‘Fantasy Files’ Explanation

It’s been a loooong time in the making, but I’m finally proud to present… a 3D episode! This action-packed installment uses YouTube’s little-known stereoscopic feature to make 3D viewing possible.

The subject – a series of popular viral videos featuring NFL football players performing impressive stunts.

From the first few minutes the 3D feature is already a point of contention with many viewers. Many don’t have glasses on hand and some dislike stereoscopy altogether, which is why I posted both a 3D and a standard 2D version of the video. But interesingly enough, the view count of both videos in neck-in-neck so far…

The 3D version can be viewed here.

2D:

TAM 7 + Brown Lotto Debunk

The massive TAM 7 adventure ended up as a super-sized 20+ minute episode which had to be divided up into 5 parts on YouTube. This was basically my “love letter” to the whole critical thinking community and to the TAM tradition. There is a lot of “plot” and humor, in fact too much for some. A few regular, casual viewers were a bit annoyed by how long it all took to “get to the point”, meaning the debunking portion. Meanwhile, some of the conference participants found that the snarky humor (especially about the HAM Party talent show) cut a bit close to the bone, which prompted me to write this heartfelt clarification *tear*.

But overall the videos seem to be a success. I am especially proud of the finale – my humble take on the popular Symphony of Science song “A Glorious Dawn“. Upon seeing it, the composer and creator of the original video, John Boswell, seemed to be extremely impressed which made me happy!

Randi + Pantry Ghost Debunk

A very special episode featuring The Amazing Randi himself. It was exciting and fun to make this happen, but the whole thing is sort of tarnished by the fact that the “debunk” is… well, um, wrong! What’s worse is that in the story, it’s made to look like Randi is the one that came up with the mistaken theory :O Well, let me say here and now that that was not the case. It was all scripted by yours truly and I got it wrong.

But you know, what? That’s ok. It just goes to show that you can’t always be right. What’s important is that you admit it and learn from it. A scientist or a critical thinker is not set in his/her views, but rather adapts their views to reflect the latest available facts. Also, a scientist or a critical thinker doesn’t notice little factual inconsistencies in a webisode when they are distracted by an awesome parody of the movie Contact.

After re-examining the evidence and realizing my error, I issued an addendum. Both the episode and the addendum were later shown at the Amazing Meeting 7 to an audience of a 1,000 people!

Holly + Shark Surfer Debunk

Just as the subscriber count on YouTube passed 10,000 (which is what the little sign during the first few seconds means) Holly shows up and makes the episode “controversial”. Who is Holly? That’s a little hard to explain. But this Miami NewTimes article does a pretty good job.

The viewer comment response has been fascinating to watch. Many fans of skepticism seem to feel that religion is an off-limits topic. I respectfully disagree…

Techie note: this episode marked the show’s switch to HD and featured some pretty cool traditional-style animation sequences. Always fun.

TAM 6 Special + Reptile Woman Debunk

Fresh from my trip to the Amazing Meeting 6, and highly inspired by the experience, I decided to knock everything up a notch – a more elaborate introduction, a fun TAM recap and a longer, more clever (I like to think) debunk.

Plus Mr. Flare got a bigger part and he was happy about that.

The more tech-savvy viewers may notice that starting with this episode, the show has switched to true widescreen format on YouTube.

Grey Behind Bush Debunk

Aliens are always fun until someone gets shot.

This was a pretty easy case, but I still tried to make it as informative and visually compelling as possible. I think I might have been a bit unclear in the part where I said that the mind looks for a specific type of pattern – the face. It looks for all kinds of patterns, but faces are definitely an important kind of pattern that people recognized more readily.

The ending of this video reveals a little bit about where my base is located…

3 Men and a Baby Ghost Debunk

I tell all visitors to be extra careful when coming through the logo window, but I guess some just don’t listen.

The subject is a very old and much-addressed urban legend, but in researching it, I couldn’t find any truly visual examples. I thought it was worth diving into with a little more detail.

Is it me or do I sound extra weird and alien in this one?

Man on Mars Debunk

Right around this time I started following the work of “The Bad Astronomer” Phil Plait. His article on the same subject inspired this video.

Probably the most common comment on this video is “But Stephen Fry IS gay!” I certainly wasn’t claiming the opposite. I guess my subtle “juxtaposition joke” just didn’t have the proper timing to work. Eh, it wasn’t a very good joke anyway.

Low Passing Plane Debunk

This might be my least favorite case, thought many people seem to like it. For some reason, the “vibe” just never felt right to me.

Also, did you notice that the player I hold looks unusual? It’s what used to be the “MySpaceTV” player. MySpace was where I originally found the subject video and I thought I’d venture into using other players, beyond YouTube’s. But that idea just didn’t take.

YouTube players are the easiest to hold in your hand.

‘Gas Station Ghost’ Recut

Fearing that things might become repetitive, I came up with this fun format for a debunk – recutting a news segment to reflect a critical thinking approach. I think it came out pretty well. And yes, I continue to use exclusively Avid-brand scissors when editing.

I should do another one of these “recuts” some time…

The reporter’s re-dubbed voice in the recut is obviously not provided by the original reporter. Do you recognize whose voice it is??