AUTHOR

David Mountain

3 Articles

David Mountain is a freelance writer based in Edinburgh. He is fascinated by history, science and all things sceptical. He is the author of Past Mistakes: How We Misinterpret History and Why It Matters (Icon, 2020).

https://www.davidmountain.info/

Paranormal

The mystery of the Gedriya: Unexplained lights over the Arabian Desert

David Mountain - 6th October 2021

When a mysterious light appeared over the Hadhramaut desert, Bedouins agreed it must be the Gedriya - said to grant wishes during Ramadan

Cryptozoology

What links the Flatwoods Monster, the Kelly–Hopkinsville alien encounter, and Mothman?

David Mountain - 23rd April 2021

The connection between three legendary paranormal sightings tells us a lot about why we see what isn't there... and miss what's really there

History

Are you smarter than an 800 year-old? Our ancestors were more skeptical than you think

David Mountain - 29th March 2021

As historians continue to deconstruct the myth of the Dark Ages, we shouldn't be so fast to write off the intelligence of our ancestors.

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Moroccan Argan oil is an interesting traditional product, but it’s certainly no panacea

Animals, acupuncture and alt-med: the Brazilian penguin being subjected to Enya

Wim Hof: the self-described ‘Ice man’ whose extreme health claims leave many cold

Menstrual masking: the inadvisable trend of treating acne… with period blood

Floral alchemy: the even stranger Brazilian cousin of Bach Flower Remedies

Moroccan Argan oil is an interesting traditional product, but it’s certainly no panacea

Animals, acupuncture and alt-med: the Brazilian penguin being subjected to Enya

The evidence for pill colour impacting placebo effects gets flimsier the more you examine it

The secret to a year-round tan – eating so many carrots you turn orange?

The real-world harm of nutritional misinformation

From the archive: Many Happy Returns – Are past-life regressions evidence for reincarnation?

From the archives: The Art of Fakery – Fakes and forgeries at the British Museum

From the archives: A skeptical look at astrology

When it comes to science, the standard has to be truth and accuracy – not false balance

From the archives: UFOs Over Russia

Comparing misinformation to a virus is both accurate and useful in preventing its spread

2000 mules: why many Americans are convinced Trump won the 2020 election

Welcome to the modern American Right – the world that high weirdness built

Donald Trump’s debate performance proved he has mainstreamed extreme conspiracy theories

Med Beds: the futuristic health devices promising to cure you with undefined energy

The meaning crisis, and how we rescue young men from reactionary politics

From the archive: Many Happy Returns – Are past-life regressions evidence for reincarnation?

Faking the faking of fake news, 1910 style: the ‘death’ of film star Florence Lawrence

Unborn in the USA: being honest about IUDs could help us fight the anti-abortion movement

Exploding the myth of the longevity “Blue Zones”, where people live beyond the age of 100

Scientific publication is now fully digital – so who is responsible for preserving our archives?

HADD its day: there’s no evidence for an inherited hyperactive agency detection device

Unborn in the USA: being honest about IUDs could help us fight the anti-abortion movement

The evidence for pill colour impacting placebo effects gets flimsier the more you examine it

Comparing misinformation to a virus is both accurate and useful in preventing its spread

David Mountain

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The meaning crisis, and how we rescue young men from reactionary politics

Scientific publication is now fully digital – so who is responsible for preserving our archives?

From the archive: Many Happy Returns – Are past-life regressions evidence for reincarnation?

Moroccan Argan oil is an interesting traditional product, but it’s certainly no panacea

Faking the faking of fake news, 1910 style: the ‘death’ of film star Florence Lawrence

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