishop; News; Really Wrong; Quote And Farewell; Outro; Out-Takes

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…and someone is quacking in LatviaThis week we start by commenting on the strange developments in Russia and the Titan submersible. We call for speaker at QED SkeptiCamp recommend the work of Skeptical Science. And if anyone wants to meet up with András in the Baltic states, get in touch! In TWISH we hear about the Tunguska event and then as usual Pontus has some news about the Catholic Church. After that, we dig into the news:UK: House of Commons to debate presence of bishops in House of LordsSWITZERLAND: New cases of conspiracy theories as part of treatmentsGERMANY: Investigations ongoing against Heilpraktikers who helped issued false covid vaccination certificates (and more)LATVIA: Plagiarism scandal blows up in domestic science circlesEU: EU’s new ways of securing the online space from disinformation – starting with TwitterINTERNATIONAL: Deforestation is also worsening (not only carbon dioxide emissions)SWEDEN: Macchiarini jail sentence increased to 2.5 yearsThe European Commission get a Really Right Award and then Jānis Pļaviņš from Latvia is the topic for this week’s “Who’s Quacking?”Enjoy!Segments: Intro; Greetings; TWISH; Pontus Pokes The Pope; News; Really Right; Who’S Quacking?; Quote And Farewell; Outro; Out-Takes

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…be mindful of MāņticībaWe see signs of climate change all over the place and it’s worrying. Taking bus 666 to ‘Hel’ is not even an option anymore, but thankfully going to QED is still possible! Check out the link for the QED attendance fund if you cannot afford your ticket… In TWISH we hear about how it really went down when Galileo Galilei was forced to denounce that the Earth in not the center of the universe. A short update of Pope Frankie’s latest adventures and then it’s time for the news:FRANCE / SERBIA: ‘Novaxx’ Djokovic is at it again…!UK: New study shows less than half of Britons believe in God.NETHERLANDS: Dutch university can revoke PhD for fake data after court rulingSPAIN: Homeopathy on the decline in Spain?EU: Laws regulating AI activities to be passedGERMANY: Heilpraktiker sent to jail for fraudWe are happy to hand out a Really Right to Estonia that just legalized same-sex marriages and then we get to know this week’s Word of the Week which is from Latvia: ‘Māņticība’ literally means ‘false-faith’ and could be translated as ‘superstition’.Enjoy!Segments: Intro; Greetings; TWISH; Pontus Pokes The Pope; News; Really Right; Word Of The Week; Quote And Farewell; Outro; Out-Takes

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…anthroposophy on fire?Full episode this week folks, with the premier of a new segment to boot (see below). We talk about Hvaldimir the Russian spy whale and remind you of Annika’s SITPO talk on 5 July and comment on feedback from last week’s interview. In TWISH we hear about the recent passing of Silvio Berlusconi and then demonstrate that the Catholic Church has not change one bit when it comes to how they handle sex abuse scandals. After that it’s time for the news:GERMANY: New poster about Bach flower remediesRUSSIA / UKRAINE: Ukrainian children abducted by RussiaGERMANY / AUSTRIA: The Heinz Oberhummer Award goes to The Show With the MouseSWEDEN: Tongue web cut procedures has drastically fallenEU / UK: Sense About Science teams up with the European Commission and comes up with new guidelines for assessing policiesUK / UKRAINE: Ukraine built more onshore wind turbines in past year than EnglandGERMANY: Pharmacy students also distancing themselves from homeopathyThis week’s Really Wrong Award goes to a teacher in a French Steiner school who “smoked” their students and still seemes to think that was a good thing. Then we have our first installment of Who’s Quacking, Romanian member of parliament Diana Iovanovici Șoșoacă – anti-vaxxer and Russian apologist.Enjoy!Segments: Intro; Greetings; TWISH; Pontus Pokes The Pope; News; Really Wrong; Who’S Quacking; Quote And Farewell; Outro; Out-Takes

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This week we have a real treat for you – an interview with Brian Deer, the journalist who more than anyone showed the world how fraudulent Andrew Wakefield was when he claimed that there could be a link between the MMR vaccine and autism (spoiler – there isn’t).Enjoy!Segments: Intro; Greetings; Interview; Outro; Out-Takes

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We start by commenting on the sad passing of Tina Turner – even sadder since she at one point turned to homeopathy. That was a choice that she later regretted and it most likely made her condition much worse than it had to be. On a brighter note we have good news about QED in Manchester 23-24 September: first of all there is a QED Attendance Fund that you can either apply or contribute to, all depending on your financial situation. Secondly, it is now confirmed that QED Skepticamp will take place on the day before so you should arrive a day early and possibly apply to speak yourself – link is in the show notes.Then it is interview time – we had an interesting talk with the fantastic Susan Gerbic who always has so many interesting skeptical projects going on. Listen and be inspired!Enjoy!Segments: Intro; Greetings; Interview; Quote And Farewell; Outro; Out-Takes

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…plus interviews from SkepKonPlease support Oliver Rautenberg in his defence against a SLAPP-suit! What’s up with the Turkish presidential elections? Annika delivers short interviews from SkepKon with Maximilian Doeckel and Rebecca Wismeg-Kammerlander and then we look into Pope Frankie‘s obsession with negotiating peace in Ukraine. After that, it’s time for the news:BELGIUM: Prizes from SKEPPINTERNATIONAL: Is WHO right about artificial sweeteners? We are not convincedINTERNATIONAL: Almost 50% of all animal species in declineSWEDEN: School grades inflated in private schoolsGERMANY: Video about SkepKon by Dr. Janos HegedüsEnjoy!Segments: Intro; Greetings; Interviews; Pontus Pokes The Pope; News; Quote And Farewell; Outro; Out-Takes

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…FYI, that’s not James Randi talkingThis week we reflect a bit on the Eurovision Song Contest and how people misunderstand the news about a baby “with three parents”. In TWISH we wish Ben Goldacre a happy birthday and then Pontus brings us up to date with Pope Frankie. And then, of course, the news:GERMANY: The Golden Board Award is back!IRELAND: AI is here to stay: Fake article about fake tanning in the Irish TimesUK: Retractions should not take longer than two months, says UK Parliament committeeGERMANY: The schools that train ‘Heilpraktiker’ in Germany: no standards and no controlUK: Lost in the mall: Are the results of the classic false memory study not valid?“Voices from the Void” maybe hearing things, but the voices in their head do not include James Randi. Hear this instead: you are Really Wrong!Enjoy!Segments: Intro; Greetings; TWISH; Pontus Pokes The Pope; News; Really Wrong; Quote And Farewell; Outro; Out-Takes

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…or “SCAM”, if you willThis week we have lots of catching up to do, with sad news from Hungarian Skeptics, but also good news regarding skeptical meetings and activism in Germany, Hungary and Sweden. In TWISH we remember the founding of the Jagiellonian University over six hundred years ago this week. Then we dig into the news:INTERNATIONAL: WHO declares pandemic to be no longer a threatGERMANY: Homeopathic cold medicine Meditonsin no longer allowed to advertise with certain statementsEUROPE: Russia behind anti-Ukraine and anti-Erdogan demonstrations all over EUUK: Propagator of SCAM now heads the Royal Medical HouseholdGERMANY: Association of Midwifery distances themselves from HomeopathyUK: Measles on the riseSWEDEN: Paranormal beliefs remarkably highA very sad Really Wrong this week as a 14 year-old girl dies in Austria due to alternative practitioners.We trust you still enjoy the episode!Segments: Intro; Greetings; TWISH; News; Really Wrong; Quote And Farewell; Outro; Out-Takes

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…BTW, there was not a single monkey at the Scopes Monkey trialBrian Eggo is back to save the day once again! as András and Annika couldn’t make it. But we hope that just like them and us, you will all make it to QED in Manchester on 23-24 of September. We will certainly be there! Tickets are now out and they’re selling like, well, QED-tickets after a pandemic. Get yours now!In TWISH we hear about the arrest of John Scopes of the Scopes Monkey trial fame. (No monkeys were hurt in the making of this episode). Then, it’s time for the news:GERMANY: Homeopathy company Heel reported to authorities for false advertising of productUK: On the power of objects, as the country is preparing for the coronation of The Alternative PrinceINTERNATIONAL: WHO pseudoscienceINTERNATIONAL: How medical decisions are really made?The Charité school in Berlin gets this weeks prize for being Really Wrong as they for no apparent reason pay for a professorship in anthroposophy.Enjoy!Segments: Intro; Greetings; TWISH; News; Really Wrong; Quote And Farewell; Outro; Out-Takes

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…we also have a ‘defrogging’ for Pope Francis to look intoWe have Claire Klingenberg onboard this week and it means a packed show! We talk about the new interview with Claudia Preis, European immunization week and the Hungarian Flat Earth Award. Claire gives us a report from the growing anti-abortions movement in Czechia and we hear about several upcoming skeptical events, among them that Pontus is going to give a talk in Prague next month. In TWISH we celebrate the birthday of Carl Friedrich Gauss and then we hear how pope John Paul II posthumously is in the news for possible misdeeds in the night. Then it’s time for the news:GERMANY: So-called alternative medicine in Bavarian hospitalsINTERNATIONAL: Cranky Uncle wins awardUKRAINE: Blinding flash over Kyiv was probably meteor, says Ukraine space agencyHUNGARY: More than 1 on 4 Hungarians have seen a UFO at least onceHUNGARY: UFOs – Investigating the Unknown to be released April 28POLAND: Special hospice for pregnancies with nonviable fetusesAUSTRIA / GERMANY: New book out by Florian AignerAUSTRIA / GERMANY: What the Fact by ZDFEnjoy!Segments: Intro; Greetings; TWISH; Pontus Pokes The Pope; News; Quote And Farewell; Outro; Out-Takes

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…and it’s easy to lose you perpective of Loss NessWe remind everyone to sign up for SkepKon in Frankfurt 18-20 May. In TWISH we revisit the story of “the Surgeon’s photograph”, which was supposed to convince us that the Loch Ness monster was a thing. The pope gets a poking for supporting exorcism which is in the news due to Russell Crowe‘s latest Hollywood venture, “The Pope’s Exorcist” – the Vatican is not amused… Then we have a look into the news:Vatican: New observatory created to investigate possible apparitions of the Virgin MaryItaly: Madonna of Trevignano Romano – the miracle statue with tears of bloodGermany: Acupuncture as new homeopathy? Podcast episode with Udo Endruscheit and Natalie GramsHungary: List of Flat Earth Awards finalists sparks debatesGermany: Dangerous nonsense healingSweden: The new nationwide census is not a censusThe Vienna Medical Association has lost its mind and want their doctors to get into nonsense homeopathy. That earns them a Really Wrong Award.Enjoy!Segments: Intro; Greetings; TWISH; Pontus Pokes The Pope; News; Really Wrong; Quote And Farewell; Outro; Out-Takes

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…but we do know that hyper-electrosensitivity is not a thingIn TWISH we hear about a Finnish UFO sighting and later Pope Francis get to answer some very tough questions in a new documentary. In the news this week we have:SWEDEN: Five years after saying it won’t retract Macchiarini paper, journal finally does soINTERNATIONAL: So, lab leak theory down the drain?AI: Bing easily tricked to repeat neo-Nazi talking points as if they were factsIRELAND: New research focusing on reducing belief in conspiracy theorySWEDEN: Researchers pessimistic about reaching climate goalsTwo German cities go all pseudoscience and switch off their WLAN to “protect the citizens” and for this they are Really Wrong.Enjoy!Segments: Intro; Greetings; TWISH; Pontus Pokes The Pope; News; Really Wrong; Quote And Farewell; Outro; Out-Takes

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…and UK politicians orders police to go full on racistThere are several skeptical events to look forward to! In chronological order we recommend Skeptics in the Pub in Cologne, SkepKon in Frankfurt and QED in Manchester. No TWISH this week, but we look into Pope Francis‘ latest health problems and how the Vatican after more than five hundred years still refuses to own up on its role in the terrible conquest and enslavement of the Americas. Then, it’s time for the news:SWITZERLAND: Swiss court case ties human rights to climate changeINTERNATIONAL: People who lie use less details and that can reveal them, study saysUK: The trust in scientists has increased after the COVID-19 pandemicEUROPE: AI chatbots making it harder to spot phishing emails, expert saysGERMANY: Verdict coming up regarding the naturopath trial in IngolstadtSWEDEN: Pontus Pokes the Politicians: SD says that wind turbines are harmful for humansSuella Braverman and Rishi Sunak receive this week's Really Wrong Award for supporting that UK police should track ethnicity (read Pakistani background) in the fight against grooming gangs, although we know they mostly consist of white males.Enjoy!Segments: Intro; Greetings; Pontus Pokes The Pope; News; Really Wrong; Quote And Farewell; Outro; Out-Takes

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… please don’t eat like Gwyneth PaltrowThe IPCC is out, but of course we all new it would be bad. We have listener feedback about acupuncture, SkepKon 2023 is announced and both Pontus and András are out there talking to the public. In TWISH we hear about Ludwig Büchner and the Pope has trouble getting heard. After that, we look into the news:GERMANY: Reichsbürger extremist sentenced to 10 years in prisonRUSSIA: Russian whose daughter drew anti-war picture flees jail termPORTUGAL: Voting for the Flying Unicorn Award open until the end of the dayGERMANY: Edzard Ernst has a new book outUK: Genetic Technology Act now passed into lawRUSSIA: Does Putin have fake body doubles?After all that, we have our first Word of the Week segment and Gwyneth Paltrow gets yet another well deserved Really Wrong Award.Enjoy!Segments: Intro; Greetings; TWISH; Pontus Pokes The Pope; News; Really Wrong; Word Of The Week; Quote And Farewell; Outro; Out-Takes

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… also, Orgone energy is utter nonsenseFancy a coffee in Singapore with András? If you are quick you may get lucky! In TWISH this week we hear about Wilhelm Reich, infamous for his so-called “orgone theory“. No pope today, so we dive right into the news:INTERNATIONAL: New DNA find points to raccoon dogs as potential covid originNORWAY: Norwegian footballer gets her lung acu-puncturedGERMANY: Private TV channel tries to produce a show with an antisemitic Covid denier and failsSWEDEN: Confounderer of the year awarded €9000 compensation for being exposed in documentaryGERMANY: Trust in homeopathy is sinkingSWEDEN: Sales of organic food dropping fastTo finish off, we hand out a Really Wrong Award to Bishop John Sherrington who insists he has a right to harrass people at abortion clinics.Enjoy!Segments: Intro; Greetings; TWISH; News; Really Wrong; Quote And Farewell; Outro; Out-Takes

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… and it’s time to start planning your QED trip!We are in the latest issue of the Australian Skeptics Magazine – thanks again dear friends for inviting us to Skepticon last year! New adventures are waiting in the new year with QED dates just announced, so it’s time to start planning for a trip to Manchester in September. We renew our call for Word of the Week and Who’s Quacking, please send in your contributions. In addition we note that the ISS astronauts made it back OK to Earth and that popes absolutely have known about the sex abuse scandals for a long time but found it more important to cover it up than to stop it. Then it’s time for the news:FINLAND / DENMARK / NORWAY: Rumors of babies kidnapped by authorities now also in the other Nordic countriesGERMANY: Record low number of breastfed babiesINTERNATIONAL: Cochrane statement clarifies recent review on masksINTERNATIONAL: High Seas Treaty of the UNSWEDEN: New recommendations as of 1 March re covid vaccinationBelieve it or not but the Polish PiS party rakes in yet another Really Wrong Award which make it their sixth so far.Enjoy!Segments: Intro; Greetings; Pontus Pokes The Pope; News; Really Wrong; Quote And Farewell; Outro; Out-Takes

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… also, maybe “the Swedish Experiment” wasn’t such a bad idea after allThis week we start by acknowledging two skeptical initiatives: András is part of the new Hungarian podcast “Hogy is van ez?”, and SkepKon 2023 is coming up in Germany in May. Then we have two challenges for our listeners – please send in you contributions for the new segments “Word of the Week” and “Who’s Quacking?”. In TWISH we hear how “America” got its name via a cartographer born in 1451, and then Pontus wishes Pope Francis would put his money where his mouth is. After that, it’s time for the news:AUSTRIA: Politician’s move to selling snake-oilINTERNATIONAL: COVID-19 Origin still not knownUK: Prince Harry and Gábor Máté team up to promote weird shit togetherSWEDEN / EUROPE: Sweden had the lowest excess mortality in Europe during the pandemicSegments: Intro; Greetings; TWISH; Pontus Pokes The Pope; News; Really Right; Quote And Farewell; Outro; Out-Takes

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… and German bishops openly defies the popeWe’re all back together again and urge you to help out with translations and nominate people for the John Maddox Prize. In TWISH we learn about the Index and how you’re not supposed the challenge the Catholic Church. Speaking of which, pope Francis interferes with the Trial of the Century and also gets totally ignored by the German bishops. Then we take a look at the news:INTERNATIONAL: CFI doubles international Paranormal Challenge Prize to $500kSWEDEN: Follow up – person behind disinformation against social authorities regrets itUK: Google ads direct pregnant people to anti-abortion groupsUK: Children’s Rights Alliance for England report calls on government to end compulsory collective worshipSWEDEN: Funmed – Not so fun as it sounds, and very expensiveFRANCE: Well known journalist suspended in suspected planted misinformation scandalNORWAY: Old sea creature might have been tricky whales after allBELGIUM: Lavish Flemish epic – is it history or propaganda?SWEDEN: Pontus pokes the politicians – lumping environment into “super-ministry” has already cost billions of SEKViktor Orbán gets his fourth(!) Really Wrong Award, this time for butchering the Hungarian health care system.Enjoy!

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We start this episode with talking about why earthquakes can not be predicted then ponder on the issues of resigning female leaders, before we move on to TWISH where this week we commemorate the 152nd anniversary of the publication of Darwin's The Descent of Man.Because Pontus is away, Pàpa Francesco (AKA Frankie) gets another week off the hook.On the news this week:UK - The first woman appointed the government's chief science adviserUK - Treasury takes back £ 1.6 billion previously promised for scienceGERMANY - INH publishes new article on "the memory of water"INTERNATIONAL - Cranky Uncle translation project calls for contributors in various languagesAUSTRIA - Massive HPV vaccination campaign on the wayINTERNATIONAL - EDMO report "From the Pandemic to the War in Ukraine: One Year and a Half of Disinformation" comes outGERMANY - The Münster Circle publishes memorandum with call for pharmacies to drop HomeopathyISRAEL - Disinformation squad revealed by international group of undercover investigative journalistsThis week's Really Wrong Price goes to the German Homeopathic Doctors Association for recommending alternative products as a solution to stock shortages of real medicine.Enjoy!

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… and religious zealot insists he’s needed at schoolThis week we have some listener feedback and hear about Annika’s WTF project before we dive into the history of planet X. No pope today, so then we get into news:INTERNATIONAL: Macchiarini earns “expressions of concern” from the LancetTURKEY: False images of the earthquake shared onlineSWEDEN: No FOIA for free schoolsGERMANY: Money is more important than science communicationEnoch Burke, aka the Irish school teacher zealot, comes back from prison and gets his second Really Wrong Award. Will it be his last? Stay tuned!Enjoy!Segments: Intro; Greetings; TWISH; News; Really Wrong; Quote And Farewell; Outro; Out-Takes;

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… and Francis strikes against the rebel nuns of RavelloThis week Brian and Pontus takes the lead and talks about the Turkish-Syrian earthquake as well as looking forward to Annika’s new WTF adventure (stay tuned!). In TWISH we look at the shenanigans of Elizabeth Holmes who was born this week in 1984, while pope Frankie is busy fighting rebels nuns(!). Then we also have the news:FRANCE: Naturopathy under fireTURKEY: Did someone on Twitter predict the earthquake?INTERNATIONAL: Do face masks work?AUSTRALIA / UK: Vitamin IV drips is an expensive SCAMUK: Brexit causes collapse in European research funding for OxbridgeTURKEY: Lausanne treaty conspiracyLots of news outlets (Euronews, Skynews, and even CNN) reported that the Earth’s core has stopped spinning and for that they share this week’s the Really Wrong Award.Enjoy!Segments: Intro; Greetings; TWISH; Pontus Pokes The Pope; News; Really Wrong; Quote And Farewell; Outro; Out-Takes;

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… and Frankie stands firm: no sex for gay peopleThis week the three hosts are finally back together. We start by congratulating Edzard Ernst on his 75th birthday, yippie! In TWISH we hear about the first tele-evangelist / remote healer of Hungary before diving into pope Francis’ terrible take on gay sex which for some reason is being hailed as very progressive (it is not). Then we get into the news:UK: Medical tribunal ends with 9 months ban from practicing for doctor Sarah Myhill spreading falsehoods about COVID-19UK: Hocus Pocus – Richard Wiseman‘s new book outSWEDEN / FINLAND: Different takes on burning the QuranINTERNATIONAL: Nominations for the John Maddox Prize 2023 now openINTERNATIONAL: Transparency International finds Hungary worst for corruption in all of EU, Denmark world’s bestThe Bnois Jerusalem Girls School in North London gets this week’s Really Wrong award for teaching creationism(!) and at the same time no sex education to its students.Segments: Intro; Greetings; TWISH; Pontus Pokes The Pope; News; Really Wrong; Quote And Farewell; Outro; Out-Takes;

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– but all’s well that ends PellThis week we start by recommending that you check out Annika’s Skeptical Inquirer’s article about our trip down under, we hear about the Swedish Skeptic’s annual awards, the Hungarian Skeptics appearance on radio and a little bit about the fascinating art of art forensics. In TWISH it’s all about the high flying ancestors of Jean Luc Piccard – August and Jean Felix Piccard and the invention of the bathyscaphe and then Pontus catches up with the state of affairs in the Vatican, including the death of Cardinal Pell. After all that, it’s time for the news:POLAND: Internet hoax suggests country’s territorial claims live onSWEDEN: Dangerous trend of unassisted home births (aka. “freebirthing”)UK: An institution in Oxford (?) starts veterinary chiropractic courseSWEDEN: Linda Karlström, antivaxxer and Confounderer of the Year 2019, sues the Swedish GovernmentA Really Right award goes out this week to the Norwegian Authorities that very sensibly declares that the Jehovah’s Witnesses are not worthy of the label ‘religion’ – not a day too early.Enjoy!Segments: Intro; Greetings; TWISH; Pontus Pokes The Pope; News; Really Right; Quote And Farewell; Outro; Out-Takes;

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... and nobody puts Greta in the corner!We start this week by commemorating Harriet Hall AKA "The SkepDoc" and talk about what a great loss her passing is for the international skeptic movement.On TWISH András talks about the London Institution, a major body for the public understanding of science in the 19th century, then with the Pope remaining un-poked this week, we are turning over to the news:- In the UK the British False Memory Society not to be dissolved after all- In HUNGARY, Hungarian-Canadian physician and author Gábor Máté spreads his dubious claims regarding cancer and autoimmune disease allegedly caused by childhood trauma and oppressed memories- In GERMANY a (mostly) peaceful demonstration at a coal mine site near Lützerath leads to police arrests (including Greta Thunberg) and violence, likely in coordination with energy giant RWE.This week's Really Wrong Price goes to Tory MP Andrew Bridgen who got expelled from the party for likening covid vaccinations to the Holocaust.Enjoy!

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... and someone please tell Prince Harry to act more responsibly.This week we start by lamenting over the launch failure of Virgin Orbit from Cornwall Spaceport, then praise Wikipedia that soon turns 22 and we also have a lot to thank Susan Gerbic, the "Wikipediatrician" for.Then in Pontus' absence we leave the pope alone and turn to the News:NETHERLANDS: Alleged nazi treasure map keeps people excitedHUNGARY: Far right MP appears on the pseudodocumentary 'Died Suddenly' and antivaxers promote the movie ferociouslyUK: Information about weird shaped waves could be yet another nail in Nessie's coffinSPAIN: Researches find correlation between conspiratorial thinking and weird myths about the causes of cancerThis weeks Really Wrong Prize goes to Prince Harry for actively promoting a questionable psychotherapy and consulting a psychic to help him cope with the loss of his mother, then advertising it on his autobiography.Enjoy!Segments: Intro; Greetings; TWISH; News; Really Wrong; Quote And Farewell; Outro; Out-Takes

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– also, never think with your royal penis!This week start with some listener feedback regarding the new Swedish Spaceport Esrange, look at the value of New Year’s resolutions and discuss the crazy weather situation. In this week in Skepticism we celebrate the birth of Isaac Asimov who was born on 2 January 1920 (or was he?) and then Pontus reflects on the life and death of Joseph Ratzinger, aka. Pope Benedict XVI, aka, Senator Palpatine. Then we go through the news:INTERNATIONAL: European Humanist Federation merges into Humanists InternationalSWEDEN: The spread of rumors of Swedish authorities kidnapping babies from all over the worldRUSSIA: Russia is afraid of western psychic attacksDENMARK / RUSSIA: Danish military intelligence suggests drug-induced megalomania may have influenced Putin to invade UkraineThe Swedish King, Gustav XVI Gustaf, gets a well earned Really Wrong Award for thinking that monarchs shall have a penis.Enjoy!Segments: Intro; Greetings; TWISH; Pontus Pokes The Pope; News; Really Wrong; Quote And Farewell; Outro; Out-Takes;

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– also be prepared for next year’s Christmas!We start by reflecting on Putin’s “war” against Ukraine now that he (by accident?) admitted that that is what it is. In TWISH we hear about Vlad the Impaler (aka Vlad III or Dracula) and to what extent Bram Stoker used him as inspiration for his famous book. Also, some recent pseudohistory is making the rounds about Vlad III “Dragulya”. Pope Frankie has a new legal issue now that the Italian Senate has grown tired of his lack of action in the Orlandi case. Then we take a look at the news:NETHERLANDS: No ritual satanic abuse in NLSWEDEN: Svante Pääbo gets strange criticismINTERNATIONAL: After Christmas is before Christmas: tips for recyclingSWEDEN: The King to inaugurate Europe’s first launchpad for satellitesWe end the year by issuing a big Really Right and our deep thanks to all our listeners, patrons and supporters on Paypal.A very happy new year to you all!Enjoy!Segments: Intro; Greetings; TWISH; Pontus Pokes The Pope; News; Really Right; Quote And Farewell; Outro; Out-Takes;

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– however, the other 1063 predictions failedThis week all the hosts are back from their adventures in foreign lands to record just before Christmas. We revisit the topic of Twitter and we hear about Pontus’ trip to New Zealand. After a few short interviews with skeptics in Australia we go to TWISH for the birth of Uri Geller and to the Vatican for the latest mishaps of pope Frankie. Then we turn to the news:GERMANY: Fortune teller was right – the Queen passed awaySWEDEN: Woman suffers paralysis and brain damage after seeing alternative quack masseurHUNGARY: Shops of health guru closing downSWEDEN: Prison for inventor of heater that supposedly generated more energy than was put inBritish politicians are notoriously nuts these days, and to illustrate this fact MP Andrew Bridgen receives this week’s Really Wrong Award for his covid vaccine denial.Enjoy!Segments: Intro; Greetings; Interviews; TWISH; Pontus Pokes The Pope; News; Really Wrong; Quote; Outro; Out-Takes;

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This week in Pontus' absence we lament overt the possible future of Twitter and the stupidity behind the Reichsbürger movement before being joint by Ralf Neugebauer who enlightens us about the legal situation of homeopathic remedies in Germany with special regard to Meditonsin.We commemorate the birthday of the late British star astrologer (pun intended)Jonathan Cainer before moving on to the news:SWITZERLAND/UK: Springer publishes Edzard Ernst's new book that lists 202 modalities of SCAM.FRANCE: A large chunk of Didier Raoult's scientific work marked with expression of concern by the publisher PLOS.INTERNATIONAL: Fact-checkers in USA, UK, Germany and Australia under scrutiny over assessing climate-related claims.EU: Terrible mess around vaccination schedules and how health ministers and the WHO try to solve the problem.AUSTRIA: Survey shows osteopaths don't seem to be bothered by legal and ethical considerations.EU: Dengue vaccine approved for use by European Commission.This week's Really Wrong prize goes to the Reichsbürger movement for trying to overthrow the German government and trying to instate a king.

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- with the Bent Spoon Award & a happy birthday to VoF!We start by exploring the anthroposophic connections of the Griffins, the founders of Canberra, then move on to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the founding of the Swedish skeptical organisation Vetenskap och Folkbildning.Then Pontus Pokes the Pope for all the mess his minions like Becciu have caused in the Vatican Bank before we turn to the news:GERMANY: Court prohibits homeopathic manufacturer from advertising product with false health claimsRUSSIA: The Duma passes law banning ‘LGBT propaganda’ among adultsINTERNATIONAL: Witchcraft beliefs in Europe (and around the world) surprisingly highUK: Graham Hancock rages war against the whole field of archaeologyINTERNATIONAL: With Twitter's end of enforcing policy against misinformation, EU raises prospect of big fines or banINTERNATIONAL:Measles is ‘imminent threat’ globally, WHO and CDC warnThis week's Really Wrong prize goes to the NHS in the UK for supporting quackery in midwifery.Finally, you can listen to two of the interviews conducted at the convention with Executive Officer of Australian Skeptics In. Tim Mendham and chief organiser of SkeptiCon 2022 Kevin Davis.Enjoy!Segments: Intro; Greetings; TWISH; Pontus Pokes The Pope; News; Really Wrong; Quote; Interviews; Farewell; Outro

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– Brisbane Skeptics in the Pub!Our two-week long tour to Australia is soon coming to an end, but we have been lucky enough to be welcomed by lovely people in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Gold Coast.On this week’s episode we are releasing a recording we made before a lovely audience in Brisbane, where we had a panel discussion about our thoughts on the present and future of the skeptic movement, based on our experiences and actives as skeptics in our respective countries.Enjoy!Segments: Intro; Greetings; Brisbane Skeptics; Farewell; Outro; Out-Takes;

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– Sydney Skeptics in the Pub!Our two-week long tour to Australia has begun, the main event of which will be the Australian Skeptics National Convention (SkeptiCon) in Canberra between 3rd and 4th December. But beforehand, we will have a few stops along the way where local branches organised events for us that we can’t wait to attend.The first event of our tour has now concluded. It was a Skeptics in the Pub event in Sydney, with short talks as well as an interview with Australia’s most popular science communicator, Dr Karl, and host of The Skeptic Zone, Richard Saunders. This week, instead of a regular show, we are releasing a special recording of the whole evening.Enjoy!

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– plus, the Princess who will never be Queen – and why that’s a good thingShould we all abandon Twitter and move to Mastodon? Call us contrarians, but we’ll wait and see! Preparing for our Australian trip to Skepticon we may need an umbrella or two due to the severe weather, but if you are based in Europe and like to go to a great conference, why not head down to Leiria in Portugal for ComceptCon 2022 that opens this weekend! In TWISH we hear about another great Hungarian skeptic, Mihály Beck, born this week in 1929. Pope Frankie is worried about those porn watching nuns, while we just move on to take a look at the news:INTERNATIONAL: How screwed are we – any results on COP27?GERMANY: The Golden Aluminium Hat awards ceremony now onlineNORWAY: The Shaman’s Princess leaves all her royal commitmentsLISTENBURG: How a fictive country was born and became viralSWITZERLAND: Nathalie wasn’t a victim of ritual satanic abuseSWEDEN: Pontus Pokes the Politicians: Environment budget a disasterThe Russian TV host Andrei Norkin shows how to protest without saying anything and for that he is Really Right.Enjoy!Segments: Intro; Greetings; TWISH; Pontus Pokes The Pope; News; Really Right; Quote And Farewell; Outro; Out-Takes;

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– Czech / Slovak Skeptical TV-series ‘Investigátori’ renewed for second season!The gang is reunited and there’s so much to talk about – memories of QED, the Ockham Award, the Rusty Razor and our upcoming Australian Tour. With sadness we note the passing of Kendrick Frazier and then we talk to Claire Klingenberg and Peter Pokorný regarding the second season(!) of their skeptical TV series ‘Investigátori‘ (‘The Investogators’). In TWISH we remember the Hungarian scientific communicator and TV personality József Öveges and then Frankie gets a poking for the latest Cardinal scandal.Then it’s time for the news:INTERNATIONAL: COP27 now on!UK: Earthshot Prize announcedINTERNATIONAL: Is Google funding climate change disinformation?INTERNATIONAL: Public more likely to support climate action if other countries commit as wellEUROPE: Europe’s unvaccinated childrenGERMANY: INH press ReleaseSWEDEN: New book out by Greta ThunbergFINLAND: Change to abortion laws in FinlandPOLAND: Tomasz Witkowski’s new bookQueen Consort Camilla goes to India to cleanse her chakras and for that she is Really Wrong.Enjoy!Segments: Intro; Greetings; Interview; TWISH; Pontus Pokes The Pope; News; Really Wrong; Quote And Farewell; Outro; Out-Takes;

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– Claire and Brian joins us, while Luna fills in for AndrásAs we are joined by Claire Kroulik-Klingenberg and Brian Eggo, Luna steps up to fill the shoes of András who to everyone’s deep disappointment had to cancel at the last minute. To celebrate our 350th show and enjoy our live recording at QED in Manchester, we take some liberty with the normal format.So, brace yourself for mythical tales of papal pasts as well as the long awaited Eurovision WRONG Contest:GERMANY: Annika – ‘Riceburger lady’, 75, plots to kidnap Karl LauterbachSCOTLAND: Brian – Scottish archbishop: Euthanasia pushes message that some lives ‘aren’t worth living’RUSSIA: Pontus – Patriarch Kirill: Love for the Fatherland is what keeps the global apocalypse at bayCZECH REPUBLIC: Claire – Charter 2020 – National propaganda hijacking Charter 77HUNGARY: Luna – All good things done by Orbán this weekA big thank you to all who came to see us and said hello at QED!Enjoy!Segments: Intro; Greetings; Pontus Pokes The Pope; TWICH; Eurovision Wrong Contest; Quote And Farewell; Outro;

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– and BTW, Elvis really has left the building – no matter what psychic mediums sayThis week we first chat about a “psychic medium” who is friendly with Elvis and touch on the Tories in the UK who apparently is friendly with no one, not even themselves. Then Kevin Davies of the Canberra Skeptics joins us and tells all about the Australian Skeptics National Convention 2022 where we will be in December! In TWISH we hear about Tycho Brahe and his achievements and Pope Frankie is still infallible and does not take kindly to criticism. Then it’s time for the news:INTERNATIONAL: Edzard Ernst‘s blog just turned 10 years oldGERMANY: Cybersecurity chief turns out to have Russian tiesSWEDEN: Pontus Pokes the Politicians:– What the experts say would solve the murder cases– Danish warning about prison places abroad: Don’t!Swedish MD Elsa Widding of the Sweden Democrats is an antivaxxer (and not a little stupid) so she gets the prize for being Really Wrong.Enjoy!Segments: Intro; Greetings; Interview; TWISH; Pontus Pokes The Pope; News; Really Wrong; Quote And Farewell; Outro; Out-Takes;

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– and get your flu shot, people!This week the full crew is back and we urge you to take the flu seriously. We recommend a video of a presentation by Germany skeptic Amardeo Sarma about critical thinking, find out how to pronounce ‘that town’ in the Netherlands and feel sad that Robbie ‘Hagrid’ Coltrane passed away. In TWISH we celebrate 100 years with the BBC, and then it’s time for the news:RUSSIA: The online guide Russians use to escape Putin’s warGERMANY: 75-year-old conspiracy theorist woman planned to kidnap LauterbachSWEDEN: Pontus pokes the politicians – New Government lets Sweden Democrats dictate immigrationSWEDEN: Study of media use and trust during the COVID-19 pandemic shows consistency of messages is keyINTERNATIONAL: Survey shows even thought threat is getting worse, concern about climate change is shrinkingRUSSIA / SWEDEN: Chamber of commerce bombarded with fake Russian mailsTo round off, Dutch MP Thierry Baudet gets a Really Wrong Award.Enjoy!Segments: Intro; Greetings; TWISH; News; Really Wrong; Quote And Farewell; Outro; Out-Takes;

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– Lauterbach takes on pseudoscienceBrian Eggo steps in to save the day as he covers for both András and Annika this week. We talk about listener reactions to last week’s episode and the Nobel Prize in Chemistry, the last of this year’s Nobel prizes in the natural sciences. In TWISH we reminisce about QED 2018 as we prepare attending the next one. Pontus Pokes the Pope for his failure to handle the relations to Russia but give’s him a broken clock award for taking a stand for refugees. Then it is time to look at the news:EUROPE: ECDC gets extended mandate to tackle emerging future epidemicsNETHERLANDS: Court rules that Twitter has done enough to stop conspiracy theory about satanic paedophilesSPAIN: No matter what social media giants promised, Spanish disinformation is rampantRUSSIA: Russia’s financial monitoring agency adds Meta to list ‘terrorists and extremists’GERMANY: Münster Circle issues Memorandum Integrative MedicineGerman Health Minister Karl Lauterbach gets a Really Right Award together with Edzard Ernst and Nikil Mukerji for taking a stand against homeopathy.Enjoy!Segments: Intro; Greetings; TWISH; Pontus Pokes The Pope; News; Really Right; Quote And Farewell; Outro; Out-Takes;

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– we’re back in the Dark AgesWe start this week with commenting on the winners of the two first Nobel Prizes this year – Svante Pääbo who won the prize in Medicine or Physiology and the trio of Aspect, Clauser and Zeilinger who shares the Physics prize. We also celebrate the first ever female European commander of the ISS, Samantha Cristoforetti, before we travel back in time with our TWISH-machine and acknowledge this week’s birthday bay, Denis Diderot. Then we dig into the news:UK: The dark side of social media? The Molly Russell caseUK: Children’s digital resilience to be approached as a collective effort to prepare young people for the futureSWEDEN: MD who assisted man to die loses his licenseGERMANY: Voting now open for the ‘Heroes of Facts Awards‘UKRAINE: Four regions of the country annexed by Russia following sham referendumPOLAND: New-born babies are handed over through a hole in the wallThe Prize for being Really Wrong goes to Jacob Rees-Mogg, British minister of Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy who has no clue about the physics of energy.Enjoy!Segments: Intro; Greetings; TWISH; News; Really Wrong; Quote And Farewell; Outro; Out-Takes;

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– don’t listen to the fish and chips physicianThis week we have several things to get through before the actual show – the Swedish Skeptics at the international book fair in Gothenburg, the Hungarian Skeptics at the upcoming HungaroCon, the new book from the SGU (The Skeptic’s Guide to the Future), a listener question about organic farming and reactions to the Italian elections. In TWISH (This Week in Skeptical History) we hear about the Voronezh UFO incident.Then it’s time for the news:CONFLICT IN EUROPE: Sabotage of the Nord Stream pipelines – watch out for the conspiracy theoriesGERMANY: SkepKon 2023 – Call for papersUK / GERMANY: UK and German politicans behind American counterparts in tweeting misinformationGERMANY: Eurocom press release for the promotion of quackerySWEDEN: Pontus Pokes the Politicians: The new second vice speaker of the parliament is a science denier – do we need to name her party?UK: As was expected: government lifted ban on frackingThe Award for being Really Wrong goes to German-Swedish head physician Ute Krüger, who ‘feels’ that covid vaccines cause ‘turbo cancer’ and the head of the medicinal region, Johan Rosenqvist, who thinks that’s quite OK.Enjoy!Segments: Intro; Greetings; TWISH; News; Really Wrong; Quote And Farewell; Outro; Out-Takes;

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– Frankie has found his own 007!This week we reveal further plans about our travels and about Skepticamp at QED. We also have listener feedback about air quality in planes regarding last week’s Really Wrong. No TWISH this week, but Pope Frankie has found a super Cardinal to drop behind enemy lines for covert operations. And then we look into this week’s news:GERMANY: Honorable mention of HomöopaTeaUK: Charles feels vindicated for going organic. He is wrong.UKRAINE: UFOs above KievSWEDEN: Pontus Pokes the Politicians: Winning parties of the election advocate irrational actions in fighting criminalityThe WHO gets another Really Wrong Award for their failed logic around NSS (non-sugar sweeteners)Enjoy!Segments: Intro; Greetings; Pontus Pokes The Pope; News; Really Wrong; Quote And Farewell; Outro; Out-Takes;

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– but at least the bees were informed of the death of their queenWe’re back from ESC in Vienna! Thanks to all who came up and said hi to us, that was a blast! This week we reflect on what Charles III, the king of SCAM, may mean for skepticism and what there is to say about the Swedish election results. For TWISH we get to learn about Foucault and his pendulum, a simple but brilliant demonstration of the rotation of the Earth. We leave the poking-of-the-Pope for next week and dig into the news:GERMANY: Prominent figure of New Germanic Medicine Helmut Pilhar diesUK / INTERNATIONAL: Madness around the Queen’s deathUK: Celebrity Russel Brand admits spreading falsehoodsEUROPE: Europe’s hottest summer on recordRUSSIA: Anti-censorship tool lets Russians read Blocked NewsGERMANY: Study shows behavioral studies got the sampling all wrongFRANCE: Didier Raoult‘s lab under investigationGerman party FDP and airlines get the Really Wrong Award for campaigning against masks on planes.Enjoy!Segments: Intro; Greetings; TWISH; News; Really Wrong; Quote And Farewell; Outro; Out-Takes;

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– a carnival of Cardinals says it’s permittedThis week we are packing our bags for the ESC Vienna – hope to see you there! But we also have plans for QED – András and Pontus will both talk at Skepticamp, and BREAKING NEWS! – live recording of the ESP has now been announced! In TWISH we celebrate 200 years of “cardinal” permission of the heliocentric model and in more current Vatican news, Pope Frankie elevates a predecessor who is now on his way to full sainthood. Then there is the news:GERMANY: New book out – Science Matters!INTERNATIONAL: Cranky Uncle Game now available in Spanish and Portuguese, too (Swedish soon out as well)UK: New prime minister on the Horizon… Or not so much.RUSSIA: Die for the Motherland – Indoctrination in Russian schoolsFRANCE: Medical service Doctolib under attack for promoting SCAMUK: Kate Moss – yet another supermodel who turns to selling bogus productsA Really Wrong Award goes to an Irish transphobic teacher who doesn’t know when to quit.Enjoy!

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– and Francis flips the birdAndrás is back and we chat about next week’s upcoming European Skeptics’ Congress in Vienna – the ESC, and we’re looking forward to go! Mikhail Gorbachev died and we comment a bit on what he meant for Russia and the contrast Putin is compared to him. Going back to the autumns events there is also QED where the winners of the Ockham Award and the Rusty Razor will be announced. Listeners can now put in their nominations for the best Skeptical activism and the most prominent promoter of unscientific ideas, respectively. There is more developments in to last week’s Really Wrong Award to cover, and breaking news! Annika has got a book out of short stories for children! (in German). In TWISH (This Week in Skeptical History) Pontus is in for a surprise, and Pope Frankie seems to have had it with Kirill’s shenanigans. Then it’s time for the news:ISRAEL: Antivax doctor’s medical licence gets revokedSLOVAKIA: Study shows 41% of students cannot tell true online health information from fakeUK: Researchers trying series of videos for inoculation against misinformation on YouTubeINTERNATIONAL: Google airbrushes out emissions from flyingGerman Green Party leader in Baden-Wuerttemberg, Lena Schwelling, thinks that homeopathy is the subject to a ‘Crusade’ which makes her Really Wrong.Enjoy!Segments: Intro; Greetings; TWISH; Pontus Pokes The Pope; News; Really Wrong; Quote And Farewell; Outro; Out-Takes;

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– speaking of cults, Mother Teresa wasn’t much of a saintTurns out the “hunger stone” found in Elbe is not a photo from this year. It’s almost like you cannot trust the internet any more… Climate change is here to stay, regardless. In TWISH (This Week in Skeptical History) we hear about Mother Teresa, probably the best known modern saints of all, and we learn that she was in fact pretty mean and cruel. The guy who made her a saint (Francis) gets a poking for messing with the on-going “trial of the century” when he suddenly makes up with the main suspect Cardinal Becciu – or did he? Not even the Vatican seems to know. Also, Pontus predicts that Kirill may back out of meeting with Frankie. (BREAKING NEWS! Confirmed by orthodox official the day after the recording). Then it’s time for the skeptical news:INTERNATIONAL: The cult of Ivermectin refuses to dieSWEDEN: More science denial from Sweden DemocratsUK: NHS Fund looking for Reiki healersRUSSIA / UK: The assassination of Darya Dugina: Which conspiracy theory to believe?The Hungarian government is at it again and their Innovation minister, Laszlo Palkovics, gets a Really Wrong Award for sacking weather chief over a storm that didn’t happen.Enjoy!Segments: Intro; Greetings; TWISH; Pontus Pokes The Pope; News; Really Wrong; Quote And Farewell; Outro; Out-Takes;

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– nepotism, bribes and orgies in the Vatican!We start the episode with some listener feedback that led us to look a bit deeper into Mindfulness and find that it’s worse than we thought. We share the sad news that the great Italian science communicator and skeptic super hero, Piero Angela, has passed away at the respectable age of 93. In TWISH we take a look at pope Alexander VI who was an intriguing figure and who also has a legacy that pope Francis has to deal with to this day. Speaking of Frankie, he really demonstrates appalling lack of leadership when it comes to the ongoing scandal in the Archdiocese of Cologne. Then we have the news:UK / US: Polio in London (and New York)POLAND / CZECHIA / GERMANY: What is killing the fish in river Oder?SWEDEN: Sweden Democrats wants to rename The Prison and Probation Service to “the Agency for Punishment”FRANCE: Homeopathy in France is in steep declineAnthroposophs in Germany gets today Prize for being Really Wrong after trying to sue critics and taking them to court.Enjoy!Segments: Intro; Greetings; TWISH; Pontus Pokes The Pope; News; Really Wrong; Quote And Farewell; Outro; Out-Takes;

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– a look into the Vatican’s hidden financesWe start by revisiting last week’s sad news about Dr Kellermayr and explore the reactions of other skeptical activists. In TWISH we learn about Peter Atkins, professor extraordinaire in physical chemistry. A deep dive this week in the busines of Pope Francis, both regarding his recent apology and trip to the indigenous peoples of Canada (did he do enough?), and also then into the hidden finances of the Vatican which we suddenly know much more about than before. Then we have a look at the news:US / UK: Harriet Hall‘s children’s book promotes critical thinking (with illustrations by a fan from the UK)UK / US / AUSTRALIA: Olivia Newton-John dies at age 73 – another victim of SCAM?UK: School-based Mindfulness training proves not beneficial compared to teaching-as-usualRUSSIA / UKRAINE: Anti-vax Twitter accounts pushing food crisis disinformationTo round off, Viktor Orbán and his regime gets the Really Wrong Award for allowing clear-cutting of native forests in Hungary.Enjoy!Segments: Intro; Greetings; TWISH; Pontus Pokes The Pope; News; Really Wrong; Quote And Farewell; Outro; Out-Takes;

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– also, climate change is a ‘total meltdown’More confusion regarding the collaboration between Roscosmos and NASA, Tantra is back on the menu and (on a not so skeptical note) today marks the release of the Beatles ‘Revolver’ album. Pope Frankie finally went to Canada, which was a literal ‘feather in is cap‘. Then we have a look at the news:DENMARK: Russian oil and gas supply issues could drive green transitionUK: Heatwave basically impossible without climate changeINTERNATIONAL: Total climate meltdown cannot be stoppedAUSTRIA: Austrian medical doctor and science communicator commits suicide after relentless bullying from anti-vaccine activists and conspiracy theoristsA number of companies sells totally unnecessary blood tests to healthy people and for that the are Really Wrong.Enjoy!Segments: Intro; Greetings; Pontus Pokes The Pope; News; Really Wrong; Quote And Farewell; Outro; Out-Takes;

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– student writes bill for UK Parliament re climate change educationThis week we mention that Eurovision will be held in UK next year, that Steven Pinker makes clear that ESP is not real (but WE are!) and Annika clarifies how the police system is organised in Germany. No TWISH or Pope this week so we skip right into the news:UK: TikTok is fastest growing source of news for adultsUKRAINE: Google to be banned in Donetsk and LuhanskGERMANY: Manual on climate communication publishedUK: Students write bill on climate change educationThe UK National Lottery gets the Really Wrong award for funding homeopathy.Enjoy!Segments: Intro; Greetings; News; Really Wrong; Quote And Farewell; Outro; Out-Takes;

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– with special guests Alice and MarshThis week we have celebrity company in the form of Alice Howarth and Michael “Marsh” Marshall of Skeptics with a K fame! Before they tell all about QED in October, we chat a bit about the LHC firing up again, EU law suits against Hungary, homeopathy against the heath wave and the brand new interview with Claire Klingenberg on Skeptical Inquirer conducted by Annika. In TWISH we here about Sir Richard Owen and his role in in founding the Natural History Museum in London. Pope Frankie is going to Canada next week to make his apologies, but we suggest he bring a big bag of money as well. Then it’s time for the news:INTERNATIONAL: Record child vaccinations setback, due to covidINTERNATIONAL: Stronger democracies have seen fewer excess deathsSWEDEN: Anti-vaxxer site publishes names of 800 covid-vaccinated childrenGERMANY: The ‘Europol ploy’ that scammed thousands of GermansUK: Tory leadership contestant supporter of homeopathySPACE: More info on space collaboration between Russia and the USSome geniuses in Switzerland called “Safe Blood” have started a campaign for people that want access to “unvaccinated blood” and for that they are Really Wrong.Enjoy!Segments: Intro; Greetings; Interview; TWISH; Pontus Pokes The Pope; News; Really Wrong; Quote And Farewell; Outro; Out-Takes;

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– propaganda is for petty dictatorsThis week we celebrate the news of the return of QED Skepticamp, courtesy the lovely SITP online team. Space is fascinating as demonstrated by the new images from the James Webb telescope. In TWISH we also talk about space and the Apollo – Soyuz Test Project, which launched this week 47 years ago. It made us think that space was out-of-bounds for politics (ah, we were naïve…). Pope Frankie cannot help hinting that he may resign some day while still being busier than ever. Then we take a look at the news:GERMANY: Freilerner group are opening illegal schoolsSWEDEN / INTERNATIONAL: Conversion therapy promoted by religious global networkSPAIN: Research shows that gender identity is not something that you chooseUK: Nature’s true value is overlookedUK: Recycling plastic doesn’t workUK: BMJ article issues Vitamin D overdose warningGermanic New Medicine is both pseudoscientific and antisemitic and for that its practitioners get the week’s Really Wrong Award.Enjoy!Segments: Intro; Greetings; TWISH; Pontus Pokes The Pope; News; Really Wrong; Quote And Farewell; Outro; Out-Takes;

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How was your day, fellow Skeptic?We’re half-way to hell (666), but not only is Pontus back, but we also have that lovely Queen of European Skeptics Claire Klingenberg with us, so what’s to complain about? Pontus explains why he has been absent lately and Claire talks about a very disconcerting incidence at a recent science fair. In TWISH we celebrate Newton’s ‘Principia’ which lay the ground for much of modern science, over three hundred years ago. The Pope gets a poking for not knowing his DNA from his ABC and then we have a look at the news:UK: One in six adults doubt human link to climate changeGERMANY: Thousands could have died because of heat waves in GermanyUK: Legislation aims to shield UK internet users from state-backed online disinformationNORWAY: Steep decline in the trust towards alternative medicineSWEDEN: Macchiarini gets off scot-free. Prosecution has appealedINTERNATIONAL: ECDC and WHO team up to tackle the public communication and engagement tasks related to monkeypox for health authoritiesThree cosmonauts get the Really Wrong Award for waving the Donetsk flag on the ISS, which should be about science and not about stupid and bloody human conflicts.Enjoy!Segments: Intro; Greetings; TWISH; Pontus Pokes The Pope; News; Really Wrong; Quote And Farewell; Outro; Out-Takes;

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Nope. But he gets a Really Right!We have a rare third host today! Luna is part of this episode.Starting with sad news about the Oslo shooting, we then talk about Scotland's discussion about independence.This week's TWISH congratulates Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz to his birthday on the 1st of July 1646. They discuss what a Staffelwalze is (aptly named Leibniz wheel) and András mentions important facts about the mathematician's life.The news this week were the following:GERMANY: Could Sucharit Bakhdi's professorship be revoked?INTERNATIONAL: ECDC launches online course into how to address online vaccine misinformationUK: New study into why people hear voices of the deadToday's prize for being Really Wrong would go to the US Supreme Court if we were US-based, but instead we keep up the good mood and give out a Really Right- award! Pope Francis ordered for Pope Pius XII.'s archive to be made accessible online. Pius is often referred to as the "War Era Pope" and was reluctant to interfere on behalf of persecuted people. So, for doing the right thing for once, Frankie receives this week's prize for being Really Right.Enjoy!Segments: Intro; Greetings; TWISH; News; Really Wrong; Quote And Farewell; Outro; Out-Takes

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What is humour allowed to do?Despite us still missing a cheery Hejsan Hejsan, we are back with a new episode! We talk about Nikil Mukerji (interviewed in Episode 252), who wrote a paper about Bullshit with his colleague Adriano Mannino. If you want to meet skeptics like Nikil Mukerji, then European Skeptics Congress in Vienna is the right place for you. Early bird prices still apply until the 30th of June! Another ESC we talk about is the Eurovision Song Contest, which will not take place in Ukraine in 2023 after all.This week's TWISH celebrates Ricky Gervais' birthday on the 25th of June 1961. András and Annika discuss what jokes and humour can do to not discriminate against minorities without being censored and hence talk about the comedian's jokes in particular. (Picture credit: Wikimedia Commons; Raph_PH 2019).The news this week were the following:INTERNATIONAL: European researchers are critical about UN sustainable development goalsINTERNATIONAL: Only 1 in 20 medical treatments have clear benefits supported by evidenceITALY: Weird consequence of climate change: stuff emerging from the depth of Po RiverHUNGARY: Former performer, who sells food supplements gets investigated by Competition AuthorityWe have criticized Prince Charles before. For his blatant promotion of So Called Alternative Medicine, he receives this week's prize for being  Really Wrong.Enjoy!Segments: Intro; Greetings; TWISH; News; Really Wrong; Quote And Farewell; Outro; Out-Takes

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András and Annika are back and tell us all about upcoming events! The European Skeptics Congress in September in Vienna is sure exciting to go to, as is QED in October in Manchester! To round our number of conferences up, we have also been invited to go to Australia! Check your drop bears!To celebrate this momentous chain of events, we issue a competition: If you can meet us at all three conferences, we will give you a beer (or beverage of your choice)! Come see us!In TWISH András tells us all about Padre Pio (Picture credit: Manfrediona // After Elia Stelluto), who got canonised on 16th of June 2002.Then, we hop over to the news:UKRAINE: A polio outbreak further threatens the war-stricken countryINTERNATIONAL: EP fails to pass key climate proposalINTERNATIONAL: Covid-19 conspiracy theories associated with depressionINTERNATIONAL: Documenting and responding to climate dis- and misinformation at COP26UNITED KINGDOM: Scotland and UK government split over GM foodAUSTRIA: The real dangers of homeopathy - a case study!To talk more about So Called Alternative Medicine we talk about lobbying for quackery and hand out a Really Wrong Award to EUROCAM.Enjoy!Segments: Intro; Greetings; TWISH; News; Really Wrong; Quote And Farewell; Outro; Out-Takes

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An unusually short episode this week brought to you by Annika and András, featuring the first record of a ball-lightning observation in the English speaking world from 1195 AD, then we talk about a prison sentence over a fake diagnostic tool in Germany. And of course, we finish on a fitting quote from Plato.

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Frankie appoints a carnival of CardinalsAndrás is back and tells us not how to stand on a volcano, we have some listener feedback about YouTube banning videos and the QED conference release their tickets on 13 June. Mark you calendars for 28-30 October! We then interview Jelena Lenka Příplatová from the Czech Skeptics (Český klub skeptiků Sisyfos) about their Erratic Boulders Awards the was announced on 27 May. In TWISH we celebrate the founding of the Swedish Royal Academy of Sciences way back in 1739(!). Pope Frankie breaks the rules and elevates 21 of his closest cronies to be cardinals. Then, we look into the news:INTERNATIONAL: Is monkeypox a Covid vaccine side effect?POLAND: Country offers free vaccinations to Ukrainian refugees, but uptake is lowGERMANY: More bad news for homeopathsINTERNATIONAL: Humanity faces a new era of risksGERMANY: Fake doctor sentenced to life in prisonINTERNATIONAL: New tool: Retraction Watch Hijacked Journal CheckerUK: Edzard Ernst appointed member of the Academy of EuropeWe feel all positive for once and hand out a Really Right Award to the plans of reducing Sweden’s CO2 emissions by 3% by 2030.Enjoy!Segments: Intro; Greetings; Interview; TWISH; Pontus Pokes The Pope; News; Really Right; Quote And Farewell; Outro; Out-Takes;

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We need to fight for abortion rights – againMonkeypox is coming – is that the new pandemic? Our favourite ESC is the European Skeptics Congress in Vienna in September and we’re counting on seeing you there. The DA! Awards are coming and if you live in Germany you should register your nominations. Then we have an error correction from last week regarding horses and snails… No TWISH today so we jump right into Pope Francis meeting with Bono (of U2 fame) and a pretty remarkable exchange between the two. Then it’s time for the news:SWITZERLAND: Climate DoomSPAIN: Facebook fails to stop Spanish language anti-abortion disinformationEU: Lobby group for ‘integrative medicine’ in the EUUKRAINE: YouTube removes more than 9,000 channels relating to Ukraine warUK: Gene edited tomatoes could soon be sold in EnglandAnthroposophic quack doctor Harald Matthes gets his second Really Wrong Award this month, tune in to find out what he has been up to this time!Enjoy!Segments: Intro; Greetings; Pontus Pokes The Pope; News; Really Wrong; Quote And Farewell; Outro; Out-Takes;

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