- Skeptic (U.S. magazine)
Infobox Magazine
title = Skeptic
image_size = 200px
image_caption = Premiere issue of "Skeptic",
featuring tribute toIsaac Asimov .
editor =Michael Shermer ,Ph.D.
editor_title = Editor-in-Chief
frequency =
circulation = 50,000
category =Science magazine
company =Millennium Press
publisher =The Skeptics Society
firstdate = Spring 1992
country = Flag|USA
language = English
website = [http://www.skeptic.com/ www.skeptic.com]
issn = 1063-9330"Skeptic" is a quarterly science education and science advocacy magazine published internationally by
The Skeptics Society , anonprofit organization devoted to promotingscientific skepticism and resisting the spread ofpseudoscience ,superstition , and irrational beliefs. Founded by Skeptics Society founderMichael Shermer , the magazine was first published in the spring of 1992, and is published through Millennium Press.Shermer remains the Publisher and
Editor-in-Chief of the magazine and the magazine’s Co-publisher andArt Director is Pat Linse.cite news | url=http://www.skeptic.com/the_magazine/contribute.html | title=Guidelines for contributors | publisher= "Skeptic" |year= 2008 | first= | last= | accessdate =2008-10-17] Other noteworthy members of its editorial board includeOxford University evolutionary biologistRichard Dawkins ,Pulitzer Prize -winning scientistJared Diamond , magician andescape artist -turned educator James “The Amazing” Randi, and actor, comedian, and "Saturday Night Live " alumnaJulia Sweeney ."Skeptic" has a circulation of 50,000 with availability by subscription or on major newsstands in the U.S. and Canada as well as Europe, Australia, and other foreign countries. [cite news | url=http://www.vueweekly.com/article.php?id=9429 | title=Making a living of bullshit detecting | publisher=
VUE Weekly |date=Aug 27, 2008 | first= | last= | accessdate =2008-10-10 ]History, format and structure
The cover story of the magazine’s very first issue was a tribute to
scientist andscience fiction writerIsaac Asimov . [https://www.skeptic.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Session_ID=17bff9925fe9f38dfdd933f5470bd5ea&Screen=PROD&Store_Code=SS&Product_Code=magv01n1&Category_Code=BIA] Therobot on the cover of volume 12, #2 (2006) is depicted sitting on a park bench reading that issue. [https://www.skeptic.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Session_ID=17bff9925fe9f38dfdd933f5470bd5ea&Screen=PROD&Store_Code=SS&Product_Code=magv12n2&Category_Code=BIF] (Asimov wrote a number of stories featuring robots and coined the termrobotics .)The Skeptics Society
Every issue of the magazine opens with a description of The Skeptics Society and its mission statement, which is to explore subjects such as
creationism ,pyramid power ,Bigfoot , pseudohistorical claims (as in the examples ofHolocaust denial and extremeAfrocentrism ), the use or misuse of theory and statistics,conspiracy theories ,urban myths ,witch hunt s,mass hysterias ,genius andintelligence , and cultural influences on science, as well as controversies involvingprotoscience s at the leading edge of established science, and evenfads likecryonics andlow-carb diet s. In addition to publishing the magazine, the Society also sponsors lecture series at theCalifornia Institute of Technology , produces and sells tapes of the lectures, as well as other books on pertinent subjects, holds field trips to investigate and research such subjects, conducts social events to promote good-will, and provides resources for the public and the media, with which they may approach controversial subjects from a skeptical viewpoint.Typical topics
The first text piece in each issue is an
editorial byJames Randi , often made in reaction to stories from the mainstream news media, such as the 2005 story by the ABCnewsmagazine "Primetime Live " on aBrazil ianfaith healer , João Teixeira. Other times he will examine other topics that he has investigated in the past, such as allegeddowser s, [http://www.skeptics.com.au/articles/divining.htm] [http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=7461912885649996034] allegedpsychic s likeSylvia Browne , UFOs, etc.The magazine also features a large correspondence section called "Forum", that includes not only letters from lay readers, but also in-depth comments and rebuttals from professionals for extended academic debate across issues from past editions.
The bulk of the magazine is devoted to a variety of topics. Its cover stories have ranged from examination of alleged
UFO s inreligious icons [https://www.skeptic.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Session_ID=17bff9925fe9f38dfdd933f5470bd5ea&Screen=PROD&Store_Code=SS&Product_Code=magv10n4&Category_Code=BIE volume 10] and theories of the likelihood ofartificial intelligence [https://www.skeptic.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Session_ID=17bff9925fe9f38dfdd933f5470bd5ea&Screen=PROD&Store_Code=SS&Product_Code=magv12n2&Category_Code=BIF] to tributes to luminaries such asIsaac Asimov [https://www.skeptic.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Session_ID=17bff9925fe9f38dfdd933f5470bd5ea&Screen=PROD&Store_Code=SS&Product_Code=magv01n1&Category_Code=BIA] andErnst Mayr . [https://www.skeptic.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Session_ID=17bff9925fe9f38dfdd933f5470bd5ea&Screen=PROD&Store_Code=SS&Product_Code=magv11n4&Category_Code=BIF] Some editions feature special sections devoted to a particular topic or theme that is examined through multiple articles by different authors, such asIntelligent design , a frequently recurring topic in the magazine, given the ongoingcreation vs. evolution controversy .The magazine’s page count varies from 104 – 114 pages.
"Junior Skeptic"
Bound into most issues is also a 10-page young readers section called "
Junior Skeptic ". Heralded by a cover printed on glossy paper (the rest of the magazine is printed on non-glossy stock), "Junior Skeptic" focuses on one topic, or practical instruction that is written and illustrated in a style more appealing to children.Daniel Loxton is the Editor of "Junior Skeptic". He writes and illustrates most issues.The first edition of "Junior Skeptic" appeared "Skeptic" in volume 6, #2 of "Skeptic" (2000).
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Emily Rosa vsTherapeutic Touch ( [http://www.skeptic.com/the_magazine/archives/vol06n02.html volume 6, #2] )
#Bigfoot ( [http://www.skeptic.com/the_magazine/archives/vol06n03.html volume 6, #3] )
#Aliens Among Us? ( [http://www.skeptic.com/the_magazine/archives/vol06n04.html volume 6, #4] )
#Fortune telling ( [http://www.skeptic.com/the_magazine/archives/vol07n01.html volume 7, #1] )
#Urban legends ( [http://www.skeptic.com/the_magazine/archives/vol07n02.html volume 7, #2] )
#Halloween ( [http://www.skeptic.com/the_magazine/archives/vol07n03.html volume 7, #3] )
#Televisionpsychics ( [http://www.skeptic.com/the_magazine/archives/vol07n04.html volume 7, #4] )
#Charles Darwin ( [http://www.skeptic.com/the_magazine/archives/vol08n01.html volume 8, #1] )
#Pyramids ( [http://www.skeptic.com/the_magazine/archives/vol08n02.html volume 8, #2] )
#Atlantis ( [http://www.skeptic.com/the_magazine/archives/vol08n04.html volume 8, #4] )
#Moon landing hoax ( [http://www.skeptic.com/the_magazine/archives/vol09n01.html volume 9, #1] )
#Magician’s Force (Magic instruction by magician Bob Friedhoffer.) ( [http://www.skeptic.com/the_magazine/archives/vol09n02.html volume 9, #2] )
# ( [http://www.skeptic.com/the_magazine/archives/vol09n03.html volume 9, #3] )
#Sea monsters ( [http://www.skeptic.com/the_magazine/archives/vol09n04.html volume 9, #4] )
#Extraterrestrial life ( [http://www.skeptic.com/the_magazine/archives/vol10n01.html volume 10, #1] )
#Yeti ( [http://www.skeptic.com/the_magazine/archives/vol10n02.html volume 10, #2] )
#Bermuda Triangle ( [http://www.skeptic.com/the_magazine/archives/vol10n03.html volume 10, #3] )
#King Tut’s Curse ( [http://www.skeptic.com/the_magazine/archives/vol10n04.html volume 10, #4] )
#Loch Ness Monster ( [http://www.skeptic.com/the_magazine/archives/vol11n01.html volume 11, #1] )
#Sasquatch Part 1 of 2 ( [http://www.skeptic.com/the_magazine/archives/vol11n02.html volume 11, #2] )
#Sasquatch Part 2 of 2 ( [http://www.skeptic.com/the_magazine/archives/vol11n03.html volume 11, #3] )
#Madman of Magic ( [http://www.skeptic.com/the_magazine/archives/vol11n04.html volume 11, #4] )
#Pyramid power ( [http://www.skeptic.com/the_magazine/archives/vol12n02.html volume 12, #2] )
#Alien abduction Part 1 ( [http://www.skeptic.com/the_magazine/archives/vol12n03.html volume 12, #3] )
#Alien Abduction Part 2 ( [http://www.skeptic.com/the_magazine/archives/vol12n04.html volume 12, #4] )
#Evolution Part 1 ( [http://www.skeptic.com/the_magazine/archives/vol13n01.html volume 13, #1] )
#Evolution Part 2 ( [http://www.skeptic.com/the_magazine/archives/vol13n02.html volume 13, #2] )
#Ancientastronauts Part 1 ( [http://www.skeptic.com/the_magazine/archives/vol13n03.html volume 13, #3] )
#Ancient astronauts Part 2 ( [http://www.skeptic.com/the_magazine/archives/vol13n04.html volume 13, #4] )
#Dragons ( [http://www.skeptic.com/the_magazine/archives/vol14n01.html volume 14, #1] )
#Crystal skulls ( [http://www.skeptic.com/the_magazine/archives/vol14n02.html volume 14, #2] )Official podcast
In 2006, an independent, apparently defunct skeptical talk program called "Skepticality" was relaunched as "". New episodes of the show are released on a biweekly basis. The show is produced by the original, continuing show hosts, in collaboration with staff of "Skeptic" magazine. [cite news | url=http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/tv_and_radio/article4470372.ece | title=Podcast of the week: Skepticality offers the 'truth' | publisher=
The Times |date=August 9th, 2008 | first= | last= | accessdate =2008-10-10 ]Collections
* "Paranormal Claims: A Critical Analysis", 2007, edited by Bryan Farha,
University Press of America , ISBN 978-0-7618-3772-5. Several of the chapters are reprints of "Skeptic" articles.References
External links
* [http://www.skeptic.com/the_magazine/ Skeptic Magazine's Official site]
* [http://www.skeptic.com/ The Skeptics Society's Official site]
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