Astronomical Pseudo-Science: A Skeptic's Resource List

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Website Detail Page

written by Andrew Fraknoi
published by the Astronomical Society of the Pacific

This web site contains a selected list of resources for those wishing to examine some of the claims at the fringes of science. It is organized into nine categories that include astrology, alien spaceships, Doomsday 2012, ancient astronauts, and claims that the moon landing was a hoax. The editor provides annotated links to online magazines and articles, as well as bibliographies of related print material.

This item is part of a larger set of resources and educational materials compiled and edited by the Astronomical Society of the Pacific.

Editor's Note: Pseudoscience is a method, belief, or practice that is claimed to be scientific but does not adhere to an appropriate scientific methodology or lacks supporting evidence. One component of gaining science literacy is being able to distinguish an unsupportable claim from one that meets the rigors of testing, reproducibility, and peer review.

http://www.astrosociety.org/education/resources/pseudobib.html

Subjects	Levels	Resource Types
Astronomy - Cosmology - Historical Astronomy = Philosophy of Science - Solar System	- High School - Informal Education - Middle School - Lower Undergraduate - Professional Development	- Collection - Instructional Material = Curriculum support - Reference Material = Bibliography

Appropriate Courses	Categories	Ratings
- Physical Science - Physics First - Conceptual Physics - Algebra-based Physics - AP Physics	- Activity - New teachers	Currently 0.0/5 Want to rate this material? Login here!

Intended Users:: Educator
Learner
Parent/Guardian
General Public
Formats:: text/html
application/pdf
Access Rights:: Free access
Restriction:: © 2009 Andrew Fraknoi, Foothill College, and Astronomical Society of the Pacific
Can be freely used for any educational nonprofit purpose, as long as full author credit is given in all copies.
Keywords:: Erich Von Daniken, Immanuel Velikovsky, UFO, Velikovsky, aliens, astrology, astronomy bibliography, bibliographies, crop circles, myths, reading lists, resource guide, science fiction, superstition
Record Cloner:: Metadata instance created March 9, 2010 by Caroline Hall
Record Updated:: January 19, 2011 by Lyle Barbato
Last Update when Cataloged:: July 10, 2008
Other Collections:: The Astronomy Center

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AAAS Benchmark Alignments (2008 Version)

1. The Nature of Science

1B. Scientific Inquiry

3-5: 1B/E4. Scientists do not pay much attention to claims about how something they know about works unless the claims are backed up with evidence that can be confirmed, along with a logical argument.

1C. The Scientific Enterprise

6-8: 1C/M7. Accurate record-keeping, openness, and replication are essential for maintaining an investigator's credibility with other scientists and society.
9-12: 1C/H7. The strongly held traditions of science, including its commitment to peer review and publication, serve to keep the vast majority of scientists well within the bounds of ethical professional behavior. Deliberate deceit is rare and likely to be exposed sooner or later by the scientific enterprise itself. When violations of these scientific ethical traditions are discovered, they are strongly condemned by the scientific community, and the violators then have difficulty regaining the respect of other scientists.

AAAS Benchmark Alignments (1993 Version)

1. THE NATURE OF SCIENCE

B. Scientific Inquiry

1B (6-8) #3. What people expect to observe often affects what they actually do observe. Strong beliefs about what should happen in particular circumstances can prevent them from detecting other results. Scientists know about this danger to objectivity and take steps to try and avoid it when designing investigations and examining data. One safeguard is to have different investigators conduct independent studies of the same questions.

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Record Link

<a href="http://www.compadre.org/precollege/items/detail.cfm?ID=9885">Fraknoi, Andrew. Astronomical Pseudo-Science: A Skeptic's Resource List. San Francisco: Astronomical Society of the Pacific, July 10, 2008.</a>

AIP Format

A. Fraknoi, Astronomical Pseudo-Science: A Skeptic's Resource List (Astronomical Society of the Pacific, San Francisco, 2009), WWW Document, (http://www.astrosociety.org/education/resources/pseudobib.html).

AJP/PRST-PER

A. Fraknoi, Astronomical Pseudo-Science: A Skeptic's Resource List (Astronomical Society of the Pacific, San Francisco, 2009), <http://www.astrosociety.org/education/resources/pseudobib.html>.

APA Format

Fraknoi, A. (2008, July 10). Astronomical Pseudo-Science: A Skeptic's Resource List. Retrieved May 21, 2013, from Astronomical Society of the Pacific: http://www.astrosociety.org/education/resources/pseudobib.html

Chicago Format

Fraknoi, Andrew. Astronomical Pseudo-Science: A Skeptic's Resource List. San Francisco: Astronomical Society of the Pacific, July 10, 2008. http://www.astrosociety.org/education/resources/pseudobib.html (accessed 21 May 2013).

MLA Format

Fraknoi, Andrew. Astronomical Pseudo-Science: A Skeptic's Resource List. San Francisco: Astronomical Society of the Pacific, 2009. 10 July 2008. 21 May 2013 <http://www.astrosociety.org/education/resources/pseudobib.html>.

BibTeX Export Format

@misc{ Author = "Andrew Fraknoi", Title = {Astronomical Pseudo-Science: A Skeptic's Resource List}, Publisher = {Astronomical Society of the Pacific}, Volume = {2013}, Number = {21 May 2013}, Month = {July 10, 2008}, Year = {2009} }

Refer Export Format

%A Andrew Fraknoi
%T Astronomical Pseudo-Science: A Skeptic's Resource List
%D July 10, 2008
%I Astronomical Society of the Pacific
%C San Francisco
%U http://www.astrosociety.org/education/resources/pseudobib.html
%O text/html

EndNote Export Format

%0 Electronic Source
%A Fraknoi, Andrew
%D July 10, 2008
%T Astronomical Pseudo-Science: A Skeptic's Resource List
%I Astronomical Society of the Pacific
%V 2013
%N 21 May 2013
%8 July 10, 2008
%9 text/html
%U http://www.astrosociety.org/education/resources/pseudobib.html

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Citation Source Information

The AIP Style presented is based on information from the AIP Style Manual.

The APA Style presented is based on information from APA Style.org: Electronic References.

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The MLA Style presented is based on information from the MLA FAQ.