Nobel disease
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The Nobel disease is a term used to describe a phenomenon in which Nobel Prize-winning scientists endorse or perform "research" in pseudoscientific areas in their later years. In reality, this "disease" most likely demonstrates that even the most brilliant people are not immune to crank ideas and belief in such ideas will persist to some degree even among Nobelists. It also makes for a convenient argument from authority for lesser cranks, because if a Nobel Prize-winning scientist says it, it must be true! Some of the more (in)famous victims of Nobel disease include:
- Pierre Curie (Physics, 1903) — His support for psychic medium Eusapia Palladino.[1]
- Marie Curie (Physics, 1903 and Chemistry, 1911) — Her support for psychic medium Eusapia Palladino.
- John William Strutt, Lord Rayleigh (Physics, 1904) — Paranormal[2][3]
- Philipp Lenard (Physics, 1905) — Deutsche Physik
- Joseph Thomson (Physics, 1906) — Psychic and paranormal[4]
- Ilya Mechnikov (Physiology or Medicine, 1908) — Macrobiotic diet
- Alexis Carrel (Physiology or Medicine, 1912) — eugenics and Nazi racial theories
- Charles Richet (Physiology or Medicine, 1913) — ESP, paranormal, ghosts[5]
- Erwin Schrödinger (Physics, 1933) — Quantum mysticism and global consciousness[6][7]
- Otto Stern (Physics, 1943) — Psychokinesis and Pauli effect[8]
- Ernst Boris Chain (Physiology or Medicine, 1945) — Evolution denial[9]
- Wolfgang Pauli (Physics, 1945) — Pauli effect, psychokinesis and paranormal[10][11]
- Linus Pauling (Chemistry, 1954, and Peace, 1962) — Vitamin C quackery/orthomolecular medicine
- William Shockley (Physics, 1956) — Racialism and eugenics[12]
- James Watson (Physiology or Medicine, 1962) — Racialism[13][14]
- Eugene Wigner (Physics, 1963) — Quantum mysticism
- John Eccles (Physiology or Medicine, 1963) — Quantum consciousness[15]
- Sin-Itiro Tomonaga (Physics, 1965) — Aliens
- Alfred Kastler (Physics, 1966) — Paranormal[16]
- Hannes Alfvén (Physics, 1970) — Plasma cosmology[17]
- Ivar Giaever (Physics, 1973) — Global warming denial[18]
- Brian Josephson (Physics, 1973) — Psychic and paranormal phenomena.[19] Cold fusion.[20] Homeopathy.[21][22]
- Nikolaas Tinbergen (Physiology or Medicine, 1973) — Crank theories of autism[23]
- Daniel Carleton Gajdusek (Physiology or Medicine, 1976) — was convicted and imprisoned for child sexual abuse of his adopted sons. After his release from prison, he was an unrepentant supporter of pedophilia.[24]
- Kary Mullis (Chemistry, 1993) — Generally barking mad. AIDS denial, alien abduction, astrology, astral projection, conspiracy theories, cosmic raccoons, global warming denial, ozone denial. Possibly related to his heavy use of LSD.[25][26]
- Richard Smalley (Chemistry, 1996) — Creationism, Intelligent Design and evolution denial[27][28]
- Louis J. Ignarro (Physiology or Medicine, 1998) — Herbalife
- Luc Montagnier (Physiology or Medicine, 2008) — Homeopathy and vaccine hysteria[29]
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
[edit] Footnotes
- ↑ Pierre Curie bio
- ↑ John William Strutt bio
- ↑ http://books.google.fr/books?id=VcBs8enYCCcC&pg=PA502&lpg=PA502&dq=Joseph+Thomson+psychical+research&source=bl&ots=XMAUTZWjVl&sig=-4aKFonKr5bihsBlpwCZ9t2xYDQ&hl=fr&sa=X&ei=bzbHU83pJqef0QXmo4B4&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q=Joseph%20Thomson%20psychical%20research&f=false
- ↑ http://www.questia.com/library/7939014/recollections-and-reflections
- ↑ Charles Richet bio
- ↑ My View of the World Erwin Schrödinger chapter iv. What Is life? the physical aspect of the living cell & Mind and matter — By Erwin Schrödinger
- ↑ http://www.goodreads.com/quotes/325387-consciousness-cannot-be-accounted-for-in-physical-terms-for-consciousness
- ↑ http://books.google.fr/books?id=JMczYbPasfsC&pg=PA122&lpg=PA122&dq=Otto+Stern+paranormal&source=bl&ots=2F9Da5FYHI&sig=T-IKOyJtMfDeqOsRCyYdWZaO01Y&hl=fr&sa=X&ei=djXHU5iBBOq30QWn34HQCg&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q=Otto%20Stern%20paranormal&f=false
- ↑ Chain, 1971, “Social Responsibility and the Scientist in Modern Western Society,” Perspectives in Biology and Medicine, Spring 1971, Vol. 14, No. 3, p. 368
- ↑ http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Wolfgang_Pauli
- ↑ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pauli_effect
- ↑ Bill Shockley bio
- ↑ Fury at DNA Pioneer's Theory: Africans are Less Intelligent than Westerners, The Independent
- ↑ [1], where Watson clarifies he speaks as "people who have to deal with black employees".
- ↑ Eccles, John (1973). "6 'Brain, Speech, and Consciousness'". The Understanding of the Brain. McGraw-Hill Book Company. p. p. 189. ISBN 0-07-018863-7.
- ↑ http://www.persee.fr/web/revues/home/prescript/article/rhs_0151-4105_1977_num_30_1_1466
- ↑ Hannes Alfvén, Cosmology—Myth or Science? J Astrophysics and Astronomy, vol. 5, pp. 79-98, (1984).
- ↑ Ivar Giaevar, DeSmog Blog
- ↑ Pioneer of the Paranormal
- ↑ [2]
- ↑ http://www.quackometer.net/blog/2010/10/john-benneth-brian-josephson-and-an-absurd-talk-at-cambridge.html
- ↑ http://www.tcm.phy.cam.ac.uk/~bdj10/
- ↑ Outside the Box or Around the Bend? Photon in the Darkness
- ↑ D. Carleton Gajdusek dies at 85; Nobel Prize winner identified exotic disease, was unrepentant pedophile by Thomas H. Maugh II (December 18, 2008) Los Angeles Times
- ↑ Beyond Kary Mullis: The Alien Conspiracy Theory of AIDS, Denying AIDS
- ↑ Kary Mullis — Personal Views, Wikipedia
- ↑ http://www.montanasnews.tv/articles.php?mode=view&id=3262
- ↑ http://www.christianpost.com/news/creation-scientists-in-three-way-debate-with-intelligent-design-evolution-7807/
- ↑ http://scienceblogs.com/insolence/2012/06/27/luc-montagnier-hits-a-new-low-age-of-autism-rallies-to-defend-him/