When my daughter and I leave the playground or some other place frequented by small runny noses, I ask her if she’s ready for the magic potion we put on our hands to protect us from sicknesses. Antibacterial gel is not usually the stuff of fables, but it could be. Imagine encountering a sect somewhere who devoutly carry small bottles of clear fluid around with them and believe wholeheartedly that rubbing the contents on their hands shields them from danger. We would think they believed in magic. Why don’t we? Just because we know why and how it works? Why does the provability of something rob
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