From the archives in 1993, Robert McGrath looks at the difficulty of validating psychic messages - and ponders lessons from cryptography.
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From the archives: A Celestial Mystery Revisited – a new look at the famous ‘ghost ship’

From the archives in 1993, Brian Haines looks at the mystery of the Mary Celeste, and the latest information available at the time.

Dishonesty and untruths abound in the world of so-called alternative medicine

Alternative medicine is a field replete with false claims - from misinformation and mistaken correlation, to out right fraud and fabrication.

Is mosquito extinction morally wrong? Gene drives and the limits of utilitarianism

New technology might allow us to eradicate the mosquito - one of the deadliest creatures who ever lived. But is deliberate extinction ethically defensible?

When fortune telling makes a fortune: India’s billion-dollar astrology app market

In an increasingly tech-savvy India, people's superstitions are being exploited by astrological apps made by billion-dollar companies.

Celebrity-backed EMF-busting devices from Aires Tech offer no protection

The Aires Tech 'devices' promoted by celebrity athletes, airlines and even Russell Brand are claimed to protect users from electromagnetic frequencies. The company says their expensive products are science-backed, but what does the evidence say? Mark Honeychurch investigates.

Cryptozoology and the ‘Circus Train Wreck’: On the track of escaped animals

Sightings of 'out of place' animals have long been attributed to circus train wrecks - but while such wrecks were common, actual escaped beasts were less so.

From the archives: Write your own pseudoscience – a new angle on the prophecies of Nostradamus 

From the archives in 1993, Bob Basalla tries his hand at writing his own pseudoscientific tome, on chess history, with Nostradamus as a guide.

Biased about bias: as social creatures, we should try to understand where our biases come from

Guarding against bias is a fool's errand - instead of pretending we can ignore them, we should acknowledge biases, and put them into context.

Consumer protection campaigner Martin Lewis wins 2026 Skeptical Activism Ockham award

Martin Lewis, a consumer protection journalist who campaigns against finance scams, wins the 2026 Ockham Award for Skeptical Activism.

Lord Toby Young and the Daily Sceptic win 2026 Rusty Razor award for worst pseudoscience of the year

Lord Toby Young and the Daily Sceptic, prolific promoters of climate change denial and antivax misinformation, win the 2026 Rusty Razor Award.

The Gorbals vampire: the monster with iron teeth, and the evidence with none

In 1954 a Glasgow cemetery filled with children hunting a vampire. Within a week the whole country knew what had made them do it, and nobody had checked.
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