Dismissing Anecdotes – Are Scientists Jerks?

When sharing an article on social media that is critical of a particular "alternative" treatment, I often get responses from friends and family that appeal to anecdotes in order to argue that the treatment is effective. These may include stories they have heard from others or a story of their own personal experience with the treatment. For …

Mercury in Vaccines: Are We Really STILL Talking About This?

  One basic principle of toxicology is that the dose makes the poison. This means that a substance has observable adverse effects in the body only once a certain dose is achieved. This not only applies to substances that are widely considered "harmful", but also to substances that are generally considered "safe." For example, water is …