Gardner, Martin;
Fads and Fallacies in the Name of Science: in the name of science
Publications, 1957 / New American Library 1986 Dover
topics: | science | history | skepticism | math | philosophy
A list of ignominous "scientific" adventures, which turned out to be rather "pseudo-science". The book was not very happily received by people who believed in these areas - as HG writes in the preface (p.xi): The first edition of this book prompted many curious letter from irate readers. The most violent letters came from Reichians, furious because the book considered orgonomy alongside such (to them) outlandish cults as dianetics. Dianeticians, of course, felt the same about orgonomy. I heard from homeopaths who were insulted to find themselves in company with such frauds as osteopathy and chiropractic, and one chiropractor in Kentucky “pitied” me because I had turned my spine on God’s greatest gift to suffering humanity. Several admirers of Dr. Bates favored me with letters so badly typed that I suspect the writers were in urgent need of strong spectacles. Oddly enough, most of these correspondents objected to one chapter only, thinking all the others excellent. This was Gardner's second book, first publ 1952. This is a revised 1957 edition. The opening chapter establishes the nature of the pseudo-scientist; the remaining chapters outline a number well-researched, specific cases. CONTENTS: CHAPTERS [w] 1. In the Name of Science: the modern era has seen a great spread in cranks practicing pseudo-science. Five common traits of pseudo-scientists. a. considers himself a genius. b. regards other researchers as stupid. "To me the truth is precious... I should rather be right and stand alone than to run with the multitude and be wrong... [These views] have already won for me the scorn and contempt of my fellowmen. c. believes himself unjustly persecuted - feels there is a campaign against his ideas, likening himself to Bruno, Galileo or Pasteur. d. His attacks are directed against the most respected scientists; in Newton's time, it was Newton, later Einstein bore the brunt. e. He uses new jargon / neologisms. 2. Flat and Hollow: the Flat Earth theory of Wilbur Glenn Voliva; the Hollow Earth theories of John Cleves Symmes, Jr. and Cyrus Reed Teed. 3. Monsters of Doom: Immanuel Velikovsky’s Worlds in Collision; William Whiston’s A New Theory of the Earth; Ignatius Donnelly’s Ragnarok; Hans Hörbiger’s Welteislehre and Hörbiger’s disciple Hans Schindler Bellamy. 4. The Forteans: Charles Fort, Tiffany Thayer and the Fortean Society; also criticism of subsequent movements such as the Great Books Program. 5. Flying Saucers: Kenneth Arnold, the Mantell UFO Incident, Raymond Palmer, Richard Shaver, Donald Keyhoe, Frank Scully, Gerald Heard and the Unidentified flying object movement. 6. Zig-Zag-and-Swirl: Alfred Lawson and his “Lawsonomy”. 7. Down with Einstein!: Joseph Battell, Thomas H. Graydon, George Francis Gillette, Jeremiah J. Callahan and others. 8. Sir Isaac Babson: Roger Babson and the Gravity Research Foundation. 9. Dowsing Rods and Doodlebugs: Solcol W. Tromp and radiesthesia; Kenneth Roberts, Henry Gross and their dowsing. 10. Under the Microscope: Andrew Crosse, Henry Charlton Bastian, Charles Wentworth Littlefield and others who observed spontaneous generation of living forms. 11. Geology versus Genesis: Philip Henry Gosse and his Omphalos; George McCready Price and The New Geology; Mortimer Adler’s writings on evolution; Hilaire Belloc’s debate with H. G. Wells. 12. Lysenkoism: Lamarck and Lamarckism; Lysenko and Lysenkoism. 13. Apologists for Hate: Hans F. K. Günther and “nordicism”; Charles Carroll, Madison Grant, Lothrop Stoddard, and “scientific racism”. 14. Atlantis and Lemuria: Ignatius Donnelly (again), Lewis Spence and Atlantis; Madame Blavatsky, James Churchward and Lemuria. 15. The Great Pyramid: John Taylor, Charles Piazzi Smyth, Charles Taze Russell and others with their theories about the Great Pyramid of Giza. 16. Medical Cults: Samuel Hahnemann, The Organon of the Healing Art, and homeopathy; naturopathy, with iridiagnosis, zone therapy and Alexander technique; Andrew Taylor Still and osteopathy; Daniel D. Palmer and chiropractic. 17. Medical Quacks: Elisha Perkins; Albert Abrams and his defender Upton Sinclair; Ruth Drown; Dinshah Pestanji Framji Ghadiali; color therapy; Gurdjieff; Aleister Crowley; Edgar Cayce. 18. Food Faddists: Horace Fletcher and Fletcherism; William Howard Hay and the Dr. Hay diet; vegetarianism (“We need not be concerned here with the ethical arguments ...”); Jerome Irving Rodale and organic farming; Rudolf Steiner, Ehrenfried Pfeiffer, anthroposophy and biodynamic agriculture; Gayelord Hauser; Nutrilite; Dudley J. LeBlanc and Hadacol. 19. Throw Away Your Glasses!: William Horatio Bates, the Bates method, Aldous Huxley, The Art of Seeing. 20. Eccentric Sexual Theories: Arabella Kenealy; Bernarr Macfadden; John R. Brinkley; Frank Harris; John Humphrey Noyes and the Oneida Community; Alice Bunker Stockham and “karezza”. 21. Orgonomy: Wilhelm Reich and “orgone”. 22. Dianetics: L. Ron Hubbard, Dianetics: The Modern Science of Mental Health. (The term Scientology had only just been introduced when Gardner’s book was published.) 23. General Semantics, Etc.: Alfred Korzybski, Samuel I. Hayakawa and “general semantics”; Jacob L. Moreno and “psychodrama” 24. From Bumps to Handwriting: Francis Joseph Gall and phrenology; physiognomy; palmistry; graphology. 25. ESP and PK: Joseph Banks Rhine, extra-sensory perception and psychokinesis; Nandor Fodor; Upton Sinclair (again) and Mental Radio; Max Freedom Long. 26. Bridey Murphy and Other Matters: Morey Bernstein and Bridey Murphy; a final plea for orthodoxy and responsibility in publishing.