Google, Google on the wall ...

In a recent post on Green Chameleon, Patrick Lambe posed the question:

"Google, Google on the wall ... Who's the Guru-est of them all?"

Well, Google as the 21st century magic mirror seems an apt simile - and you'd need a magic mirror to identify the guru-est guru. Peter Drucker, who resented being called a guru, once remarked that:

"I have been saying for many years that we are using the word ‘guru’ only because ‘charlatan’ is too long to fit into a headline."

Should I free-associate on the word "guru", the first word that would come to mind would be "bullshitter". I have to concede, however, that many to whom the term may be applied, would prefer it not te be and may in fact be legitimate experts in a legitimate fields of expertise.

In the context of this blog, I'm more concerned with quackery than gurury (no, I don't think such a word exists, I've just made it up). So ...

"Google, Google on the wall ... What's the Quack-est of them all?"

Let's consider only controversial techniques/approaches/devices that featured in this blog the past year.

First, just off the top of my head, the criteria I would use to label something quackery:

A lack of scientific plausibility

The misapplication of popularised science, i.e. quantum physics, hemispheric asymmetry

Promoted through hyperbole and quacking (if it quacks like a duck, it's a duck)

Appeal to false authority - the authority of the original contriver has to be accepted, even though he or she has no specialised knowledge of the putative underlying science

A granfalloon - have established a meaningless structure, preying on the greed and gullibility of significant numbers of its own "consultants" and on the desperateness and gullibility of its clients

The candidates are:

Brain Gym

Genetic Brain Profiling

Human Pin Code

Bio-Strath (for ADHD)

Quantum Xrroid Consciousness Interface, or SCIO/QXCI

The number of hits on Google, the modern magic mirror, suggested the quackest quackery. It was done by googling the name of the approach, combined with the label "quack". No, I don't claim this to be research and certainly not science.

The quackest of them all according to Google is Brain Gym (539 hits), followed by the first princess, the Quantum Xrroid Consciousness Interface - SCIO/QXCI (207 hits). Google has spoken.

The Midmar Mile: Will it make the Guinness Book of Records?

Swimming the Midmar. Image from Flickr, thanks to Andrew Tweddle

My youngest son, Dieter, and I just swam our first Midmar Mile. Reported to be the largest open water swim in the world, this year around 16 000 swimmers participated. The organisers have applied for recognition in the Guinness Book of Records. The Midmar is held in high regard by swimmers, as this quote by Sam Greetham, a 2008 World Open Water Swimming Man of the Year nominee, shows:

"Nothing I have seen comes anywhere near the Midmar Mile. Both in terms of the number of participants, tip-top organization, security and safety aspects, and the interaction between the participants and the public."

Well, we survived the melee at the start (two weeks ago I was left with a black eye after a rough start in another open water swim) and the swim itself was fairly comfortable. Dieter completed it in 32 minutes and I in 38 minutes, which placed each of us approximately half-way in our respective categories of boys 14 to 16 years and veteran men 51 to 60 years.

Shall we do it again? Time will tell, but at this stage my main impression is that dam swimming is for Platanna's (literally "flat Anna", an African frog well-known for its role in pregnancy tests).

A Platanna. Image from Encyclopaedia Brittanica.

Aide Memoire 6 February 2009

Young teens really are shortsighted, but don't blame impulsivity from ScienceDaily shows that teens are shortsighted more due to immaturity in the brain systems that govern sensation seeking than to immaturity in the brain systems responsible for self-control.

It's hard work that fosters responsibility in teen programmes from ScienceDaily shows that it's not the fun and games of these programs but the tough tasks that are most likely to foster responsibility and self-discipline.

Amid rising childhood obesity, preschoolers found to be inactive from ScienceDaily shows that preschoolers (at nursery schools) are inactive for much of their preschool day. The study also finds that teachers very rarely encourage children to be more physically active.

Never ending childhood from MindBlog by Deric Bownds about "... our new scientific understanding of neural plasticity and gene regulation, along with the global spread of schooling, will let us remain children forever — or at least for much longer."

Mental deficiency: Gene mutations that affect learning, memory in children identified from ScienceDaily. A genetic mutation in the most common variety, non-syndromic mental deficiency (NSMD).

Your local police are unscientific from Socratic Gadfly about a report on the lack of an evidence base for forensic science.

Legal chill from LBC 97.3 over Jeni Barnetts MMR scaremongering from BadScience by Ben Goldacre about lawyers trying to silence him.

Colours affect mental performance, with blue boosting creativity from BPS Research Digest about the effect of colour on cognition.

Psychosocial stress inhibits prefrontal function from MindBlog by Deric Bownds.

Forget Sarah Palin, Lorenzo's the real deal from Donald Clark Plan B by Donald Clark about evidence-supported educational reform that (gasp) really works.

$10 laptop - India leads the way, again from Donald Clark Plan B by Donald Clark. Thoughts on a netbook for every child and points out the hopeless implementation of ICT in schools resulting in the wheel being re-invented all the time.

The best time to teach "21st century skills" is after school from Flypaper by Mike Petrilli. Argues that skills in sport and subjects such as mathematics and even history should not be neglected for so-called 21st century skills.

How not to argue from Neurological by Steven Novella. A useful discussion on argument, logical fallacies, etc.

The Ritalin generation from The Frontal Cortex by Jonah Lehrer. A balanced science-based discussion on the use of psychostimulants for ADD.

Olympic athletes reveal their mental strategies from BPS Research Digest. Re. modern pentathlon.