All Questions
1,582
questions
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Answers to the current issues that considered on-topic are helping to promote propaganda rather than clarify
One of the reasons I believe the current unconfirmed issues should be closed (deleted) ASAP is that answer to such questions are so weird and it helps to promote propaganda quickly instead of clarify ...
- 451
-1
votes
1
answer
37
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(IMO) There are inconsistencies between Skeptic On-topic criteria and some existing questions
In this meta post, It has been explained that (about Hamas-Israel War of course)
Your questions must contain a specific claim that can be empirically answered from available evidence.
(As I am new ...
- 451
1
vote
2
answers
165
views
How should we answer questions which can be answered both yes and no?
I always accept answers/posts that are logical (mathematically or philosophically). But here (and in some other forums or generally in non-exact sciences) there are questions that you can almost prove ...
- 451
1
vote
1
answer
46
views
Why isn't my question labeled with "edited"?
I recently asked a question and after a minute I edited it. But the question doesn't say "edited x minutes ago" above my user card. What's the reason?
- 347
8
votes
1
answer
153
views
It's okay to take a break from Skeptics
Some of us (myself included) need this reminder from time to time.
Sometimes a topic pops up that heat us up. Things like elections, the pandemic, vaccination, etc, etc. And, we are passionate folks - ...
- 145
1
vote
1
answer
33
views
Links to scanned books and "fair use"
In my answer I have used a book source. A commenter helpfully provided a link to a scanned version of that book. I'd like to put that link in my answer, but as far as I can tell (by the copyright ...
- 1,588
0
votes
1
answer
77
views
Why is the word skeptics between two brackets in our logo?
Why is the word skeptics between two brackets in the logo?
Is it because we use to write link texts between brackets and in this site sources are so important?
- 347
2
votes
1
answer
58
views
Is this question suitable for the site? "Did Gaza have the potential to become a 'Singapore' in the Middle East?"
I have seen claims by pro-Israeli commentators that, after Israel disengaged from Gaza in 2005, Gaza was no longer occupied and could have become a “Singapore” of the Middle East if the international ...
- 193
11
votes
2
answers
608
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What makes a good question about the 2023 Israel-Hamas War?
As of October 2023, the 2023 Israel-Hamas War is attracting a lot of interest with many questions under the israel-hamas-war tag.
Several have been closed; others are close to it. Meta-questions ...
OddthinkingMod
- 141k
3
votes
1
answer
133
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Should we be more vigilant about closing Israel-Hamas conflict questions where reliable information doesn't exist?
There seems to be many inflammatory claims being made about actions by both sides in this conflict. Due to the nature of the situation it seems like many if these will be hard to verify or debunk. The ...
- 5,074
2
votes
1
answer
60
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What should I do when I believe an invalid answer is upvoted for political reasons?
Consider this question:
Were babies found with their heads decapitated in Israel after the Hamas attack?
and specifically, the current top-voted answer. You'll notice it has a number of upvotes and ...
- 2,463
1
vote
1
answer
73
views
What are the criteria for having an entire tag just for one person?
Whenever I see a tag that is used for only one question, it catches my eye. Recently I noticed that benjamin-netanyahu was only used for one question, namely: Did Netanyahu recently say "We will ...
- 559
5
votes
1
answer
33
views
The introduction link in the on-topic FAQ is broken
If you visit https://skeptics.stackexchange.com/help/on-topic, you will see the following encouragement:
New users (even users familiar with the Stack Exchange format) should read our introduction to ...
- 101
0
votes
1
answer
71
views
Does Skeptics.SE presuppose methodological naturalism?
Does Skeptics.SE presuppose methodological naturalism—i.e., the claim that everything can be explained by natural processes or that there is no such thing as miracles?
- 351
-2
votes
1
answer
70
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Would it be on-topic to ask whether the NHS of the UK is wrong about when to call the emergency number?
The UK's NHS page on heart palpitations says at the top:
Heart palpitations are when your heartbeat becomes more noticeable."
and says in the middle:
Heart palpitations are common and not ...
1
vote
1
answer
40
views
Are archive-links allowed?
A way to bypass paywall to journals and other online publications is internet archive.
Are these links allowed on Skeptics?
Pro:
Enable access for everyone to check if the quote/reference is valid.
...
- 6,552
9
votes
1
answer
517
views
Have we lost most of our best contributors?
I was surprised to see that Users Reputation by Year - Skeptics Stack Exchange shows that I'm in the top 10 users on this site by reputation for the current year, yet (no false modesty here) there's ...
- 3,952
4
votes
1
answer
81
views
Do the requirements of an old claim change if the claim relates specifically to current events in that time period and not timeless scientific fact?
I know that generally, old claims need to still be notable today to be allowable here. This makes a whole lot of sense in that it isn't worth debunking obsolete scientific theories that haven't been ...
- 3,446
2
votes
1
answer
81
views
Headline on answers to questions?
Is there a reason that we don't make a point of putting a headline 1-5 word answer on all answers?
Given the proportion of questions that boil down to "Is this claim accurate/true/real", ...
- 129
4
votes
0
answers
23
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Weird CSS bug in profile reputation tab
When I move the cursor over the left sub-tabs in my reputation tab of the profile page, there's a strange flickering, I suppose due to some JavaScript race condition or similar. I guess an image is ...
- 78.6k
3
votes
2
answers
93
views
Should extensive edits reset vote counts?
Poorly written question is voted into oblivion. Later extensive edits improve the quality, yet if voted users don't bother to revisit the votes the improved question remains unseen.
A solution: Add ...
- 6,552
-1
votes
2
answers
160
views
Feedback on question "Is present discrimination the only remedy for past discrimination?"
Is present discrimination the only remedy for past discrimination? is closed as off-topic. I'm asking for feedback on reasons, please?
Why I'm confused:
The quote seems to fulfill the notability ...
- 6,552
1
vote
1
answer
83
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Questions that ask about polling in totalitarian/authoritarian countries
Related to Qs like this. I'm pretty sure I can find some piece of propaganda that says that [almost] everyone in China adores Xi Jinping as their president, and likewise for North Korea or even ...
- 59.6k
1
vote
3
answers
116
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Is the existence of a regulation an implied claim that it is effective?
There are a lot of laws, regulations, etc. out there that seem to imply without stating that they are effective, with the argument being that the legislature, regulatory agency, or other authority ...
- 3,446
6
votes
2
answers
150
views
Feedback on downvotes on my answer. Fixing my errors
In a recent answer I got 3 down-votes. If people disagree with me or dislike the content, that's perfectly fine. I understand and respect their decision.
However, seeing as it's 3 out of 7 voters, I'm ...
- 399
-2
votes
2
answers
165
views
What needs to be done to reinstate my deleted answer?
A question here raised scepticism about a news report of how the US sabotaged the Nordstream pipeline in Europe - Did the CIA blow up the Nordstream 1 pipeline?
As @Joe-w pointed out in the comment, I ...
- 101
-3
votes
2
answers
187
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Shouldn't this question on a current event be closed?
A question here raised scepticism about a report from a former (?) journalist of how the US sabotaged the Nordstream pipeline in Europe - Did the CIA blow up the Nordstream 1 pipeline?
This is a ...
- 101
4
votes
1
answer
60
views
What is the best way to cite a YouTube video ad?
As of late, I've been seeing a lot of video ads on YouTube that include specific claims that are quite questionable. These are generally of the "one weird trick to save a questionably high amount ...
- 3,446
-10
votes
2
answers
176
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What exactly does "Essentially unreferenced" mean when references were provided?
A moderator posted the following regarding this Answer:
I have deleted your answer now because it is essentially unreferenced. A YouTube video by Stefan Molyneux is not a reliable reference.
This ...
- 1,063
1
vote
1
answer
57
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To what extent is a notable claim of "we don't know" in scope?
I follow some YouTube channels on classic video gaming (retrogaming). Several of these channels have published videos on a certain product that was hyped in the marketplace in the early 1990's as an ...
- 3,446
-9
votes
2
answers
136
views
Skeptics Stack Exchange, and its relationship with "Poisoning the Well"
Question
What ought to be the relationship between "Skeptics" and those "Skeptics" who intentionally go out and "poison the well", particularly on behalf of other people'...
- 1,063
-3
votes
1
answer
100
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Claims involving personal information about notable people - Part2 (7 years later)
So what's the verdict here? Claims involving personal information about notable people about https://skeptics.stackexchange.com/questions/31738/has-emma-watson-stated-or-been-credibly-reported-to-have-...
- 469
4
votes
1
answer
61
views
What is to be done about a mis-attributed image?
This answer to the question, "Did JK Rowling ever describe Harry Potter goblins as 'hook-nosed'?" is built around an illustration that is claimed to be from the original 1974 publication of ...
0
votes
1
answer
132
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Can we reopen "Did Jeffry Epstein kill himself?"?
It has been a minute. This controversial question here:
Did Jeffry Epstein kill himself?
Is nearly three years old, and is beginning to be forgotten about. Before that happens, and before things ...
- 1,063
5
votes
0
answers
37
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2022: a year in moderation
As we say goodbye to the old year and welcome the new one, we have a tradition of sharing moderation stats for the preceding calendar year.
As most of you here are aware, sites on the Stack Exchange ...
- 101
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votes
2
answers
156
views
Ban Fact Checking Websites in Answers
This site should not simply be a conduit for Snopes or FactCheck.
Why not?
I am a skeptic, and it simply irritates me.
Why does it irritate you?
Snopes, and these other fact checking websites, do ...
- 1,063
2
votes
0
answers
50
views
Proposal for little sidebar guidance
Many specialised Stack Exchange sites have a little sidebar giving important context about the site. For example, Law has:
Law Stack Exchange is for educational purposes only and is not a substitute ...
- 101
5
votes
3
answers
184
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Is a claim that a public figure is transgender an acceptable claim?
I have recently encountered a claim that a certain well-known public figure/celebrity that has publicly denied being transgender is, in fact, transgender. The claim appears plausible and mentions some ...
- 3,446
4
votes
3
answers
138
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Are statements by artificial intelligence constructs notable?
The Stack Exchange Network has been abuzz recently over the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) chat bots such at ChatGPT to generate content suitable for posting as answers. Some sites, notably Stack ...
- 3,446
-1
votes
2
answers
96
views
Can we ask a question that its claim can't be debunked or confirmed?
On two occasions we can't debunk or approve a claim:
It's not mentioned in the sources.
The claim is very new; so there are no sources about the matter.
How can we deal with these questions here?
- 347
-1
votes
1
answer
103
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1 closed question this month = 7 day account block
I've had one single question closed this month, with only 2 down votes on it at the time it was closed, yet I have a 7 day account block.
The FAQ says that this is the second highest level of block ...
- 671
3
votes
2
answers
71
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Is asking about a controversial matter on-topic here?
For instance, think about the cause of death of a famous person. Some claim it was a suicide and some claim it was a murder. Can I ask about it? For example, "Did X commit suicide?" or "...
- 347
0
votes
1
answer
23
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Is it a problem when the original claim has ambiguities?
I've seen this happen a few times on this site, most recently with my own question Are 20% of automobile drivers under the influence of marijuana? . Some users asked me about whether I expected an ...
- 3,446
4
votes
2
answers
105
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Should we allow links to personal Google Docs?
I recently edited an answer where the OP had taken some data from a large site, simplified it, and presented it in a personal Google sheet.
Should that be allowed?
[I removed it pre-emptively, but I ...
OddthinkingMod
- 141k
0
votes
3
answers
77
views
If it's a daft idea is the author no longer notable?
On Skeptics there is currently a question, whether the sun revolves round the earth. This idea was floated by someone I never heard of, who is, apparently, a "notable source". Perfectly good ...
- 101
1
vote
1
answer
81
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Why do I have another 7 day posting embargo despite for a question that's open and upvoted?
I've posted exactly 2 questions in the last 2 months.
The first one was closed and I got a 7 day lockout.
Two weeks later I posted a second question. It is still open and has 3 upvotes, yet I've been ...
- 671
1
vote
1
answer
116
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Why are questions that I deleted being counted as strikes against my account?
Why are questions that I deleted myself because they were being dragged off topic being counted as strikes for the purposes of a posting ban?
They weren't counted as strikes until after I'd deleted ...
- 671
5
votes
1
answer
101
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What kind of sources are acceptable to demonstrate the "existence" of a claim made on a History Chanel type program?
If I want to request input on a claim made on a television program for entertainment purposes rather than from a scientific source. For example, Ancient Aliens, Curse of Oak Island, etc., what kind of ...
- 671
1
vote
1
answer
94
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Should hype-train-riding pre-print articles be considered notable?
Inspired by a comment on this question.
Some research basically re-examines some previous claim with slightly changed methods or in slightly changed conditions, acting on assumption that previous ...
- 1,588
1
vote
0
answers
156
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Is the International Journal of Vaccine Theory, Practice, and Research a genuine peer review journal
Is the International Journal of Vaccine Theory, Practice, and Research considers to be a peer review journal for the purposes of use and citation on this website.
At link to it can be found here
...
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