Peddling the “science” or the lack thereof !

Scientific Vastu !

Going through the papers the other day , I came across this wonderful advertisement about “Vastu”. Now Vastu is a touchy subject in India. Almost every one here knows its mostly crap. But almost everyone will never want to engage with bored fat housewives who will usually believe in all this.

So “Vastu” survives along with the cottage industry doling absurd advice to absurd people. Part of the reason that it is so resilient to debunking – is that it usually has some nuggets of knowledge in some nooks and crannies. It’s like a cocktail of common-sense facts with a generous dollop of “absurd science”.

So lets examine the advertisement on the left. The first section is the common sense – switch on the lights to dispel depression. Along with that you can dispel the “evils of darkness”. Ghosts maybe ? Apparitions ? Or maybe just the harmless evil of “tripping over the telephone cord in the dark” !!

The second section attempts to explore the science behind ringing bells. Now make no mistake – there is definitely an explanation behind the allure of the sound of ringing bells. That explanation usually includes the science of hearing and how we react emotionally to various sounds. But the “science” in this advertisement ventures further.

We get to learn that

Bacteria have a hearing mechanism

Bacteria die when they hear bells ringing

Now that’s quite a lot of “science” in a few lines. Perhaps the author might care to explain which peer reviewed paper he is quoting. Or maybe the paper he is quoting is from a tattered book of the village quack.

The last part gives us some insight about the author of the advertisement. A certain doctor (PhD ?) who specialises in “removing vastu defects without demolition”. Also this person can sense negative and positive energies. What a package! I say this person should pay a visit to the Writers Building in Kolkata. He will find so much negative energy that “demolition” might be the only option left !