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News Gathering vs. Confirmation Bias
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Science
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[S]cience is more than a body of knowledge; it is a way of thinking. I have a foreboding of an America in my children's or grandchildren's time – when the United States is a service and information economy; when nearly all the key manufacturing industries have slipped away to other countries; when awesome technological powers are in the hands of a very few, and no one representing the public interest can even grasp the issues; when the people have lost the ability to set their own agendas or knowledgeably question those in authority; when, clutching our crystals and nervously consulting our horoscopes, our critical faculties in decline, unable to distinguish between what feels good and what's true, we slide, almost without noticing, back into superstition and darkness.
The dumbing down of America is most evident in the slow decay of substantive content in the enormously influential media, the 30-second sound bites (now down to 10 seconds or less), lowest common denominator programming, credulous presentations on pseudoscience and superstition, but especially a kind of celebration of ignorance.
— Carl Sagan, The Demon-Haunted World: Science as a Candle in the Dark (New York: Ballantine Books, 1996) at p.32.
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[S]cience is more than a body of knowledge; it is a way of thinking. I have a foreboding of an America in my children's or grandchildren's time – when the United States is a service and information economy; when nearly all the key manufacturing industries have slipped away to other countries; when awesome technological powers are in the hands of a very few, and no one representing the public interest can even grasp the issues; when the people have lost the ability to set their own agendas or knowledgeably question those in authority; when, clutching our crystals and nervously consulting our horoscopes, our critical faculties in decline, unable to distinguish between what feels good and what's true, we slide, almost without noticing, back into superstition and darkness.
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Tag Archives: science
AAAS: What We Know
Climate scientists agree: climate change is happening here and now. Based on well-established evidence, about 97% of climate scientists have concluded that human-caused climate change is happening. This agreement is documented not just by a single study, but by a converging stream of evidence over the past two decades from surveys of scientists, content analyses […]
Also tagged climate
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NASA’s Best Images of Earth From Space in 2014
Wired Science: Here are some of our favorite shots that NASA’s satellites captured of Earth this year, including shots of a volcano erupting on a newly born island, tornado tracks across the Great Plains, the aurora borealis above Russia and dust from the Sahara spreading across the globe. Many thanks to the super team at […]
Also tagged photography
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Pediatrician: Vaccinate Your Kids—Or Get Out of My Office
Russell Saunders, a pediatrician in New England, writing at The Daily Beast: Declining vaccines is, at best, misguided. But of course those inclined to refuse them don’t agree with me, and I’m not going to try to change their minds. I’ve had too many of that kind of conversation over the years to hold out […]
‘Cosmos: A Space-Time Odyssey’ Will Breathe New Life Into Sagan’s Vision
Phil Plait (@BadAstronomer on Twitter): “For those questioning the idea of #Cosmos airing on Fox and not PBS, please read this.” We live in a time when the denial of reality is as prevalent (or more) than the acceptance of it. Much of that denial comes from a provincial view of the Universe, a narrowly […]
Also tagged documentary, education, history, tv
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Reason: How Even a ‘Well-Trained Narcotics Detection Dog’ Can Be Wrong 84 Percent of the Time
So even a dog that is very good at finding drugs in a “controlled testing environment” will generate a lot of false positives when sniffing randomly selected cars. Again, forensic “science” (with the exception of DNA) largely isn’t science. The U.S. Extreme Court is WRONG.
Also tagged crime, government, reason, skepticism
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How reliable is the science behind forensic science?
Fascinating PBS: FRONTLINE show from April, “The Real CSI: How reliable is the science behind forensics?” So it turns out that the Forensic sciences (with the notable exception of DNA) are no more “hard science” than Creation “science”, social “science”, or Scientology… Most have no scientific basis at all, and those that do rarely reach […]
Also tagged crime, education, government, reason, skepticism, tv
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AP: Meteor Explodes Over Russia, Nearly 1,000 Hurt
“Ever wonder just how much damage a meteor exploding in the sky can do?” “The Russian Academy of Sciences said in a statement that the meteor over the Chelyabinsk region entered the Earth’s atmosphere at a speed of at least 54,000 kph (33,000 mph) and shattered about 30-50 kilometers (18-32 miles) above ground.”
Science and Anti-Science in Washington, D.C.
Two recent tweets from Joanne Manaster (@sciencegoddess) which I found particularly interesting: The most pro-science presidents in American history. fb.me/1HwqvhFSB Antiscience Beliefs Jeopardize US Democracy. Great article worth your time by @ShawnOtto at @sciam fb.me/1Q271rMCK Of particular interest to me was being reminded that Ronald Reagan was not anti-science, but was — not completely, but […]
Also tagged government, politics, reason
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Bill Nye the Science Guy: Why Creationism is Bad for Children
Speaking of Bill Nye, here’s another excellent video from Big Think wherein Bill Nye the Science Guy explains why Creationism is not appropriate for children.
Also tagged education, evolution, reason, religion, skepticism
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Bill Nye, the Science Guy, Death Hoax
via Gossip Cop: Bill Nye is the latest victim of a death hoax. The sick rumor was started on Twitter late Sunday until a “R.I.P. Bill Nye The Science Guy” topic began trending, which in turn spawned thousands of messages mourning his supposed death. It is 100% false. Nye is NOT dead. Funny thing is […]
Also tagged bullshit, education, news, reason, skepticism
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