Example of Junk Science?

Question

I have a homework question that asks me to find an example of junk science and explain why it is junk science. I'm having trouble finding an example of junk science. It cannot be related to global warming, greenhouse effect, or DDT. Can someone please show me an actual article full of junk science, or a product webpage that shows that the product is backed by junk science? Please don't just name something; I need an actual source.

Answer 1

Junk Science is usually a form or scientific research used to prove something is true when it isn’t.

Magnetic Therapy has no science to back it, yet lots of people swear by it.

According to Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magnet_therapy
“Magnet therapy, or magnetic therapy, or magnotherapy is a form of alternative medicine involving magnetic fields. Proponents claim that subjecting certain parts of the body to doses of magnetic fields has a beneficial effect. This belief has led to the popularization of an industry involving the sale of magnetic-based products for "healing" purposes: magnetic bracelets and jewelry; magnetic straps for wrists, ankles, and the back; shoe insoles, mattresses, and magnetic blankets (blankets with magnets woven into the material); and even water that has been "magnetized". The therapy is generally considered pseudoscientific by the mainstream scientific community, and marketing of the therapy as an effective treatment is heavily restricted by law in many jurisdictions, including the United States.

Magnet therapy makes use of the static magnetic fields produced by permanent magnets; the related alternate medicine field of electromagnetic therapy involves the application of electromagnetic waves to the patient.”

The problem is that MRIs don’t affect people and the fields generated in those machines .

According to Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MRI
“Permanent magnet: Conventional magnets made from ferromagnetic materials (e.g., steel) can be used to provide the static magnetic field. These are extremely bulky (the magnet can weigh in excess of 100 tonnes), but once installed require little costly maintenance. Permanent magnets can only achieve limited field strength (usually < 0.4 T) and have limited stability and precision. There are also potential safety issues, as the magnetic field cannot be removed in case of entrapment.

Magnetic field strength is an important factor determining image quality. Higher magnetic fields increase signal-to-noise ratio, permitting higher resolution or faster scanning. However, higher field strengths require more costly magnets with higher maintenance costs, and have increased safety concerns. 1.0 - 1.5 T field strengths are a good compromise between cost and performance for general medical use. However, for certain specialist uses (e.g., brain imaging), field strengths up to 3.0T may be desirable.”

T stands for Tesla the unit of measurement of magnetic field strength (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tesla_%28unit%29).

So if an MRI is so powerful that it can pull an item of metal from a dozen feet away has little effect on a human than how will wearing a few magnets with 1/100th of that power or less have an effect on a human? Don’t forget we have technicians operating these machines for 8 hours a day for years and yet none of them have reported any good or bad effects from being that close to such strong magnetic fields.

According to: The Skeptics Dictionary http://skepdic.com/magnetic.html
“I know of no scientist who takes this claim seriously...It's another fad. They come and go like copper bracelets and crystals and all of these things, and this one will pass too." --Robert Park of the American Physical Society.

"Iron atoms in a magnet are crammed together in a solid state about one atom apart from one another. In your blood only four iron atoms are allocated to each hemoglobin molecule, and they are separated by distances too great to form a magnet. This is easily tested by pricking your finger and placing a drop of your blood next to a magnet. " --Michael Shermer*

"The more extreme claims of magnetic therapy, such as curing cancer by hanging supermagnets around your neck, are not only nonsense but also dangerous, since they may divert patients from seeking appropriate treatment from mainstream medicine. Magnetic jewelry and most other magnetic-therapy products probably are harmless beyond a waste of money." --James D. Livingston*”

However here is a therapist who will offer your treatment: http://www.maryjanehooper.com/
Nature’s Miracle Cure: http://stores.naturesmiraclecures.com/Detail.bok?no=17 Will over testimonials as well as sell you the bracelets.
This company will sell you the products as well: http://www.magnetsandhealth.com/?engine=adwords!1895&keyword=%28magnet+therapy%29&match_type=&gclid=CIHp3LnOso4CFVB1OAodfC7PxQ

According to the Learning Center: http://www.therionresearch.com/learning_center_articles.html
Magnetic Therapy in the News
UK Healthcare Approves Magnets to Treat Leg Ulcers (http://www.therionresearch.com/learning_center_articles.html#UK_APPROVES_MAGNETS)
Complementary Therapy For Stage II Breast Cancer (http://www.therionresearch.com/learning_center_articles.html#CANCER)
Magnetic Therapy - Good For Your Patients - Great For Your Practice (http://www.therionresearch.com/learning_center_articles.html#NEW_LIVING)
Magnets May Help in Chemotherapy (http://www.therionresearch.com/learning_center_articles.html#CHEMO)

This site seems to have a lot of “proof” that magnets work to heal people.

Read this webpage: http://www.worldofmagnets.co.uk/
For a doctor who recommends using magnets:
“From Dee Parsons RN, Dip MC(MT)
Pain Nurse Specialist/
Magnetic Therapist
Tuesday 27.06.07

Dear Pain Sufferer,
If you've heard about the benefits of magnetic therapy, wearing magnetic bracelets, sleeping on a magnetic mattress pad or drinking magnetised water, but you're sceptical or unsure, or are simply looking for more information, you've come to right place.
Because while yes, there ARE proven health benefits to using magnet therapy to relieve pain from a number of illnesses including Arthritis, Back Pain, Fibromyalgia and Spondylosis, there are also a lot of scams that you need to be aware of...
What Is Magnetic Therapy
Science has discovered that a magnetic field over and around a point of pain increases blood flow in the affected area.
This increased blood flow carries with it greater quantities of oxygen, vital nutrients, and especially endorphins which relieve and soon remove and alleviate the pain. “

I am not likely to believe in magnetic therapy as actually having an effect. Why hasn’t anyone tried creating a huge electro magnet room of a strength measured in dozens of tesla? Then we could put people inside them and cure them of strange diseases. Oh if it would only work, as a chronic pain sufferer I wish it would. But, if it did then the magnetic field generated by my TV or my computer monitor would have had an effect on me. Still it doesn’t stop people from trying to pull scams on the public.

The most famous example of junk science is when scientists actually said that smoking tobacco was healthy and could improve your health. It took years to debunk those scientists and prove the true dangers of tobacco. Now no self-respecting scientist will make any beneficial claims about the use of tobacco.

Chinese herbal medicine may be effective for some people, but there is no way powdered horn from a rhino, which is the same stuff as in fingernail clippings, will help a man with erectile dysfunction. I have tried acupuncture for pain relief and it may have helped a little, but not much. However, there are reported cases of people being cut open and operated on with only acupuncture for pain relief. The mind is a powerful one and it is possible to fool it into believing quite a lot. There is a famous case of a man who was given only 6 months to live, yet through the power of laughter he turned it into 6 years.

Answer 2

Creation science is not junk science. It is the science that is based upon the paradigm of creationism. Evolutionism is also a paradigm. Therefore, the creation/evolution debates are about conflicting paradigms, not science. In Galileo's time the geocentric and heliocentric paradigms were slugging it out. The Catholic church merely accepted what the professors were saying about the universe and tried to fit it into Scripture. Just like the movement of planets was a hot topic back then, the origin of the universe is a hot topic now. Tempers flare on both sides. That is why I am not surprised when I see people posting that "creation science is junk science."

Good examples of junk science:
phrenology
__________ - therapy (some of these therapeutic ideas are just plain crazy)

Answer 3

I agree strongly with creation "science". I wish I had more than one thumbs-up to give the person who suggested it.

How about Moon hoax believers...you know, those people who think that American astronauts never landed on the Moon, and that the entire thing was filmed on a sound stage? You can read a thorough debunking of their "evidence" at any of the following linked sites:

http://www.badastronomy.com/bad/tv/foxapollo.html
http://www.braeunig.us/space/hoax.htm
http://www.thekeyboard.org.uk/Did%20we%20land%20on%20the%20Moon.htm

Answer 4

Creationist science is junk science. Quite easy to prove there is no science there.Genesis tells us flowering treees were in existence before animals, which is false.

Go to Answersingenesis.com or a slew of of Creationists websites and you'll see all the junk science you can handle.