Welcome one and all to this week’s round-up. Not much to say up here except to remind you all that next month's talk by David Allen Green will be on Thursday 8th December and not on the usual 2nd Wednesday of the month like you’ve come to expect. There’s some festival of the Church of Consumerism on later that month and as a result people like to have something called fun in the lead up to it meaning our pub is booked up. Some people even like to start celebrating months in advance, not much else on I suppose. Anyway, we’re back to normal in January.
I was talking to this bloke the other week, he said
It's time for another round up and what a week. Firstly we've had the numeric palindrome day, 11/11/11, which has apparently seem a rush for caesarean section deliveries according to the Hindustan Times. Whether this is the case or not, the 11/11/11 babies frenzy seems to have eclipsed last year's 10/10/10 babies, and no doubt they'll be more of the same for the 12/12/12 babies next year. Given that this month's talk was about newspapers and the PR industry we might suggest that this is all just an excuse for a photo op of cute babies in the paper. Cynical, us?
This week also includes Remembrance Sunday. By now you've probably heard all about the white poppies as an alternative to the red poppy. But did you hear the British Humanist Association's chief executive, Andrew Cospon, has expressed his disappointment in the group's exclusion and called for humanists to be included amongst representatives laying wreaths at the Cenotaph commemorations in London? Humanist representatives have been officially included in similar services in Edinburgh and Belfast since last year.
It's also getting into flu season and your friendly local NHS service will be advertising flu jabs to at-risk groups. But if a flu jab isn't up your street then maybe an alternative medicine iPhone app is the way to go. Although why you need an app to tell you how to breathe is beyond us. But it's okay, now you can bulk buy your homeopathy!
PZ Myers throws down with Deepak Chopra about his article on The Trouble With Genes and Edzard Ernst's writes in a Guardian article that alternative medicine is endangering patients. But if you like your medical information to come from the world of celebrity instead of biology professors and doctors, then maybe Chuck Norris's article on childhood vaccinations in the US is the way to go. No, we don't know when Mr Norris got his medical degree either.
And if all that reading is a bit much for you, check out this YouTube video showcasing Japanese company Neurowave's communication tool for humans; cat ears. The company claim they have brainwave sensors that can read the wearers emotions and react accordingly…and are apparently the latest fashion accessory in Japan.
So what’s
been happening around the world of skepticism and science over the last seven
days then? I suppose there is only one place to start and that’s with the
testing (or not testing) of Psychic Sally. This generated a bit of discussion amongst skeptics and Kylie Sturgess gives a great overview of this and links to the
main protagonist posts on her blog Token Skeptic
Ben Goldacre is taking a break from the Guardian to finish his book. He
summarises his learning from the last eight years of interactions with nonsense
in this concise final article for a while.
It might seem a bit early but for busy parents such as myself tips on Christmas
presents for the kids are always useful. Here’s a corker from Daniel Florien
over at Unreasonable Faith.
Sex and ghosts over at the Huffington Post. Here is a fine example of
non-skeptical reporting and researching of the paranormal.
Up until the end of November you can access the Scientific American archive for
between the years 1845-1909 . It’s an incredible resource with documents
presented in their original format but still fully searchable. There are around
75,000 articles for your amusement with some real gems hidden within. Use them quick as they start to charge on
November 30th.
I’m sure I’ve seen it etched in stone somewhere that “Thou Shalt Not Defy the
Law of Thermodynamics.” It doesn’t stop people trying though as Cold Fusion pops up once again.
It’s weekly round–up time again for you lovely folks at Birmingham Skeptics in the Pub, and it’s another double helping; so welcome, welcome to the Halloween link fest, or as Frank-N-Furter would say “So come up to the lab and see what’s on the slab. I see you shiver with antici…pation.”
This blog post is a shameless plug for the
Birmingham Skeptics Podcast. I try to feature a range of people and subjects on
the podcast from authors and scientists to some of the interesting people that
I meet at the events that I go to. You don’t have to have a book out or a
television series to have something worth hearing.
A case in point is Lucy Harper who I talk to on
the latest podcast. A scientist turned science communicator, working for the Society for Applied Microbiology, who, when her busy
life allows, comes along to Birmingham Skeptics in the Pub. She works with
scientists the world over helping them to talk to each other and to talk to us.
Increasingly, groups like ours show that the divide between the white coated elite
and the masses is narrowing as our public appreciation of science grows, and
perhaps conversely as science’s appreciation for the public also increases.
You’ll find that interview sandwiched between some rather random sounding short
interviews I did at Coventry Skeptics in the Pub inaugural talk with AndyLewis. I couldn’t get hold of Andy who was on a tight schedule with his train
but his talk was brilliant. I’d had a few beers and the people I suddenly
thrust a microphone at and asked to speak were a bit startled and shell
shocked, but I think the sense of fun and excitement from the night comes
across. If you live anywhere near to Coventry please support them, a great
bunch of people and a great night out.
I’m not sure how many people listen to the podcasts and I’m hopeless at
promoting them. I can’t do one every week as family and life are just too busy
but they will keep coming. So please listen to them, let me know any thoughts
you have and you can get the full back catalogue here and subscribe and get the
last twelve from iTunes here.
Thanks
Patrick
Redmond (@paddyrex)-
Born in Stoke and moved the vast distance to live in Birmingham. He is one of the organisers of Birmingham
Skeptics in the Pub.
The Weekly Round up is here and we’ve cast our net wide again, with past and present links featuring some big fish, little tiddlers, and some, quite frankly, we should have thrown back in as we ought to know better.
Let’s start with a fishy story that’s still causing a bit of a niff.
It’s that time of the week once more and we’ve had our resident link elf scour the magical land of interwebs again so you don’t have to. Here’s what he’s gathered together plus some additional interesting articles from the archives you may have missed. So sit back, tune in; insert into your ear your Psychic Sally Earpiece of Denial, close that window, and make contact with the Birmingham Skeptics Weekly Round-up.
To successfully complete this week’s round up you will need a printer, a pair of scissors, some Pritt-Stick and a full set of fingers. Oh, and also a passport type photograph of yourself as we’re going to regress your physiognomy by 3.7million years.
With the academic year in full flow, what better way to start things off than with a few light revision aids:
