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Magnets have obviously had a long-lived pull on the human imagination. Legends of early fascination with the magnetic force date back to the first century B.C in the writings of Lucretius. In the 1800s magnetite was discovered to not only attract objects made of iron, but when made into the shape of a needle and floated on water, magnetite always pointed in a north-south direction creating a primitive compass and led to the eventual real science of magnetic fields.

Magnetic elements and their powers have been surrounded in superstition and considered to possess magical powers, including the ability to heal the sick, frighten away evil spirits and defeat enemy armies and navies. I should restate that - they are still imbued with superstitious powers today in that they do brisk business for those who advocate their use in the naturopathic treatment of certain health disorders.

The biggest reasons to be skeptical about this claim, other than seeing it in its obvious context of belief in superstition, is that the overwhelming majority of the time when people put their trust in 'naturopathic' remedies of this nature, both through history and in the present day, it is because of the psychological tendencies that human beings often have that prevent them from putting their trust in science and good information in favor of what amounts to superstition and rumor. These psychological phenomena that encourage us to throw our faith in just about any old snake oil there is are the following:

1. Trust in anecdotal evidence

For instance, on the 'pro' side of this argument there is the statement 'I believe in magnets, though all I have to prove it is anecdotal evidence.' This is essentially the same as saying 'I believe that magnets work, even though I have NO evidence.' It is easy as hooey pie to collect anecdotal evidence in favor of ANYTHING. All the purveyors of these devices and substances need do is sift through thousands of cases until those favorable to his product materialize. And it turns out, as has been demonstrated in countless studies, that as human beings we have an emotional tendency to be more moved by these case studies than a mountain of evidence to the contrary. We should all learn to better beware of anecdotal evidence in our own reasoning and in marketing campaigns.

2. The 'file drawer' phenomenon

This is the way by which most of us reinforce whatever inclination or predilection to believe what we want to believe. Those putting

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