Clipmarks | Skeptic Clips

Are You a Skeptic?

Mon, 09 Nov 2009 16:50:53 GMT

clipped by: odiedog

In other words, question everything, including your perceptions and interpretations. A French proverb puts it rather succinctly: “Skeptics are never deceived.”

Never take anything for granted.
Check everything.
Put everything in its proper context.

Distinguish between facts and the interpretation of facts.

Good negotiators should be skeptics. Why? Because negotiators need to fully evaluate what they are being told by their opposing party in order to make good decisions.

Webster’s defines skepticism as “an attitude of doubt or a disposition toward incredulity in general or toward a particular object.” Skeptics like to consider, to question and not to accept things at face value.

Are you a Skeptic?

Is There Global Warming on Other Planets in the Solar System?

Mon, 19 Oct 2009 22:41:39 GMT

clipped by: thisnamecantbetaken
clipper's remarks: Martian climate is primarily driven by dust and albedo and there is little empirical evidence that Mars is showing long term warming.

Neptune's orbit is 164 years so current brightening is a seasonal response (Neptune's southern hemisphere is heading into summer).

Triton's warming is due to the moon approaching an extreme southern summer, a season that occurs every few hundred years.

Jupiter's storms are fueled by the planet's own internal heat (the sun's energy is 4% the level of solar energy at Earth). When several storms merge into one large storm (eg - Red Spot Jr), the planet loses its ability to mix heat, causing warming at the equator and cooling at the poles.

Clip Source: www.skepticalscience.com

Global warming on other planets in the solar system

The skeptic argument...

Studies show Mars, Neptune, Jupiter, Triton and Pluto are warming. As the sun is the only thing they all have in common, the sun must be causing global warming.

What the science says...

Not all planets are warming - some are cooling. Of those that are warming, the reasons are largely known and are phenomenon unique to each planet.

There are three fundamental flaws in the 'other planets are warming' argument:

Not all planets are warming - some are cooling

The sun has shown no long term trend since 1950

There are explanations for why other planets are warming

Only 6 planets or moons out of the 100+ bodies in the solar system have been observed to be warming. On the other hand, Uranus is cooling (Young 2001)

Of course that begs the question - what's causing warming on other planets?

Lord Christopher Monckton: Global Warming

Mon, 19 Oct 2009 19:30:01 GMT

clipped by: esheodinsykaden
clipper's remarks: Lord Christopher Monckton: Now the full video of the speech is available of Lord Christopher Monckton speaking on October 14th, 2009 at a climate skeptic event sponsored by the Minnesota... Tags: lord monckton, christopher monckton, lord christopher monckton, lord monckton global warming, lord monkton, copenhagen treaty

Clip Source:

Lord Christopher Monckton: Global Warming

Lord Christopher Monckton: Now the full video of the speech is available of Lord Christopher Monckton speaking on October 14th, 2009 at a climate skeptic event sponsored by the Minnesota...

Click Here to Watch Lord Christopher Monckton ONLINE VIDEO [HQ]

Tags: lord monckton, christopher monckton, lord christopher monckton, lord monckton global warming, lord monkton, copenhagen treaty

Report: smoking bans protect nonsmokers from heart attacks

Thu, 15 Oct 2009 17:33:59 GMT

clipped by: Lexica
clipper's remarks: More:

While heavier exposure to secondhand smoke is worse, there's no safe level…even less than an hour's exposure might be enough to push someone already at risk of a heart attack over the edge.

That's because within minutes, the smoke's pollution-like small particles and other substances can start constricting blood vessels and increasing blood's propensity to clot — key heart attack factors. Yet many people don't know they have heart disease until their first heart attack, making it important for everyone to avoid secondhand smoke, Benowitz said.

"Even if you think you're perfectly healthy, secondhand smoke could be a potential threat to you," he said.

Many of the IOM committee members initially were skeptical they'd find much benefit from the bans, said statistician Stephen Feinberg of Carnegie Mellon University. He proclaimed himself "the resident skeptic" who changed his mind. "There was a clear and consistent effect of smoking bans," he said.

Clip Source: news.yahoo.com

A major report confirms what health officials long have believed: Bans on smoking in restaurants, bars and other gathering spots reduce the risk of heart attacks among nonsmokers.

"If you have heart disease, you really need to stay away from secondhand smoke. It's an immediate threat to your life," declared Dr. Neal Benowitz of the University of California, San Francisco, who co-wrote Thursday's report from the prestigious Institute of Medicine.

More than 126 million nonsmoking people in the U.S. are regularly exposed to someone else's tobacco smoke. The surgeon general in 2006 cited "overwhelming scientific evidence" that tens of thousands die each year as a result

Yet smoking bans have remained a hard sell, as lawmakers and business owners debate whether such prohibitions are worth the anger of smoking customers or employees.

"The evidence is clear,

Smoke-free laws don't hurt business ... but they prevent heart attacks in nonsmokers."

Tags: smoking, health, research, tobacco, heart-disease

Call Me a Skeptic...BUT...Did the Moon Bombing REALLY Happen ?

Sat, 10 Oct 2009 18:07:20 GMT

clipped by: leevardi
clipper's remarks: this was supposed to be a Really BIG BOMB...How could our NASA Geniuses get it SO WRONG....something smells !

Clip Source: www.rumormillnews.com

Reader: "HAS ANYONE ~SEEN~ ANYTHING TO INDICATE SOMETHING ACTUALLY HAPPENED ON THE MOON...?"

Is it just an overactive conspiracy imagination that causes me wonder about the much hyped moon cum non event hot on the heels of a really early morning announcement that the prez had won a token peace prize - which forever diminishes the value of such an object.

Did someone want to divert attention from the moon? Has anyone
'out there' seen anything to indicate something actually happened on the moon?

Metaphysical naturalism

Tue, 08 Sep 2009 13:33:55 GMT

clipped by: skwirlinator

Clip Source: en.wikipedia.org

Metaphysical naturalism, or ontological naturalism, characterizes any worldview in which reality is such that there is nothing but the natural things, forces, and causes of the kind that the natural sciences study, i.e. the things, forces and causes which are required in order to understand our physical environment and which have mechanical properties amenable to mathematical modeling.

"Naturalism" in the Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy

"Naturalism" in the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy

Center for Naturalism

"Physicalism" in the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy

Naturalism as a Worldview resource page by Richard Carrier

A Defense of Naturalism by Keith Augustine (2001)

"Naturalism" in the Catholic Encyclopedia

"Moral Naturalism" in the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy

Naturalism Library at the Secular Web

Naturalism entry in The Skeptic's Dictionary

Tags: metaphysical naturalism, religion, things, forces

Free Download Paper Heart Movie

Mon, 07 Sep 2009 15:38:28 GMT

clipped by: binny195

Clip Source: download-paper-heart-free.weebly.com

Download Paper Heart Movie

Charlyne Yi does not believe in love. Or so she says. Well, at the very least, she doesn't believe in fairy-tale love or the Hollywood mythology of love, and her own experiences have turned her into another modern-day skeptic. Charlyne embarks on a quest across America to make a documentary about the one subject she doesn't fully understand.

Tags: free download paper heart movie

He’s Got the X-Factor - Danyl Johnson Video

Tue, 25 Aug 2009 17:18:13 GMT

clipped by: SeattleEditor

Clip Source: snarkfood.com

He’s Got the X-Factor - Danyl Johnson Video

X Factor contestant Danyl Johnson might just be the next Susan Boyle - if anyone really wants to claim that honor. Danyl Johnson, a schoolteacher from England, wowed the audience with his audition on X Factor - even eliciting a huge compliment from hardcore skeptic Simon Cowell with his vocal prowess.

Tags: danyl johnson video, danyl johnson audition, danyl johnson xfactor, danyl johnson x factor, daniel johnson video, daniel johnson audition

Diluting homeopathy

Thu, 06 Aug 2009 18:26:45 GMT

clipped by: JohnWaterman

Clip Source: blogs.discovermagazine.com

If you’re a UK skeptic, you know Ben Goldacre: he writes for The Guardian and runs the Bad Science website where he debunks all kinds of quackery and nonsense

Here he is, concentrating (haha! Get it? Man, I kill me) on homeopathy.

[Video]

Climate Denialists Debunked!

Sat, 01 Aug 2009 22:43:06 GMT

clipped by: nedhamson1
clipper's remarks: Great articles showing ties between those who deny climate change with "free market" ideologues and their desperate reach for legitimacy.

Clip Source: thedakepage.blogspot.com

Climate Denialists Grasp for Straws and Come Up Sipping (Warmer) Air

Not long ago I wrote an article demonstrating that the most cited climate skeptic scientists were all associated with free market lobbying groups. I compiled a chart that showed these connections, including color coding so that the mash-pit of lines between the boxes could be discerned. The summary of that article, sans comments, can be read here, and is good for those who don't want to wait the 10-20 seconds it takes for the original article to load, complete with its 647 comments when I shut it down because it was too slow (which, of course, is why the denialists tried to saturate it with repetitive comments).

Tags: denying_climate_change_nonsense

Rational Thoughts - From a Religious Skeptic

Fri, 24 Jul 2009 01:29:58 GMT

clipped by: BartendingBear
clipper's remarks: Quotes from Eric Hoffer

Clip Source: thebeattitude.com

“Take away hatred from some people, and you have men without faith.”
— Eric Hoffer, The Passionate State of Mind (1955)

“The opposite of the religious fanatic is not the fanatical atheist but the gentle cynic who cares not whether there is a god or not.”
— Eric Hoffer, The True Believer (1951)

“To know a person’s religion we need not listen to his profession of faith but must find his brand of intolerance.”
— Eric Hoffer, The Passionate State of Mind (1955)

“When we believe ourselves in possession of the only truth, we are likely to be indifferent to common everyday truths.”
— Eric Hoffer, The Passionate State of Mind (1955)

Do u believe in UFO's

Tue, 07 Jul 2009 14:46:05 GMT

clipped by: Debster65
clipper's remarks: I do , there is just to mant siteings not to believe in something more than just us in this universe

Clip Source: ufos.about.com

Weekly Sighting Reports - 07-02-09

See More About:

Arizona

- 06-18-09 - I was waiting for my son at 25th Avenue and Peoria, across from Rose Mofford Park. I opened the sun roof and noticed a small dot moving across the sky, then another and finally a third. I got out of the car and watched these lights for the next 20 minutes.

They appeared to be very high up. When the lights banked or turned, it was very sharp, acceleration and hovering were not something that you would see from a airplane or helicopter, and there were no beacons or flashing lights.

I am an avowed skeptic, but I have always wanted to see something like this. Ultimately we just lost track of the lights. I was with a classmate of mine named Troy, and he saw them too, when my son came out, he saw them as well so it was nice to have witnesses. None of us could tell for sure what we were seeing. source: www.mufon.com

Tags: ufo"s, siteings

doubt if you really want to know

Mon, 22 Jun 2009 18:32:39 GMT

clipped by: pascual
clipper's remarks: scam

Clip Source: www.scientificamerican.com

What I want to believe based on emotions and what I should believe based on evidence does not always coincide. And after 99 monthly columns of exploring such topics (this is Opus 100), I conclude that I’m a skeptic not because I do not want to believe but because I want to know. I believe that the truth is out there. But how can we tell the difference between what we would like to be true and what is actually true? The answer is science.

Tags: science

Climate of hatred: Prominent scientist refused service due to skepticism

Wed, 17 Jun 2009 03:25:16 GMT

clipped by: amgumen
clipper's remarks: Prof. Lindzen is a recipient of the American Meteorological Service’s Meisinger, and Charney Awards, the American Geophysical Union’s Macelwane Medal, and the Leo Huss Walin Prize. He is a member of the National Academy of Sciences, and the Norwegian Academy of Sciences and Letters, and a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, the American Association for the Advancement of Sciences, the American Geophysical Union and the American Meteorological Society. He is a corresponding member of the NAS Committee on Human Rights, and has been a member of the NRC Board on Atmospheric Sciences and Climate and the Council of the AMS.

Clip Source: greenhellblog.wordpress.com

A prominent MIT physicist and global warming skeptic was recently refused the services of a Boston-area art appraiser because of global warming.

As Richard Lindzen described in an e-mail:

In our recent house fire, an 18th century oriental rug was burnt, and we needed an appraisal of its value for our insurance. We were referred to a dealer, [name withheld], who agreed to do the appraisal. However, when my wife, Nadine, brought him the burnt rug, he rudely turned her away saying that he had sent me an email explaining his position…

Here’s the text of the art appraiser’s e-mail to Lindzen:

I am sorry to inform you that after some consideration, I’ve decided not to perform the appraisal service that you’ve requested. Your writing on the subject of global warming is offensive to me personally, and I feel that I would have difficulty being an impartial appraiser of value given my view on the subject.

So maybe the art appraiser should stick to appraising art?

Tags: alarmism, climate

A skeptic's guide to Obama's Cairo Speech

Sun, 07 Jun 2009 15:39:58 GMT

clipped by: Antara
clipper's remarks: and this is just the first few minutes

Clip Source: barenakedislam.wordpress.com

Beyond ISLAMObama’s sickening pandering to the Muslim world…

…let’s examine the historical inaccuracies, glaring distortions, half-truths, and outright lies of just the first few minutes of Obama’s speech in Cairo.

[Video]

Washington Times Poll: ‘What did you think of President Obama’s speech in Cairo?’ (HT - HYSCIENCE)

Response	Percent	Votes
Liked it	14%	690 votes
Disliked it	75%	3597 votes
Neutral	7%	340 votes
Other	2%	108 votes
4735 total votes

Tags: islam, obama, lies, deception, distortions, reality