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In the tradition that began with the first Amazing Meeting nine years ago, the JREF is once again issuing a call for papers to those who would like to share their work and accomplishments at the 2011 Amazing Meeting, July 14-17, in Las Vegas.

Anyone may submit a request to present a paper. If your proposal is accepted you will be allotted 10 to 15 minutes for your presentation and an additional 5 minutes for questions and comments from the audience. Invitations to present will be givin to approximately six proposals.

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Quite an attention grabber, isn’t it?  Of course, in this case the letters WTF refer not to the commonly used epithet but to the Women Thinking Free Foundation (which, I suppose, would technically make it WTFF).  In any case, I wanted to share with you all some news about this wonderful organization of which I am a part (I serve as the WTFF’s secretary).  The WTFF is the brainchild of Skepchick Elyse “Mofo” Anders, and it focuses specifically on promoting science, critical thinking & skepticism to women of all ages.

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Rules changed to encourage new applications and ensure anyone with actual paranormal abilities could win the million-dollar prize

Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.—The James Randi Educational Foundation (JREF) announced on Wednesday that the organization’s famed Million Dollar Paranormal Challenge would be opened to more new applicants, with a lower bar for entry. The JREF holds $1 million in an investment account at a New York financial firm1, ready to be awarded to anyone who can demonstrate a paranormal ability under fair conditions that prevent fraud or error. The prize has grown from just $1,000 since it was established more than 40 years ago by magician and skeptic James Randi, and it has yet to be claimed.

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Last October my fifth grader's teacher invited me to observe a session of philosophical discussion with her class. The sessions are outside of the assigned curriculum: the kind of teaching that so many primary school teachers today must fight to squeeze in between the district assessments and mandates. Although my son had described a previous session I really had no idea what to expect but I was intrigued. This would be the third session of its kind and adjusted slightly given what she learned from conducting the first two.

The sessions each focus on one general question. In this case, the question was, "Is it ever okay to lie?" The teacher began by directing a student to write the philosopher's name (Kant) on the board along with the place and time in which he lived. In previous sessions, the children asked about the last two items, trying to put the questions into context.

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               Chase after truth like hell and you'll free yourself, even though you never touch its coat-tails. - CLARENCE DARROW

All action must, to a certain extent, be planned in a mere twilight, which in addition not infrequently — like the effect of a fog or moonshine — gives to things exaggerated dimensions and unnatural appearance. - CARL VON CLAUSEWITZ, SPEAKING ABOUT WAR DATA

 

Certainty is one of the oldest problems in philosophy. How do we know what is “true”? Many people, too many in fact, use science as the benchmark for absolute truth. Yet what better opposition exists to science other than absolute thinking? We must carefully reflect on science itself as an arbiter of truth and falsehood, carefully outlining why it is that we do not need absolute truth to prove that something is almost certainly absolute nonsense.

Strange as it is, my medical colleagues openly state that cures for polio, smallpox and so on are not one-hundred-percent effective. That is, it is not absolutely true that taking this or that medication will have the desired effect on the patient. Yet, we don’t let uncertainty guide our investment in the medical profession; indeed, as patients, we are usually told the chances of success with surgery, treatment and so on. They are not absolutely guaranteed except in that there is absolutely no certainty. Should we let the mere admission of uncertainty prevent the medical profession from continuing? Should we never partake of life-saving surgery because there is no absolute guarantee of success? Of course not. Nearly everyone who wants the treatment partakes of it if the odds are in their favour; that is, aware that the treatment is not absolutely guaranteed.

  1. James Randi’s Flim-Flam! Now Available for the iPad and iPhone
  2. "Brain Droppings" from Neil deGrasse Tyson at TAM6
  3. Last Week at Science-Based Medicine
  4. Why People Believe Peter Popoff