My wooish teacher

[AnnoyingPony]

I don't know where to put this thread, but here goes.

One of my teachers is a really nice lady and a good teacher, but she believes some wacky things. For instance, she thinks that cell phones cause cancer, that the government is putting dangerous things into EVERYTHING to give us cancer, that electro-magnetic fields will slowly kill you, and that there are psychics who can detect those fields.

Did I mention she's my science teacher? :eek:

[whatthebutlersaw]

Is your teacher Annika Dahlqvist?

[Slimething]

Rough luck. Can you get her replaced? I know it's unpleasant but you could luck out and get a teacher that would become a mentor.

[The True Scotsman]

I don't know where to put this thread, but here goes.

One of my teachers is a really nice lady and a good teacher, but she believes some wacky things. For instance, she thinks that cell phones cause cancer, that the government is putting dangerous things into EVERYTHING to give us cancer, that electro-magnetic fields will slowly kill you, and that there are psychics who can detect those fields.

Did I mention she's my science teacher? :eek:

You should ask her if she is getting this information from reputable, peer-reviewed journals; if she says "yes", ask her for the name of the journal(s) she got it from.; if she say "no", ask her where she is getting her information from. If you find that she is using an non-reputable source, you could point it out to her and hope that changes her mind.

[Craig4]

I'd ask if she's applied the scientific method to her beliefs. Maybe she could design an experiment to test some of her beliefs.

[ria_rokz]

Ah... I had a teacher like that in junior high/high school. Science teacher, thought weird stuff. I don't remember it all now. No scientific method in her mind or in her classes, just follow the textbook. She ended up having a mental breakdown. Nice lady, just big issues.

[AnnoyingPony]

You should ask her if she is getting this information from reputable, peer-reviewed journals; if she says "yes", ask her for the name of the journal(s) she got it from.; if she say "no", ask her where she is getting her information from. If you find that she is using an non-reputable source, you could point it out to her and hope that changes her mind.

You see, I'd simply love to do just that, except that she's also the person who enters my grades. I don't want to take that risk if it means a bad grade on my semester report.

Every time she brings it up though, I can just barely restrain myself from yelling "O RLY?" across the room.

[AnnoyingPony]

Is your teacher Annika Dahlqvist?

Uh... who? :boggled:

[angrysoba]

Sounds pretty bad, but a history teacher of mine used to bring up his own theories about the Kennedy assassination and even ran his own extra-curricular course on it. A lot of us, including myself, simply had no way of knowing how much of what he said was true so we went along with it. But one kid bought and read "Case Closed" by Gerald Posner and was able to rebut most of what he said. As far as I know it never affected his grade negatively and any teacher who marked someone down for having disagreements with a teacher on valid grounds like that is a bad teacher.

You should certainly be able to express skepticism without it affecting your grade. If it does and you know it you should complain.

[nvidiot]

And if you're really concerned, I'd be inquiring with her superior, (prob a deputy principal or administrator?) as to exactly what qualifications she has to be a science teacher in the first place. It's all too common for substitution to occur in such public institutions where money is tight. Why hire a science teacher when the phys. ed. teacher can double up?

Good luck, whatever happens.

[Just thinking]

Perhaps as an extra credit project you can debunk some of the things listed above. Of course, you can keep it from her specifically what it is you will debunk, telling her that you will be investigating some popular ideas/concepts that go unchallenged, only to have her find out in the project's report that some of her beliefs are among them.

[The True Scotsman]

You see, I'd simply love to do just that, except that she's also the person who enters my grades. I don't want to take that risk if it means a bad grade on my semester report.

Every time she brings it up though, I can just barely restrain myself from yelling "O RLY?" across the room.

It could happen, but I'd think she could only legitimately get away with it if the assignments she is grading have room for ambiguity (such as research papers). If the grade is mostly based upon multiple choice/short answer test questions, then it shouldn't be a problem. She probably won't be able to get away with saying, for example, that carbon is not element number 6, if you answer that on a test or such.

Moreover, I agree with what others have said. As long as you do this tactfully, it shouldn't be an issue (either disciplinary, grade-wise, or other).

[psionl0]

she thinks that cell phones cause cancer, that the government is putting dangerous things into EVERYTHING to give us cancer, that electro-magnetic fields will slowly kill you, and that there are psychics who can detect those fields.
Is she teaching these things as part of a science curriculum (on which you will be tested) or is this just personal opinions that she expresses when she is digressing from the mundane part of the course?

I used to have a science teacher who loved talking politics. It might not have been particularly relevant but the class used to pay more attention to him even when he was talking science.

[Gawdzilla]

I don't know where to put this thread, but here goes.

One of my teachers is a really nice lady and a good teacher, but she believes some wacky things. For instance, she thinks that cell phones cause cancer, that the government is putting dangerous things into EVERYTHING to give us cancer, that electro-magnetic fields will slowly kill you, and that there are psychics who can detect those fields.

Did I mention she's my science teacher? :eek:

Chemical imbalance. She should stay on her meds.

[Wrathernaut]

If these woo-spews of her don't have anything to do with the current subject, just raise your hand and ask her what cellphone radiation cancer has to do with plate tectonics, or whatever you're currently studying.

If it does directly relate to what you're learning, bring back peer-reviewed stuff that argues against what she says the next day for discussion.

[AnnoyingPony]

If these woo-spews of her don't have anything to do with the current subject, just raise your hand and ask her what cellphone radiation cancer has to do with plate tectonics, or whatever you're currently studying.

If it does directly relate to what you're learning, bring back peer-reviewed stuff that argues against what she says the next day for discussion.

Right now we are studying radiation, and she is putting it in the curriculum. It's not in the textbooks at all. I can't ask my parents for help with this because, sadly, they believe a lot of the same things about cell phones that she does.

I remember once we also did a worksheet on t3h p011ut10nz and t3h f45t f00dz and how WE'RE ALL GOING TO DIE SLOWLY OF CANCER BECAUSE OF IT LOLOMGWTF :eye-poppi

[The True Scotsman]

t3h p011ut10nz and t3h f45t f00dz

Hmm...looks like it says the pollutions and the fast foods. She may be taking things too far, but there are legitimately certain pollutants that can increase the rate of tumor growth such as bis-phenol-A (which can leach off from certain plastics).

[HatRack]

I don't know where to put this thread, but here goes.

One of my teachers is a really nice lady and a good teacher, but she believes some wacky things. For instance, she thinks that cell phones cause cancer, that the government is putting dangerous things into EVERYTHING to give us cancer, that electro-magnetic fields will slowly kill you, and that there are psychics who can detect those fields.

Did I mention she's my science teacher? :eek:

AP,

You live one crazy life. Your parents are 9/11 truthers and your teacher believes in psychics. My question is: how in the world have you managed to stay sane?

[Ausmerican]

I had a physics teacher who told us that in his opinion x-rays start off at the speed of light but the higher you crank the kVp the faster they go. He also made the class watch What The Bleep Do We Know as if it were a documentary.
The saddest thing was the majority of the class let the first go unchallenged and bought the second.

[psionl0]

Right now we are studying radiation, and she is putting it in the curriculum. It's not in the textbooks at all.

In that case, google all the sources that rebut her opinions and quote them in your tests. Be factual however and don't put down anything that is your opinion or can't be verified. Don't write what you don't believe just to get a passing grade.

If she fails you after doing that then complain (in writing if necessary) to your principal and the board of education.

[Madalch]

I think teachers in BC are going to be very wooish in the near future. The union newsletter published an article from a naturopath a few issues ago about the dangers of WiFi radiation. The following issue had a sharply-worded letter to the editor about such nonsense, and the other half of the article.

The latest issue (http://bctf.ca/uploadedFiles/Public/Publications/TeacherNewsmag/archive/2010-2011/2010-11/index.pdf ) contains several letters about the idiocy of the article, a comment from the editor about how controversial the topic is and how important it is to learn both sides of the argument (the factual side and the fictitious side, apparently) and... another article about the dangers of EMF.

[maddog]

Nothing new to add, but good luck with however you proceed, Annoying Pony!

[Drachasor]

Well, if you are brave, then I think it is worth fighting this a bit. It's not hard to do the math on how much energy from a photon is needed to break a chemical bond, and then compare that to the energy in the photons of a Cell Phone (hint, they' several orders of magnitude too weak). You can also compare the energy of these photons to the energy in atoms at that temperature, and find they are also many orders of magnitude smaller (e.g. random kinetic energy variation would cause cancer all the time if this was a factor and we'd all be dead).

You could compare it to the energy emitted from the sun, and show that visible light is literally far, far more dangerous in every way (and you can include the wattage of energy from the sun here vs. the wattage of energy hitting you from a cell phone).

The idea that cell phones can cause cancer is complete TOSH. I recommend pointing it out to her after class once you've done the mathematical work, but do it diplomatically. If she still continues to teach it in class, then hand out fliers with your work to the rest of the class. If this or answering with actual facts on tests affect your grade, then bring it up with the administration.

She might be a nice lady, but that doesn't mean it is remotely ok to spread misinformation around under the guise of science. That sort of thing is quite harmful. If she insists on teaching garbage, then she should be removed from her position. The education of the children she teaches now and in the future is more important than anything else at issue.

[AnnoyingPony]

AP,

You live one crazy life. Your parents are 9/11 truthers and your teacher believes in psychics. My question is: how in the world have you managed to stay sane?

Actually, only one is a 9/11 truther - the other one believes in homeopathy. :D

Honestly, I thank YouTube, this forum, FSTDT, Conspiracyscience.com, Penn & Teller, and the dispersal of knowledge over the internet in general for keeping me sane. I accepted everything they believed until I got some alone time on a computer.

[AnnoyingPony]

I had a physics teacher who told us that in his opinion x-rays start off at the speed of light but the higher you crank the kVp the faster they go. He also made the class watch What The Bleep Do We Know as if it were a documentary.
The saddest thing was the majority of the class let the first go unchallenged and bought the second.

http://www.lolblog.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2008/10/facepalm.jpg

What the Bleep Do We Know is a truly special brand of crazy.

[AnnoyingPony]

Well, if you are brave, then I think it is worth fighting this a bit. It's not hard to do the math on how much energy from a photon is needed to break a chemical bond, and then compare that to the energy in the photons of a Cell Phone (hint, they' several orders of magnitude too weak). You can also compare the energy of these photons to the energy in atoms at that temperature, and find they are also many orders of magnitude smaller (e.g. random kinetic energy variation would cause cancer all the time if this was a factor and we'd all be dead).

You could compare it to the energy emitted from the sun, and show that visible light is literally far, far more dangerous in every way (and you can include the wattage of energy from the sun here vs. the wattage of energy hitting you from a cell phone).

The idea that cell phones can cause cancer is complete TOSH. I recommend pointing it out to her after class once you've done the mathematical work, but do it diplomatically. If she still continues to teach it in class, then hand out fliers with your work to the rest of the class. If this or answering with actual facts on tests affect your grade, then bring it up with the administration.

She might be a nice lady, but that doesn't mean it is remotely ok to spread misinformation around under the guise of science. That sort of thing is quite harmful. If she insists on teaching garbage, then she should be removed from her position. The education of the children she teaches now and in the future is more important than anything else at issue.

Yeah, I think I'm going to bring this up. It pisses me off that nobody is standing up to this BS. One kid asked, "So, why exactly are cell phones dangerous?" And the teacher replied, "Because it's RAY-DEE-AY-SHUN." (Emphasis on the "AY".)

She kept gushing on and on about how cell phones are causing people to be depressed more and how everyone is getting cancer and becoming infertile because of cell phones. She went on to state that certain people have "Electromagnetic Hypersensitivity", which means they get headaches or something whenever they're near electromagnetic fields.

So I was hanging out after school and I looked it up to see if the claims were valid. I found this (http://www.bmj.com/content/332/7546/886.full) study (link) (http://www.bmj.com/content/332/7546/886.full) that showed that people who claimed to be sensitive to electromagnetic fields not only couldn't detect them, but they got the same symptoms when they were exposed to both fake and real cell phone radiation. This showed that the causes of "electromagnetic sensitivity" are due to a nocebo effect, and have nothing to do with radiation. In fact, quite a few of the symptoms line up with simple stress disorders and have nothing to do with teh c311 ph0n3z frying your brains.

(link) (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mobile_phone_radiation_and_health)

Apparently cell phone radiation does cause heating, but the brain's blood vessels are able to evenly distribute excess blood flow. It won't damage the brain. Lots of cell phone radiation has been shown to cause premature cataracts in rabbits, but that has not been replicated in monkeys or humans, because cell phones don't release enough radiation to hurt eyes.

Also, a giant study in Denmark (http://jnci.oxfordjournals.org/content/98/23/1707.abstract) showed that there was no correlation between cell phone use and brain cancer.

[Hindmost]

Yeah, I think I'm going to bring this up. It pisses me off that nobody is standing up to this BS. One kid asked, "So, why exactly are cell phones dangerous?" And the teacher replied, "Because it's RAY-DEE-AY-SHUN." (Emphasis on the "AY".)

She kept gushing on and on about how cell phones are causing people to be depressed more and how everyone is getting cancer and becoming infertile because of cell phones. She went on to state that certain people have "Electromagnetic Hypersensitivity", which means they get headaches or something whenever they're near electromagnetic fields.

So I was hanging out after school and I looked it up to see if the claims were valid. I found this (http://www.bmj.com/content/332/7546/886.full) study (link) (http://www.bmj.com/content/332/7546/886.full) that showed that people who claimed to be sensitive to electromagnetic fields not only couldn't detect them, but they got the same symptoms when they were exposed to both fake and real cell phone radiation. This showed that the causes of "electromagnetic sensitivity" are due to a nocebo effect, and have nothing to do with radiation. In fact, quite a few of the symptoms line up with simple stress disorders and have nothing to do with teh c311 ph0n3z frying your brains.

(link) (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mobile_phone_radiation_and_health)

Apparently cell phone radiation does cause heating, but the brain's blood vessels are able to evenly distribute excess blood flow. It won't damage the brain. Lots of cell phone radiation has been shown to cause premature cataracts in rabbits, but that has not been replicated in monkeys or humans, because cell phones don't release enough radiation to hurt eyes.

Also, a giant study in Denmark (http://jnci.oxfordjournals.org/content/98/23/1707.abstract) showed that there was no correlation between cell phone use and brain cancer.

Based on this post alone, you will survive this wackaloon teacher. I would let the rants continue without challenge as your grade is more important and there is little chance of coverting this woo. A bit of activism after the class is over, that might be warranted.

glenn

[rwguinn]

Based on this post alone, you will survive this wackaloon teacher. I would let the rants continue without challenge in the classroom as your grade is more important and there is little chance of coverting this woo. A bit of activism after the class is over, that might be warranted.

glenn
Fixed that.
This too is part of education. Annoying Pony was skeptical enough to go find out for himself just how true the claims in the classroom were.
Well done

[Hindmost]

Fixed that.
This too is part of education. Annoying Pony was skeptical enough to go find out for himself just how true the claims in the classroom were.
Well done

good repair job.

glenn

[AnnoyingPony]

good repair job.

glenn

I'm actually a girl, but thanks anyway. :)

Update: Today, Ms. Teacher told us to find an article in some online newspaper or magazine or something that related to cell phones and health. But she didn't specify whether it should be in support of the hypothesis that cell phones cause cancer or against. Guess which kind of article I picked. ;) If she complains, I'll just say I'm "peer-reviewing" her hypothesis.

Later, she went on to say that we should pay more attention to sensationalistic news articles because they might be true. Then she went on to compare cell phone use (no proven health risk) with cigarettes (a totally proven health risk). Not only do cell phones cause brain cancer, but they also cause depression, aneurysms, and infertility!!!!one!!1! /sarcasm

So we moved on to discuss the happy and uplifting topic of nuclear bombs. Apparently we're close enough to our local major city that if t3h 3b1L n0rth k0r34nz 0r t3h 1r4n14nz were to drop nuclear bombs on it, we'd all be dead from nuclear fallout. She also said that we might have a chance of protecting ourselves from going infertile by wearing Swedish radioactivity-proof underwear! (It reminds me of that Alex Jones episode where he endorses underwear that will supposedly prevent the TSA workers from looking at your genitals as you go through naked body scanners.)

[Hindmost]

I'm actually a girl, but thanks anyway. :)

Update: Today, Ms. Teacher told us to find an article in some online newspaper or magazine or something that related to cell phones and health. But she didn't specify whether it should be in support of the hypothesis that cell phones cause cancer or against. Guess which kind of article I picked. ;) If she complains, I'll just say I'm "peer-reviewing" her hypothesis.

Later, she went on to say that we should pay more attention to sensationalistic news articles because they might be true. Then she went on to compare cell phone use (no proven health risk) with cigarettes (a totally proven health risk). Not only do cell phones cause brain cancer, but they also cause depression, aneurysms, and infertility!!!!one!!1! /sarcasm

So we moved on to discuss the happy and uplifting topic of nuclear bombs. Apparently we're close enough to our local major city that if t3h 3b1L n0rth k0r34nz 0r t3h 1r4n14nz were to drop nuclear bombs on it, we'd all be dead from nuclear fallout. She also said that we might have a chance of protecting ourselves from going infertile by wearing Swedish radioactivity-proof underwear! (It reminds me of that Alex Jones episode where he endorses underwear that will supposedly prevent the TSA workers from looking at your genitals as you go through naked body scanners.)

truth is still stranger than fiction...The underwear would have to be about 2 inches of lead to give moderate protection. Not likely to be comfy.

For information on radiation related topics: In the past in the US, the Nuclear Regulatory Commisson would give pills to people around nuclear plants. Some people thought they were anti radiation pills. They were essentially iodine pills. If an event such as Chernobyl, radioactive iodine is released and it gets into the food chain very quickly and be absorbed in everyones thyroid gland. The pills would saturated one's thyroid with iodine so the radioactive stuff would be excreted. Many years ago there was a lot of garbage about pills that would protect you from radiation....I am wondering if your teacher will resurrect this particular woo. There were significant cases of thyroid cancer around Chernobyl.

In US plants, a large Chernobyl type release is unlikely to occur as Three Mile Island proved the containtment would prevent release of large amounts of radioactive material--essentially, it worked like it was designed.

I actually didn't assume your gender--but thanks for the info.--and sorry for the mistake. :) I was thanking rwguinn for indicating how you can converse with fellow students outside of class to correct the woo issues. Even with fellow students, one must tread lightly as some convictions can be very strong. When I was teaching, I was careful to avoid certain subjects to ensure I didn't offend--such as not criticizing a profession just in case a student's parent might be employed in that profession.

glenn

[whatthebutlersaw]

I'm actually a girl, but thanks anyway. :)

Update: Today, Ms. Teacher told us to find an article in some online newspaper or magazine or something that related to cell phones and health. But she didn't specify whether it should be in support of the hypothesis that cell phones cause cancer or against. Guess which kind of article I picked. ;) If she complains, I'll just say I'm "peer-reviewing" her hypothesis.

Later, she went on to say that we should pay more attention to sensationalistic news articles because they might be true. Then she went on to compare cell phone use (no proven health risk) with cigarettes (a totally proven health risk). Not only do cell phones cause brain cancer, but they also cause depression, aneurysms, and infertility!!!!one!!1! /sarcasm

So we moved on to discuss the happy and uplifting topic of nuclear bombs. Apparently we're close enough to our local major city that if t3h 3b1L n0rth k0r34nz 0r t3h 1r4n14nz were to drop nuclear bombs on it, we'd all be dead from nuclear fallout. She also said that we might have a chance of protecting ourselves from going infertile by wearing Swedish radioactivity-proof underwear! (It reminds me of that Alex Jones episode where he endorses underwear that will supposedly prevent the TSA workers from looking at your genitals as you go through naked body scanners.)


I lived in the part of Sweden that took the heaviest hit from Pripyat 1986 and no one ever suggested radioactivity proof underwear. They said: don't eat the berries or mushrooms in the woods, don't eat the fruit from your garden and avoid elk meat and reindeer meat. As if. People were cautious for about a year, but the next season they were stuffing themselves on billberries and reindeer as if there was no tomorrow.

Eternit underwear was not mentioned, though.

[Drachasor]

I'm actually a girl, but thanks anyway. :)

Update: Today, Ms. Teacher told us to find an article in some online newspaper or magazine or something that related to cell phones and health. But she didn't specify whether it should be in support of the hypothesis that cell phones cause cancer or against. Guess which kind of article I picked. ;) If she complains, I'll just say I'm "peer-reviewing" her hypothesis.

Later, she went on to say that we should pay more attention to sensationalistic news articles because they might be true. Then she went on to compare cell phone use (no proven health risk) with cigarettes (a totally proven health risk). Not only do cell phones cause brain cancer, but they also cause depression, aneurysms, and infertility!!!!one!!1! /sarcasm

So we moved on to discuss the happy and uplifting topic of nuclear bombs. Apparently we're close enough to our local major city that if t3h 3b1L n0rth k0r34nz 0r t3h 1r4n14nz were to drop nuclear bombs on it, we'd all be dead from nuclear fallout. She also said that we might have a chance of protecting ourselves from going infertile by wearing Swedish radioactivity-proof underwear! (It reminds me of that Alex Jones episode where he endorses underwear that will supposedly prevent the TSA workers from looking at your genitals as you go through naked body scanners.)

Wow. She's completely unqualified to teach a science class.

[psionl0]

Wow. She's completely unqualified to teach a science class.Maybe, but thanks to this teacher, AnnoyingPony is learning a lot more than she otherwise would have if the teacher had stuck to the script.

[Drachasor]

Maybe, but thanks to this teacher, AnnoyingPony is learning a lot more than she otherwise would have if the teacher had stuck to the script.

Some more perhaps, but most of the students suffer (and even some of their parents). And frankly, I'm not sure AnnoyingPony wouldn't be learning a lot on her own with a normal teacher, so how much extra, if any, is more than a bit in question.

[psionl0]

Some more perhaps, but most of the students suffer (and even some of their parents). And frankly, I'm not sure AnnoyingPony wouldn't be learning a lot on her own with a normal teacher, so how much extra, if any, is more than a bit in question.
I was only looking for a silver lining. I agree that there is no place for teachers who teach unreferenced personal opinions as though they are fact - especially if students are being tested for this alternative knowledge. Unfortunately, this problem is a lot more widespread than you might think and doesn't just involve woo. Crackpot teaching theories and undisciplined classrooms are adding up to a lot of wasted lives for a lot of children.

[Drachasor]

I was only looking for a silver lining. I agree that there is no place for teachers who teach unreferenced personal opinions as though they are fact - especially if students are being tested for this alternative knowledge. Unfortunately, this problem is a lot more widespread than you might think and doesn't just involve woo. Crackpot teaching theories and undisciplined classrooms are adding up to a lot of wasted lives for a lot of children.

I don't think it necessarily wastes lives. It more definitely would screw up the political process by having misinformed voters.

[Skeptic Ginger]

I occasionally have this problem with physicians who have more status than I do. I never tell them they are wrong. Instead I hand them peer reviewed research which supports the position they are wrong.

Sometimes I find out the MD was right when I do a literature review. Sometimes I'm pretty sure I impress them with evidence they are wrong.

It's a win-win.

PubMed (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed) Put in the search criteria, "cell phones and cancer".

[TubbaBlubba]

I want to suplex your teacher and whoever hired her.

[Jeff Corey]

Wrestling with the faculty is not common here. You silly Swede, you.

[Alferd_Packer]

Is your teacher Annika Dahlqvist?

maybe it's Judy Woods.

[JoeyDonuts]

OP: Call your teacher to the mat on this stuff. It's not scientific, you know that. You've looked up enough counter-claim stuff to see that. She didn't ask the class to use Ebscohost or ScienceDirect (assuming you have access) to find science articles, and that to me is pretty telling.

Is this at a public high school/university? If so, you have a lot more available to you in the way of options. What this woman is teaching is unscientific, misleading, and is going to wind up hurting most of the class, producing another science-ignorant generation who will literally buy into anything BECAUSE they had teachers like this. I'm not too worried about you, since you have this place for an anchor. We'll keep you grounded, but all that it takes for this kind of teacher to continue spewing this nonsense is for a person in your position to say nothing.

Odds are, there is someone in the administration at your school who genuinely gives a crap about science. You need to report this teacher of yours, but do it tactfully. It could very well be a small thing like making a report to her supervisor and she gets called in and advised to keep the unscience out of the classroom. Or, her qualifications will be scrutinized to a greater degree and she'll go away. Or the school board will not want to deal with it, leaving you at her mercy. If that happens, (worst case scenario) you will have some pretty serious backup at your disposal.

There are people here who can get a tremendous ball rolling if you face any sort of academic reprisal for doing the right thing here.

[Ron_Tomkins]

I don't know where to put this thread, but here goes.

One of my teachers is a really nice lady and a good teacher, but she believes some wacky things. For instance, she thinks that cell phones cause cancer, that the government is putting dangerous things into EVERYTHING to give us cancer, that electro-magnetic fields will slowly kill you, and that there are psychics who can detect those fields.

Did I mention she's my science teacher? :eek:

Is she hot?

[AnnoyingPony]

Is she hot?

Kind of :p

[piojunbabia]

I don't know where to put this thread, but here goes.

One of my teachers is a really nice lady and a good teacher, but she believes some wacky things. For instance, she thinks that cell phones cause cancer, that the government is putting dangerous things into EVERYTHING to give us cancer, that electro-magnetic fields will slowly kill you, and that there are psychics who can detect those fields.

Did I mention she's my science teacher? :eek:
Maybe shes one of the "scientists" who made those "cancer-giving-phones" she invented a special electro-magnetic fields..

[Squeegee Beckenheim]

I've just read this thread, and I want to know if there's any updates. How did your assignment on mobile phones and cancer go down?

[truethat]

This is going to sound completely sexist. And it is so I hope it isn't offensive.

My sister is a "scientist." She went to a good school for a degree in Marine Biology. Right now she's a secretary. And she tries to stay scientific but then she'll do things that reveal her superstitions.

The running joke about these kind of women is they go into the Science Fields because they want to get their MRS. In other words they are looking to marry a doctor or scientist because they stand to make a pretty good salary and are usually considered prestigious. For example as soon as my sister started dating her PhD boyfriend she gave up science completely. They are now married. She is not a scientist but with her degree she could certainly get a job as a science teacher. Or at least she used to.

So perhaps your teacher is the same sort of "Science" person. If so I doubt confronting her in the middle of class would work. I'd just sort of grin and bear it until your are done the semester.

[psionl0]

I'd just sort of grin and bear it until your are done the semester.No way! Make waves! The truth is more important than protecting some @#$^% idiot's job.

[AnnoyingPony]

I've just read this thread, and I want to know if there's any updates. How did your assignment on mobile phones and cancer go down?

We haven't gotten them back yet. Instead we started a new unit on physics. It sucks.

But she did shut up about the cell phones. Now I'm more interested in damage control. Since kids are bringing up how much they hate the physics curriculum at the moment, it's a good opportunity to bring up the pseudoscience in her class.

[sosekopp]

You have my deepfelt sympathies, AnnoyingPony. A few months ago we had a substitute teacher who said that "only a handful of climate scientists believe in the man-made climate change theory", and he also strongly implied that this "handful" is being paid by the Big Climate Lobby. :rolleyes:

[Squeegee Beckenheim]

Instead we started a new unit on physics. It sucks.

I never really understood how interesting physics is until I'd left school. It's such a shame when it's taught poorly.

[TubbaBlubba]

Really? I've always had pretty good experience with physics in school, both in junior high and high school. In fact, my high school physics teacher is pretty damned amazing.