The authors of 'Pseudoscience' explore and debunk your favorite conspiracy theories

Renowned astronomer and science popularizer Carl Sagan believes the world is in a precarious position. Science has taught us a great deal about the world and brought about many beneficial changes to humanity, yet we still cling to unscientific beliefs and ideas at an alarming level. Sagan argues that as we advance into the 21st century and beyond, our collective ignorance of scientific methods, values, and thinking may be catastrophic to us and the world we live in.

In The Demon-Haunted World, he tries to counteract these dangers by teaching the scientific method and encouraging the application of critical and skeptical thinking in all facets of life. In our guide, we’ll examine Sagan’s argument that a less scientifically-minded society is a less prosperous and functional one. We’ll look at how the issues Sagan addresses have developed in the 25 years since the book’s publication. We’ll also look at how we, both individually and collectively, can remain critical and well-informed in an increasingly complex world.

Merchants of doubt are people or organizations who discredit science that threatens their agenda or ideology. The first merchants of doubt were members of the tobacco industry—when scientists discovered that smoking caused cancer, that was bad for businesses. It was also bad for capitalism in general because it suggested that the market wasn’t self-regulating, and lack of regulation was killing people. Other defenders of the free market started using the tobacco industry’s techniques, such as funding new (and hopefully more favorable) studies or calling for balanced media coverage.

In Merchants of Doubt, science historians Naomi Oreskes and Erik M. Conway study the doubt-mongering techniques used in several other important “debates”—nuclear disarmament, acid rain, the ozone layer, climate change, and the pesticide DDT. These techniques are still in use today.

How do you spark a trend that spreads like wildfire, or turn a product into the latest must-have item? You create a social epidemic. The Tipping Point explains how social epidemics — spreading ideas, messages, behaviors, and products — function like viruses, growing gradually until they reach a critical mass (the tipping point) and explode.

Three factors can be adjusted to tip an idea to a social epidemic: the messenger, the message itself, or the context of the message. Learn how Paul Revere’s midnight ride, Sesame Street, Airwalk skate shoes, and crime reduction in New York City began as ideas and tipped to become movements.

As we try to lead healthier lives, one thing we rarely consider is being mindful of how we breathe. Science journalist James Nestor argues that while the power of the breath is central to many Eastern traditions, it’s been largely ignored in the Western world. Modern medicine treats chronic congestion, sinus infections, and lung disease but puts little emphasis on teaching people how to breathe correctly. However, Nestor asserts that by learning how to breathe well, we’ll improve our well-being, balance our emotions, and find more energy to live the lives we want.

This guide will explain what Nestor says about how we’re breathing wrong, how we can do it better, and what amazing impact the power of breath can have over the body. We’ll also explore the underlying science of breath, hear what medical research says about Nestor’s claims, and delve into specific breathing techniques that the author recommends.

Renowned astronomer and science popularizer Carl Sagan believes the world is in a precarious position. Science has taught us a great deal about the world and brought about many beneficial changes to humanity, yet we still cling to unscientific beliefs and ideas at an alarming level. Sagan argues that as we advance into the 21st century and beyond, our collective ignorance of scientific methods, values, and thinking may be catastrophic to us and the world we live in.

In The Demon-Haunted World, he tries to counteract these dangers by teaching the scientific method and encouraging the application of critical and skeptical thinking in all facets of life. In our guide, we’ll examine Sagan’s argument that a less scientifically-minded society is a less prosperous and functional one. We’ll look at how the issues Sagan addresses have developed in the 25 years since the book’s publication. We’ll also look at how we, both individually and collectively, can remain critical and well-informed in an increasingly complex world.

In recent years, a movement of distrust and hostility toward scientific institutions has spread around the globe. An equally fervent pro-science movement has sprung up in response. But why has science become so controversial?

American political and social life is increasingly dominated by fantastical beliefs and magical thinking. This is the product of decades of technological, intellectual, and political upheavals that fundamentally altered the American mindset.

Do you want to understand books better, and remember more of what you read? Do you want to better understand the author’s goal and be a better critic of what you read?

How to Read a Book is the classic guide to reading effectively. It teaches how to understand the crux of a book within 15 minutes, how to analyze a book intelligently, and how to synthesize multiple books together. If you read a lot of books, then it makes sense to learn how to read better and increase the value of your reading.