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SKEPTICAL INQUIRER Vol SKEPTICAL INQUIRER Vol. 1818,, No . 2No. 2 ^^ Winter 1994 Winter / 1994/$6.2$6.255 Paul Kurtz William Grey THE NEW THE PROBLEM SKEPTICISM OF 'PSI' Cancer Scares i*5"***-"" —-^ 44 "74 47CT8 3575" 5 THE SKEPTICAL INQUIRER is the official journal of the Committee for the Scientific Investigation of Claims of the Paranormal, an international organization. Editor Kendrick Frazier. Editorial Board James E. Alcock, Barry Beyerstein, Susan J. Blackmore, Martin Gardner, Ray Hyman, Philip J. Klass, Paul Kurtz, Joe Nickell, Lee Nisbet, Bela Scheiber. Consulting Editors Robert A. Baker, William Sims Bainbridge, John R. Cole, Kenneth L. Feder, C. E. M. Hansel, E. C. Krupp, David F. Marks, Andrew Neher, James E. Oberg, Robert Sheaffer, Steven N. Shore. Managing Editor Doris Hawley Doyle. Contributing Editor Lys Ann Shore. Business Manager Mary Rose Hays. Assistant Business Manager Sandra Lesniak. Chief Data Officer Richard Seymour. Computer Assistant Michael Cione. Production Paul E. Loynes. Asst. Managing Editor Cynthia Matheis. Art Linda Hays. Audio Technician Vance Vigrass. Librarian Jonathan Jiras. Staff Alfreda Pidgeon, Ranjit Sandhu, Sharon Sikora, Elizabeth Begley (Albuquerque). Cartoonist Rob Pudim. The Committee for the Scientific Investigation of Claims of the Paranormal Paul Kurtz, Chairman; professor emeritus of philosophy, State University of New York at Buffalo. Barry Karr, Executive Director and Public Relations Director. Lee Nisbet, Special Projects Director. Fellows of the Committee James E. Alcock,* psychologist, York Univ., Toronto; Robert A. Baker, psychologist, Univ. of Kentucky; Stephen Barrett, M.D., psychiatrist, "author, consumer advocate, Allentown, Pa. Barry Beyerstein,* biopsychologist, Simon Fraser Univ., Vancouver, B.C., Canada; Irving Biederman, psychologist, Univ. of Southern California; Susan Blackmore,* psychologist, Univ. of the West of England, Bristol; Henri Broch, physicist, Univ. of Nice, France; Jan Harold Brunvand, folklorist, professor of English, Univ. of Utah; Vern Bullough, Distinguished Professor, State Univ. of New York; Mario Bunge, philosopher, McGill University; John R. Cole, anthropologist, Inst, for the Study of Human Issues; F. H. C. Crick, biophysicist, Salk Inst, for Biological Studies, La Jolla, Calif.; L. Sprague de Camp, author, engineer; Cornelis de lager, professor of astrophysics, Univ. of Utrecht, the Netherlands; Bernard Dixon, science writer, London, U.K.: Paul Edwards, philosopher, Editor, Encyclopedia of Philosophy; Antony Flew, philosopher, Reading Univ., U.K.; Andrew Fraknoi, astronomer. Foothill College, Los Altos Hills, Calif.; Kendrick Frazier,* science writer, Editor, THE SKEPTICAL INQUIRER; Yves Galifret. Exec. Secretary, l'Union Rationaliste; Martin Gardner,* author, critic; Murray Gell-Mann, professor of physics, California Inst. of Technology; Henry Gordon, magician, columnist, Toronto; Stephen Jay Gould, Museum of Comparative Zoology, Harvard Univ.; C. E. M. Hansel, psychologist, Univ. of Wales; AI Hibbs, scientist, Jet Propulsion Laboratory; Douglas Hofstadter, professor of human understanding and cognitive science, Indiana Univ.; Gerald Holton, Mallinckrodt Professor of Physics and Professor of History of Science, Harvard Univ. Ray Hyman,* psycholo­ gist, Univ. of Oregon; Leon Jaroff, sciences editor, Time; Lawrence Jerome, science writer, engineer; Sergei Kapitza, editor, Russian edition, Scientific American; Philip J. Klass,* science writer, engineer; Marvin Kohl, professor of philosophy, SUNY at Fredonia; Edwin C. Krupp, astronomer, director, Griffith Observatory; Paul Kurtz,* chairman, CSICOP; Lawrence Kusche, science writer; Paul MacCready, scientist/ engineer, AeroVironment, Inc., Monrovia, Calif.; David Marks, psychologist, Middlesex Polytech, England; David Morrison, space scientist, NASA Ames Research Center; Richard A. Muller, professor of physics, Univ. of Calif., Berkeley; H. Narasimhaiah, physicist, president, Bangalore Science Forum, India; Dorothy Nelkin, sociologist, Cornell Univ. Joe Nickell,* author, technical writing instructor, Univ. of Kentucky; Lee Nisbet,* philosopher, Medaille College; James E. Oberg, science writer; Loren Pankratz, psychologist, Oregon Health Sciences Univ.; John Paulos, mathematician. Temple Univ.; Mark Plummer, lawyer, Australia; W. V. Quine, philosopher, Harvard Univ.; Milton Rosenberg, psychologist, Univ. of Chicago; Carl Sagan, astronomer, Cornell Univ.; Wallace Sampson, M.D., clinical professor of medicine, Stanford Univ.; Evry Schatzman, President, French Physics Association; Eugenie Scott, physical anthropologist, executive director, National Center for Science Education; Thomas A. Sebeok, anthropologist, linguist, Indiana Univ.; Robert Sheaffer, science writer; Dick Smith, film producer, publisher, Terrey Hills, N.S.W., Australia; Robert Steiner, magician, author. El Cerrito, Calif.; Carol Tavris, psychologist and author, Los Angeles, Calif.; Stephen Toulmin, professor of philosophy. University of Southern California; Marvin Zelen, statistician, Harvard Univ. Lin Zixin, former editor Science and Technology Daily (China). (Affilia­ tions given for identification only.) "Member, CSICOP Executive Council Manuscripts, letters, books for review, and editorial inquiries should be addressed to Kendrick Frazier, Editor, THE SKEPTICAL INQUIRER. 3025 Palo Alto Dr., N.E., Albuquerque, NM 87111. Subscriptions, change of address, and advertising should be addressed to: THE SKEPTICAL INQUIRER, Box 703, Buffalo, NY 14226-0703. Old address as well as new are necessary for change of subscriber's address, with six weeks advance notice. Subscribers to THE SKEPTICAL INQUIRER may not speak on behalf of CSICOP or THE SKEPTICAL INQUIRER. Inquiries from the media and the public about the work of the Committee should be made to Paul Kurtz, Chairman, CSICOP, Box 703, Buffalo, NY 14226-0703. Tel.: (716) 636-1425. FAX: (716)-636-1733. Articles, reports, reviews, and letters published in THE SKEPTICAL INQUIRER represent the views and work of individual authors. Their publication does not necessarily constitute an endorsement by CSICOP or its members unless so stated. THE SKEPTICAL INQUIRER is indexed in the Readers' Guide to Periodical Literature. Copyright *1994 by the Committee for the Scientific Investigation of Claims of the Paranormal, 3965 Rensch Road, Buffalo, NY 14228. All rights reserved. THE SKEPTICAL INQUIRER is available on 16mm microfilm, 35mm microfilm, and 105mm microfiche from University Microfilms International. Subscription Rates: Individuals, libraries, and institutions, $25.00 a year; back issues, $6.25 each. THE SKEPTICAL INQUIRER (ISSN 0194-6730) is published quarterly, Winter, Spring, Summer, and Fall. Printed in Canada. Second-class postage paid at Buffalo, New York, and additional mailing offices. Send changes of address to THE SKEPTICAL INQUIRER, Box 703, Buffalo, NY 14226-0703. SKEPTICAL INQUIRER Vol. 18, No. 2, Winter 1994 | -.• . ••,;,...• .,• - 1 Journal of the Committee for the Scientific Investigation of Claims of the Paranormal I | ARTICLES The New Skepticism Paul Kurtz 134 Philosophy and the Paranormal, Part 1: The Problem of 'Psi' William Grey 142 Electromagnetic Field Cancer Scares Sid Deutsch 152 The Attacks on Role-Playing Games Paul Cardwell, Jr. 157 Global Fortune-Telling and Bible Prophecy Terry Tremaine 166 A Chemikov Pattern Puzzle Clifford A Pickover 170 NEWS AND COMMENT 117 CBS Acknowledges Ark Hoax / Court Raises Standards of Expert Testimony / Astrologer Sues, Loses, Has to Pay / Randi on NOVA, 'Frontline' Exposes FC / The Girl with the X-Ray Eyes / UK Meets on Alternative Medicine J NOTES OF A FRINGE-WATCHER Pealeism and the Paranormal Martin Gardner 126 PSYCHIC VIBRATIONS The Montauk Project and the Delphi Experiments Robert Sheaffer 131 BOOK REVIEWS Paul Kurtz, The New Skepticism: Inquiry and Reliable Knowledge John M. Novak 173 Lewis Wolpert, The Unnatural Nature of Science Terence Hines 179 Underwood Dudley, Mathematical Cranks and A Budget of Trisections Robert L Foote 182 Duane T. Gish, Dinosaurs by Design Daniel J. Phelps 187 Jim Schnabel, Round in Circles- Physicists, Poltergeists, Pranksters and the Secret History of Cropwatchers Robert A Baker 191 Taisha Abdar, The Sorcerers' Crossing Barbara G. Walker 195 ] NEW BOOKS 198 ARTICLES OF NOTE 200 FORUM 202 Being in Philadelphia Ralph Estling Tyrannosaurus Hex Robert J. Park Trying to Understand Traditional Chinese Medicine Peter Huston LETTERS TO THE EDITOR 210 ON THE COVER: Illustration by Bruce Adams after Magritte. The Committee for the Scientific Investigation of Claims of the Paranormal announces the 1994 CSICOP Conference "The Psychology of Belief " at the Doubletree Suites Hotel Seattle Friday, Saturday, and Sunday June 24, 25, and 26 Keynote Address (Friday at 8:00 P.M.) Carl Sagan Friday, June 24 8:00 A.M. - 9:00 A.M.: Registration 9:00 A.M. - 12:00 NOON: THE BELIEF ENGINE: HOW WORLD VIEWS ARE FORMED James Alcock, professor of psychology, Glendon College, York University, Toronto Ray Hyman, professor of psychology, University of Oregon, Eugene Anthony Pratkanis, professor of psychology, University of California, Santa Cruz Other speakers to be announced. 12:45 P.M. - 2:15 P.M.: Luncheon (optional): AN ILLUSTRATED HISTORY OF UFOs James McGaha and Philip J. Klass 2:30 P.M. - 5:30 P.M.: HOW WE FOOL OURSELVES: ANOMALIES OF PERCEPTION AND INTERPRETATION Barry Beyerstein, professor of psychology, Simon Fraser University, Vancouver, B.C. Elizabeth Loftus, professor of psychology, University of Washington, Seattle Other speakers
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