October 6, 2010

George Hrab in Melbourne

 

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Apparently skeptics are just a bunch of old-age naysayers with no religion, culture or art.  As such, don’t tell anyone about George Hrab and his upcoming gig in Melbourne, I wouldn’t want to burst anyone’s bubble.  I’d really hate for his gig to be spoilt by – you know – loads and loads of people turning up.
George is an active Pennsylvania based musician, composer, podcaster and skeptic.
George’s podcast; the Geologic Podcast, has a huge following and easily has the best sound quality of any skeptical podcast available.  The Geologic Podcast features segments such as “George talks to his mum” and “religious moron of the week”.
In a very bold move, George’s last album “Trebuchet” was released free, in its entirety, in one of his regular podcasts.  I first really began to appreciate George’s music when he produced the song “Far”, which became View More George Hrab in Melbourne

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October 3, 2010

Bigger blog


Suddenly the Vic Skeptics blog has got bigger, though you probably haven’t noticed.  We’ve gone from 80 posts to 220.  Our old “keypoint” site will eventually be shut down.  Ahead of that, rather than dump the old stuff, a big effort has gone into moving it from the old site to this one.
If you have a little spare time and feel like reading some re-born old posts try these:
How to make your own bed of nails
Homeopathy for Pets???
How to put together a class exercise on astrology, if you’re a teacher
Saddened by Channel Ten’s screening of Sensing Murder (from 2006)
Also on the same subject “Sensing Nothing” by Christopher Short.
Dr John Long spoke to the Victorian Skeptics in 2005
An embarrassing question on a psychology exam
View More Bigger blog

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October 2, 2010

"MIXED BAG" October 2010 ANSWERS:

1. Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri and Montana
2. (a)    54 Cards in a Deck (with the jokers)
    (b)    8 planets in the solar system
    (c)    88 Keys on a Piano
    (d)    90 Degrees in a Right Angle
    (e)    200 dollars for passing GO in Monoploy
    (f)     8 sides on a Stop Sign
3. We know of three possibilities:
– Prince, princes, princess.
– Bra, bras, brass.
– Care, cares, caress.
4. (a) Bangladesh
    (b) Egypt
    (c) Fiji
    (d) Nicaragua
    (e) Switzerland
    (f) Tunisia
    (g) Zambia
5. Nine
6. Alas, alias
7. Time
8. Brogues
9. (a) Tom Hanks
    (b) Dan Ackroyd
    (c) William Shatner
10. (a)  USA
      (b)  Canada
      (c)  England
      (d)  Lebanon
      (e)  India

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September 29, 2010

PestXit – A Follow-up

by Ken Greatorex
Peter Bromley’s experiences with his mum’s PestXit Duo (11th September) interested me strangely. This device does not rely on nasty chemicals, paranormal energy or the doubtful therapeutic effect of magnetic fields. You plug it in and turn it on, and it makes a continuous irritating noise beyond the human frequency threshold. That’s plausible. Why shouldn’t it work? View More PestXit – A Follow-up

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September 26, 2010

A Skeptic's Guide to Firewalking

This article first appeared as a Vic Skeptics discussion pamphlet.
The full range of our discussion pamphlets can be downloaded here: http://www.skeptics.com.au/resources/educational/ or by clicking on the “Useful Info” link at the top of this page.

What is firewalking?
Typically, firewalking involves walking with bare feet across a level bed of hot glowing coals, the remnant of a wood fire. On the Pacific Islands, heated stones are substituted for coals. View More A Skeptic's Guide to Firewalking

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September 20, 2010

Superheros Are Amongst Us!

by Lucas Randall (aka Codenix)
I used to think superheros were the domain of fiction, existing only in comic-books and on film, their powers limited to battling their super-villain foe, equally the domain of fiction. I didn’t realise superheros and super-villains are actually real, living amongst us and affecting our lives in very real ways. View More Superheros Are Amongst Us!

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September 11, 2010

PestXit – Have they built The Better Mousetrap?

by Peter Bromley
A few years ago I spent hours of endless fun at my mother’s house chasing mice…or emptying traps.  They seemed to be fairly regular visitors and she hated them almost as much as the telemarketers who specialised at calling at tea time.  A mouse with a phone – the ultimate pest!

When she saw the PestXit somewhere (probably Bunnings or Dick Smith) she wanted to try it.  My experience with this sort of thing had been extensive – I bought one for mosquitoes when I was young and woke up eye to eye with a mozzie that was actually sitting on the device.  It didn’t look stressed at all.  In fact, all it needed was a cigarette and magazine. View More PestXit – Have they built The Better Mousetrap?

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