Weird Science (CH 199)

Weird Science is a freshman seminar (3 credits), normally offered each Fall for incoming freshman (or sophmores with first year status). The following course description is given in the UofO course catalog:

"What about ESP? What about UFOs? Because science is a powerful and apparently successful tool for understanding the natural world, we might expect to find instances where certain strongly held beliefs are claimed to be "scientific". This course will investigate these claims by learning how science tackles difficult problems. Through this process we will learn that while science must always remain uncertain, the need to believe with certainty is quite human."

The course is discussion and presentation oriented primarily based on readings from three textbooks, "The Demon Haunted World" by Carl Sagan, "Why People Believe Weird Things" by Michael Shermer and "Flim-Flam!" by James Randi, along with selected readings from various other texts and articles. The following are a few of the various items that are used in the course:

• Course Description
• The Scientific Method (handout)
• Rutherford Story
• Knowledge and Critical Thinking Epigrams
• Possible Class Research Presentation Topics
• Science and Pseudo-Science Class Survey Form
• Epigrams for Critical Thinking
• Guidelines for Oral Presentations
• Guidelines for Final Papers
• Guide To Critical Evaluation of Sources

Updated!

The following graphs are the results of the very unscientific (though anonymous) surveys that I took of the first day of class and a subsequent survey on the last day of class in Fall, 2004. The students were essentially the same group (one or two drops).

• Pseudo-science survey response from Fall-2004 class (1st survey)
• Pseudo-science survey response from Fall-2004 class (2nd survey)

The graphs below are the results from the Fall, 2007 class and notice that some positive controls (germs cause disease, evolution by natural selection, etc.) were added to test the trends.

• Pseudo-science survey response from Fall-2007 class (1st survey)
• Pseudo-science survey response from Fall-2007 class (2nd survey)

• Pseudo-science survey from Fall 2008 (1st and 2nd surveys)

Related Links

• "Sound" Science
• Committee for the Scientific Investigation of Claims of the Paranormal
• Logical Fallacies
• How To Study Weird Things
• Massimo's Skeptic Web
• National Center for Science Education
• Teaching Evolution (UCB)
• Skeptic Society
• The Thinking Page
• James Randi
• Richard Dawkins Site
• World Mapper
• Crackpot Idea Evaluator

For more information, please contact me:

John Donovan
(541)-346-4632
210 Cascade Hall
University of Oregon