Olson's Science
Spotting Bad Science
http://www.compoundchem.com/2014/04/02/a-rough-guide-to-spotting-bad-science/
Above is the link to the image. I think it is a rather cool poster, and it does a great job explaining how to spot bad science.
There are 12 points that will help you recorginze the science from the pseudoscience:
1) Sensationalised Headlines
2) Misinterpreted Results
3) Conficts of Interest
4) Correlation & Causation
5) Unsupprted Conclusions
6) Problems with Sample Size
7) Unrepresentative Samples Used
8) No Control Group Used
9) No Blind Testing Used
10) Selective Reporting of Data
11) Unrepicable Results
12) Non-Peer Reviewed Material
Don't do BAD SCIENCE!
One of my favorite class activities that I often do in the first week is to have kids pull out their cell phones and search for "Lake Michigan Whale Watching". The old Geocities web site often pops up (it has been copied around a bit) along with a facebook page, and a few other folks who have advertisements for charter boat tours. I then get the kids to go into groups and discuss what they learned, hinting at the fact that their group will be required to produce something (like a poster or a powerpoint presentation) about what they learned.
Usually only about 1 person in every 3 classes speaks up and says "there are no whales in Lake Michigan", at which point I ask them to prove it, as obviously there is a lot of proof that there are whales there!
It usually leads to some great classroom discussion about what is and isn't real, how the internet can easily be faked, and how to tell the truth from fiction. It is also a great lead into what are claims, reason and evidence and how to use them appropriately.
