Promoting Science and Critical Thinking
A couple of days ago Newsweek published a fabulous article titled “9 ANTI-VAXXER MYTHS DEBUNKED“. There they proceed to demolish these 9 myths … Vaccinations cause autism. Vaccines don’t really work. Vaccines contain toxins. Vaccines can overwhelm a baby’s immune system. Natural immunity is safer than vaccine-acquired immunity. There are effective natural and homeopathic alternatives … Read more
A Recent talk at AAAS reveals an insight into why there are some who sincerly believe that planet earth is flat.
Various media stories have popped up reporting the idea that global warming will lead to the destruction of clouds, and that in turn would then lead to greatly accelerated warming. For example … USA Today: Climate change could zap clouds, bake the Earth even more In a word … yikes! What is even more scary … Read more
At the recent AAAS meeting Dr Genevera Allen gave a talk in which she highlights a rather interesting problem that specifically relates to the use of machine learning. Sitting between our ears is a pattern seeking engine that can and will at times identify false positives. We build in our own image and so we … Read more
The oft quoted quip that gets trotted out on a regular basis by some of those that reject the concept of human caused climate change is that a long time ago the climate was once a lot warmer in the Arctic and that in that distant past there were Crocodiles and Palm trees there. Is … Read more
Traditionally, religious belief is perceived to be a place of comfort and also source of all that is good. Mix a literal fundamentalist variation of belief with right-wing politics and you get a very weird cocktail that will render those that consume it utterly incoherent, obnoxious, intolerant. To criticise and mock this torrent of delusion, … Read more