Around 1992, I discovered a new sphere to explore— skeptical literature. Thus began my critical pursuit of topics I’d long been interested in: the paranormal, natural anomalies, and extraordinary claims. Application of the scientific skepticism approach reshaped and colored my personal identity and influenced my daily life. Skepticism became my operating system, an outlook and lens through which to view the world. It transformed who I am. I credit many sources for this change—my education in natural sciences, Stephen Jay Gould’s verbose but elegant essays on evolution and the flaws of creationism, Skeptical Inquirer, and the Internet where I became “I Doubt It” to a worldwide network.
Ah, the Internet. It is both the source and the scourge of reliable knowledge; friend and foe of practical, everyday skepticism. It changed everything—for better and worse.