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Why Our Brains Believe Brain Science, God Science by Michael Mcguire and Lionel Tiger How Religion Resists Science

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Why Our Brains Believe Brain Science, God Science by Michael Mcguire and Lionel Tiger How Religion Resists Science SI May June 2010 v2_SI JF 10 V1 3/29/10 9:13 AM Page 1 IRAQ’S BOGUS ‘BOMB DETECTORS’ | ABDUCTIONS OR HOAXES? | TESTING MIRACLES | SCIENCE VS. BUNK THE MAG A ZINE FOR SCI ENCE AND REA SON Vol ume 34, No. 3 • May / June 2010 • INTRODUCTORY PRICE U.S. and Canada $4.95 why our Brains Believe BRAin science, goD science By Michael Mcguire and lionel tiger How Religion Resists science special Report: Did a cosmic impact Kill the Mammoths? genetic Algorithm Bests intelligent Design Hormone Replacement therapy: A new look Power Balance: Pseudoscientific silliness SI May June 2010 pgs_SI MJ 2010 3/26/10 9:18 AM Page 2 FORMERLY THE COMMITTEE FOR THE SCIENTIFIC INVESTIGATION OF CLAIMS OF THE PARANORMAL (CSICOP). AT THE CEN TER FOR IN QUIRY /TRANSNATIONAL. A Paul Kurtz, Founder and Chairman Emeritus Joe Nickell, Senior Research Fellow Richard Schroeder, Chairman Massimo Polidoro, Research Fellow Ronald A. Lindsay, President and CEO Benjamin Radford, Research Fellow Bar ry Karr, Ex ec u tive Di rect or Richard Wiseman, Research Fellow James E. Al cock, psy chol o gist, York Univ., Tor on to Mur ray Gell-Mann, pro fes sor of phys ics, San ta Fe In sti tute; Lor en Pan kratz, psy chol o gist, Or e gon Health Sci en ces Univ. Mar cia An gell, M.D., former ed i tor-in-chief, New Eng land Jour - No bel lau re ate Robert L. Park, professor of physics, Univ. of Maryland nal of Med i cine Thom as Gi lov ich, psy chol o gist, Cor nell Univ. Jay M. Pasachoff, Field Memorial Professor of Astronomy and Kimball Atwood IV, M.D., physician, author, Newton, MA Sus an Haack, Coop er Sen ior Schol ar in Arts and Sci en ces, pro- director of the Hopkins Observatory, Williams College fessor of phi los o phy and professor of Law, Univ. of Mi ami Steph en Bar rett, M.D., psy chi a trist, au thor, con sum er ad vo cate, John Pau los, math e ma ti cian, Tem ple Univ. Al len town, Pa. Harriet Hall, M.D., family physician, investigator, Puyallup, WA Massimo Pigliucci, professor of philosophy, City Univ. of C.E.M. Han sel, psy chol o gist, Univ. of Wales Willem Betz, professor of medicine, Univ. of Brussels New York-Lehman College David J. Helfand, professor of astronomy, Columbia Univ. Ir ving Bie der man, psy chol o gist, Univ. of South ern Cal i for nia Stev en Pink er, cog ni tive sci en tist, Harvard Sus an Black more, Vis it ing Lec tur er, Univ. of the West of Doug las R. Hof stad ter, pro fes sor of hu man un der stand ing and Philip Plait, astronomer, lecturer, and writer Eng land, Bris tol cog ni tive sci ence, In di ana Univ. Mas si mo Pol id oro, sci ence writer, au thor, ex ec u tive di rect or, Hen ri Broch, phys i cist, Univ. of Nice, France Ger ald Hol ton, Mal linc krodt Pro fes sor of Phys ics and pro fes sor CI CAP, It a ly Jan Har old Brun vand, folk lor ist, pro fes sor emer i tus of Eng - of his to ry of sci ence, Har vard Univ. James “The Amazing” Randi, magician, CSICOP founding lish, Univ. of Utah Ray Hy man, psy chol o gist, Univ. of Or e gon member, founder, James Randi Educational Foundation Mar io Bunge, phi los o pher, McGill Univ. Le on Jar off, sci en ces ed i tor emer i tus, Time Mil ton Ro sen berg, psy chol o gist, Univ. of Chic a go Robert T. Carroll, emeritus professor of philosophy, Stuart D. Jordan, NASA astrophysicist emeritus, science Sacramento City College, writer advisor to Center for Inquiry Office of Public Policy, Wal la ce Sam pson, M.D., clin i cal pro fes sor of med i cine, Stan - Sean B. Carroll, professor of molecular genetics, Univ. of Washington, D.C. ford Univ., ed i tor, Sci en tif ic Re view of Al ter na tive Med i cine Wisconsin–Madison Ser gei Ka pit za, former ed i tor, Rus sian edi tion, Sci en tif ic Amer i can Am ar deo Sar ma*, chairman, GWUP, Ger ma ny John R. Cole, an thro pol o gist, ed i tor, Na tion al Cen ter for Sci - Law rence M. Krauss, foundation professor, School of Earth Ev ry Schatz man, former pres i dent, French Phys ics As so ci a tion and Space Exploration and Physics Dept., director, Origins ence Ed u ca tion Eu ge nie Scott, phys i cal an thro pol o gist, ex ec u tive di rect or, Initiative, Arizona State Univ. K.C. Cole, science writer, author, professor, Univ. of Na tion al Cen ter for Sci ence Ed u ca tion Southern California’s Annenberg School of Journalism. Harry Kroto, professor of chemistry and biochemistry, Florida State Univ.; Nobel laureate Rob ert Sheaf fer, sci ence writer Fred er ick Crews, lit er ary and cul tur al crit ic, pro fes sor emer i tus El ie A. Shne our, bi o chem ist, au thor, president and research of Eng lish, Univ. of Cal i for nia, Berke ley Ed win C. Krupp, as tron o mer, di rect or, Grif fith Ob ser va to ry director, Bi os ys tems Re search In sti tute, La Jol la, CA Rich ard Dawk ins, zo ol o gist, Ox ford Univ. Paul Kurtz,* professor emeritus of philosophy, SUNY at Buffalo Seth Shostak, senior astronomer, SETI Institute, Mountain Ge of frey Dean, tech ni cal ed i tor, Perth, Aus tral ia Law rence Kusche, sci ence writer View, CA Cor nel is de Ja ger, pro fes sor of as tro phys ics, Univ. of Utrecht, Le on Le der man, emer i tus di rect or, Fer mi lab; No bel lau re ate in phys ics Dick Smith, film pro duc er, pub lish er, Ter rey Hills, N.S.W., Aus tral ia The Neth er lands Scott Lil i en feld, psy chol o gist, Emory Univ. Rob ert Stein er, ma gi cian, au thor, El Cer ri to, CA Dan i el C. Den nett, Univ. pro fes sor and Aus tin B. Fletch er Pro - fes sor of Phi los o phy, di rect or of Cen ter for Cog ni tive Stud ies Lin Zix in, former ed i tor, Sci ence and Tech nol o gy Dai ly (Chi na) Vic tor J. Sten ger, emer i tus pro fes sor of phys ics and as tron o my, at Tufts Uni v. Je re Lipps, Mu se um of Pa le on tol o gy, Univ. of Cal i for nia, Berke ley Univ. of Ha waii; ad junct pro fes sor of phi los o phy, Univ. of CO Ann Druyan, writer and producer, and CEO, Cosmos Studios, Eliz a beth Loft us, pro fes sor of psy chol o gy, Univ. of CA, Ir vine Jill Cor nell Tar ter, as tron o mer, SE TI In sti tute, Moun tain View, CA Ithaca, NY Da vid Marks, psy chol o gist, City Univ., Lon don Car ol Tav ris, psy chol o gist and au thor, Los Ange les, CA Ken neth Fed er, pro fes sor of an thro pol o gy, Cen tral Con nec ti cut Mar io Men dez-Acos ta, jour nal ist and sci ence writer, Mex i co Da vid Thom as, phys i cist and math e ma ti cian, Per al ta, NM State Univ. City, Mex i co Steph en Toul min, pro fes sor of phi los o phy, Univ. of South ern CA An to ny Flew, phi los o pher, Read ing Univ., U.K. Kenneth R. Miller, professor of biology, Brown Univ. Neil de Gras se Ty son, as tro phys i cist and di rect or, Hay den Marv in Min sky, pro fes sor of me dia arts and sci en ces, M.I.T. Barbara Forrest, professor of philosophy, SE Louisiana Univ. Plan e tar i um, New York City Da vid Mor ri son, space sci en tist, NA SA Ames Re search Cen ter An drew Fra knoi, as tron o mer, Foot hill Col lege, Los Al tos Hills,CA. Ma ri lyn vos Sa vant, Pa rade mag a zine con trib ut ing ed i tor Kend rick Fra zi er*, sci ence writer, ed i tor, SKEP TI CAL IN QUIR ER Rich ard A. Mul ler, pro fes sor of phys ics, Univ. of Ca lif., Berke ley Stev en Wein berg, pro fes sor of phys ics and as tron o my, Univ. of Joe Nick ell, sen ior re search fel low, CSI Christopher C. French, professor, department of psychol- Tex as at Aus tin; No bel lau re ate ogy, and head of the Anomalistic Psychology Research Jan Willem Nienhuys, mathematician, Waalre, The E.O. Wil son, uni ver si ty pro fes sor emer i tus, Har vard Univ. Unit, Goldsmiths College, Univ. of London. Netherlands Yv es Gal i fret, executive secretary, l’Union Rationaliste Lee Nis bet, phi los o pher, Med aille Col lege Rich ard Wis e man, psy chol o gist, Uni ver si ty of Hert ford shire Mar tin Gard ner, au thor, crit ic Steven Novella, M.D., assistant professor of neurology, Benjamin Wolozin*, professor, department of pharmacology, Luigi Garlaschelli, chemist, Università di Pavia (Italy), and Yale Univ.
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