As we approach our one-year anniversary Squaring the Strange, the podcast I co-host with Pascual Romero and Celestia Ward, I wanted to review early episodes you may have missed!

Episode 10: Of Emperors and Clothes

Ben reads some of his “fan” mail, from a man in India who believes he has a method of creating ley lines remotely. After a brief explanation of what ley lines are—as much as these fuzzy energy notions can be defined, anyway—Ben and Pascual parse what exactly this well-meaning writer believes he can do, and how the ideomotor effect leads many dowsers to believe they are detecting things like water, oil, or ley lines. Then for their main topic, the guys dig into that classic Hans Christian Anderson tale, “The Emperor’s New Clothes.” The tale has an interesting ending that many don’t remember: after the little boy calls everyone’s attention to the fact that the emperor has no clothes on, he continues to walk the parade and his chamberlains carry the train that is not there. Or, in other words, even when you speak truth to power, it continues on as before. The whole story is a tour through skeptical concepts. The king relies on second-hand accounts rather than going to the source himself, which is comparable to relying on social media posts or testimonials and anecdotes today. The concept of “invisible thread” may seem silly, but is it really so different from claims like psychic ability, homeopathic memory of water, or holistic energy adjustments? In the story, people censor their observations because of a fear of authority, of losing their jobs, and of going against the social norms. Likewise, today people shy away from stating unpopular observations or opinions because they might want to avoid public shaming on social media. Then, finally, we see the sunk-cost fallacy as the emperor and his court continue on their way.

You can find more on me and my work with a search for “Benjamin Radford” (not “Ben Radford”) on Vimeo, and please check out my podcast Squaring the Strange!