If anything, it’s only irritating in the sense that there aren’t enough Science publications at that location to warrant a complete rack of their own.

And really, not all of the so-called science books in the science-section are what I’d call scientific. Many are no more than opportunities to cash in on the public’s naivete’.

It was Angus & Robinson. I’m looking at the New Age section on their site.

The Secret.. enough said..

How about this one?

Book of Answers – Just hold this powrful, one-of-a-kind book closed in your hands and concentrate on your question for a few seconds. Then open it at random and find the answer!

Amazing Power of Deliberate Intent: Living the Art of Allowing

Crystal Bible: The Definitive Guide to Every Crystal under the Sun – The directory covers the practical and esoteric properties of each crystal, including spiritual, mental, psychological, emotional and physical effects, plus its use in crystal healing.

Angel Therapy: Healing Messages for Every Area of Your Life

Transit of Saturn – Explains & defines growth patterns & hidden purposes in light of a total person as Saturn transits the zodiac to aspect its natal placement. The Saturn cycle includes ego projection, struggle, action, analysis, perfection, distribution, reorientation & mutation into the next cycle. Highlights ways to successfully use periods effectively & efficiently.

To name a few i quickly found on there. I understand some people can find some value in the self help aspects of these books, however to have some of this crap classified as non-fiction is a joke. Just label it New Age and be done, don’t try and pass it off as “Non Fiction” next to the science books.

That’s a load of crap. There’s very sincere stuff in refereed scientific journals often enough that turns out to be literally incorrect. Are these journals then publishers of fiction?

GAry 7

see more pwn and owned pictures

Anyone that is not familiar with Nexus, its a new age magazine promoting anti-science but disguising itself as real science. I have to be careful when I dismiss it in front of certain people I know as they are so dogmatic about the claims they make as being ‘thoroughly scientific’. Some people get real defensive when you point out its anti-scientific nature. The same sort of people, I find, think the so called science on ‘Ghost Hunters’ is flawless. :/ When I watch that show all I think of is … a bunch of magic tricks, not unlike Chris Angel or other magicians. Whoa, digression.

The science was next to astology but it was all under general interest.

Was in a book shop as well and New Age was under Non-Fiction.

I am glad to see this photo. It highlights what I was referring to. I am not trying to ‘big up’ the fact that I ‘told you so’, but I do feel slightly vindicated to see it presented by someone such as Richard Saunders, whom I do respect. Great post.

Phil doesn’t say that Australians are Jewish. He says that his Jewish Australian friends would say “Oi!”

But well its least its not as bad as a newspaper account I once saw crediting * astrologers * with discovering a new pulsar!

BTW. Don’t know why the BA has the notion that Australians are jewish -we’re actually a very multicultural and secular society with more Muslims, Christians and others than Jews. As elsewhere in most of the Western world the Jews are a small minority albeit one with their usual vastly disproportionate wealth and influence. (Jews compose less than 5 % of the population of Oz, the US, Uk etc ..and yet they have so ridiculously much media control and political clout esp. regarding the continuing Israeli ocuupation and persecution of the Palestineans. A whole other story there anyway ..and off-track.)

Scientists have a long way to go before they can understand that both science and astrology have a place and can exist harmoniously.

Oh btw, if you want to see some Australian Science, head to http://www.youngausskeptics.com!!

Here where I live in Australia, every newsagent is the same. They bundle science with the fringe. Very annoying. (That said, when thumbing through some of the new astronomy mags I’ll occasionally pick up one of the pseudoscience ones just for laughs. They ARE funny, at the very least – though not intentionally).

On a slightly related topic, (and I’ll give store names/locations for those of you playing along at home) – I went into the Angus & Robertson bookstore in Brisbane city (the one just down from Anzac Square) a few weeks ago after finishing my university exams. To find the science books, I had to go to the very back of the store where they were crammed onto half of a small shelf. After seeing that they had nothing new (most of the book shops generally seem to have the same science books), I had a snoop around the rest of the shop. At the front they had an entire bookshelf devoted to astrology, crystals and other new age garbage.

Blagh.

But like others have said, I guess it’s just a case of “they just don’t care”. Peope do actually buy that garbage, and it’s got to go somewhere. Hopefully there have been occasions where someone looking for an antiscience magazine has accidently picked up one of the good ones and ‘seen the light’. Though I guess that could work both ways.

Sexism, obviously. But also anti-science, since biologists have noted that possession of double x chromosomes doesn’t make one stupid, and a y chromosome doesn’t make one better at science.

In a different post, the BA speculated about intelligent life elsewhere in the universe. I wonder if there’s any intelligent life here on Earth…

In Oz, typically the New Age section is on one side, and Archaeology on the other – and Creation magazine, if its stocked, is in the Science section. Oi indeed!

Dora carries the vicious double-header of science AND astrology! It’s the devil’s work, I tells ya!

I’ll poke around our local shopping centre and try and find out which chain of newsagents this is, so you can all write nasty letters.

Well, I was supposed to fill in my field of study in this database. I had to choose “physics”, because I couldn’t find “astronomy” or “astrophysics” on the list (which is my field obviously).

Astrology, however, was there.

A major headdesk if there ever was one.

;_;