DOCSLIB.ORG

Clhdca 0 7GE the Proceedings of the South Place Ethical Society Vol

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Clhdca 0 7GE the Proceedings of the South Place Ethical Society Vol Clhdca 0 7GE The Proceedings of the South Place Ethical Society Vol. 114 No. 4 £1.50 April 2009 MUaJJJJaJU Li , Li El unn uuaJunJ1aJwnJ1nJauaJnlJnanuaJnJaJwn1nJaJu1auaauauLEP dr2PLEEPLP E Cicero Denounces Catiline: Fresco by Cesare Maccari (1840-1919) Marcus Tullius Cicero on De Senectute (see article by Chris Bratcher on page 3) SPES's CONWAY HALL SUNDAY CONCERTS TO CONTINUE Since the departure of the London Chamber Music Society in April 2008, the Ethical Society has been arranging the Sunday Concerts itself. Simon Callaghan has been commissioned to engage the musicians. Although the concerts still require a hefty subsidy from the Society's funds, the GC decided on I April 2009 to financially support the 2009/10 season. Members' support is of course most welcome as well. Contact Giles Enders on 020 7242 8034/1 NB VIEWPOINTS THROUGH A GLASS DARKLY ON OLD AGE, FROM CICERO AND THE ANCIENTS Chris Bratcher3 PASCAL'S WAGER: IS IT PHIWSOPHY? Robert Schwarz9 THE CRUCIFIXION: THE SADO-MASOCHISTIC HEART OF CHRISTIANITY Barbara SmokerII WHY RATIONALISM ISN'T WHAT YOU THINK IT IS Bob ChurchillIS VIEWPOINT: Jon and Adele Wainwright 23 ETHICAL SOCIETY EVENTS 24 SOUTH PLACE ETHICAL SOCIETY Conway Hall Humanist Centre 25 Red Lion Square, London WC IR 4RL. Tel: 020 7242 8031/4 Fax: 020 7242 8036 Website: www.ethicalsoc.org.uk email: [email protected] Chairman: Giles Enders Hon. Rep.: Don Liversedge Vice-chairman: Terry Mullins Treasurer: John Edwards Registrar: Donald Rooum Editor, Ethical Record: Norman Bacrac SPES Staff Executive Officer: Emma J. Stanford Tel: 020 7242 8031/4 Finance Officer: . Linda Alia Tel: 020 7242 8031/4 Lettings Officer: Carina Dvorak Tel: 020 7242 8032 LibrarianIProgramme Co ordinator: Jennifer Jeynes MSc. Tel:020 7242 8037 Lettings Assistant: Marie Aubrechtova Caretakers: Eva Aubrechtova (i/c): Tel: 020 7242 8033 together with: Shaip Bullaku, Angelo Edrozo, Nikola Ivanovski. Alfredo Olivio, Rogerio Retuerna, David Wright Maintenance Operative: Zia Harneed New Members The Society is pleased to welcome to membership Dr Alexander Melnikoff of Holborn; Dr Jerry Jones of London SWI9 Donors Dr Jerry Jones of London SWI9, who has generously donated £50; Mr A Landau of Linlithgow, Nr Edinburgh, who has donated a cache of humanist books. SUCCESS OF BIG EVENTS AT CONWAY HALL There has been a spate of very successful 'big events' filling the main Conway Hall recently. These have been put on by the Ethical Society in conjunction either with the British Humanist Association or with the year-old Centre for Inquiry London. The two joint BHAISPES events were lectures entitled Can British science rise to the challenge of the 21st century? by Sir David King on I I February and A Darwinian perspective on religions: past, present and future by Prof Dan Dennett on 19 March. They were each chaired by Richard Dawkins and 'played' to full houses. The two joint CF1L/SPES events held so far were Weird science, with Richard Wiseman, Chris French, Stephen Law (CFIL Provost) and Ben Goldacre on 17 January and God in the lab with Emma Cohen, Mike Jackson, Justin Barrett and Miguel Farias on 21 March. The third joint CFIL/SPES event will be on Science and religion with Jack Cohen, Simon Singh, Stephen Law and Baroness Mary Warnock on Saturday 25 April, from I lam to 4pm, to which everyone who can should attend. SOUTH PLACE ETHICAL SOCIETY Reg. Charity No. 251396 Founded in 1793, the Society is a progressive movement whose aims are: the study and dissemination of ethical principles based on humanism, the cultivation of a rational and humane way of life, and the advancement of research and education in relevant fields. We invite to membership those who reject supernatural creeds and are in sympathy with our aims. At Conway Hall the programme includes Sunday lectures, discussions, evening courses and the renowned South Place Sunday Concerts of chamber music. The Society maintains a Humanist Reference Library. The Society's journal. Ethical Record, is issued monthly. Memorial meetings may be arranged. The annual subscription is 1 8 (£12 if a full-time student, unwaged or over 65). 2 Ethical Record, April 2009 VIEWPOINTS THROUGH A GLASS DARKLY ON OLD AGE, FROM CICERO AND THE ANCIENTS Chris Bratcher Lecture to the Ethical Society, 29 March 2009 I recognise that I've recently crossed the Rubicon into what I consider to be Old Age to join most of you recumbent on its far bank. A great mass of Baby boomers are not far behind, and like wildebeests, they'll be nervously questing for an easy descent into those uncertain waters, and an easier clamber up and onto a pension- light scrubland on the Far Side. So tips for survival in a country that has long been mapped out by cartoonists and dramatists, and observed in our parents, yet is not really known to us until we discover it for ourselves, are valuable. Should one have SPES — literally in Latin, hope —or something nearer to despair coated with wry regret at lost powers and opportunities? Today's talk will look at a Classical — indeed, what has become a classic - view of the prospect. Quite the most famous work of the period was De Senectute, (Of Old Age) by Marcus Tullius Cicero. It runs to about 35 pages in Latin, and 45 in English. He wrote the first draft just before Julius Caesar was assassinated, and completed it shortly afterwards at a critical point in his life; shortly before he ignored all his sage advice, and went completely off the rails, to his death! The first part of the talk is as much about him as the work, as his life is its best commentary. Cicero's Fame Michael Grant, the Penguin translator of many of his works, simply says that "the influence of Cicero upon the history of European literature and thought greatly exceeds that of any other prose writer in any language". The earliest Italian printers in the 15th century produced over 200 editions of his works. His speeches were the template for rhetoric and advocacy throughout Europe; he coined the word `moralis' - our 'moral', and his thoughts on the subject were used by all sides in the Reformation. Tully (as English men of letters used to refer to him) was 'moral instruction' and 'civics' throughout most of the last millennium, until the subject went out of fashion, and familiarity with Latin authors ceased. Here are a couple of quotes showing the effect of his work De Officiis (On Duties) on humanists. It was also written in 44BCE. Hume said "I desire to take my catalogue of virtues from it", and Voltaire said that "No one will ever write anything more wise, more true, or more useful. From now on, those whose ambition is to give men instruction, to provide them with precepts, will be charlatans if they want to rise above you, or all will be your imitators." That is perhaps a shade over the top, but this work in particular exemplified what SPES thought it should be about in our grand-parents' time; the promotion of the virtues and benefits of honesty ,based on common 'humanitas', as a counter to the seemingly perennial problem of spivvery in public and business dealings. The present government and set of M.P.s clearly did not have his writings inculcated at an impressionable age. Ethical Record, April 2009 3 Cicero's Life Up To De Senectute Cicero, like myself, was in his 62nd year when he wrote the piece. He had made his name as an advocate and prosecutor of corruption in office; so much so that, although not a member of a patrician family, he came to represent their interest, and got elected consul, when he crushed a conspiracy by the losing candidate to oust his successor by force. Alas, he went too far in securing the senate's agreement to putting the conspirators to death without appeal, and, in the face of popular reaction, he was briefly exiled, then rehabilitated as a model governor of Sicily for a couple of years. On his return, he continued to fitfully back Pompey and the Ancien Regime against Julius Caesar, and to bang on 'off message' about the concentration of power that rode rough-shod over ancient checks and balances. Identified with the wrong side in what was a civil war, and losing his influence with Caesar, he increasingly retreated to his country estates: he promptly divorced his wife in 46BC, and married his 17 year old ward (which lasted a year — a lesson, surely); his beloved daughter died in February the next year, and his son was off studying philosophy in Athens. You could say, the decks were cleared, but what to do with the rest of his life? Well, he set himself to re- read a lot of Greek philosophy. He and Pompey had years earlier studied at the Stoic school in Rhodes run by Posidonius, who with his predecessor, Panaetius, had introduced Roman society to a form of Stoicism. "If a man lives", Cicero had declared, "who would belittle the study of philosophy, I quite fail to see what in the world he would see fit to praise." Twenty years earlier, he had written (Pro Archia,16) " .. even if the great practical benefits (of reading) were not apparent, even if the object of these studies were pleasure only, even so, you must agree that no other mental activity is so worthy of a humanus !Microns [a civilized human being]. All other pursuits depend on particular times or ages or places, but these studies are as stimulating for young people as they are a source of pleasure for the old: they grace success, and they provide comfort and refuge in adversity .
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Tall Tales About Mind and Brain
    Tall Tales about Mind and Brain Supporting Resource Pack for Teachers Contents The Royal Society of Edinburgh ..................................................................................................1 Introduction..................................................................................................................................2 Supporting Resources for Teachers.............................................................................................4 Memory and Learning...............................................................................................................4 - Memory a User’s Guide. Professor Alan Baddeley CBE FRS,Professor of Psychology, University of York - The Myth of the Incredible Witness. Professor Tim Valentine, Professor of Psychology, Goldsmiths, University of London - The Perils of Intuition. Professor David G Myers, Professor of Psychology, Hope College, Holland - Magic and the Paranormal: The Psychology. Dr Peter Lamont, School of Philosophy, Psychology and Language Sciences, the University of Edinburgh Intelligence ................................................................................................................................8 - Bigger and Better? Brain Size and Species. Dr David Carey, School of Psychology, University of Aberdeen - Intelligence. Professor Michael Anderson, Department of Psychology, the University of Western Australia, Perth - Myths about Intelligence and Old Age. Professor Ian J Deary FBA FRSE, Professor of Differential Psychology, Department
    [Show full text]
  • ITC, the Technology Is Possibly a Factor
    FAQ: Trans-Etheric Influence http://ethericstudies.org/faq/trans-etheric_influence.htm FAQ Frequently Asked Questions Frequently Asked Trans-etheric InLluence Questions Index of Arcles Some articles are in multiple indexes so Who is talking in voice phenomena? you may need to use the "Back" button Etheric Studies Question: Who is talking in voice phenomena? Queson about Tom Butler Survival of Personality Answer: In mediumship, there appears to be a relationship between the medium's ability Time and Cosmology to "get out of the way" and how "advanced" the communicating entity might be. A Trans-etheric Influence deep-trance medium of great experience might reach a "higher-level being" while a hacker like me giving spirit greetings in church might only get Uncle John who is standing near Related Articles the receiver. I think one of the differences is that the "higher-level being" is a group entity ATransC: Frequently Asked Quesons and Uncle John is a relatively recently transitioned person who has not learned to integrate himself with his group entity. In ITC, the technology is possibly a factor. We know that our psi energy can influence the randomness of broad-spectrum processes such as high-frequency Random Event Generators (REG). In transform EVP, noise from which voice is formed is essentially the same kind of random energy, but it is expressed in the plasma or a transistor junction via stochastic resonance. In Direct Radio Voice (DRV), such as practiced by Bacci and Cardoso , the energy is probably more akin to the energy experienced by the Scole Group (new energy).
    [Show full text]
  • Debunking Detox Diets
    6NHSWLFLVP6FLHQFH6RFLHW\ 9ROXPH1R0DUFK AN INTRODUCTION TO PARAPSYCHOLOGY A REMOTE VIEWING EXPERIMENT SCIENTOLOGY AND THE TRAVOLTA TRAGEDY ENVIRONMENTAL DEBATES AND LOGICAL FALLACIES PSYCHIATRY BASHING DEBUNKING DETOX DIETS ZZZVNHSWLFVFRPDX Skeptics Around Australia New South Wales PO Box 438 Collaroy Beach NSW 2097 Connect with the next generation! Tel: 0432 713 195 Fax: (02) 8088 4735 Scientists in Schools is a national program [email protected] that creates long-term professional Hunter Skeptics partnerships between scientists and Ph: (02) 4959 6286 [email protected] teachers. It’s completely fl exible to [email protected] suit your interests and availability. Victoria Australian Skeptics (Vic) Inc GPO Box 5166AA, Melbourne VIC 3001 Find out more at Tel: 1 800 666 996 www.scientistsinschools.edu.au [email protected] Borderline Skeptics Scientists in Schools PO Box 17 , Mitta Mitta VIC 3701 Tel: (02) 6072 3632 is an Australian [email protected] Government initiative. Queensland Queensland Skeptics Assn Inc PO Box 6454 , Fairfi eld Gardens QLD 4103 Tel: (07) 3255 0499 [email protected] Gold Coast Skeptics PO Box 8348, GCMC Bundall QLD 9726 Tel: (07) 5593 1882 Fax: (07) 5593 2776 [email protected] ACT Canberra Skeptics PO Box 555, Civic Square ACT 2608 Tel: (02) 6121 4483 [email protected] South Australia Skeptics SA 52B Miller St Unley SA 5061 Tel: (08) 8272 5881 [email protected] Western Australia WA Skeptics PO Box 466, Subiaco WA 6904 Tel: (08) 9448 8458 [email protected]
    [Show full text]
  • Ghost Hosting 17: Ghosts in Body and Mind
    GHost Hosting 17: GHosts in Body and Mind Friday 27 January / 6.30pm - 8.30pm / Williamson Tunnels Heritage Centre Doors open at 6pm, refreshments will be available This is the third of three GHost Hostings, convened by Sarah Sparkes, for FACT and Williamson Tunnels Heritage Centre. The GHost Hostings provide a supporting platform on which invited guests can manifest and interrogate the idea of the ghost, and are an integral part of the creative research project GHost. GHost Hostings 17 looks at how ghosts of the body or mind may become a vessel for ghost-making. Embodying Spirit Through Music (and dance) in Afrocuban Religions Christian Weaver In Cuban religious practices nothing happens without the permission of the dead. Native American spirit guides, African ancestor spirits, European Saints and familial ancestors stand at the threshold of all rituals hosted in houses throughout Cuba as if waiting to be invited in. Their blessings and warnings should be heeded. Due to the frequency and DIY nature of these events many Cubans develop an intimate relationship with an array of ‘ghost’ figures in their everyday lives. In his presentation, Christian Weaver will look at the pivotal role of music and dance in realising these relationships, as well as the fundamental idea of ‘belief in spirits’ contained within them. Christian Weaver is a musician, researcher, and ethnomusicologist. As an initiated drummer he regularly participates in the ceremonies and rituals of a number of the modern Afro- Cuban religious practices. His research focuses on the flow of influences between the music and dance of these practices and social and secular forms of performance in Cuba.
    [Show full text]
  • Free Online Psychic Ability Tests
    Free online psychic ability tests click here to download Take Our Psychic Ability Test! This test may help you find out. 1) If you choose this answer correctly, what will be your final score on this test out of a possible. Psychic Test - test your psychic powers with these online experiments and may invite you to their free online classes when a space becomes available. Free online psychic ability tests. Can you predict the future? Do you have psychic power? Universal Psychic Guild provides a free psychic ability test that will help you find out how developed your psychic ability is. Try it Now! Test, practice and develop your ESP (telepathy and clairvoyance) with this free online ESP photo Trainer. Test your psychic abilities, cast readings, and explore the paranormal with parapsychologist Michael Daniels PhD. % FREE. Develop, practice and explore your ESP (telepathy and clairvoyance) with this free advanced online Zener card guessing ESP Test. Do you think that you may be psychic or have precognition abilities? Then try our free ESP test. This online ESP test takes only a few minutes, is fun, and can be. Three psychic ability tests designed to work on both your precognitive and clairvoyant abilities. ESP: The Online Psychic Ability Test for Extra Sensory Perception You don't have to believe that you are psychic in order to perform well in this test - in fact. This test will help you define and understand any Psychic abilities that you may be experiencing. This test can also clarify and lead you on a path of Self.
    [Show full text]
  • Invited Speakers 2012/2013
    Invited Speakers 2012/2013 Thursdays 5:00pm Venue Frank and Katherine May Lecture Theatre, Henry Wellcome Building Invited Date Speaker Title by Prof Christopher C French 8 Head of the Anomalistic Psychology Weird Science: An November Dr Tessa Research Unit, Department of Psychology, Introduction to Webb Goldsmiths, University of London Anomalistic Psychology Title: Weird Science: An Introduction to Anomalistic Psychology Summary: Ever since records began, in every known society, a substantial proportion of the population has reported unusual experiences many of which we would today label as “paranormal”. Opinion polls show that the majority of the general public accepts that paranormal phenomena do occur. Such widespread experience of and belief in the paranormal can only mean one of two things. Either the paranormal is real, in which case this should be accepted by the wider scientific community which currently rejects such claims; or else belief in and experience of ostensibly paranormal phenomena can be fully explained in terms of psychological factors. This presentation will provide an introduction to the sub-discipline of anomalistic psychology, which may be defined as the study of extraordinary phenomena of behaviour and experience, in an attempt to provide non-paranormal explanations in terms of known psychological and physical factors. This approach will be illustrated with examples relating to a range of ostensibly paranormal phenomena. Blog: Professor Chris French is the Head of the Anomalistic Psychology Research Unit in the Psychology Department at Goldsmiths, University of London. He is a Fellow of the British Psychological Society and of the Committee for Skeptical Inquiry, as well as being a Distinguished Supporter of the British Humanist Association and a member of the Scientific and Professional Advisory Board of the British False Memory Society.
    [Show full text]
  • Prophecy, Cosmology and the New Age Movement: the Extent and Nature of Contemporary Belief in Astrology
    PROPHECY, COSMOLOGY AND THE NEW AGE MOVEMENT: THE EXTENT AND NATURE OF CONTEMPORARY BELIEF IN ASTROLOGY NICHOLAS CAMPION A thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements of the University of the West of England, Bristol for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy at Bath Spa University College Study of Religions Department, Bath Spa University College June 2004 Acknowledgments I would like to acknowledge helpful comments and assistance from Sue Blackmore, Geoffrey Dean, Ronnie Dreyer, Beatrice Duckworth, Kim Farnell, Chris French, Patrice Guinard, Kate Holden, Ken Irving, Suzy Parr and Michelle Pender. I would also like to gratefully thank the Astrological Association of Great Britain (AA), The North West Astrology Conference (NORWAC), the United Astrology Congress (UAC), the International Society for Astrological Research (ISAR) and the National Council for Geocosmic Research (NCGR) for their sponsorship of my research at their conferences. I would also like to thank the organisers and participants of the Norwegian and Yugoslavian astrological conferences in Oslo and Belgrade in 2002. Ill Abstract Most research indicates that almost 100% of British adults know their birth-sign. Astrology is an accepted part of popular culture and is an essential feature of tabloid newspapers and women's magazines, yet is regarded as a rival or, at worst, a threat, by the mainstream churches. Sceptical secular humanists likewise view it as a potential danger to social order. Sociologists of religion routinely classify it as a cult, religion, new religious movement or New Age belief. Yet, once such assumptions have been aired, the subject is rarely investigated further. If, though, astrology is characterised as New Age, an investigation of its nature may shed light on wider questions, such as whether many Christians are right to see New Age as a competitor in the religious market place.
    [Show full text]
  • Mark Perakh David Morrison Lawrence Krauss Jason Rosenhouse Sean B. Carroll Elie Shneour Lawrence S. Lerner
    PHIL KLASS AND ROBERT BAKER REMEMBERED • EXPOSING A PSEUDOSCIENCE SCAM • LEGENDS OF CASTLES AND KEEPS I / THE MAGAZINE FOR IENCE AND REASON Volume 29, No. 6 • NovxemCT If/ December 2005 Mark Perakh David Morrison Lawrence Krauss Jason Rosenhouse Sean B. Carroll Elie Shneour Lawrence S. Lerner Published by the Committee for the Scientific Investigation of Claims of the Paranormal THE COMMITTEE FOR THE SCIENTIFIC INVESTIGATION of Claims of the Paranormal AT THE CENTER FOR INQUIRY- TRANSNATIONAL (ADJACENT TO THE STATE UNIVERSITY OF NEW YORK AT BUFFALO] AN INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATION Paul Kurtz, Chairman; professor emeritus of philosophy, State University of New York at Buffalo Barry Karr, Executive Director Joe Nickell, Senior Research Fellow Massimo Polidoro, Research Fellow Richard Wiseman, Research Fellow Lee Nisbet. Special Projects Director FELLOWS James E. Alcock* psychologist York Univ., Toronto Saul Green. Ph.D., biochemist president of ZOL Loren Pankratz. psychologist Oregon Health Jerry Andrus. magician and inventor, Albany, Oregon Consultants, New York, NY Sciences Univ. Marcia Angell, M.D„ former editor-in-chief, New Susan Haack, Cooper Senior Scholar in Arts Robert L Park, professor of physics, Univ. of Maryland England Journal of Medicine and Sciences, Professor of Philosophy and John Paulos, mathematician, Temple Univ. Stephen Barrett M.D.. psychiatrist, author, Professor of Law, University of Miami Steven Pinker, cognitive scientist Harvard consumer advocate. Allentown, Pa. C E. M. Hansel, psychologist Univ. of Wales Massimo Polidoro, science writer, author, David J. Helfand, professor of astronomy, Willem Betz. professor of medicine, Univ. of executive director CICAP, Italy Brussels Columbia Univ. Milton Rosenberg, psychologist Univ. of Chicago Douglas Hofstadter, professor of human under­ Barry Beyerstein,* biopsychologist Simon Fraser Wallace Sampson, M.D., clinical professor of standing and cognitive science, Indiana Univ.
    [Show full text]
  • The Psychopathological Antecedents of Conspiracy Belief
    The Psychopathological Antecedents of Conspiracy Belief Christopher Thomas Thresher-Andrews Department of Psychology Goldsmiths, University of London A thesis submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy at Goldsmiths, University of London in June 2019 Declaration of Authorship I, Christopher Thomas Thresher-Andrews hereby declare that this thesis and the work presented in it is entirely my own. Where I have consulted the work of others, this is always clearly stated. Christopher Thomas Thresher-Andrews June 2019 2 Acknowledgements Firstly, I must express my sincere gratitude to Chris French and Alan Pickering, my research supervisors, for their expert guidance, passionate encouragement and helpful reviews of this work. I would also like to thank Ashok Jansari for his advice and assistance in successfully navigating postgraduate research as a mature part-time self- funded student. I would also like to extend my thanks to Daniel Freeman (for helpful advice on measuring paranoia), Lyn Ellett (for sharing her paranoia manipulation resources and guidance on its success), Jennifer Whitson (for sharing her concept identification task resources), Rob Brotherton (for kind advice at the beginning of my PhD), and Joseph Uscinski (for helpful comments and suggestions on the direction of this work). Special thanks are extended to Toby Rivers for his unwavering friendship and support throughout my studies, and finally to my father, Steve, for his support both financially and emotionally; this journey would not have been possible without him. 3 Abstract A conspiracy theory can be defined as an alternative explanation for an event that reveals the presence of a hidden group with malevolent intent.
    [Show full text]
  • Controversial Study Promoting Psychic Ability Debunked 14 March 2012
    Controversial study promoting psychic ability debunked 14 March 2012 In response to a 2011 study suggesting the the original list. Results showed that participants existence of precognition, or the ability to predict were better at remembering the words they were future events using psychic powers, a new group about to be shown, indicating they had reached of researchers report that attempts to replicate the forward in time to 'practice' those words in the previous results were unsuccessful. These results future. therefore do not support the previous claims for the existence of psychic ability. The full report is Within parapsychology, there is a tendency to published Mar. 14 in the open access journal PLoS accept any positive replications but to dismiss ONE. failures to replicate if the procedures followed have not been exactly duplicated. Research failing to find evidence for the existence of psychic ability has been published, following a "We went to great pains to ensure we followed the year of industry debate. same procedures as Bem," said Stuart Ritchie. "Using Bem's own computer programme and stats The report is a response by a group of methods, we replicated his experiment three times, independent researchers to the 2011 study from at each of our respective campuses, with the same social psychologist Daryl Bem, purporting the number of participants as the original study." existence of precognition - an ability to perceive future events. "By having our paper published, we hope academic journals and popular media alike will offer the same Professor Chris French (Goldsmiths, University of weight to negative results as given to eye-catching London), Stuart Ritchie (University of Edinburgh) positive results," said Professor Richard Wiseman.
    [Show full text]
  • University Education in Parapsychology (Information Provided by The
    University education in parapsychology (information provided by the universities/faculty. Other universities may also offer educational opportunities) Listing here does not imply endorsement by the PA.* (Revised 21 Jan 2009) University based study: Australia Melbourne: Parapsychology lectures are delivered at Deakin University in first and fourth year and Honours and Higher Degree. Research students have the option of embarking on psi research. For more information: http://www.deakin.edu.au/hmnbs/psychology/staffprofiles.php?username=rock Germany The 'Institut für Grenzgebiete der Psychologie und Psychohygiene' (IGPP, www.igpp.de) [Institute for Frontier Areas of Psychology and Mental Hygiene] is a non‐profit foundation. The IGPP is mainly funded by a private organization. Members of IGPP cooperate with domestic and international universities and research institutions. Psychologist Eberhard Bauer offers a seminar "Introduction into Parapsychology" primarily intended for undergraduate psychology students of Freiburg university. In addition, the counseling group of the IGPP offers regularly special educational seminars on extraordinary human experiences intended primarily for clinical psychologists, psychotherapists, medical doctors and mental health personnel. For more information: [email protected] Hungary Budapest: Psychophysicist Zoltán Vassy teaches an undergraduate one‐semester courses on scientific parapsychology for psychology students (in Hungarian) at the Roland Eotvos University. There is opportunity to participate in experimental
    [Show full text]
  • Theatre of Science FORUM RICHARD WISEMAN Debating Creationists CHARLES L
    SI M-J 07 Cover V1 3/28/07 9:05 AM Page 1 PSYCHIC RESEARCH LAB CLOSES • DA VINCI’S REAL CODES • SYLVIA BROWNE’S BLUNDERS THE MAGAZINE FOR SCIENCE AND REASON Volume 31, No. 3 • May/June 2007 • INTRODUCTORY PRICE U.S. $4.95 • Canada $5.95 Einstein and the Myth of SCIENTIFIC Consistent INQUIRY Skepticism HAZARD Debunking Theatre The Secret of Science 05> Published by the Committee for Skeptical Inquiry 0556698 80575 SI M-J 2007 pgs 3/28/07 10:15 AM Page 2 THE COMMITTEE FOR SKEPTICAL INQUIRY FORMERLY THE COMMITTEE FOR THE SCIENTIFIC INVESTIGATION OF CLAIMS OF THE PARANORMAL (CSICOP) AT THE CENTER FOR INQUIRY/TRANSNATIONAL (ADJACENT TO THE STATE UNIVERSITY OF NEW YORK AT BUFFALO) AN INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATION Paul Kurtz, Chairman; professor emeritus of philosophy, University at Buffalo Barry Karr, Executive Director Joe Nickell, Senior Research Fellow Massimo Polidoro, Research Fellow Richard Wiseman, Research Fellow Lee Nisbet, Special Projects Director FELLOWS James E. Alcock,* psychologist, York Univ., Toronto and Sciences, Professor of Philosophy and Robert L. Park, professor of physics, Univ. of Maryland Jerry Andrus, magician and inventor, Albany, Oregon Professor of Law, University of Miami John Paulos, mathematician, Temple Univ. Marcia Angell, M.D., former editor-in-chief, New C. E. M. Hansel, psychologist, Univ. of Wales Steven Pinker, cognitive scientist, Harvard England Journal of Medicine David J. Helfand, professor of astronomy, Massimo Polidoro, science writer, author, Stephen Barrett, M.D., psychiatrist, author, Columbia Univ. executive director CICAP, Italy consumer advocate, Allentown, Pa. Douglas R. Hofstadter, professor of human under- Milton Rosenberg, psychologist, Univ.
    [Show full text]