The Hallmarks of Pseudoscience - McGill University

We live in an age where misinformation is no longer the exception; it is the background noise of everyday life. From politics to health to science, false or misleading claims circulate faster than verified facts. One of the most troubling strands of this phenomenon is pseudoscience: ideas that present themselves as scientific while fundamentally rejecting how science actually works. Pseudoscience is not simply “bad science.” It is a belief system that borrows the language, imagery, and authority of science while ignoring its core principles: testing, falsification, peer review, and openness to revision. The word itself essentially means “false knowledge,” and history is full of examples, from alchemy and phrenology to miracle cures and paranormal claims. What has changed in the modern era is scale. Digital platforms have allowed pseudoscientific ideas to spread globally, persist indefinitely, and evolve faster than traditional institutions can respond to them.

A big pot of red beans and rice is comfort food through and through, and this red beans and rice recipe delivers all the hallmarks of the Louisiana classic. It’s made with red kidney beans simmered…

We’re sharing this article early to provide faster access to peer-reviewed, accepted research. It is citable and carries a permanent DOI. This version is subject to further edits and will be replaced automatically by the final Version of Record. All legal disclaimers apply. AbstractSodium-salt-based physical inhibitors reduce coal–oxygen interactions through moisture absorption and retention in the prevention of coal spontaneous combustion, but their wetting and spreading performance on coal surfaces can be further improved. To enhance the overall inhibition performance of sodium-salt-based inhibitors, the anionic surfactant sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) was introduced to modify the sodium chloride (NaCl) inhibition system, and the optimal composite inhibitor formulation was selected through experimental characterization and comprehensive evaluation using the entropy weight method. The results showed that SDS further enhanced the moisture-regulation capacity of the NaCl system.