the official site of Michael Shermer

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)

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)

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)

Baseball Players and Handedness

This week’s Skeptoid episode is about left-handedness. Not about the popular anecdotes you can read on any web site, but about the deeper ... (May 17th, 2012)

“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)

Atheist Nation

Where in the world are the atheists? That is, in what part of the globe will one find the most people who do not believe in God? In this week's ... (May 8th, 2012)

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)

Why People Don’t Trust Free Markets

The new science of evolutionary economics offers an explanation for capitalism skepticism In his magnum opus on the power of free markets, Human ... (January 29th, 2008)

Why We Should Trade with Cuba

The new science of neuroeconomics offers new insights into old political problems The 19th-century French economist Frederic Bastiat expressed a ... (January 23rd, 2008)