https://padlet.com/holly_branigan/assignment1 Made by Holly Branigan, working individually en-us 2019-02-11 16:53:34 UTC 2019-02-11 19:11:11 UTC hello@padlet.com holly_branigan https://padlet.com/holly_branigan/assignment1/wish/329968320 Made by Holly Branigan, working individually ]]> 2019-02-11 16:56:12 UTC https://padlet.com/holly_branigan/assignment1/wish/329968320 holly_branigan https://padlet.com/holly_branigan/assignment1/wish/329968821 Definition - The person who is making claims is believed because the claims they are making are complicated and hard to understand, but they sound smart and like they know what they are talking about so people believe them. There's more low-quality research than high quality.

Connection -
This video demonstrates Proof by Verbosity because it shows Donald Trump is using more technical words to show that his "wall" will help America. He is trying to make people believe that this wall is being used for good and not just to keep Mexico/Mexicans out. As the video goes on you realize it sounds less and less like he is building a wall and more like he's actually helping Mexico and America because the words he's using are getting more complex. This connects to Trump needing to Show Evidence that this plan actually will work and how it benefits both sides, as well as Identify Alternatives in his plan to build this wall, as it doesn't work for everyone and the idea has many flaws. He is also Using Scientific Sounding Language that is Meaningless such as; encounter, promptly, uncontrolled, migration, etc.

]]> 2019-02-11 16:57:03 UTC https://padlet.com/holly_branigan/assignment1/wish/329968821 holly_branigan https://padlet.com/holly_branigan/assignment1/wish/329979701 Definition - Appeal to Authority is when big names and people within the media use themselves to promote and influence their fans/followers to believe what they think is true.

Connection - This article demonstrates Appeal To Authority because it shows celebrity endorsement. Kat Von D made an Instagram post about her pregnancy about how she will not be using vaccines to have a "natural birth". To connect this to what I learned in pseudoscience red flags, within her post there is no Results or Proof that Her Claims Can Be Verified, there is more proof that shows vaccines help with childbirth and children being healthy.]]> 2019-02-11 17:15:32 UTC https://padlet.com/holly_branigan/assignment1/wish/329979701 holly_branigan https://padlet.com/holly_branigan/assignment1/wish/329988221 Definition - Confirmation Bias is information and evidence that you believe and will only believe in. The person will believe in this no matter how much truth and other information is shown to them.

Connection - This video demonstrates that Confirmation Bias is used in our everyday lives. Advertisements tell us all these people have already bought this or NEED this which makes our minds think exactly that and no matter how many people we ACTUALLY see using it, we still believe what we were told in the first place; everyone has or needs it. While this advertisement is from the 1950's it still shows that all you need to do to bake this boxed cake is "add an egg", but did you know there's actually no need for an egg? This is showing us Confirmation Bias where we believe that we need to add an egg to our cake to make it the best cake, even though the truth is you don't actually need one. This relates to the pseudoscience red flags because Repetition Does Not Equal the Same Results; five different people could add an egg and would not end up with the same cake, one person in this scenario could also not use an egg and their cake could taste similar or the same as another cake.

]]> 2019-02-11 17:29:37 UTC https://padlet.com/holly_branigan/assignment1/wish/329988221 holly_branigan https://padlet.com/holly_branigan/assignment1/wish/329996470 Definition -  I would define All Natural as someone using those exact words or words that pertain to being natural and healthy to influence people to think about what they are promoting or showing is healthy and natural.

Connection - This video shows a hair product company promoting their shampoo to be all natural. If you actually read the ingredients on this (or other "all natural" shampoos) you can see that a lot of these ingredients are not natural. Most people don't realize when things are described as "all natural" that so are things like venom, poison oak, etc. but they're not good for you. This relates to the pseudoscience watchlist because it Appeals to Vulnerable People who want their hair to look shiny and they think only using "natural ingredients" in this shampoo will get that result.


]]> 2019-02-11 17:43:34 UTC https://padlet.com/holly_branigan/assignment1/wish/329996470 holly_branigan https://padlet.com/holly_branigan/assignment1/wish/330010072 Definition - This is when something happens which the person believes is the cause of something else that happens. This could be thinking something has caused illness, a revelation, a positive test result, etc.

Connection - This video demonstrates this red flag because it shows that the person believes God helped cure their cancer. In reality, it was probably the doctors and their medicine that did. On the pseudoscience watchlist it shows this is a red flag because this woman is Convinced by Their Faith and Belief that the correlation of this cure was the cause of god. I feel that if this woman realized that there is no proof to the claims of God curing her she would start to understand what had actually cured her.]]> 2019-02-11 18:05:51 UTC https://padlet.com/holly_branigan/assignment1/wish/330010072 holly_branigan https://padlet.com/holly_branigan/assignment1/wish/330014592 Definition - This reason for belief occurs when looking at an image or something for so long you start to believe that you are seeing something, they may not actually be there.

Connection - In this image of a car, you may start to see a smiley face. With technology and the use of emojis we're always seeing smiley faces and emoticons on our phones, so now we see them in day-to-day objects like cars.
Here we can find the pseudoscience watchlist Appeal to Emotion because we often think seeing these images/faces are funny or exciting and we show our friends. 


]]> 2019-02-11 18:13:50 UTC https://padlet.com/holly_branigan/assignment1/wish/330014592 holly_branigan https://padlet.com/holly_branigan/assignment1/wish/330021949 Definition - This is when someone assigns a deeper meaning or intention to something that's not actually there.

Connection - Conspiracies are a big way of showing this. In this video, Shane Dawson talks about the conspiracy that Avril Lavigne throughout time has been replaced by a look-alike or clone of her to continue her legacy as an artist. This hits Deliberately Creates Mystery on our pseudoscience watchlist as Shane uses a "spooky" voice and appeals to our love of mystery by showing different clips and ways this could be true. While the video may make you believe he is showing you facts, none of the clips or evidence has been 100% effective in proving this conspiracy. If we use the Critical Thinking Process we can see that Shane only gathered evidence for his side and not the side that Avril is the same person she has always been.]]> 2019-02-11 18:26:23 UTC https://padlet.com/holly_branigan/assignment1/wish/330021949 holly_branigan https://padlet.com/holly_branigan/assignment1/wish/330026441 Definition - This is when we believe something because there is no evidence to prove or deny what happened. No one can explain 100% of what happened.

Connection - This article talks about the Taos of Hum. Taos of Hum is a small city in New Mexico that have for years have had visitors annoyed and puzzled by a mysterious and faint low-frequency hum in the desert air. This hum is unexplained which has led people to jump to the conclusion that it is mass hysteria or some secret, sinister purpose from the government or another authority. If we look at our pseudoscience watchlist, we can see there is No Way to Verify The Accuracy of this Information. The Taos of Hum is unexplained and it will be difficult to convince people that this is not mass hysteria or a sinister purpose, it is just simply unexplained.

]]> 2019-02-11 18:33:55 UTC https://padlet.com/holly_branigan/assignment1/wish/330026441 holly_branigan https://padlet.com/holly_branigan/assignment1/wish/330032060 I chose to evaluate the video Avril Lavigne Conspiracy Theory.

Define Problem (extraordinary claim):
Avril Lavigne has been replaced by a look-a-like to continue her legacy as an artist.

Gather Information
This video is made by Shane Dawson (a well-known celebrity/influencer). It is a YouTube video where Shane shows clips and evidence that Avril has been replaced throughout time with another person that looks like her. He argues this fact because her voice, mannerisms and face have something slightly off about them as time progresses.

Evaluate Evidence
Shane makes this type of content for entertainment purposes and gets paid depending on his subscriber and view count; Avril is a popular celebrity and could draw viewers in. He has no scientific proof and Avril Lavigne herself has spoken on this theory and confirmed it is not true or factual. The theories leave out parts of the critical thinking process and the information and facts showing how this is not possible was never shown in Shane's video.

Recognize Assumptions, Emotions & Biases
Shane created this video to draw in viewers and get them to only see one side of this theory. This is considered a way of deliberately creating mystery to not only gain followers but to keep them entertained and subscribed for more. He uses his viewer's emotions and impressionable minds to make them believe this theory and others he has on his channel.

Synthesize Evidence, Identify Alternatives
Alternative solution 1:
Avril Lavigne has been replaced throughout her career with lookalikes to continue her career, supported by Shane Dawson's video and the clips/information he shows

Alternative solution 2:
Avril Lavigne is the same person she has always been, but through makeup, puberty and aging has changed in her voice, looks, and mannerisms, supported by Avril herself, science (puberty) and her fans

Select Best Alternative
I conclude Avril has not been replaced by lookalikes over time.]]> 2019-02-11 18:44:07 UTC https://padlet.com/holly_branigan/assignment1/wish/330032060