Fake crystals with awesome powers

For thousands of years, people have ascribed supernatural powers to shiny rocks pulled from the earth. Even today, crystals—a wondrously diverse collection of minerals that take on beautiful, geometrical forms—ignite the human imagination like few other natural materials. If you need any evidence, just type "properties of quartz" into your Google search bar, and alongside troves of geological information, you'll find sites extolling the gemstone's purifying energy; its ability to amplify creativity; its stabilizing effect in times of emotional turmoil.

It will come as no surprise to readers of this newsletter that the metaphysical properties of crystals are not backed up by science. While sellers market crystals for their ability to heal various ailments or bring balance to the mind, the supposed mechanism behind this—some sort of energy transfer between crystals and humans—has no physical basis. People who feel certain effects in the presence of crystals are probably experiencing the placebo effect, in which the mind convinces the body that a fake treatment is helping, causing it to have real benefits.