The European Skeptics Podcast

In TWISH this week we look into the achievements of James Watt who made a whole lot of things, despite not inventing the steam engine. Then of course, there’s the news:ITALY: Government reverses appointment of vaccine hesitant members to National Immunisation Technical Advisory GroupITALY: The Natural Trap: How Conspiracy Beliefs Shape Our Health ChoicesSWEDEN: Renewed warning – Insulin instead of Ozempic in online ordersSWEDEN: Swedish PM Ulf Kristersson under fire for using AI in roleEUROPE: Hot summer: Deaths, fires and evacuationsThe Center for Trial and Error gets this week’s Really Right Award for encouraging the publishing of negative studies.Enjoy!https://theesp.eu/podcast_archive/theesp-ep-493.htmlSegments:0:00:27 Intro0:00:51 Greetings0:04:39 TWISH0:13:26 News0:41:18 Really Right0:45:11 Quote0:47:12 Outro0:48:35 Outtakes Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ever realized that there are three types of conspiracy theorists and a clear link between them and terrorism? Catch the new book by Steen Svanholm and Claus Larsen and hear them talk about their findings in this week’s interview!Enjoy!https://theesp.eu/podcast_archive/theesp-ep-492.htmlSegments:0:00:27 Intro0:00:49 Greetings0:02:56 Interview0:52:40 Farewell0:54:02 Outro0:55:25 Outtakes Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We’ve got some listener feedback about the popularity of lie detectors in Ukraine, and in TWISH we hear about the man behind the number, Amedeo Avogadro. Of course, we then get into this week’s news:NORWAY: Russian disinformation regarding made up ecological catastropheRUSSIA / EU: Putin’s disinformation efforts are changing for the worseGLOBAL: COVID Vaccines saved 2.5 Million lives in the first 4 years of the pandemicUK: Has the government learned the lessons from the Southport riots?UK: Funding to promote anti-LGBT conversion practices surgesINTERNATIONAL: Happy 15th anniversary, Retraction Watch!The Really Wrong award goes to the Swedish fundamentalist evangelical Genesis organisation and the Really Right award to Prof. Dan Larhammar for his excellent take down of creationist nonsense.Enjoy!https://theesp.eu/podcast_archive/theesp-ep-491.htmlSegments:0:00:27 Intro0:00:50 Greetings0:08:06 TWISH0:24:29 News0:53:34 Really Wrong / Really Ri

Congratulations to friend of the show Deborah Hyde who has been appointed patron of Humanists UK! In TWISH we hear about to unsolved mystery of the disappearance of Antoine de Saint-Exupéry and after that, we dig into the news:IRELAND: Excavation of mass grave of infants in Irish “mother and baby home”INTERNATIONAL: YouTube and Meta seem to finally crack down on political disinformationUKRAINE: Zelensky’s new law mandates regular lie detector testsSCOTLAND: Trump caught on tape cheating in golf?DENMARK / INTERNATIONAL: No link between aluminum in vaccines and chronic diseaseUK / INTERNATIONAL: Nominations for the Ockham Awards are now open!Nigel Farage, leader of Reform UK and general spreader of disinformation, is demonstrably lying about the crime situation in the UK, and for that he gets this week’s award for being Really Wrong.Enjoy!https://theesp.eu/podcast_archive/theesp-ep-490.htmlSegments:0:00:27 Intro0:00:51 Greetings0:14:50 TWISH0:29:34 News1:01:11 Really Wron

It’s the episode nobody could expect! Least of all András, who in Pontus’ continued absence gets put on the spot by the hot Scot known as Eggman. Can you match the skills of the Magyar Man? Tune in and find out.Enjoy!Segments: 0:00:27 Intro0:00:57 Greetings0:03:18 Quiz0:05:32 round 10:20:58 round 20:40:40 round 30:54:02 Farewell0:56:11 Outro0:57:34 Outtakes Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

As Pontus is off on som some mysterious quest or whatnot, Brian Eggo (Eggman) sneaks back into the driver's seat of the show. In TWISH we hear about the myths surrounding the death of the last tsar of Russia and his family back in 1918. Then we take a look at the news:UK: Child dies at Alder Hey after contracting measlesINTERNATIONAL: Humanists pass global declaration on AI and human valuesINTERNATIONAL: Grok & TrollSWEDEN: New UFO-movie outWales Online is this week’s receiver av the Really Wrong Award after publishing an article about cancer “cures” with no regard for science.Enjoy!https://theesp.eu/podcast_archive/theesp-ep-488.htmlSegments:0:00:25 Intro0:00:56 Greetings0:06:16 TWISH0:18:56 News0:51:52 Really Wrong1:04:26 Quote1:07:43 Outro1:09:05 Outtakes Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The heat wave in Europe is back, and in TWISH we learn about the Russell-Einstein Manifesto which was published 70 years ago this week, and we wonder why we haven’t come any further than we have. Then, it’s time for the news:SWEDEN: Scammers using fake AI videos of politicians and scientistsDENMARK / INTERNATIONAL: Are ADHD diagnoses misleading millions?INTERNATIONAL: Several problems with viral paper on black plastic kitchen utensilsNORWAY / EUROPE: How misinformation affects efficiency of energy transitionINTERNATIONAL: Does AI make people stupid? It’s complicatedHUNGARY: University disciplines three psychologists for claiming love is more important for children than the gender of their parentsIs it wise to filter your blood to get rid of microplastics? The Clarify Clinic in London does not wait for the science to find out, but instead turn it into an expensive product. Naturally, they receive this weeks award for being Really Wrong.Enjoy!https://theesp

Viktor Orbán got his behind handed to him when trying to ban Budapest Pride and that makes us very happy! In TWISH we learn about Attila Pataky who can not only sing but has also repeatedly been abducted by aliens – maybe they just like his music? Then, it’s time for the news:EUROPE: Current heat wave in Europe set to ‘kill 4500 people in the next three days’SLOVAKIA: Government official and antivaxxer Peter Kotlár’s paper condemned by Slovakian Academy of SciencesDENMARK: Denmark to tackle deepfakes by giving people copyright to their own featuresUK: Weight-loss jabs potentially harmful?FRANCE: ‘A supermarket for sexual predators’: abuse scandal at French Catholic boarding schoolUS / EUROPE: Are people being denied entry to US for contents critical towards Trump administration?For Who’s Quacking? this week we have UK spreader of deadly nonsens, Kate Shemirani.Enjoy!https://theesp.eu/podcast_archive/theesp-ep-486.htmlSegments:0:00:27 Intro0:00:51 Gre

Is the virus metaphor for spreading misinformation really as good as we have been led to think? Some psychologists disagree. We again ask everyone to show support their support for the Naked Scientists podcast and then in TWISH we hear about George Orwell whose dark visions of society seems ever relevant. Then, we go to the news:ENGLAND / WALES: Assisted dying set to become law in England and Wales after MPs pass billISRAEL / IRAN: Disinformation to look out forINTERNATIONAL: Climate misinformation turning crisis into catastrophe, report saysSWITZERLAND: Government tries to hide expert report on the carbon footprint of electric vehiclesAUSTRALIA / EUROPE / USA: Australian SCAM promoter Barbara O’Neill is planning a European tourStatins is the subject for both the Really Wrong and Really Right Awards this week. One goes to Aseem Malhotra and the other to Full Fact. Can you guess who gets which?Enjoy!https://theesp.eu/podcast_archive/theesp-ep-485

URGENT! The great podcast the Naked Scientists is in great danger of being cancelled by Cambridge University and we urge everyone to protest this! Information about how to do that is here: https://www.thenakedscientists.com/sos. In other news Pontus will be in Lithuania 29-30 August to participate in the Būtent festival. If you happen to be there too, let us know! In TWISH we hear about a mysterious moon observation from 1178, and then it’s time for the news:SWEDEN / FINLAND / NORWAY: ‘Life’ files for bankruptcyINTERNATIONAL: New toolkit makes post-publication peer-review available for everyoneUSA / SWEDEN: RFK jr. appoints Swedish vaccine advisorUK: Levels of cheating using AI in academic programs on the riseInstead of a Really Wrong Award this week we have a Who’s Quacking? segment about Swedish ‘psychic’, Benny Rosenqvist.Enjoy!https://theesp.eu/podcast_archive/theesp-ep-484.htmlSegments:0:00:27 Intro0:00:53 Greetings

As Eggman sits in for András, we look forward to SkeptiCamp at QED and Mike Hall’s Skeptics in the Pub Online talk and are happy to note that not only do we follow the ECDC, but they follow us back. In TWISH we hear about one of the forgotten(?) super villains of the Theosophy movement, Alice Bailey, and then we take a look at this week’s news:SWEDEN: Crystals sold to help fertilityISRAEL: Uri Geller says he used his psychic powers to break the navigation tools on Greta Thunberg’s Gaza flotilla ship, the Madleen, and warned that he would stop her if she comes to harm Israel.INTERNATIONAL: Teenage girls’ TikTok skincare regimes offer little to no benefit, research showsINTERNATIONAL: Are CO2 measurements reliable?UK: Is positive thinking a factor for heart patients?INTERNATIONAL: ‘After seeing the chiropractor, I was seeing things and blacking out’A Swedish politician flat-out denies anthropogenic climate change and is handed this week’

We have some listener feedback about the name of ‘Grok’ and a tip to sign a very important petition regarding NASA. In TWISH we hear how a timely letter kicked Darwin into action and made him finally publish ‘that book’. We then dig into the news:UK: ‘Notable increase’ in scammers tricking people into sending money abroadINTERNATIONAL: Retraction Watch’s ‘Sleuths in Residence’INTERNATIONAL: More than half of top 100 mental health TikToks contain misinformationEU: Gene editing should be allowed in the EU for sustainabilityDENMARK: Paper on ‘wokeness’ and mental health retractedGERMANY: Google’s wrong information reeks havoc on the AutobahnsThe NHS will make a new gonorrhoea vaccine available in England and Wales and for that they are Really Right.Enjoy!https://theesp.eu/podcast_archive/theesp-ep-482.htmlSegments:0:00:27 Intro0:00:51 Greetings0:07:47 TWISH0:17:53 News0:52:05 Really Right0:54:23 Quote0:58:38 Outro1:00:01 Outtakes Hosted on Acast. S

Deborah Hyde joins us this week, it’s been far too long. We recommend her Youtube series ‘The Green Children of Woolpit‘! The Romanian presidential election is still contentious, and we congratulate Ian Dunt to his position as editor for the New Humanist. In TWISH we learn about the first observational evidences for Einstein’s Theory of General Relativity and then it’s time for the news:INTERNATIONAL: Is it OK to use AI in scientific papers?UK: Are prosecutions for blasphemy coming back to England and Wales?UK: Humanists UK Convention 2025 – Deborah among the speakersFRANCE / INTERNATIONAL: June 16: World EHS Day – World Day of Intolerance to Electromagnetic PollutionEU: ECDC 20 years onEUROPE: Measles updateEUROPE: Research: how did SCAM use change between 2014 and 2023?Edzard Ernst uses Grok to help us find out who to appoint as the worst proponents of homeopathy. They receive this week’s award for being Really Wrong and they are: Joette

Viktor Orbán is coming down hard on free speech and Romania seems to (maybe) avoid chaos after their second attempt on presidential elections. In TWISH we get into classical skepticism and have a look at the Plauen UFO incident. Then it’s time for the news, with a little bit of Word of the Week:INTERNATIONAL: Overshooting 1.5°C: even temporary warming above globally agreed temperature limit could have permanent consequencesEU: Petition against conversion therapy meets threshold!INTERNATIONAL: Retraction Watch inquiry results in Elsevier removing a whole journal from ScopusGERMANY: Research identifying subgroups of homeopathy users based on their attitudes towards scienceNORWAY: Putin’s billionaire funds new political partyEU: TikTok in trouble with the European Commission for not adhering to Digital Services ActIRELAND: Psychics are repeatedly insisting on ‘helping’ the policeUK / INTERNATIONAL: The largest ever profiling effort of susceptibility to misin

So, the conclave elected ‘Papa Bob’ a.k.a. Leo XIV – who is he, and will that bring back the ‘Pontus Pokes the Pope’ segment? Time will tell! In other news, If you catch this episode in time, please consider signing the European petition to ban conversion therapy, last day is May 17th.Inge Lehmann is one of forgotten heroes of science, hear more about her in TWISH. Then we go for the news:INTERNATIONAL: Aspartame – risk vs. hazardAUSTRIA: Michael Frass’ controversial study just lost all validity – and yet, it’s still not retractedBELGIUM: Special report from Josef! The winners of the awards from the Belgian skeptics (SKEPP)FRANCE: An open letter by healthcare professionals to stop the funding of SCAM therapies that lack scientific evidenceGERMANY: King of the Reichsbürger movement arrestedEUROPE: Fact-checking chatbot The Check has passed experimental development phasehttps://theesp.eu/podcast_archive/theesp-ep-479.htmlSegments:0:00:27 Intro0:00:51 Greetings0:

QED tickets are available everyone, so we start our count-down to October in Manchester! The papal conclave is currently on-going and we bring you the latest news. In TWISH we hear about John Strachey, the almost forgotten pioneer in the field of basic geology. Then of course, we have the news:INTERNATIONAL / EUROPE: Measles updateEU: Press freedom under threat by foreign disinformationSWEDEN: Swedish climate study stopped due to Trump policiesNETHERLANDS: A PhD position to research paper millsROMANIA: First round of presidential election goes to leader of pro-Putin conspiracy theoristUK: Reform UK wins election, if by six votes onlyThe American war on science is starting to reach Europe and for that Donald Trump receives this week’s award for being Really Wrong.Enjoy!https://theesp.eu/podcast_archive/theesp-ep-478.htmlSegments:0:00:27 Intro0:00:52 Greetings0:08:24 TWISH0:16:18 News0:46:49 Really Wrong0:51:34 Quote0:52:40 Outro0:54:02 Outtakes Hosted

We start out with a few things from the world of skepticism – in Belgium, SKEPP turns 35 next week with special appearance by Chris French (don’t miss it!), and we link to an article about skeptic history in Hungary. Speaking of Hungary, in TWISH we talk about the prominent Hungarian skeptic and science communicator Aurél Ponori Thewrewk, who was born this week in 1921. Then we head for the news:VATICAN: The conclave begins on 7 MayGERMANY: Prominent antivaxxer admits that covid vaccines had few side-effects, but he’s still completely wrongEU: European Commission launching new initiatives to tackle vaccine related mis- and disinformationSWEDEN: HPV vaccinations close to eliminate virus in SwedenUK: Unproven mushroom supplement – a report by MarshWe then hand out no less than 1047 Really Right Awards to the Swedish scientists who fights back against politicians who keep dismissing their research as “opinion”.Enjoy!Segments:0:00:27 Intro0:00:

It’s time for the last Poking of Francis but before we get into that and the other news, we go to TWISH to hear about this week’s birthday boy, Guglielmo Marconi, the pioneer of radio transmissions and his wireless telegraph system.The news list contains the following:INTERNATIONAL: Medical cannabis shows potential to fight cancer, largest-ever study finds – or does it…?HUNGARY: Antivaxx nutjob gets Flat Earth AwardVATICAN: So Frankie died… one last chance to poke the pope (at least this one)EUROPE: RFK Jr having a devastating effect on Europe’s vaccine acceptanceThe Dutch ultra-Christian Civitas Christiania foundation gets this week’s Really Wrong Award for taking their bigoted anti-LGBTQ stance to unacceptable levels.Enjoy!https://theesp.eu/podcast_archive/theesp-ep-476.htmlSegments:0:00:27 Intro0:00:53 Greetings0:03:24 TWISH0:15:18 News0:48:19 Really Wrong0:54:48 Quote0:56:01 Outro0:57:23 Outtakes Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy f

Mixed messages from QED – new dates announced but we hear this is the last one(!) and we have a hard time accepting it. At least we’ll do our best to be there and meet (among others) Chris French whose audiobook is currently on sale. In TWISH we hear about Leonardo da Vinci and specifically about some of the myths surrounding him. Then, it’s time for the news:UK: Christian missionary group YWAM accused of public shaming and rituals to ‘cure’ sexual sinPOLAND: Sanal Edamaruku’s case: what do we know?INTERNATIONAL: Shadowy market for weight-loss drugs has emerged onlineSERBIA: A wave of disinformation surrounding the demonstrationsSWEDEN: Debunked personality test (DISC) refuses to dieINTERNATIONAL: The Global Listening Project on how attitudes towards vaccines have changed since CovidNorwegian-Swedish fundamental Christian zealot Runar Søgaard announces Trump to be God’s gift to the US and himself as God’s gift to Sweden, and for t

We first rant a bit about Viktor Orbán and examine some psychic horsing around at the Grand National. In TWISH we hear about the Dead Sea Scrolls and then we dive into the news:UKRAINE / USA: Zelenskyy and Trump look for leaks using lie detectorsINTERNATIONAL: Snopes’ toolkit to guard against online misinformationITALY: AI beats lottery?SWEDEN: Test of phishing attack goes awfully wrongEndometriosis is a serious condition and the topic deserves so much better than this recently published so-called study. Therefore Edinburgh University receives this week’s award for being Really Wrong as they are only raising false hope while wasting valuable time and resources.Enjoy!https://theesp.eu/podcast_archive/theesp-ep-474.htmlSegments:0:00:27 Intro0:00:51 Greetings0:11:08 TWISH0:19:04 News0:38:35 Really Wrong0:46:58 Quote0:48:33 Outro0:49:55 Outtakes Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.