Skeptic: Promoting Science and Critical Thinking

eSkeptic Archives for 2012

February 22nd: Zootherapy Debunked

Are people with pets more active and healthier than those without? Can pets increase the survival rate of cancer patients, stimulate good behaviour in children, relieve loneliness and redeem delinquents? Charles Danten takes a critical look at the animal-assisted therapeutic method known as Zootherapy.

February 15th: Darwin’s Legacy

Donald R. Prothero remembers Charles Darwin (on the occasion of what would have been his 203rd birthday this past Sunday). Prothero reminds us that it was 40 years ago this year that the most frequently cited paper in the history of paleontology was published: none other than the legendary 1972 article by Niles Eldredge and Stephen Jay Gould which proposed the “punctuated equilibrium” hypothesis. Prothero also shares some insights from his own research.

February 8th: How We Know Global Warming is Real and Human Caused

Donald R. Prothero addresses climate change denialism head on, demolishing deniers’ arguments and rebuttals, and clearly demonstrating how we know global warming is real and human caused.

February 1st: Can Hallucination Account for the Post-Crucifixion Appearances of Jesus?

Gary J. Whittenberger applies the hallucination hypothesis to the alleged post-crucifixion appearance of Jesus summarized in three Gospel stories. Based on careful examination of the Gospels and our current knowledge of the human mind, is the hallucination hypothesis far superior to a resurrection hypothesis in accounting for the “facts” of the post-crucifixion story?

January 25th: People Like to be Fooled

Peter Moon interviews Michael Shermer on why people believe weird things. This interview first appeared in Portuguese in the magazine ÉPOCA on January 16, 2012. Thank you to Michael Silva for translating the interview.

January 18th: A review of Soul Dust: The Magic of Consciousness

Robert L. Martone reviews Nicholas Humphrey’s book Soul Dust: The Magic of Consciousness (University Press, 2011, ISBN: 978-0691138626). Martone is a research scientist and is the Neuroscience Therapeutic Area Lead for the Covance Biomarker Center of Excellence. He has extensive experience in neuropharmacology research, having led neuroscience drug discovery and technology teams through all phases of drug discovery from target identification through clinical trials with expertise in both small molecule and protein therapeutics. He also has several years of academic research experience in molecular neurobiology, with a focus on the molecular genetics of familial neuropathies, and CNS tumor biomarker development.

January 11th: Debate: Christopher Hitchens vs. Kenneth Miller on the question “Does Science Make Belief in God Obsolete?”

Christopher Hitchens and Kenneth Miller debate the question “Does Science Make Belief in God Obsolete?” Hitchens (self-proclaimed anti-theist and author of God Is Not Great) and Kenneth Miller (a pro-evolution Christian and author of Finding Darwin’s God) are worlds apart both by profession and belief, and yet both have brilliant minds for dissecting arguments both scientific and philosophical.

January 4th: Christopher Hitchens on: Does Science Make Belief in God Obsolete?

Christopher Hitchens responds to the Templeton Foundation’s Big Question: “Does Science Make Belief in God Obsolete?” Hitchens is the author of God Is Not Great.