There are many dangers to believing pseudoscientific claims about the world. This is because the root of the problem is an active denial or ignorance of what real science is, and how it works. As well as the fact that believers of pseudoscience think that science or scientists have goals or beliefs. Science is not a function of belief or faith. Pseudoscience inhibits ones ability to be fully and accurately informed and to make informed decisions.
This inability to make fully informed decisions can affect many aspects of peoples lives. Such as how people vote and even potentially shifting public policy. Causing things like severe inaction in the U.S. regarding our own role in climate change or pollution. Or thinking that just because you can bring a snowball into the Senate that climate change isn’t real. Another dangerous example of a current pseudoscientific belief is that the MMR vaccine causes autism. The original study by Wakefield on the subject had a ridiculously small sample size (only 12 patients) and directly contradicted earlier research. The article publishing Wakefield’s findings was retracted for those reasons (Eggertson 2010). Despite this many parents today continue to refuse to give their children this vaccine.
The danger specifically in believing in pseudoarchaeological claims is that it gives one permission to remove things from context. Real archaeology’s focus is on context. By removing things from their context you can arbitrarily attribute whatever meaning you decide to sites or artifacts. Sometimes this simply means relying on gut instincts for what an artifact is and falsely applying a deeper meaning. Such as the pseudoarchaeological interpretation of the Quimbaya artifacts that states that because they look like modern airplanes they must have been left here by ancient astronauts. This case might be interpreted as some misconstrued notions with very little effect.
Pseudoarchaeology is also frequently a vehicle for racist or nationalist ideologies. An example of this includes the pseudoarchaeological proposition that the Egyptian pyramids were built by aliens. By claiming that a complex and large scale architectural project had to have been done by aliens what they’re really saying is that it couldn’t have been done by Africans. An example of nationalist archaeology is Nazi-Era Germany, where they used manufactured evidence to try to prove their racial purity. This was part of the Nazi propaganda machine and was some of the basis for the atrocities they committed. The pseudoarchaeology from this time continues to be used as justification by Neo-Nazi groups today.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2831678/
You bring up a lot of good points! I liked the paragraph about taking things (assuming we are talking about material culture) out of its context. I remember in class Professor Watrall explaining how context is a big thing to keep in mind on an archaeological site. I myself went on a field school this summer and when people didn’t correctly label the piece they found, it meant nothing and basically got thrown away. Another point I liked in your blog was about the MMR vaccine. If I am being honest, I didn’t know the whole backstory or where that evidence was coming from. Not that I ever believed autism was being caused by the vaccine, but knowing that there were only 12 patients in that study greatly reduces any credible source on that opinion. Perhaps the reason that some people still believe autism is caused by vaccines is because social media exists. I love social media don’t get me wrong, but when a billion people on Facebook are discussing the topic, there is no way for it to be academically addressed. It would be like trying to wrangle 100 chickens. People also seem to have a disbelief in science, and that for some reason, we are being lied to. On top of that, people don’t trust the government, which then eliminates any chances of that being a reliable source. There will always be people who hold onto their opinions and try to share these opinions with untrue or unreliable sources. Again, on social media, news links seem to spread quickly. People share these links without even glancing at them to see if they even come from a reliable source, and soon enough everyone believes vaccines cause autism, just by fear. In todays world, it does seem like pseudoscience/pseudoarchaeology is perpetuated by the means of social media. People are willing to believe anything that looks like a news source when its really just The Onion.
Hi,
One thing that I really liked about your take was how you talked about both pseudo archaeology and pseudo science. When taken by itself it might be hard for people to understand why Ancient Aliens or other hoaxes are dangerous. Comparing the deception to a serious and often talked about pseudo science issue like vaccines gives the issue good context.
I also like how you take the dangers of pseudoscience a step further by addressing how believing pseudo scientific claims can affect a person’s overall behavior– like voting. Nothing exists in a bubble, and providing more context for how pseudo science is harming our society is a great idea. Beliefs lead to actions, and actions lead to consequences.
continuing with the theme of the context that you provided, I’m glad that you talked about how pseudo science and specifically pseudo archaeology are being used today in dangerous ways. When people hear that Hitler and his Nazi regime invested heavily in archaeology right before and during WWII they may thing that, while unfortunate, this is a threat that rests in the past.
As Trump and nationalism have enjoyed a resurgence in popularity, movements like the Neo Nazis, the Alt-Right, or White Nationalists are using that outdated and biased archaeology to bolster their beliefs. Their claims that the white race is superior and needs to remain pure and unspoiled are deeply rooted in Hitler’s 1940s propaganda. Hitler, in turn, took inspiration for his final solution from Atlantis and the pseudo archaeological idea of a pure race.