Ah! Valkee! For the last few years I've been blogging about this "miracle cure" for depression - in 2011 I called Valkee a technology scam and last year Valkee's website was found to be misleading the public. They claim that by sticking a light in your ear, you can cure both depression and cancer. These are dangerous quacks who need to be stopped. Earlier this year, the Finnish TV show "MOT" did a rather detailed exposé of Valkee: Valkee won the "Hoax Prize" from the Finnish Sceptics' …
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Regular readers may know that I'm not a big fan of Valkee - the magic light you shine in your ears to improve your mood. Back in September, I complained to the ASA about the Valkee website. I felt that it was making unfounded claims, was confusing testimonial with science, and was generally misleading. In December, the ASA referred it to their counterparts in Finland for investigation. Today, I received this back from them. As you know, we previously referred your complaint about Valkee…
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Why do some people in the technology community seem so susceptible to snake oil? I suspect it's because of two things. We trust our friends' judgement. We are experts in our fields and, therefore, trust our own judgement in matters we don't fully understand. Compare and contrast the following two statements. On the announcement of the original iPod, one influential pundit declared... "No wireless. Less space than a nomad. Lame." Source: Slashdot.org's original iPod discussion On …
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