Committee for Skeptical Inquiry

[SkeptInq@aol.com]

 CSICOP in the NEWS
 April 6, 2000

 MARCH 25, 2000: ROBERT PARK AT THE CENTER FOR INQUIRY-INTERNATIONAL

 On Saturday, March 25, Bob Park came to Amherst, NY to diagnose the anemic
evidence for alternative medical treatments like homeopathy and magnet
therapy. Park is a professor of physics at the University of Maryland and
director of the American Physical Society's Office of Public Affairs in
Washington, DC. Park also writes the online newsletter "What's New," at
www.aps.org/wn.

 Gerry Rising, who writes the weekly "Nature Watch" column that appears
Mondays in The Buffalo News, devoted two columns to Bob Park and his visit to
the Center for Inquiry. The Monday prior to Park's visit Rising recounted the
story of "Vitamin O." The manufacturer made a cool bundle on health-conscious
(and scientifically unconscious) consumers who paid a hefty 20 dollars for a
2-ounce vial of salt water. They apparently didn't understand the meaning of
"stabilized oxygen molecules in a solution of distilled water and sodium
chloride." Park's efforts precipitated a Federal Trade Commission
investigation, and the shutdown of the manufacturer.

 The Monday after Park's visit, Rising wrote about Park's discussion of
"succussion" and other shaky claims of homeopathic remedies. As Rising put
it: "Another case of voodoo science good only for April fools." The tap water
even tastes a little smarter here in Buffalo thanks to Park and Rising.

 CSICOP AND SKEPTICAL INQUIRER "IN THE MIX"

 CSICOP and SI received a flattering mention in Newsday's "In the Mix" column
by Jamie Talan. (March 21, 2000, NYC Metro) I quote: "People interested in
the pursuit of fact over fiction need to check out a terrific bimonthly
magazine on the paranormal, The Skeptical Inquirer. In the latest issue, it
asks: Do more people die in the United States each year from falling airplane
parts or from shark attacks? The story is about how media focuses our
perceptions on danger and its risks to our health. (The answer is falling
airplane parts.) Visit the Web site at www.csicop.org."

ASK MARILYN: ASK THE SKEPTICAL INQUIRER

In the April 2, 2000 issue of Parade Magazine's "Ask Marilyn" column, a
reader from New York, NY asks: "How come we only use a small percentage of
our brains?" For the answer, Marilyn relies on SI's own Benjamin Radford. She
replies, "Benjamin Radford, writing for the Skeptical Inquirer, sums it up
very well: 'Have you ever heard  a doctor say, '...but luckily, when that
bullet entered his skull, it only damaged the 90% of his brain he didn't
use'? Of course not.'"

 ANNOUNCING THE FIRST ANNUAL "CITIZEN SANE AWARD"

 Some of the kookiest ideas in print come from "Letters to the Editor."
That's why CSICOP would like to thank (and encourage) our skeptical friends
who take the time to communicate a few words of sanity to the paper and
magazine editors of America (and the world).

 Send us your published letters to the editor and the CSICOP staff will vote
on which of you most richly deserves the title "Citizen Sane."

 The "Citizen Sane" award winner (and the award) will be announced on July
5th, 2000: just in time to celebrate the skeptical public's patriotic duty to
educate the rest of the public. The winner will receive an Orson Wells film
classic TBD on VHS.

 Those interested in submitting their published letters to the editor should
send it to:

 CSICOP
 ATTN: Kevin Christopher
 P.O. Box 703
 Amherst, NY 14226

 NOTE: Entries must be related to issues of the paranormal and pseudoscience
or the shoddy representation of science in the media!