Bigfoot footage: Time for a lesson in skepticism
We protect our kids from junk food and with the announcement聽this week that Bigfoot 鈥渆vidence鈥� has been compiled by The Sasquatch Genome Project we now need to remember to also limit their intake of junk science.
鈥淛unk science is faulty scientific data and analysis used to advance special interests and hidden agendas.聽Individual scientists聽may use junk science to achieve fame and fortune,鈥� according to the Junk Science website.
Dr. Melba Ketchum, is the leader of the group of researchers chasing Bigfoot using a science net woven of HD video of furry people napping in the woods and DNA samples from an unknown hominid species, according to ABC.聽Ketchum declared聽Tuesday聽in a press conference that this is 鈥渁 serious study鈥� that concludes the legendary Sasquatch exists in North America and is a human relative that arose approximately 13,000 years ago. No peer reviews of the research were presented by Ketchum.
My son Quin, age nine, watched the press conference, saw the video and photo evidence presented, and laid down the scientific law on the subject.
鈥淛ust 鈥榗ause it has a 'sciency' name doesn鈥檛 mean they have an idea of what they鈥檙e doing or that it鈥檚 real,鈥� said Quin.
I honestly thought Quin would be thrilled to learn that the legendary Bigfoot is being said to actually exist. Thank you Norfolk Public Schools, Bill Nye the Science Guy, and Vsauce Channel on YouTube, for giving my son a Bigfoot-sized footing in reality.
Apparently my parental scientific method was flawed when I picked this story to show Quin. I had all my research lined-up: Quin鈥檚 nine. He鈥檚 a boy. He loves science. Boys love a good monster story.
However, my science and the Sasquatch Genome Project have something in common, neither took into account the volatile properties of logic, science, imagination, big money, grainy video, and credibility when the catalyst is a child鈥檚 mind.
Like the Sasquatch Genome Research Project I thought that perhaps the huge amount of money spent on the research would lend credibility, so I told Quin that the project spent half a million dollars on the five year project, according to ABC News.
鈥淥K they鈥檙e knuckleheads,鈥� Quin said.
He buried his face in his hands and talked through his fingers. 鈥淪eriously? Someone gave science $500,000 and they used it for Bigfoot? I can鈥檛 go to NASA鈥檚 website 鈥榗ause Congress rage quit and won鈥檛 give science any money when they found plastic stuff on Saturn's moon and these guys are doing Bigfoot?鈥�
Then we watched a news video of the press conference held by the scientists and saw the sketches and "scientific evidence" of DNA samples presented.
At the聽, the researchers shared 鈥渘ever before seen HD video鈥� 鈥� provided by millionaire businessman Adrian Erickson's The Erickson Project 鈥� of the supposed creature crawling around the Kentucky woods. Erickson also provided the money for the research.
Quin was unmoved.
鈥淭hey haven鈥檛 proven Bigfoot exists. They鈥檝e proven Star Wars exists, because that鈥檚 a drawing of Chewbacca,鈥� said Quin of the sketch shown by researchers. 鈥淚t could be a giant ape. It could be a family of Wookies crash landed on Earth and stranded here. Did they check with NASA? Oh wait, they can鈥檛 because NASA鈥檚 closed!鈥�
Ouch! Quin began to cry and stormed from the room. He鈥檚 going to have to spend hours watching old Bill Nye videos to calm down.
My son helped me see that the problem with junk science is that it鈥檚 a lot like junk food inasmuch as it鈥檚 overpriced, addictive, makes your mind sluggish and for those raised on a strict diet of real brain food can be very upsetting to the system.
