The Mighty Thor said:
Although it is easy to see how Mr. Goghill's reply to Cleopatra could easily convince a credulous layman, had his errors not been pointed out by others.
Isn't Roger just playing on our (most of our) abominable understanding of science? Although even my Higher Physics and Chemistry meters twitch at some of his assertions.
This is what makes me so angry with Roger. He relies entirely on deception.
Most people are not specialists in scientific fields, so when he spouts some technobabble, many perfectly normal and intelligent people think, "Ooh, he must be a scientist who knows what he's talking about!" Which couldn't be further from the truth....!
When he is challenged directly on basics, he tries to obscure and bluff his way out. He spouts MORE technobabble. Or he demands "peer reviewed references", knowing full well that basic material that has been accepted for 150 years or more doesn't have or need "peer reviewed references". He relies on an implicit deception there too. Because people who DON'T know the truth then say, "Well, maybe he's right, after all why CAN'T the people who disagree present a peer reviewed reference?"
But it's all smoke and mirrors. For example if he was claiming that apples fall UPWARD when they fall off trees, somebody would say, "Rubbish, things don't fall UPWARDS, they fall down". He would then demand a "peer reviewed reference" to prove it, knowing full well that Isaac Newton's work some 350 years ago showing that apples fall DOWN off trees, doesn't have or need any "peer reviewed references". But unless someone knows independently that apples DON'T fall upwards, there is always the chance that somebody ignorant of the fact will believe him.
When the technobabble fails he quotes some totally irrelevant reference of his own. He knows that laypeople won't understand a word of that reference, and again some will think that because he's produced a scientific sounding document, that what he says must be true.
And when he is finally cornered he simply changes the subject, avoids the issue for a few dozen posts and then just flatly lies and claims that his argument was completely proved and accepted by all previously!
And unfortunately it means that those of us who do understand some of the technicalities have to keep repeating the truth (for the benefit of laypeople) to prevent him getting away with this deceptive behavior.
Many of the "scientific" references he quotes are pseudoscientific BS in themselves. For example he cited Callaghan and Dr Cyril Smith some posts back in support of his theories. These people seem to be superficially credible, but when you look up what they REALLY expound, it's a shock, because its complete crap!
Callaghan believes in "mystical earth energies" and talks about releasing mystical magnetic energies by burning stones(!) and Dr Cyril Smith is a lunatic into dowsing, homeopathy, radiesthesia and pendulum power!
Roger is all front and deception. There is no substance behind any of it. But he has worked out a nice stage show that obviously serves him well in fooling the public. That is why I sincerely hope he is publicly exposed for the fraud he really is.
