Religion

Ho Ho Holy Man? Why Santa technically doesn’t quite count as a god

Kat Ford - 23rd December 2024

Steeped in ritual, with an almost-omniscient knowledge of children's morality and sleeping habits, should Santa be considered a god?

Religion

March for Life: The UK’s anti-abortion movement is becoming more organised and emboldened

Abigail Kennedy - 7th October 2024

March for Life UK's pro-health summit showcased the full range of judgmental anti-choice rhetoric on abortion, IVF, and assisted dying

Placebo Effect

Religion is simply a powerful placebo – offering priests a sense of ritual, but little else

Colin Brewer - 23rd September 2024

Theatrical but ultimately ineffective, religion may be the ultimate placebo effect - as 17th Century priest Jean Meslier realised 300 years ago

From the archives: The Moses Barrier – the paranormal takes over where religion left off

Lewis Jones - 17th September 2024

From the archives in 1990, Lewis Jones looks at where religion ends and where pseudoscience and the paranormal take over

Moral Panics

The wealthy, conservative American Christian groups pushing anti-abortion protests in the UK

Michael Marshall - 9th September 2024

"Woman arrested for praying" is the latest in a string of legal cases used by US conservative Christian organisations to fight against progress in the UK

History

The 2024 Olympics ceremony raises the spectre of pagan influence on the origins of Christianity

Gabriel Andrade - 7th August 2024

Christians offended by their misinterpretation of the Olympics opening ceremony are clearly ignorant of the pagan influences on their religion

Politics

Donald Trump’s survival was no miracle – unlikely things happen, without supernatural interference

Gabriel Andrade - 22nd July 2024

Donald Trump's supporters have attributed his failed assassination attempt to a miracle, to bolster the claims that he's a candidate chosen by God

From the archive: Explaining the Turin Shroud – the creation of a religious hoax

Steve Donnelly - 9th July 2024

From the archives in 1988, Steve Donnelly interviews Joe Nickel on the Turin Shroud and how the hoax was created

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Lemme Purr: the celebrity-backed wellness gummies trading on intimate insecurities

First do no harm? Treatments don’t need to be harmless, as long they do good

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

Does pill packet branding change the placebo response, or is this just another placebo myth?

Studying the promotion of health misinformation by the Bolsonaro government

It’s far to soon too tell patients platelet-rich plasma injections can treat infertility

First do no harm? Treatments don’t need to be harmless, as long they do good

Pacemakers don’t work when they’re switched off – we should doubt studies that say otherwise

From the archive: The man who invented the flying saucer

From the archive: Memory, fantasy and past lives – reflections on past life regressions

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

Left-wing conspiracy theories and ‘missing’ votes in the wake of Trump’s election win

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

Ho Ho Holy Man? Why Santa technically doesn’t quite count as a god

Spotify Trapped? The algorithm is not what’s keeping you from new music

From the archive: A former Scientologist explains what the cult is all about

Huge social media accounts glorify ancient architecture, while whitewashing the past

From the archive: The man who invented the flying saucer

Will we soon face AI-related risks? Maybe, but they are probably overestimated

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

Religion

Latest news

Ho Ho Holy Man? Why Santa technically doesn’t quite count as a god

Spotify Trapped? The algorithm is not what’s keeping you from new music

Lemme Purr: the celebrity-backed wellness gummies trading on intimate insecurities

From the archive: A former Scientologist explains what the cult is all about

Does pill packet branding change the placebo response, or is this just another placebo myth?

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