The Shroud of Turin, pseudoscience, and journalism
By Joel Achenbach, WashPost
February 14 at 10:28 am
When I signed on to my AOL e-mail (retro cool!) on Thursday, a headline flashed on the screen saying something about the Shroud of Turin. Instinct said: Look away! Nothing good can come of reading a Shroud of Turin article. Fact-free zone! But I was weak, and I looked, and soon discovered that I had plunged down the rabbit hole of pseudoscience and bunk.
It was a Huffington Post article. The headline said: “Shroud of Turin Formed by an Earthquake? Scientists Say Face of Jesus Image Caused By Neutron Emissions.”
(Be wary, always, when you see the “scientists say” formulation. They rarely speak in unison like that.) (Also I find myself wary when I hear the term “neutron emissions,” though this may be a sign of irrational anxiety.)
(More here.)
February 14 at 10:28 am
When I signed on to my AOL e-mail (retro cool!) on Thursday, a headline flashed on the screen saying something about the Shroud of Turin. Instinct said: Look away! Nothing good can come of reading a Shroud of Turin article. Fact-free zone! But I was weak, and I looked, and soon discovered that I had plunged down the rabbit hole of pseudoscience and bunk.
It was a Huffington Post article. The headline said: “Shroud of Turin Formed by an Earthquake? Scientists Say Face of Jesus Image Caused By Neutron Emissions.”
(Be wary, always, when you see the “scientists say” formulation. They rarely speak in unison like that.) (Also I find myself wary when I hear the term “neutron emissions,” though this may be a sign of irrational anxiety.)
(More here.)
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