From the archive: 1992 Georgia Skeptics Conference. James McGaha - On UFOs

From the archive: 1992 Georgia Skeptics Conference. Keith Parsons - On Critical Thinking

From the archive: 1992 Georgia Skeptics Conference. Robert Baker - His talk on Hypnosis, and Dr. George Gannaway's Hypnosis experiment.

We will discuss how a misunderstanding of statistics can lead to very unskeptical thinking. Humans are inherently bad at judging risk and the probability of events. This can lead to belief in the supernatural, psychics, and 'fate'. Even scientists fall foul to bad statistics, and a basic understanding of how statistics work can help weed out the good studies from the bad. We'll be keeping this very light, 'statistics minus the numbers' :) There will be fun demonstrations of bad statistics in action, and we'll outline some basic concepts and ideas to arm you against the next person who claims that they must be psychic because they can predict who is calling when the phone rings.

Mark W. Gura: The Three Possibilities: A System for Classifying Religions and Philosophies

Join the Atlanta Skeptics for the 2013 Atlanta Skepticamp May 3-4, 2013 in Atlanta, GA. For more information and to sign up, please visit http://www.atlantaskeptics.com/skepticamp

We bring you not one, not two, but three Atlanta podcasters, all smashed up into one big pot of simmering live skepticism. For one night only, they have the power. There may be tears but it will be a fun ride! Derek Colanduno co-hosts Skepticality, one of the longest running skeptical podcast. Monster Talk's Blake Smith regales listeners with stories of things that go bump in the night. John Snider of American Freethought fame, encourages us to think for ourselves.

ER physician Angie Mattke discusses the claims alternative medicine.

We will delve deeper into life of one of the founders of the modern skeptics movement, Martin Gardner. American man of letters and numbers -- and logic and magic and patterns and puzzles -- Martin Gardner (1914-2010) wrote about 100 books, starting with "Fads and Fallacies in the Name of Science" sixty years ago. That led to his playing a founding role in CSICOP (Committee for the Scientific Investigation of Claims of the Paranormal), and the Skeptical Inquirer magazine. He was most well-known for his book The Annotated Alice (in Wonderland), the 300 columns he wrote for Scientific American, mostly on recreational mathematics, and the huge body of magic he created. We'll survey his legacy and touch on his Atlanta connections. Follow @WWMGT on Twitter to find out What Would Martin Gardner Tweet? "Card Colm" Mulcahy (@CardColm) teaches mathematics at Spelman College, Atlanta, Georgia. He knew Gardner for the last decade of his life. He blogs at Huffington Post, Aperiodical and MAA. He's the author of the upcoming book Mathematical Card Magic (AK Peters). --- Released and distributed under the Creative Commons BY-NC-SA 3.0 United States license http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/us/ You are free to: Share - to copy, distribute and transmit the work Remix - to adapt the work Under the following conditions: Attribution - You must attribute the work (but not in any way that suggests that the Atlanta Science Tavern nor AbruptMedia, LLC endorses you or your use of the work) to the Atlanta Science Tavern (http://www.AtlantaScienceTavern.com) and AbruptMedia, LLC (http://www.AbruptMedia.com). Noncommercial - You may not use this work for commercial purposes. Share Alike - If you alter, transform, or build upon this work, you may distribute the resulting work only under the same or similar license to this one.

We have had quite a few new people join up in recent months, as such we are going to dust off the old introduction to skepticism session. Find out what skepticism is all about, the various groups, the lingo we use, and about our goals. We will also be experimenting with what we hope will become a couple of semi-regular segments. Lastly we will also be wrapping up any DragonCon Skeptrack open items and showing video of some key sessions for those of you that missed them. --- Released and distributed under the Creative Commons BY-NC-SA 3.0 United States license http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/us/ You are free to: Share - to copy, distribute and transmit the work Remix - to adapt the work Under the following conditions: Attribution - You must attribute the work (but not in any way that suggests that the Atlanta Skeptics, the Speaker(s) nor AbruptMedia, LLC endorses you or your use of the work) to the Atlanta Skeptics (http://www.AtlantaSkeptics.com/), the Speaker(s) and AbruptMedia, LLC (http://www.AbruptMedia.com). Noncommercial - You may not use this work for commercial purposes. Share Alike - If you alter, transform, or build upon this work, you may distribute the resulting work only under the same or similar license to this one.

Join us as former Damn Yankee James Severin talks about the misunderstanding, falsehoods, lies, and urban legends around The War that will force the South to rise again any day now. --- Released and distributed under the Creative Commons BY-NC-SA 3.0 United States license http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/us/ You are free to: Share - to copy, distribute and transmit the work Remix - to adapt the work Under the following conditions: Attribution - You must attribute the work (but not in any way that suggests that the Atlanta Skeptics, the Speaker(s) nor AbruptMedia, LLC endorses you or your use of the work) to the Atlanta Skeptics (http://www.AtlantaSkeptics.com/), the Speaker(s) and AbruptMedia, LLC (http://www.AbruptMedia.com). Noncommercial - You may not use this work for commercial purposes. Share Alike - If you alter, transform, or build upon this work, you may distribute the resulting work only under the same or similar license to this one.

Join us as we celebrate the 100th anniversary of the sinking of the Titanic! No... wait, celebrate is the wrong word. Commemorate? Acknowledge? Relive? (No, relive is definitely the wrong word.) Regardless, we're going to take a look at the myths and legends that have grown up around that ship and the accident. For example, did you know the 1912 Renault Coupe DeVille in the Titanic's cargo hold would be worth a quarter-million dollars today if it wasn't on the bottom of the ocean? And if Jack and Rose hadn't had sex in it? It'll be both educational and lucrative, what with the fabulous prizes! --- Released and distributed under the Creative Commons BY-NC-SA 3.0 United States license http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/us/ You are free to: Share - to copy, distribute and transmit the work Remix - to adapt the work Under the following conditions: Attribution - You must attribute the work (but not in any way that suggests that the Atlanta Skeptics, the Speaker(s) nor AbruptMedia, LLC endorses you or your use of the work) to the Atlanta Skeptics (http://www.AtlantaSkeptics.com/), the Speaker(s) and AbruptMedia, LLC (http://www.AbruptMedia.com). Noncommercial - You may not use this work for commercial purposes. Share Alike - If you alter, transform, or build upon this work, you may distribute the resulting work only under the same or similar license to this one.

Murder! Obscenity! Fornication! Villainy! Kidnapping! Infanticide! Insanity! Torture! Prostitution! Just another day at the convent, according to Maria Monk, perhaps America's most widely published author before Harriet Beecher Stowe released Uncle Tom's Cabin. Wonder over the biggest American controversy of its day! Hear about those who were responsible for scandalizing a nation! Marvel at the skeptics who got to the truth of the matter! And learn, if your heart is strong enough, what the nuns have buried in the basement! What About Bob? Bob Blaskiewicz received his Ph.D in English from Saint Louis University. He specializes in twentieth-century American literature and culture, and wrote his dissertation on the fiction and memoirs of American combat veterans of the Second World War. He is a Brittain Postdoctoral Fellow in the Writing and Communication Program at the Georgia Institute of Technology in Atlanta, where he teaches writing and communication classes that take extraordinary claims as their subject. His most recent classes include Science and Pseudoscience, American Conspiracy Theories, and Writing about World War II in Film and Literature (Spring 2011). He is currently the Chair of the Steering Committee for the Atlanta chapter of the Independent Investigations Group (IIG-Atlanta), a research group and public resource for information about the paranormal and extraordinary. IIG-Atlanta also has a standing $50,000 challenge for anyone who can provide evidence demonstrating the existence of the paranormal, occult, or supernatural under properly controlled conditions. But he really wants to direct. --- Released and distributed under the Creative Commons BY-NC-SA 3.0 United States license http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/us/ You are free to: Share - to copy, distribute and transmit the work Remix - to adapt the work Under the following conditions: Attribution - You must attribute the work (but not in any way that suggests that the Atlanta Skeptics, the Speaker(s) nor AbruptMedia, LLC endorses you or your use of the work) to the Atlanta Skeptics (http://www.AtlantaSkeptics.com/), the Speaker(s) and AbruptMedia, LLC (http://www.AbruptMedia.com). Noncommercial - You may not use this work for commercial purposes. Share Alike - If you alter, transform, or build upon this work, you may distribute the resulting work only under the same or similar license to this one.

LaVerne Knight-West will be talking about MAAFA or the African Holocaust. As part of the recognition of Black History Month, LaVerne will share some facts on the subject. Hopefully opening the door for some critical thinking and objective sharing in this area. LaVerne attended Georgia State University with a Major in Journalism and just completed a diploma in Medical Billing, Insurance and Medical Coding specialty at United Education Institute. For over 25 years, LaVerne worked as a television and radio journalist in Georgia with a concentration in Education and Promotional Coverages. Now a mother and an administrative professional, she shares her love of critical thinking through blogging and other public efforts.

Christian Walters discusses the what happend to a group of smoke jumpers fighting a forest fire at Mann Gulch in 1949 and what can be learned from the tragedy. --- Released and distributed under the Creative Commons BY-NC-SA 3.0 United States license http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/us/ You are free to: Share - to copy, distribute and transmit the work Remix - to adapt the work Under the following conditions: Attribution - You must attribute the work (but not in any way that suggests that the Atlanta Skeptics, the Speaker(s) nor AbruptMedia, LLC endorses you or your use of the work) to the Atlanta Skeptics (http://www.AtlantaSkeptics.com/), the Speaker(s) and AbruptMedia, LLC (http://www.AbruptMedia.com). Noncommercial - You may not use this work for commercial purposes. Share Alike - If you alter, transform, or build upon this work, you may distribute the resulting work only under the same or similar license to this one.

Join us for the last Skeptics in the Pub for 2011! Bob Blaskiewicz gives a talk about what's going on with the Atlanta Independent Investigations Group and Christian Walters present's Tim Farley's recap of the year in Skepticism. --- Released and distributed under the Creative Commons BY-NC-SA 3.0 United States license http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/us/ You are free to: Share - to copy, distribute and transmit the work Remix - to adapt the work Under the following conditions: Attribution - You must attribute the work (but not in any way that suggests that the Atlanta Skeptics, the Speaker(s) nor AbruptMedia, LLC endorses you or your use of the work) to the Atlanta Skeptics (http://www.AtlantaSkeptics.com/), the Speaker(s) and AbruptMedia, LLC (http://www.AbruptMedia.com). Noncommercial - You may not use this work for commercial purposes. Share Alike - If you alter, transform, or build upon this work, you may distribute the resulting work only under the same or similar license to this one.

Join us for the last Skeptics in the Pub for 2011! Bob Blaskiewicz gives a talk about what's going on with the Atlanta Independent Investigations Group and Christian Walters present's Tim Farley's recap of the year in Skepticism. --- Released and distributed under the Creative Commons BY-NC-SA 3.0 United States license http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/us/ You are free to: Share - to copy, distribute and transmit the work Remix - to adapt the work Under the following conditions: Attribution - You must attribute the work (but not in any way that suggests that the Atlanta Skeptics, the Speaker(s) nor AbruptMedia, LLC endorses you or your use of the work) to the Atlanta Skeptics (http://www.AtlantaSkeptics.com/), the Speaker(s) and AbruptMedia, LLC (http://www.AbruptMedia.com). Noncommercial - You may not use this work for commercial purposes. Share Alike - If you alter, transform, or build upon this work, you may distribute the resulting work only under the same or similar license to this one.

A PDF of Mr. Dugatkin's presentation. --- Released and distributed under the Creative Commons BY-NC-SA 3.0 United States license http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/us/ You are free to: Share - to copy, distribute and transmit the work Remix - to adapt the work Under the following conditions: Attribution - You must attribute the work (but not in any that suggests that the Atlanta Science Tavern, Atlanta Skeptics, the Speaker, nor AbruptMedia, LLC endorses you or your use of the work) to the Atlanta Science Tavern (http://www.AtlantaScienceTavern.com), Atlanta Skeptics (http://www.atlantaskeptics.com), the Speaker and AbruptMedia, LLC (http://www.AbruptMedia.com). Noncommercial - You may not use this work for commercial purposes. Share Alike - If you alter, transform, or build upon this work, you may distribute the resulting work only under the same or similar license to this one.

Lee Dugatkin's Mr. Jefferson and the Giant Moose is a tale of both natural history and American history. What started out in the Revolutionary War era as an international dispute over natural history quickly took on important political overtones. The story revolves around three fascinating individuals. Thomas Jefferson, the French Count and world-renowned naturalist, George-Louis Leclerc Buffon, who claimed that all life in America was "degenerate," weak and feeble, and a very large, dead moose. While Jefferson is known to every schoolchild, the latter two, although lesser known, are equally important to the story. Their interactions lay at the heart of an amazing tale in which Jefferson obsessed over a very large, very dead moose that he believed could help quash early French arrogance toward a fledgling republic in America, and demonstrate that a young America was every bit the equal of a well-established Europe. Our Speaker Lee Alan Dugatkin is a Professor of Biology at the University of Louisville. He has a B.A. in History and a Ph.D. in Evolutionary Biology. In addition to Mr. Jefferson, he is the author of nine books on evolution, behavior, and the history of science, including The Altruism Equation and Cheating Monkeys and Citizen Bees. Lee's book The Prince of Evolution is now out in trade paperback. It is a fast moving history-of-science/adventure tale centering on the remarkable life of Prince Peter Kropotkin. Lee has lectured on his work all over the world, including in England, Canada, Japan, Sweden, The Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, and Switzerland. He lives in Louisville, Kentucky with his wife and son. You can follow Lee on Twitter @LeeDugatkin and on his Facebook page. --- Released and distributed under the Creative Commons BY-NC-SA 3.0 United States license http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/us/ You are free to: Share - to copy, distribute and transmit the work Remix - to adapt the work Under the following conditions: Attribution - You must attribute the work (but not in any that suggests that the Atlanta Science Tavern, Atlanta Skeptics, the Speaker, nor AbruptMedia, LLC endorses you or your use of the work) to the Atlanta Science Tavern (http://www.AtlantaScienceTavern.com), Atlanta Skeptics (http://www.atlantaskeptics.com), the Speaker and AbruptMedia, LLC (http://www.AbruptMedia.com). Noncommercial - You may not use this work for commercial purposes. Share Alike - If you alter, transform, or build upon this work, you may distribute the resulting work only under the same or similar license to this one.

A PDF of Lisa Hammett;s presentation on Allergies