Date

Presenter 3/31/2011 Daniel Midgley 4/7/2011 Aaron Alderman

4/14/2011 Kylie Sturgess

4/21/2011

Steven CarewHopkins

Title Chick Tracts "Strong" Atheism

Ghostbusting Scooby Doo - Skepticism and Ghost Hunting In Popular Media and Reality

9/11 Conspiracy Theories and the New World Order

4/28/2011 5/5/2011 Daniel Midgley 5/12/2011 Boaz Shearer

Examing Sai Baba Atheist YouTube Party!

5/19/2011 Daniel Midgley

End of the World Cults

Madge CarewHopkins

Power Balance Bands

5/26/2011

6/2/2011 Kylie Sturgess 6/9/2011 6/16/2011 6/23/2011 6/30/2011

Token Skepticism - Adventures in Podcasting

Description "Chick tracts are short evangelical-themed tracts created by American publisher Jack Chick. Chick tracts use a comic book format. They are often controversial for their enthusiastic endorsement of fundamentalist Christianity and condemnation of ecumenical, liberal, and prosperity Christians, the Roman Catholic Church, and religions other than Christianity." (source: Wikipedia) Weak atheism is the position of simply disbelieving in any gods. Strong atheism goes one step further by stating with certainty that there are no gods. In this talktorial, Aaron presents a defense of strong atheism. Is it possible to know that gods cannot exist? If it weren't for those meddling scientific facts... Join Kylie Sturgess of the Token Skeptic podcast, as she takes you on a journey into the minds and myths about paranormal investigation, unearthing popculture skeletons as she does so. From ancient curses to modern pseudoscience, she discusses how we should be less Paranormal Activity and more Scooby Doo. Since the dawn of time Conspiracy Theories have been present in the mindset of society. In this talk, Steven Carew-Hopkins takes us through some of the biggest conspiracy theories of all time: Most notably the rise and decline of 9/11 conspiracy theories and how skeptics should handle "truthers" and conspiracy theorists. STUDY WEEK - NO TALK He was regarded as a holy man and the reincarnation of a saint. He was also accused of using simple conjurer’s tricks on a gullible populace. With the death of Sathya Sai Baba, Daniel Midgley casts a skeptical eye on his work, his teachings, and his legacy. The funniest, most heretical, most thought-provoking videos on the web. Christians have always been wrong when predicting the Second Coming, but that doesn’t stop them. What’s behind this millennial obsession? Daniel Midgley presents what could be our last talktorial... maybe. Millions of these plastic bracelets have been sold worldwide, and many people swear they improve strength, balance, & flexibility. Do they work? Of course not. It’s a stupid piece of plastic. But why do people think they work? Madge Carew-Hopkins explains. With over a dozen interviews, over a hundred episodes and a world-wide subscribed show, what does it take to get into skeptical podcasting? Kylie Sturgess, the first solo-female podcaster in skepticism gives an overview of how to start, what happens and some entertaining insights about online shows.

Date

Presenter

Title

2011-08-19 Daniel Midgley

Atheism and Education

2011-08-26 Daniel Midgley

"Spiritual But Not Religious"

2011-09-02 Paul Wright 2011-09-16 2011-09-30 2011-10-14 2011-10-28 2011-11-11

ElevatorGate!

Description What happens to religious faith as education level goes up? Conventional wisdom says religiosity goes down, but a new study suggests that well-educated people are more religious. Daniel Midgley cuts through the confusion. Religion' isn’t a very popular word nowadays. Even some believers are claiming that what they do isn't particularly 'religious'. Has the term 'religion' become so toxic that even religious people need to reject it? Presented by Daniel Midgley. A lame pickup attempt quickly became a huge internet controversy in the atheist and skeptic communities, involving hundreds of blogs, videos, death threats, and a strange comment from Richard Dawkins. Looking back on this bizarre event three months on, Paul Wright discusses why it was so important to so many people.

[Public Holiday]

Date

Presenter

Title

Description

S2

Debra McDougall

TBA

TBA; contact at [email protected]