Exposing Pseudoastronomy

Derek Bartholomaus explains the basics of the Billy Meier claimed ongoing UFO contact case. From the beginnings to photographs, to videos, to metal, sound, and prophecies, we touch on several of the major components of the scenario and discuss how they can either be easily explained by Earthly means or are misquotes, misrepresentations, or mistakes.

In this Part 1 of a two-part series (to be continued in a month or so), I go over the basic claims made for why the astronauts could not have taken the photographs. Part 2 will focus on what's actually in the photographs.

Last episode was on mainstream evidence - or lack thereof - for the asteroid belt having been a planet. This episode gets to one of the pseudoscientific ideas, from Tom Van Flandern, of Mars being a moon of one of the planets that supposedly exploded to make the asteroid belt.

A discussion on the history of the asteroid belt's discovery and four solid ways of showing that the asteroid belt could not have been a single planet that broke up or exploded. Stay tuned for next episode on the "Exploded Planet Hypothesis."

In the second of at least four episodes on different ideas about Planet X, this time we go into Gilbert Eriksen's ideas about the rusty-red star/planet that is presently causing earthquakes and tsunamis, the likes of which we have never before seen.

Teachers tell students to "reach for the stars," but some companies out there offer to sell them and land on other planets to you. I give a recap of some of the legal issues involved and what's really going on.

One aspect of Richard Hoagland's view of the universe has to do with a hyperdimensional number, 19.5° where everything energetic on all objects in the solar system is supposed to manifest. Hogland points to many features on many planets that do. This is an in-depth look at them and this claim.

We've discussed the geographic pole shift on this podcast, now we address the other kind - could Earth's magnetic pole shift, flip, or have something bad happen to it in 2012?

A conspiratorial or just wacky claim out there is that the sun and moon are rising and setting in different spots than they "used to." Find out why both premises in that idea are wrong.

In the first of many episodes on the Fake Story of Planet X, we delve into the feasibility of a planet on a 3600-year orbit that was made famous in part by the late Zecharia Sitchin.

Find out why there is no physical mechanism proposed by 2012ers that could cause a geographic pole shift, and also how to tell whether or not we have gone through one recently or are going through one now.

Some people claim that Eath's geographic poles did, are, or will be moving around dramatically. Here's a look at some of their mechanisms and evidence.

One of the big "think tanks" for young-Earth creationism is the Institute for Creation Research (ICR), now located in Texas in the United States. Half a world away, a high school student, Peter, takes on nearly all their daily articles, blog posts, and other output. I interview Peter to learn more about what it's like taking on the ICR from his viewpoint.

An accomplished arline pilot and son of the inventor of the Lear Jet, John Lear has some rather interesting ideas about the universe. Discussed in this episode are just a few: The atmosphere of Venus, atmosphere of the moon, and lunar formation. Pareidolia is also talked about in detail.

"Parrot," AKA "Dumbass," has spent many hours on his own podcast and blog dissecting Ancient Aliens claims and evidence. In this episode, he shares some of what he's learned about the ideas, claims, and people involved.

In discussing the new-agey claims by Gregg Braden of evidence for consciousness altering the world around us, I also use this as the start of what will be an ongoing series in fallacious ways to argue: In this case, data mining.

What's the galactic alignment on the solstice in December, 2012, and what else in the sky is special about that date? Find out and whether it portends doom or enlightenment in this false dichotomy.

I discuss five ideas propagated by 2012ers about the Sun, Earth, and Galaxy all coming into alignment in some way to do something in 2012. Find out what's really going on ... if anything.

Join me in an interview with Dr. Johan Normark, a Mayan scholar, to learn about the Mayan calendar, its relationship with 2012, and what the Mayans "actually said" about 2012.

As the first of my four episodes of Intro to 2012, I take a look at the true, historical story behind Planet X and delve a little into why a big planet won't swing by Earth any time soon.