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Explore: The Journal of Science & Healing

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Explore: The Journal of Science & Healing is an interdisciplinary journal that publishes papers on alternative medicine six times per year. It was established in 2005 and is published by Elsevier. The executive editor is faith healing advocate Larry Dossey, and the co-editors-in-chief are hypnotherapist, acupuncturist, and herbalist Benjamin Kligler, an associate professor at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine,[1] and parapsychologist Dean Radin. The journal has been described as a "sham masquerading as a real scientific journal" which publishes "truly ridiculous studies",[2] such as Masaru Emoto's claimed demonstration of the effect of "distant intention" on water crystal formation.[3][4]

Explore
DisciplineAlternative medicine, health care, spirituality
LanguageEnglish
Edited byLarry Dossey
Publication details
History2005–present
Publisher
FrequencyBimonthly
1.363 (2016)
Standard abbreviations
ISO 4Explore (NY)
Indexing
ISSN1550-8307 (print)
1878-7541 (web)
LCCN2004215412
OCLC no.55647196
Links

Journal content

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The journal describes itself as addressing "the scientific principles behind, and applications of, evidence-based healing practices from a wide variety of sources, including conventional, alternative, and cross-cultural medicine."[5] According to the information for authors, papers "most likely to be published are those that present important new ideas and information on the healing arts, consciousness, spirituality, eco-environmental issues, and basic science as all these fields relate to health" as well as those on "new perspectives on the integration of complementary and alternative therapies".[6] Explore was started in 2005 and is published by medical and scientific journal publisher Elsevier.[5]

Explore has been heavily criticized both for the content it publishes and the beliefs of its editorial team. Its self-description and author information explicitly includes pseudoscientific topics well outside the mainstream of medical practice. Critics have noted this willingness to publish work in areas lacking a scientific basis, and have labelled it a "quack journal" which "doesn't limit itself to just one quackery, the way [the journal] Homeopathy does", a publisher of "truly ridiculous studies", and as a "sham masquerading as a real scientific journal".[2][7]

Individual papers

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Whole systems complementary and alternative medicine

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In a discussion of publications coming from two NIH-funded studies undertaken by homeopathy proponent Iris Bell (a member of the editorial board of Explore),[8] David Gorski examined several publications from this research,[2] including the Explore-published paper on whole systems complementary and alternative medicine using complex systems theory.[9] This was an observational study which divided subjects into "flourishers" and "languishers", and was "not very interesting", according to Gorski.[2]

Distant intention

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Dean Radin, the journal's co-editor-in-chief,[8] published a paper in Explore on the effect on mood of eating chocolate which had been imbued with positive intent;[2][10] the paper was included in a Time magazine discussion that also explored Masaru Emoto's claims of imbuing water with positive intent.[11] Gorski criticized the study design and analysis and noted that Radin offers an explanation of results in terms of quantum mechanics and the observer effect[12] which reflects a well-known misconception about the effect. Emoto's work in this area has been extensively criticized, including in New Scientist[13] the Skeptical Inquirer,[14][4] and Spirituality & Health magazine.[15]

In 2006 Radin and Emoto published a follow-up of these studies focused on "distant intention" on water crystal formation in Explore and another in the Journal of Scientific Exploration;[12][15][16][17] commentary on those papers characterized them as "water woo"[12] and noted that their data did not support their conclusions, and suggested that perhaps "Emoto is an evangelist who values the message of his images more than the particulars of science."[15]

Chico Xavier letters

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In 2015 a paper about truthfulness of mediumship obtained automatic writing letters by the Brazilian spiritist medium Chico Xavier. Partially funded by FAPESP,[18] the paper was criticized by skeptics and citizen science journalists. Carlos Orsi [Wikidata], in Galileu magazine and Maurício Tuffani, in the newspaper Folha de S.Paulo, put in question the credibility of results and conclusions presented, specially the methodological flaws of the publication. But they also criticized the article because of the low impact factor of Explore magazine. Tuffani published a posterous response from the parapsychologist Alexander Moreira-Almeida [Wikidata], one of the authors of the article, but retained previous criticisms.[19][20][21][22]

Editorial team

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The executive editor of Explore is Larry Dossey, an advocate for faith healing and other alternative medicine approaches that have no grounding in science.[23] The co-editors-in-chief are Benjamin Kligler, who practices Ericksonian hypnotherapy, acupuncture, and herbalism,[24] and parapsychologist Dean Radin, who has been described by Steven Novella as having a "dedicated ideology and a poor history" and a "reputation for creatively massaging data."[25] Radin is the chief scientist of the Institute of Noetic Sciences which explores purported phenomena which "do not necessarily fit conventional scientific models."[26] He also works with the Parapsychological Association which describes itself as "a professional organization ... engaged in the study of psi (or 'psychic') experiences, such as telepathy, clairvoyance, psychokinesis, psychic healing, and precognition."[26]

Sadri Hassani, a retired professor of physics who maintains the website Skeptical Educator,[27] said of the journal "The editorial board of Explore says it all! ... When the executive editor himself publishes books on 'knowing the future' and the 'healing power of prayer;' and when coeditors-in-chief engage in the exploration of phenomena that do not necessarily fit conventional scientific models and do research on telepathy and psychic healing, what is the purpose of 'peer-review?'".[26]

Impact

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According to the Journal Citation Reports, the journal has a 2016 impact factor of 1.363.[28][needs update]

References

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  1. ^ "Faculty Profile – Benjamin E. Kligler, M.D." Albert Einstein College of Medicine. Archived from the original on September 11, 2017. Retrieved December 23, 2016.
  2. ^ a b c d e Gorski, David (November 19, 2012). "Getting NCCAM's money's worth: Some results of NCCAM-funded studies of homeopathy". Science-Based Medicine. Retrieved December 19, 2016.
  3. ^ Radin, Dean; Hayssen, Gail; Emoto, Masaru & Kizu, Takashige (September 2006). "Double-Blind Test of the Effects of Distant Intention on Water Crystal Formation". Explore: The Journal of Science & Healing. 2 (5): 408–411. doi:10.1016/j.explore.2006.06.004. PMID 16979104.
  4. ^ a b Poppy, Carrie (2014). "A Grain of Truth: Recreating Dr. Emoto's Rice Experiment". Skeptical Inquirer.
  5. ^ a b "About Explore: The Journal of Science & Healing". Explore: The Journal of Science & Healing. Elsevier. Retrieved December 19, 2016.
  6. ^ "Your Paper Your Way". Explore: The Journal of Science & Healing. Elsevier. Retrieved December 19, 2016.
  7. ^ Gorski, David (May 5, 2009). "When big pharma pays a publisher to publish a fake journal..." ScienceBlogs. Seed Media Group. Retrieved December 19, 2016.
  8. ^ a b "Editorial Board". Explore: The Journal of Science & Healing. Elsevier. Retrieved December 19, 2016.
  9. ^ Otto, Laurie Menk; Howerter, Amy; Bell, Iris R. & Jackson, Nicholas (2010). "Exploring measures of whole person wellness: Integrative well-being and psychological flourishing". Explore: The Journal of Science & Healing. 6 (6): 364–370. doi:10.1016/j.explore.2010.08.001. PMC 2975622. PMID 21040885.
  10. ^ Radin, Dean; Hayssen, Gail & Walsh, James (2007). "Effects of Intentionally Enhanced Chocolate on Mood". Explore: The Journal of Science & Healing. 3 (5): 485–492. doi:10.1016/j.explore.2007.06.004. PMID 17905358.
  11. ^ Elias Kornfeld, Alana B. (March 26, 2009). "Mind over Chocolate". Time. Retrieved December 19, 2016.
  12. ^ a b c Gorski, David (March 30, 2009). "Dr. Emoto's water woo metastasizes". ScienceBlogs. Seed Media Group. Retrieved December 19, 2016.
  13. ^ Matthews, Robert (April 8, 2006). "Water: The quantum elixir". New Scientist (2546).
  14. ^ Hall, Harriet (2007). "Masaru Emoto's Wonderful World of Water". Skeptical Inquirer. 31: 49–51.
  15. ^ a b c Kiesling, Stephen (May–June 2009). "Latest message from water: Is Dr. Emoto a spiritual Madoff?". Spirituality & Health. Retrieved June 21, 2012.
  16. ^ Radin, Dean; Hayssen, Gail; Emoto, Masaru & Kizu, Takashige (2006). "Double-Blind Test of the Effects of Distant Intention on Water Crystal Formation". Explore: The Journal of Science & Healing. 2 (5): 408–411. doi:10.1016/j.explore.2006.06.004. PMID 16979104.
  17. ^ Radin, Dean; Lund, Nancy; Emoto, Masaru & Kizu, Takashige (2008). "Effects of Distant Intention on Water Crystal Formation: A Triple-Blind Replication" (PDF). Journal of Scientific Exploration. 22 (4): 481–493.[unreliable source?]
  18. ^ Rocha, Alexandre Caroli; Paraná, Denise; Freire, Elizabeth Schmitt; Lotufo Neto, Francisco & Moreira-Almeida, Alexander (2014). "Investigating the Fit and Accuracy of Alleged Mediumistic Writing: A Case Study of Chico Xavier's Letters". Explore. 10 (5): 300–308. doi:10.1016/j.explore.2014.06.002. ISSN 1550-8307. PMID 25103071.
  19. ^ Orsi, Carlos (2015). "Um estudo realmente provou que Chico Xavier se comunicava com os mortos?". revistagalileu.globo.com (in Portuguese). Archived from the original on May 26, 2019.
  20. ^ Orsi, Carlos (2015). "Um estudo realmente provou que Chico Xavier se comunicava com os mortos? (parte II)". revistagalileu.globo.com (in Portuguese). Archived from the original on May 26, 2019. A conclusão, a esta altura, deve ser óbvia: o artigo não só falha em estabelecer o que parte da mídia diz que estabelece – a realidade da comunicação de Chico Xavier com os mortos – como ainda é fraco demais, até mesmo, para cumprir a tarefa mais modesta que lhe foi dada pelos próprios autores: a de enfraquecer a tese científica dominante de que a mente não passa de uma função do cérebro.
  21. ^ Tuffani, Maurício. "A pesquisa sobre cartas de Chico Xavier". Folha de S.Paulo - Blogs (in Brazilian Portuguese). Archived from the original on April 2, 2015. Apesar desses cuidados, concordo com o seguinte comentário feito no Facebook pelo professor de filosofia Ari Tank Brito, da Universidade Federal de Mato Grosso. "No caso dessa pesquisa, há um grande erro de procedimento. Mesmo que seja comprovado que as informações passadas pelo médium aos seus consultantes tenham sido totalmente verdadeiras e mesmo que algumas delas fossem ainda desconhecidas por eles, não procede dizer que essas informações obrigatoriamente tenham sido obtidas por qualquer meio psíquico sem antes comprovar que o dito médium de maneira nenhuma poderia tê-las obtido por outras vias tidas como normais. Isso não foi feito. No caso em questão, tratava-se de um brasileiro com parentes, amigos e conhecidos. Deixar de lado a primeira e óbvia hipótese, a de que as pessoas que conheceram o falecido sabiam coisas sobre ele e as contavam, é partir de uma base falsa e melar todo o empreendimento."
  22. ^ Tuffani, Maurício (2015). "Autor de pesquisa sobre Chico Xavier responde". Maurício Tuffani - Folha de S.Paulo - Blogs (in Brazilian Portuguese). Archived from the original on September 29, 2017.
  23. ^ Gorski, David (January 11, 2010). "Be careful what you wish for, Dr. Dossey, you just might get it". Science-Based Medicine. Retrieved December 19, 2016.
  24. ^ "Profile: Benjamin Kligler, MD". Duke Integrative Medicine. Retrieved December 19, 2016.
  25. ^ Novella, Steven (March 27, 2009). "Magic in the Huffington Post". Neurologica. Retrieved December 19, 2016.
  26. ^ a b c Hassani, Sadri (December 22, 2015). "Peer-review: A New Signature of Quack Science". Skeptical Educator. pp. 1, 2, 3. Retrieved December 20, 2016.
  27. ^ Hassani, Sadri. "Skeptical Educator – About this Site". Skeptical Educator. Retrieved December 20, 2015.
  28. ^ "Explore: The Journal of Science & Healing". 2016 Journal Citation Reports. Web of Science (Science ed.). Thomson Reuters. 2017.
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