Heikki Nevala is an active member of Skepsis, the Finnish Association of Sceptics. The purpose of the association is to support the teaching of methods for acquiring scientific knowledge, critical thinking, and a worldview based on reason. Nevala has been a board member for the association for several years, and he has written articles for the Skeptikko (‘Sceptic’) magazine on topics that touch on magicians and swindlers. Skepsis has also promised a reward of 20000 euros for anyone who can produce a paranormal phenomenon under observable conditions.

In addition to his own research interests, Nevala has also written for the Skeptikko magazine on performers he considers hoodwinkers. In an issue published in 2011, he wrote on Uri Geller, who had just visited a paranormal fair in Porvoo.

“I wrote about him from the point of view of a magician. It is relatively easy to criticise Uri Geller, because he has also performed with magicians. He has received awards for magic and his tricks are well-known. Geller indiscriminately squeezes money out of people, whether they are simply looking for entertainment or they truly believe in the paranormal. He is a conman in the sense that those duped by him blindly believe in the occult. Moral issues are of course raised, because he is shamelessly taking advantage of human ignorance.”

People have preconceived notions about sceptics. However, Nevala notes that it is prejudice to label sceptics pedants. Formalities make way for discourse within the association, although the criteria for reasoned arguments are strictly maintained.

Experts have to be quick to react on behalf of their field when someone without sufficient qualifications presents their unfounded research as scientific. Once a month, Skepsis organises lecture evenings at the House of Science and Letters. The topics are usually based on natural sciences, but a wide variety of experts are present.

Nevala says that with the rise of the Internet, new challenges are facing sceptics. Although there is a nearly unlimited amount of information available, people often lack the ability to treat all the various sources of information critically.

“In recent years, Skepsis has focused on healthcare mumbo jumbo. For instance, people are leaving their children unvaccinated, which exposes them to serious diseases. Then there are all manner of conspiracy theories out there. People’s ability to engage in source criticism is seriously lacking, or it might even be a completely foreign concept to some of them.”