- James Randi
James Randi (born August 7, 1928), stage name The Amazing Randi, is a stage magician and scientific skeptic best known as a challenger of paranormal claims and pseudoscience. Born Randall James Hamilton Zwinge, in Toronto, Canada, Randi is the founder of the James Randi Educational Foundation (JREF). - Michael Shermer
Michael Shermer , as head of one of America's leading skeptic organizations, and as a powerful activist and essayist in the service of this operational form of reason, is an important figure in American public life. ... - Carl Sagan
Carl Edward Sagan was an American astronomer and astrobiologist and a highly successful popularizer of astronomy, astrophysics, and other natural sciences. He pioneered exobiology and promoted the Search for Extra-Terrestrial Intelligence (SETI). He is world-famous for writing popular science books and for co-writing and presenting the award-winning 1980 television series "Cosmos: A Personal Voyage", … - Pz Myers
Paul Zachary "PZ" Myers (born March 9 1957) is an American biology professor at the University of Minnesota, Morris and a science blogger via his blog, "Pharyngula" (previously "Pharyngula.org"). He is currently an associate professor of biology at Morris, works in the field of evolutionary developmental biology (evo-devo), and has a particular interest in cephalopods. - Phil Plait
Philip Plait (a.k.a. The Bad Astronomer) is an astronomer who runs the website Badastronomy.com. He formerly worked at the physics and astronomy department at Sonoma State University. In early 2007 he resigned his job to write on his new book "Death from the Skies". - Thomas Sowell
Thomas Sowell was born in North Carolina and grew up in Harlem. As with many others in his neighborhood, he left home early and did not finish high school. The next few years were difficult ones, but eventually he joined the Marine Corps and became a photographer in the Korean War. After leaving the service, Sowell entered Harvard University, worked a part-time job as a photographer and studied the science that would become his passion and profession: economics. - Robert Todd Carroll
Robert Todd Carroll (1945-), Ph.D., is an American writer and academic, acting as a philosophy professor and chairman of the Philosophy Department at Sacramento City College. Carroll has authored several books and skeptical essays. A longtime advocate of atheism, scientific skepticism, and critical thinking, in 1994 he set up the Skeptic's Dictionary online, initially consisting of fewer than fifty articles, mostly on logical fallacies and pseudoscience. - Isaac Asimov
Dr. Isaac Asimov (c. January 2, 1920- April 6, 1992, was a Russian-born American Jewish author and biochemist, a highly successful and exceptionally prolific writer best known for his works of science fiction and for his popular science books. Asimov's most famous work is the Foundation Series, which was part of one of his two major series, the Galactic Empire Series, later merged with his other famous story arc, the Robot series. - Julia Sweeney
Julia Sweeney (born October 10, 1959 in Spokane, Washington) is an American actress and comedian who lives in Hollywood, California. She is best known for her roles on "Saturday Night Live", especially as the androgynous character "Pat." She is also well known for her critically acclaimed 1996 one-woman monologue, "God Said, Ha!" in which she addressed her experience of surviving cancer. A film version of the show was released in 1998. - Penn Jillette
Penn Fraser Jillette (born March 5, 1955 in Greenfield, Massachusetts) is an American illusionist, juggler and comedian known for his work with fellow illusionist Teller in the team known as Penn & Teller. - John Stossel
John F. Stossel (born 6 March 1947) is a consumer reporter, author and co-anchor for the ABC News show "20/20". His reports, a blend of commentary and reporting, reflect his libertarian political philosophy, his views on economics (largely consistent with those of the Chicago school), and his skepticism of conventional wisdom. In his decades as a reporter, Stossel has garnered 19 Emmy Awards and numerous other honors for his reports, … - Paul Kurtz
Paul Kurtz (born December 21, 1925 in Newark, New Jersey) is Professor Emeritus of Philosophy at the University at Buffalo (SUNY), but is best known for his prominent role in the United States skeptical community. He is founder and chairman of the Committee for Skeptical Inquiry, formerly the "Committee for the Scientific Investigation of Claims of the Paranormal" (CSICOP), the Council for Secular Humanism, the Center for Inquiry and Prometheus Books. - Joe Nickell
Joe Nickell was born December 1, 1944. He is a former stage magician and is a prominent skeptical investigator of the paranormal. He also works as an historical document consultant and has examined such famous forgeries as the purported Jack the Ripper Diary. Nickell holds B.A., M.A., and Ph.D. degrees from the University of Kentucky. - Martin Gardner
Martin Gardner (b. October 21, 1914, Tulsa, Oklahoma) is a popular American mathematics and science writer specializing in recreational mathematics, but with interests encompassing magic (conjuring), pseudoscience, literature (especially Lewis Carroll), philosophy, and religion. He wrote the "Mathematical Games" column in "Scientific American" from 1956 to 1981 and has published over 60 books. - Pyrrho
Pyrrho (ca. 360 BC - ca. 270 BC), a Greek philosopher from Elis, was in antiquity credited as being the first skeptic philosopher and inspiration for the school known as Pyrrhonism founded by Aenesidemus in the 1st century BC. - Stephen Barrett
Stephen J. Barrett, M.D. (born 1933), is a retired American psychiatrist and author best known as a co-founder of the National Council Against Health Fraud (NCAHF) and the webmaster of Quackwatch. He runs a number of websites dealing with what he calls quackery and health fraud. He says that he bases his writings on consumer protection, medical ethics, and scientific skepticism. Barrett's critics have accused him of bias, lack of objectivity, … - Edgar Cayce
Edgar Cayce (March 18, 1877 - January 3, 1945) was an American who claimed psychic abilities. He claimed an ability to channel answers to questions on subjects such as health, astrology, reincarnation, and Atlantis while in a self-induced trance. Although Cayce lived before the emergence of the New Age movement, he remains a major influence on its teachings. - Bill Nye
William Sanford Nye (b. November 27, 1955), also known as "Bill Nye the Science Guy," is an American television program host, scientist, and mechanical engineer. - Johnny Carson
John William "Johnny" Carson (October 23, 1925 - January 23,2005) was an American actor, comedian and writer best known for his iconic status as the host of "The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson". - Ray Hyman
Ray Hyman (born June 23, 1928, Chelsea, Massachusetts) is a Professor Emeritus of Psychology at the University of Oregon in Eugene, Oregon, and a noted critic of parapsychology. While attending Boston University as a young man, he also worked as a magician and mentalist, impressing the head of his department (among others) with his palm reading. He obtained a doctorate in psychology from Johns Hopkins University in 1953, and then taught at Harvard for several years. - Victor J. Stenger
Victor J. Stenger (born January 291935) is emeritus professor of physics and astronomy at the University of Hawaii and adjunct professor of philosophy at the University of Colorado. Stenger used to work in particle physics but is principally known as a critic and skeptic of Intelligent Design and other ideas of pseudoscience. He has published a number of books intended for general audiences on the subjects of physics and cosmology and philosophy, religion, … - Gary Schwartz
Gary E. Schwartz, Ph.D., is a professor of Psychology teaching courses in psychology in the departments of Medicine, Neurology, Psychiatry, and Surgery at the University of Arizona. He is also the Director of The VERITAS Research Program of the Human Energy Systems Laboratory in the Department of Psychology at the University of Arizona. He received his Ph.D. from Harvard University. Dr. Schwartz is the co-author of "The Living Energy Universe", … - Robert Sheaffer
Robert Sheaffer (born 1949), is a freelance writer and a prominent investigator of unidentified flying objects, Christianity, feminism, and many other subjects. He is an outspoken skeptic and critic of the above topics, and has written numerous critiques of feminist beliefs and ideas, Christian beliefs regarding the divinity of Jesus Christ, … - Adam Savage
Adam John Savage (born July 15, 1967) is an American television co-host on the program "MythBusters" on the Discovery Channel. - Teller
Teller (born Raymond Joseph Teller) February 14, 1948) is an American magician, best known as the smaller (5'9"/1.75 m compared to Penn's 6'6"/1.98 m and 300 pounds), silent half of the comedy magic duo known as Penn & Teller. He legally changed his name to "Teller" and possesses one of the few United States passports issued in a single name. - Farrell Till
John Farrell Till, (born on April 26 1933), better known as Farrell Till, was the editor of the formerly published "The Skeptical Review", and a member of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, the National Center for Science Education, and the Council for Secular Humanism. He is well known for publishing articles on literal interpretations of the Bible, including such topics as Biblical inerrancy, … - Marcello Truzzi
Marcello Truzzi (September 6, 1935-February 2, 2003) was a professor of sociology at Eastern Michigan University, founding co-chairman of Committee for the Scientific Investigation of Claims of the Paranormal, a founder of the Society for Scientific Exploration, and director for the Center for Scientific Anomalies Research. Truzzi was an investigator of various protosciences and pseudosciences and, as fellow CSICOP cofounder Paul Kurtz dubbed him, … - James Oberg
James Edward Oberg (b. 1944) (often known as Jim Oberg) is an American space journalist and historian, regarded as an expert on the Russian space program. After service in the US Air Force, he joined NASA in 1975, where he worked until 1997 at Johnson Space Center on the Space Shuttle program. He worked in the Mission Control Center for several Space Shuttle missions from STS-1 on, specialising in orbital rendezvous techniques. - Susan B. Anthony
Susan Brownell Anthony (February 15, 1820 - March 13, 1906) was a prominent, independent and well-educated American civil rights leader who played a pivotal role in the 19th century women's rights movement to secure women's suffrage in the United States. She traveled thousands of miles throughout the United States and Europe, and gave 75 to 100 speeches per year on women's rights for some 45 years. Susan B. Anthony died in Rochester, New York, … - Philip J. Klass
Philip Julian Klass (November 8 1919-August 9 2005) was born in Des Moines, Iowa and died in Merritt Island, Florida. He was an electrical engineer by training, and also a journalist, but he is probably best known as a leading debunker of UFOs, arguing especially against the extraterrestrial hypothesis. In the ufological and skeptical communities, Klass tends to inspire strongly polarized appraisals. Klass has been called the "Sherlock Holmes of UFOlogy". - Chris French
Christopher C. French BA PhD CPsychol FBPsS FRSA is a psychologist and vocal skeptic specialising in the psychology of paranormal beliefs and experiences, cognition and emotion. He is currently Professor of psychology at Goldsmiths College, University of London, is head of their Anomalistic Psychology Research Unit which he founded in the year 2000 and is the co-editor of "The Skeptic" (UK) magazine with Victoria Hamilton. - Edzard Ernst
Professor Edzard Ernst is notable for being the first Professor of Complementary Medicine in the United Kingdom. He was attracted from his chair in Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation (PMR) at the University of Vienna to set up the department of Complementary Medicine at the University of Exeter in 1993 and became director of complementary medicine of the Peninsula Medical School (PMS) in 2002. He is the first occupant of the Laing chair in Complementary Medicine. - Larry Gonick
Larry Gonick (b. 1946) is a cartoonist best known for "The Cartoon History of the Universe", a history of the world in comic book form, which he has been publishing in installments since 1977. He has also written "The Cartoon History of the United States", and he has adapted the format for a series of co-written guidebooks on other subjects, beginning with "The Cartoon Guide to Genetics" in 1983. - Kendrick Frazier
Kendrick Frazier was born in Windsor, Colorado is a science writer and editor. He was the editor of "Science News" for several years. Since 1977 he has been the editor of "Skeptical Inquirer", the journal published by CSICOP. Frazier received a B.A. in Journalism from the University of Colorado and a M.S. in Journalism from Columbia University. He is a member of the National Association of Science Writers and the American Geophysical Union. - Michael Goudeau
Michael Carey Goudeau (born 1959) is a juggler and an ex-circus clown who graduated from the Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey Clown College. He is also a writer and executive producer for the Showtime series "Bullshit!". Goudeau currently performs (juggling) live in the Lance Burton Show at the Monte Carlo Resort and Casino in Las Vegas as well as serving as co-host of Penn Radio with Penn Jillette weekdays on Free FM. - Carneades
Carneades was a radical skeptic born in Cyrene and the first of the philosophers to pronounce the failure of metaphysicians who endeavored to discover rational meanings in religious beliefs. By the time of 159 BC he had started to refute all previous dogmatic doctrines, especially Stoicism, and even the Epicureans whom previous skeptics had spared. Carneades is known as an Academic Skeptic. - Eddie Tabash
Edward (Eddie) Tabash is an American lawyer and political and social activist. An atheist and a proponent of the Establishment Clause, Tabash has debated several Christian apologists, including Richard Swinburne, William Lane Craig, and Greg Bahnsen. Tabash is a member of the California State Bar, the American Bar Association, the Los Angeles County Bar Association, and the Beverly Hills Bar Association. - Frank Miele
Frank Miele is an American journalist and senior editor at "Skeptic" best known for his controversial advocacy of hereditarian hypotheses about race, especially race and intelligence. Miele grew up in New Jersey. He earned a A.B. in psychology in 1970 and an M.S. in 1972 from the University of Georgia, where he studied under R. Travis Osborne. - Jamie Hyneman
James Earl Hyneman (born September 25, 1956), known as Jamie Hyneman, is an American visual effects expert, best known for being the co-host of the television series "MythBusters" on the Discovery Channel. He is also the founder of M5 Industries, a special effects workshop where "MythBusters" is filmed. He, along with M5 Industries, is also known in the "BattleBots" circles for his robot entry, Blendo, which was, for a time, … - Basava Premanand
Basava Premanand is an eminent skeptic and rationalist from Tamil Nadu, India.
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