We look at how to tackle the destructive rise of scientific misinformation and disinformation. Each episode is a live recording of one of the public events hosted by Challenging Pseudoscience, at the Royal Institution. We’re a diverse collective of journalists, scientists, academics and social media experts who came together in 2019 to look at this problem from different angles. The group is supported by the Royal Institution and the Open Society Foundation, and based in London. The goal is to identify how we can foster better access to more reliable scientific information.
This episode is a recording of a talk given by medical historian, Marius Turda, at the Royal Institution in September 2021. His talk explored the historical roots of eugenics. He argued that the longevity of eugenics is due not just to its promise of drawing together social and cultural theories of human improvement, but also the credibility it was given by the scientific elite from the 1870s onwards.
He shares that after the Holocaust, the tree was denuded of its branches, but its roots remained buried deep, embedded in our society, culture and politics. They continued to provide sustenance to various social, economic, and educational policies across the world. He considers that, a century later, we engage with the legacies of eugenics across time and space and reflect on what eugenics means for us today. This remains a sensitive and emotional issue for many people, not least because for so long eugenics has reinforced discriminatory practices based on race, class, gender, disability and age.
He argues that the time has come to cut down this tree and remove its global roots. The personal and collective reckoning with the legacies of eugenics can then begin.
Original event link: https://www.rigb.org/whats-on/events-2021/september/public-unearthing-the-roots-of-eugenics (https://www.rigb.org/whats-on/events-2021/september/public-unearthing-the-roots-of-eugenics)
More about Marius's work: www.confront-eugenics.org (//www.confront-eugenics.org)
Host: Marius Turda
Producer: Hester Cant (https://www.hestercant.com/)
Artwork: Hana Ayoob (https://www.hanaayoob.co.uk/)
Music: George Ash (http://georgeash.co.uk/)
23 Nov 2021
Science museums and the 'culture war'
This episode features a panel discussion hosted online by the Association of British Science Writers in October 2021. The theme was the so-called ‘culture war’ and its effect on the UK's science and technology museums. The panelists discuss their personal experiences of government influence on museum independence and policy, and who should and shouldn’t sit on their boards. They take questions from the audience on the impact of the official ‘retain and explain’ policy, which expects publicly-funded institutions to keep statues and busts where they are.
The panellists were writer, historian of science, and ex-trustee of the Science Museum in London, Sarah Dry (http://sarahdry.com/home/), and lecturer and researcher Aminul Hoque (http://www.gold.ac.uk/educational-studies/staff/hoque/) who was a trustee with the Royal Museums Greenwich until early 2021. The discussion was hosted by Chief Opinion Editor at Nature, Sara Abdulla.
Links mentioned in the talk:
Oliver Dowden's letter to museums (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/letter-from-culture-secretary-on-hm-government-position-on-contested-heritage)
Museums Association response (http://www.museumsassociation.org/campaigns/ethics/our-response-to-oliver-dowdens-letter/)
Original event page
Host: Sara Abdullah
Producer: Hester Cant (https://www.hestercant.com/)
Artwork: Hana Ayoob (https://www.hanaayoob.co.uk/)
Music: George Ash (http://georgeash.co.uk/)
22 Sept 2021
Fake news fighters
This episode features a panel discussion held at the British Science Festival Live in Chelmsford, UK, in September 2021. The theme was fake news and how to tackle the spread of scientific misinformation.
The panelists discuss how social media algorithms help the spread of misinformation and fake news, they speak about the language to be aware of when spotting misinformation in science, and how the fallacies of race science have spread over time.
They also take questions from the audience on the best ways to help prevent the spread of fake news, who is responsible for tackling misinformation and more.
The panelists were (http://www.scidev.net/global/author.ben-deighton.html)computer scientist and author of Rage Inside the Machine, Robert Elliot Smith (https://twitter.com/DrRESmith) and (https://be.linkedin.com/in/maartenschenk)academic and author of Skin Deep, Gavin Evans (https://twitter.com/gmrevans). The discussion was hosted by neuroscientist and author of The Gendered Brain, Gina Rippon (https://twitter.com/ginarippon1?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Eauthor). Gina also launched her new Noise in Neuroscience project, which aims to tackle sexist science.
Host: (https://www.angelasaini.co.uk/)Gina Rippon (https://twitter.com/ginarippon1?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Eauthor)
Producer: Hester Cant (https://www.hestercant.com/)
Artwork: Hana Ayoob (https://www.hanaayoob.co.uk/)
Music: George Ash (http://georgeash.co.uk/)
5 Jul 2021
Misinformation and censorship on social media
This episode features a panel discussion held at the Association of British Science Writers online in June 2021. The theme was misinformation and censorship on social media. The panel discussed how algorithms that feed us science news on social media sometimes promote disinformation and inadvertently demote good scientific content. The panelists explain why this can happen, who is affected and what we can do to prevent it.
The panelists were Ben Deighton (http://www.scidev.net/global/author.ben-deighton.html) and Maarten Schenk (https://be.linkedin.com/in/maartenschenk). The discussion was hosted by Angela Saini.
To find out more about the original event visit: https://www.absw.org.uk/events/56-misinformation-or-censorship-science-reporting-and-social-media (https://www.absw.org.uk/events/56-misinformation-or-censorship-science-reporting-and-social-media)
Host: Angela Saini (https://www.angelasaini.co.uk/)
Producer: Hester Cant (https://www.hestercant.com/)
Artwork: Hana Ayoob (https://www.hanaayoob.co.uk/)
Music: George Ash (http://georgeash.co.uk/)
24 Jun 2021
Vaccines: Warriors and worriers
This episode was a panel discussion about vaccines hosted by the Royal Institution in February 2021. The panel explored how vaccines work, why some people are sceptical of them despite the evidence, and how disinformation about vaccines spreads online. They also took questions from the audience, offering lots of practical advice. The discussion was chaired by the Financial Times science columnist, Anjana Ahuja. The panel were Zania Stamataki (https://www.birmingham.ac.uk/staff/profiles/immunology-immunotherapy/stamataki-zania.aspx), Marianna Spring (https://twitter.com/mariannaspring) and Abigail Thorn (https://www.youtube.com/user/thephilosophytube).
You can find information on the original event here: https://www.rigb.org/whats-on/events-2021/february/public-vaccines-warriors-and-worriers (https://www.rigb.org/whats-on/events-2021/february/public-vaccines-warriors-and-worriers)
Host: Angela Saini (https://www.angelasaini.co.uk/)
Producer: Hester Cant (https://www.hestercant.com/)
Artwork: Hana Ayoob (https://www.hanaayoob.co.uk/)
Music: George Ash (http://georgeash.co.uk/)
24 Jun 2021
Disinformation and how to counter it
This episode was a panel discussion on the theme of disinformation held at the Association of British Science Writers for their online UK Conference of Science Journalists in October 2020. We focused on the difference between misinformation and disinformation, the tactics of those spreading pseudoscientific theories such as climate change denial, anti-vaccine misinformation and pseudoscientific racism. Our panel looked at how science journalists can cover and combat this dangerous form of online abuse. The panel was hosted by science journalist Angela Saini and the panelists were Amil Khan (https://mobile.twitter.com/londonstani?lang=en), Ewan Birney (https://mobile.twitter.com/ewanbirney), Michael Marshall (https://mobile.twitter.com/MrMMarsh) and Mike Wendling (https://mobile.twitter.com/mwendling).
Find out more about the original event here: https://www.absw.org.uk/events/5-uk-conference-of-science-journalists-2020 (https://www.absw.org.uk/events/5-uk-conference-of-science-journalists-2020)
Host: Angela Saini (https://www.angelasaini.co.uk/)
Producer: Hester Cant (https://www.hestercant.com/)
Artwork: Hana Ayoob (https://www.hanaayoob.co.uk/)
Music: George Ash (http://georgeash.co.uk/)
Reach and audience
Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.
Apple Podcasts (US)
3.3 / 5
4 ratings
Contact Challenging Pseudoscience
Guest appearances
Books guests
Based on episode analysis; this does not confirm that the show is currently accepting guests.
Host of Challenging Pseudoscience?
Claim your podcast to manage its listing and keep your show details accurate.
Pod Engine is an independent podcast discovery and analytics service and is not affiliated with or endorsed by this podcast. Artwork and show content belong to their owners. Full legal notice.
Explore this show Podcast research with Pod Engine
