Being the reasonable adult in 2012

Will the world end on December 21, 2012?

No. No. NO. A thousand times NO.

Scholarly Saturday night: Singing ’bout Darwin

Last night was the Concert for Darwin – a special event presented by Jefferson Pepper, Lauri Lebo and folks from the Central PA ACLU. PA Nonbelievers helped with ticket sales. It was held at the incredible Midtown Scholar bookstore in Harrisburg. It was quite amazing that such an intelligent and unique event took place inside a new venue for a successful, independent bookstore. If you ever pass through downtown Harrisburg, you will notice blight, crime, garbage and poverty. Yet, in midtown, around the Broad Street Market, there is occuring a revitalization. Thanks to the Harrisburg Community College’s downtown campus and other investments, this place is shaping up. I’ll be visiting the bookstore again and again for books (of course) and what will certainly be more outstanding events such as this.

It would be hard to top this. Lauri Lebo was jumping around, getting stuff ready, saying ‘hi’ and signing autographs of her book. She began the night by introducing a very special guest, Dr. Eugenie Scott of the National Center for Science Education. Genie is a hero to so many of us. I was so, so pleased to meet her and have her back in Harrisburg for such a positive event. Genie played a pivotal role in the Kitzmiller v Dover trial. Many of the plantiffs, including some of the kids, were in the audience this evening. Smiles were all around.

Lauri then introduced Jefferson Pepper who played solo and with his band folk and americana tunes that expressed the raw feelings many in the audience had about the state of American culture. I DO NOT like country music but the lyrics and themes felt very personal to me. Plus, I’m partial to a fiddle (being a violin player a while ago). The sound was excellent and I enjoyed every minute. Find out more about Jeff’s music here.

Next, was the remarkable and unmatched Dr. Ken Miller. I’ve seen him speak before and would so love to have him as a teacher. Well, he is a teacher every time I listen to him. Dr. Miller sat in the front row to watch the incomparable Baba Brinkman – evolutionary rapper. I have never heard anything like this. I only wish I had such an exceptional grasp of language and rhyme. I was blown away.

If you missed it, YOU MISSED SOMETHING. I think everyone had an outstanding time. We should all do this more often.

Of Zombies, Ghosts and Werewolves

Now that the veil between the worlds of the living and dead are thin this Hallows Eve, I ponder the surging popularity of zombies, ghosts and werewolves – the walking dead, the persistent dead and the wished-they-were-dead.

As you might guess, I’m quite doubtful of all three categories but what fun they are!

Running to keep up with the fast-paced skeptics

The skeptical movement is blossoming. This is good and bad. It used to be sort of easy to keep up with things. Now, there are so many new blogs and interesting forums to follow, one can’t possibly participate in all of them. I can just about keep up on all the podcasts!

NECSS Skeptics in the city

NECSS is the brand new skepti-con in the upper right quadrant of the country. I attended the event held this past weekend in Manhattan.

I was greeted by official “bouncer” Sean McCabe who gives hugs. [Note: skeptics don’t hug enough.] We noticed there were still too few skepchicks (a chronic problem) but there seemed to be a lot of students. Win.

I won’t be picky about logistics and such. I’ve helped arrange large conferences and it is difficult. So, big thanks to all who made this event go on schedule and VERY smoothly. However, I will reiterate Rebecca Watson’s Tweet that it was an epic geek fail that the venue had no cellular reception or wifi.

I always enjoy listening to Jamy Ian Swiss, Massimo Pigliucci, Richard Wiseman, Paul Offit, Carl Zimmer and the SGU crew. I was very entertained. The live podcast show was particularly funny and unusually adult-oriented. We’re all grown ups here so I didn’t mind. Steve and the Rogues work so well together. Add Wiseman as the special guest and it was prime stuff. Wiseman was perpetually accompanied by a banana (prop, snack?) and an aura of promotion for his new book. The title was mentioned no less than “59” times.

Regarding content, I was pleased. The overarching theme was science portrayed to the public – how the media delivers a message, how even scientists screw up and take missteps, how we can get better.

It doesn’t take many of inquirers to do a lot of good. Those who question bad science only need to produce the pin to bust the balloon.

I’m currently in a degree program for Science & the Public. Obviously, there was significant crossover in the content. Since enrolling in the program, I’ve added to, deleted and changed almost all my views on the relationship between the scientific community and the general public. That’s learning. Hearing from people who encounter this every day is vitally important. It becomes clear that the strategies used by anti-science proponents to manufacture credibility on every topic – anti-vax to environmental issues, creationists to ghost hunters – are essentially the same.

Conferences are meant to disseminate and exchange ideas but also to motivate and inspire. I’m inspired by Dr. Rachie talking about progress against anti-vaxxers in Australia and Dr. Wiseman making his own good luck in selling books that sneak in the skeptical viewpoint. I’m motivated by all the folks who volunteer their time and make huge efforts to produce content that makes a difference.

Some recommendations for future skeptic events—

Meet and greets. Hugs. Beers & cokes all around. Don’t let the VIPs cut out early (Geo – I mean you) and allow them to be accessible because we want to keep that space small between us. Sorry I missed the Drinking Skeptically the night before and the smaller meetups soon after. Arrange for events at a hotel and have a one stop shop for a weekend of skeptifun.

Nametags. Space to include our screen names. I’m sure I passed by 10 or more folks I’ve only encountered virtually. I caught up with a few I was expecting to find which is always nice. We could have used more time to get to know each other and cement that meaningful face-to-face connection.

While I’m waiting for the next event, lets Tweet, converse on FB, have a meetup when you are close by or chat (http://www.skepticsrock.com/). It makes me feel like part of the cool crowd.

(Twitter/Facebook ID: Idoubtit)

Growing Pennsylvania skepticism

Hi all. I have a lot crammed into 24 hours these days. But, I’ll take a moment here and there to jot down projects I want to do when I finish my schoolwork (EdM).

I’d really like to form a local skeptics group.

PA has some folks in Philly (PhACT, Skeptic Philly) and a Pittsburgh (CFI group and Steel City Skeptics). There have been a lot of freethought groups springing up too. Go here to see some. We have Drinking Skeptically left, middle and center. However, I would like a group that functioned as the go-to place for local news outlets to get a skeptical perspective. And, I’d like to be able to act on some situations that call for the voice of reason and science.

For now, I’d like to hear if you are interested. A fellow skeptic and I talked about arranging a Skepticamp here someday. That would be a great start. Let me know if you are interested in joining up to talk about skeptical topics in Southcentral PA. Email PAskeptic@gmail.com with your ideas. Maybe we can get an email or chat group up an moving as some first steps forward.

While I’m here, I would like to celebrate the launch of Grassroot Skeptics. They got me thinking that even starting small is a positive first step towards become a community presence. So, check them out. Hope you hear from you!

Reminder: Look for me on postboards as “Idoubtit”
Also: Twitter: Idoubtit
and Facebook

Not the news

I’ve been observing the interesting (but infuriating) process of how “news” gets fed to the internet and major news outlets. My curious position has been one where I have firsthand knowledge of a situation (or pretty close to it) but am not obliged to comment on the “news” as it’s portrayed. So, I’ll be general.

As frequently occurs in American society these days, the real news portion of the story gets buried or nonexistent. Facts or information that might be valuable to an undecided citizen is painted over with opinion and personal beliefs equated with facts. I think that’s called the human element. (We tend to screw up the reality.) All is fair when political wrangling is in action. I can pick out logical fallacies like weed out of the garden: straw men, false dichotomies, arguments from authority. You name it.

Google News will alert me to stories on this given topic. What I saw was the same story recirculated around the AP wire for weeks. The wording is nearly identical in every instance – regurgitated from the press release from the activist organization. It contains a boatload of not-even-half-truths, mischaracterizations and promises of horrible outcomes. So, it shows me that most stories have made it to news outlets unfiltered, unchecked and uncritiqued.

The topic is also picked up by blogs. These are blogs with purposes (agendas). Blogs hosted by newspapers make it appear that the author is a journalist. Many are just self-styled experts on a topic or doing op-eds. These are opinions standing next to news hoping some credibility rubs off. If a link to such a blog is seen by others unfamiliar with its typical bent, it’s not immediately apparent that it might be biased. It might look like informed commentary or “news”.

One genuine newspaper picked up the story. The topic is addressed by what appears to be a working reporter. Several “facts”, however, are not corrected. Two sides are portrayed by using whatever statements had been released. It’s a task any 12-yr old who can read could do. The newspaper is located in an area of the nation that is particularly affected by the issue at hand. They are the interested party and are making their attempt to be the squeaky wheel.

The false view that was pushed, for political purposes, prompted a letter writing campaign. I’m not privileged to know how many letters were actually generated to legislators or how seriously they took them. The parties on the other side of the argument did not really go on the defensive but chose to wait until the wave washes over and dissipates – like most hot topics do. This tactic doesn’t always work. Try googling “town hall meetings” and see the hysteria fail to fizzle out. Did facts feed the town hall frenzy? No. It was unsubstantiated opinion and mischaracterizations.

This process plays out for dozens of so-called news stories every day. Google News and other “news” outlets treat opinion on par with facts. And, publications in print or on the web find people will chose to view fiction perhaps more often than non-fiction, depending on which point of view they hold and wish to bolster.

I’ve been educated. My conclusion is that about 90% of “news” is unsubstantiated, probably wrong, or an outright lie. The current media culture scuttles progress and results in poor choices. We’re being overwhelmed by raving hysterics. Haven’t we been through this before? It’s devastating. The voice of reason loses ground to the loudmouth irrational screamers.

Skeptic meaning for the young

Many of today’s kids, at least my kid, seems to think it’s perfectly OK to have fun believing in ghosts, unicorns, witchcraft, demons, UFOs, vampires, and the like. They appear to understand that much of this is by choice and strictly for entertainment purposes only. It seems fair to think that childish things will eventually be discarded.

But, I’m concerned.

During a dinnertime discussion I pressed the issue about the lucky numbers that appeared in our Chinese fortune cookies. The concept of lucky numbers is silly. I got mad that my husband wanted to bait my rising irritation by saying how the restaurant lady must have been guided by destiny to pick our individual fortunes and lucky numbers in a mass produced, poorly tasting “cookie”. My older daughter (11) thinks of me as the party pooper on these topics by suggesting alternate ways of simply thinking about the issue that end up being the less mysterious interpretations.

Today, she said my skepticism “gets old”. Why don’t I just be open-minded and let people believe in unicorns if they want to? What’s the harm?

Well, she did need some schoolin’ on this point. Not being preachy but I did give her some less warm and fuzzy examples — the recent cases of children who died because their parents prayed and trusted their God to heal the sickness instead of doctors; how people still kill so-called witches in third-world countries; that people lose their life savings by giving it to psychics and astrologers instead of sound financial advisors; and of families torn apart by false memories of abuse implanted by therapists. Finally, I told her how mainstream parents are falling prey to the nonsense of the antivax promoters whose tactics allow for the resurgence of long-supressed childhood illnesses.

Would she rather believe in the truth or an interesting story? What about when it really counts?

This was the first that she made the connection between critical thinking and life-changing or life-ending situations. At least, I hope she did.

Skepticism in a nutshell

On episode #208 of the Skeptic’s Guide to the Universe podcast, the SGU folks took questions from the audience at TAM7. The best question, I thought, came from my friend Bruce who asked how to explain a skeptics convention and skepticism so that a teenager might understand.

I’d go farther than the teenager. How do I explain it to my Mom or Dad or coworkers who can see my enthusiasm for the skeptical community? They have no idea if it’s a religion, a fun hobby, a political party, or just an odd obsession.

I was not satisfied with the SGU rogues’ answers but there were a lot of pertinent points brought up – promotion of science and science education, examination of the paranormal, logical and critical thinking. I don’t agree with Jay who said that a short answer isn’t the best. I think at least a brief introduction is a good idea. A little bit is better than a full-out presentation with examples that might freak them out.

It could be there is no suitable in-a-nutshell explanation but I’m going to try.

“What’s a “skeptic”?”, asks an acquaintance/family member during a casual conversation.

“Well,” I begin, “A skeptic and the skeptical community are people interested in science who consider claims made by others using very careful collection and evaluation of evidence. The evidence must be better than a blurry photo or an eyewitness story on TV where the event or description can’t be verified, examined or reproduced. So, many claims about special medicines, miraculous cures, UFOs, conspiracies, psychic ability, supernatural phenomena, etc. do not withstand a skeptical inquiry because the evidence is such poor quality.”

If you have the opportunity, you might add, “Most people can’t take the time to check the so-called facts they hear on TV or in print, even the internet, but the skeptical community examines these claims critically and points out the fiction. I’d like to think Bigfoot or ghosts are what people say they are but, after decades of looking, there is just no body of scientific evidence for these things. A skeptic can expose hoaxes, tricks, scams or the misuse of facts. They can spot something that sounds like science but is really just a put-on that sounds credible. So, the skeptical community serves a very useful role in society because they question what many people just assume to be true. Exposing claims that are likely not true allows us to stop wasting time, money or effort on them.”

Did I go over 30 seconds? Don’t get me talking about this stuff, I’ll prattle on…

Sounds like quackery

In my series Sham Inquiry, I spotlighted three examples of fields that sound a lot like science but have critical failures. Attempts to don the trappings of science are most irritating when they fool people into thinking it is real, cutting-edge science. I found more examples from the recent Newsweek article on Oprah’s promotion of quackery. Dr. David Cooper, a professor of endocrinology at Johns Hopkins medical school, a specialist in thyroid disease, sounded a bit perturbed at the antics of the Oprah-favorite Dr. Northrup:

“The problem is that this all has the aura of being scientific when a lot of it is wrong, or not proven
or just utter hogwash,” Cooper says. “No wonder it sounds very credible to the patients, and in my
opinion, that’s even worse. If it was all complete rubbish, people would be more likely to see it for
what it really is.”

Also mentioned is hormone therapy that confounds the term “natural” and the Law of Attraction utter bullshit labeled “very, very scientific” by those that hawk The Secret. If you have to point that out, it’s probably not.

Mix real scientific terms with utter gobbledygook and people eat it up. They can’t tell the difference. Much of this sounds very hokey to skeptics who are sensitized to pseudoscience red flags but not to the millions of sheeple who follow Oprah faithfully, without question. I suspect some of this lack of critical thinking can be reduced through the education process, however, people like to have charismatic leaders to follow and to think for them.

I applaud Newsweek for standing up to Oprah. It’s the number 1 emailed article in their “Life” section today. I encourage everyone whose Mom watches Oprah to send her this article.