Originally published at: https://boingboing.net/2018/02/27/heres-the-ultimate-explainer.html
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Should be much, much smaller to really get the point across.
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I took one pixel from the video and inserted it into a randomly-selected YouTube video, then repeated this process 30 times. After watching the final result, I am now the world’s leading authority on why homeopathy doesn’t work.
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Lots of people still think homeopathy works.
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So let’s make homeopathic beer, start with normal beer, dilute the crap out of it, throw 99% away, repeat several times, mmmm so tasty, be careful - so alcoholic …
Also we all should be worried about the homeopathic toxic waste problem … while homeopathic drugs are made they are continually diluted and a portion thrown away, as it gets more diluted the drugs get stronger and stronger … but what happens to the portions that are thrown away? they go down the drain, ending up in the sea and are grossly diluted - the sea is a toxic soup of homeopathic drugs - listen up sheeple, that’s the real reason the coral is dying!
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Good video.
Dismissive snark is easy and slightly amusing, but this careful explanation is probably pitched at a much better level to reach minds that are not already made up.
Which is important, because other things are made up.
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I’d argue that this explains it even better…
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Did you bash the laptop a dozen times against a leather pillow? It wont work otherwise.
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Well, naturally. I’m not a complete beginner. I also re-encrypted the file at each step of the procedure. No one can suggest my method lacks intellectual rigour.
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I am familiar with homeopathy but have never heard of the 2nd and 3rd principals. I only know one person who practices and she does not use any of these 3. What she does is more akin to what our great grandmothers and Native Americans did to treat family members.
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Sounds like naturopathy, which is completely different.
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The first principle is sometimes called “sympathetic magic.” It appears in many, many cultures. It works about as well as any other magic.
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I like the homage to Don’t Hug Me I’m Scared:
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That really is a brilliant bit.
My ex isn’t a believer to the point of forgoing modern medicine, but ever time shes sick she takes Oscillococcinum (it’s used in Europe, so it must be good) and different herbs and vitamins. 
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Reminds me of the time I spent living in Utah.
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So Bud Light’s really super potent homeopathic beer?
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my takeaway from homeopathy is that there isn’t anything a little refined white sugar can’t cure. we really should tell the health food people about this miracle substance.
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No, no. You are supposed to compress the file tenfold at each step.
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Sadly, here in Poland fairly large percentage of doctors believe in homeopathy. On the other hand it is useful as an indicator which doctors are incompetent and should be avoided 
As for herbs, I work with pharmacologists who do a lot of research on the subject, and from the studies I hear about many herbs do work. The problem is that sometimes they work differently than it’s expected from traditional beliefs, and some are actually harmful.
Some of the herbs, while very effective, can also have dangerous interactions with other drugs:
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With regard to herbs, I think Doctor Steve Novella said it best:
Herbs are drugs. Unregulated, poorly-characterized, impure, and generally improperly-dosed drugs, that your doctor doesn’t know you’re taking.
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