Kevin Dixon: The struggle for true science in Torbay

Torbay has always been a battleground of ideas, a never-ending contest between science and pseudoscience.

On the one hand, science is a systematic discipline that builds and organises knowledge in the form of testable hypotheses and predictions. 

On the other we have pseudoscience, derived from the Greek word pseudo meaning ‘false’, with claims and theories based on incorrect or insufficient evidence.

However, distinguishing between proper science and pseudoscience is often difficult. Some proper sciences have even developed from pseudoscience. Chemistry, for example, traces its origins to the study of alchemy.

There’s also a vast and diverse range of unsupported and spurious theories out there; while new forms emerge all the time, some making their creators a lot of money. 

As an illustration of the struggle between pseudoscience and science let us visit St Mary Magdalene Church by Castle Circus. Inside Mary Mags there is an impressive memorial decorated with a mariner’s compass and dividers. The dedication is to Arctic explorer, scientist and clergyman William Scoresby (1789-1857).

As a young man William made voyages to Greenland and Australia where he mapped, charted, made deep-sea temperature soundings and described the flora and fauna. William’s several books on his experiences helped lay the foundations of modern arctic geography. Recognising his contribution to science, places around the globe have been named after him.

In 1849 William built a villa in Torquay and was appointed honorary lecturer at Mary Mags. In was in the resort that he developed his interest in animal magnetism, also known as Mesmerism. 

Animal magnetism was conceived by the German doctor Franz Mesmar in 1779 as an invisible natural force. Mesmer, and then William, believed that this force in the form of a fluid could have physical effects.

When this fluid circulates, living beings are healthy, but when it is blocked we experience sickness. All of us, Mesmer believed, had the capability to use this life force for healing purposes. 

Mesmerism attracted many followers in Europe and the United States and became an important part of medicine. More than 1,500 books were published on animal magnetism and related subjects.

In Torquay William also found he could easily ‘mesmerise’ subjects and he used his wife as a subject, believing that ‘thought transference’ was achievable by all. This was explained in William’s book ‘Zoistic Magnetism’ (1849). Today, we are familiar with stage hypnotism, but this was seen by William as proof of the existence of hidden forces.

Yet, members of the nation’s medical establishment were unconvinced, at first somewhat suspicious of Mesmerism and then openly hostile.

Just a few yards away from Mary Magdalene Church was Torquay’s original hospital in Higher Union Street. Here was based one of the principal opponents of Mesmerism, the grandly titled “Charles Radclyffe Hall, MD, Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians; consulting physician to the Erith House Institution for Gentlewomen; and physician to the Western Hospital for Consumption; Torquay”.

In 1845 Charles wrote a critique of Mesmerism in the medical journal, The Lancet, “On the rise, progress and mysteries of mesmerism in all ages and countries.” This was a debate between the Torquay scientist and the Torquay clergyman which turned into a dispute with national implications. Was Mesmerism science or pseudoscience?

Charles focussed on Mesmerism’s contradictions, extreme claims and scientific weaknesses. Based on his investigations, he concluded that animal magnetism was a product of the imagination. He argued that while faith healers do have satisfied customers, these were due to the power of suggestion and the belief in the therapy, what we would today call the placebo effect. 

It looks like Charles won the argument. Today Mesmerism is almost forgotten.

The nineteenth century saw many more of these kinds of claims to scientific authenticity including a variety of means of identifying a person’s character and of healing illnesses.

Physiognomy or face reading claimed to be able to assess someone’s personality from their outer appearance; iridology said that all disorders of the body could be diagnosed by looking for changes in the eye; phrenology studied the bumps and fissures in people's skulls.

Ancient methods were similarly seen as having merit; such as palmistry, the study of the lines of the hands; numerology, the study of numbers to determine characteristics; graphology, where a personality can be linked to handwriting.

There’s also the field of parapsychology which focuses on the study of extrasensory phenomena, such as telepathy, clairvoyance, and telekinesis. 

All were considered science at one time. Many of these have lost favour or been entirely forgotten in our modern age. On the other hand, astrology, the relationship between the position of planets, stars, and the personality, remains popular despite being rejected by most scientists. 

Increased knowledge and enhanced techniques of investigation have also been adopted by faith traditions to evidence their ancient truths. Spiritualism, for instance, claims to communicate with the dead and was especially popular in the Bay. Though now primarily a religious movement, Victorian Spiritualism asserted itself as a verifiable science presenting 'proof' of the supernatural such as ectoplasm and spirit photography.

Similarly, a fundamentalist Christian backlash attempted to counter Darwin’s theory of evolution. The Intelligent Design Creationist argument remains influential in the United States where the teaching of evolution faces ongoing opposition in public schools.

We’re not finished with pseudoscience. A variety of theories remain popular while new ones continue to be circulated via mass media and social media.

On the outer fringes of the internet we have cryptozoology, the search for unknown or legendary animals. These are usually looked for in remote places, though recent examples include the Goodrington sea serpent of 2010 and the Churston Ape of 2006, both of which are given as real instances of mysterious beasts.

As always, cures for ailments are a common theme. Homeopathy supports the cure of certain diseases through the oral application of extremely diluted substances, which means that patients basically drink water.

Reflexology, the idea that an undetectable life force connects various parts of the body to the feet, and sometimes the hands and ears, was introduced in the United States in 1913 as 'zone therapy'. Biomagnetism further claims to cure diseases through the use of magnets.

Pseudoscience further claims to expose hidden truths about human history or things not of this world.

Ufology investigates, as might be suspected,  Unidentified Flying Objects and maintains that various sinister government agencies suppress evidence of their visits.

This is often linked to the idea that extraterrestrials visited us in the distant past. Erich von Däniken’s 1968 Chariots of the Gods popularised the theory which regularly appears in science fiction books, films, and television series. Crop circles are seen by some as evidence of artistic aliens. 

Despite failing to meet proper scientific standards, many pseudosciences nevertheless survive. They often have a core of devotees who refuse to accept criticism of their beliefs and feed on reasonable popular mistrust of authority.

Most of these theories and enthusiasm are harmless. However, some can cause damage to the individual, to society, and even the planet.

The twentieth century, as we all know, saw nations use contrived evidence to support racial superiority, adopting genocidal policies based on the pseudoscience that the human species is divided into biologically distinct ‘races’.

There are also unsubstantiated safety concerns and misinformation related to vaccines in the UK. This persists even though there is no serious debate within mainstream medical and scientific circles about the benefits of vaccination.

Climate change denial rejects the scientific consensus on climate change, which is based on extensive and diverse evidence. Those promoting denial commonly use rhetorical tactics to give the appearance of a scientific controversy where none exists. 

The competition between science and pseudoscience doesn’t ever end. As always new theories and ideas emerge as scientific discoveries are made. The challenge is, of course, in knowing which are true science and which are not.