Category: Announcements

March 30, 2010

Skeptics at the Melbourne International Comedy Festival

Charles and Catherine after the show

The Victorian Skeptics stepped out on Friday 26th March to support one of our former speakers the well known comedienne and journalist Catherine Deveny. With a show titled: ‘God is Bullshit: and that’s the good news’ Catherine put it out there in her real in-your-face style. There was certainly an attraction to Skeptics, Atheist and most of the thinking population to attend. How could we not go. We were not let down.
View More Skeptics at the Melbourne International Comedy Festival

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March 29, 2010

TAM Australia

The 2010 Australian Skeptics National Convention will be held in Sydney in the last weekend of November.
You’ll want to mark it in your diaries guys, because it’s shaping up to be a corker.
This year the event will be known as TAM Australia, continuing the fine tradition of “The Amazing Meeting” held annually in Las Vegas by the James Randi Educational Foundation.
And TAM Australia will be boasting a stellar line-up of guests.
Those currently confirmed are JREF president D.J. Grothe, Australia’s own Dr. Karl Kruszelnicki, the cast of the incredibly popular podcast Skeptics’ Guide to the Universe, Brian Dunning of Skeptoid.com, skeptical musician extraordinaire George Hrab, the NCSE’s Dr Eugenie Scott and of course the man himself, The AmazingTM James Randi.
Tickets for the event will go on sale sometime in June.
Watch this space for further updates.
…Matt

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March 21, 2010

PZ Myers

It was nice to see one of the greats of the Skeptical community, PZ Myers along to one of our third Monday, Skeptic café events.
Melbourne is a long way from home for PZ, he resides in Minnesota.  For those that don’t know, P.Z. Myers is an active blog writer.  PZ’s blog called Pharyngula covers topics such as biology, evolution, religious thinking and other topics of interest to Skeptics.  Highly recommended reading.
Mal.

PZ and Terry, Monday the 15th of March 2010

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March 7, 2010

Concern Over Science in the National Curriculum

The National Curriculum statement was released on Monday 1st March 2010. A number of commentators have made claims and suggestions. Here are a few of my thoughts based on the experience of over 30 years teaching including a strong role in science education. Firstly, I would like to make a couple of points based on the following extract from the ‘Cross Curriculum Dimensions’.

Curriculum content that relates to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and contexts is represented implicitly in the content descriptions, and explicitly in the content elaborations. Specific knowledge and understanding of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples is incorporated where it relates to science and relevant phenomena,
View More Concern Over Science in the National Curriculum

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March 5, 2010

Terry Wins Dr Bob's Quiz

Dr Bob’s quiz, known the world over as the most diabolically difficult quiz, has been cracked for the first time by our own Vic Skeptics El Presidente, Terry Kelly.  It’s not enough to answer the quiz correctly.   Your answer needs to be funny and correct.  And if it’s not correct, you need to find something wrong with the question or make Dr Bob crack up with fits of laughter so much that he gives you the points anyway.
Congratulations Terry!
See the results for February 2010.

Terry Kelly tries to hide the Mind Body Wallet festival in 2009

Mal

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February 24, 2010

Our good friend Dr John Long

Hi all,
I noticed that our friend Dr John Long, recently shifted to Los Angeles will be lecturing back here in April at the Royal Society.
8 April Dr. John Long  Death, Sex and Evolution – Extraordinary Fossils Revealing Intimate Details of Sexual Behaviour in the Early Vertebrates
Vice-President Research & Collections, Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County
Royal Society of Victoria’s Calendar of events can be found here: http://www.sciencevictoria.org.au/events.html
Here’s your chance to catch up with Dr Long, and also find out what them there Early Vertebrates used to get up to.
Regards,
Ken

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February 22, 2010

ABC Insiders, Vic Skeptics on Climate Change

Your Shout: Skeptics question climate policies
Australian Broadcasting Corporation
Broadcast: 14/02/2010
Reporter: Barrie Cassidy
Phil Kafcaloudes from Radio Australia Today talks to Australian Skeptics in Melbourne about scepticism of Government and the Opposition.
PHIL KAFCALOUDES: Hi, I’m Phil Kafcaloudes, host of Radio Australia Today.
Well we certainly had a week for the sceptics here in Australia. We’ve got the Prime Minister and the Opposition Leader both trying to sell their climate change policies. And we’ve just said farewell to the world’s best climate change sceptic Lord Christopher Monckton.
So what a week to sit down and have a coffee here in Melbourne with members of the group Australian Skeptics to see if they’re sceptical.
Okay, what is a sceptic?
SCEPTIC 1: The sceptics try to examine the evidence before making up their mind about something.
SCEPTIC 2: As sceptics we want to reclaim the word sceptic from those people who don’t believe in climate change.
SCEPTIC 3: People who tend to deny climate change, we tend to call them deniers. So I mean they’re not going with the evidence. They’re going, they’re usually cherry picking evidence. View More ABC Insiders, Vic Skeptics on Climate Change

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February 7, 2010

Darwin Day Barbecue

Invitation to celebrate Charles Darwin’s birthday at the Melbourne Darwin Day Barbeque
on Monday, 12th February 2007 from 5:30 pm till 8 pm
at Alexandra Avenue Melbourne Melways, 2G D11 Just west from the Morell Bridge and Anderson Street. Next to the Botanic Gardens.

All Welcome Free BBQ facilities available BYO food and drinks
RSVP: – – An RSVP is not required however it would assist with organising if you could RSVP (with YES, NO or MAYBE and numbers) to Andrew on (03) 9894 1443 or email ar2team@yahoo.com.
Since the early 1990’s, Darwin Day has been celebrated around the world including in Melbourne but this year’s celebrations will be the biggest party so far. Come along and enjoy a summer’s evening BBQ by the Yarra.
EMAIL: If you can be contacted by email then please include details with your RSVP.
PUBLIC TRANSPORT: This information is advisory only – please check before travelling. The closest tram/train is Tram 70 in Swan Street. Walk from the Swan Street Bridge or maybe from tram stop 46 (will need to check if access paths still exist). The 2002 Melways shows a path to Richmond Station which is about the same distance as the Swan Street Bridge. Buses 246 and 605 may stop near the Hoddle Street Bridge and that is closer than either the Swan Street Bridge or Richmond Railway Station.