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Go with Australian Skeptics
Magazine, philosophy, $100,000 prize

Australian Skeptics Inc, Box 268, Roseville NSW 2069. Tel (02) 9417 2071

Australian Skeptics Inc, founded in 1980, has branches in all states. It encourages the critical study of paranormal beliefs and claims, publishes a quarterly magazine the Skeptic (one of the largest skeptic magazines in the world), and offers a famous $100,000 prize for proof of paranormal ability. Its patrons are well-known Australians Dick Smith and Phillip Adams. For more than 25 years Australian Skeptics has provided a network of informed sources to which the media can turn for information. Skepticism is a worldwide movement and similar organisations exist in more than 40 countries worldwide.

Specifically: Argentina, Belgium, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, China, Costa Rica, Czech Republic, Denmark, Ecuador, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Hungary, India, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Kazakhstan, Korea, Malta, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand, Nigeria, Norway, Peru, Poland, Portugal, Russia, Singapore, Slovak Republic, South Africa, Spain, Sri Lanka, Sweden, Taiwan, UK, USA (nationally and in 26 states), Venezuela.

Three skeptic magazines

Three skeptic magazines: the Skeptic Australia, published quarterly, circulation 2500, each issue averages up to seventy A4 pages of articles, news, letters, and frequent humour, $44 a year including postage, all back issues (over 5000 pages) are available for $55 on a single searchable $55 CD, www.skeptics.com.au, Skeptic USA, published quarterly, circulation 30,000, includes a Junior Skeptic section for children, www.skeptic.com, and Skeptical Inquirer USA, published every two months, mainly for teachers and academics, circulation 40,000, www.csicop.org. All three magazines have an international readership.

Philosophy
Please spell our name right. Skeptics use the Greek-based skeptic (from skeptikos, signifying "one who inquires") to emphasise its etymological sense of requiring evidence, not the Latin-based sceptic (from scepticus, "doubter"), which has the philosophical sense of doubting everything. We are skeptics not sceptics. No claim is accepted or rejected out of hand, and no conclusion is drawn unless supported by a proper evaluation of the evidence -- that is, all the evidence, not just the bits selected to prove a case. At Australian Skeptics we go wherever the facts may lead. We also laugh a lot, being famous for the humour in our magazine the Skeptic and at our annual conventions.

Humour

Examples of humour from the Skeptic

$100,000 for proof of any paranormal claim
To help find genuine paranormal phenomena the Australian Skeptics offer a prize of $100,000 to anyone who can demonstrate paranormal ability of any kind, eg astrology, clairvoyance, telepathy, psychic surgery, water or metal divining. The idea is simple -- people who have genuine paranormal ability should be able to demonstrate it when tested under conditions they are happy with. This is what you do:

1. Send your state Skeptics a letter saying what you claim to do.
2. Include a letter from a responsible person confirming your ability.
3. Work with your state Skeptics to design a pre-test to your satisfaction.
4. State the outcome that will show you have failed.
5. Sign a declaration that you are happy with the conditions.

The pre-test will be conducted by your state Skeptics. If you pass this mutually-agreed test then you proceed to another mutually-agreed test conducted by Australian Skeptics to which the news media may be invited as observers. If you are found to be cheating the test will be terminated. But if you pass you will receive $100,000. If you prefer to remain untainted by $100,000 then it will be given to the charity, trust, or persons of your choice. The results whether or not you win will be published in the Skeptic. No other media contact will be made without your agreement.

$20,000 spotter's fee
Australian Skeptics will pay you $20,000 if you can find a person who successfully completes our $100,000 challenge, in which case the applicant will receive the balance of $80,000. Someone nominating themself will, if successful, receive the full $100,000.

$20,000 Spotter's Fee

There's no catch, no hidden agenda. The cash prize includes monies donated by Australian Skeptics patrons Dick Smith and Philip Adams. Their reputations are your guarantee that this is a genuine offer.

Prize remains unclaimed
Despite many attempts, mostly by water diviners, the $100,000 prize remains unclaimed. A video ($10) or DVD ($20) of diviners attempting to win $100,000 is available online or by mail from Australian Skeptics at www.skeptics.com.au. Similar prizes with similar rules are on offer around the world, for example Rs100,000 in India, $Can100,000 in Canada and $US1,000,000 in the USA. So far no prize has been claimed. It seems that people are good at fooling themselves into believing things that aren't so.

For an inside look
See Million Dollar Prize on this website under Weird Things meet Critical Thinking > Undeceiving Ourselves.

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