Category: Skeptical Article

The township of Mitta Mitta, in North-Eastern Victoria holds an annual event over the Victorian Labour Day long week-end. This part of Victoria is also home to a small enthusiastic group promoting rational thinking, the Borderline Skeptics.

The Australian Skeptics offer a standing prize of $110,000 to anyone who can demonstrate psychic phenomena or supernatural ability that can be established within normal rules of Scientific evidence.

There are many individuals in Australia who believe that they have a special gift for finding water in apparently barren landscapes using techniques beyond established geological and hydrological methods. Such people are known as “Water Diviners“,”Dowsers” or “Geomancers“.

Many of these people have been prepared to accept the Skeptics’ challenge Borderline Skeptics, with the assistance of visiting colleagues, have taken to staging a special event within the Muster. Dowsers are given the opportunity in a test set up by a third party to differentiate between covered containers of water and of sand. The only stipulation is that before the test commences, all parties must agree on a standard of proof which would indeed indicate a performance which is statistically better than average.

To date, no-one has taken away the $110,000 cheque.

Unfortunately, the Town of Mitta Mitta was ravaged by bushfires early in 2003 (see Hellfire), and as a result The Water Divining Challenge did NOT take place.

For more information

• A report on Mitta Mitta 2002
  • http://skeptics.com.au/journal/mitta2002.htm
• Mitta Mitta Regional Map
  • http://www.tourisminternet.com.au/mitta6.htm
• Link to a water-diviner’s journal
  • http://www.geomantica.com/magissue/geom12.htm

THE GREAT WATER-DIVINING DVD is available fom Australian Skeptics on-line shop

http://www.skeptics.com.au

A variety of Skeptical products are available for purchase over the internet at http://www.skeptics.com.au

Here are some highlights with special relevance to the Victorian Skeptics.

• DVD – Melbourne Convention 2002
• Great Divining DVD (and video)
• “The Skeptics Guide To The Paranormal” by Lynne Kelly
• Creationism – Scientists Respond , Peter Hogan (ed)

News from the 2004 Australian Skeptics Convention

• Victorian Lynne Kelly proclaimed “Skeptic of the Year“
  • Lynne is the author of “The Skeptic’s Guide To The Paranormal” and has taken part in many radio and newspaper interviews. Talk – Lynne Kelly
• The infamous “Bent Spoon” award went to ABC TV show “The New Inventors“
  • Despite the good reputation of the ABC for science shows, this show uncritically featured a number of scientifically dubious products which are already on the market, and despite complaints went on to display advertising for these products in their magazine.These products included the “Anti-Bio” pool cleaner, the “Greenfire” sparkplug. The “Gemini” electric motor did get some critical comments, but only in the final stages. (More info soon)
• Runner up for the “Bent Spoon” was Channel 10’s Sensing Murder

Today one of our members attended an informal trial of the Wine Clip. This magnetic device is sold with the claim that when fitted to a bottle of wine, it will greatly improve the wine’s taste. So far the results are negative.

Babies at risk from worthless homeopathic vaccines

Australian Skeptics media release about Homeopathy – an unproven, nonsensical remedy commonly available in Australia.

http://www.skeptics.com.au/features/press/050510homeopathy.htm

ACCC Consumer Express: February – Scam Awareness Month

This month’s topics include: Spam and scams … The spam and scams rogues gallery … Loathsome lottery scams … Nasty ‘Nigerian‘ scam … Phishing scams … Spoofing … Attack of the Zombies … Mobile scams … Horse betting and share trading software … Where to report scams and spam … Spam in Australia

http://www.accc.gov.au/content/index.phtml/itemId/583631/fromItemId/3737 or email express@accc.gov.au to subscribe.

“Dinosaurs from China”

In part sponsored by the Australian Skeptics this impressive exhibition of dinosaurs and their progressive evolution into birds runs from 19 November 2004 to 17 April 2005 in the Melbourne Museum. “After visiting the Chinese Dinosaurs exhibition people will fully appreciate that dinosaurs are not extinct… they’re alive and well, and singing in your back yard.” (Prof Archer, past Director of the Australian Museum)

 From China comes an exhibition of massive proportions.
 One of the largest collections of dinosaur skeletons ever
 to tour Australia is about to take over Melbourne Museum
 including giant skeletons, rare fossils and new discoveries
 such as amazing feathered dinosaurs as well as a fantastic
 programme of children's activities.
 Adult $16; Child $6; Concession $8; Family $36
 (also includes entry to Melbourne Museum and a free ticket
 redeemable until 10 July 2005)

This is a singularly appropriate sponsorship for the Skeptics, as one of our principal concerns has always been to counter the influence of religious fundamentalists on our education system and particularly on the teaching of science. These ‘Young Earth Creationists‘, in endeavouring to keep their followers in ignorance of the evidence that really exists to underpin scientific theories of the evolution of species (and much else) have put up perennial strawman arguments along the lines of “There is no example of one species changing into another species” and equally fatuous questions such as, “Of what use is half a wing?“

Such propositions have never been scientifically valid ones, but they have had a superficial plausibility for the unsophisticated followers of this anti-scientific cult. The dinosaur specimens sponsored by the Skeptics in this exhibition, showing different transitional species on the road from reptile to bird, will serve to graphically expose such creationist rhetoric for the specious nonsense it always has been. (See Creationism Articles)

• (Photo1: Model of Sinosauropteryx prima made by Alan Groves working with palaeontologists Drs Walter Boles and Sue Hand.)
• (Photo2: Model of Sinornithosaurus smillenii made by Alan Groves working with palaeontologists Drs Walter Boles and Sue Hand.)

For more details about the Melbourne Museum Event see http://melbourne.museum.vic.gov.au/whatson/show.asp?ID=561503

For more information

• Australian Museum Chinese Dinosaurs Site
  • http://www.amonline.net.au/chinese_dinosaurs/
• Background story (with photos) – Association of Australasian Palaeontologists
  • http://www.es.mq.edu.au/mucep/aap/nomennudum/issues/28/chinosaurs.htm
• The Science Show (RN) (2002)
  • http://www.abc.net.au/rn/science/ss/stories/s720938.htm

We’ve discovered Victoria University have a degree based on Homeopathy !!! What’s next? A degree in mind reading or tea-leaf fortune telling? There are millions of dollars Paranormal Prize Money world-wide waiting for the proof that homeopathy’s nonsensical theories actually work. In the meantime, the Victorian committee of the Australian Skeptics have nominated Victoria University for the infamous Bent Spoon Award. Victoria University has taken education to a new low. http://www.staff.vu.edu.au/hdadmin/Staff/Courses/HS/UG/Naturopathy&Homeopathy.pdf

2004 photos from Peter Hogan, Various events edited by Ken Greatorex
Marc Abrahams’ Visit
Marc presented a talk on The Ig-nobel Prizes at Melbourne Museum

Robyn Abrahams, Marc Abrahams, Rosemary Sceats, Peter Hogan

Marc Abrahams with More of The Usual Suspects

Audience at Marc Abrahams’ talk on “The Ignoble Prizes”

Christopher Short, Charles Tivendale and Rosemary Sceats man the Information Desk at Marc Abrahams’ talk
Lynne Kelly does her thing at The Whitehorse Inn

A spot of Mind Reading

Lynne’s fascinated audience
Scenes from Sydney Convention

Lynne Kelly, Barry Williams Convention 2004 Sydney. Lynne has just been declared Skeptic of the Year

Steve Walker

Sandra and Mark Mayer

Peter Rogers Participants/onlookers include Lynne Kelly Mark Mayer and Sandra Mayer
A Monday Night at The Whitehorse