Are supernatural powers real?

By Peter Bokulich

National Geographic investigates claims of paranormal abilities. Is the Sufi ability to withstand piercings in the body due to some supernatural force? Can martial arts practitioners use chi to knock over an opponent?

Warning: The video includes some graphic sequences of people piercing their bodies.

Jelly Beans and P-Values

By Peter Bokulich

The standard criterion for considering a scientific study to be statistically significant is having a p-value less than 5%.

This means that (according to the relevant background theory) there's less than a one in twenty chance that the result in question would have been found merely as a result of chance.

Here's what that can mean in real life:

(xkcd original here)

Sophistry in defense of climate science

By Peter Bokulich

Sophistry or Philosophy?

George Marshall discusses some practical advice -- based on research in psychology and sociology -- about how to talk to people if you want to change their minds (as opposed to simply engaging them in arguments).

For one, he says I should call denialists "dissenters" instead of denialists.

It seems like good advice. But it's also worth noting that it's decidedly unphilosophical in some important respects.

Philosophy is all about giving reasons for holding or rejecting a belief. It's about arguments. It's a process that assumes you are interested in rationally engaging with the world.

Marshall is right that many of us don't come to our beliefs through a (purely) rational process. But shouldn't it be an ideal we strive towards?

The transition from dinosaurs to birds

By Peter Bokulich

Carl Zimmer at The Loom discusses archeopteryxs' place in the transition between non-avian dinosaurs to birds.

An important part of what makes a bird a bird is the size of its brain. In this respect, Archaeopteryx isn't as closely related to modern birds as you might have thought.

Chomsky: Climate Change as “Liberal Hoax”

By Peter Bokulich

When you say ___, people hear ____.

By Peter Bokulich

From a Physics Today article entitled "Communicating the Science of Climate Change.

It's always good to choose your words carefully, but this is especially true when terms used in science have slightly different meanings when used in everyday contexts.

Bickmore on Climate Denialism

By Peter Bokulich

The thermodynamic arrow

By Peter Bokulich

Both this video:

and this one are compatible with the fundamental laws of physics.

The question of why we can be certain that the first video is time-reverse is one of the deepest questions in foundations of physics.

Mann on Climate Change Communication Battles

By Peter Bokulich

Where’s the burden of proof?

By Peter Bokulich