That's covered under a different bill.
http://franken.senate.gov/files/docs/110614_The_Location_Privacy_Protection_Act_of_2011_One_pager.pdf
The police are using a law not designed for them. They know it, and the writers knew it, but that didn't stop them from using it for purposes for which it was not intended. Hopefully the court recognizes this too...
Of course, they also released the Virtual Boy (or whatever that thing was called) and that was a trainwreck.
Headache-inducing, no good game lineup, and you had to sit in an awkward position non-stop to play it. That was a mistake from the beginning.
a) proof requires a frame of reference to even understand it -- namely experience -- you can't grok something you haven't experienced. This is like someone telling the blind man that he can understand color.
The people applying for the prize obviously think there's a quantifiable effect, or they wouldn't be applying.
b) What constitutes iron-clad proof anyways? Proof is relative. What you accept for "proof" depends on your spiritual maturity. To a spiritual idiot there is no such proof BY their definition. To a true skeptic, they would be intrigued that the answer could either way.
The evidence IS there, for a real scientist to consider, IF they are able to open their eyes for a moment. I haven't seen any evidence that Randi is tired of being blind.
So your argument is that Randi is trying to prevent the acknowledgement of proof that by definition cannot be proven. I'm sorry but that is stupid.
He doesn't test the unquantifiable. That's in the requirements. There has to be a quantifiable effect, or you shouldn't bother to apply for the prize.
Randi makes no judgement on the possibility of any para-normal science. He just says "show me that your claim that it affects the material world is demonstrable". Show him that in a double-blind test, you can demonstrate a reproducible, quantifiable effect of your "power". If your power has no material effect, he doesn't care either way.
That's not actually true. Lots of them have followed through, and they've all failed. The JREF even does live tests at the annual TAM conference in Vegas. Many applicants DO back out, but there have been hundreds, if not thousands, who have been tested. Their case files are held at the JREF library - anyone interested in researching the topic should have no problem getting access.
I stand corrected. I was just reading through their forums, and seeing the back and forth over things like test procedures, failures and suggestions for improvements to test methods, etc.
An interesting read. You can tell who believes their powers, and who is just there to fail spectacularly and then claim the test itself is flawed in order to play victim.
If magnets should have any health benefits, then all magnets of the same strength would be similarily beneficial.
It's like the speaker wire thing.
Sure. But the problem is that 1.5 Teslas is NOT the magnetic output of the trinkets they sell in "natural cures" stores. Those are weak refrigerator magnets. 1.5 Teslas is the output of your standard $1,000,000 MRI. You CAN get rare earth magnets that can output 1 T over a very small area, but I guarantee you they aren't selling those in the stores attached to bracelets.
Being a magician and a skeptic often go hand-in-hand, Houdini was well-famed as both. One of his main focuses was people purporting to talk to the spirit world. I believe he even went so far as offer a personal reward for someone who could show proof of someone communicating with the dead.
James Randi's foundation offers a million dollar prize to anyone who can show ESP or other "spirit" powers in a double-blind test. No-one has yet to actually apply and follow through. They usually back out at the last second and claim the test is flawed.
The art of deception and misdirection is all part of a magician's trade. How exactly did Penn & Teller become the deciding factor on whether magnets are beneficial to health?
They don't claim to be. They do however, claim to be the masters of the art of deception and misdirection. The whole idea of their TV show was "it takes a thief to catch a thief", namely someone well versed in deception and misdirection has a better chance of spotting when someone ELSE is using those same techniques to sell, say refrigerator magnets as medical cures...
As long as we're going to reinvent the wheel again, we might as well try making it round this time. - Mike Dennison