Promoting Science and Critical Thinking
It is rather popular for the more conservative US elements to promote the idea of erecting a religious artifact in a public space. Remember now, the context here is that there is supposed to be a wall of separation between church and state to avoid granting a special privilege to a specific religious faction. OK, … Read more
Sharon Hill, writes a great article in the HuffPo all about why you should be skeptical of eyewitness accounts entitled … “I’m Not Making This Up: Why I’m Skeptical of Eyewitnesses“. To give you an idea, here are a few key phrases and observations that leapt out for me … …Memory is constructed. Pause a … Read more
Michael Shermer, a monthly columnist for Scientific American and also the founding publisher of Skeptic magazine writes a rather interesting article in the December issue of Scientific American all about the decline of religion and the rise of the Nones. The point he build up to is this … A 2012 Pew Research Center survey, … Read more
James Arthur Ray, the new age kook, was given a platform by Oprah to promote his daft ideas and as a result people died Here is an expose of what happened and how he ended up killing three people in a heat endurance test outside Sedona., Ariz The investigators looked into his claims and discovered … Read more
Belief often insists that it retains the high moral ground and also asserts a monopoly over meaning, and yet the evidence for this is simply not there at all. It is perhaps all part of the psychology of belief where an appeal to our empathy is tapped into by asserting a claim that inside the … Read more
Believing things that are not actually true motivates some to behave in an abhorrent manner, so much so that they can end up grinding some rather basic human rights under their belief-shaped boots. To illustrate, consider the manner in which people who happen to be gay are ostracized and condemned by many faith communities. Further … Read more