Dowsing
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Dowsing is a type of divination employed in attempts to locate many types of objects and materials without the use of technical equipment or a scientific apparatus. It may be applied to seek ground wa
A dowser, from an 18th-century French book about superstitions
Dowsing for metal ore, from 1556 "De re metallica libri XII" book
Use of a divining Rod observed in Great Britain in the late 18th century
Skeptic James Randi at a lecture at Rockefeller University, on October 10, 2008, holding a US$800 device advertised as a dowsing instrument
Pseudoscience
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Pseudoscience consists of statements, beliefs, or practices that claim to be scientific but are inherently incompatible with the scientific method. Pseudoscience is often characterized by contradictor
Dowsing
…subject makes motions unconsciously. The scientific evidence shows that dowsing is no more effective than random chance. It is therefore regarded as a pseudoscience. Dowsing originated in ancient times, when it was treated as a form of divination. The Catholic Church banned the practice completely…
A typical 19th-century phrenology chart: during the 1820s, phrenologists claimed the mind was located in areas of the brain, and were attacked for doubting that mind came from the nonmaterial soul. Their idea of reading "bumps" in the skull to predict personality traits was later discredited. Phrenology was first termed a pseudoscience in 1843 and continues to be considered so.
The astrological signs of the zodiac
Homeopathic preparation Rhus toxicodendron, derived from poison ivy