Pseudo-scientific knowledge. How pseudoscience in Russia came out of the underground

It is hard for people to give up their delusions, in some ways it can be compared with weaning from a hard drug. Misconceptions push us to the wrong methods of treatment, waste of money, quarrels with relatives.

In modern society, there are several teachings, belief in which is detrimental to both health care and the health and material well-being of the people themselves. Scientists interviewed more than 150 thousand people, asking the following questions: Do you practice these methods? Do you trust him? Do you spend money on practice and study in this area?

Using the results of the survey, six values were identified that characterize each of the exercises. Is it easy to get involved in this "teaching"? Is it highly addictive? Has the teaching brought material damage to an individual and how great is it? Has society as a whole been materially affected? Has personal well-being been affected? How many victims of this practice?

Based on the values of these parameters, several of the most common pseudosciences were selected from more than 40 teachings. Our top ten did not include such interesting teachings as clairvoyance, blood type diets, and many others.

The study itself was not without flaws, some of the sciences really helped and are helping people, but the place in the proposed rating is based on the number of just the same negative reviews.

Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP). NLP says that a person's worldview is formed with the help of his body and language. Accordingly, the perception of a person, as well as his behavior, can be changed with the help of certain techniques. It should be noted that the ideas of NLP are based on quite scientific things related to human psychology. However, there are no scientific studies confirming the effectiveness of this direction. NLP classics John Grinder and Richard Bandler themselves say directly: "Everything we are going to tell you here is a lie. Since you do not have requirements for true and accurate concepts, in this seminar we will constantly lie to you." NLP researchers believe that the main purpose of science is to extract money from followers through seminars and trainings. It is easy to get used to NLP and very hard to give up, however, compared to other teachings, this science is quite harmless both for a person’s life and for his wallet.

Homeopathy. According to this "science" it is possible to treat a person with a dilute solution of a substance, no matter how much of the diluted substance is contained in the new solution. Followers explain the effect due to the "memory of water", the "structure of water" and other phenomena that for some reason do not correspond to the laws of nature. Scientists have confirmed that homeopathy treats with the effectiveness of dummy pills. And this pseudoscience leads in the number of deceived customers, representing a significant danger to their wallet. Homeopathic preparations are quite cheap to manufacture, they do not seem to be researched at all, and they often cost as expensive high-quality medicines. While it is undeniable that there may be placebo benefit from these drugs, this teaching is therefore a relatively minor evil.

Urinotherapy. This science says that you can treat any disease by ingesting urine. At the same time, washing wounds outside the hospital is not considered a method of urine therapy. This science does not inspire much confidence among the population. However, its popularity is growing, as for some reason it is promoted by the state-owned Channel One through the Malakhov Plus program and its permanent host Gennady Petrovich Malakhov. The healer forgets to mention the possible consequences for the body from such a "treatment". For example, there may be disturbances in the functioning of the kidneys.

Healing. Trust in this science is rooted in the deep past, when sorcerers, grandmothers and other healers flourished. Then, in the absence of medicine, it was believed that with the help of a touch of hands, some passes, rituals or conspiracies, people could be treated. The danger of such treatment is that the patient can exchange official medicine for such methods, which can lead to great complications in cases where timely medical care is required.

Feng Shui. Recently, it has again become fashionable to get involved in everything oriental. One of the manifestations of such interest was the emergence of feng shui science, which teaches how to properly arrange furniture in the house, taking into account all kinds of "energy flows". It is believed that if you arrange the furniture in the house correctly, then the home will be saved from misfortunes and illnesses. Conducted experiments have shown that each Feng Shui "guru" confidently rearranged furniture after the visit of his own colleagues. Scientists see Feng Shui as nothing more than the science of design. And the whole raid of the unknown and mysterious is just an excuse to make money, in which these specialists succeed better than many others.

Bioenergology. The adherents of this "science" believe that a person has a certain "biofield". Exposure to it leads to a cure for various diseases. The name of science instead of the usual "bioenergetics" was not chosen by chance. The fact is that bioenergy is a part of biochemistry and studies energy processes in biology. Just the same, this direction is not pseudoscience. A huge number of people affected by bioenergy have confirmed the falsity of this science.

Astrology. This science suggests that the position of the stars and planets can predict the fate of people and even the course of history. However, a large number of educational works refute any connection between the position of the stars at the time of a person's birth and his future fate or character. Astrology is on the list of leaders both in terms of the number of people who practice it and believe in it (take, for example, banal horoscopes), and in terms of the number of people who are disappointed. It is easy to believe in this science, the wording is often vague, events are attracted "by the ears". Classes with it require a lot of money for trainings, seminars or just consultations. Drawing up an individual star chart from an astrologer is not a cheap pleasure.

Magic. According to this doctrine, it is believed that with the help of certain rituals it is possible to bring damage or some kind of misfortune to a person, while not coming into direct contact with him. Magic is used to attract the object of attraction, to acquire wealth. In our impromptu rating, this is the second place in attracting money from gullible people and absolute leadership in the number of victims of pseudoscience. There is practically no addiction to magic, but the very belief in it is a dangerous delusion.

Prayers. The very ideology of religion is based on the fact that physical ailments can be cured by prayers. Surprisingly, it is on activities related to the purchase of candles, icons, consecrated objects, donations that people spend the most money. Of the above six parameters, prayers are in the lead in five, yielding only in terms of harm to health. Scientists have repeatedly tested the benefits of this pastime and responsibly declare that there is no effect on recovery! There is even the opposite effect - sick people, knowing that they are being prayed for, recover more slowly, as if entrusting their fate into the hands of God, weakening their own strength. This effect is called "nocebo", it is the opposite of placebo in homeopathy. The patient believes that if they pray for him, then the chances of recovery are extremely small. Belief in prayer is the most dangerous delusion of modern people. For example, in the United States, 41-year-old Leilani Gyuman was convicted, who, with her daughter's complications from diabetes, spent precious time in prayer.

Reasons for the popularity of pseudoscientific theories consist, on the one hand, in the general crisis of modern culture and the search for new values, and on the other hand, in the inclination of man to a miracle. More diverse are the personal reasons that make a person engage in pseudoscience: the desire for fame or money, a sincere delusion or an order. Based on this, the following definition can be given.

pseudoscience is the falsification of scientific data for political, religious, economic or personal purposes.

Pseudoscience uses scientific terminology in its constructions, acts on behalf of various organizations and "academies", disguises its activities with academic degrees and titles, makes extensive use of mass media and government structures, and carries out extensive publishing activities. Therefore, it is often difficult for a person (even a specialist) to find criteria for distinguishing pseudoscience from real science. Nevertheless, some general indicators of pseudoscience can be identified.

Usually unscientific:

concepts aimed at negating all previous science. As a rule, even the most "crazy" concept, if it is correct, is consistent with a set of laws and previously confirmed fundamental principles. For example, Einstein's theory of relativity did not abolish Newton's mechanics, but only limited it to certain conditions;
universal and global theories- from a new theory of the structure of the Universe to the invention of a "cure for all diseases." In an age of ever-increasing amounts of information, it is difficult to be an expert in all fields and take into account all the factors necessary for a global "theory of everything"; such theories are also contradicted by the increasingly perceived complexity of the world. Such ideas are also usually distinguished by excessive pathos and self-praise;
theories that are vague and incomprehensibility of evidence. The most complex scientific theories can be explained in simple terms; if the concepts are fundamentally undefinable, then most likely such vagueness masks the lack of an evidence base;
unsystematic and internally conflicting theories, which indicates the illiteracy of the author. The reverse is also true: illiterate work is usually meaningless;
theories in which scientific terms and concepts from the sphere of mysticism are mixed or (for example, “karma”, “grace”, “cosmic vibrations”, etc.) or ordinary concepts are given a “secret” meaning (Light, Beginning, Mind, Nature, etc. .d.);
untestable theories because they are based on non-rational belief. For example, references to cosmic intelligence, the harmony of the universe, or revelation are not scientifically verifiable.

Proponents of pseudoscience often put forward new hypotheses, not to gain new knowledge, but to further support their theories.

Creationists(supporters of the concept that the world was created by God) correct their hypothesis whenever science finds another refutation of the concept of the divine creation of the world. For example, the findings of paleontologists confirm evolutionary theory: the occurrence of fossils shows a succession of species that succeeded each other over millions of years. Creationists responded by theorizing that the fossils are the remains of animals that died during the global flood, and large and heavy bones (in particular, bones of dinosaurs) are in the lower layers, because during the flood they sank deeper into the silt under the weight of their weight. .

In response to evidence that the universe began more than 10 billion years ago (according to the creation hypothesis, the world is only 6-10 thousand years old), creationists respond that time is not something constant: it can slow down or speed up according to divine command.

In general, if all the efforts of the supporters of any ideas are aimed at defending the theory, not at the search for new knowledge, this can serve as an indicator of the unscientific nature of the idea (often all subsequent activities of the "creators" of such an idea come down to the constant justification of ideas or to complaints of persecution by official science).

Real science has a predictive power, i.e. capable of predicting new phenomena, and not just explaining long-known ones.

The presented indicators of pseudoscience are rather conditional and are not true in all cases. A scientist can really come up with a new general theory, he can be undeservedly persecuted, etc. But if his theory corresponds to several of the above indicators at once, then its scientific character is more than doubtful.

Pseudoscience usually formatted in the form esotericism, mysticism, sectarianism, falsifications and speculations, informational and political orders, etc. She rarely harmless: almost all of its forms have a negative effect on. Therefore, tolerance towards it should not extend to too wide limits: the mental health of society, undermined by faith in pseudoscience, is no less important for the future than physical health.

Article 2, supplemented and corrected.

This article is devoted to such a phenomenon in cognition as pseudoscience.

An interdisciplinary, systematic analysis of the phenomenon of pseudoscience was carried out in order to determine the methodology of pseudoscience, the main characteristics and classification of pseudoscientific concepts. The generalization of the concept of pseudoscience will make it possible to rationalize

measures to control and limit the development and spread of pseudoscience.

1. FOUNDATIONS OF PSEUSIC SCIENCES.

1.1 Pseudoscience is everything that does not correspond to modern official science, and this is the knowledge that is unprovable or refuted. Pseudoscience refers to a wide range of pseudosciences and other false concepts that do not develop knowledge and do not have such value, but tend to take the place of science. Most pseudosciences have as their goal one or another benefit, either it is money taken from people, or it is power over people. Pseudoscientists, such as astrologers and psychics, realize that they are engaged in pseudoscience, they meaningfully engage in, or rather, imitate the scientific process, because they do not want to lose easy income. That is why all pseudosciences are characterized by the fact that their theses are aimed at social and personal processes, since they are designed for people, and not for knowledge of the world. Classical pseudosciences have a lot in common with fraud, and perhaps they are such in that, by masquerading as "scientific" or true, they gain the trust of people, and receive income from empty services and goods. In addition to crime, pseudoscience seeks to equalize with science or even crush science, because only in this case they will acquire the significance of truth in society, and the falsity of their scams will be hidden. Pseudosciences create technologies and other things that will be the reason for the withdrawal of large funds and public money. Such variants of pseudoscience especially seek to crush science and influence politicians and scientific institutions from which these pseudosciences can gain recognition, and then big profits.

Any society is replete with stupid and gullible people and ignoramuses, the number of which is inversely proportional to the enlightenment of the society, but in any case their number is incomparably greater than the number of thinking and independent people. Pseudoscience uses this contingent of poorly enlightened people and penetrates into their minds in order to get easy income from them. Little enlightened people, as a rule, are gullible people who, having no knowledge of the world, are at the level of medieval development, believing in gods and the supernatural. During the Middle Ages, pseudoscience and false teachings, such as religion, were in opposition to science, and suppressed knowledge with the help of the Inquisition; at the present time, science has developed so much that it has gained a well-deserved dominant place in humankind's understanding of the world. The current science has gained a dominant position not only because of the proof of its theses, but also due to its special significance for the development of technology and the standard of living, which in turn determines the level of development of civilization, that is, is the basis of civilization. Today's science has achieved an authority that religion will never achieve, so religion, apart from small attempts, is not able to resist the facts. Pseudoscience has chosen a different path of development: not in opposition, but in adaptation and integration with science, creating theses similar to scientific ones, but having the meaning and goals of religion - influencing people's consciousness and their trust.

1.2 The danger of pseudoscience lies in the fact that it seeks to equalize or take the place of science, in which case the public's trust in them will be unlimited, and the fraud of pseudoscience will be as effective as possible. The danger of pseudoscience also lies in the fact that it destroys the solid foundation of the provability of sciences, introducing false knowledge and violating the understanding of reality. Pseudoscience penetrates people's trust when it is difficult for people to understand or accept scientific truths, when science has a development limitation, and when science denies something, in this case, pseudoscience occupies this vacancy in the minds of these people, and makes it easy to understand the world through the supernatural, gives people "knowledge" that is easier to accept (about the exclusivity of people and the Earth in the universe). Pseudoscience, based on fiction, “easily” explains and “does” what science cannot, for example, treat cancer, and of course, pseudoscience does not deny anything that ordinary people do not deny, pseudoscience does not deny Darwinism, the existence of the soul and other things.

1.3 The human species, having gained independence from nature, and having reached the level of self-consciousness, has archaic features, for example, a person unconsciously ascribes to himself the chosenness and perfection in comparison with the animal world, a person is aware of himself as the center of the universe - this self-consciousness was fully realized in the religious teachings in which a person originated in the likeness of God, is the ruler of the Earth, "the Earth is in the center of the universe", and "the whole universe is a hard shell with attached stars", "human thoughts are manifestations of his soul, which animals do not have." Science, through irrefutable evidence, refuted each of these theses: Copernicus created the heliocentric system and overthrew the myth of the chosenness of the Earth, Darwin proved the origin of man from animals, genetics confirmed this - this is how the myth of the chosenness of man in wildlife was refuted, Pavlov proved the reflex mechanism of thinking and exposed the mythical soul of man. Pseudoscience and religion rely on this archaism of self-consciousness, and develop within their framework - those areas that have recently been refuted by science or that are too objectionable to people's pride, such as Darwin's theory and the theory of evolution in general, reappear, pseudosciences develop ideas about a certain world the supernatural, in which there may be a soul and so on - thus, an unsuccessful alternative to knowledge develops, but in return pseudoscience receives more approval from people who have been consoled by pride.

1.4 Human psychology has another feature that pseudosciences use to penetrate consciousness - this is the subjective thinking of gullible people. Trusting and impressionable people see what is not there, but what they want to see, and do not see what they do not want to see, do not see obvious contradictions. Religious people are just such people, they do not even want to hear anything against God and religion, even if it is obvious refutation, at the same time they see signs, the appearance of angels, God's will or God's punishment in ordinary phenomena. Trusting people are limited in their critical thinking, since their own thoughts are replaced by a set of conjectures formed by belief in something. It is almost impossible to convince such people, no matter how proven the refuting facts are.

1.5 One of the means of developing and popularizing pseudoscience is falsification, when fictitious phenomena are presented as real. In the case of falsification, pseudosciences try to strengthen their positions with false evidence, experimental data, forged. Falsifications are promoted by pseudoscience through the media and literature, and serve as "proof" of pseudoscientific propositions. In addition to falsifications, pseudoscience spreads fictions about the manifestations of superpowers and healing properties of something, while pseudoscience does not bother to prove and link with science, their “evidence” goes in parallel and independently of science, thereby demonstrating its isolation and independence from the enemy – Sciences. In terms of the use of falsifications by pseudoscience, it is worth noting that all kinds of supernatural phenomena are demonstrated, as a rule, in public, or in laboratory-like conditions of a room in the presence of some third-party people who give the impression of experts or scientists, and all these demonstrations do not differ, but even inferior in entertainment tricks of illusionists. It is not difficult to find a connection between the demonstration of pseudoscientific "evidence" and the illusions produced. Any experienced prestidigitator can easily expose such demonstrations, but they are designed for ordinary people who, seeing the tricks of illusionists, marvel at them, but seeing the same tricks called "superpowers". It can be assumed that Jesus Christ existed and worked miracles, but only these miracles were ordinary tricks, today's illusionists create such that Jesus fades in their light: illusionists fly (Copperfield) - Jesus did not fly, he only ascended once (according to the testimony of 12 disciples , against thousands of witnesses of Copperfield flights), disappear, pass through walls, make objects and even structures disappear (Statue of Liberty), repeat tricks with “multiplication of bread”, resurrect the dead (Longo, Grabovoi), whole stadiums healing at a distance (Kashpirovsky, Chumak ).

The miracles of Jesus were limited: he did not fly in everyday life, he did not extinguish the Sun, he did not extinguish the stars, he did not send earthquakes, because no one can do such tricks.

Biblical stories and miracles are most likely fictions, since they have not been proven, but they can also be real phenomena, only distorted, exaggerated and interpreted with a religious connotation, which is characteristic of believers, for example, the ebb of the sea could be presented by believers as a divergence of the waters of the sea in front of Moses; "manna from heaven" could be the same phenomenon as "fish" or frog rains, when hurricanes and tornadoes raise different objects from the surface; the dissolution of red clay in river water can be perceived as a "bloody river"; heated land creates an optical effect of a mirror - the illusion of the surface of the water, which could take place on a spit in the bay, hiding this spit from observers, and disguising it as the surface of the sea, everyone walking on it creates the impression of "walking on water" - after all, Jesus walked on water, rather than flying over water. Many people tend to worship something, most often they are fictional gods, but it can be other people, for example, adherents, deify the leaders of their religious sects, fans deify famous singers, people who believe in Kashpirovsky, Grabovoi and other magicians will make up a crowd of people who they will be convinced of the chosenness and greatness of their ideal, as the followers of the man Jesus Christ were convinced of his divinity, and it is impossible to convince such people, admiration for them is stronger than logic and self-esteem.

As a rule, various kinds of "phenomena", on which pseudosciences rely, are either an illusion, created or natural, or very distorted phenomena, exaggerated or misinterpreted, or these phenomena are simply fiction. Pseudosciences never study their phenomena, as happens in science; in pseudoscience, phenomena and laws are simply described, since they are the result of arbitrary reflections of people outside of reality. Despite the fact that, for example, some specialized institutes officially confirm the presence of superpowers in people, nevertheless, these same institutes do not go beyond private “confirmation” and private conferences, and the topic of certain abilities does not turn into research, dissertations and articles, which, in turn, will prove the superpowers of man and make it part of science. This does not happen due to the falsification of the examination, which is limited to isolated cases and risks being immediately refuted during a full-fledged study. Such a synthesis of pseudoscience and scientific falsifications is most effective for the existence of pseudoscience, since it allows pseudoscience to be directly integrated into official science.

1.6 In former times and now, pseudoscience describes and uses real phenomena, dressing them in some kind of supernatural. The phenomenon of self-hypnosis is well studied by official science, in which a person, with the help of the psyche, is able to unconsciously influence the functions of the body and stimulate internal reserves. Based on the effect of self-hypnosis, there is a remedy - a placebo, which is an empty substance devoid of medicinal properties, but at the same time, which has a healing effect of the same strength as the disease is associated with the mental functions of the body. Pseudosciences use the placebo effect, but under its guise they sell expensive substances and devices, receiving fraudulent income from a "high-tech" placebo. In a similar way, pseudoscience uses hypnosis, subsuming under it certain properties of a certain soul or supersensible world, by which they achieve agreement with reality from their false teachings. The placebo effect also occurs with "fortune telling", when a person sets up and unconsciously induces a prediction, or with magical rites, when "magic" acts on a person through self-hypnosis.

1.7 WAYS OF PSE INFLUENCE.

The most negative phenomenon for the state is the interaction between pseudoscience and circles of people with power or large sums of money, or managers of funds. Politicians and owners of large capitals do not differ in intelligence from ordinary people, they are just as gullible, and also not able to understand the difference between science and pseudoscience, therefore pseudosciences of various types, manipulating the minds of such influential people, themselves receive part of this influence. Fooling influential and famous people (actors, astronauts) is even more profitable for pseudoscience in terms of income than from influencing ordinary people. Pseudoscience successfully uses its influence on influential people to lobby its interests, to disseminate and popularize pseudoscience, increase its authority, as well as to put pressure on science and counterattack criticism. Pseudosciences are especially eager to lobby their interests in the authorities, as this will allow pseudosciences to be legalized "from above" and turn into science. The influence of pseudoscience on corrupt authorities is especially effective, since it becomes mutually beneficial. Pseudoscience can only be determined by scientists, it is not given to ordinary people in principle, therefore, to fool ordinary people, including politicians

for pseudoscientists it is worthless, and in turn, a duped politician is the best trophy for pseudoscience - for pseudoscience he becomes the key to gigantic state funds, he becomes a defense against any attacks, including from the Academy of Sciences.

Pseudoscience also influences through science, by bribing specialists and editors of journals, patent offices, making its way into scientific journals, receiving fake reviews, diplomas and scientific titles, making its way to scientific conferences and buying expertise in institutes - that is, trying purely mechanically to take a place in science. Breaking into science for pseudoscience is the second most important task after receiving funding, as this makes pseudoscience more scientific,

therefore, pseudoscientists are especially spent on gaining officiality and scientific character.

1.8 PROTECTIVE STRATEGIES OF PSEUSION.

Pseudosciences are putting up strong resistance to all sorts of attempts to eliminate them, connecting to this all possible resources into which they have penetrated, from politicians and courts (lawsuits against the teaching of Darwin's theory), and ending with the involvement of the media and bribed scientists up to academics. Pseudoscience is so strongly resisted because they bring high incomes to their creators, who, in turn, do not want to lose easy incomes and will take any action against critics. All scientific concepts are characterized by a dialogue of "proof-refutation", which constitutes the very scientific process of searching for truth, in which criticism is of key importance, but pseudosciences cannot conduct such a dialogue, therefore they choose the tactics of aggressive and stubborn opposition in the form of disagreement with criticism, and also attacks on the critics themselves, which are characterized by a derogatory tone. Trying to refute pseudoscience is as useless as justifying nonsense, if only because there is nothing to refute, it is difficult to find arguments for arbitrary ideas, this does not prevent official scientists from wasting time on refuting pseudoscience.

One of the defensive strategies of pseudoscience is their penetration into secret industries, primarily into the well-funded military sphere, for which entire military units have been created (military unit 10003). Protection by secrecy allows pseudoscientists to avoid publicity of their falsifications, which can cause a stream of reasonable criticism, and also to avoid any influence from the Russian Academy of Sciences and official science, which are limited by "military secrets" that protect a warm place for pseudoscientists - this is the most dangerous influence of pseudoscience, which undermines the defense of the country. Pseudoscience has created a fundamentally new tactic of self-defense - it organizes the fight against pseudoscience itself, but at the same time is on the side of science and not only avoids purges, but also eliminates competitive directions, the Russian Orthodox Church resorted to such tactics, which became one of the initiators of the creation of the Russian "Committee to combat pseudoscience, which means that the minimum becomes protected in the process of persecution against pseudoscience, the maximum - manages the process of eliminating pseudoscience, of course, this does not mean that the Committee to Combat Pseudoscience is not effective, it means that the ROC has immunity from this committee .

1.9 Refutation of pseudoscience by scientists is undoubtedly the most reliable means of destroying pseudoscience, but scientific refutation is not always required to limit pseudoscience, since it is a waste of time and draws attention to pseudoscience, and the effectiveness of these methods is temporary, since arbitrary teachings in the form of pseudoscience are quite variable, and can overcome outdated denials. The most effective criterion of pseudoscience is the internal and external inconsistency of these teachings: the internal one is connected with contradictions within the concept, which inevitably arise from arbitrary calculations of narrow-minded people; external contradictions are connected with incompatibility with the achieved level of official science. To engage in the refutation of pseudoscience is a rather thankless task, since one has to descend to the level of development of pseudoscientists, pay attention to them, and thereby indirectly raise their status, paying attention to pseudosciences from science. Criticizing pseudoscience is also ineffective because human imagination is inexhaustible and pseudoscience, even with a fully developed science, will find its place for existence - new pseudosciences will arise in place of the liquidated pseudosciences, and this will be indefinitely long. It is the futility of criticism that leads modern science to a simple ban on any concepts, for example, a ban on considering projects of perpetual motion machines, or on publishing criticism of the theory of relativity, since it takes more time to confront an endless stream of pseudoscientific ideas, obviously devoid of meaning, than, in fact, development of science.

1.10 Pseudosciences are actively taking root, using all kinds of funding, influence on the authorities, which are created by organized conglomerate centers - the so-called international academies and institutions (MAISU, the International Academy of Trinitarianism, the Academy of Bioenergy Informatics and the like). The organization greatly enhances the influence of pseudoscience and makes it almost invulnerable from the attacks of science, the public and authorities. Suffice it to recall the massive support of the pseudoscientist Grabovoi, for which the Scientific and Practical Conference "Modern Problems of Science, Technology, Culture, Health, Society and the Problems of the Earth's Space Security", St. , hired by influential pseudoscientific organizations or being simply imaginary scientists, ready to carry such nonsense for money, for which even a schoolboy will be given a deuce, for example, at the same conference E.I. Borovkov, professor, director of the Research Institute of Astrobiological Problems and Space Security. S.I. Repyev, the president of MAISU said: “After all, our modern meteorology knows nothing but a cyclone and an anticyclone. She does not even know where this very cyclone comes from. Where does an anticyclone form? And this is a projection of a circumsolar black hole. Even if meteorologists do not know where and what comes from, how can they correctly predict the weather? No way!” - such anti-scientific pearls at that conference were a dime a dozen, and they were pronounced by people with academic degrees and titles! For such reasoning, a scientist should simply be deprived or reduced in scientific rank, and those persons (VAK, Patent Bureau, Presidium of the Russian Academy of Sciences and others) who awarded him the title or patent should be subject to internal proceedings for incompetence.

1.11 Pseudosciences are developing in directions in which science has not developed,

as well as in those knowledges that do not exist in nature. There are and can be imagined even more concepts and phenomena that are impossible according to the laws of nature, for example, "Perpetual Motion", antigravity, etc., which will always remain non-existent, and the impossibility of their existence is unprovable as the infinity of the universe, therefore, pseudoscience especially seeks to rehabilitate and describe them, and since it is impossible to prove their impossibility, they become stable concepts for the existence of pseudosciences.

2. CHARACTERISTIC FEATURES OF PSEUSION.

2.1. Pseudosciences describe a kind of unknowable, “hidden” world that has one or another spirituality, divinity, this allows you to use the faith of narrow-minded people in the supernatural and at the same time give your teaching more scientificity - this allows you to integrate stupid trust and the “sphere of sciences”. Pseudosciences operate with concepts and terminology that is abstract and comprehensive, reminiscent of the reasoning of philosophers or people of the Middle Ages, which are formed from a limited set of words: god (creator, universal mind), soul, mind, thoughts, life, universe (cosmos), space-time, waves ( resonance), energy (light, quantum), information, happiness, love, health, good and evil, freedom, new knowledge, from which the vast majority of arguments and terms of false teachings are formed by combination.

2.2. Social and personal orientation. Pseudosciences describe personality, social life, human relationships, illnesses, business, wars and cataclysms, and other phenomena that are directly related to human life, while not showing interest in phenomena not related to humans (for example, physics of stars, volcanology, entomology ). This indicates that pseudoscience seeks to develop in that area of human thinking that is of the greatest importance for each person, and therefore most in demand by people, that is, pseudoscience is aimed at the greatest interest of people, receiving more attention. Regardless of the field of pseudoscience, whether it be physics, biology or religious teachings - they all converge in the end to the properties of a person.

2.3. A very characteristic feature of pseudoscience is their rapid introduction into practice. Pseudoscience not only rapidly reaches the level of application of its "ideas" in a matter that sometimes outstrips the development of these ideas themselves, but also the desire to use the "idea" in the first place. A striking example is torsion technologies, which developed before physicists developed the idea of torsion fields, later refuted.

2.4. Pseudoscience is realized in trade and services. Pseudosciences mainly seek to directly sell their products, whether they are things in the form of amulets, horoscopes, healing agents, etc., or these are services, in the form of fortune telling or "cure". This sign indicates the goal of pseudoscience - easy income, therefore, pseudosciences develop where gullible people have large amounts of money and power, that is, politicians, businessmen, criminals and others, therefore, various kinds of pseudoscientists are characterized by the desire to these circles in order to sell more expensively their fictions, for example, at the court of kings and presidents there have always been their own astrologers, magicians, healers and other rabble.

2.5. Pseudoscience is highly versatile. Usually, a holistic teaching is based on a certain single principle, reminiscent of arbitrary reasoning, like milogy, or a single phenomenon like bioinformatics (bioenergetics), torsion fields, from which a certain teaching develops, almost to a panacea or a theory of everything. For pseudoscientific medicines, methods of treatment and devices, a huge list of curable diseases is characteristic, on the verge of a panacea for everything, moreover, diseases that are in no way connected with each other. The same pseudoscientific remedy cures both obesity and thinness at the same time.

2.6. Pseudosciences are created by borrowing concepts from heterogeneous sciences that have minimal connection, in other words, pseudosciences are very interdisciplinary. In their interdisciplinary achievements, pseudosciences reach high values, turning into a fundamental farce, for example, in medical and psychological areas, pseudoscientists actively use the concepts of quantum physics (torsion fields), in their physical areas they use religious and esoteric concepts (mylogy, bioenergy informatics). This quality of pseudoscience is also manifested in the fact that even scientists can create pseudoscience, only on condition that this scientist is engaged in pseudoscience in the field of knowledge, different from the one in which he is a specialist, for example, engineers, biologists, historians, philosophers and these reasonings form pseudosciences.

2.7. In pseudoscience, all provisions are based on arbitrary fabrications, in the form of some kind of philosophizing or conjecture, which are issued as conclusions, behind which there must be experimental confirmation. In other words, pseudoscientists replace experiments with reasoning, in cases where this is unacceptable.

2.8. Pseudoscience develops in parallel with official science, adapting and borrowing knowledge from science, in order to disguise itself as “scientific”, it develops afterward, that is, catching up, not surpassing, since it cannot achieve new knowledge. Pseudoscience borrows terms from official science, such as quanta, black holes, space-time, waves, resonance and others, tying them to its teachings, doing it so stupidly and naively, like parrots that repeat words after a person and give the impression of a conversation, although of course they do not understand anything about them. Science develops, there are more terms, which means that the vocabulary of pseudoscientists is expanding and their speeches acquire a more scientific ring, remaining

the mindless babble of a parrot. Pseudoscience actively distorts the concepts of science, adapting them to its own teachings, making complex interpretations of banal phenomena.

2.9. Pseudoscience condones and develops in those directions that are more preferable to ordinary people with their archaic thinking. Pseudoscience does not try to convince, but on the contrary agrees that there is a certain divine world of the unknown, that man is a higher being, that there is a soul, that humanity and the Earth have chosenness, and so on, precisely because such views are more preferable to ordinary people, pseudoscience penetrates especially easily into their consciousness. Pseudoscience "confirms" that there are some superpowers of a person that an ordinary person wants to believe in, the same pseudoscience "refutes" Darwin's theory, trying to prove to ordinary people who want to see something higher in themselves that they are really higher, similar to encouragement to an archaic understanding of people there are a lot of pseudosciences, since this is one of the incentives for their development.

2.10. Pseudoscience is characterized by rapid development, since it is based not on scientific research, but on arbitrary reasoning. This or that new pseudoscientific concept appears already with ready-made basic knowledge, which was as if written by someone before them, and was studied by someone for a long time, although in reality it was invented in a short time by some rogue. Pseudoscience is characterized by a complete absence of any self-doubt, it asserts itself as the true truth, like religion "as it is written, so it is." It's a sign that pseudoscience is borrowing

the method of self-education is different from the religious method, and therefore does not accept any rebuttals, and will never converge in a discussion with scientific expertise, the results of which are predetermined, and not in favor of pseudoscientific teachings.

2.11. Pseudosciences do not oppose each other, quite tolerably coexisting together, moreover, they constitute completely different ideas and competition. It would seem that religion should not recognize "reading the thoughts of God" in the form of astrology, and should not recognize teachings that do not coincide with religious teachings, but there is not even a hint of such opposition. Official science is presented by pseudoscience as some kind of accurate and proven, but incomplete and limited knowledge, while pseudoscience is “deep and comprehensive knowledge”, which is that part of “knowledge” to which official science cannot or does not want to develop. Pseudosciences do not pose a threat to each other, since they have one goal - to influence people. Any attempts to refute pseudoscience are limited on the part of the latter only by arguments that “science has not reached their level and therefore cannot prove”, while it is not known, and even more so, it has not been proven how this knowledge related to pseudoscience was obtained.

2.12. It is typical for any pseudoscience that with “giant, limitless” possibilities, there is a real zero effect. For example, if telepathy were real, then there would be no need for military intelligence, if telehypnosis were a reality, then diplomats would not be needed, and so on. At the same time, telepathy and telehypnosis are not only more effective, but also much cheaper and safer - but there is nothing like it. Moreover, such technology could have been used since ancient times, when magic, prophecy, spiritualism appeared. For example, if spiritism were a reality, then it would be possible to summon the souls of great scientists (Newton, Einstein) and learn from them new ideas and theories. The torsion workers promised a huge amount of energy from the physical vacuum, an absolute weapon, but there is neither one nor the other, and Europe still continues to buy oil.

2.13 Pseudoscience is characterized by a complete absence of self-criticism. Most pseudoscientific concepts proclaim their conclusions final and correct, without a hint of doubt, although this is not accompanied by proper evidence, and the "truth" of this knowledge is only proclaimed. Healers and alternative medicine methods have little or no side effects, pseudo-historical concepts present themselves as "true stories", religious teachings proclaim themselves to be absolute truth, and forbid other truths, other religions.

3. INTERACTION OF PSEUSION AND SCIENCE.

Science in its development steadily cognizes the world, and in this cognition there are no such facts that cannot be explained, there are no such limits beyond which cognition could not penetrate, in other words, there is nothing divine and supernatural in the world, but there is only that which is already studied, and what is to be studied. Physics has penetrated into the depths of the atom, and studied it to elementary particles and fields, found the laws governing it. The atom did not turn out to be an indivisible "divine creation", "God" decided to make himself more difficult and complicated things to such an extent that they could exist without God. It would seem that pseudoscience should retreat and collapse under the influence of developing science, but this does not happen, this does not happen because the stupid ignoramuses who own money have not died out, which means that the ground for pseudoscience has been preserved.

Pseudoscience even develops, it develops in parallel with science, as it begins to use scientific concepts and laws to "explain" previously "unexplained things", in fact, pseudoscience tries to integrate into science, it stretches up the scientific tree like a vine, while reaching the top without its own strong trunk. This mechanism of the formation of pseudosciences on the basis of the achieved scientific knowledge is universal; what distinguishes pseudosciences is that they only adapt to science and do not develop knowledge, as science does. The explanation that pseudoscience makes on the basis of scientific knowledge is a rather primitive linking of analogies, the connection of the proven by science and the analogous unproven. So, for example, astrologers try to explain the “influence of planets on people” by the gravitational field of these planets, even with all the absurdity of such conclusions that gravity can only cause mass displacement, for example, the gravitational field from the atmosphere and clouds exceeds the gravitational field of the planets, therefore it is better to predict fate by the clouds.

Pseudoscience borrows phenomena from science, adapts them in itself and even develops them in a false direction, while the more complex the phenomenon (quantum physics), the greater the effect obtained from its use, for example, some “torsion fields” are summed up under physical concepts, which are is no longer divinity and magic, but some kind of pseudoscientific concept formulated like scientific formulations. The big bang that created the visible universe was very successfully used by religious pseudoscientists as an act of divine creation, another important example of this borrowing of facts from science by pseudoscience is the introduction of newly discovered planets by astrology: Uranus, Neptune, Pluto, while the newly discovered planets were quite easily absorbed by astrology, also, for example, the well-known phenomenon of the “Kirlian effect”, which is only an electrical phenomenon similar to the discharges studied by Tesla, is given out by pseudoscience as the very mythical biofield that many pseudosciences talk about, but it remains unclear how the biofield appears in inanimate objects. A gift for pseudoscience are scientific hypotheses of fantastic content, for example, extra dimensions that we cannot detect due to

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It's no secret that science is the source of the main achievements of mankind. There would be no science, there would be no progress, it is not for nothing that it is called scientific and technical. But, as always in our life, there is black and white, there is truth and lies, there is science and pseudoscience. And if the main goal of science, progressive scientists is to move forward for the benefit of mankind, then pseudoscience, like a computer virus, hinders progress and misleads ordinary people.

And many quite rightly compare pseudoscience with a malignant tumor. So what is pseudoscience? And what harm can it do? These questions are more relevant than ever today, because the Internet is literally littered with pseudoscientific (and they are also called pseudo-, quasi-, para-) works. That is, teachings that imitate scientific knowledge, claiming the status of scientific, but not being such. Instead of experiments, they refer to “obviousness” or “common sense”, instead of logical arguments to “authoritative opinion”, they stop the critical analysis of their ideas in every possible way.

The scientific method has turned the life of mankind upside down. It is thanks to science and its discoveries that today "... spaceships surf the spacious Universe ...". Remember, after all, the spiritually gifted speech of the foreman from the comedy "Operation" Y "and other adventures of Shurik." Yes, there were times when the main means of transportation was a wagon, then cars, trains and planes appeared. There were times when entire villages died out from epidemics of plague and cholera, today, thanks to progress, many deadly diseases can be cured. Yes, and the average life expectancy of a person has increased. Behind every discovery or invention is the work and genius of a chain of hundreds and even thousands of scientists, engineers and thinkers. Therefore, it is difficult for a person to grasp the immensity: the amount of accumulated knowledge over half a century, even in one very narrow scientific field, is impressive! And, oddly enough, in many ways this has become fertile ground for the manipulation of pseudoscientists. If in past centuries astrologers, esotericists and palmists referred to some secret ancient knowledge, then today's fortune tellers, deftly juggling complex terms, give out random, and more often completely non-existent effects for "the latest achievements of science." Some do it out of thoughtlessness, others - deliberately deceiving gullible "clients".

Humanity spends huge resources on such pacifiers. The annual market for homeopathic “medicines” reaches $5 billion. In the United States alone, people spend $300 million a year on them, in Germany and France - $400 million each. "Jubilee", one of the components of which was an engine based on "an unknown phenomenon of the interaction of the working fluid with fields" and in violation of the fundamental physical law of conservation of momentum. Of course, the engine failed and millions were wasted. This is a prime example of how pseudoscience works.

In matters of health, pseudoscience is even dangerous. World Health Organization experts and volunteer doctors from the Cochrane project are constantly fighting against pseudoscientific currents in medicine, pointing out that people risk their lives by relying on the help of aura healers, bioenergetic field cleaners or homeopaths in the treatment of diseases. Pseudoscientific theories, like psychoanalysis, can "turn heads" even for experienced specialists, for a long time directing the development of science in a false direction. Others, such as the movement against the use of GMOs or creationism, seriously impede the progress of science and society.

Science and its method

What distinguishes scientific knowledge from pseudoscientific knowledge? Tools and concepts. It is worth noting that each field of science has its own tools and concepts: historians rely on excavations or written evidence, biologists on the results of chromatography or electrophoresis, astronomers on the spectra of distant space objects, and chemists set up experiments. But scientists receive all scientific knowledge by applying a single approach, which is called the scientific method. It is used everywhere - from the biochemical laboratory to the Large Hadron Collider.

The main principle of the scientific method follows from everyday logic - "prove". The theory is proved by experiment, and the experiment is repeated many times. But in practice, everything is more complicated, and science uses a complex cyclical approach to the search for truth. It all starts with observations and experiments that grope for new unknown effects. Then, based on the knowledge already accumulated by mankind, hypotheses are put forward that explain these phenomena. From these hypotheses, new predictions are made, which are verified and refined by other observations and experiments. Further, new experiments are set up, new effects are revealed, and the cycle is repeated.

A hypothesis capable of explaining a wide range of phenomena becomes a theory, and if it is constantly confirmed, then it becomes a law. It is worth saying that for one reason or another, some laws continue to be called theories - this happened with the doctrine of evolution or with Einstein's theories of relativity. This did them a disservice, and we still often hear claims that "Darwinism is just a theory."

The scientific method has been comprehensively developed and polished for thousands of years, from the ancient Greek sophists to Galileo. It continues to improve even today, with precise approaches to statistics or clinical trials. However, the basis of this method remains unchanged - "Prove". Reflecting on this, in the 1930s, the philosopher Karl Popper found another criterion for truly scientific knowledge: falsifiability.

According to this criterion, any statement must be refuted at least in principle, and, as Popper found, many views that were considered scientific do not satisfy this. An experiment could be devised to test whether gravity on the Moon is directed upward from the surface. But it is impossible to make measurements capable of refuting Freud's psychoanalysis, just as it is impossible to prove experimentally that you or I are not an astral projection of some minor deity.

Real miracles

There are other "complications" of the scientific method, including a thought experiment (as with Schrödinger's cat), theoretical modeling, etc. But empirical knowledge remains at the core - what is obtained in observations, in experience. Therefore, in physics and chemistry, and even more so in medicine, strict requirements are imposed on the experiment, which guarantee accuracy and reliability, the impossibility of interference by extraneous factors or forgery. Each scientific work is accompanied by a detailed protocol of all manipulations and calculations, and every now and then the scientific world is disturbed by stories about the autopsy of fraudsters who forged the results that were beneficial to them.

The scientific method is a continuous process of obtaining experimental data, building and refining theories.

The main strength of science is flexibility, the ability to detect errors, discard false concepts and find new ones. Pseudoscience is inert, immobile, and contradictory facts are discarded and ignored, thereby violating the principle of the scientific method.

The point is not that scientists “hide” especially valuable knowledge from the public for some cunning reasons. If someone could demonstrate the influence of the position of the stars at the time of birth on fate or the possibility of curing cancer by the laying on of hands, the name of such a person would remain for centuries - and hardly any astronomer or oncologist would refuse such a chance. There are simply no chances. As one well-known geologist noted, it is very easy to bring down the entire building of science: it is enough to find one rabbit bone in deposits dated back a billion years. So far, no one has done this.

We tend to regret this, lamenting that science "left no place for a miracle" in life. But it's not. There were very few miracles in the pre-scientific past - and only progress gave us boxes of players singing in all voices, the ability to magically communicate with people on the other side of the Earth, and even - if resuscitation is done on time - to rise from the dead. It's just that science needs to be understood, and not taken on faith the stories of astrologers and others like them. But if you make a little effort, miracles will open in her that she never dreamed of.

Scientific knowledge is not free from errors. History has proved the illegitimacy of many hypotheses that science previously operated on (about the world ether, phlogiston, etc.). However, these errors do not contradict such a scientific criterion as refutation. Science does not pretend to absolute knowledge: its knowledge always contains some part of error, which is reduced with the development of science; it is aimed at search truth, not to own it.

It is in this direction of science that the main criterion that distinguishes it from numerous fakes is laid: any claim to the possession of a single and absolute truth is unscientific.

The social reasons for the popularity of pseudoscientific theories lie, on the one hand, in the general crisis of modern culture and the search for new values, and on the other hand, in a person's attraction to a miracle. More diverse are the personal reasons that make a person engage in pseudoscience: the desire for fame or money, a sincere delusion, an order.

Based on this, we can give the following definition: pseudoscience is falsification of scientific data for political, religious, economic or personal purposes.

Pseudoscience uses scientific terminology in its constructions, acts on behalf of various organizations and "academies", disguises its activities with academic degrees and titles, makes extensive use of mass media and government structures, and carries out publishing activities. Therefore, it is often difficult for a person (even a specialist) to find criteria for distinguishing pseudoscience from real science. Nevertheless, some general indicators of pseudoscientific™ can be identified.

1. Usually unscientific concepts aimed at negation of all previous science. As a rule, even the most "crazy" concept, if it is correct, is consistent with a set of laws and previously confirmed fundamental principles. Thus, Einstein's theory of relativity did not cancel Newton's mechanics, but limited it to certain conditions.
2. Reasonable suspicions cause general and. global theories - from a new theory of the structure of the Universe to the invention of a "cure for all diseases". In an age of ever-increasing amounts of information, it is difficult to be a versatile specialist in all fields and take into account all the factors necessary for a global "theory of everything"; contrary to such theories and perceived complexity of the world. Such ideas are also usually characterized by excessive pathos and self-praise.
3. A common characteristic of pseudoscience is nebula and incomprehensibility of the evidence. The most complex scientific theories can be explained in simple terms; if the concepts are fundamentally undefinable, then most likely such vagueness masks the lack of an evidence base.
4. Pseudo-scientific unsystematic and internally contradictory theories, indicating the illiteracy of the author. The opposite is also true: illiterate work is usually meaningless.
5. Definitely unscientific theories where scientific terms and concepts from the field are mixed mystics or religions(for example, “karma”, “grace”, “cosmic vibrations”, etc.) or ordinary concepts are given a “secret” meaning (Light, Beginning, Reason, Nature, etc.).
6. In pseudoscience, theories are often unverifiable because they are based on irrational belief. For example, references to cosmic intelligence, the harmony of the universe, or revelation are not scientifically verifiable.
7. Proponents of pseudoscience often put forward new hypotheses not to gain knowledge, but to additional support their theories. For example, creationists introduce additions whenever science finds another refutation of the concept of divine creation of the world. In general, if all efforts are aimed at defending a theory, rather than searching for new knowledge, this can serve as an indicator of an unscientific idea (often all the subsequent activity of the “creators” of such an idea comes down to its constant justification or complaints of persecution by official science).

Of course, these indicators are not true in all cases. A scientist can really come up with a new general theory, he can be persecuted undeservedly, and so on. However, if his theory corresponds to several of the above principles at once, then its scientific character is more than doubtful.

The following forms of pseudoscience are currently the most common.

Esotericism and mysticism in scientific terms, they try to interpret the activities of magicians, psychics and mediums, as well as such phenomena as poltergeist, telekinesis, levitation, etc. Along with medieval pseudosciences (astrology, alchemy), new ones are becoming - parapsychology, alternative medicine, biofield theory, extrasensory perception, bioenergetics etc. In all cases, the evidence base of these "sciences" is absent, but the use of superstitions and weaknesses of the general public is obvious.

massive speculation. As a rule, these are poorly verified large-scale projects that promise large economic benefits and are specially created in order to receive funding from state or public funds. Such, for example, are the ideas of "torsion fields", "bioenergy informatics", "magnetic and polymeric water", etc.

Information sensations. To increase the popularity of the media publish information about exceptional events. By exaggerating some and hiding other details, information is born about "inexplicable phenomena" - flying saucers, bigfoot, monsters, healings and other miracles. To increase the reliability, information is presented in a pseudo-scientific form (such is Ufology).

Information order. The media often invites science experts to comment on events. Since one of the main tasks of the means of communication is the formation of public opinion, those persons who often appear on the screen: “... should always be ready for anyone to come and accept the rules of the game, be ready for anything, i. any concessions, compromises and compromises, just to get on the air and provide yourself with direct and indirect benefits associated with fame. It is obvious that permanent television experts do not propagate scientific truth, but simply substantiate opinions that are beneficial to information customers.

political order. History is well aware of the methods of power pressure on scientists, when some sciences (genetics, cybernetics) were destroyed, supporting false sciences that corresponded to party or ideological guidelines. Theories of racism, Nazism, misunderstood patriotism, etc. are built on the same political orders.

Mobile phone manufacturers fund studies on their safety, and headset manufacturers on the dangers of radiation for the brain. Fraudsters, taking advantage of the fears of the consumer, produce holographic stickers that “protect against radiation from devices.”

Religious "science". Religion is a sphere of spiritual life that, by definition, does not intersect with modern science. Revelation contains facts that contradict the data of science, and the system of accepted dogma itself is incompatible with scientific methods. Therefore, any scientific substantiation of religious dogmas (as well as religious explanations of scientific facts) is in fact pseudoscience. Such, for example, are the "scientific" arguments in favor of God's creation of the world or man.

In the religious consciousness of society, there are also many ideas that are not consistent with science: belief in the myrrh-streaming of icons, the healing power of baptismal water or the gathering of the “Blessed Fire” in Jerusalem, etc. From the point of view of science, such ideas are superstitions.

I Augustine the Blessed said that miracles do not contradict the laws of nature, but our ideas about the laws of nature.

Of course, science itself is often overly conservative and is capable of declaring as pseudoscience something that is true, but does not correspond to its established theories. For example, for a long time science did not accept the ideas of Democritus about atoms. However, new ideas are usually taken seriously by philosophy, which is not so strictly limited by the criteria of scientificity. Philosophy is much freer than other sciences in the choice of objects of study. Unlike physics or linguistics, it can also be religious, include elements of mysticism, be rather vague and hardly proven. Thanks to such a breadth of the subject field, true, but at first unbelievable hypotheses are not forgotten and remain in the sphere of philosophical knowledge until official science takes them seriously.

However, philosophical knowledge, with all its freedom, will also be recognized as pseudoscientific if it manipulates data for political, religious, personal and other selfish purposes.

Pseudoscience is rarely harmless, since almost all of its forms have one or another negative impact on the human psyche. Therefore, tolerance towards it should not extend to too wide limits: the mental health of society, undermined by faith in pseudoscience, is no less important for the future than physical health. It is possible that even prohibitions will not be required to combat pseudoscience. If the voice of science is given support to sound a little louder than the voice of pseudoscience, then the meaninglessness and absurdity of the latter will become much more noticeable.

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW

1. pseudoscience- falsification of scientific data for political, religious, economic or personal purposes.
2. Pseudoscience takes shape in the form of esotericism, mysticism, religious superstitions, falsifications and speculations, informational and political orders, etc.

TASKS

1. List the main features of pseudoscientific knowledge. Which of them do you think have the strongest impact on society?
2. Name the forms of pseudoscience. Give their main characteristics.

Accordingly: spontaneous movement of objects; non-contact movement of objects by willpower; overcoming the force of attraction.
Bourdieu P. On television and journalism. M., 2002. S. 153.