"We are being swamped with dangerous nonsense. From 9/11 conspiracy theories to Holocaust denial to The Da Vinci Code's revision of ancient history, from the Book of Mormon's account of settling the New World to the belief in a link between the MMR vaccine and autism, we are experiencing an epidemic of demonstrably untrue descriptions of the world. This pandemic isn't about religious faith or untestable truths. Rather, it's about everyday beliefs that contradict clear evidence - be it historical or scientific - concerning the observable, material, known world we inhabit." "With unflinching candor, Thompson answers back to the wave of deliberate misinformation that is washing over our culture. He explores where this counter-knowledge comes from and how it is affecting our society, as well as why we are so eager to be fed lies and the viral role of technology in spreading these falsehoods. Unafraid to pose the crucial, underlying questions, Thompson asks: What ever happened to proof? How did scientific truth and historical fact become such moving targets? How is it that in an age when techniques for evaluating evidence are more sophisticated than ever, counterknowledge is not only fooling the public but also corrupting intellectual standards across a number of esteemed disciplines?"--BOOK JACKET.