68. The Science Of Weird Stuff with Prof. Chris French

"We're at a time when we need critical thinking more than ever, and sadly, I'm not really seeing it happening." Professor Chris French is one of the world's leading researchers in anomalistic psychology and critical thinking. As former head of the Anomalistic Psychology Research Unit at Goldsmiths, University of London, author of The Science of Weird Sh*t, patron of Humanists UK, and former editor of The Skeptic magazine, Chris has spent decades investigating paranormal claims, debunking fraudsters, and exploring the psychology of belief. In this conversation, he unpacks why the paranormal is worth taking seriously as a scientific and psychological subject, what his own near-miss with precognition research taught him, why deliberate con artists deserve far more condemnation than sincere believers, and why we urgently need better critical thinking in schools, in public life, and in our politics. Connect with Professor French Chris’s website Chris’s Guardian column Chris’s Skeptic column Chris’s profile page at Goldmiths Chris on Bluesky Chris being interviewed on the Plutopia podcast The Science of Weird Shit on Bookshop.org Send us Fan Mail Support the show Support Humanism Now & Join Our Community! Follow @HumanismNowPod | YouTube | TikTok | Instagram | Facebook | Threads | X.com | BlueSky Humanism Now is produced by Humanise Live a podcast production agency based in London, serving charities, companies, and individuals across the globe. Contact us to get starting in podcasting today at humanise.live or hello@humanise.liveMusic: Blossom by Light Prism Podcast transcripts are AI-generated and may contain errors or omissions. They are provided to make our content more accessible, but should not be considered a fully accurate record of the conversation. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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Jaksot(91)

How to Disagree Without Dehumanising | Sharon Booth, Solutions Not Sides

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84. The Mattering Instinct with Rebecca Goldstein

Support Humanism Now and Join Our Community! — https://ko-fi.com/humanismnowpod "We are creatures of matter who long to matter — and one of the strongest manifestations of this is people who deny that...

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83. Seth Andrews, Host of 'The Thinking Atheist', on Leaving Faith, Finding Values, and Fighting Tribalism

Support Humanism Now & Join Our Community! | https://ko-fi.com/humanismnowpod "I found atheism is not an inoculation against irrationality or awfulness." — Seth AndrewsSeth Andrews spent 14 years as a...

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82. The Quiet Revival That Wasn't: David Voas on Faked Data and the Truth About Religion in Britain

Support Humanism Now & Join Our Community! "I don't think that we have any solid evidence of a religious revival underway in England, or for that matter, anywhere else." — David Voas In April 2025, t...

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81. The Re-emergence of Eugenics and How to Fight Back with Science, with Rebecca Sear

"I used to think eugenics had died out after the Second World War. I no longer believe that, unfortunately." — Rebecca SearMost of us think of eugenics as a horror confined to the past. It isn't. This...

5 Heinä 35min

80. Inside the Ex-Muslim Movement - Muhammad Syed on why leaving Islam Can Be Liberating, and Dangerous

"One of the things I heard again and again was: I thought I was the only one." — Muhammad Syed Leaving religion can be one of the most liberating decisions of a person's life. For those leaving Islam,...

29 Kesä 42min

79. Meet strangeness with kindness - Kestral Gaian on the role of representation, community and politics in fiction

"It's really about what happens when kindness is the first response to strangeness." — Kestral Gaian What does it take to stay human in a world that often forgets what that means? This episode explore...

21 Kesä 33min

78. "No Hope But Peace and Justice" - An Israeli and a Palestinian in Dialogue

"Many in society saw the news and understood there's no hope for peace. But I understood there's no hope but peace." — Yaniv AkninWhat does humanism actually ask of us when we confront the Israel-Pale...

5 Kesä 43min