The European Skeptics Podcast

It’s time for the last Poking of Francis but before we get into that and the other news, we go to TWISH to hear about this week’s birthday boy, Guglielmo Marconi, the pioneer of radio transmissions and his wireless telegraph system.The news list contains the following:INTERNATIONAL: Medical cannabis shows potential to fight cancer, largest-ever study finds – or does it…?HUNGARY: Antivaxx nutjob gets Flat Earth AwardVATICAN: So Frankie died… one last chance to poke the pope (at least this one)EUROPE: RFK Jr having a devastating effect on Europe’s vaccine acceptanceThe Dutch ultra-Christian Civitas Christiania foundation gets this week’s Really Wrong Award for taking their bigoted anti-LGBTQ stance to unacceptable levels.Enjoy!https://theesp.eu/podcast_archive/theesp-ep-476.htmlSegments:0:00:27 Intro0:00:53 Greetings0:03:24 TWISH0:15:18 News0:48:19 Really Wrong0:54:48 Quote0:56:01 Outro0:57:23 Outtakes Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy f

Mixed messages from QED – new dates announced but we hear this is the last one(!) and we have a hard time accepting it. At least we’ll do our best to be there and meet (among others) Chris French whose audiobook is currently on sale. In TWISH we hear about Leonardo da Vinci and specifically about some of the myths surrounding him. Then, it’s time for the news:UK: Christian missionary group YWAM accused of public shaming and rituals to ‘cure’ sexual sinPOLAND: Sanal Edamaruku’s case: what do we know?INTERNATIONAL: Shadowy market for weight-loss drugs has emerged onlineSERBIA: A wave of disinformation surrounding the demonstrationsSWEDEN: Debunked personality test (DISC) refuses to dieINTERNATIONAL: The Global Listening Project on how attitudes towards vaccines have changed since CovidNorwegian-Swedish fundamental Christian zealot Runar Søgaard announces Trump to be God’s gift to the US and himself as God’s gift to Sweden, and for t

We first rant a bit about Viktor Orbán and examine some psychic horsing around at the Grand National. In TWISH we hear about the Dead Sea Scrolls and then we dive into the news:UKRAINE / USA: Zelenskyy and Trump look for leaks using lie detectorsINTERNATIONAL: Snopes’ toolkit to guard against online misinformationITALY: AI beats lottery?SWEDEN: Test of phishing attack goes awfully wrongEndometriosis is a serious condition and the topic deserves so much better than this recently published so-called study. Therefore Edinburgh University receives this week’s award for being Really Wrong as they are only raising false hope while wasting valuable time and resources.Enjoy!https://theesp.eu/podcast_archive/theesp-ep-474.htmlSegments:0:00:27 Intro0:00:51 Greetings0:11:08 TWISH0:19:04 News0:38:35 Really Wrong0:46:58 Quote0:48:33 Outro0:49:55 Outtakes Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We explore the source of April Fool's day in this week’s TWISH, before we get into the news:UK: Three-quarters of UK fertility patients using unproven add-on treatmentsGERMANY / INTERNATIONAL: Rudolf Steiner’s legacy on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of his deathINTERNATIONAL: More people leave religion than joinUK: Tory’s U-turn on climate policies attributed to ties with major climate denierFRANCE / RUSSIA: French anti-vaxxer feeds Russian disinformationAnother Nordic princess, Madeleine of Sweden, goes of the rails and announces that she will market Anthroposophic beauty products and that naturally earns her this week’s Really Wrong Award.Enjoy!Show notes: https://theesp.eu/podcast_archive/theesp-ep-473.htmlSegments:0:00:27 Intro0:00:51 Greetings0:08:33 TWISH0:14:41 News0:39:16 Really Wrong0:43:34 Quote0:48:32 Outro0:49:54 Outtakes Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Science takes an interest in Pontus’ body (who would’ve thought?) and in TWISH we hear about Comenius who got a whole lot of things right already on the 16th century. Of course there are also more current news to take a look at:INTERNATIONAL: Tretinoin, the holy grail in skin care, is dangerousINTERNATIONAL: Are there any nations taking commitments to tackling climate change seriously?UK: Supplements and garlic won’t cure the common cold, despite what the BBC sayINTERNATIONAL: Why do we miss autocratic red flags?UK: Faithful? Tax loophole turns old pubs into places of worshipINTERNATIONAL: New trends in vaccine skepticismScientology is involved in both the Really Wrong and Really Right Awards this week. Guess which one they got?Enjoy!https://theesp.eu/podcast_archive/theesp-ep-472.htmlSegments:0:00:27 Intro0:00:52 Greetings0:04:56 TWISH0:10:55 News0:45:29 Really Wrong / Really Right0:51:36 Quote0:54:29 Outro0:55:52 Outtakes Hosted on Acast. See acast

Pontus is back from skiing, Orbán is worse than ever, and an astronaut will photograph the turtle that carries the Earth on its back – just a normal week in skepticism. In TWISH we hear about the successful ban on CFCs to save the ozone layer, and then it’s time for the news:EUROPE: Measles in Europe highest in 25 yearsITALY: Higher levels of spirituality and CAM use increases likelyhood of vaccine skepticismUK: Psychological ‘booster shots’ can strengthen resistance to misinformation over timeUK: Poor sleep could fuel belief in conspiracy theoriesINTERNATIONAL: Press freedom watchdog says Russia ‘stealing’ its identityRUSSIA: Russian network changes tactics to ‘groom’ AI bots with disinformationPORTUGAL: ComCept’s Flying Unicorn Awards are here again, voting is on!The Really Wrong Award goes to Dutch minister for Asylum and Migration, Marjolein Faber, for ignoring expertise, and we send a Really Right to Sense About Science for their work to te

With Brian sitting in for Pontus while he’s doing some skiing, we talk events to start with. The Hungarian Skeptic Society just handed out two awards for those enlightening the public by either speaking up directly against pseudosciences and disinformation or choosing to provide detailed analysis on controversial topics. So, we congratulate Professor of molecular biology Zsolt Boldogkői on getting the first ever László Orosz Lifetime Achievement Award, and biologist, PhD candidate Zsófia Tauber who received the first László Orosz Award from the Hungarian skeptics at and all-day event of talks and panel discussions in Budapest.Brian promotes an evening of presentations about misinformation and conspiracy theories in Edinburgh and we finish off the opening segment by commemorating one of the most acclaimed skeptics, Joe Nickell, who passed away recently.On TWISH, we talk about a milestone of modern science, the d

Believe it or not, there are more skeptical podcasts out there than ours – check out the Skeptic podcast for example, the newest one out there from the Skeptic UK. Pierre -Simon Laplace is this week’s topic for TWISH, and then we get into the news:SWEDEN: New study confirms: Tens of thousands of lives in Sweden saved by covid vaccinesHUNGARY: State TV keeps citing Russian Defense Ministry’s unreliable dataITALY / UK: Tuscany approves assisted dyingGERMANY: SkepKon 2025 now open for ticket purchasesUK: Conference on Research IntegrityThe Really Wrong Award this week goes to Viktor Orbán as the Budapest Pride festival is coming and he cannot resist exploiting it for his populistic propaganda. On the opposite side, Budapest Mayor Gergely Karácsony is man enough to stand up to Orbán and for that he is Really Right!Enjoy!https://theesp.eu/podcast_archive/theesp-ep-469.htmlSegments:0:00:27 Intro0:00:51 Greetings0:09:45 TWISH0:18:49 News0:40:

We are still fascinated by the on-going planetary alignment and this week is an even better opportunity to watch it. And if it’s cloudy and a Thursday, go back inside and join the SITP Online virtual pub, it’s highly recommended!In TWISH we hear about Émile Coué who popularized autosuggestion which in a way paved the way for all self-help books that we are still riddled with today. Then of course, we have the news:NORWAY: Heat record blown away in northern NorwayGERMANY: Election resultsAUSTRIA / SWITZERLAND: Shaman on the runINTERNATIONAL / WALES: Trust in politics on the declineEU: The European economy needs immigration – that’s science!INTERNATIONAL: Nominations for the John Maddox Prize now openThe Really Wrong award goes to education in general in the EU – lots of people are still creationists and believe that early humans lived along dinosaurs…Enjoy!https://theesp.eu/podcast_archive/theesp-ep-468.htmlSegments:0:00:

We talk a little bit of the upcoming Germany federal elections this weekend and in TWISH we hear about Carl von Rokitansky the Austrian physician, pathologist, humanist philosopher and liberal politician and founder of the Viennese School of Medicine of the 19th century. How he managed to dissect tens of thousands of bodies is baffling and just a little bit scary…Then, we turn to the news:UK: Prof. Jim Al-Khalili gets Darwin Day MedalSWEDEN: Murder of Quran burnerFRANCE: Didier Raoult can’t stop spreading bullshitITALY: Italian ‘mystic’ may face trial after DNA match with blood on Virgin Mary statueINTERNATIONAL: Elisabeth Bik Science Integrity Fund launchesWe hand out a Really Right Award (for once) and a little surprisingly it goes to the UK government for an ambitious project to spot climate change tipping points. We also have a Norwegian Word of the Week, tune in to find why Elon Musk may not be thrilled about it.Enjoy!https:/

Lots about guns and politics this week, as well as science, homeopathy and a little bit about lost pants. In TWISH we hear about Descartes and his suspicious death in 1650. Was it murder?Here is a list of the news:SWEDEN: Mass shooting in ÖrebroGERMANY: Is this the descent of Homeopathy?SWEDEN: Government wants stricter laws regarding guns – Sweden Democrats in uproarUK: Evidence week a big successSCOTLAND: Alien abductee trousers(?)The Really Wrong Award goes the Swedish government for their misuse of science to legitimize killing half the wolves.Enjoy!https://theesp.eu/podcast_archive/theesp-ep-466.htmlSegments:0:00:27 Intro0:00:50 Greetings0:07:12 TWISH0:16:14 News0:44:42 Really Wrong0:49:17 Quote0:50:41 Outro0:52:04 Outtakes Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week we interview Marcel-Jan Krijgsman, Dutch amateur astronomer, data engineer and science communicator.Enjoy!https://theesp.eu/podcast_archive/theesp-ep-465.htmlSegments:0:00:33 Intro0:00:56 Greetings0:11:04 Interview0:45:58 Farewell0:50:08 Outro0:51:30 Outtakes Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

After discussing Nazi salutes, placebo surgery, scientology follow-up, Massimo Polidoro’s new book and several recommendations for other podcasts, we eventually get down to the meat of the show. In TWISH we hear about Delta, the science TV program that aired 61 years ago on 31 of January. Then, we look to the news:SWEDEN: Swedish Skeptics AwardsCENTRAL EUROPE: Disinformation and conspiracy beliefs in East-Central Europe show significant differencesBALTIC SEA: Follow-up on the alleged cable sabotage in the Baltic SeaUK: Is Google actually gonna crack down on fake reviews?SWEDEN: Against scientific consensus, the age of criminal responsibility could be lowered to 14Putin and Russia collect a yet another Really Wrong Award, this time for disinformation in schools.Enjoy! (if that’s the word)https://theesp.eu/podcast_archive/theesp-ep-464.htmlSegments:0:00:27 Intro0:00:52 Greetings0:20:46 TWISH0:27:57 News0:54:17 Really Wrong0:58:59 Quote1:

The ECDC has declared January cervical cancer awareness month which we support 100%. We also want encourage local skeptical actions such as speaking up when companies promote nonsense and Pontus gives us an example of how easy it can be, if you just take a few minutes and speak up. We also mention that the planets are lined up in a cool way at the moment, so turn your eyes to the skies! In TWISH we hear about Vladimir Bekhterev who was at least as significant in psychology as Pavlov was, but made the mistake to talk badly about Stalin and as a result was almost entirely written out of history. Then, we look at the news:INTERNATIONAL: It’s confirmed: 2024 was the first year with an average temperature 1.5°C above pre-industrial levelsINTERNATIONAL: Pro-Russia disinformation pops up on BlueSkyBALTIC SEA: Damaged cables in Baltic Sea not Russian sabotage?EU: X asked to disclose internal documents about algorithms over fears that far right gets

Happy to be back again and we start by welcoming some new publications by Brian Eggo and Edzard Ernst. In TWISH we wonder if 13 January is Skeptics Day and then we dig into the news:FRANCE: Godfather of modern far-right movement Jean-Marie Le Pen dies aged 96UK / ESTONIA: Nurosym – an example of scam health deviceUK: Poll shows more than half of UK voters dislike Elon Musk and his meddling with UK politicsThis week’s Really Wrong Award was just as hard to guess as the sun going up or down – Mark Zuckerberg and Meta are going full MAGA on us and it is terrible to see.Enjoy!https://theesp.eu/podcast_archive/theesp-ep-462.htmlSegments: 0:00:27 Intro0:00:50 Greetings0:09:48 TWISH0:13:26 News0:42:37 Really Wrong0:53:53 Quote0:55:51 Outro0:57:06 Outtakes Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Quite a few things to dive into this week: the Medici popes, some listener feedback, cool dinosaur tracks and some sad news from France. In TWISH we we have an epiphany and then we go through the news:NORWAY / UK: Who Believes in Alternative Medicine?RUSSIA: Cancer vaccine announced, with no published evidenceUK: Over 40% of cancer patients use complementary and alternative medications while receiving anticancer treatmentINTERNATIONAL: Another year of Retraction Watch being awesome! Want to work for and with them?INTERNATIONAL: Recent global temperature surge intensified by record-low planetary albedoHUNGARY: Viktor Orbán travels to India, posts photo with Ayurvedic guruSeveral Hungarian organizations close to the government signs up with IFTCC who claims that banning conversion therapy is a threat to human rights – can you be more Really Wrong?Enjoy!https://theesp.eu/podcast_archive/theesp-ep-461.htmlSegments:0:00:27 Intro0:00:51

With András unavailable, we drag Annika out of retirement to launch the new year! In TWISH we hear about Martin Luther’s excommunication and while Pontus always enjoy seeing someone stand up to the Pope, Martin Luther himself was far from flawless. Then we have the news-round:SWEDEN / INTERNATIONAL: Multi supplements are at best unnecessary and at worst dangerousEU: Amalgam is historyINTERNATIONAL: World endures ‘decade of deadly heat’ as 2024 caps hottest years on recordElon Musk, already adorned with the shameful Rusty Razor Award of 2024, add this week’s Really Wrong Award to his collection, this time for supporting the German AfD party.Enjoy!https://theesp.eu/podcast_archive/theesp-ep-460.htmlSegments:0:00:27 Intro0:00:52 Greetings0:03:19 TWISH0:13:46 News0:29:18 Really Wrong0:33:05 Quote0:34:44 Outro0:35:59 Outtakes Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We close the year with some topical items related to the season.Happy New Year!https://theesp.eu/podcast_archive/theesp-ep-459.htmlSegments:0:00:25 Intro0:00:49 Greetings0:05:28 TWISH0:21:13 Special segment0:39:37 Quote0:41:35 Outro0:42:50 Outtakes Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A little correction to start with, and then in TWISH we hear about the Jesuit and scientist Tommaso Ceva. Of course, we also have the news:SWEDEN: Private clinics on public contracts promoted nonsense cures, denied sick patients and cheatedHUNGARY: Government’s own fact checkers cause for concern in EuropeUK: Boycott against Arla for trying to reduce methane emissionsINTERNATIONAL: New comprehensive review of homeopathy is actually BSUK: Follow up on Church of England scandalROMANIA: Presidential elections called off after Russian meddlingThe EU has a regulation stating that farmers have to prioritize homeopathy before real veterinary medicine to keep their “organic” label, and for that the EU is Really Wrong.Enjoy!Segments:0:00:27 Intro0:00:51 Greetings0:07:33 TWISH0:11:56 News0:39:36 Really Wrong0:45:56 Quote0:47:11 Outro0:48:26 Outtakeshttps://theesp.eu/podcast_archive/theesp-ep-458.html Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We start with the sad news that this is Annika’s last episode as a regular host. Over the last four years she has brought her unique perspective and insights (and puns!) to the show. But being part of a weekly podcast is tough commitment while at the same time balancing a fulltime job, raising a family and participating in other skeptical activities. We will miss her! And we hope to see her back again from time to time for guest appearances.In TWISH this week we celebrate the birth of Robert Koch, one of the ‘fathers of microbiology’ (together with Louis Pasteur). Then we have a look at the news:INTERNATIONAL: Adult skills in literacy and numeracy declining or stagnating in most OECD countriesINTERNATIONAL: Online influencers in urgent need of factchecking toolsINTERNATIONAL: How the far right is weaponising AI generated content in EuropeUK: Update: Sentence announced for ‘slapping therapist’ Hongchi XiaoUK: Resignation at the Royal SocietySWEDEN: Indian sect called ‘On