North Texas Skeptic - Vol 19 No 02 - 2005

Magazine Overview

The North Texas Skeptic, Volume 19, Number 2, published in February 2005, is a newsletter from The North Texas Skeptics organization, focusing on critical examination of paranormal and pseudoscientific claims. The issue's cover story, "Religion in the public square" by John Blanton, discusses a seminar co-sponsored by the NTS featuring speakers Joe Barnhart, Ron Flowers, Frank Guliuzza, and Ron Overton, who discussed the role of religion in public life and its connection to politics.

Religion in the Public Square

Mark Peterson, a professor at the University of Texas at Arlington, organized a seminar on "Religion in the Public Square" in January. The event, co-sponsored by The North Texas Skeptics, aimed to provide an intelligent discussion on the topic, which was cited by many as playing a significant role in the recent presidential election. The NTS contributed to honorariums for the speakers. Sponsors included the Sociology Student Association at UTA, UTA Faculty/Staff Christian Fellowship, and Grace Community Church of Arlington. The speakers were Joe Barnhart (professor of religion studies and philosophy at the University of North Texas), Ron Flowers (retired professor of religion, heads local chapter of Americans United for the Separation of Church and State, and ordained minister), Frank Guliuzza (member of the Political Science and Philosophy Department at Weber State University), and Ron Overton (founder of The Church, Arlington, Texas, with expertise on church-state issues). Professor Alan Saxe of UTA moderated the event. The discussion focused on whether religious principles should drive political policy. Ron Overton argued that religious expression is being stifled and that the banishment of God from classrooms since the early 1960s has led to an increase in social evils, citing statistics on rape and teen pregnancy. Joe Barnhart touched upon the misuse of statistics, using the "post hoc, ergo hoc" fallacy as an example.

Events Calendar

The February 2005 events calendar includes a presentation by Danny Barnett on "The Alternative Fix," discussing the alternative medicine industry and the basis for its claims. The event was scheduled for Saturday, February 12, at the Center for Nonprofit Management in Dallas.

Organization and Staff Information

Page 2 provides a directory of North Texas Skeptics officers (Daniel Barnett, John Brandt, Mike Selby, Mark Meyer), staff (Keith Blanton, John Blanton, Laura Ainsworth), and board members. It also lists Scientific and Technical Advisors, including Joe Barnhart, David E. Dunn, Raymond A. Eve, Timothy N. Gorski, Ronnie J. Hastings, Anthony P. Picchioni, James Rusk, Lakshman S. Tamil, and John Thomas. The organization is described as a tax-exempt 501(c)(3) scientific and educational organization. The newsletter is published monthly by The North Texas Skeptics, P.O. Box 111794, Carrollton, Texas 75011-1794.

Shroud of Turin Research

A press release titled "Good news for The Shroud" reports on new chemical testing that suggests an ancient origin for the Burial Shroud of Jesus. The American Shroud of Turin Association for Research (AMSTAR) announced that the 1988 Carbon-14 test, which dated the Shroud to between AD 1260 and 1390, was performed on an "expertly-done rewoven patch" and not the original cloth. Chemist Raymond Rogers, a fellow of Los Alamos National Laboratory, found that the sample had completely different chemical properties and was dyed using technology from around AD 1290. This research, published in Thermochimica Acta, disproves the British Museum's earlier conclusion that the Shroud was of medieval origin and possibly a hoax. Researchers had previously questioned the validity of the sample used for dating, noting indications of an "invisible" reweave.

Web News: Intelligent Design and Creationism Debates

Several web news items discuss the ongoing debates surrounding Intelligent Design (ID) and creationism in education.

• Southern Baptist Theological Seminary Hires Intelligent-Design Theorist: William Dembski, a proponent of Intelligent Design, was hired by the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary to direct the Center for Science and Theology. Dembski previously headed the Baylor University Michael Polanyi Center, which was seen as a showcase for ID, leading to faculty protests and the center's dissolution. Dembski stated he was ostracized at Baylor and looks forward to influencing sympathetic believers.
• Science Profs Send ID Letter: In Pennsylvania, science faculties at York College and the University of Pennsylvania urged the Dover school board to reconsider teaching creationism. The Discovery Institute, a think tank supporting ID, also expressed concerns. 45 Penn State professors endorsed an open letter opposing the Dover board's decision to require biology students to be informed about Intelligent Design, which is being taught in Dover as the first public school in the U.S. to do so.
• Cobb County Appeals: A federal judge ruled against Cobb County, Georgia's requirement to place evolution disclaimer stickers in public school biology textbooks, citing the "Lemon test" and stating the stickers conveyed an "impermissible message of endorsement" of religion by calling evolution "a theory, not a fact." The Cobb County Board of Education decided to appeal this ruling.
• Theory of intelligent design enters Blount Co. high schools: The Blount County (Colorado) school board approved teaching "Intelligent Design," though high schools there do not yet teach ID. Board member Dr. Don McNelly suggested teachers could discuss controversies within the evolutionary theory, emphasizing that ID posits human biology and evolution are too complex to have arisen without an intelligent force. The lack of ID textbooks is noted as a challenge.
• Creationism: court orders warning stickers removed immediately: This section reiterates the Cobb County ruling, noting that a federal judge ordered the removal of stickers that called evolution "a theory, not a fact," deeming it an "impermissible message of endorsement."

What's New: Tsunami, Darwinian Evolution, and Creationism

Robert Park's "What's New" column presents several short news items:

• Earthquacks: the deeper meaning of the tsunami is examined: The column notes that religions are offering explanations for the tsunami, with some Buddhists attributing the deaths of innocent lives to past bad karma. A Moslem cleric and columnist William Safire compared the event to God's test of Job. The article contrasts these interpretations with the scientific explanation of the tsunami being caused by the release of elastic energy in a tectonic earthquake.
• Darwinian evolution: “monkey trial" reconvenes in Dover, PA: This section highlights that 145 years after Darwin published "Origin of Species," the Dover, PA school board voted to require Intelligent Design to be taught alongside evolution. It questions why science has been unsuccessful in explaining obvious truths to people.
• Creationism: court orders warning messages be required on books: This item refers back to the Cobb County case, questioning why warning labels, common for medicine, are not applied to textbooks, and suggests that the stickers calling evolution "a theory, not a fact" were not entirely wrong.

Other Articles and Sections

• Alternative medicine: IOM report calls for tougher standards: The Institute of Medicine report recommends major revisions to the Dietary Supplement and Health Education Act (DSHEA), advocating for the same evidence standards for alternative and conventional medical treatments.
• Medium done: if only the hurricane hadn't washed the body away: This is a critical commentary on the NBC program "Medium," which features "Research Medium and Criminal Profiler" Allison Dubois. The author expresses skepticism about the show's premise and criticizes NBC for featuring Dubois as a consultant.
• Some silly programs are fun; Spiderman's super powers come from being bitten by a radioactive spider. But there's a huge difference - Medium takes itself seriously: This continues the critique of "Medium," contrasting it with fictional superheroes like Spiderman.
• Adjustments: Florida state faculty oppose chiropractic school: A faculty revolt is brewing at Florida State University (FSU) over the establishment of a chiropractic school, with Nobel laureates Bob Schreiffer and Harold Kroto opposing it due to concerns about academic reputation. The planned chiropractic school is satirized with a map featuring a Bigfoot Institute and Astrology School.
• Skeptic Ink: This section features a comic strip by Prasad Golla and John Blanton, with the title "Skeptic Ink," which appears to be a commentary on shopping and consumerism, with a reference to "AREA 51 IMPORTS."
• Future meeting dates: A list of upcoming North Texas Skeptics meetings for 2005 is provided, all scheduled for the Center for Nonprofit Management in Dallas.
• The Committee for the Scientific Investigation of Claims of the Paranormal (CSICOP): This section promotes CSICOP, which encourages critical investigation of paranormal claims and disseminates factual information. It also mentions The Skeptical Inquirer, published bimonthly by CSICOP, and provides subscription information.

Recurring Themes and Editorial Stance

The recurring themes in this issue of The North Texas Skeptic are the critical examination of religious claims in the public sphere, the scientific and educational implications of Intelligent Design and creationism versus evolution, and the scrutiny of alternative medicine and paranormal phenomena. The editorial stance is clearly skeptical, advocating for scientific rigor, evidence-based reasoning, and a critical approach to claims that lack empirical support. The publication actively promotes science education and challenges what it perceives as pseudoscience or religiously motivated challenges to scientific consensus.