Table of Contents

    • Foreword: The Positive Power of Skepticism   
    • Introduction to the Paperback Edition   
    • Prologue: Next on Oprah    1
    Pt. 1    Science and Skepticism    11
    • 1    I Am Therefore I Think: A Skeptic's Manifesto    13
    • 2    The Most Precious Thing We Have: The Difference Between Science and Pseudoscience    24
    • 3    How Thinking Goes Wrong: Twenty-five Fallacies That Lead Us to Believe Weird Things    44
    Pt. 2    Pseudoscience and Superstition    63
    • 4    Deviations: The Normal, the Paranormal, and Edgar Cayce    65
    • 5    Through the Invisible: Near-Death Experiences and the Quest for Immortality    73
    • 6    Abducted!: Encounters with Aliens    88
    • 7    Epidemics of Accusations: Medieval and Modern Witch Crazes    99
    • 8    The Unlikeliest Cult: Ayn Rand, Objectivism, and the Cult of Personality    114
    Pt. 3    Evolution and Creationism    125
    • 9    In the Beginning: An Evening with Duane T. Gish    127
    • 10    Confronting Creationists: Twenty-five Creationist Arguments, Twenty-five Evolutionist Answers    137
    • 11    Science Defended, Science Defined: Evolution and Creationism at the Supreme Court    154
    Pt. 4    History and Pseudohistory    173
    • 12    Doing Donahue: History, Censorship, and Free Speech    175
    • 13    Who Says the Holocaust Never Happened, and Why Do They Say It?: An Overview of a Movement    188
    • 14    How We Know the Holocaust Happened: Debunking the Deniers    211
    • 15    Pigeonholes and Continuums: An African-Greek-German-American Looks at Race    242
    Pt. 5    Hope Springs Eternal    253
    • 16    Dr. Tipler Meets Dr. Pangloss: Can Science Find the Best of All Possible Worlds?    255
    • 17    Why Do People Believe Weird Things?    273
    • 18    Why Smart People Believe Weird Things    279
    • Bibliography    315
    • Index    333