Three Markers of Pseudoscience in Commentary about the Dangerousness of COVID-19

This paper enumerates several false assumptions about science that appeared during the COVID-19 pandemic in commentary by scientific authorities, government officials, and mainstream media about the dangerousness of COVID-19. The paper seeks to help readers to avoid being deceived in the manner that so many were deceived during the pandemic. To that end, the paper offers three markers of pseudoscience that were prominent in much of the deceptive commentary about the dangerousness of COVID-19. Because these markers can appear in virtually any commentary about science, their scope of application is very broad. In common with most of the material it critiques, this paper is a work of commentary rather than a scientific study. It proceeds from a basic philosophy of science perspective, reflecting the author’s background as a philosopher and a practicing physician with specialization in mass casualty medicine.^1,2,3,4,5,6