CROP CIRCLES HYPE, HOAXES, AND HOOPLA Mars Effect / Melanin Magic ^t Skeptics Battle Lawsuits 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, Martin Gardner, Ray Hyman, Philip J. Klass, Paul Kurtz. Consulting Editors Isaac Asimov, 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. Art Jacqueline Cooke. Chief Data Officer Richard Seymour. Computer Assistant Michael Gone. Typesetting Paul E. Loynes. Audio Technician Vance Vigrass. Librarian, Ranjit Sandhu. Staff Leland Harrington, Sandra Lesniak, Alfreda Pidgeon, Kathy Reeves, 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 (partial list) James E. Alcock, psychologist, York Univ., Toronto; Isaac Asimov, biochemist, author; Robert A. Baker, psychologist, Univ. of Kentucky; Irving Biederman, psychologist, University of Minnesota; Susan Blackmore, psychologist, Brain Perception Laboratory, University of Bristol, England; Henri Broch, physicist, University of Nice, France; Mario Bunge, philosopher, McGill University; John R. Cole, anthropologist, Institute for the Study of Human Issues; F. H. C. Crick, biophysicist, Salk Institute for Biological Studies, La Jolla, Calif.; L. Sprague de Camp, author, engineer; Cornells de Jager, 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, executive officer, Astronomical Society of the Pacific; editor of Mercury; 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 Institute of Technology; Henry Gordon, magician, columnist, broadcaster, 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 University; Ray Hyman, psychologist, Univ. of Oregon; Leon-Jaroff, sciences editor. Time; Lawrence Jerome, science writer, engineer; 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, Buffalo, N.Y.; 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 University. Joe Nickel), author, technical writing instructor, University of Kentucky; Lee Nisbet, philosopher, Medaille College; James E. Oberg, science writer; John Paulos, mathematician, Temple University; Mark Plummer, lawyer, Australia; W. V. Quine, philosopher, Harvard Univ.; Milton Rosenberg, psychologist. University of Chicago; Carl Sagan, astronomer, Cornell Univ.; Evry Schatz- man, President, French Physics Association; Eugenie Scott, physical anthropologist, executive director, National Center for Science Education, Inc.; Thomas A. Sebeok, anthropologist, linguist, Indiana University; Robert Sheaffer, science writer; Dick Smith, film producer, publisher, Terrey Hills, N.S.W., Australia; Robert Steiner, magician, author, El Cerrito, California; Carol Tavris, psychologist, UCLA; Stephen Toulmin, professor of philosophy. Northwestern Univ.; Marvin Zelen, statistician. Harvard Univ. (Affilia­ tions given for identification only.) 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 *1992 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. Postmaster: THE SKEPTICAL INQUIRER is published quarterly. Winter, Spring, Summer, and Fall. Printed in the U.S.A. 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. 16, No. 2, Winter 1992 ] ISSN 0194-6730 Journal of the Committee for the Scientific Investigation of Claims of the Paranormal FROM THE CHAIRMAN On Being Sued: The Chilling of Freedom of Expression Paul Kurtz 114 ARTICLES The Crop-Circle Phenomenon: An Investigative Report Joe Nickell and John F. Fischer 136 Update on the 'Mars Effect Suttbert&tel 150 A Dissenting Note on Ertel's "Update' Paul Kurtz 161 Magic Melanin: Spreading Scientific Illiteracy Among Minorities: Part II Bernard Ortiz de Montellano 162 Adventures In Science and Cyclosophy Cornells de Jager 167 Searching for Security In the Mystical Martin R. Grimmer 173 NEWS AND COMMENT 120 EuroSkeptlcs 1991 Conference / Cold Fusion Chicken / $565,000 Settlement Against Ferrerl/ Another Job for Pell's Aide / CD Hoax / Another Savvy Stylebook / A Call from Elvis? / No More 666s J NOTES OF A FRINGE-WATCHER Probability Paradoxes Martin Gardner 129 ] PSYCHIC VIBRATIONS Creationists, Cosmologies, and Crashes Robert Sheaffer 133 BOOK REVIEWS Thomas Gilovlch, How We Know What Isn't So: The Fallibility of Human Reasoning In Everyday Life Robert Kinnison 177 Frank Close, Too Hot to Handle Terence Hines 179 James Randi: Psychic Investigator, the TV series and the book Wendy M. Grossman 182 Richard J. Brenneman, Deadly Blessings: Faith Healing on Trial David Lonergan 184 Keith S. Thomson, Living Fossil Paul T. Riddell18 5 1 NEW BOOKS 187 ARTICLES OF NOTE 188 FOLLOW-UP 192 Three-Door- Problem Provokes Letters, Controversy / Mims Responds to Gardner and Gardner Replies FORUM 204 LETTERS TO THE EDITOR 212 CSICOP NEWS 221 Cover photo: Crawley "pictogram" near Salisbury, July 31,1990, courtesy Busty Taylor / Centre for Crop Circle Studies. Cover design by Jacqueline Cooke. From the Chairman On Being Sued: The Chilling of Freedom of Expression PAUL KURTZ t is not often that I agree with Vice- proclaimed "psychic," was entered in President Dan Quayle. His recent 1991 and demands damages of $15 I speech to the American Bar Asso­ million. (An earlier suit by Geller in ciation meeting in Atlanta, however, New York against Randi and CSICOP has made a telling point. For CSICOP was dismissed on a technicality for it and two other organizations with exceeded the statute of limitations— which I am affiliated have been a complaint must be entered no later threatened by at least 19 lawsuits over than one year after an alleged libel the years and are currently actively incident occurs.) involved in four. Mr. Quayle asked, The Byrd and Geller cases have "Does America really need 70 percent received considerable media attention. of the world's lawyers?" And he Many people have asked what deplored the drain on our economy CSICOP's position is regarding these caused by an estimated 18 million new suits. We have been under strict litigation cases every year. Quayle instructions from our attorneys, pointed out "the staggering expense however, to limit our public com­ and delay" that the system caused. He ments. Some people, friends as well focused most directly on the abuse of as critics, have accused CSICOP of discovery, pre-trial interrogatories "abandoning James Randi." Others and depositions, and the dangers of have asked if we are unconcerned that the unbridled punitive damages now free speech is being stifled by such being awarded. suits. Randi has even resigned from At the present time CSICOP is CSICOP in order to protect it from named as codefendant along with further