Wednesday 23 January 2013

The Weekly Round-up w/e 21/1/2013

Welcome once again to the critically acclaimed Weekly Round-up (my mum said she liked it). You may have noticed we’ve had a bit of weather lately. Well actually we’ve been having weather for quite a while and with this interactive map you can check on the temperature changes in different regions from 1893.

Tony Pinkus of Ainsworths, purveyors of homeopathy, has been recommending homeopathic vaccinations. Andy Lewis and the Nightingale Collaboration have been less than impressed with response of the MHRA so far. But still, if homeopathic vaccines catch on perhaps books like these will become far more relevant.
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Perhaps though there is one kindness that homeopaths can offer to ease that final passage

Back to vaccines and David Kirby presents us with the story of a vaccine court that has compensated children with autism. Is this an admission at last that vaccines cause autism? We’ll let Orac answer that.

I’m not sure if there are any detrimental side-effects to reading the round-up, but apparently Dean Burnetts blog can give you cancer! I dare you to click?

How about a super telescope hanging from a balloon the size of a football stadium? I wonder if it’s powerful enough to detect a Cox?

Love it or hate it there are some cool things that happen on Twitter. How about this for a fantastic exchange stretching across space and the (Star Trek) generations?

Astronauts get taller in space? And if you’ve ever wondered how they trim their nails, wonder no more.

Still with Twitter a great hashtag that gathered momentum amongst scientists was #overlyhonestmethods, revealing the often humorous truth behind experimental processes. @xtaldave points out some slight dangers amongst the revelry from those with an anti-science agenda.

Barnacle porn! (Bet that gets the most clicks!)

I think it would be a great idea if proper reason based scientists were to write horoscopes. Certainly much more accurate that the so-called proper astrologers. Should we regulate them, some people in India think so. If we don’t regulate them how about testing them?

Have you heard the one about the comedy psychic?

This one’s for Heston Blumenthal, cooking a steak by dropping it from a height.

Progress in a science career is all about ability, dedication and perseverance, nothing to do with gender of course.

Can money buy you happiness after all? Maybe it seems if you spend it wisely Whether it can or not, had I the disposable income I might be tempted to spend some of it buying myself some of them there lazer equipped Google glasses.

The Christian Right have been disappointed as they lost 3-1 away in Europe. Never afraid of saying what he thinks Peter Hitchens at the Daily Mail explains the nuanced implications of the rulings for British culture.

As eager as he is to maintain the state religion of this kingdom there are some pretty good reasons not to bring your child up a Christian.

We’ve just had our first book group and despite the snow and travel conditions ten hardy souls still made it into the city centre and had a great time. If you want to make it to the next ones the date for you diary is 17th Feb where we will be discussing Ben Goldacre’s Bad Science and then the 17th of March for Thinking Fast and Slow by Daniel  Kahneman. Both are at Yorks Bakery Café at 1pm, follow the links for the Facebook events.

It’s our social tonight, sorry if this is short notice but if you follow us on Facebook or Twitter you’ll get the info first. Our next speaker is the marvellous Neil Denny of Little Atoms who will be taking us on his skeptical odyssey

And because we really like you all we’ve put on a second event for February. John Sweeney (Yes that John Sweeney) is coming to take us inside the Weird World of Scientology. It will be a fascinating night, come and meet the man and maybe even buy a book off him and get it signed.

The final video isn’t exactly science or skepticism but I liked it and I’m putting this together so you’ll just have to give it a go.




This round-up was put together by Patrick Redmond with contributions from Roy Beddowes.

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