Interesting Stuff Thread

robindch · 31-08-2015 11:04am

Seems that children from religious backgrounds have a much harder time separating fact from fiction.

Judgments About Fact and Fiction by Children From Religious and Nonreligious Backgrounds

http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/cogs.12138/full

Abstract wrote:

In two studies, 5- and 6-year-old children were questioned about the status of the protagonist embedded in three different types of stories. In realistic stories that only included ordinary events, all children, irrespective of family background and schooling, claimed that the protagonist was a real person. In religious stories that included ordinarily impossible events brought about by divine intervention, claims about the status of the protagonist varied sharply with exposure to religion. Children who went to church or were enrolled in a parochial school, or both, judged the protagonist in religious stories to be a real person, whereas secular children with no such exposure to religion judged the protagonist in religious stories to be fictional. Children's upbringing was also related to their judgment about the protagonist in fantastical stories that included ordinarily impossible events whether brought about by magic (Study 1) or without reference to magic (Study 2). Secular children were more likely than religious children to judge the protagonist in such fantastical stories to be fictional. The results suggest that exposure to religious ideas has a powerful impact on children's differentiation between reality and fiction, not just for religious stories but also for fantastical stories.

silverharp · 31-08-2015 8:57pm

^^ reminds me of

Study finds studies are wrong

Based on an attempt to replicate published studies, many failed. Among the reasons given were small sample size and a culture to not criticise senior colleagues in the field. It seems like the social sciences are facing many credibility issues.

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/08/28/science/many-social-science-findings-not-as-strong-as-claimed-study-says.html?_r=0

The past several years have been bruising ones for the credibility of the social sciences. A star social psychologist was caught fabricating data, leading to more than 50 retracted papers. A top journal published a study supporting the existence of ESP that was widely criticized. The journal Science pulled a political science paper on the effect of gay canvassers on voters’ behavior because of concerns about faked data.

Now, a painstaking yearslong effort to reproduce 100 studies published in three leading psychology journals has found that more than half of the findings did not hold up when retested. The analysis was done by research psychologists, many of whom volunteered their time to double-check what they considered important work. Their conclusions, reported Thursday in the journal Science, have confirmed the worst fears of scientists who have long worried that the field needed a strong correction.

Hotblack Desiato · 01-09-2015 3:38pm

silverharp wrote: »

a brief intro into computational ethics , the idea that AI in the future will have to be programmed to make ethical decisions

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Three_Laws_of_Robotics ? (cba to watch video

)

Cabaal · 02-09-2015 4:33pm

Not religious...but

The Horribly Slow Murderer with the Extremely Inefficient Weapon by Richard Gale

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9VDvgL58h_Y

robindch · 03-09-2015 2:02pm

The New Yorker casts an eye back over Cotton Mather and the Salem Witch Trials:

http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2015/09/07/the-witches-of-salem?mbid=social_facebook

legspin · 04-09-2015 11:32am

http://www.paviliontheatre.ie/events/view/an-evening-with-richard-dawkins

Going myself. Thought other folk here may be interested.

Thargor · 04-09-2015 11:54am

legspin wrote: »

http://www.paviliontheatre.ie/events/view/an-evening-with-richard-dawkins

Going myself. Thought other folk here may be interested.

Oh nice thanks, signed up.

Hotblack Desiato · 05-09-2015 6:26pm

Booked!

I think a pint or two afterwards will be called for...

ETA: Mrs Desiato wants to know if there is anywhere in the area that serves gluten-free Hawaiian pizza. Now that's a heresy on two counts :pac:

robindch · 06-09-2015 2:16pm

Hotblack Desiato wrote: »

ETA: Mrs Desiato wants to know if there is anywhere in the area that serves gluten-free Hawaiian pizza.

There's a Milano in Dun Laoghaire a few yards from the library which does gluten-free pizzas. Not so sure about the pineapples though

http://www.milano.ie/pdfs/files/SPRM15_MIL_MAIN_003084_LR.PDF

magicbastarder · 09-09-2015 9:09pm

a new one on me - andorra's co-ruler (along with (currently) francois hollande) is a catholic bishop, and it's a postion which comes with his role in the church:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joan_Enric_Vives_Sic%C3%ADlia

TheChizler · 09-09-2015 10:00pm

magicbastarder wrote: »

a new one on me - andorra's co-ruler (along with (currently) francois hollande) is a catholic bishop, and it's a postion which comes with his role in the church:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joan_Enric_Vives_Sic%C3%ADlia

That's a QI piece of trivia right there.

Nodin · 10-09-2015 12:52pm

magicbastarder wrote: »

a new one on me - andorra's co-ruler (along with (currently) francois hollande) is a catholic bishop, and it's a postion which comes with his role in the church:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joan_Enric_Vives_Sic%C3%ADlia

I thought HQ had banned them from political office way back.

Nodin · 10-09-2015 12:55pm

Is it a new one, or is one of the other ones with a funny shaped head? Only trial by anthropologist combat can decide......

"Homo naledi: New species of ancient human discovered, claim scientists
Bones found in South African cave are Homo naledi, a new species of ancient human relative, say researchers, but some experts are sceptical of find"
http://www.theguardian.com/science/2015/sep/10/new-species-of-ancient-human-discovered-claim-scientists

Anyone with a thing about small spaces might want to dodge the diagram there.

looksee · 10-09-2015 8:00pm

Nodin wrote: »

Is it a new one, or is one of the other ones with a funny shaped head? Only trial by anthropologist combat can decide......

"Homo naledi: New species of ancient human discovered, claim scientists
Bones found in South African cave are Homo naledi, a new species of ancient human relative, say researchers, but some experts are sceptical of find"
http://www.theguardian.com/science/2015/sep/10/new-species-of-ancient-human-discovered-claim-scientists

Anyone with a thing about small spaces might want to dodge the diagram there.

I was warned, but still looked. 8 inches. Arrrrgh

Nodin · 10-09-2015 8:55pm

looksee wrote: »

I was warned, but still looked. 8 inches. Arrrrgh

The question "how did they go through that?" arises on two levels.

recedite · 10-09-2015 9:56pm

They missed a trick in not calling these lads Gollums.
Especially after finding the Hobbits a few years ago in Asia.

I think I know what the "superman's crawl" section of the cave is about.
I was down a very tight chute a few years ago, and told the only way through was to adopt the superman crawl position; one arm forward to pull yourself along, and one arm back towards your leg. That way your shoulders are squeezed into a diagonal, and you wiggle along. Never again.
"Dragon's back" must be an even worse contortion, I suspect the vertebrae would suffer terribly.

Michael OBrien · 11-09-2015 1:26am

Nodin wrote: »

Is it a new one, or is one of the other ones with a funny shaped head? Only trial by anthropologist combat can decide......

"Homo naledi: New species of ancient human discovered, claim scientists
Bones found in South African cave are Homo naledi, a new species of ancient human relative, say researchers, but some experts are sceptical of find"
http://www.theguardian.com/science/2015/sep/10/new-species-of-ancient-human-discovered-claim-scientists

Anyone with a thing about small spaces might want to dodge the diagram there.

I am excited to see how they will date it and when they do how old the bones are. I am betting close to the 2 million mark (younger than 2), probably a cousin species not a direct ancestor.
Report will be exciting no matter what age they turn out to be, but the popular media will probably feck it up with all sorts of nonsense as usual.

silverharp · 11-09-2015 8:40am

interesting little prediction/observation on the next big "anti" , the 2000's was the Anti Theist decade , in the last couple of years Anti Feminist seems to have caught on as observed by popular channels like Thunderf00t morphing as so. the next Anti could be progressivism in general.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1w7FtZs8xtQ

recedite · 12-09-2015 11:38am

OK, so Richard Dawkins only took off as an atheist because of 9/11. Then he and his buddies all moved to anti-feminism, and now the next big thing for these trendies is to become conservatives. Right so.

silverharp · 12-09-2015 11:52am

recedite wrote: »

OK, so Richard Dawkins only took off as an atheist because of 9/11. Then he and his buddies all moved to anti-feminism, and now the next big thing for these trendies is to become conservatives. Right so.

I didn't take that from it , Dawkins has a specific niche , so he will keep doing what he does. I have noticed though that some of the atheist channels are tackling topics related to other cultural vandals .

PopePalpatine · 12-09-2015 11:59am

recedite wrote: »

OK, so Richard Dawkins only took off as an atheist because of 9/11. Then he and his buddies all moved to anti-feminism, and now the next big thing for these trendies is to become conservatives. Right so.

I did a bit of Googling about the creator of that video, he seems to be connected to the "Men Going Their Own Way" movement, so naturally he'd have a bone to pick with progressivism.

12-09-2015 2:02pm

Is there no merit to simply stating your position as anti-bull****?

What ism is that?

Peregrinus · 14-09-2015 7:21am

silverharp wrote: »

interesting little prediction/observation on the next big "anti" , the 2000's was the Anti Theist decade , in the last couple of years Anti Feminist seems to have caught on as observed by popular channels like Thunderf00t morphing as so. the next Anti could be progressivism in general.

The next Anti is already here, silverharp. It's Anti Muslim. Had you not noticed?

silverharp · 14-09-2015 7:57am

PopePalpatine wrote: »

I did a bit of Googling about the creator of that video, he seems to be connected to the "Men Going Their Own Way" movement, so naturally he'd have a bone to pick with progressivism.

there is a queue , where I noticed it first was the Youtube channel Atheism is Unstoppable, he started out as mostly poking fun at christians but now spends most of his time going after the far left progressives on Islam, and race etc. I cant say I agree with everything he puts out but given the way the US is , if you have fox at one end the "Anti Fox" networks are sounding just as kooky these days like TYT

silverharp · 14-09-2015 8:08am

Peregrinus wrote: »

The next Anti is already here, silverharp. It's Anti Muslim. Had you not noticed?

that will be a long burn I guess. What I see there is that most people arent interested in actually learning about Islam because its far too tedious to learn about. Whats more interesting is the reaction to it , you have the religious right, broadly Liberal and left progressive. If you like to think of yourself as a Liberal then both extreme look equally flawed

Hotblack Desiato · 14-09-2015 7:48pm

Weird.

http://www.irishtimes.com/news/ireland/irish-news/bizarre-leaflet-claims-to-offer-mobile-euthanasia-1.2351391

Mystery surrounds a bizarre leaflet drop in North Dublin claiming to offer euthanasia services in Ireland.

Tranquillity Euthanasia claims to offer a mobile automated service to clients that is sensitive and legal.

Euthanasia and assisted suicide are illegal in Ireland, while they are legal in Belgium and Switzerland.

The glossy, four-page leaflet says the organisation is Irish-owned and has worked hand-in-hand with engineers in Belgium and a legal team in Switzerland to develop its “euthanasia portal”.

This allows clients to “take that last step in life at a time of their choosing, in comfortable surroundings, in dignity without fear of legal repercussion”.

The leaflet then explains the nine easy steps to “eternal tranquillity”.

looksee · 14-09-2015 10:06pm

No! Dub - Dubendorf, not Dublin!

robindch · 15-09-2015 6:39pm

National Geographic sells itself. To climate-change deniers, Rupert Murdoch and the general Fox News hivemind. Viewers are not happy.

http://www.rawstory.com/2015/09/viewers-vow-boycott-after-rupert-murdoch-buys-natgeo-cash-triumphs-over-conservation-conscience/

Hotblack Desiato · 15-09-2015 9:58pm

looksee wrote: »

No! Dub - Dubendorf, not Dublin!

recedite · 16-09-2015 10:35am

I'd say the tranquility thing is a spoof by some anti-euthanasia people, designed to generate public outrage. Thereby preparing a hostile environment for any politician thinking of publicly supporting any changes to the current laws which make it illegal for relatives to travel or help in any way with a terminally ill person's possible trip to a Dignitas centre abroad.

Interesting Stuff Thread

Comments