The Quackometer -

Welcome to the Quackometer

WHAT IS THE QUACKOMETER ALL ABOUT?

The Little Black Duck

The quackometer is a project based around the automation of debunking quack medicine on the web. The web is full of pages supporting dubious medical claims and inflated capabilities for cures. The freedom that the web gives us to express our views, entertain and do business also gives quacks a way to make a living by promoting nonsense treatments to unsuspecting people.

Spotting these web sites appears to be easy when you know what to look out for. If it is that easy, can the process be automated? The quackometer project intends to find out.

DO YOU HAVE A WEB SITE YOU WANT TO TEST FOR QUACKERY?
DO YOU WANT TO SEE IF SOMEONE MIGHT BE A QUACK?

Go to the quackometer...

recent quackometer blog entries...

Bogus Science and Other Christmas Gifts

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 15:21:00 +0000

Yes, like it or not, now is the time to start thinking about the perfect gift for the geek in your life. Last year we were treated to a slew of great books about quackery, many of them now available in paperback.� Nonetheless, there are still many great new books, not all just about alternative medicine, and I would love to tell you about a few of them here. John Grant has written a trio of

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John Wesley and The Origins of the Natural Health Movement

Sat, 14 Nov 2009 20:32:00 +0000

Examine the discourse of any alternative medicine and you will encounter a surprisingly homogenous set of themes: that their methods are natural, simple, available to all, and are based on ancient and traditional knowledge. Cures for disease are freely available from nature and we do not need the intermediation of a medical elite to provide us with them. These cures have been known for

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UNCRC Demands Equal Access to Quackery for Children

Fri, 30 Oct 2009 07:00:00 +0000

Last week, a comment piece in the Guardian asked, “Should there be freedom to mislead?”. It is an interesting question. Should the State intervene and try to regulate scientific truth? In a free society, should people not be free to hold untrue beliefs? In the context of pseudomedical beliefs, what role should regulation play in preventing untruthful claims to be made about treatments and how

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Why I am Nominating Luc Montagnier for an IgNobel Prize

Tue, 20 Oct 2009 22:14:00 +0000

Luc Montagnier is an interesting and strange character. Last year he was a shared winner of the Nobel Prize for Medicine. A remarkable achievement. However, his latest research can only really be described as quite bizarre and some of his statements, are desperately and deadly worrying. So much so, that I think Montagnier ought to be the first recipient of both a Nobel and IgNobel prize. Let me

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MP David Tredinnick calls for more Government Funding of Medical Astrology and Remote Energetic Healing

Thu, 15 Oct 2009 18:46:00 +0000

Yesterday, the House of Commons saw a debate on the funding of medical astrology. Yes. Medical Astrology. The Hansard Report of the debate has a seventeenth century feel to it. Tredinnick asserts that the phase of the moon influences the number of accidents and stops blood from clotting. He has tales of eastern lands that use astronomical signs to influence health care and governments that have

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PHA Media’s Cynical Spin of Psychic Cancer Claims

Protecting future ‘Baby Glorias’ from Homeopathic Beliefs

Adrian Pengelly, Psychic Healer, and English Libel Laws

Two Boiled Eggs in Pinstripes and the Four Soldiers of Scepticism

Richard Dawkins to Speak at LibDem Conference on Libel Laws and Science.

Homeopathy: A Warning from Africa

The MHRA and their Double Failure over Homeopathy

The Faculty of Homeopathy are a Shambles and a Bad Joke

Ozone Therapy, The Homeopath and Savage Grace

The Society of Homeopaths are a Shambles and a Bad Joke.

About Me

The Quackometer has been developed by Andy Lewis. If you wish to get in contact then please read the FAQ and then email me. Details in the About section.