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The Oddness Poll

geni said:
2102 members vs 4980

The forum I linked to does better on alexa as well:

http://www.alexa.com/data/details/t...ww.vampires.nu&y=r&url=www.vampiretemple.com/
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Yeah, but a lot of those are merely gamers and tourists. AFAICT, TotV is pretty much all true-believers.
still I'll see your vampires and raise you dragons:

http://www.draconic.com/

http://www.draconic.com/fordragons/
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I'll raise you Otherkin: http://www.otherkin.net/

Most of it is gamer/wannabe-fantasy-writer dork types; but there is a huge contingent of true-believers as well. One of my closest friends seriously believes that she's otherkin. Overall, it's a pretty pathetic thing to believe.
 
Maybe a scale could be constructed for ranking relative oddness, perhaps in "randis." So, for example, dowsing would have a low randi score in relation to, say, the timecube thing.
 
Ryan O'Dine said:
Maybe a scale could be constructed for ranking relative oddness, perhaps in "randis." So, for example, dowsing would have a low randi score in relation to, say, the timecube thing.
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Hrm... I dunno. I think a "randi" sounds to me like it would probably be a measure of skepticism.

For woo, I'd suggest the "geller", abbr. "ge". One standard geller would be equivalent to the woo-ness of the average television or phone psychic, or a single paranormal claim (like trying to bend objects with the mind). A measure of the credulousness needed to beleive something like that.

So technological woo like those automobile air-flow things, or the cryo "freeze your engine" guy would range about 50-75 centigellers; traditional Chinese (or Auyervedic, or "native", etc.) medicine would run between 10 centigellers and 5 gellars; Kevin Trudeau's rantings would run about 10-20 gellers; homeopathy would be in the 500 gellar to 10 kilogeller range; John Edwards and Sylvia Browne would rate about 50-100 kilogellers; and Gene Ray and Scientology are off the scale, up in the high megageller range.

The real issue is whether it should be a linear or logarithmic scale. I think a linear scale would be the easiest to use, and fit the property fairly well.
 
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I'd prefer logarithmic: It seems to me wooism expands exponentially. With a linear scale, you'd have to use scientific notation all the time. Logarithmic, you could just say "Time Cube Guy is a 10," which would denote that he's 10,000,000,000 times wooier than Gellar.
 
BronzeDog said:
I'd prefer logarithmic: It seems to me wooism expands exponentially. With a linear scale, you'd have to use scientific notation all the time. Logarithmic, you could just say "Time Cube Guy is a 10," which would denote that he's 10,000,000,000 times wooier than Gellar.
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I agree. This way its gets a little harder to understand but opens up more possilbilities.

By the way, where did the poll happen? Didn't it get lost or disabled during the upgrade process?

If so, I motion we have a new poll, followed up by a discussion of an appropriate device and unit for measurement of what WE call nonsense.

I motion we choose the humour section.

This should provide a suitable place of ventilation for temporarily frustrated skeptics. It'll help to release stress and - as I have learned and appreciated in this forum - will provide a great deal of hilarity. It shall serve as entertainment only.

It shall not come into use as a place to trade barbs. Use the flame war section instead, go for a nice walk or ask someone to show you the french arts.

To honour the provider of this space, as a detection device for non-scientific claims I propose "Randimeter".



Remember: Not mockery, entertainment. :)
 
luchog said:
Hrm... I dunno. I think a "randi" sounds to me like it would probably be a measure of skepticism.

.
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Well, resistance is measured in Ohms and conductance in Mhos.

I suggest the Idnar scale od woo-ism. The scale varies depending on who is doing the measuring.
 
UrsulaV said:
the weird little snake handler groups that let rattlesnakes bite them, and drink strychnine cocktails, because of some obscure passage in the Bible that says God will protect them...yow.
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That part of the bible was likely an addition at a later date and not part of the original text -- see the wiki entry for Mark 16. It's just one of several parts of the bible that didn't exist in the earliest copies. So much for inerrancy, eh?
 
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