People who practise the controversial recovered-memory therapy may soon have to be registered by a professional board, amid concerns that some are unqualified and could cause harm. http://www.theage.com.au/news/National/Memory-therapy-state-launches-probe/2004/11/22/1100972326650.html
The Australian False Memory Association say the therapy is “dangerous, unscientific, and just destroys families“. http://www.afma.asn.au/
During the recent federal elections, new political party “Family First” claimed it was a media overreaction to label their party “fundamentalist Christian” merely because some of their candidates came from religious groups such as “Catch the Fire“. However now the Family First chairman has released a statement saying he thinks the literal Biblical creation story should receive equal time in school classrooms with evolution.(Creationism) Other Christians have since written in to reject this idea. One wonders whether he’d be happy to give equal time to other “theories” such as the Four Elements, Flat Earth, Phlogiston, non-Christian creation stories and Santa Claus.
http://www.theage.com.au/news/National/Creation-theory-gets-boost/2004/11/17/1100574537582.html
TV: Sensing Murder (News.com.au 25/9/2004)
Police have rejected its claims to have unearthed new clues in the murder, including sightings of a light-coloured sedan and a photofit image of a man believed to have information about the attack.
Asked whether the show’s findings were useful to investigators, Victoria Police spokeswoman Sergeant Creina O’Grady said: “No. The Homicide Squad deals in factual evidence not psychic.“
(Excerpt from http://www.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,4057,10877229%255E2862,00.html )
“Sensing Murder” is based on a Swedish Tv show which also failed to deliver any results: http://www.randi.org/jr/112103.html (search on ‘Sensing Murder‘)
See also Sensing Murder.
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
theyre 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)
For more details about the Melbourne Museum see http://www.museum.vic.gov.au
The Victorian Skeptics are very proud to be a major sponsor for the 2004 STAV Science Talent Search. (Prep-12) We look forward to meeting many of the winners at the upcoming awards day and intend to display photographs from the event as well as a list of sponsored winners on this site.
(Creationism articles)
Vic Skeptics Committee member and Australian Skeptics Life Member Peter Hogan has cracked it for a mention in “Prayer News“, the official newsletter of the Creationist/Christian Fundamentalist organization “Answers in Genesis“.
Peter had an article in Australasian Science (Vol. 24 No. 1) warning readers that AiG was trying to get its supporters to donate subscriptions to Creation and TJ magazines to local and school libraries. Peter suggested it was important to make sure these magazines, which are anti-evolution, be classified as religion, and not as science, as AiG suggested.
He also jokingly suggested that a suitable classification would be “Myths & Legends“. AiG have magnanimously agreed to relegate their products to the “Myths and Legends” shelves – as soon as Evolution is also treated as a myth.
Unfortunately the anticipated Melbourne visit by “The Bad Astronomer” Phil Plait in November will not be taking place. He will however be speaking in Sydney at the Australian Skeptics Convention. For more information see http://www.users.on.net/~ct/skeptic/nsw/convention.htm
This year’s Australian Skeptics National Convention is titled “Beyond a Joke” and is being held in Sydney. It will run from 12th-14th November.
“This year’s convention will be a mix of Scepticism and belly laughs with top line comedians adding their own insights into the world of the paranormal.“
Please visit the URL below for more information http://www.users.on.net/~ct/skeptic/nsw/convention.htm
Skeptics Conference
On July 20th 1969, Man first set foot on the moon. Millions of people around the world were riveted to their TV screens as Neil Armstrong stepped from the Landing Module. Reality TV par excellence! Two years and five successful missions later, the number of moon-walkers had reached twelve.
Since Apollo 17 splashed down in 1972, momentum has gathered for the proposition that we have all been misled by the US Government and by NASA in particular. The case for this was probably best presented by Fox’s TV special Conspiracy Theory: Did We Land on the Moon? which aired in the USA in February 2001. Millions of viewers apparently found the pro-hoax arguments persuasive and convincing.
Firstly, there were the technical experts (American and Russian) who claimed that NASA did not possess the technology in 1969 to achieve these feats, or at least, the likelihood of success was so tiny that the risk of real Moon landings would not have been seriously contemplated. This proposition is supported by the fact that no other country has since visited the Moon, and that NASA’s own manned missions since 1972 have been confined to Earth orbit.
Secondly, film footage of astronauts on the moon is said to contain so many technical errors that it must have been shot in a studio on Earth. Some of these alleged “errors” include ;
These and many other “flaws” came thick and fast, and to many viewers they provided hard evidence for a Moon Landing Hoax which was “Not only a fake, but a poor fake“.
Thirdly, the subsequent commercial film Capricorn 1 simulated landing on Mars in a way that was at least as “realistic” as the Moon Landing footage. It therefore View More Moon Landings
(Reviewer Rob Brown)
Things were strangely quiet on this Saturday night in Preston for the 2004 Science Drama Awards show was performing to a packed house. Months of preparation and qualifying rounds had come down to this one night, to which many people had travelled hundreds of kilometres across Victoria to attend.
Seven schools came to teach and entertain the audience with science. The host for the evening was Chris Krishna-Pillay who did a fine job and showed much enthusiasm throughout the night. The schools showed various levels of preparation and steady story telling. Unfortunately there were one or two who failed to show much that the audience could hold onto. Overall the schools used various themes for their pieces from growing beans on Mars (illustrating plant germination) to a Shakespearean tale of the love between Sodium and Chlorine (illustrating metallic and non-metallic bonding). There was much music from Devo to Wham, and movement from ribbon twirling to cartwheels.
There were two standout performances: Caulfield Grammar Grade 4 who received the Primary School Award, and MacRobertson Girls’ 7-12 who received the High School Award.
Caulfield demonstrated the principles of electromagnetic waves. They created a strong story with a boy completing a science project, trying to entertain his flighty sister who would rather simply dance through life. They involved a lot of kids, and succeeded strongly in both science communication and entertainment. A xylophone will never sound the same again to those who saw the show.
MacRob translated “Romeo and Juliet” into a story of two chemicals strongly attracted but from different backgrounds. Yes, it did get whimsical, but this was their humour and they milked it often and very well. Many students played music as well as their acting roles in this piece – showoffs!
The personal highlight for me was Chisholm Catholic School, who though they weren’t the best actors, made the air thick with irony as they told of the life and contributions of Galileo Galilei. Definitely a skeptic’s highlight!