Crank

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==Famous cranks==
 
==Famous cranks==
 
Well known cranks (in alphabetical order by surname) and their ideas include:
 
Well known cranks (in alphabetical order by surname) and their ideas include:
*[[Penn Jillette]] - Global warming denialist.
+
 
 
*Neal Adams - [[Expanding earth]]
 
*Neal Adams - [[Expanding earth]]
 
*[[Glenn Beck]] - If you don't know, you haven't been paying attention.
 
*[[Glenn Beck]] - If you don't know, you haven't been paying attention.

Revision as of 02:09, 7 July 2014

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Crank is a pejorative term applied to someone who holds extremely unorthodox views on a subject and is often very vocal about these opinions. A crank will usually maintain their viewpoint despite, or perhaps because of, evidence to the contrary. The crank is usually an amateur in the field they are arguing against, but sometimes individuals with expertise in that field will become a 'crank' (which can lead directly to pathological science); sometimes for personal gain, which is ironic because cranks often accuse rational people of being driven by personal gain.

Cranks emerge in all fields of study and hold a wide variety of inaccurate or unorthodox views, from being able to square the circle with a straightedge and a compass, to Biblical literalists in the creationism movement.

Synonyms include kook, contrarian, and crackpot (the latter of which has led to the creation of the term "psychoceramics" as the name for the study of such people). Cranks who believe a lot of nutty things at once are sometimes said to suffer from crank magnetism.

Famous cranks

Well known cranks (in alphabetical order by surname) and their ideas include:

See also

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