the official site of Michael Shermer

top navigation:

News

Michael Shermer’s latest book

The Believing Brain (book cover)

The Believing Brain
From Ghosts and Gods to Politics and Conspiracies—How We Construct Beliefs and Reinforce Them as Truths

A comprehensive theory on how beliefs are born, formed, nourished, reinforced, challenged, changed, and extinguished. This book synthesizes Dr. Shermer’s 30 years of research to answer the questions of how and why we believe what we do in all aspects of our lives, from our suspicions and superstitions to our politics, economics, and social beliefs.
(continue reading…)

Scientific American columns

*

Much Ado about Nothing

Why is there something rather than nothing? This is one of those profound questions that is easy to ask but difficult to answer. In Michael ... (May 1st, 2012)

Climbing Mount Immortality

In Michael Shermer’s April “Skeptic” column for Scientific American, he discusses what philosopher Stephen Cave calls the ... (April 1st, 2012)

Opting Out of Overoptimism

In Michael Shermer’s March “Skeptic” column for Scientific American, he discusses what psychologist Daniel Kahneman calls ... (March 1st, 2012)

reviews by Michael Shermer

*

As Far As Her Eyes Can See

Michael Shermer reviews Lisa Randall’s Knocking on Heaven’s Door: How Physics and Scientific Thinking Illuminate the Universe and the ... (December 1st, 2011)

Faith Healing

A torrid tale of quackbusting in 1920s America sheds light on modern medical scares A review of Pope Brock’s Charlatan. America’s Most ... (February 1st, 2008)

The Einstein Enigma

A review of Walter Isaacson’s Einstein: His Life and Universe. In the final weeks of his life Albert Einstein learned of the death of his old ... (May 7th, 2007)

multimedia appearances

Shermer in the 'God Helmet'

Are Religious People Healthier?

Michael Shermer on MSNBC's Dylan Ratigan Show on religion, health, happiness, longevity, & self control… (May 14th, 2012)

Singularity 101: Be Skeptical! (Even of Skeptics)

Michael Shermer is interviewed on Singularity 1 on 1 about his Christian education, his eventual transition to atheism, skepticism, science and the ... (January 18th, 2012)

Life has Never Been So Good?

Michael Shermer appears on MSNBC’s Dylan Ratigan show to discuss why life is so much better now than in any other time in history. (January 18th, 2012)

Shermer on SkepticBlog

+

“The Medieval Warm Period was just as warm”—NOT!

Climate-change deniers often claim that "The Medieval Warm Period was just as warm as we see now, and it eventually cooled down again, so our ... (May 16th, 2012)

Ghost Box

The subculture of pseudoscientific ghost hunting continues to evolve. Have you heard of a “ghost box?” It seems all you have to do is put ... (May 14th, 2012)

The “Tornado in a Junkyard” fallacy

Ever hear a creationist argue that "evolution by random chance is impossible" or that "the probability that all these complex systems will assemble ... (May 9th, 2012)

Debunking Expelled

Debunking Expelled

Anti-science propaganda: how Ben Stein’s new ‘documentary’ film entitled Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed equates evolution with Nazism. Was anyone really fired for their belief in Intelligent Design? Read these four articles and listen to the Skepticality podcast to find out!

Listen to the following Skepticality episodes that deal with the subject.

essays

+

Does Belief Help Us to Survive?

I don’t think religious beliefs are different from any other kind of beliefs: political attitudes, commitments to political parties, or economic ... (August 10th, 2009)

Confessions of a Former Environmental Skeptic

In his 1964 Republican presidential nomination acceptance speech Barry Goldwater gave voice to one of the most memorable one-liners in political ... (April 15th, 2008)

Scientology, Anonymous

Imagine reading the following press release: Hello, Jews. We are anonymous. Over the years, we have been watching you. Your campaigns of ... (February 18th, 2008)

Tweets from Shermer

Recommended…

get eSkeptic

eSkeptic logo

eSkeptic is Skeptic’s FREE weekly email newsletter, edited by Michael Shermer.

Facebook logo (copyright Facebook Inc.)

RSS feed

RSS icon

For the latest additions to this site…

skepticism 101

Michael Shermer on TEDTalks

The Power of Belief

In this 14-minute introduction to skepticism from the remarkable TED conference, Dr. Michael Shermer discusses the power of belief systems.

Skeptic magazine & Skeptic.com

Skeptic magazine

Dr. Michael Shermer is the founding Publisher of Skeptic magazine and Skeptic.com, a scientific and educational outreach for scholars, scientists, historians, and professors dedicated to exploring the facts surrounding controversial ideas and extraordinary claims.

Latest additions to Skeptic.com:

Ads that look as fake as the real fakes! Massachusetts warns consumers.

Massachusetts Creates Fake Scam Websites To Warn People Of Real Scam Websites – The Consumerist. Make a ton of money working from home! Lose ... (May 16th, 2012)

Skechers settles deceptive claims charge for $40 Million over toning shoes

Skechers Will Pay $40 Million to Settle FTC Charges That It Deceived Consumers with Ads for “Toning Shoes”. The Federal Trade Commission ... (May 16th, 2012)

1200 year old Peruvian skulls found buried in Florida backyard

Skulls Found in Florida Backyard From Peru Date Back to 1200 – ABC News. The two skulls, of a 10-year-old boy and older man, date to 1200 to ... (May 16th, 2012)