"Extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence." -Carl Sagan

I was a conspiracy theorist once. It all began when I saw a Youtube video about backmasking (which is very interesting by the way, even to a skeptic like me. Look it up when you have the chance). This then led to a rabbit hole of "eyewitness accounts", misinterpreted happenstances, and ominous music that was the conspiracy side of Youtube. By the time I was nearing the end of middle school, I was sure that there was a global conspiracy out to doom us all.

Now, let's fast forward a few years. I am an educated, scientifically literate, college student who doesn't believe everything he reads on the interwebz. I consider myself to a skeptic; I am skeptical of everything that I read in regards to science and medicine unless there is verifiable, peer reviewed evidence presents itself.

Now at the opposite end of this spectrum are the deniers: those who deny climate change, evolution, science in general, etc. Popular media often likes to label us together. But we are no more similar than the solstices. Allow me to elaborate: skeptics use science, reasoning, and logic. Deniers rely on Youtube and conspiracy forums. We are two completely different groups of people.

One organization that fights against science deniers is the Committee for Skeptical Inquiry. Their goal is to promote "healthy, skeptical thinking." The problem is that there are not enough healthy skeptics, and WAY to many science deniers. Jolene Creighton of Futurism suggested that , "Rather, we should ask for evidence in all things. We should be inquisitive; we should be reflective; we should be skeptical." This is a good thing.

However, she goes on to say that, "This is not what most people are when they talk about many scientific issues, such as the vaccine/autism link, climate change, and GMOs. Of course, not everyone who questions climate science or the effects of GMOs are deniers. But unfortunately, this is where many deniers seem to setup camp." This is not again.

Now the moral of this essay is to be more like a skeptic and less of a denier. That and we should start investing more into STEM programs in order to combat science denialism.