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Mike Hall

14 Articles
Mike Hall is a software engineer and Doctor Who fan, not in that order. He is the producer and host of the long-running podcast Skeptics with a K, part of the organising committee for the award winning skeptical conference QED, and on the board of the Merseyside Skeptics Society.

Heatfiniti: the physics-defying home heating device scamming worried homeowners

With energy prices rising and many worried consumers unable to heat their homes, products like Heatfiniti look to cash in on the crisis with bogus claims around cost savings

Rather less than more: More or Less misses the mark on placebo effects

In praising the power of the placebo effect, the statistical sleuths at the BBC's More or Less cited small, subjective studies that have failed to replicate

Placebo inhalers can’t treat asthma: another ‘powerful placebo’ myth busted

Patients on placebo inhalers reported that they felt better, even though their lung capacity was objectively the same - this isn't an argument for placebo asthma treatments, but for objective measurements in clinical studies

The idea that four placebo pills are more powerful than two sounds magical – because it isn’t true

The claim that "four placebo pills work better than two placebo pills" is based on a misreading of an outdated study - we need to stop repeating it

Much ado about nothing: evidence of the ‘powerful placebo’ is far from convincing

A look at a paper touting the benefits of placebo for shoulder pain shows ‘powerful placebo’ claims fail to stand up to scrutiny.

No, the COVID-19 app does not share your data with the police

Claims that the official COVID-19 app shares information with the police are simply unfounded, and only undermine test and trace efforts.
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