Questionable claims, pseudoscience and dangerous nonsense — Here are the top stories from Doubtful News this week.

Hypnosis thief on video using seemingly magical methods  Last week we posted a story about a lawyer accused of inappropriate behavior via hypnosis. This story of a robbery that appeared to take place by the "hypnosis thief" left police scratching their heads. What’s going on here when one allows a perpetrator to root through his pockets and then says he doesn’t recall what happened?

Two stories of dangerous, delusional faith healers who will continue practicing - in Australia and Canada.

Spiritual healer will continue to make cancer treatment claims in Australia  The Health minister of the Northern Territory in Australia tried to put a stop to these nonsense claims of special healing but there are no laws that can be used to prevent him from practicing. They advised him to stop false advertising as an “esoteric mind specialist” but he says he won’t.

Hard-to-stop convicted sex offender still practicing faith healing   In St. Mathieu D’Harricana in northwestern Quebec, Claude Provencher has been repeatedly accused and even convicted of sexual offenses but he still claims he is a gift from god. An undercover media report reveals his sick methods to "heal" women who come to him for care.

Norwegian psychic Michael Winger takes credit for finding missing person  As is common, a self-described psychic takes credit for a less than impressive “find” of a missing person. Anyone can draw a circle on a map, but it takes psychic skill to draw the edge just inside of where the body was actually found and remain so confident. Fail.

Two stories from India that reflect the struggle between old prescientific notions and a move to modern thought.

There shall be no mocking of astrology in India!  But there will be here! A parliamentary official, Ramesh Pokhariyal Nishank, remarked that the concept of the atom was known centuries ago in India, that ayurveda medicine was mocked but now accepted, and that astrology was just like astronomy. Some laughed at him. I know I did.

Meanwhile…

Kerala pursuing anti-superstition law  The legacy of assassinated rationalist Narendra Dabholkar continues to be felt in India as the more progressive state of Kerala seeks to promote legislation against the practice of sorcery and black magic that deceives citizens with supernatural promises. 

Brain train down the drain  Brain training software companies were knocked off their pedestal when a large study showed such programs have no merit is raising IQ and increasing intelligence. Actually, exercise works better - go for a walk.

Freak out over parlor game: Silly warnings in Ireland about Ouija board  In Ireland, the religious and the paranormalists are fretting over a parlor game. They fear the Ouija board is bad news and can lead to trouble with spirits. Alrighty then… where is the evidence for that?

Peter Underwood, paranormal researcher, passed at age 91   Paranormal researcher Peter Underwood, expert on the haunting of Borley Rectory, supposedly the most haunted house in England (but rather thoroughly debunked), passed away in November. He had appeared on U.K. TV shows about hauntings and the paranormal. 

Visit DoubtfulNews.com for more stories everyday. Pass our links on via social media to spread the world about dubious media claims and what to think about strange phenomena. 

Some shocking and some obviously nonsense claims in this week’s stories from Doubtful News.

Lawyer accused of sexually inappropriate behavior and attempted hypnosis
A lawyer dispensing legal advice has been accused of “hypnotizing” some of his female clients and became sexually explicit with them. This is not the only such story but as with usual media reporting,much left unclarified and questionable.

Anti-vaccination sentiment continues to kill workers in Pakistan
Four more polio workers were killed in Balochistan, Pakistan where religious extremist and deep distrust, along with anti-science sentiment, has resulted in scores of acts of violence against in health care workers trying to save lives.

Psychic hand waving taken seriously by airline
Brazilian psychic caused trouble for TAM airlines when he reportedly had a vision that on of their aircraft was going to crash. The airline changed the flight number in order to shake the omen. But self-proclaimed psychic, Jucelino Nobrega da Luz, isn’t taken so seriously by many others. 

Nessie: It’s big, it’s heavy, it’s wood
Poor Nessie, she is missing in action once again. A local nature conservancy group has proposed that runoff into the Loch Ness during the fall may spark reports of the mythical monster because people mistake logs for the creature. Does this explain some reported sighting? Probably many but not all.

Vanuatu lawmaker supports capital punishment for ‘sorcery’
Vanuatu MP and former finance minister Willie Jimmy is calling for witchcraft to be made a crime punishable by death. But his reasoning is simply not reasonable. He firmly believes black magic is real and is trying to stem the vigilante justice practiced by the traditional people of Melanesia.

Miracle showdown!
Celebrity “healer” John of God is visiting Australia. Local faith healer, John Mellor has challenged John of God to healing showdown.Mellor says he gets John of God’s former paid patients to heal after he failed them. 

Alternative advice leads to death in Norway
A 70-year-old self-confessed alternative medicine man has been jailed in Norway after he gave misleading and illegal advice to a terminally cancer patient. He advised a seriously ill cancer patient to stop chemotherapy for alternative treatment instead. She agreed but died.

Visit DoubtfulNews.com for more stories everyday. Pass our links on via social media to spread the world about dubious media claims and what to think about strange phenomena.