Weird Earth

July 29, 2019
In this somewhat shallow survey, communication professor Vigil (Moms in Chief: The Rhetoric of Republican Motherhood and the Spouses of Presidential Nominees, 1992–2016) looks at how the two most recent first ladies have handled their unelected, unpaid, and perhaps unchosen position. From their debuts on the campaign trail, through their times in the White House, Vigil dissects the two women’s fashion choices, social media presences, missteps (such as Trump’s “I Really Don’t Care” jacket and Obama’s perceived overstepping of the role’s bounds with the Let’s Move campaign), and parenting decisions. She pays particular attention to how the press and the current era’s focus on social media has challenged the two in ways not seen by previous first ladies and seeks, somewhat unsuccessfully, to demonstrate commonalities between them: for example, she argues they are similar since both rose from lower-middle-class backgrounds to success as, respectively, an attorney and model. While Vigil does offer some nice historical anecdotes about first ladies as far back as Martha Washington, the overall effect is repetitive, and there’s not much new analysis or insight beyond what’s already been covered in the media. It’s not really clear who the audience is for this study.

June 22, 2020
Geologist Prothero (Fantastic Fossils) offers a breath of intellectual fresh air with this amusing look at how to dispel endemic pseudoscience and conspiracy theories through rational thinking. Prothero begins with an explanation of how science evaluates ideas based on evidence and peer review, and notes how believers in conspiracy theories and religious myths like “Young Earth” creationism trust emotions more than facts. Prothero examines an array of bizarre ideas, from the Flat Earth Society and theories that a NASA-Hollywood conspiracy faked the Moon landings, to “water-witching” (or dowsing) and healing crystals. Less-known groups include people who think the Earth is hollow, and Christians Against Dinosaurs, who insist that the field of paleontology, and all of its findings, is a lie created by “Big Paleo” to discredit creationism. As Prothero takes on one crackpot notion after another, his writing is accessible and often wry. With its wide variety of topics and sharp insights, Prothero’s latest delivers something weird for every reader.

July 1, 2020
A veteran scientist disproves a host of outlandish beliefs. In his latest, geologist and paleontologist Prothero attacks many of the avalanche of conspiracy theories, pseudoscientific explanations of natural phenomenon, quack cures, and other mythical doctrines that have existed throughout history but have mushroomed over the past generation with the explosion of the internet and lowbrow journalism. Most readers know that some unscientific beliefs, such as UFOs and creationism, enjoy a mass audience, but the author deliver some jolts--e.g., 6% to 9% of Americans believe the Apollo moon landing might be a hoax (it's 25% in both Britain and Russia). Many people are so gullible that parody internet sites purporting to advance ridiculous beliefs ("Christians Against Dinosaurs") convince many. Prothero also delivers 20 pages of solid evidence that the Earth is not flat, which may be more than most readers require, and he demonstrates that it orbits the sun, is not hollow, and does not harbor advanced civilizations reachable though deep caves, perhaps beneath Mount Shasta in California. Also, Atlantis is a myth, the Earth is older than 6,000 years, bad weather does not predict earthquakes, and Noah's flood cannot explain today's geology. Aware of this pervasive and seemingly unending blather, most readers are unwilling to give themselves an ulcer fending it off--that stress produces ulcers is another myth. Prothero cannot resist, but he is an excellent writer, so readers will learn a great deal of science as well as the history and current status of a staggering number of absurd beliefs. His introduction and conclusion deliver an earnest case for the scientific method, although the best explication remains David Deutsch's The Beginning of Infinity (2011), which dismisses the traditional defense (experiments, logic, impartiality, peer review) in favor of a simpler one: Science provides good explanations, not bad ones. Prothero offers plenty of convincing proof that nonsense is nonsense. (63 b/w illustrations)

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August 1, 2020
In his latest, science teacher and proud skeptic Prothero takes on a raft of pseudo- and anti-scientific beliefs and handily debunks them: flat earth, hollow earth, young earth, geocentrism, moon landing conspiracies, faked fossils, flood myths, Atlantis, dowsing, and more. He briefly describes these schools of thought, where they come from, and summarizes the scientific evidence which shows that these beliefs are incorrect. But he wants to do more than just debunk. He believes scientists need to explain why and how they come to the conclusions they do. He ends most of the chapters with a section called "How We Know," listing all the evidence supporting the relevant scientific conclusions. Also valuable is his introduction, in which he neatly summarizes how science works, how it evaluates evidence, the requirements for peer review and burden-of-proof, and how that process offers trustworthy understanding. Finally, he explores the reasons why some people reject science. Popular trust in science is eroding alongside decreases in scientific literacy; Prothero wants scientists to show their work to help earn that trust back.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2020, American Library Association.)