North Texas Skeptic - Vol 24 No 04 - 2010

Magazine Overview

This issue of The North Texas Skeptic, dated April 2010, is Volume 24, Number 4. The magazine, published by The North Texas Skeptics, focuses on promoting scientific thought and skepticism. The cover headline is "Teaching critical thinking."

Teaching Critical Thinking

The lead article, "Teaching critical thinking" by John Blanton, features an interview with science teacher Jamye Johnston. Johnston, who has a background in biology, now teaches in the Grand Prairie public school system to foster scientific thought. She asserts that the creation/evolution battle is largely settled, and the focus should be on teaching students how to think. This is complicated by modern educational requirements that emphasize standardized testing. Johnston defines critical thinking as the ability to formulate questions about observations, characterized by being skillful, reflective, informed, and focused, and notes that it cannot be effectively tested by multiple-choice questions. She observes that students are often uncomfortable proposing ideas that deviate from the norm and that some students are disengaged from learning. To counter this, Johnston uses a "Be Skeptical" board in her classroom where students post questions, encouraging peer review and independent problem-solving, emphasizing that teachers should not be oracles.

John Blanton also contributes an article titled "MIOS," discussing the Metroplex Institute of Origin Science. He notes that MIOS, founded in 1987, presents scientific evidence for Creationism and promotes young Earth creationism (YEC). Blanton mentions attending MIOS meetings since 1989 and knowing its founder, Don Patton. He highlights past speakers like Dr. Edward Boudreaux and David Bassett, and upcoming presentations on "Pressing Questions in Creation Biology" by Dr. Nathaniel Jeanson. The article touches on the debate surrounding Don Patton's Ph.D. and its source.

Quote Mining and Common Ancestry

Prasad Golla's article, "Quote mining and common ancestry," addresses the practice of quote mining, which he describes as an "evil activity." He explains that it involves taking quotes out of context to distort meaning, citing Stephen J. Gould's quotes about the fossil record as an example. Golla discusses a complaint from creationist David DeWitt about quote mining, noting the irony that DeWitt himself was accused of quote mining. The article examines DeWitt's argument against "common ancestry," which he believes is weak evidence and a logical fallacy. DeWitt suggests that homologous structures in species are evidence of a common creator rather than a common ancestor. The article includes a cartoon by Prasad Golla illustrating the difference between a logical deduction and a flawed one, and critiques the argument that if A then B, and B is true, then A must be true.

Other Articles and Columns

"What's new" by Robert Park presents several short items:

• Manna: isn't that a gift from heaven? This piece discusses a company called Manna of Utah that proposed building a plant in Odessa, Missouri, promising 3000 jobs and claiming to have a "world-changing" home generator technology. The article expresses skepticism about the technology, hinting it might be a perpetual motion machine.
• Patent nonsense: case law on perpetual motion machines. This section references the case of Joseph Newman, who was denied a patent for his "Energy Machine." The case established legal precedent for rejecting perpetual-motion claims, leading to such devices being termed "over-unity devices" or "zero-point-energy machines."
• Imaginary science: the great drug war south of the border. This article critiques the use of high-tech dowsing rods by Mexican drug traffickers, describing them as "imaginary detectors" and questioning the companies selling them.
• Acupuncture: may it go the way of prayer. This piece reports on the British Fertility Society's warning that there is no evidence acupuncture boosts pregnancy chances through IVF, drawing a parallel to a previous report on the ineffectiveness of prayer in fertility treatments.

Another section, "Skeptic Ink," by Prasad Golla and John Blanton, features a comic strip and brief commentary on modern technology, the lack of a "row 13" on airplanes, and the scientific understanding of microwave photons.

Belief: Francis Collins is free to hold any beliefs he likes.

This item discusses Francis Collins, the new director of the NIH, and his book "Belief: Readings on the Reasons for Faith." The author argues that while the book was published before his directorship, it raises questions about his personal beliefs influencing his role in a major science agency, emphasizing the scientific principle that observable effects have physical causes.

Cell phones: the Maine problem is scientific ignorance.

This section addresses concerns in Maine about a potential link between cell phone use and brain cancer. The author expresses skepticism, noting that the increase in cell phone use has not been matched by a similar rise in brain cancer incidence, and that known cancer agents work by breaking chemical bonds in DNA, which cell phones do not do.

Events Calendar

The magazine includes a calendar of upcoming events for The North Texas Skeptics and MIOS, including program meetings, board meetings, and a presentation by Rupert Sheldrake on his experiments.

Recurring Themes and Editorial Stance

The recurring themes in this issue include the importance of critical thinking in education, the ongoing debate between creationism and evolution, and the debunking of pseudoscientific claims and "imaginary science." The editorial stance is clearly pro-science, advocating for evidence-based reasoning, skepticism towards unsubstantiated claims, and the application of the scientific method to all phenomena. The magazine aims to educate its readers and encourage them to question and critically evaluate information.