Why People Believe Weird Things: Pseudoscience, Superstition, and Other Confusions of Our Time [Paperback]

This sparkling book romps over the range of science and anti-science. --Jared Diamond, author ofGuns, Germs, and Steel

Revised and Expanded Edition.

In this age of supposed scientific enlightenment, many people still believe in mind reading, past-life regression theory, New Age hokum, and alien abduction. A no-holds-barred assault on popular superstitions and prejudices, with more than 80,000 copies in print,Why People Believe Weird Thingsdebunks these nonsensical claims and explores the very human reasons people find otherworldly phenomena, conspiracy theories, and cults so appealing. In an entirely new chapter, WhySmartPeople Believe in Weird Things, Michael Shermer takes on science luminaries like physicist Frank Tippler and others, who hide their spiritual beliefs behind the trappings of science.

Shermer, science historian and true crusader, also reveals the more dangerous side of such illogical thinking, including Holocaust denial, the recovered-memory movement, the satanic ritual abuse scare, and other modern crazes.Why People Believe Strange Thingsis an eye-opening resource for the most gullible among us and those who want to protect them.

Michael Shermeris the author ofThe Believing Brain,Why People Believe Weird Things,The Science of Good and Evil,The Mind Of The Market,Why Darwin Matters,Science Friction,How We Believeand other books on the evolution of human beliefs and behavior. He is the founding publisher ofSkepticmagazine, the editor of Skeptic.com, a monthly columnist forScientific American, and an adjunct professor at Claremont Graduate University. He lives in Southern California.

This sparkling book romps over the range of science and anti-science. Jared Diamond, author of Guns, Germs, and Steel

Splendid. Vanity Fair