Vivat Libertas

I'm a science lover and a bit of a sceptic - I question everything and I am open to all, if I can find the facts and/or verify how much bollocks is being spouted. I resist the commodification of science, I resist the demonisation of science, and most of all I resist people trying to figure out my political beliefs from my support of science (right now it's not important, but as anyone who reads this blog or talks to me on Twitter will know, I'm a raging lefty). Supporting science doesn't make me a corporate shill, an evil megalomaniac, or an ineffective centrist. It doesn't make me anything, except possibly geeky - and I revel in that. Anyway, what was I going to blog about?...Ah, yes, pseudoscience. Its practitioners put on vaguely scientific airs and graces while spewing nonsense, completely misunderstanding good scientific practice (and indeed good science itself) so that they can push products and misguided ideas. It's not really that fun arguing with them...

Shockingly, yes, there are some people who still believe in it. And yes, it does still pop up on Google. Take this , for example. It badly needs riffing, and I shall provide, because the fact that people believe in this woo pisses me off badly. Law of Attraction  doesn’t work for most people for the same reason prayer doesn’t for its practitioners. Because it's not remotely scientific or tied to reality? The former, just as the latter, is based on an assumption that the universe, or God, is benevolent and generous. The Law of Attraction or, as it is known in the Bible, the Law of Believing and, sometimes, the Law of Asking and Receiving, all refer to the same law. In fact, you can find some form of this law described in virtually every culture and religion. The Law of Attraction has its roots in  quantum physics .  Um, no, it doesn't, as you would know if you followed the link or had even basic (for which read pop-science) knowledge of quantum physics. The LoA has...