Yesterday I confessed my addictions to woo and how I realized it was all a pack of lies and nonsense. It’s been hard to learn to think more critically and skeptically about pseudo-science (the fancy grownup term for woo). Unless someone teaches you how to think critically, there’s really no way to easily pick out the slick pack of lies and shiny bullshit for what it is.
For me, my bullshit radar with religion is very sensitive. Then again, if it’s about an invisible man in the sky, it’s complete nonsense, so that’s pretty easy. But when it comes to products on the market, any kind of scientific sounding news or claim, I am less sure about what to accept or what to reject.
A couple of days ago, I was listening to The Skeptic’s Guide to the Universe podcast and they took the time to talk about how to spot pseudo-science for what it is. Since the list is so important and helpful, I took the time to write it down for all of us. Hopefully this will make it much easier:
Some Main Features of Pseudo-Science by Dr. Steven Novella on the Skeptics’ Guide to the Universe. Episode 164, September 10, 2008.
Well, it is. It sure is easier to just follow the crowd, to believe forwarded emails, to think commercials and tv shows are honest and forthright, to believe everything the news tells us as fact, etc, etc….
I used to podcast a morning radio show. It was goofy fun. Amusing if a bit crass. But after awhile, I realized they never really said anything new. And they had their producer on there who was so full of lies and hate that I just couldn’t stand it anymore. It didn’t help that he proclaimed his christianity along with the hate he spewed forth.
So I gave it up, even though I had been using it to keep me company since I’m alone most of the day. I had to replace it with something. I like to listen to people talk while I do mundane things. Around the same time I found Atheist Nexus. One thing led to another, and I discovered that there’s this whole Skeptical community out there, as well as an Atheist community.
So I’ve been sampling and listening to different Skeptical and science podcasts lately. I love it. It’s intelligent, fun, interesting, and stimulating. I’ve realized several things, though, as I’ve been listening and taking in all this great new information. Read the rest of this entry »
More than 99 percent of terrorists are bread eaters.
Fully HALF of all children who grow up in bread-consuming households score below average on standardized tests.
In the 18th century, when virtually all bread was baked in the home, the average life expectancy was less than 50 years; infant mortality rates were unacceptably high; many women died in childbirth; and diseases such as typhoid, yellow fever, and influenza ravaged whole nations.
More than 90 percent of violent crimes are committed within 24 hours of eating bread.
Bread is made from “dough.” It has been proven that as little as one pound of dough can be used to suffocate a mouse. The average North American eats more bread than that in one month!
Primitive tribal societies that have no bread exhibit a low incidence of cancer, Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s disease, and osteoporosis. Read the rest of this entry »
I got an email from Sam Harris this morning requesting that I let people know about his latest essay in Newsweek. I wasn’t sure exactly how to give it to you, so that I don’t just copy his whole essay here. So here’s the first paragraph, then several quotes from the rest of it that I thought were incredibly important. You can read the essay in its entirety at Newsweek here.
Let me confess that I was genuinely unnerved by Sarah Palin’s performance at the Republican convention. Given her audience and the needs of the moment, I believe Governor Palin’s speech was the most effective political communication I have ever witnessed. Here, finally, was a performer who—being maternal, wounded, righteous and sexy—could stride past the frontal cortex of every American and plant a three-inch heel directly on that limbic circuit that ceaselessly intones “God and country.” If anyone could make Christian theocracy smell like apple pie, Sarah Palin could. Read the rest of this entry »
I’m on the fence with voting. Half of me feels like it’s a total waste of time. After all, from my limited understanding of such things, I learned in school that we have an electoral system in place, not direct elections, so how does my vote count? Plus, I don’t really care for any of the candidates. Some of them are downright despicable, but the others are just not my choice for the role they’re campaigning for. I hate the idea of voting for the best of the worst. That’s a lousy choice.
On the other hand, I feel that we have to do whatever we can to make things as good as possible, individually and collectively. This means doing stuff like voting, which is a responsibility, not a luxury. Plus, if you don’t vote, then I feel you have no right to complain about whoever gets elected.
Then, as we get closer to the election, I become increasingly alarmed by what I’m hearing and seeing about the candidates. Below is a short Associated Press video of Matt Damon talking about Sarah Palin. He basically sums it up in under 2 minutes why I have to vote against McCain/Palin.
From what I gather of Palin, if she gets into higher office, it seems like we’re doomed. She’s a pentecostal. She believes in armageddon. Not just figuratively, but literally. Which means she doesn’t care about the world, or peace. If the violent biblical prophecies happen then they’ll be closer to getting to heaven. So World War 3 would be just dandy to someone who believes in armageddon. Read the rest of this entry »
In a giant leap for clean energy, MIT professor Daniel Nocera and his team, have developed a simple method to split water molecules and produce oxygen gas. This paves the way for large scale use of solar power.
Getting energy from the sun isn’t the hard part, it seems. It’s storing that energy that has been a problem.
These guys at MIT were inspired by how plants perform photosynthesis. Their revolutionary method uses abundant, non-toxic natural materials.
I won’t get into all the details, but I just wanted to share it with you because it seems pretty important and wonderful.
Here’s a link to MIT where they have a video of Daniel Nocera describing the new process and a lot more details.
This is just the beginning though. It’s still not really cost effective, but other scientists will be able to run with it and we’ll see where it all leads us in the near future.
Nocera hopes that within 10 years, we’ll be able to power our homes in daylight through photovoltaic cells, while using excess solar energy to produce hydrogen and oxygen to power our own household fuel cell.
Of course, the power companies will not like this. But hopefully it will all happen anyway.
College is expensive. But if you look around, you might find that education can be free. We live in a world full of information, but sometimes you just have to know how to search for it.
A friend of mine wrote about MIT and their free classes online. It sounds great. The only catch is, you don’t get credits for the classes you take, so it can’t get you towards a degree, but it’s Free Information. It’s pretty hard to beat.
While looking into MIT, I found a lot of other great colleges and universities are now doing the same thing. Here’s a brief list. I’m sure there’s much more out there if you look: Read the rest of this entry »
It looks so harmless, doesn’t it? A tiny little RFID (Radio Frequency IDentification) chip. Its uses are only limited by the imagination, it seems.
Well, Middletown School District in Rhode Island has started a pilot program to monitor students by implanting these little chips in their schoolbags. The district is in partnership with MAP Information Technology Corp. and together they are going to tag 80 students. Two school busses will be outfitted readers for the chips and with GPS devices. Read the rest of this entry »
Stumbling around the web, I found this article on Futuristic Materials. This stuff is just amazing, so I wanted to share it with you. Just think where we’ll be in 10 years if these materials go into products that are mass produced? I say it that way because I know there must be secret flying cars and robots that fold laundry out there, but still, I am driving my little old Subaru and folding my own laundry. And it’s the 21st century!
Anyway, enjoy these groovy new materials. They have awesome potential to change our world. And it makes me think, if I never imagined this stuff, what will they think of next!? Woot!
I love money. I love saving it and spending it. I have a tendency to hoard it, as well. But my love of gadgets and expensive electronics usually wins out in the end.
Yesterday I confessed my addictions to woo and how I realized it was all a pack of lies and nonsense. It’s been hard to learn to think more critically and skeptically about pseudo-science (the fancy grownup term for woo). Unless someone teaches you how to think critically, there’s really no way to easily pick out the slick pack of lies and shiny bullshit for what it is.
More than 99 percent of terrorists are bread eaters.
College is expensive. But if you look around, you might find that education can be free. We live in a world full of information, but sometimes you just have to know how to search for it.
It looks so harmless, doesn’t it? A tiny little RFID (Radio Frequency IDentification) chip. Its uses are only limited by the imagination, it seems.
I love money. I love saving it and spending it. I have a tendency to hoard it, as well. But my love of gadgets and expensive electronics usually wins out in the end.