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In which case, tell them I'm in work, or dead, or down the shops. They can come back in when they've got Professor Brian Cox with them. If only cause I want to meet him and steal his hair. 1328302967 Put me down as another for Mysterious Universe. Those dudes are brilliant. 1347836881 The military of any country would never admit that UFO's have taken down our most powerful weapons. 1331905826 An example would have been more productive than a downvote, I think. 1315584834 sorry, but the authors of this article admit that the study is limited and flawed. Also, upon peer review, the study is found to be fallacious. It says this towards the end of the article, a point to which the majority of people usually fail to read. \n\nalso, 463 people is NOT, in any way, compelling evidence for a causal relationship. 1347389166 "Are you afraid of science in general, or just the kind you read about on the internet?" 1303864529 Well, I know it can decrease intraocular pressure, but as for *cancer...*\n\nThe only data I'm aware of relating marijuana to cancer is that it's an antiemetic and an appetite increasing drug. Which, while very good for patient health, are not directly related to the cancer itself, as much as a treatment of the adverse reactions of chemotherapy/radiation treatment (unless if the cancer is in the GI system, or is making weird hormones...).\n\nIf you have any information indicating that marijuana helps in cancer/HIV treatment *other* than as an antiemetic/appetite increasing medication, could you please provide it? I mean, I'm all for it's responsible use, but I don't want to go around spreading misinformation, especially if I'm going to one day be in the medical field. 1318558797 That could be anything. Why even bother... 1285029343 what was the joke? he deleted it 1337651956 Its the landing and taking off that/'s hard, and those things will do do that for you as well. The pilots, for the most part, are there in case shit happens.\n\nBTW stalling a Cessna is fun as hell. 1336941346 I guess you are posting this for us to make fun of? \n\nThis is the exact type of post you should be the most skeptical of.\n\nsome random blogger, with little evidence and cute graphs claims huge multinational conspiracies.. without leaks.. and no one educated in the subject has caught it.. but this armchair hero, has discovered their dastardly plans.\n\n\nanyways, yall have noticed that big money, and big power are the ones most against socialism. And al gore has as much to do with global warming as sally struthers has to do with starving kids in africa.. they are fucking proponents, that is all.\n\n 1354303743 Nice to read! Good on you! 1327505975 Why do these keep getting so many upvotes? This is dumb. That's not a liberal thing, that's a ridiculous thing. Aura is not a liberal concept.\n\nWhat the fuck. 1324754810 My friend has this Orion's Belt scar on her ankle. She doesn't know where she got it, but it's been there as long as she can remember. This is curious seeing as it's the configuration of the pyramids of Egypt and the Mayans. Does anybody have similar scars anywhere on their bodies? 1352692705 I may not like Rebecca Watson, but I don't wish her ill health. Be honest with me - do you have mental problems? 1310511050 Thanks man, I'll check it out right now. 1338662076 The Montreal police already have a file on him full of evidence. They've said they can't do anything on threats alone; he has to act before they can intervene. This came up back when PZ Myers drew attention to him on Pharyngula back when Dennis showed up at a big atheist convention in Montreal.\n\nMichael Wheeler has called his mother to let her know what he's doing, though, which is hilarious. 1312986449 See, that's how I feel about it. It's in schools and shit. Utter absurdity. He moved out a couple months ago. 1296496890 TL;DR - Refueling plane during training exercises. 1331650609 Thanks for the post. I have seen his stuff around but never the whole story. The pictures on their own are hard to swallow but you get the whole picture and its a very well documented case. Bought the book now I'm off to look for the documentary....if it's even out yet.\n 1352827910 I want the mp3! 1292645868 Mmm salted silicon chips. 1346719096 Unfortunately, there are no scientists currently modding or significantly contributing to online communities dedicated to the serious and sober research/discussion of UFO and related phenomena, that I am aware of. Those who are doing the talking, including Reddit, Above Top Secret, Open Minds, Coast to Coast, Nighthawk Zone, Cryptomundo, Talk Paranormal, MUFON forum and many, many others represent, at best, somewhat self-educated interest groups with relatively little knowledge and significantly more fluff. In other words, they all have a pretty crummy signal-to-noise ratio. It is always best to just read the literature first and come to these fora with a bulking arsenal of books and research under your belt. All that takes time and, let's face it, most folk are not willing to make the effort to gain that depth of knowledge.\n\nI'm going to do you all a huge favor and point you to a blog from perhaps the greatest UFOlogist still living, though he would never admit to it as he is a deeply modest and innately spiritual fellow. He is also one HELL of a UFO researcher. You won't hear this guy on Coast to Coast. He doesn't have a book out yet (Soon, or so I hear) but his blog pretty much covers the phenomenon from start to end with some incredible new and interesting insights. He is a retired university professor who has recently had to stop posting due to family, and other, time constraining circumstances. Here it is.\n\nThe Big Study:\n\nhttp://thebiggeststudy.blogspot.com/\n\nGo to the archive at the bottom of the page, beginning with 2009, and start there. I guarantee you should consider this a full and comprehensive course on the history and events of UFOlogy (with some other seemingly random and eclectic topics thrown in for full measure)\n\nThis guy has either worked with directly or personally known nearly every UFOlogist you've ever heard of, and many of them still go to this guy for advice and research. You won't find a better resource for UFO knowledge and history on the internet. Good hunting and your welcome. 1286948760 Noticed that after I had already posted. 1322581165 [They are working on that with some like the Harrier](http://johns-jokes.com/afiles/images/harrier-jump-jet.jpg) some body parts move/change\n\n\n[And other like the Osprey but mostly just the wings move](http://cdn-www.airliners.net/aviation-photos/photos/4/2/0/1166024.jpg)\n\n\nAnd do a google for '[shape shifting aircraft](http://www.reuters.com/article/2010/09/08/us-aviation-uav-morphing-idUSTRE6874DL20100908)' 1307855100 Any way to make a quick buck.\n\n>Active Ingredients: Purpose\n>\n>Conium maculatum 6X: light sensitivity, aching **Literally Nothing**\n>\n>Natrium muriaticum 6X: blurred vision **Literally Nothing**\n>\n>Ruta graveolens 6X: eyelid spasms, eyestrain, pressure **Literally Nothing**\n>\n>Senega officinalis 6X: aching, dryness, eyestrain, light sensitivity **Literally Nothing**\n>\n> \n>\n>Other Information:\n>\n>Active ingredients are manufactured according to homeopathic principles.\n>\n> \n>\n>Inactive Ingredients:\n>\n>Borate buffer **Used to keep a neutral pH**\n>\n>Purified water **Good ol' water**\n>\n>Silver sulphate (as preservative) **Not sure if it's actually a preservative. It seems to be a reagent in silver plating, also the permissible occupational exposure limit is .01 mg/m^3 is and the [chem sheet](http://datasheets.scbt.com/sc-203379.pdf) states that "If applied to the eyes, this material causes severe eye damage."**\n>\n>Sodium nitrate **Food preservative**\n\n 1322515324 Hey, anything is possible. Maybe i hallucinated government drones. 1340585280 Sometimes people remember things differently than what actually happened. Sometimes friends screw with you. 1322026977 [lol, now I get it](http://www.reddit.com/r/AdviceAnimals/comments/oim75/cant_we_just_talk_about_this/) 1326675840 http://dfwparanomalresearchteam.tumblr.com/ and our tumblr 1347412307 Steven Novella over at [Skeptic Blog](http://skepticblog.org/2011/01/31/homeopathy-pseudoscience-at-the-huffpo/) takes this article on a point by point basis and shows just how full of fail it is and, boy, is it full of fail.\n\n*edit*\n\nThe wiki page for Luc Montagnier goes into some detail over his new research interests and the controversy surrounding it. He's showing all the signs of quakitude, self publishing, claims of persecution, etc. Further, *even if* his research turned out to be 100% correct...it would have zero baring on the effectiveness of homeopathic medicines which can only be determined through clinical trials (like any other medicine). 1298475479 I have no idea what you're talking about. I'm not a photographer, this picture was taken with my iphone, actually.\nThis is my first time posting to paranormal because I was curious as to what I snapped.\nI was with my mom, and as I said her back was turned. 1350323398 I don't follow. It's not a harmless preference, like preferring blue over red. Not trusting doctors can get you killed. It can even get others killed, as is happening now with the lack of immunizations causing diseases to spread. \n\nSharing information and discussing ideas with people might save their lives. 1319489710 Damn. My hypothesis is shot. 1302539976 Technically, you are correct. All "organic" literally means is carbon-based, and using the same term to mean "food grown without chemical pesticides and fertilizers" is really a misnomer -- but I'll be darned if I can come up with an alternative. "Organic" will probably remain its nom de plume until someone figures out a better three-syllable-or-less term for it.\n\nThat said, calling it a "meaningless label" is inaccurate, because there are U.S. agricultural standards regulating what can and can't be called organic food, which growers have to meet or exceed. Those standards are available [here](http://www.ams.usda.gov/AMSv1.0/nop). So anything labeled "USDA organic" is grown by different rules than standard U.S. agriculture. That usually means grown without chemical pesticides and fertilizers.\n\nI've seen some interesting arguments for and against each. Chemical pesticides used today are probably safe to consume long term in the small quantities that remain on washed produce; you're not hearing about people keeling over dead from toxic shock at younger ages if they spent their lives eating food grown with chemical pesticides. On the other hand, DDT and pesticides like it that are now banned from use were once thought to be perfectly harmless, so an argument could be made that eating food without any pesticide residue is a perfectly rational way to avoid the issue entirely.\n\nChemical fertilizers are basically just synthetic nitrogen fixers and do exactly the same thing that manure, fish meal, and other natural fertilizers do. And synthetics are a lot easier to produce. On the other hand, natural fertilizers return a lot more raw organic (as in, carbon-based) material to the soil alongside the nitrogen, so you get less [leaching](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leaching_%28agriculture%29) and [soil erosion](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Erosion#Soil_erosion_and_climate_change).\n\nTo me, it seems likely that the health and environment benefits of so-called "organic" farming are small, but not negligible. It would be nice if there was a method of producing synthetic nitrogen that also replenished the organic matter density of soil. 1292361483 I for one have tried a number of different types of beers and have tasted differences in each one I've tried 1323788826 Hah! I googled the wrong rag, sorry. Maybe you can look it up yourself. 1332183524 according to one man I spoke to recently, all they need to do to cure cancer is "eat better". 1356556789 Amazing video. Looks like this one also involves a coverup by the FAA. 1331433213 >the signal-to-noise ratio here is too low.\n\nThis is about the clearest phrasing of that sentiment I've ever seen.\n\nThank you. 1351176487 Totally agree. It's sad when people speak of survival shows, Bear Grylls comes up first. I try to explain that if they want to see a serious survival experience, with an honest guide and safe, logical information, watch anything Les does. \n\nFucking love that guy. I only wish he started making shows when he was younger. Imagine how much more information he would have to share. 1354744679 the 33% that believe in psychics in the poll at the end concerns me 1352083172 I worked for Whole Foods. Its not a "health food" store. Its a store where the food is more expensive because the manufacturers don't cut corners. Its more like a "fine foods" store marketed as a "health food" store. The food is delicious. 1299444492 Many thanks indeed for all this really interesting contextual information! 1290570220 Somewhat short answer: homeopaths want to give u medicine watered down so that 1 in 10^30 parts is actual medicine and the rest is water.\n\nAnalogy:\nThe entire planet earth is 6 x 10^24 kg.\n\nThis means if you took **1 kg** of medicine and mixed it with about **1,600,000 earths** (or more than 4 suns), that's the ratio homeopaths are trying to get u to take as medicine. (anyone feel free to correct my math) 1342313722 Are you saying logic does apply to theism? Or are you saying that logic should apply to theism? If we agree that logic should apply that doesn't mean it does in practice. I fall into the camp where I think skepticism is a science based endeavor and that things falling outside the realm of science do not apply. Again, the age old question of where skepticism fits with regard to atheism. It may simply be a matter of personal opinion as to the meaning of the word skeptic. Bear in mind logic does apply to religious claims (young earth creation) but theism by its very nature has infinitely movable goal posts. And these movable goal posts are perfectly feasible within the theist construct without causing the worldview to break. How can logic apply in such a situation? Not saying that is how it should be, just saying that is how it is. That is why my personal opinion is that the original post is atheist in nature not skeptical. Also please note that I chose the word theism for a very specific reason. I didn't say Christianity, Islam, Hindi or even religion. 1298574901 I don't know man. \n\nThat would be the fastest moving satellite I've ever seen. 1304182715 Oh, my mistake. He's only got a Ph.d in Clinical Neurology. 1326848493 I think it would be stupid to have the government protect an animal that might be non existent,since nobody has ever even come close to capturing one or killing one. 1353900645 Oh. I see. You think your rational explanations are wrong despite falling back on them as evidence of your rationality.\n\nYou got an answer, but it wasn't the one you were fishing for. Just go ahead and say that you think there is a portal to hell in your bedroom instead of tiptoeing around the point. 1354723031 I think they live in the ocean, and come to the surface to examine us every once in awhile. 1332824603 I am going to assume that the lawyer involved didn't actually sue because the wifi was giving cancer...probably some sort of loophole in the law that these guys found and are trying to game by connecting wifi with cancer somehow.\n\nIn the end I want to see the school counter sue for the cost of court at least. 1340494039 Pretty much anything by The Caretaker:\nhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fafEPuR1WUM\nOr this tune by Alan Clark that appears on 'Most Haunted':\nhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nwh_erf37vY\n 1355076513 Homeopathy *is* recognized in many European countries. There are Homeopathic hospitals in England and it's probably more accepted is Germany. 1336326641 It floats like a ballon 1334295720 My fellow Americans, Puddlewonderful is hott. God bless the United States of America. 1304314736 Phew. I feel better now. Also, your username is awesome. 1351776760 Didn't I [just](http://www.reddit.com/r/skeptic/comments/m4wgn/top_10_worst_antiscience_websites/) post this a month ago? 1324268556 I think that's [pretty much](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Technological_singularity) the idea. Though the idea is that if we can produce AI even slightly more intelligent than our us, then it could produce slight more intelligent AI than that and so on. 1335057195 I disagree. I can't find it now, but there was a study done where a largish group of people was shown 2 lines, one obviously longer than the other. One member of the group was not in on the joke, and answered correctly that the longer of the two was longer. Everyone else, however, had been instructed to answer in the opposite. \n\nIn many cases, the person would give in an agree, because they just assumed they were wrong, as the crowd must know best. \n\nThe conviction of being demonstrably right and yet ignored is different than someone being ignored while simply shouting his conviction. Even if both come out in feelings of frustration, they just aren't the same thing. 1325885432 Gates is consistently hilarious, but also doesn't seem to balk at doing some fairly dangerous things. I don't see a single night's investigation of any phenomena doing much good, but they have turned up some things like the aforementioned footprint. 1333507789 Ive always attributed mine to the idea that your mind purposefully induces paralisis(i beg forgiveness for spelling errors) and i just become conscious before the chemical is fully removed from my neurosystem. Im not a brain scientist or rocket surgen, so dont believe me. And the first time for me i swear i heard a demon posses me and felt like i was being possessed. Thank god the internet was here or i might have believed it and driven myself over the edge. 1341771486 its sugar deposits. hence bruising on fruit. 1346594496 so wtf did this dude say? i can't find any info on it. i know it was only supposed to be a preview of his findings but you would think there would be something interesting revealed. 1329695164 I told them that I am not close minded, it's just that I have already heard all of their arguments and they are not convincing. But hey, I'm a dick because I am not convinced by their shitty arguments, but they are not by ignoring mine. You gotta love double standards. 1340028745 Isn't there multiple pictures and videos of this? 1351042302 Sounds like he will be just fine, in fact. Praying for him anyway! 1282599595 The notch's are probably a unique deformity in the mirror used. 1329847061 Missile test. 1324837349 It's streaming live from Old South Pittsburg Hospital in TN. 1335578483 Beat me to it. :( 1296699056 Can't wait for the accurate [FIXED] with the third column, followed by "It was just a joke, nerd" replies to it. 1330059670 Music is not absolutely subjective though, there are reasons why something is good or bad, mostly based on the experience of the musicians. For example, if I wrote a song right now, it would fucking suck, and that's a fact. Because I have not spent a lot of time on music and developing skill. Listening to music is also a certain skill, which is why little kids listen to shite. 1299027692 That must have been a low ceiling cloud. 1342401101 Actually, no, I'm not arguing anything in terms of homeopathy. At all. Don't give a fig about it. My point has been that the placebo effect - regardless of the trigger, whether it be sugar pill or whatever - is a testable, verifiable, scientifically repeatable effect that, at it's base, is a mental ability shown to exist, if not in any one individual, across the human race.\n\nRandi didn't specify that mental abilities had to be supernatural or that they had to be provable in any given person, only that they had to be scientifically verifiable. The placebo effect is a mental power. Give an inert substance to a test population who have been tested as suffering from any ailment and a sizable fraction will show improvement. Every medical experimenter knows this and allows for it in their results. They don't know what mental ability causes it but it happens.\n\nAnd that would meet all of Randi's challenge's criteria.\n\nThat's all I'm saying.\n\nNo need to go off on a homeopathy. 1304174208 no, it's what he's saying. This looks exactly like damaged negative, which can have any shape, or even writing. 1330833580 They might not all be after control and domination. Just like there are charitable human factions I would predict there are benevolent or charitable alien factions too. Especially when the convergence of singularity technology and universal ethics happens in a species. 1336144567 > but changing from an undeveloped to a developed country happens once in a country's lifetime, unless their society is destroyed. Begin in a constant state of change doesn't mean that it changes from developed to undeveloped all the time...\n\nK, agree to disagree. We'll see if Europe is able to recover from its debt problems.\n\n> Your goal seems to be to get everyone working. I have to ask, why?\n\nThe goal is for everyone to be sufficient for themselves without foreign Aid. If that takes working, then so be it. It'd be great if all economies were successful enough as to not require people working, but i don't think we're there yet.\n\n> However, with sweat shops, it is a self-defeating move. The mere act of working in them detracts from the quality of life.\n\nSource?\n\n> Disease is rampant, as is death.\n\nSource?\n\n> People live to work and work to live. It's a useless life. \n\nSource?\n\n> Why try to implement a system in which people suffer more, compared to the current system, where we have some unemployment, which also happens in societies that do have child labor and sweat shops. In fact, because you enlarge the job pool (including children), your unemployment goes up.\n\nSource? Source? Source?\n\n> And yes, minimum wage laws do "force jobs" to other places, but it also makes the US one of the richest people of the world.\n\nExcept for all those poor people on Welfare that can't even get a job to start with...\n\n> Owners of large factories and big corporations aren't really suffering, and implementing sweat shops might give a few people jobs, but they would get less money overall. \n\nSource?\n\n> The only people who benefit from sweatshops are the owners (at least in the developed world). That is why owners implemented them, after all. Sometimes, their interests add up, but most of the time, they do not.\n\nSource? 1342224390 Oh thank you. You really changed my worldview. 1299372445 I'm there too! 1336236102 Yeah not the music but the name. Damn near certain I remember the name "Florence and the Machine" specifically cuz I thought it would be unusual to have a female lead singer in a metal band (how young and ignorant I was). Best explanation I have so far is I actually heard "Rage Against The Machine" and my memory is just messing up on me, as much as it feels like it can't be. It **has** to be. 1352826425 I see many words here, but I am not exactly positive what I just read. 1338341056 Go and ask one of the old shop keepers in town. Something like this was bound to be gossip worthy. 1345238358 Wikipedia does it better than I ever could. If you find it interesting, I would recommend r/psychonaut and Deoxy.org, they make for a lot of interesting reading often regarding that subject. 1328350641 I think they *should* be called "doctor", actually. It seems incongruous to award the honorific to any PhD, but not to others who have also earned different doctoral degrees (lawyers, DNPs, pharmacists, etc.). 1331602819 > Now the legal stuff.... I am required to state the following: You must be 18 years old to purchase. Psychic, paranormal, haunted and/or magical items are for **entertainment purpuses only**. I am not responsible for any paranormal activity you may **or may not experience**.\n\nAlways in the fine print... 1281485615 You're getting some harsh responses.\n\nI just want to say thanks for the effort :) 1344430093 CGI... 1294667461 oh I see, no I didn't read any of the other comments, and I didn't read the link either, I just popped in to share that little snippet, it stands alone :) 1281880425 Stars do that. They really do change colours. They do it because they are producing the light. In fact, one way you can tell a planet from a star is planets don't twinkle. Just a steady light. Stars twinkle, planets don't. 1329204427 woo, snarktastic! 1283016077 The main difference was that the organic milk was UHT- from a box and the regular milk was from the usual gallon jugs. \n\nBut the purpose wasn't to determine if organic milk was superior to regular milk, but rather to determine which of the available milk products I preferred in my latte. It didn't matter *why* I preferred X to Y. I don't care about chemicals- chemicals are one of my 5 food groups, along with sugar, salt, fat, and alcohol. I liked X better- *a lot better*, and that turned out to be the organic.\n\n 1338478290 On the talk page on Relativity, Andy Schafly has made it quite clear that he takes the page seriously... Jesus' miracles disprove relativity because they apparently worked faster than the speed of light. 1288741585 Wow, you are condescending. You said that military organization has "always been hierarchical." This is not true. You're shifting the argument to something that is more convenient for you to defend. 1332110740 My friend's old chiropractor was a former Playboy playmate of the month. Not that it speaks to her intelligence, but it was pretty funny. 1317178351 Holy crapolla, Batman! It appears that any fertilized egg would be considered a person, since they define the fetus and human rights at fertilization. So when they try to get you pregnant in the lab by fertilizing the egg first, they could get the death penalty if it doesn't take. Really? 1299677865 its peculiar that it is such an unpleasant segment that keeps replaying. That sounds awful. Do you suppose this segment keeps playing as a form of PTSD? 1352075605 How are you? 1288448486 I think I will laugh like a maniac if it turns out aliens are real and have visited. There's been so many witnesses and sources saying so, but for the mass of the worlds population, its just sci fi. Dumb bastards. 1342790323 I don't challenge the belief in reiki/healing touch. My mother has severe, untreatable chronic pain from her illness. I know logically that having me sit there and put my hands on her only curbs her discomfort by placebo, but it's also one of the few comforts for her that I have control over. She uses a massive range of real evidence-based medicine in addition; if she didn't, that's when I'd start having a problem. 1309627695 Yeah, you are definitely right, bad ideas die hard, but hopefully some of the more moderate supporters will sway. I am probably being overly optimistic regarding my faith in humanity though. 1302583791 http://www.huliq.com/10282/ufo-sightings-reveal-more-strange-metal-boxes-along-coastal-beaches I guess the British Government documented similar boxes in Sri Lanka.\n 1329107865 Experts are incredibly important, or did you expect that you'd be able to fit all the knowledge in the world inside that little head of yours in your short little life? 1334678013 Yup, I get these from time to time, especially when I'm over-tired. 1340089088 For example, he says that we don't understand electricity, no one does, don't let anyone tell you otherwise. The explicit message is that electricity is a wondrous mystery. The implicit meaning is that anyone who tells you differently is full of baloney, and clearly making things up, so don't trust them! But there are actually many, many people (physicists and electrical engineers and chemists) that do very much understand electricity. They know exactly what it is, and how it behaves, and why it does the seemingly magical things it does.\n\nSo if you were to take this guy at his word, and distrust the people who have spent their lives studying these phenomena, then the moment they started saying, "no, but look, THIS is how it works, we checked!" you'd turn around and say, "pssh, no one understands electricity, and the fact that you think you do makes you delusional and not worth listening to." 1348711382 They stuck the three of us in the same room so they could make sure we wernt drinking they were hard asses about under aged drinking, but we drank our asses off when we hit 21 1345249150 Yes, but even more skeptical of the assertion that we don't, given the paucity of evidence. 1253059965 Why do none of these have sufficient explanations even for crazy shit?\n\nSo the Ring UFO, was it an actual ring or funky cloud?\nSeems like there was quite a few shots of what is clearly a cloud and the black ring is superimposed. Were the others ones also supposed to highlight where this cloud is or meant to be the actual UFO?\n\nHollow Earth? People actually believe this shit? So the earth is actually a small Dyson Sphere? Wouldn't the atmosphere be sucked towards the core, and not adhering to the inner wall? What of the expansion and contraction of gas? How do we account for the gravitational pull of the Earth, if it was hollow it'd have a much smaller pull. \n\nSky Hum? Sounded an awful lot like some kind of industrial sound. Far off mining, explosions/blasting, aircraft, weapons test, etc... 1339026489 [imgur link](http://imgur.com/469a4.jpg) to just the article and comments. \n\nFull page [imgur link](http://imgur.com/rn6Jx.jpg) to get the feel of the site/page.\n\nLet's not give them any more ad dollars or site traffic please. 1283080976 Best quote ever. 1356891592 Best quote ever. 1343684863 This whole thing terrifies me. I just can't get over how childish that logic of dilution is, when it is so obvious that that lets them sell sugar pills at pharmaceutical prices. Don't people know that "anecdotal evidence" means "this is really shady"? 1311807106 In all seriousness, you *are* part of the problem. Disagree with her, dislike her if you will, but maintain a level of discourse higher than that. 1321152939 This isn't intended to sound as ghoulish as it does, but: I want to see more recent deaths! 1350807532 Monsanto is hated because their business practices are evil. Not because GMOs are bad. They aren't. 1330122273 I find it funny... my Deja Vu I always feel coming... it's like... I know what's coming... and I think... I'm not going to do what I know comes next... except then suddenly that's exactly what I did in my Deja Vu... and my thoughts about fighting my Deja Vu are part of my Deja Vu.\n\nLike the whole time travel piece... if you traveled back in time to tell yourself something... you'd already know it. 1334770600 Wow. Thanks. I certainly didn't expect that. I am still new to reddit, but it still blows me away just how ready people here are to genuinely give...\n\nIt almost certainly won't be happening for the next few months anyway; though we will see what happens at TAM - that is going to be something of a big event for us, where we will get some really good feedback and exposure and be able to finally assess our path much more effectively (and hopefully pick up a few advisors to help us out along the way) 1338223537 Or as juno said he has a financial incentive to purport supposed benefits even though evidence is lacking. Or in his words\n\n"I have a business where I teach people to exercise and use the paleo diet to shed body fat and remove the symptoms of many auto-immune diseases, BTW."\n\nI'm not saying the diet does work for losing weight but it simply could be that a restrictive diet (no matter the specifics) + exercise generally results in weight loss. Usually short term though since the majority of people go off their diet eventually.\n\nhttp://motivatedandfit.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/03/Diets_dont_work.pdf\n\nand here is a small albeit interesting study that could use some follow up experiments\n\nhttp://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMoa1105816\n\n 1329639568 s/riend/ather 1292860293 You apparently deleted your two links before I could respond to them?\n\nI've read the first link before. It's not a condemnation of the WAPF but rather an argument against "holistic dental practices" or whatever, right? I have never seen the WAPF advocate any of those dubious practices. Like I said, their articles from trained biologists on, say, trans fats, on wheat and its effects on human metabolism -- these articles are rock solid, and I challenge you to show me otherwise.\n\nThe second comes from a vegetarian source. I agree with some of the things it says about Sally Fallon. And yes, the WAPF has a very anti-vegetarian bent. But, it's very inaccurate to say that the WAPF condemns the use of whole grains. \n\nIn fact, one of the biggest complaints in the from the Paleo diet camp is that the WAPF **advocates** the consumption of whole grains **when properly prepared via soaking, sprouting, fermenting, etc. and other "traditional techniques."** Some of the more strict Paleo people prefer to avoid these grains altogether, while some of the more permissive Paleo/Primal people are all for it. \n\nNone of these articles have attacked the credibility of the WAPF's core message on its own merits. As I understand it, the WAPF advocates\n\n* a diet based on real foods\n\n* preferably based on high quality meats and dairy; local, fresh vegetables and fruit; \n\n* rich in fat-soluble vitamins ADEK, \n\n* relatively high in omega-3 fatty acids, low in omega-6 fatty acids\n\nLook, I'm not a WAPF fanboy. I don't particularly care for their rhetoric, I think some of what they do is misguided, and I think the organization does a lot of things other than what Price advocated. But every time I see criticisms of the WAPF on here, I never see anything substantive. \n\nLike I said, the science-based articles from Masterjohn and Enig are golden. I have yet to see a credible criticism of their work. \n\nThe links you posted were:\n\nhttp://www.quackwatch.org/01QuackeryRelatedTopics/holisticdent.html\nhttp://www.vegsource.com/news/2009/11/reflections-on-the-weston-a-price-foundation.html 1290098083 > I down voted you because you came on r/ufos to say that extra terrestrials dont exist because cameras. \n\nOK... Aliens aren't visiting Earth because of a heck of a lot more than just cameras... For instance, faster than light travel is physically impossible, and without it, the journey here would take almost forever (and require an insane amount of energy). Of course, warp drive is theoretically possible (but would require even more energy). And, just how did the aliens know we were here? Unless they lived within roughly 60 light years, they couldn't possibly know that. And, there aren't very many planets within that distance... 1348379110 Your user name is hilariously relevant. 1346311579 I think it all depends on how you define "perpetual motion". The green water in the flask is cool, but even if it works a presented, it won't be "perpetual" due to evaporation. Once enough liquid evaporates to chnage the weight of the water pushing down, the machine will stop. 1356804338 Thanks for keeping this up, by the way. It's rare for people who've been targets of skepticism to be so open to criticism, and it shows integrity, which i do appreciate. (EDIT: Of course it's fascinating to me as well. Hope that's obvious.)\n\nI'll say that i'm skeptical of some of the responses you've shared. Precise acupoints are part of the historical and theoretical basis for acupuncture; if the precision turns out not to matter, what reason is there to support the theory of meridians at all? The acupuncturist's response that there may be an unlimited number of acupoints makes the theory itself basically useless. It sounds very much like an example of [special pleading](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special_pleading). The fingertip acupoint objection to the negative EFT study sounds similar, especially given that the precision of points has been shown not to matter much in other applications.\n\nEssentially it comes down to this: It will always be possible to come up with an explanation for each problem with a hypothesis (like meridian theory) while maintaining that the hypothesis is true. (Carl Sagan wrote a [great illustration](http://www.users.qwest.net/~jcosta3/article_dragon.htm) of this principle.) We must decide for ourselves when the explanations become too cumbersome, too elaborate, or too implausible to be of any use, and the better explanation is that the hypothesis itself is wrong. (I'm invoking Occam's razor; have you come across it already?)\n\nAs a side note, there's a subtlety in the language that might be contaminating our dialogue, and i might be guilty of it myself. There are studies that *show evidence for* EFT, and there are studies that *do not show evidence for* EFT. It's not quite right to say that a study shows that EFT works or proves EFT, or to say that another study shows that EFT doesn't work or disproves EFT.\n\nAnyway, i took a closer look at [these studies](http://eftuniverse.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=18&Itemid=#anxiety) on anxiety. Are there other studies on EFT for anxiety that you've come across other than the list at your third original link? It turns out that the literature there is weaker than i thought before. Basically, what needs to be shown for EFT to be accepted as a practice is that it is at least as good as, if not better than, standard psychotherapeutic methods. Of the 15 articles listed under "Anxiety", in three (3, 7, 8) the patients were self-selected, making the "study" just a collection of testimonials; two more (4, 6) were pilots; two others (5, 15) still used no controls; three others (1, 9, 10) used no treatment as a control (meaning, they compared EFT to no treatment, rather than an alternative treatment); one (12) compared EFT to a placebo version of itself; and one (13) was not a study. Of the three remaining that compared EFT to alternative treatment, two found either no difference (2) or inconsistent results (11). Only the [14th study](http://eftuniverse.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=3570&Itemid=2071) found EFT to be superior to an alternative ([progressive muscular relaxation](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Progressive_muscle_relaxation)). So, as it seems to me, the existing literature suggests that EFT is no better than other methods, or at least there is no reason to conclude *from* the literature that EFT is better, at relieving anxiety. 1343018825 You misunderstand the definition of coercion. Threats of violence are coercive. False advertising isn't forcing anyone to buy the product. Thus it is not coercive. If you're so concerned about fraud, then sign a contract with the seller stipulating they will be held liable in a private court of arbitration if their product does not perform as stated. 1309658351 I just might trust you if you could spell. 1354147571 I Support Richard Dawkins Foundation. 1279644901 Debates can go on forever...this ongoing [Intelligent Design](http://www.facebook.com/Teach.Intelligent.Design/posts/480441078201?ref=notif&notif_t=feed_comment#!/Teach.Intelligent.Design) debate is getting pretty ridiculous.\n\n 1294033638 Agreed. The problem rises when people fill in the blanks. I know there are power structures out there that conspire, but I don't claim to know their motives or actual agendas. For the most part I think it is like the quote you posted. A lot of it is informal. People don't need to plot and plan behind closed doors when their interest converge. Its a collective phenomenon dictated by the rules and incentives of society. 1346311684 A probability. My parents and lots of their friends are anti-vaxxers (luckily they got into it after my sister and I got most of our childhood vaccines) \n\nThey see it as black or white. Vaccines = bad. They don't understand the details and don't really want to. When faced with someone who doesn't even want to understand their own opinion, there's nothing you can do but ignore them and try to make sure they don't get control. 1355826260 When the hell did they re-legalize mechanically separated beef and where do I get me some? 1332946586 I am a firm believer. \nNever saw one myself. And I believe 99.999% of all sightings are one of three things; misidentified natural phenomenon, misidentified man-made devices, or flat out hoaxes. However there is that .001% that just don't fit any of the three. There are several well known reports by reliable people that just cant be explained. Four in particular stand out off the top of my head. \n\n[Japan Air Lines flight 1628 incident](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japan_Air_Lines_flight_1628_incident)\n\n[Lonnie Zamora Incident](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lonnie_Zamora) (by the way I have visited and photographed this site, and some of the physical evidence still exists nearly 50 years later)\n\n[Betty and Barney Hill abduction](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Betty_and_Barney_Hill_abduction)\n\n[Rendlesham Forest incident](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rendlesham_Incident)\n\n**Edit** \n\nI have seen an aircraft that doesn't fit any known conventions once. However I am sure that it was one of ours. (US Black project.) 1314326581 An open mind is important. But only to a reasonable extent. Should I keep an 'open mind' that Reddit is really run by aliens, and that logo is a sign of their true nature? No, of course not. There's no reason to. In my opinion it's completely obvious that this is art being created by people. 1244070271 Looks like a coin toss! 1330406173 Yeah... suicide girls needs fake reddit accounts for traffic.\n\nNo.\n\nIt is obviously in skeptic because she is from the show myth busters, a highly skeptical show on Discovery. 1301547187 If you're around the Terre Haute area (my hometown!), check out the Terre Haute Historical Museum and Mogger's Brewery (best restaurant in town). At the museum, the upstairs has a room full of porcelain dolls (I shit you not), which is simply creepy on the best of days, but sometimes the eyes/heads have moved. Every time I go in there, I ALWAYS feel like I'm being stared at. And with Moggers, there's been a TON of sightings, weird feelings, temperature changes, etc. Its a very historic building in the oldest part of town. 1327262550 In terms of the burial at sea: They had to take the body in order to confirm the identity. Once you have it, what do you do with it? If they held on to it, it would be seen as desecration. It makes sense that Saudi Arabia would reject the offer, as they wouldn't want a terrorist shrine in their country. \n\nWhether it's a proper Islamic burial may be questionable, but given the circumstances, it was probably seen as the least disrespectful alternative. \n\nI think the story *was* questioned. My first thought was, "Oh, really? That's convenient." And then my second thought was that making a claim like that without being absolutely certain would be unbelievably stupid. I don't trust Obama as far as I can spit, but I don't think he's an idiot either. 1304556352 I'm aware. I'm at an MD school in the US right now and I rotate in hospitals where DOs work and they all seem perfectly capable to me. In Canada that's definitely not the case though, which is why this article (and the people here) are treating it like an issue of alt medicine woo rather than normal medical mismanagement. 1335372206 >Stephens said there are only two possible explanations for Sasquatch sightings in the U.S. One is the sightings are simply hoaxes and the other is there are large unidentified primates hidden in the woods and mountains.\n\nThat we have never found any bones of so they must be the only primate with cartilage instead of bone. They are all apparently the **ONLY** primates that live exclusively solitary lives so they must have some sort of magical sex-radar that brings them together when they mate. You heard me magical sex-radar. I discovered it. I am now a big foot expert. Pay me History Channel. 1338497736 That hurts. 1302914449 Upvote for "codswallop" (which I had never heard before but looked up) 1317306782 I never knew that much about them, except one in university who was upset, like seriously upset I didn't believe in God. To each their own for me, but I was like damn....\n\nMy brother was with Assembly of God for a bit... so yeah I understand the cultish aspects. Glad to hear you broke out. 1353525838 You went to a thing and ran into the guy responsible for that thing? Amaz!ng. 1311477779 Possible, however I asked her and my grandma about the layout of the house and both said the phone was in the kitchen and my mom slept upstairs and down a hall. It's unlikely, but possible. 1326751296 You're my boy, Blue! 1311558941 The flu has yet to significantly harm you... But it does harm others. What if you pass it on to someone who is immune-compromised? 1335060681 I have no idea what the "pre 2009" thing is, but it sounds like "pseudo-astrology". 1295076517 Just wanted to comment and upvote so you know that someone is paying attention and appreciates any pics or accounts you may follow up with. 1352574161 um...what does one use as as placebo for sugar? 1295413967 This is really cool... I would like to see another witness video though. Surely someone else saw this... 1329931093 Ah-hah, well said! 1304616808 That's just your reptilian brain being a dick.\n\nEDIT: The reptilian brain is also known as the hind brain. 1332273292 Just think about it. If this was true, do you think the government would let you use the water? Despite most of reddit's hate for the government it does do good things. 1345242664 >Does a cat have any real understanding of enjoyment in regards to where it places itself?\n\nEveryone who's had a cat can probably answer this one with a "very likely yes".\n\n>They are simple mammals without much comprehension aside from how to find food, mate, shit and sleep.\n\nActually, because they are such good hunters, cats (even in the wild) spend a lot of time idling. It is theorized that all that free time helps develop cognitive processes. Though not as trainable as dogs, they are said to be of similar intelligence.\n\nThey are also highly territorial and "possessive", i.e. they do have a territorial concept of ownership of places but also some objects. It seems likely the cat could definitely consider the box as part of his possessions.\n\nBut, yeah, this really doesn't have anything to do with /r/skeptic... :-) 1349540980 Would haunt my flat by doing crazy shit all over the night and in the morning my victim would wake up with a tpast made for him. 1323717850 He said he put his hand down..... 1334851787 The report contains analysis of mostly eyewitness accounts.\n\nThe point is that there is a huge gap between an unidentified object in the sky and that object belonging to visitors from another planet. Something that you seem to have a problem grasping. 1349508912 ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°) 1353396138 http://www.reddit.com/r/WTF/comments/890bq/ya_know_what_im_callin_it_dr_amy_tuteur_md_of/ 1259705016 But then nothing is ever "no" and response in the negative has a "... but unlikely" after it. 1305573602 "Boy did I enjoy that intelligent, well written, and incredibly insightful article by Jenny McCarthy."\nSaid noone ever. 1350747439 Very possibly. I've driven down that freeway at the time this had been shot many times for the past 6 months. I've seen very similar objects. They all occurred in a time frame between about when this was shot and mid July. They all did similar things: disappear and reappear, move in direct lines(vertical and horizontal) in abrupt bursts, and slowly move down the coast.\n\n\nOne separate story was during a blackout we had about 10 months ago or so. I was on the phone with my girlfriend when I started to see the lights. There were 4 flocks of 3 lights flying in a triangle formation. One flock would appear and disappear as it flew in a straight path, only to reappear and vanish for good... but the next one would perfectly emulate the last, appearing and disappearing in the same exact area... That was my first truly WTF experience... the GF was telling me I'm just freaking out about some plane. \n 1347713751 I've got AstronomyCast, Skeptic's Guide To The Universe, SGU 5x5, QuackCast, Chariots of Iron and Atheist News in my subscriptions. They all deliver. 1299794303 Same thing happened to me, They're everywhere! 1340309152 Just respond with [this video of a robotic hummingbird built for DARPA](http://youtu.be/NuD1WKHsggs?t=1m20s). I wonder if the engineers who built this sat around and thought really hard until it sprung into reality or if they followed the laws of physics to help them build this beauty? 1340400448 It's rather, if not entirely subjective. 1337137116 This is where I like to use the word "suspect" instead of "believe".\n\nI strongly suspect that there is life on other planets, but until we have good evidence I don't believe it. 1328351687 ScienceDaily is pretty much just press releases - so you're not going to get much (any) critical analysis there. 1294215804 >I would keep an open mind about the Ouija board, you and whoever accompanies you has to believe it works\n\nThis is where it falls apart. People die of voodoo because they believe it works. That doesn't mean that voodoo is an authentic, repeatable, infallible ritual practice. All it means is that the human brain is affected strongly by believing in something.\n\nIf I truly, with all my heart, believed that every time the person across this office sneezed, that I would get nauseous and throw up, then I would very likely become nauseous and throw up everytime that person sneezed. But that *does not mean that their sneezing causes my vomiting*. It means that my *belief* causes the vomiting. It's an *extremely* important distinction.\n\nThings are either real or they are not real, and if personal belief is required in order for it to "work," then it doesn't actually work. In the soon-to-be-immortal words of astrophysicist Neil DeGrasse Tyson: "The good thing about science is that it's true whether or not you believe in it." *That* is what makes something real. Your perception, your belief, your preconceived notions are irrelevant. It is true with or without you. Truth doesn't care about you one tiny little bit. The ouija board, clearly, is only effective if you believe it to be so, and that means it's your perception that makes it "real," and that means that it isn't actually real. 1335458681 The fnords reference is excellent and well-appreciated. The truth of the matter is that we are hardly credulous over at the Lamp. We are definitely aware of the occult and of the various interpretations of the global conspiracy dedicated to the total domination of every living man woman and child of this earth from now until eternity's dusk. But that doesn't make any of us more motivated to believe in the Corn Demon - probably less so, given what the Occult Elite are capable of.\n\nIt just as surely doesn't mean there's no such thing. I'm still inclined to think this is a metaphor for INS, either overt or unconscious and Jungian. And it may be a social workers' ploy to motivate interest in the plight of migrant workers. I'm not sure that would be a bad thing, either. What I do know is that it's unlikely somebody ran over the fence, since that property belongs to what looks to be a fairly prosperous farmer, and I'd think the Sheriff's department would already have been called out to the site. Unless the deputy lied to us, which is absolutely a possibility.\n\nYour point about the culturally-ingrained forces that encourage some Latinos to understand reality as embracing the supernatural was both cogent and wholly appropriate.\n\nR 1344636558 > To be eligible for a refund, together with return postage, you will need to return a genuine Power Balance product along with proof of purchase (including credit card records, store barcodes and receipts) from an authorised reseller in Australia.\n\nThey have provided enough hoops to jump through to effectively evade paying out for their misleading conduct. Fuckers. 1294083033 They don't even know how to use paint. Plus it went straight from the phone to the computer. I checked all the apps and he didn't have any worth noting. I just want to find the pic of the girl to recreate this to prove to my brother that it's fake. And if i can't then it's just only a little creepy, but still unrealistic. 1332431262 > decades even\n\nNo, the first Disclosure Project [press conference](http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&amp;source=web&amp;cd=5&amp;ved=0CEEQtwIwBA&amp;url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3D7vyVe-6YdUk&amp;ei=WJPNTauRJOLo0QHAv9ngDQ&amp;usg=AFQjCNGH8DinrHiRStVSXu5hhU3A1xTr0g&amp;sig2=mURW8s3v4kaHy4md2yJMyg) was held in 2001. \n\nI think many, many people in the Disclosure Project have divulged whatever evidence they have, including [John Callahan](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t_w1OPgoR5M). There is surely no 'smoking gun' but to say they haven't put forth any evidence is a bit misleading. 1305317917 not to mention the conspiracy theorist shite as a whole... 1309300711 smarter then you dude 1318671249 >f you don't already believe in the paranormal and have experience with it, this post isn't for you.\n\nLet me know if you change your mind. 1344359488 it does sound looped, but my parents dogs sound looped as well. Its the same celebration every time. 1277392688 If you are looking for more information the following links may be helpful. \n\nJoint Chiefs Of Staff report - http://www.nsa.gov/public_info/_files/ufo/joint_chiefs_staff_report.pdf \n\nDocument explaining how the documents were released and whom they were sent to at the time - http://www.nsa.gov/public_info/_files/ufo/us_gov_iran_case.pdf 1345731119 Not downvoted because you raise some points that are worth addressing.\n\nAn ad hominem is an argument against *a position* grounded in negative qualities of someone who holds it. The article would be making an ad hominem if, for instance, it claimed that we should believe in anthropogenic global warming simply because the people arguing against it are unreliable or corrupt. The article is instead making the case that Lindzen is unreliable and corrupt, and that he is a poor representative of the scientific community or of scientific thinking. It seems to me that their case is legitimate, if not airtight.\n\nMuch more importantly, dissecting the claims and credentials of specific deniers is not necessariy in order to simply observe that a scientific consensus has been arrived at, slowly and carefully, over several decades, due to the accumulation of a vast body of evidence that has won over almost every legitimate skeptic. Pretty much anyone who confidently asserts that global warming is fiction is either negligibly informed or a bona fide denier. Asserting that global warming is happening is not "advocacy"; it is science. 1330279177 Sticky sweat for higher friction combined with the fact they're leaning backwards a bit so the object can rest on them. 1330840328 Tylrbob and squirrelbones are geniuses that only want to teach and show others the truth. Listen to these sage men and learn from their wisdom. 1315544262 I'm sure he does. I havent asked him about it because he likes to talk. \n\nHe will go on and on even to other topics without noticing if I care or letting me get a word in. I don't think its necesarily intentional but its annoying enough that I try not to talk/debate with him that much. 1345681094 I feel like this subject comes up every two months here, and people fail to realize it's an optical illusion caused by our atmosphere... 1343513744 Caffe latte means coffee and milk, it's a simple drink. Italians are not nearly so pretentious as Americans ordering coffee by fucking up Italian.\n\nEdit: I love coffee. I hate coffee "culture". 1319134235 This has been happening to me for years and I've only had two people witness it first hand. A month ago and I went for a walk in my neighborhood with my boyfriend and 8 went out in a row when I walked underneath. One didn't come back on right away and when I walked back under it it came back on.\nNo one ever believes me, so I stopped telling people about it until they see it happen! 1350830704 Just say, "where does it say that?" 1336308671 To be a hard core truther you got to strip your gear down. 1336902404 Never said we would. But...\n\n<Gets behind podium> I want to see a world in which pure shit-peddlers are the exception, not the norm. I want to see a world where at least some of the kids out there aren't just *told* not to bullshit their way through life, but have parents who model the minimized-bullshit lifestyle.\n\n<Raises volume> I want to see a world where lying sacks of shit are revealed for the oozing, festering stinkpiles they are.\n\n<Thumps podium> My fellow Americans! I want to see a world where empirical evidence is valued, and faith devalued. I want to see a world where "believe this because I say so" isn't enough! Where parents, freed from the shackles of bullshit themselves, turn against the very idea of inflicting it on their children!\n\n<Takes a deep breath> Thank you. And Morgan Freeman bless. 1312412674 Aw! There's also an experimental variation of this method that I call the Mr. Charles Gambit, but haven't tried it out on anyone yet. Basically same thing, except that you announce every stage of it to the person. i.e. "I've caught you in contradicting statements X and Y. The discomfort you are experiencing right now holding these two contradicting ideas at the same time is called 'cognitive dissonance', in a moment you're gonna try to Z in order to exclude Y from contradicting with X"\n\nMight come off as arrogant, so use at own risk! 1343343163 You're making the claim that I'm a solipsist and I'm supposed to tell you why you're wrong? The burden of proof is on you, friend... 1328457725 Google Dr. Jonathan Reed, although I believe it's been a proven hoax, still a neat video to watch. \n\n[I know it's myspace, but here's a ton of stuff about it. A little one sided though.](http://www.myspace.com/528233814) 1334944305 We went to the petstore to buy some feeder fish. The girl fished them out of the tank and into the baggie and counted 5 (5 for a dollar), the cashier counted 5 and rung us up.\n\nOn the way home my son said Hey, there's 6 in here. My wife verified, yep there's 6 not 5. Cool, a free one!\n\nWe got home and put them in the turtle tank (an occasional treat) and he started chasing them. There were now 7 fish, further verified after he had eaten a couple (easy to see) there were still 5 left. We all counted them separately several times. I was confused. 1341775950 Except that not all skeptics are atheists, and vice versa. 1323542919 Go for it. I'd imagine there are many, many people who work on tv shows that think the show is garbage. Heck there are people in every field that think that the company they work for is worthless. 1305573658 Get real. You're having some trouble over on another thread. This post is the equivilent of a brat yelling "I'm gonna tell on you!" 1354810421 ^ a b c Lamberg M, Hausen H, Vartiainen T. Symptoms experienced during periods of actual and supposed water fluoridation. Community Dent Oral Epidemiol. 1997;25(4):291–5. doi:10.1111/j.1600-0528.1997.tb00942.x. PMID 9332806.\n^ a b c d e f g h i Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Recommendations for using fluoride to prevent and control dental caries in the United States. MMWR Recomm Rep. 2001;50(RR-14):1–42. PMID 11521913. Lay summary: CDC, 2007-08-09.\n^ a b c d e f g h i j k Pizzo G, Piscopo MR, Pizzo I, Giuliana G. Community water fluoridation and caries prevention: a critical review. Clin Oral Investig. 2007;11(3):189–93. doi:10.1007/s00784-007-0111-6. PMID 17333303.\n^ a b Consumer Price Index (estimate) 1800–2008. Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis. Retrieved December 7, 2010.\n^ a b Taricska JR, Wang LK, Hung YT, Li KH. Fluoridation and defluoridation. In: Wang LK, Hung YT, Shammas NK, editors. Advanced Physicochemical Treatment Processes. Humana Press; 2006. (Handbook of Environmental Engineering 4). doi:10.1007/978-1-59745-029-4_9. ISBN 978-1-59745-029-4. p. 293–315.\n^ a b WHO Expert Committee on Oral Health Status and Fluoride Use. Fluorides and oral health [PDF]. 1994.\n^ a b c Hobson WL, Knochel ML, Byington CL, Young PC, Hoff CJ, Buchi KF. Bottled, filtered, and tap water use in Latino and non-Latino children. Arch Pediatr Adolesc Med. 2007;161(5):457–61. doi:10.1001/archpedi.161.5.457. PMID 17485621.\n^ a b c d e Petersen PE, Lennon MA. Effective use of fluorides for the prevention of dental caries in the 21st century: the WHO approach [PDF]. Community Dent Oral Epidemiol. 2004;32(5):319–21. doi:10.1111/j.1600-0528.2004.00175.x. PMID 15341615.\n^ a b Parnell C, Whelton H, O'Mullane D. Water fluoridation. Eur Arch Paediatr Dent. 2009;10(3):141–8. PMID 19772843.\n^ a b c d e f g h i National Health and Medical Research Council (Australia). A systematic review of the efficacy and safety of fluoridation [PDF]. 2007 [cited 2009-10-13]. ISBN 1864964154. Summary: Yeung CA. A systematic review of the efficacy and safety of fluoridation. Evid Based Dent. 2008;9(2):39–43. doi:10.1038/sj.ebd.6400578. PMID 18584000. Lay summary: NHMRC, 2007.\n^ a b c d e f g h McDonagh M, Whiting P, Bradley M et al. A systematic review of public water fluoridation [PDF]; 2000. Report website: NHS Centre for Reviews and Dissemination. Fluoridation of drinking water: a systematic review of its efficacy and safety; 2000 [cited 2009-05-26]. Authors' summary: McDonagh MS, Whiting PF, Wilson PM et al.. Systematic review of water fluoridation [PDF]. BMJ. 2000;321(7265):855–9. doi:10.1136/bmj.321.7265.855. PMID 11021861. PMC 27492. Authors' commentary: Treasure ET, Chestnutt IG, Whiting P, McDonagh M, Wilson P, Kleijnen J. The York review—a systematic review of public water fluoridation: a commentary. Br Dent J. 2002;192(9):495–7. doi:10.1038/sj.bdj.4801410a. PMID 12047121.\n^ a b c d e Fawell J, Bailey K, Chilton J, Dahi E, Fewtrell L, Magara Y. Fluoride in Drinking-water [PDF]. World Health Organization; 2006. ISBN 92-4-156319-2. Environmental occurrence, geochemistry and exposure. p. 5–27.\n^ a b c d e f g Jones S, Burt BA, Petersen PE, Lennon MA. The effective use of fluorides in public health. Bull World Health Organ. 2005;83(9):670–6. PMID 16211158. PMC 2626340.\n^ a b CDC. Ten great public health achievements—United States, 1900–1999. MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep. 1999;48(12):241–3. PMID 10220250. Reprinted in: JAMA. 1999;281(16):1481. doi:10.1001/jama.281.16.1481. PMID 10227303.\n^ a b c d Burt BA, Tomar SL. Changing the face of America: water fluoridation and oral health. In: Ward JW, Warren C. Silent Victories: The History and Practice of Public Health in Twentieth-century America. Oxford University Press; 2007. ISBN 0-19-515069-4. p. 307–22.\n^ a b Sellers C. The artificial nature of fluoridated water: between nations, knowledge, and material flows. Osiris. 2004;19:182–200. doi:10.1086/649401. PMID 15478274.\n^ a b c Division of Oral Health, National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, CDC. Water fluoridation statistics for 2006; 2008-09-17 [cited 2008-12-22].\n^ a b c d e f g The British Fluoridation Society; The UK Public Health Association; The British Dental Association; The Faculty of Public Health. One in a Million: The facts about water fluoridation. 2nd ed. Manchester: British Fluoridation Society; 2004. ISBN 095476840X. The extent of water fluoridation [PDF]. p. 55–80.\n^ a b c d e Selwitz RH, Ismail AI, Pitts NB. Dental caries. Lancet. 2007;369(9555):51–9. doi:10.1016/S0140-6736(07)60031-2. PMID 17208642.\n^ a b Ethics:\nMcNally M, Downie J. The ethics of water fluoridation. J Can Dent Assoc. 2000;66(11):592–3. PMID 11253350.\nCohen H, Locker D. The science and ethics of water fluoridation. J Can Dent Assoc. 2001;67(10):578–80. PMID 11737979.\n^ a b c Cheng KK, Chalmers I, Sheldon TA. Adding fluoride to water supplies [PDF]. BMJ. 2007;335(7622):699–702. doi:10.1136/bmj.39318.562951.BE. PMID 17916854. PMC 2001050.\n^ a b c d Armfield JM. When public action undermines public health: a critical examination of antifluoridationist literature. Aust New Zealand Health Policy. 2007;4:25. doi:10.1186/1743-8462-4-25. PMID 18067684. PMC 2222595.\n^ a b National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research. The story of fluoridation; 2008-12-20 [cited 2010-02-06].\n^ a b Ripa LW. A half-century of community water fluoridation in the United States: review and commentary [PDF]. J Public Health Dent. 1993;53(1):17–44. doi:10.1111/j.1752-7325.1993.tb02666.x. PMID 8474047.\n^ Gibson-Moore H. Water fluoridation for some—should it be for all?. Nutr Bull. 2009;34(3):291–5. doi:10.1111/j.1467-3010.2009.01762.x.\n^ Hudson K, Stockard J, Ramberg Z. The impact of socioeconomic status and race-ethnicity on dental health. Sociol Perspect. 2007;50(1):7–25. doi:10.1525/sop.2007.50.1.7.\n^ Vargas CM, Ronzio CR. Disparities in early childhood caries. BMC Oral Health. 2006;6(Suppl 1):S3. doi:10.1186/1472-6831-6-S1-S3. PMID 16934120. PMC 2147596.\n^ a b Griffin SO, Jones K, Tomar SL. An economic evaluation of community water fluoridation [PDF]. J Public Health Dent. 2001;61(2):78–86. doi:10.1111/j.1752-7325.2001.tb03370.x. PMID 11474918.\n^ a b Petersen PE. World Health Organization global policy for improvement of oral health—World Health Assembly 2007 [PDF]. Int Dent J. 2008;58(3):115–21. PMID 18630105.\n^ Horowitz HS. Decision-making for national programs of community fluoride use. Community Dent Oral Epidemiol. 2000;28(5):321–9. doi:10.1034/j.1600-0528.2000.028005321.x. PMID 11014508.\n^ a b c d e Reeves TG. Centers for Disease Control. Water fluoridation: a manual for engineers and technicians [PDF]; 1986 [cited 2008-12-10].\n^ a b c Lauer WC. Water Fluoridation Principles and Practices. 5th ed. Vol. M4. American Water Works Association; 2004. (Manual of Water Supply Practices). ISBN 1-58321-311-2. History, theory, and chemicals. p. 1–14.\n^ Nicholson JW, Czarnecka B. Fluoride in dentistry and dental restoratives. In: Tressaud A, Haufe G, editors. Fluorine and Health. Elsevier; 2008. ISBN 978-0-444-53086-8. p. 333–78.\n^ Division of Oral Health, National Center for Prevention Services, CDC. Fluoridation census 1992 [PDF]. 1993 [cited 2008-12-29].\n^ Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Engineering and administrative recommendations for water fluoridation, 1995. MMWR Recomm Rep. 1995;44(RR-13):1–40. PMID 7565542.\n\n 1318789593 One of the key errors I find in the concept of machines making humans "obsolete" is that idea that machines are more efficient than humans by default. Look at what we need to survive and what we built with these little means. Compare that to running a machine. A single EMP strike could wipe out an entire machine population in one blow. A single virus could destroy a perfectly connected computer network. It's the "randomness" of life and humanity in particular that makes it so damn robust. Not perfect but perfectly tuned to this planet's environment.\n\nAlso, in the end, what will this super-intelligent machine being do? What's its motivation? Who will *define* its motivation? It will never be more than a tool and an extension of mankind's ideas. Maybe we will eventually send our brain waves to host bodys on Mars. But I doubt that we will let robots teach our children or write our music. 1282438455 Single-use seeds as a concession to the wackos who thing GM is going to invade never occurred to me until you pointed it out.\n\n... Which is why I don't take everything I see in a documentary on Netflix as fact. 1340480643 Right? It does seem like the UFO downvote brigades are either on vacation or have lost a bit of their following. 1342789723 i was gna say what that guy said but then i was like whoahhhhhhh duuuuuude\nEDIT: you might want to check theblueprins if you can find them but i suspect that if they are eleven steps they will show eleven steps and before if you had checked they probably would have shown ten steps. a deja vu is when they change something int he matrix. 1341808287 This ghost must love that window. 1341149791 Nothing new - I submitted this [3 years ago](http://www.reddit.com/r/UFOs/comments/7cq0m/fema_firefighters_manual_covers_ufo_attacks/). Hopefully that puts readers' minds at ease that an attack isn't likely imminent! It was (and is) an odd thing to have in there, but probably defendable as an exercise in thinking outside the box about potential disasters. 1343408953 http://youtu.be/Y6PNhkHfrcQ 1345704719 People will only stop being suckered when they stop being suckers. 1308070872 He's a YEC, how much sense do you expect? 1353537567 I assume you meant to post this in a different subreddit? 1299484243 EDIT: here's the best document I got: [FBI report on UFOs in New Mexico](http://vault.fbi.gov/hottel_guy/Guy%20Hottel%20Part%201%20of%201/view)\n\nFrom the report:\n>An investigator for the Air Force stated that 3 so-called flying saucers had been recovered in New Mexico. They were described as being circular in shape with raised centers, approximately 50 feet in diameter. Each one was occupied by three bodies, but only three feet tall, dressed in a metallic cloth of a very fine texture.\n\nA recent author has spun this as Russian children sent over by Stalin to freak the US out and cause a reaction similar to 'War of the Worlds'. That seems unlikely to myself, in that they would have done far better to fly into NYC or some other large city to promote such a feat - not the desert wilderness in the middle of nowhere.\n\nI don't think there is really a definitive 'smoking gun'. We have [FBI reports of an unidentified disc coming down that is public knowledge](http://vault.fbi.gov/Roswell%20UFO/Roswell%20UFO%20Part%201%20of%201/view). We have countless mysterious videos that can be construed as dozens of explanations. We have high-level government and military people from all over the world who claim to have witnessed or experienced these craft in action, often doing incredible things. This evidence would be more than enough if we were dealing with any other subject on an academic level. We produce conjecture based on ancient history based on far greater assumptions, yet teach it as if we intimately know.\n\nThe key here is 'evidence'. The problem with UFO evidence is that it is given an extra layer of skepticism it must pass through because of the cultural connotations attached to the subject. It cannot be good enough to be mysterious and unexplained, we now demand incontrovertible truth that these things exist. \n\nSo lets start peeling back the layers. Who is involved that we can be sure of? The government. The government obviously wants nothing to do with the subject, as seen from the white house response to the Disclosure petition. This is the reason I cannot give you the hard evidence you want; it is not in the interest of those who hold it. That being said, there is a LOT of information out there to those who are willing to search for the truth. I think due to your skeptical nature it is best discovered by yourself, as I don't think you will take my opinion very seriously anyways :P\n 1321640854 They better bring this shit up. 1327549753 I like to think that there are several different species in our galaxy and they are simply waiting for us to meet their standard of technological advancement before they come introduce themselves. 1335920875 Great read! I hope more people spend the time to read this because it was well worth the time, in my opinion. 1345227873 Objectivity is not the issue. Their rights to practice cannot infringe upon another's rights. The law ought to be uniformly applied or it is worthless. If there is no unalienable right against discrimination then there is no reason to codify religious freedom to discriminate. Secular folk can easily discriminate against the religious at will and religious folk can routinely discriminate against differing religious folk as well.\n\nEdit: I wanted to elaborate because I think this is an important issue and I was using my phone when I replied. The key here is to understand that their may be no objective unalienable right from discrimination but when people's rights are protected on a secular level it also protects the rights of religious people. The religious do not need special protections from the likes of those who would infringe upon them. They already have Constitutional protections against that, just like everyone else. And any special protections they might garner cannot cause them to be able to infringe upon another. Otherwise, we risk creating a special religious class of people. Since we are in principle a classless society that would not do. And I say "principle" because we are not objectively a classless society. There are no objective natural laws that would preclude class structures. However, if religious folk decide they have the right to infringe upon others based on their personal or institutional beliefs then they must accept the risk of the other edge of the blade. Many conflicts have started because idiots like these insisted on special privileges that infringed upon others. 1337726460 That sums it up really. Misrepresentations of science and scientists. 1294330766 Hah! Yeah me too, as somebody else suggested there would have to be receipts, credit-card transactions, phone calls, texts etc. 1354724671 Damn 2%ers. Takin' all the science from the 98%. 1336686577 Does the quesadilla underneath the soup pot come into play at all? If so, I'm in. 1329158672 I'm really glad someone has had a similar experience. It's a weird and unsettling feeling. Here's hoping it never happens again, whatever the hell happened. 1349217510 Pretty much dominated by measles 1320043256 I've always wanted one :'( 1330132745 I would pay for "Homeopathy the musical". 1333765786 What type of switch mechanism does this light-switch use? (i.e. is it a 'rocker switch' where you can see if it's up or down? Or is it electronic?) Is it in series with another circuit? (i.e. is there another light-switch in another part of the house which operates the same light? Like maybe a string pull switch) \n\nDoes the garage have a movement sensor for it's light?\n\nThere is a logical explanation, it's just a matter of working out what is happening. Do not rule out that someone might be lying or mistaken. 1325008214 well, i'm a lifelong nader voter. he isn't running this year, obviously. the only point upon which we disagree is nuclear power. since i'm not able to vote for him anymore, i want to prioritize voting for an atheist. because, seriously, religion shouldn't play ANY part in government, but it always does anyway. if a person is capable of believing the superstitious madness of a religion, then it is totally a factor because it underscores their reasoning at least and will affect policy at worst.\n\nEDIT: spelling 1345501876 It definitely seems to be the common thread in abduction/contactee cases. I think it's interesting, in that it both proves, and disproves the phenomena:\n\n If they are visiting, and giving advice about where we are heading, it makes sense that those warnings are consistent;\n\n If it is all in the mind, paranoid delusions, general psychological conditions, then it would also be consistent, because individual types of pathology share common features.\n\nA conundrum indeed! 1334704378 That's not racism. That's just because no one has given aqueducts any mystical meanings. I don't think ancient structure alone is sufficient for that show, I think it has to be *mysterious* as well. 1331624123 Wait but how are we talking to them if we haven't had death flashes or memorable accidents? 1354456610 I was surprised to see that your article focuses on the "don't be a dick" aspect of the talk because within the talk itself the "dick" part appears to play a fairly minor role. Perhaps it was more a reaction to other peoples reactions than a response to the talk itself?\n\nThe structure of his talk suggests that the talks purpose was not to lay down an eleventh commandment and then have lawyers contemplate what does and does not qualify as dickish behaviour. Instead, the goals were:\n\n1. To make people reflect on what they are trying to achieve in skeptical conversations.\n2. Put forward the proposition that if a person views you as a hated adversary then they are far less likely to change their position.\n\nThe "dick" comment only comes in as a corollary to these first two point. It is not that being a dick is inherently bad. It is just that if your goal is to change a persons mind then you should not act like a dick towards them because doing so makes it less likely that you will accomplish your stated goal.\n\nViewing things from this perspective clears up some of the questions asked in your blog post.\n\nIf you are chilling out with a skeptical friend is it inappropriate to say "Psychics are bullshit" because that might be a bit dickish? Answer: It is totally irrelevant whether or not the act is dickish because you are not trying to change your friends mind. You are trying to vent or engage in intellectual masturbation or something else. Being a dick in this context does not hinder you accomplishing your goal.\n\nIs it still ok to be aggressive given that aggression does not necessarily imply dickishness? Answer: Again, it does not matter whether aggression is or is not dickish. The only thing that is important is whether or not aggression runs counter to your goal. If being aggressive is dickish then yes it will be bad if your goal is to convince someone to change their mind. However, an approach can still be counter productive even if it is not dickish. Speaking in German does not make me a dick but if the person I am trying to persuade does not understand German then my breath is wasted. Aggression should be judged on its own merits in relation to each persons goals. 1299623477 The difference between MMS and ClO2 in the water is that the ClO2 in the water has more than likely decomposed into chlorine and oxygen. MMS advocates are telling people to drink it a couple of minutes after mixing it - therefore there will be ClO2 left in. Also, it's generally multiple doses per day. 1288303629 hrm... I now receive the anti-snopes propaganda... "Snopes lied!!!" Which was also easy to debunk... 1297873082 Cool! Thanks for sharing. 1342540558 TIL drinking lots of water prevents aging. 1323824708 It reminds me of Animal Planet's "Finding Bigfoot" show. My first thought upon seeing a preview was "Shouldn't it be called 'Not Finding Bigfoot'?" I might even watch a show like that. Likewise, a course which seeks out scientific explanations for perceived ghost encounters would be fascinating, OTOH running around with a "Trifield Natural EMF Meter"... not so much. 1309635989 This. Whether it gets called "intellectual lag" or the "test gap," it appears to have everything to do with *sociological* factors (and, at worst, *cultural* factors) rather than genetics. 1325746089 **_INFANT?_** **&#3232;\\_&#3232;**\n\nBones aren't even fully developed at that age; couldn't they do some permanent damage "adjusting" them? And for that matter, what do they think is wrong with a baby that makes them require that "treatment", anyway? 1331596012 Where in CO did you see it?\n\nedit: in defense of this comment, it was asked before the toplevel comment describing where OP saw it. 1325194897 LOL, sounds like you are implying some things about NY :) 1345585045 Can I ask about your physical scars? I am not a medium, but I know of a few that I would actually trust and I'm interested in finding out how that would happen. While I have seen welts and scratches related to PK attacks, and I had some marks on my own leg that I carried for a few years that I could not explain following what I believed to be a paranormal event, I am under the understanding that more permanent damage is not typical.\n\nIn the meantime, Mary Ann Winkowski's site: [http://maryannghostbuster.com/](http://maryannghostbuster.com/)\n\nPsychic support, a resource mainly for parents but seems to have some good information and might be able to refer you to a larger support network: [http://www.perceptivechildren.org/](http://www.perceptivechildren.org/)\n\nPsychic support group [http://www.experienceproject.com/groups/Have-Psychic-Experiences/121954](http://www.experienceproject.com/groups/Have-Psychic-Experiences/121954) I have been in other groups on this site and they are hit and miss, but hopefully this one is a good one. It looks like there are quite a few posts.\n\nI wish I could give you more personal help, but all I can go off is what I've studied. My third eye opens up every once in a while but I wouldn't say I'm experienced and its not often. 1344225912 Dude, spoiler alert. 1344590564 [Betteridge's Law of Headlines](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Betteridge's_Law_of_Headlines)\n\n> "Any headline which ends in a question mark can be answered by the word 'no'".\n\nThough I think it's fairer to say that the words "in general". 1347830440 I just have trouble feeling sympathy for someone who died of their own stupidity, especially when they encouraged others to engage in similar stupidity. 1338422682 Weather balloon for sure. 1260413855 Yes, and yes. \n\nBut are they watered down fools and Nazis? 1349387834 While I've personally entertained both Libertarianism and Anarchism (I did some Black Bloc shit, read Bukhanin and Goldman, etc.) I feel that Marx adequately critiqued anarchism and it's feasibility. It is anabstraction: Useful to measure states against, but not realistic as a model. 1313572347 http://i.imgur.com/jj36c.jpg 1356627930 Haha that would be pretty awesome 1356630734 Since they supposedly manifest where we can see them and where they can supposedly act, then they are subject to well understood physical law\n\nHowever, there is no possible mechanism for ghosts to act and manifest in the ways described, therefor they don't exist. 1315584891 What a ridiculous straw man argument. The vast majority of those skeptical of the global warming movement oppose not the science, but the proposed remedies, which in themselves are anti science. If you are concerned about global warming you should be advocating research into geo engineering, which is never advocated among professional doomsayers. That is anti science. 1350396157 I've opened a new Paranormal Database and while I have not created a iOS or Android application...yet, this should be responsive to those systems. We are looking for your true Paranormal stories such as Ghost Stories, UFO Reports, Cryptozoology sightings, and Paranormal Articles.\n\nMore categories will be forthcoming. \n\nRead or share your own Paranormal Experiences with Parabased! 1345133713 Yah you wouldn't think that an alien would speak in a British accent or use popular terminology from what people thought of aliens as back then. 1341211964 Agreed...they are very skeptical too, which is refreshing. 1326779041 Because people want to see extreme long range forecasts far beyond the ability of meteorologists to predict and most people don't know what a load of shit almanacs are. 1348365134 okay, everybody .. concentrate 1315843530 What AMA? link? 1344119607 Have you read both? Quite different. 1304542240 Ya know, I don't know what a snicker sounds like. What I imagine when I hear that word is a type of laugh I've never heard someone make. This information is useful to nobody. 1299060303 Time does alter per planet. The length of day / year is not synchronized. Therefore it is difficult to get a precise time of anything that happened in the past. Everything is estimated *edited* in relation to Earths timeframe.\n\nMy car analogy had a bit missing, doh. I ment to add that, say the car was pressurized and gravity adjustments. They would age slower than those on the outside. 1354131042 "the blimp scenario" \n\nWell played. 1343536861 I've always thought that "those things you hold to be true" are your beliefs, regardless of how you arrived at them. Skepticism comes in when you evaluate or re-evaluate your beliefs. Some people seem to draw some parallel between belief and faith, but I've never connected the two, except in the minimal sense that all belief, even scientific ones, need to rely on a certain level of faith (or maybe "trust" is a better word). 1312827897 Fibromyalgia. \n \nYes, it's real; no, it's not psychosomatic; yes, there is research to prove it. 1341615850 What makes you so certain about these things, is there any evidence? Without presenting any evidence people are likely to be dismissive. 1353258840 Does Chopra remind anyone else of that one shit-head lemur from the movie Madagascar? 1354131969 It's more that he's pressing towards the foot that is off the ground to lose balance and towards the one that is on the ground to show that it "works" 1330605203 That's Britain for you. The snake oil salesman's dream country. 1330567148 Greer is a paid shill, along with the entire Disclosure Project. Not saying the military officials are faking what they saw, but I do believe they are misguided into thinking that UFOs are aliens. 1343890656 I would not cheat on your woman at this point... 1324942578 Soooo not knowing what every nut and bolt is called on a bike makes a person not be able to ride safely? Got it.\n\nMario Andretti better be able to build a race car from scratch, then. 1355679562 If that makes you depressed, this'll make you suicidal. Enjoy. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DtU5q4z-xXc&feature=share 1307355086 The glitch isn't having cancer, the glitch is him having dreams about being really sick, and then being sick. Another glitch has it being 1st generation cancer in the 40s (grandma), second generation had cancer in his 30s (uncles), and now him in his 20s. If it wasn't for his dream state, he never would have thought to check himself for cancer, thus leading to a very sick OP.\n\nReading comprehension isn't too bad when you aren't looking to troll someone 1347242071 *So* much better with [this.](http://lab.arc90.com/experiments/readability/) 1286332855 [It seems to be a frequent surprise to those in /r/skeptic that chiropractic treatment has a dubious and unscientific history.](http://www.reddit.com/r/skeptic/comments/warou/at_a_half_marathon_medical_personnel_services/c5bt64m) 1341891247 hilarious. 1341174614 > Please refer to thers "documented cases" and leave personal experience out of science.\n\nUnderstand that Science would be useless without personal experience. Please refer to a remedial English book and leave shitty grammar out of proper spelling. 1346925739 [One more](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Vqf0eM39Us). Shows a triangular object at very high speeds way above a jetliner. 1307301743 Okay.\n\nThe majority of medical conditions seen by doctors in the United States are lifestyle-related. Unfortunately, the medical system in the United States is weighted heavily towards acute conditions and weighted heavily against chronic ones. A hospital is a great place if you have pneumonia or a broken arm or need stitches. It's not the best place if you have insomnia because all your doctor can really do in the amount of time he has to treat you is give you pills and tell you to take naps when you can.\n\nNaturopathic medicine, [despite this subreddit's incessant need to turn it into Hitler](http://www.reddit.com/r/skeptic/comments/ct1xb/the_wootastic_ralternativehealth_has_vanished/c0v1bet?context=2), presumes that the patient can heal themselves with the proper guidance and assistance. We now live in a culture where pretty much everyone would benefit from an extra hour of sleep, for example, but none of them are making time for an extra hour of sleep unless their doctor orders it. And he'll help them out by giving them Ambien.\n\nThe overwhelming majority of my wife's patients have issues related to food allergy, stress and environmental factors. Whereas most of her clients would be treated with anti-depressants and anti-inflammatories, she treats them through determining what they're allergic to and what they can do to remove the antagonists from their lifestyles. And, while doing it, she does a full health and medical workup on them including bloodwork, medical history and physical (her initial patient visits are an hour and a half) and, if need be, refers out to psychiatrists, psychologists, dieticians, oncologists, gynecologists, ultrasound technicians, pathology labs, obstetricians and general practitioners, all of whom are happy to take her calls because she's a doctor, practicing medicine, with a license.\n\nOh, I'm sorry. I mean "it's all money bitchez homeopathy is the path to richez!" Better? 1352746418 Holy water is allowed.. note the bolded part of the email FTA below:\n\n>"'It's important to note that **items that** have a tangible value for the item itself and **may also be used in metaphysical rites and practices** (ie jewelry, crystals, incense, candles, and books) **are allowed** in most cases,' Hoff wrote."\n 1345213812 Scientists don't need to debunk, magicians already know how those tricks are performed and some of them do debunk those gurus and such. 1301802974 It's a really common mis understanding that the people who are not making outrageous claims must debunk the evidence of those making outrageous claims. The opposite is true, if you make an extraordinary claim then you must prove to me that it is true, it is not up to me to prove you wrong. I already know you are probably wrong because you are making an extraordinary claim, by definition your claim demands a ton of evidence and is probably incorrect. 1288937042 That, I did. \n\nI'm just attempting to sort out the fact from fiction. Because I know a lot of pseudo-science pushers enjoy over using the term. 1342896533 Just curious, what kind of scientist is he? 1333582466 Yeah, you're right. My apologies. 1292010863 If the quote could be attributed to someone else, and I could prove it, that would be "concrete" for me. 1332892327 Something that could never hurt us, like the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man? 1317989526 I guess you could go cynical, cook up your own snake oil, and get in on that action. 1327519357 For example, one could make perfectly logical arguments about the attributes of god, but only if you assume a priori that god is real. I have a Christian friend that does this. His arguments are sound; but his beginning position is flawed. That's not a fallacy. 1318199751 Srsly,,, I can't find it either 1344602857 That's silly. 1305313651 Because if aliens are capable of incredible technology, I'm sure they're capable of simple evidence manipulation. If a photograph is REQUIRED for absolute proof, the the aliens will make sure that it won't be validated. How do I know this? Well if you're looking at agendas, then it seems like it always was in the alien's agenda to stay hidden. 1352319454 You really should re read my comments. I have not made any positive claims that chiropractic medicine works. I simply challenged your positive claims about the alarming sensationalist rhetoric you use ie "russian roulette". I have not been defensive in any way. My comments have been straight forward and even keel. I have exhibited no emotion or negativity towards you in this entire conversation. You on the other hand... \n"you are this.." "you are that.." 1349536175 I need to go to bed. I misread as NOKIA chocolate. 1340835738 Fair enough. Maybe you will just need to see one yourself. That's okay, it's understandable. Seeing is believing.\n\nWhat I DO NOT understand is why people waste their time posting and masturbating over these bullshit 'could be anything light in the sky 10 miles away' videos when they could instead be studying and discussing important cases like O'Hare, Rendelsham, Phoenix, Gulf Breeze, Belgium, etc etc.\n\nInstead these guys would rather argue with fellow current believers about videos that will NEVER be seen as noteworthy. Why do you think the general skeptical public doesn't take UFOs seriously when UFO believers focus on stupid shit like this instead of credible and compelling videos and cases? \n\nI turn into a dick because it's basically undoing any respect that serious researchers already struggle to earn, and it is undermining efforts to educate the public. It's already chased a few people out of this subreddit, too. Luckily r/UAP is a great place to educate yourselves. 1317359390 This facebook idiot was literally just quoting from a commercial for the most recent anthony hopkins movie. 1294808174 >but are spelt the same.\n\nI think you meant "speld". "Spelt" is a type of grain. 1349373617 As he points you towards the Oscillococcinum that costs $19.99. 1342898774 I'm not saying that OBE is absolutely terrible, just that you don't need to be an idiot to oppose it and that there are valid reasons to. 1343675257 http://www.reddit.com/r/NolibsWatch/comments/qubkm/oh_robotevil_what_have_you_done/ 1355366846 Exactly, but it still leaves both sides thinking they're right. 1344654472 "[citation needed]" 1349560627 we have a 4 month old. i sometimes wonder if she's gonna do it. 1303241937 Even nuttier: Hahnemann started out using bibles. And he didn't want his bottles to be delivered by horse because the shaking might over-potentiate the medicine. 1334223117 Also Vampires are intelligent beings, Cage certainly is not that. 1316753268 This. 1310391823 This. 1326452080 This. 1328940520 This. 1333936198 This. 1351518568 This. 1285893016 That would be a false analogy. Dog breeds have actively been shaped by an intelligence for a desired purpose. Humans have been shaped by natural selection for the sole purpose of reproduction/survival. Outside of sociological and cultural study, race is a meaningless term. [here](http://youtu.be/teyvcs2S4mI) is a good overview in which the presenter cites sources and offers suggestions for further reading 1356388049 This is why I'm canceling my TIME subscription. 1326854016 The problem here is your presupposition that "any sensible military leader in 1950 would consider it important." Isn't it possible that the event was looked into, found to be inaccurate or hoaxed, then discarded as not of significance? Isn't it also possible that they had other things to do and didn't get around to it? Isn't it also possible that the report was found to be lacking in critical details and deemed to be not worth the resources?\n\nYou are starting with the assumption that there is more to this, but without evidence there is no reason to believe that. How would you go about distinguishing between these two possible realities?\n\n1. There are more related documents and the government is withholding them.\n2. No more related documents exist, despite your belief that more exist.\n\nPerhaps you feel differently, but I think that without evidence it is not possible to distinguish between the two possibilities. I'm not denying the possibility that more documents *could* exist, but until evidence is presented for their existence it is irrational to think they do.\n\nEven if they released more documents related to this, would you really be satisfied? The follow-up could simply say the informant was a liar and to disregard the previous report. Would you accept that as truth, or would you be inclined to say it is a doctored report meant to obscure the true investigation? 1302536668 You mean to tell me there is no FSM? 1274988065 And where did they get that idea from? 1338153075 I love My Ghost Story! The creepiest one for me was the episode with the cat/monkey thing that jumps on the bed. 1352867612 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Water_fluoridation_in_the_United_States\n\nLooks like the federal government recommends fluoridation but does not require it (I imagine the "states' rights" crowd would frown on a federal mandate). At least 30% of the population of the US has unfluoridated water it seems. 1337791445 > Judging by the quality of the crap posted to this subreddit, no. \n\nFeel free to contribute what you believe to be not-crap to this subreddit. Just sayin'. 1306246986 oh thanks for that! 1283259732 Cheremoya is exceptionally tasty, I will give it that. 1354057645 And the question of whether there is a higher power will finally be answered for all of humanity. 1269049596 But, they have "Fun, bumpy, educational tractor rides" (only £2) ! It must be exciting ! 1282990473 > medicine where the efficacy is too low to distinguish from placebo.\n\nFTFY 1319737857 I haven't researched the specific case, but it should be fairly legit. The dogs have such a keen sense of smell they detect a hormone or some shit that is present in cancer patients with a certain type of cancer.\n\nAnd yes, "or some shit" is about as scientific I am going to get. 1296612293 I thing to consider is how does the other side see it. I never minced words with my parents about my lack of faith. She initially took it as me saying "you are a fucking moron" when what I said was "I don't share the same beliefs as you, I don't think there is a god." It is an affront to their way of life. By simply stating it we offend them deeply, the way a Creationist offends us, or at least just me. 1279680592 How can be people afraid that gamma radiation can give them cancer when they see light all the time.\n\nNot that cellphones/wifi are dangerous, but it doesn't excuse you from making a wholly incorrect argument. A constant magnetic field is something else than electromagnetic waves with positive frequency. 1289241146 >SHE DIDN'T WANT A FORMAL DEBATE!\n\nShe is free to ignore comments ya know.\n\n>go down to the local mosque and start telling people why their beliefs are ridiculous.\n\nAre you really trying to compare criticizing Islam in a mosque with discussing woo on reddit? Do you honestly not see the difference?\n\n>Oh, because IT'S RUDE. Because it's UNCALLED FOR. BECAUSE IT'S UNWELCOME.\n\nIt's only rude if you are condescending. Whether it's uncalled for or not depends on the perceptions of those involved. Whether or not it's unwelcome is irrelevant in this case. The poster was free to ignore mafoo's comments. \n\n>You don't follow someone and keep peppering them with questions and refutations of their beliefs and the beliefs of those they're associated with until they lose it. If she was trying to push her homeopathy views on you, hey you know what, lace into her, because it's pseudo science. But you all went out looking for a fight, then came back to r/skeptic crowing about your "victory". It's fucking childish.\n\nWe're talking about a reasonable discussion in one thread. Where the hell are you getting this harassment shit from?\n\n 1298698237 Yeah, sometimes I get a little too over-enthusiastic on stuff like this, and don't catch myself before I hit save. So sorry about that.\n\nI hope you had a fun time there though, is there any way to get inside?\n 1354224407 Scaredest. The only reason I clicked the link. Was not disappointed. 1351354586 I've been a paramedic for six years and we often have to turn off the lights in the back when doing a "12-lead EKG" because it picks up the 60Hz signal. Moving and talking will *completely* screw up a 12-lead analysis.\n\nNow a regular 4- or 5-lead "monitoring" EKG won't be disturbed by nearby electronics, and it will only be momentarily effected by movement and talking, but a "diagnostic" 12- or 14-lead EKG will be rendered useless until you have an electronically clean environment in most cases. And I'm not talking about old equipment either, I'm talking about new Lifepack and Zoll monitors. 1272417332 Check this guys other YouTube videos. He is an amateur magician but also uses a fake gorilla suit in one of his videos. Occam's razor is the easiest explanation, unless that Porcupine begins to move in another video. 1262535625 The short answer is no.\n\nThe word "frequency" should have your bullshit meter ringing, it's a fad word that is used a lot but doesn't really mean anything. I would say it's the same with "atomic level". It sounds fancy but what does it actually mean?\n\nAnd about curing incurable diseases; if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.\n\nBooks worth reading are [Trick or Treatment](http://www.amazon.com/Trick-Treatment-Undeniable-Alternative-Medicine/dp/0393337782/ref=pd_sim_b_1) and [Suckers](http://www.amazon.com/Suckers-Alternative-Medicine-Makes-Fools/dp/0099522861/ref=pd_sim_b_4). 1281371398 Why don't you give us an example of a monopoly that is allegedly not government-sustained and we'll point out exactly how it *is* government-sustained? 1315375225 That wired article is profoundly interesting. In particular:\n\n> By the late '90s, for example, the classic antianxiety drug diazepam (also known as Valium) was still beating placebo in France and Belgium. But when the drug was tested in the US, it was likely to fail. Conversely, Prozac performed better in America than it did in western Europe and South Africa. It was an unsettling prospect: FDA approval could hinge on where the company chose to conduct a trial.\n\nAnd:\n\n> Placebo-activated opioids, for example, not only relieve pain; they also modulate heart rate and respiration. The neurotransmitter dopamine, when released by placebo treatment, helps improve motor function in Parkinson's patients. Mechanisms like these can elevate mood, sharpen cognitive ability, alleviate digestive disorders, relieve insomnia, and limit the secretion of stress-related hormones like insulin and cortisol.\n\nSo, it's important to note that the placebo effect isn't just in the mind of gullible patients. It releases very real chemicals that have real physiological effects.\n\nIt would be very interesting to see how skeptics react in double-blind placebo trials versus how the average person reacts. I would bet the farm that a highly religious person who answered in the affirmative when asked if they feel the direct intervention of a god in their lives would be a high-responder to placebo.\n\nDrug companies may need to start profiling test subjects to more effectively filter out the placebo effect, since it has become stronger and harder to beat. 1347797264 > Not really sure the point of my story, just thought i would share.\n\nObjectively grading things of subjective quality is a really fucking stupid idea? 1354745212 Anyone can claim something, they don't need to be given the benefit of the doubt. Look through his comments in the thread. First he claimed that this was his first real sighting, only to comment further down that he's seen triangle craft and experienced loss of time with them. OP is a liar. Even a fuzzy picture would have been nice, but nope. 1347740256 And Penn & Teller did a blind test taste with a few different fruits between organic and normal and tha majority of the people preferred the normal food stating that it tasted better. 1302791373 I feel like the worst thing a school can do is prevent a child from learning to think for themselves. It's kind of despicable that the state of texas thinks "Education" is limited to memorizing facts. I remember a college history class where we were asked about the magna carta. A student immediately responded that it was signed in 1215. When the teacher asked what was significant about it, they had no answer. 1340943268 Let us develop/advance/kill ourselves off on our own.\n\nVisit the island to pick up spare food (just as was done with cattle by captains in the big wooden sailing ship days).\n\nStay at arms' length to watch and make sure they don't change the way we are progressing.\n\nStay at arms' length to observe and only intervene if we look like we are fucking up bit time.\n\n\nStay at arms' length to watch until we advance enough for them to involve themselves in our culture.\n\n\nStay at arms' length to watch while eating popcorn so they can enjoy the show.\n\nStay at arms' length to gather spare parts.\n\nStay at arms' length to silently direct and guide and modify/improve us.\n\n 1334712922 That was kind of painful to read. What an idiot. When she can't respond with facts she turns to an emotional appeal, she completely ignored James' evidence of the past debate and investigations and then she all but flat-out denied that measles can be fatal. This little example of her poor reading comprehension in particular annoyed me:\n\nJames,\n\n>...introduction of MMR in 1988, notifications and deaths fell still further. The ten years following the introduction of MMR saw 18 deaths\n\nSue\n\n>Actually, James, the Office of National Statistics and the Health Protection Agency says there have been four deaths from measles in the last twenty years...\n\nYeah, stupid. He said 18 deaths from 1988-1998 and you're talking about 1992-2012. How can you actually think that is a valid response? 1340494194 to me it looks like a bunch of helium balloons tied together drifting on an air current, but the lights I can not explain! 1316478246 [Bullshit](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EBMnEtkHzHQ) 1348318243 I really wish people who do this sort of investigation would post links/citations. Without doing the same research, I have no way of knowing whether the investigator is any more legit than the scammer. 1295762420 wow that amazing, what some people do to get in front of the camera is unreal, then after the documentary done and then the see it realize that they look like complete nobs. and that when the lawyers come in ; )\n\ncan you give me a tiny hint (or pm me) of what film it was? \n\nyou don't have to, i'm just too damn curious >: D.......thats my curious face. 1350492409 Well said. Indeed, the detection and correction of errors are always the result of continued application of skepticism and science, almost never by blindly deciding "orthodoxy" is all wrong. 1289978282 Perhaps "a conspiracy of crazy with a smidgen of misinformed thrown in". 1314129586 Yeah, I felt this way about the previous Zeitgeist films. While there are credible facts in all, there's still some bunk, and that's disappointing for a number of reasons. Namely, if someone can find obvious untruth in something like this, it discredits the whole thing.\n\nWith that said, I'm glad that someone out there is putting these kinds of theories forward to be tested by the intelligent public. 1296690824 I agree, that first link you mentioned definitely looks like a high altitude plane illuminated by the setting sun.\n\nEh, I'm not so convinced by much in the 'debunked video,' though. 1319590377 While I too am concerned that /r/skeptic sometimes drifts toward /r/atheism as a anti-theism circlejerk, I'd say this blog article is relevant. It addresses validity of the young earth creationist story from a scientific standpoint. That makes it relevant.\n\nThat said, the blog's name isn't the best and might send the wrong message. 1354516440 "Kinetic energy" in the context of relativity usually means mc^2 * (1 - gamma), so it's 0 when a particle is at rest. It isn't really "kinetic" energy if it doesn't have that property. What E=m tells us is that for a particle at rest, it's energy is equal to its mass, period. That's total energy, not kinetic energy. Note that potential energy doesn't really have a meaningful definition at this level of physics. 1332927348 Well said. Thank you. 1329568321 Simplest reason: they are not in our part of the universe.\n\nAssuming anything more than that is just wild speculation. 1335151809 I'm for this philosophy, but on the condition that we can at least advocate correcting the factual misconceptions spreading within the proponents of raw milk, or drinking pastuerized, homogenized, non-Organic, etc. \n\nI think this article is at least sticking to facts, but simply concluding with a philosophy you disagree with, and that's your right as well as theirs, but they made their point with many certifiable facts in tow.\n\nI can't say the same about proponents I know of raw milk, who all get their information from friends, and tell me I'm poisoning myself with run-of-the-mill milk, or how raw milk has unique health benefits. Yesterday organic was the cure, but raw is the new black. Many do it because they think it's superior for other reasons than it is.\n\nMy point is there's a ton of homogenized bullshit spreading on this topic, and strictly supporting a more factually-based education of proponents would certainly not hurt, even if you don't go as far as recommending against drinking it due to health risks.\n\nAs far as your philosophy, though, I'm a smoker, and I hate people telling me I'm going to die of cancer. I'm educated on that topic, and I made my choice, and to hell with anyone who tells me I can't risk my life. If I told you I do it for health benefits, though, you might think differently of me. 1318407541 Indeed. Why else would he refer to Randi as "The Amazing Randi" instead of just "James Randi"? 1252692489 Yea, there was a tremendous amount of inbreeding in the Egyptian royal family. I had a National Geographic with an article on the study of mummies identifying 34 direct ancestors (I can't remember the exact number) the majority of pairings were between sons who married their sisters, producing children who then married each other having daughters who matured that then married their grandfathers/uncles as second or third wives, producing more children who married other offspring that were simultaneously their cousins/nieces/sisters/brothers. The string of genetic deformities this inbreeding produced was intense. 1321597331 >professional association\n\nThat's just another name for a trade organization. They have no authority to issue certifications or licenses. 1346091125 Thanks, I've actually just started her book. Very good stuff. 1314259850 > You are quoting CNN. \n\nNo, actually I read the research paper and the data (can't tell you the figure number because I don't have access right now) shows that both yoga and stretching are equal in their benefits. That is exactly what the line you quoted states. \n\nLook at it this way. There are three possibilities: \n\n1. yoga (Y) > Stretching (S); \n2. Y = S; or \n3. Y < S.\n\nThe statement you quoted says "Y > S is not true". You are assuming this means that Y < S. If you look at the paper, the data shows that Y = S. \n\nThe fact that stretching is just as good as yoga is an important finding. The particular stretching regimen they used is atypical but the study definitely shows that just the physical aspects of yoga are sufficient for the benefit and not the spiritual or other pseudoscience, magical aspects can be thrown out of the window.\n\nEdit: Re-worded my response because I just realized that you wrote the article for Skeptical Science. 1319628039 How sure are you that no student has ever complained about the content of the course? Or even that a student would complain in a circumstance where the content is questionable? \n\nYou can't dismiss the criticisms as unfair or untrue because of the source. The critique stands on its own merit. 1330530342 The "robot with feelings" idea is interesting, and has been explored in fiction many times. I think it was in an Asimov story, where a robot explains what he means with 'pleasant', something like 'my decision-making processes become more straightforward, allowing for a faster reaction time; I interpret that as pleasant.'\n\nI think the main problem would be our empathy. Unless robots are programmed to express their feelings in a way that we can recognize, we would be impaired to properly interact with them. 1342717800 I have cited his statements in this thread. Please read those. 1326657690 I think you may be one of the only people that seek comfort in the basement. Haha. 1345063498 My friend that sits directly beside me had the exact same experience. 1355098982 My mom buys that crap ...\n\nDon Cherry's commentary is only useful within the context of the NHL. 1326546700 This is actually really interesting 1295553191 Many people use "homeopathic" to mean "herbal" or to mean non-Western medicine. It really shouldn't be surprising that the people who would use this aren't often the most careful with terminology. \n\nFrom the article:\n\n> Mr Monsellato, 52, of the southern Italian town of Tricase, close to Lecce, has been a doctor of alternative medicine for more than 20 years. He is honorary president of Italy's Homeopathic Sinergy Association and an expert on acupuncture.\n\nSounds like they just like anything that isn't too "Western". 1319414294 Sadly, that's not the way vaccines work. They don't make you immune, they just reduce the chance of an infection when you are exposed. They are most effective when everyone who can get vaccinated does so. When the community as a whole has reduced susceptibility to the virus, everyone's chances of being exposed at all go way down, and the virus is less likely to get a foothold in the population. This is what we call "herd immunity". When you get pockets of people who refuse to get vaccinated, they aren't just putting themselves at risk. They increase the chance of exposure for everyone around them, reducing the overall effectiveness of the vaccine. Then we start seeing outbreaks. We're seeing this more and more in the last 10 years with things like measles and pertussis (whooping cough). 1316720780 In the U.S., there are far more black professional football and basketball players than there are white. This is determined by ability almost exclusively. Whether this was a result of recent selective breeding or thousands of years of development in Africa, we don't know. Or at least I don't know.\n\nIt is possible that through the same mechanism, black people may be smarter or dumber (on average) than non-blacks in the U.S. It is not socially acceptable to perform this type of testing, so we probably won't know for a long time, if ever. In fact, it is not even socially acceptable to talk about this type of testing (intelligence by race), so I look forward to a large number of downvotes for mentioning it. 1326177547 Riding high on assumptions, you are. 1335116757 I wouldn't worry about it. Come what may. 1330064470 To be somewhat fair to Steve, your diet can prevent or encourage the spread of cancer. It has been found in studies that cancers require a lot of sugars to thrive.\n\nPg. 217 of Good Calories Bad Calories, "In the early 1980s, cancer researchers discovered that tumor cells also overexpress IGF (insulin-like growth factor) receptors, just as they overexpress insulin receptors. The surfaces of tumor cells have two to three times as many IGF receptors as healthy cells, which makes them all the much more responsive to the IGF in their immediate environment.\n\nThis is another way in which cancer cells gain their all important survival growth advantage, suggests Derek LeRoith, whose laboratory at the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases did much of this research. The extra insulin receptors will cause cancerous cells to receive more than their share of insulin from the environment which will convey to the cell more blood sugar for fueling growth and proliferation; the extra IGF receptors will assure that these cells are supplied with particularly forceful commands to proliferate. Another critical role of IGF in the development of cancer may be its ability to inhibit or override the cell suicide program that serves as the ultimate fail-safe mechanism to prevent damaged cells from proliferating"\n\nIn short, cancer cells have lots of receptors to factors in the body spurred on by insulin and IGF (which are very similar in effect and structure). IGF concentrations change slowly over time compared to insulin however, so one must keep their diet fairly regular to keep this in check. Shutting down these receptors in mice caused cancer cells to pretty much totally be supressed from growth.\n\nThis stuff could be outdated, but diet can have an influence, though the role of IGF is apparently controversial, as is much in cancer research I would imagine (though do not know). 1318001971 Thank you, I think they debunked it neatly enough for me. 1306360473 Nope. I read over that whole page a good 3 times today. I would've noticed. It's in the middle of a word. 1351048380 The word Yoga is ancient but the activity now described as yoga has it's origens in the 1960s. Which would explain how 60s it seems. 1347839023 It's quite clear... that guy is the Joker. 1348014976 No, I did not say that Occam's razor = aliens. \n\nI am saying that it is much more reasonable to hypothesize that the myths and legends are all based on the same past event, rather than to make the leap that many different stories wildly separated people just, by some wild coincidence, have almost identical narratives. To me that smacks more of religion than science.\n\nSo if we assume that the stories are based on a past event, given the technological level of the ancient story tellers, what could account for that "event". Obviously nothing of this Earth in that time period. \n\nSo, assuming a real "event", we are left with two choices for the source of the "event". 1: They really were supernatural beings. 2: They were flesh and blood beings. \n\nWhich is more likely?\n\nIf they were flesh and blood, where did they come from? Certainly no one in the ancient world could fill the bill. \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n 1322016956 Hi. Can someone please explain why they put it in the water? I've heard it benefits your teeth but wouldn't you just have to hold it in your mouth and spit it out if this were the case? Interested to any recommended peer reviewed studies etc. on this issue I can be forwarded to also, there is a lot of bumph out there. Thanks. 1337797559 Why are all Biblical studies professors anti-bible? I have never understood this... 1313121157 It seems highly doubtful that she'll give him any of the prescribed medicines for recovery. 1297532267 "Remote viewing" actually closely fits with this. I really wanted a good term to tie to this, so that might help lead me to this specific process.\n\nThe [wiki](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Remote_viewing) on remote viewing also has a lot of good stuff in it to send my friend, specifically since I think he mentioned a few of the stories in here, and really meant Stargate when he mentioned MKULTRA. 1333604053 Did you notice any physical changes? Like was your haircut different, scabs or something that disappeared? I guess I am wondering if your body is technically a year older than it should be, or if you glitched into your younger body and only your mind is a year older. 1336584559 That shit is insane. I was going to buy some for a hiking trip but decided against it when I realized I'd be supporting *crazy*. 1330038578 Hey Romeo. I guess that it's kind of a subjective matter, but I think you're giving a little too much leeway to the concept of what a jet aircraft should look like.\n\nI happen to have a little figurine that's meant to actually represent a jet aircraft. I've taken a picture of it and placed it with the so called "Golden Flyer" so that you can see a direct comparison:\n\nhttp://www.dumbassguide.info/images/sitedisplay/jet_goldenflyer_comparison.jpg\n\nNow, I've already admitted that there's a very basic general similarity (I'm the dumbass who did that podcast, in case you were confused by the name I go by here). The wings, tail, and body are *kind of* similar in general location\n\nBut I think you need a lot more than that in order to call this Golden Flyer "eerily reminiscent of modern day fighter jets". It seems to me that when you compare this object to something that's actually meant to represent a modern day fighter jet, the term "eerily reminiscent" doesn't really hold up. 1292049847 This has absolutely nothing to do with scepticism. 1321940552 In fact 'seeing ghosts' is the LEAST reported phenomenon in 'hauntings', mostly it's just noises and feeling of dread, as well as the occasional "moving shadow", which isn't what you are referring to I believe 1327957524 1) parallel reality, you two guys shared different pasts. \n\nor\n\n2) you are confused or dreamed it 1338558114 Damnit! For some reason I can't [reach PubMed](http://downforeveryoneorjustme.com/www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov). Have you gone and [done a search](http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed)?\n\nMy first though it that it seems pretty much like nonsense. Light turning into biochemical energy? I thought photosynthesis was pretty much only the purview of plants... Humans have a few photosensitive parts (eyes, and our skin responds in a few ways). I've not heard of joints or muscles responding to light.\n\nEdit: Adding link to the [Quackwatch/Devicewatch](http://www.devicewatch.org/reports/lllt.shtml) entry. It's pretty telling (if not conclusive) that the primary search results on Google are device sellers, not literature. Blech. It's starting to look like a duck... Or at least pretty fringe-y. 1291617922 It's so weird that you guys have been word leaders in every field of science for decades, yet your state school systems seems so backwards at times. 1296200923 I don't see what this has to do with spirituality. Many people "successfully accept that we have been visited by aliens" because they use their brains, they understand probability and evidence suggesting that we have been visited. 1310938555 I can't decide if I want him or Dan Dennett as my daddybear - or hell, as my grandpa. 1334659443 They're valuable to them, and that's the point - the value isn't rational or intrinsic, but it is deeply entrenched. 1328299831 "Nazis mentioned already? Okay. Well, as long as we're linking to logical fallacy definitions (?) you are giving a beautiful example of a reductio ad absurdum or more specifically, Reductio ad Hitlerum. Your comparison is irrelevant because we are discussing the policy of taxation, not genocide."\n\nHe's not using fallacious logic, it's an apt analogy. \nIf the law of the land should always be followed, as you implied than that applies to all countries and to all times, therefore Nazi Germany's crimes against the Jews was just the law of the land and the jews that didn't consent to it could just have left, according to your implication.\nIt's a valid analogy. 1325473118 Im honored! (OP) and behind you on this one, go get hitched! Suitably in Nevada! 1283153967 it would be a step in the right direction, you'll need to prove the log is undoctored and accurate to the best of ones abilities. 1298085591 Le shrug. You can believe what you like. Good stories are good stories. 1323048543 Growing up in Utah, I was told by at least a dozen people that fluoride was used as a gas by Hitler to keep the Jews docile in the camps, etc. Almost all of these people also believed that the fluoride gas was released in the camps by turning fluoridated water into steam.\n\nI bet these people had an absolute shit-fit when Batman Begins came out.\n\nEvery time I tried to dig up the origins of this bullshit being so prevalent in Utah, it seemed to come back to the John Birch Society. Pretty much every scientifically ignorant "theory" I ever heard growing up there is part of the Birch agenda. 1349623484 Last friday I had a great conversation that lasted 3 hours over a couple of beers with an acquaintance. We agreed on practically nothing from politics, economics, organic food, woo, etc.\n\nBut we both left the conversation greatly satisfied, our friendship strengthened and an intellectual discussion richer. Everyone around us thought that we were on the verge of getting into a fist fight, while the two of us felt we just had the intellectual equivalent of sex.\n\nI think the key is to engage in a discussion on the level that the other person is able to follow. If you think you are in a formal debate, while the other person thinks it is a school yard bullying session - you won't get anywhere.\n\nIf the other person does not value truth, the scientific method, logic and rationality, then the conversation is doomed from the outset. 1355253836 looks like a lot of "those guys" are here too. including me :D 1350583077 Thanks for the link. I was confused when brain surgeon Charles Teo made comments on Australian TV recently saying that in his experience he had been seeing a higher incidence of tumours in the area of the brain close to the right ear, which he attributed to mobile ('cell') phone use. I had been vaguely aware of studies which concluded that mobile phones were not dangerous, and here he was stating the opposite! 1323853804 Neither are relevant, asshole. One deals with the ideals of Nazism and Adolf Hitler, whereas the other is in regards to the Ku Klux Klan (KKK). 1329105332 It certainly isn't a science lab. 1356033593 The [actual paper](http://websites.psychology.uwa.edu.au/labs/cogscience/Publications/LskyetalPsychScienceinPressClimateConspiracy.pdf) is pretty entertaining, and builds on a [growing body of evidence](http://scholar.google.com/scholar?q=%22conspiratorial+thinking%22&hl=en&as_sdt=0%2C5&as_ylo=2000&as_yhi=) that belief in one conspiracy theory is correlated with belief in other conspiracy theories (almost as if certain people just aren't that great at the whole "bullshit/logical-fallacy detection" thing). Anecdotally this makes perfect sense, but it's nice to have the idea confirmed with some actual research. 1355333635 Hijack: Engine Down the band? Good. 1304433728 UFOs does not equal aliens. UFOs do, in fact, exist. Whether they are prosaically explained or anomalous is a question for critical thinkers and science. 1342810818 I think you are making a logical mistake by implying that "the most qualified" has to be worth anything at all. Just because someone has a high level of *relative* expertise, does not mean that they really have any expertise.\n\n 1261026016 It's amazing how many "smart" people completely lack the ability to think critically about anything. Sure, they memorized a lot of facts and processes in school, but if you ask them to actually think about things critically, they get nowhere. 1350059257 you should be able to make a entity that way. 1323141089 WWJD-energy bracelets, two in one. Book it. 1317528660 And today *I* learned that some people can't spell the word 'today'. 1344881589 Check out the link. I don't know about the veracity of its claims., but it postulates that if modern farming technology were deployed to Africa almost the entire continent is farmable and it could be a net exporter of food instead of a starving continent. 1333319196 Seems to me there's at least a couple things to be proven for me to believe this app's claims.\n\n* Does body movement correspond to wakefulness?\n\nThis seems to be false. During [NREM sleep](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sleep#NREM_sleep)'s stage 1, the body sometimes experiences [hypnic jerks](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hypnic_jerk). You experience stage 1 sleep both as you move to deeper stages of sleep, and as you rise back out of them. Thus the app may sense a movement due to a hypnic jerk as you're falling deeper into sleep, not waking up.\n\n* Is wakefulness the best time to end your sleep cycle?\n\nI didn't see any specific citations from a quick search. There's many studies that describe a lengthy list of negative effects of sleep deprivation, but that's when sleep is prevented or routinely interrupted. If you are otherwise getting sufficient sleep throughout the night, it's unlikely you'll have any of those serious sleep deprivation effects from an interruption of your last REM cycle. But will it make you less happy or less energized?\n\n\nIf you feel you want better sleep, or to feel better when you wake up, I bet you'll find more useful changes by reviewing your ["sleep hygiene"](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sleep_hygiene), [reducing caffeine intake](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caffeine-induced_sleep_disorder), and [exercising regularly](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Exercise#Sleep).\n\nI've been particularly interested in recent studies of [light and circadian rhythms](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Circadian_rhythm#Light_and_the_biological_clock). When blue light roughly matching the intensity of an overcast day strikes the retina it can advance or delay the body's internal clock, and that affects the onset of sleep. This effect can accumulate and cause one's circadian rhythm to drift farther from the typical day/night cycle. It's something to consider when staring at a monitor or smartphone at night. You may be sabotaging your sleep. 1334696051 The font is a crime against humanity. I had to copy and paste the shit into Word to make it readable. I'll bet most people are not so curious. 1322499291 I was watching that BBC documentary on time called, funnily enough, Time, and in one episode there the host went into great detail talking about how our whole perception of the speed of time is greatly affected by a small gland in our bodies.\n\n[Here's a link](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MTx6ha6fRwo&feature=related) to the start of it. I love the experiment where they show how adrenaline makes time slow down for the observer. 1328440262 Can you please go into detail on what you mean by calling creationists liars. That's a pretty bold claim to throw around, given how religion impacts peoples perception of reality. 1346867088 Prior to about 5-10 years ago, someone who was a gay trans man was literally almost never allowed to transition. There are plenty of gay and bi trans men (me, for instance). I think I'd be bi no matter what, but it's possible I am out about it because after coming out as trans and transitioning, a little thing like sexual orientation doesn't seem as big a deal. Most cis bi men seem to, on the other hand, be shall we say circumspect about who they tell (aka on the DL). I really doubt there are more gay and bi trans people I think we just tend to be more out about it. 1323385996 Right? Glad someone else thought so. A little cheesy but I loved the idea. 1351519665 Yeah. Phone auto correct is too strong 1355737838 I don't mean to argue with the hivemind here, but this is hardly crazy talk. \n\nThere is a ton of evidence to show that quantum effects occur in natural processes. The processing of scent, photosynthesis, bird migration, etc. That the mechanism behind consciousness could have quantum mechanical underpinnings is hardly the sort of woo that should be dismissed out of hand.\n\nIt's of course wise to expect to see evidence that supports the theory, but it's not really all that far out there.\n\nWe shouldn't just discard potentially interesting study on the basis that a specific field is rife with bullshit. It doesn't help when he's going on things like What The Bleep Do We Know, but it's not at all uncommon for someone to be on a documentary where the overall subject matter misrepresents their view. The Great Global Warming Swindle is a good example.\n\nFor the record, I'm just talking about the overall theory of consciousness having quantum properties or mechanisms. The near death experience, consciousness in the universe, thing... that's all pretty wacky.\n\nOh, in looking around I discovered another article referencing the same theories. Note the date. http://www.guardian.co.uk/science/2005/may/19/badscience\n\n 1351697618 If I was trying to paint you as anything I would have said "you" and not "he." That's how pronouns work. *You* can stop taking things so personally. 1342896648 Bravo! 1286867353 Good! I was hoping with all of the wikileaks crap someone would drudge up some UFO information. I don't think anything came up about that, though. 1350418683 I took a tour of the ship when I was a lad where they show you all the "hotspots" of activity. I thought it was pretty hokey until we got to some of the crew quarters. I'd been walking a little ahead of the main group, so about 4-6 feet ahead of the rest, when I heard a woman say "don't worry" right by my ear. I said "about what?" thinking it was the tour guide, then I noticed she was a good 8 feet away out in front of the group. No one else was really talking or anywhere close enough to me for it to have been simple chatter. This was loud, and right by my head. Hands down the best ghost tour ever. 1349678340 Whats the TL:DR of this? 1350866880 That's a space peanut. 1330101254 This has happened to my quite a few times in the house I'm currently living in. Probably once every few months I'll see a shadow moving around. One time specifically I saw a shadow walk up to my bedroom and peak in, and I thought someone else must have just gotten home, but no. That, along with other experiences, has me thinking there's a spirit in my home. 1350070697 >More regulation is better than letting a bunch of quacks run amok. \n\nExcept that all they're regulating here is requiring naturopaths to have a sufficient "education" in naturopathy (a lateral move at best) and restricting the procedures they can perform (a definite boon). However, all Joe Uninformedcitizen knows is that the Alberta goverment said naturopaths are medical professionals, so he's all the more likely to seek one out (and hopefully he at least goes to one that's "accredited") instead of seeing an actual, y'know, trained medical professional. *All* the snake-oil peddlers will see an uptick in business as belief that magic-whatever will cure what ails you spreads, and I don't know that the fact that some woo-peddlers will be certified as being less-harmful to your health than others is all that big a win given the costs. 1343318731 Yes, because in the scientific world, there is more incentive in publishing risky results very fast than being thorough... 1333457106 Yeah, I mean it wasn't ALL crap, I guess. They certainly didn't break any new ground though. 1322863559 I would love to shop at the whole foods you're shopping at. All the ones in my area are significantly more expensive in every respect than my other local grocery stores.\n\nHowever, if I'm looking for a specific product, like a variety of cheese, or Organic Chocolate milk (Holy hell that stuff tastes amazing.) they're guaranteed to have it. It's a bit of a catch 22 though, because I'm not a fan of supporting a store that sells so much alternative medicine bullcrap. 1349190971 And another thing. From your reply I can conclude you did not read my post properly and you certainly didn't understand it. You flicked over it quickly. It's insulting that you didn't even bother to read it before you replied. *tsk tsk. 1326800400 It looks like a drunk guy with a blanket wrapped around him staggering across the yard. 1334373986 Now that's funny. That's not what I meant but going back and reading it, that is fucking hilarious. I'm leaving it. 1351226832 Well, as they stated in the video, it is just extremely efficient, using gravity as the power source, but eventually, it will wind down. Making a device that runs for 3 days isn't terribly difficult. Making one that runs for 3 years, more so. \n\nI don't think the horseshoe magnets are actually doing anything like the inventor states. The ball is perpendicularly located and ~8 inches away when they're up, which is supposed to propel the ball, but move them down ~1 in and suddenly they have no effect on the ball's momentum? I used to do a lot of patent work and very often we'd have inventors that would describe their inventions, but at one step, they would describe something that broke the laws of physics or was just plain ridiculous, and we'd be forced to figure out what the hell was really going on. The device does not work the way the inventor thinks it does. \n\nThe overhead magnets, springs and pendulums are doing all the work. The horseshoe magnets may actually be serving as a brake when the ball passes in front of them. You'd need speed readings at every angle to really figure out what's affecting what. 1350236727 I disabled adblock but I still don't live in the USA. Help? 1313701218 Yes, but hunted by who? Perhaps the guy jumanjii? 1340652881 Allow me about 15 hours or so when I have more than my droid to make a full rebuttal, if you would be so kind. 1296726159 I don't see it as anything to be afraid of, I see it as some sort of a message your buddy sent to you go get you to think differently about physical reality. Maybe he opened your matrix capsule and was splashing water on your face. I see the brain as a tuning device, sounds like he altered the frequency at which your thought are vocalized into sound. Perhaps like spinning a record faster. Anyway hope you enjoyed the gift, now take it and figure out how this could be possible given our current understandings about physical reality. 1332546239 Keep shadowboxing. 1355116977 I'm Catholic, and I think this subreddit is pure evil and you are all going to roast in hell!\n\nHaha JK. I love /r/paranormal. 1345507346 Oops: you forgot to say "in my opinion". Because you don't seem to be aware that this is all it is: an opinion. Which is also why nobody listens to posts like these. You come off as righteous, which nobody needs. 1253496996 Belief in astrology == instant turnoff. 1309566280 Ha. But seriously, if it's not Quantum that begs the question, how does it work? I NEED TO KNOW!!!!!!! 1313589339 Compared to now yeah it kinda was. Lots of things championed by Reagan and Bush would be called socialist by the Tea Party. 1351921053 experimental craft created by the worlds governments. however, if that is the case then technology as we know it has already been far exceeded by government scientists for quite a while now if they are capable of creating machines that can do what has been reported for years now. 1321537274 you sir, just blew my mind. Totally right. 1333993785 I've been practicing meditation daily for about two years now. I heard a man say that when his solar plexus becomes large enough to touch his root chakra or sacral chakra, he is able to produce an electric shock through his hands. I have attempted to energize my chakras for spoon bending and moving small objects through telekinesis. With out much success my focus went else where. The funny thing is my girlfriend gives me the most amazing energy in my penis/genitals/prostate area when she flirts with me. She really is on an elevated level sexually. Maybe my sacral chakra is just overly active and giving me the necessary energy for moving objects through telekinesis. Thank you, that made sense to me. Now to keep practicing and be patient and I may learn some control. 1343707230 Well I don't know enough about the history to make an argument in detail, this argument is made from Hitchens' research on the topic.\n\nHe made the case that it's not that simple and straightforward. 1344559116 [Not even close](http://conservapedia.com/Soccer#Soccer_and_socialism) 1314412718 You read tarot cards? Can you tell me the name of the person i will meet and be happy with? Do tarot cards work like that? 1318455346 Well you have to keep it up for a bit :P First week I didn't wash wasn't too great either (understatement) 1351800131 The one that's up there is WAY too large and interferes with the page layout. I'd take this guy's over that one. Maybe add a trenchcoat and change the font of "reddit" to matrix style letters. 1326482916 > I know that many of my peers hold—as I myself did—to the theory that the brain, and in particular the cortex, generates consciousness and that we live in a universe devoid of any kind of emotion, much less the unconditional love that I now know God and the universe have toward us. But that belief, that theory, now lies broken at our feet.\n\nThis guy can't have been such a great scientist after all, if one personal experience causes him to throw years of research out of the window.\n\nOccams razor comes to my mind... 1349718849 You realize the OP didn't editorialize their title right? 1351015082 and related lecture [here](http://potomacinstitute.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1076:special-cns-lecture-october-21&catid=65:past-events&Itemid=94) 1333133997 My experience with GPs is that they send you to a specialist to find the root cause. 1335332952 At first glance, I thought they looked like razor blades. Remember: down the street, not across the tracks. 1321823693 Oh Raelian? 1318911081 The point of my reply is that I liked Dawkins and his writings much more when he was advocating science and reason. Now it seems he spends most of his time attacking religion. I'm not making any claims about religion.\n\nHe is often rude and condescending, considered bad behavior by most. I'm not saying he's wrong, or that it's wrong to question someone's faith and call them on their bullshit. I just think it could be done with more humanity and compassion. My biggest gripe about the New Atheist movement is that it often lacks civil discourse. 1351112318 Hitler ate sugar! 1340293844 It's between the box set and the bed frame. 1345913063 Email him my post. :)\nThanks for the compliments. 1291092187 For some reason all I see is the lady [doing this](http://gifsoup.com/view4/1090080/jump-on-it-o.gif) with the plant. 1327507494 worked fairs and out of a friends' shop. If you do it for money your a pro. 1318467797 It would have to be pink slime and beef, not chicken. But my first-hand knowledge comes from the pet supply industry, where I highly recommend avoiding even the dog foods that use by-products (which is what they call the stuff that goes into pink slime), because of the lower protein and nutritive values.\n\nBut as to [pink slime](http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/guest-blog/2012/03/27/pink-slime-deconstructed/) in particular:\n\n>But, is it nutritious? Consumers can certainly make valid arguments regarding LFTB’s content: there’s less overall “functional” protein than that found in other meat products. An analysis conducted at Iowa State University (A.S. Leaflet R1361) found two-and-a-half times more insoluble protein (77% vs. 30%) relative to soluble proteins in ordinary ground chuck. Nutritionally, our gut bacteria digest much of what we cannot, but there’s a good bet that we can’t get as much value from insoluble proteins (collagen and elastin, found largely in tendons, ligaments, and cartilage) as from their soluble siblings (myosin and actin, usually associated with muscle tissues). \n\nThe various vitamins and such will of course be different, but that's also dependent on what the animal was eating. Any place putting pink slime in their ground meat is using incredibly low-quality meat to begin with, so lowering the nutritive value even further seems unwise. 1333638485 >the debate would quickly reduce to one about things like material properties - which have clear values and are hard to argue about.\n\nUnless maybe the WTC towers were built of materials that weren't meticulously tested and analyzed before assembly... which they weren't. It would devolve into an argument over the exact hardness of the bolts in the outer frame, the ductility of the rivets on the trusses, etc. 1290698803 Nice! This one's crammed with stuff: A Siamese cat, a human face, a standing woman in a hat, and two other small dogs; one appears to be a Scottish terrier, and the other a chihuahua. Any idea who's projecting this? 1341714231 How many someones?\n\nIt's "someone's", not "someones". \n\n Someone means more than one someone.\n Someone's means someone is or someone has.\n 1351226629 I found out how it works, if that can net me some karma back. Apparently it's a hell of a lot more caustic than most other OTC treatments. 1352768626 Yeah he must do. He's obviously not malicious, or he'd be destroying things and taunting you. He's probably a lonely kid who just wants some company. \nAt least you know his name now and when you hear something moving or a voice, you can say hi to him etc. \nI'm weird, but I've always wanted a ghost like that. Unfortunately I've only experience malicious entities :-/ Now I try to ignore them lol 1351214092 A lot of people are pointing out that this might be an April Fool's Joke because of the timing, but [Colantotte](http://www.colantotte.jp/global/) appears to be a real company with an actual (as in *existing*, not *functional*) [product](http://www.trionz.com/) that you can really [buy](http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_c_3_5?url=search-alias%3Dhpc&field-keywords=trion+z&sprefix=trion%2Caps%2C285) today. \n\nLooking up "Colantotte" or "Arc Quest Co.,Ltd" (heh, the "arc" thing gave me pause though) there does seem to be [some](http://news.priorsmart.com/double-reef-llc-dba-ionloop-v-arc-quest-l39w/) [interesting](http://patents.justia.com/2005/06913663.html) [stuff](http://www.metoview.com/traders-6/company/arc-quest-co-ltd.html) out there that indicates this is all real. Real *bullshit*, but still not an April Fool's Joke.\n\nIf it's a joke, someone spent a LOT of time on it. 1331923094 Being from and currently in Texas, I call bullshit on your story. :) 1299613805 By "EVERYONE" I mean all the press outlets. 1337211713 Most non-pop celebrities who are still alive, even ... 1352138439 That is not what OP did. He complained to the manager as if the gym was responsible for some personal offense against him which they could only rectify by taking the sign down. If I was the manager I'd have told him to get bent too. There is nothing about being a skeptic that necessitates being a giant douchebag. 1327596138 How did the sighting end? Did they fly off?\n\nToo bad you didn't get a picture. I'm curious to see what you saw.\n 1349879085 That clip is from this slick 1956 docudrama. You can imagine all the great chrome beasts gathering at the drive-in on Friday night.\n\nhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4bGTLtdwPHM 1331077813 Just a plane at very high altitude. The blinking is its identification lights and the orange color comes from its reflection of the sun. Notice how its at about sunset/sunrise light time, the plane is probably still high enough to hit the sun.\n\nDismissed 1312796213 apparently the company that made the ad pirated the song 1344991393 Thanks for that. 1348326537 try "you forever" available here: http://www.lobsangrampa.org/research.html 1347130445 Unless you work for the NWO this is why I love Reddit - concise, logical delivery of facts. Thank you. 1298066299 the study that was made up? 1347041032 It is dangerous because believing in fairy tales past age 8 is sad\n\nit makes the person less able to make intelligent decisions in politics and their personal lives and both of those things end up affecting me\n\nIt's dangerous because you end up with religious nut-jobs running the country and claiming they are acting in gods will...and some of those Angel loving idiots you were content to let believe their little fantasy, they sign right up to be on the death squads, because their reality says they will live forever in paradise.\n\nIt's dangerous because ignorance and lies are just as powerful as the truth, and if you don't fight for your side...you will lose 1325004756 Haha! Except I emailed Steve about this a few days ago. I WIN! 1303658470 Actually it goes both ways whether you like it or not. You can't make empirical claims if you don't have empirical evidence. Not unless you want to be called a pseudoskeptic.\n\nI also believe you did not understand my post. You don't have to believe in spirits, and you can say that "there is no evidence for spirits" to refute anyone's claim that they have seen one and you would be correct to say so. However, you can't say "There are no spirits" for then you are making a claim. 1348126368 This city (Boulder) wants to Municipalize its electric grid - basically buy the network from Xcel Energy and run it themselves. I think it ultimately will be good for the city but I want to propose that Boulder tax every use of the word "Energy" that doesn't equate to the ability to move an object in a potential field and use the proceeds to pay for the municipalization. 1344823993 so, speculatively, this is a reverse engineered space ship just randomly cruising in formation with some decommissioned f-14 jets while being filmed by the calmest cameraman ever. honestly it just seems very artificial. 1313887524 I'm confused on that part, though. How is the Bible eyewitness testimony? Perhaps the Gospels could be considered such (if there are persuasive reasons to conclude that the authors whose names are attached are actually the authors), but certainly the book of Genesis can't be counted as such, even by Christians, since no human existed to witness creation! So what exactly does "eyewitness testimony" mean to these people? I'm very confused. 1335562387 DAE else notice this part:\n\n> "There are a number of hypotheses on the table, and the evidence for none of them is convincing." [See Photos of Fairy Circles]\n\nIt's like they're saying, "We don't know. Why don't you try to figure it out from looking at photos on your computer." This is where stupid ideas come from. 1340934432 I think QualiaSoup's video on the same subject is much better:\n\n[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T7xt5LtgsxQ](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T7xt5LtgsxQ)\n\nIt lays out the rational basis for secular morality, rather than just Bible-bashing as this video does. 1316467533 Then it wasn't as liberal as you think. 1324683992 That's what Discovery, History, TLC (after it was purchased) started out as. The road to profit is, however, paved with crap. One of the reasons I was happy to leave my career in tv docs. 1351769631 Yup. There's always dissenters and non-believers, but the fundamental method is to exert a social pressure. 1343540719 first thing people will do is over react , OMG what do they want ? OMG its a big bug kill it !! OMG ive seen alien rape porn its going to rape my daughter kill it ! OMG its going to rape my wife kill it ! OMG its going to rape my son kill it ! OMG its going to rape me kill it ! OMG it wants our oil quick invade its planet and rape them before we kill it with fire..... 1333322475 Building 7 always bothered me... \n\nedit:\n\nSeriously, I am not being a dick, but if you want to explain why a building that didn't get hit by a plane fell EXACTLY like the two others next to it that did, then tell me and cure my ignorance instead of downvoting and moving on.(similar construction methods/materials etc + fire = building collapse?)\n\nIs the point not discussion? I get it this video is a hoax, great, so tell me why I should just accept the building 7 fell without the jet fuel to increase burning temp to melt steel etc etc.\n\nHelp someone out and dont just scoff and downvote. Learn me skeptics and cure my ignorance. 1345512963 Perhaps the website threw me off. 1320714448 I had a long, painful discussion with a person about the swine flu pandemic some weeks ago. We were coming along quite nicely, until she suddenly dropped the homeopathy bomb. That's when I realized that it wouldn't matter what I said anyway, because this person is evidently able to believe _anything_, as long as she wants to. 1259570711 I find it hard to believe that we live in world where people who believe David Icke's lies actually exist.\n\n 1303582905 They probably already are.\nHere is one of the main misconceptions that seem to perpetuate: that ET's would show themselves completely in the same 3 dimensions as we are.\nWho says they aren't existing in higher dimensions, and all we see and/or detect are 'derivatives' in our own 3rd dimension? 1332405138 Same here. I admire that he's confident, and I view it as a sign of respect that someone would be so straight with me about what he thinks. I can't stand meek people, but somehow everyone else here does. \n\nYeah, no one is infallible; he got something wrong. Woopty-fuckin-doo. 1330311787 He needs to stop trying to vaccinate himself from bloggers. 1323924229 More fun: Cracked's Dan O'Brien had [an entire column](http://www.cracked.com/blog/dont-listen-to-jenny-mccarthy/) basically calling McCarthy retarded about the whole vaccine thing, and I also touched on it in [#5 of this article](http://www.cracked.com/article_18416_5-things-media-loves-pretending-are-news.html) that I wrote. 1301783699 He didn't just predict the winner, he predicted which way every state would go. 1352300366 > Chiropractic care is the only thing option that's ever been offered to me\n\nThat's kind of a hallmark of snake oil, isn't? It's a panacea for everything we can't fully cure yet.\n\nHow many homeopaths did it take to cure smallpox?\n\n> acknowledges the scientific studies proving that fibromyalgia exists\n\nThat's kinda the rub, isn't it? While most are sure something matching the symptoms of fibromyalgia exists, we aren't quite certain it's not somewhat psychosomatic in origin. The fact that SSRI's have efficacy in resolving fibromyalgia suggests there's at least some psychological component to some cases. This psychological component will be well out of the scope of a chiropractor. 1337667908 Someone!, Inform Lord Helmet! 1332046399 King me! 1269079465 Matt Taibbi FTW. 1321462023 Right, but it's not these people who'll die, it's their children. The fact that these people are willfully putting their children's lives on the line is the atrocious part, because *they'll* survive. Not the innocents who got dragged into this by sheer accident of birth. It's the parents who are making these horrible horrible decisions, and they don't have to suffer for them, so they won't feel the consequences until it's far too late.\n 1329628929 So...that's at least 53 individuals who match the DNA profile. 1/53 (1.9%) chance of being Osama? 1304367664 OK. Then I say this:\nI think while calling someone or something stupid, people shouldn't use the word "Ain't", which makes them look ignorant, therefore weakening their criticism. \nBetter? :) 1294427176 > reliable sources\n\nThere's the trick. 1353768144 That complete article is bullshit, no doubt, just that bacon had its own paragraph made me laugh out to be honest. 1326696823 Slow clap anyone? Wrong, yes, but had she gotten away with it, I would have included a "Genius, yes". Nice try though. 1274108602 UNICEF is one of the best NGOs out there. 90% of their funding goes directly to their programs. The claim that less than 5¢ on the dollar goes to their programs is patently absurd, and the UNICEF US fund CEO's salary is about 1/3 what this image claims.\n\nhttp://www.charitynavigator.org/index.cfm?bay=search.summary&orgid=4617\n\nhttp://www.bbb.org/charity-reviews/national/children-and-youth/united-states-fund-for-unicef-in-new-york-ny-1982/all 1355092677 I used to do a lot of these things when I was in high school. I am probably down for something like this as long as we don't run the risk of legal problems from trespassing. Not in the mood for a legal headache 1318001587 What?!! You mean doctors can be just as dumb as the rest of us?!\n\nA group of researchers did a massive meta analysis of >100 studies in 1996, and found no significant correlation between the lunar cycle and birth rate, and between the lunar cycle and crime or mental illness, which is a similar myth. That doesn't mean it's impossible, but seeing how no plausible mechanism has ever been introduced for why it would work, I personally am uninspired. 1313434940 This would make a great book. A tale of a connection so strong between a father and son that not even time itself can limit their relationship. Great story, upvoted for sure! 1326493044 Could be confirmation bais. \n\nIf you look for an effect, you'll notice everything that confirms it, and ignore anything that doesn't.\n\n 1343559898 Aw you poor thing. It must be hard hearing about inequalities in our society. 1347383716 I think you mean same effect, not opposite effect. 1343847079 Precisely. Smoking and alcoholism are pretty much at play in each and every Spontaneous Human Combustion case.\n\nYou pass out with a lit cig in your hand, your clothes catch on fire, and the wick effect takes over from there.\n\nI won't deny that a world in which a human _could_ spontaneously burst into flame might be a more interest one to live in, though. With or without Brad Dourif chewing you out.\n\n(For those who don't get the Dourif comment: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6lNSLXEb3iU&feature=related Short and succinct, I promise) 1316834134 I've had my own sighting and yet I'm still skeptical. What I saw was incredible; two pin-points of light, like stars, chasing each other across half the sky, darting back and forth and pulling off instantaneous stops and full reversals, lasting for about 30 seconds but long enough for my dad to see it too. It was like nothing I've ever seen. That being said, I don't know what it was, and that's about it. I know full well that when I tell other people they're likely not to believe a word of it, or at least present a sort of healthy skepticism of the sort that I also employ when reading about or hearing reports of other people as well.\n\nTLDR; It's okay to believe as long as you're critical about it. As soon as you stop being critical about it, the worse the signal-to-noise ratio gets. 1323763381 >at that speed no time passes for the photon.\n\nThat's not quite right either. It doesn't really make sense to talk about how much time passes "for a photon" (generally accepted to mean "in the photon's rest frame) because the photon doesn't *have* a rest-frame. To make the statement more precise, we say that there is no Lorentz-invariant parametrization of a photon's trajectory. What that means amounts to basically the same thing: that photons can't evolve between their emission and their absorption, e.g. they can't spontaneously decay. 1332927067 [Still one of the most unsettling things I've ever heard, fake or not](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c4pu9RPHgr0) 1354586360 As a user of Napster in the late 1990s, and a file swapper with my friends before that, I can confirm that a record company made me do it. 1345469956 Who's the ethnocentric elitist again? 1331444865 The Atlanta airport is, apparently, the busiest airport in the entire world, so just from a pure statistical position, yeah, it would also be the number one destination for people who drank milk at breakfast.\n\nI'd also add that many, many flights terminating anywhere in the South have to connect through Atlanta. I was flying to Memphis and had to watch helplessly as we flew past Memphis, on to Atlanta and then back to Memphis. When I asked about it the stewardess said:\n\n"Oh sweetie, we have a sayin' in the South... 'Even when you die, you still have to connect through Atlanta.'" 1341816162 That was one of my favorite scenes from that movie. I watch it for the same reasons. 1356372840 Series I episode 9? That surely couldn't mean season 1, if so that'd be an incredibly old episode. 1320452870 Your mom doesn't need a debunking she needs medication. 1301899909 This is a great page that talks about how the mythical figure Jesus came about and talks about the fallacies behind Jesus-based apologetics.\n\nhttp://www.truth-saves.com/chapter4.php?section=3 1306432699 you have like a filter, that filters out not important informations (the lamp was obviously not important to you). So you can't remember because your brain didn't think it's an important memory. 1334648463 Google it. Apparently he's pretty common. Be careful, man. 1340093997 when i was about 5 i was staring down my grandparents hallway in theyre appartment into my room, theyre room is across from the bathroom, i saw a tall figure slowly walk by a shadow, i thought my eyes were messed up so i checked the room if my grandfather walked by turns out grandmother and grandfather were on the porch 1350171197 gamerlen is right. People who are tricked or forced into cults (by being socially outcast -with the other "SP"s- or by threats of eternal damnation) aren't at fault, and they aren't weak minded idiots. The dead 20 year old, the dead 32 year old, and the dead 21 year old are the victims here! Three deaths in nine months....and this still hasn't gotten the attention it deserves. \n\nThe people who are denied methadone, forced to deal with withdrawal, and put in saunas for pseudo-science-woo reasons -those people are victims too. \n\nAnd by the sounds of other reports from people who have escaped Scientologist facilities [(e.g. the Freewinds cruises)](http://www.abc.net.au/news/2011-11-28/woman-27imprisoned27-on-scientology-cruise-ship/3700390)...not all of them had a choice in going, or the option of leaving. 1354936618 Is there a single legitimate medicine, marijuana aside, that you *can't* OD on? Isn't that why all pill bottles are covered in warnings and have the poison control number on them? 1348054671 Doesn't necessarily have to be 'bumping the cord.' If there was a loose connection somewhere (inside the lamp or in the cord or in the plug) even a slight vibration could have screwed up the connection. This happens to me sometimes with my mp3 player if I'm not careful to secure the headphone jack properly. Every time I move, the sound can cut out in one or both ears or get softer in one or both ears depending on how I move.\n\nAs for the white blob, one thing that popped into my head is a light spot. Maybe you were sitting such that you had a bright light just barely in your peripheral vision. When you started moving your eyes, the light appeared to move because the spot stayed in one spot in your vision while you looked around. After a second or two of looking around, your eyes adjusted and the spot went away. 1337831841 OP, listen I know this may sound a little strange but please do more research before trying to "call" these things. A great many people who have had encounters regret it for the rest of their life. I'm not telling you what to do. I'm merely suggesting doing some deep research in the subject before opening yourself to anything for which you do not have any defensive measures or reasonable understanding. 1352790265 Until this post I was unaware of that skeptic was a community or really could be. Forget all the trolling for a moment and think about the other positions, they don't require being a skeptic such as atheist, feminist, etc. \n\nSkeptic is pealing back everything another would propose as a truth, that is all. skeptic does not bound itself to trolling, threatening, atheism or anything else including a community. In binding the skeptical process and position is to hijack the process and disposition to memes. It is as useless as this entire thread, and the provocation of threats. 1351168960 "Contains active hydrogen." Yes. It is woo. It is, at best, a $4000 water filter. 1312216342 Haha. Brilliant! Thanks for the report, I'll get Craig (dev) on to it! 1341032659 Last I checked I never claimed reading and driving a car were legal or even a thing, I said listening to the radio in a car or talking to another passenger. Thank you for not reading and contemplating my argument and instead only listening to your confirmation bias. 1356980480 I was recently informed the show has gone from "We found this and this, we couldn't explain them." to "HOLY SHIT THIS PLACE IS HAUNTED!"\n\nWhich, honestly made me very sad. I loved this show because they never really said any place was haunted. They found an interesting point of data, and then attempted to determine what caused it. If they could find no cause, they left it at that; Undetermined.\n\nNow, apparently it's just commercialized typical fake BS... And, like I said, that mad me legitimately sad. It felt like finding out your favorite teacher from elementary school had died. 1352544481 "Shit" is real. Extraterrestrials visiting Earth... not real. 1352965312 >and as religion is a form of politics\n\nDon't scare me like that... :-( 1345420115 > A lot of the stories in this subreddit (the ones that aren't just made up) are probably due to false memories or errors in perception.\n\nCan't speak for anyone else, but I started documenting all the glitches, because my rational brain understood it might be false memory. It is true that every time a memory is accessed and recalled, it changes in some minor way. So I document like a good scientist.\n\nErrors in perception -- that's a bit trickier. \n\n 1326565121 The fact the world isn't ending doesn't preclude people doing things that might make emergency situations. 1355861103 I grew up in the Fairfax area and had a boyfriend in HS that lived on Clifton Rd. We used to go down the bridge and never had any interesting experiences. \n\nI was always more worried about the people who have the house at the end of the bridge coming out and yelling at us (which they did) for loitering and being disruptive kids. 1340609801 I guess my question is whether or not there's any proof of its actual effectiveness. 1325198261 If the death toll is >1; it's too many! 1304909532 Two issues with this: first, peas should be in the dead flesh area, and second, donuts should be elevated to super food. Other than that, pretty informative. 1346448972 I just fail to see how these people's ads are more dangerous than Budweiser's. \n\nThat is, I think we should either overhaul the entire system or allow everyone the same rights of public bullshittery. 1303353611 :( I only recently moved to Vancouver! 1346220613 I think it's a confusion over the fact that one of the breakdown products of aspartame is methanol. Not the alcohol as we know it, but an alcohol. As you say the amounts are minute, and easily handled by our bodies. 1330916401 What sort of credulous bullshit is this? 1317051475 Related: I usually wear my Ryan Giggs shirt whenever Manchester United are playing. Also used to make sure that everything red (like lighters, bottles, cigarette packs etc.) were standing upright, because it would somehow help the team. You know... Just so it wouldn't be MY fault if they lost. 1332175289 > Yet not a single person saw anything resembling controlled demolition. Odd.\n\nWho would have seen it that didn't die? What does controlled demolition look like that these people could have seen? Is it possible to hide it? From outside the building, there are experts in demolition that have said there was evidence that it looked like demolition. Also, there were people who reported hearing pops similar to what could have been controlled demolition. It could have been something else too though.\n\n\n 1314657711 Put the tip of your mouse cursor over one of the black dots on the WSF. That dot stays in the same place relative to the camera until at one point it starts moving to the upper left. That movement starts at same time and direction as the speck of debris's change in direction. \n\nIt's clear that the Shuttle started moving down and to the right (when looking aft). From the camera's POV, the WSF and speck moved up and to the left. At the same time. Being much closer, the change is more obvious with the spec of debris.\n 1321654241 I don't believe that there is any individual that can singularly control legislature. I do believe that an individual can have significant influence on legislature but that to say they control it is over stating the type of influence they have. 1304623803 Amongst all this vitriol I can't help but feel concerned for her children. Belligerent ignorance does not create a health environment for them to grow up in. 1351122009 Just posted it there. Sorry about that! :P I saw the post about the little girl in the spinning chair and figured mine was in a similar vein. 1326486305 okay. Leonard Peltier. I don't really care if he did it - what was going on at that time was totally different. There were dozens and dozens of murders of anti-government activists on that reservation that year, none of them investigated because of a lack of manpower. at the same time the FBI had its highest ever concentration of agents per capita. This isn't an issue of a single man, its the issue of an incredibly f'd up situation where we believe the government murdered dozens of individuals, then threw all the attention on one guy who may or may not have fought back. 1279252379 Ok, I did not realize there was a difference between homeopathy and herbal remedies. 1327945830 You are absolutely correct. I had a girlfriend who believed 9/11 was an inside job, and I spent a majority of the time she spouted about it trying to bring her to reason.Monsanto, 9/11, alien bases on the far side of the moon, alien sightings by ex-naval intelligence. (William Cooper)It seems to be the socially repressed that get hooked on these ideas. Lack of acceptance by your peers feels better when they are in fact under you, being blind to the truth you had to look so hard for. (lol) 1342544734 Nice try but it is obviously a chinese lantern reflecting headlights of a car. 1329928132 Periodic Video of chemists annoyed by the idea that "chemicals" are nasty. www.youtube.com/watch?v=w6ZsYCnlvPs 1316571774 Yes, necessarily. If they are willing to lie about one, you know they are willing to lie about the other...\n\nIf you were a juror in a murder trial, and a witness answered 10 questions - and you knew he was lying about 6 of them - would you trust his testimony on the other 4??? 1346547972 Have an upvote, sir. Reddit, my brother. Brother, Reddit. 1347259381 There are a bunch of jets flying over the Denver area as well.\n\nhttp://www.reddit.com/r/Denver/comments/12yvf1/jets_over_lakewood/ 1352657812 That whole area was kind of a mess of mostly USSR but also Finnish and Swedish submarine and general underwater playground during the cold war. Most conspiracy theories about it is more about what the USSR pulled off there and to a lesser degree what Sweden/Finland pulled off or did to monitor it. It's certainly overstated to a huge degree, but there seems to be enough incidents to say more then nothing happened (most of what happened: everyone tested subs and sub detection equipment in a closed loop). 1311980935 and the gold 1330773910 Yes, but that is not correct. I have been a Libertarian and active in the Libertarian community since about 2005. They've always hated Bush, and my brand of anarcho-capitalism ususally scares off more moderate libertarian miniarchists. Your assumptions are completely baseless. Then you said Rand Paul is the closest thing to a Libertarian elected last cycle, even though he does not self-identify as Libertarian and Libertarians do not consider him one of their own. He may represent the libertarian wing of the Republican party, but thats about it. He's still a Republican. \n\nEdit: And frankly, reddit used to be one of the freindliest places on the net for Libertarians, until Digg fell and there was a huge influx of unread political theorists who came rushing into /politics. 1306185250 "How does it stand to reason that any video that follows the first must be faked? This mindset is completely alien to me. It's very simple logic: if I film you, then fake a second video of you, are you fake?"\n\nHow does your analogy come close to even applying If I am claiming the first video is fake but in your analogy you imply that it is necessarily real. You talk of simple logic and then post that?\n\nA better analogy would be if you fake a video of me doing something (just as we know the first video of the Jerusalem event is fake) and then someone else posts a video of me doing the same exact thing, but from another angle.\n\nIf the second video is real, how did the first video get faked without ever seeing the second video before anyone else? If they had access to the second video of me doing that why would they even fake the video in the first place.\n\n 1300797945 Seasquatch DSV 1327211596 It's satire. [There was just a post about this on r/Australia](http://www.reddit.com/r/australia/comments/qorfc/my_brother_thinks_the_questioner_is_being_serious/c3z8liq). 1331358170 From what I can tell their "peer reviewed studies" are studies performed by homeopaths and reviewed by homeopaths. 1331924011 Take a look around conspiratard. You might learn something. 1291344897 I highly doubt he's alive. I agree that it'd be very foolish to make the claim we killed him if he was alive and not under our control. But I think it's possible he died some time ago. 1304383620 Who gives a damn when there is no control group. They all look pretty much the same to me. 1328072661 Parents who vaccinate should be raising a stink about sending their children to a school full of unvaccinated kids. It's a public health issue. 1329599112 I am neither a psycho, an asshole and an idiot, but so far you've given everyone else a reason to believe that you are all of these things. So please stop acting like a psycho, an asshole and an idiot and **please don't respond to this message**. 1351440432 I am neither a psycho, an asshole and an idiot, but so far you've given everyone else a reason to believe that you are all of these things. So please stop acting like a psycho, an asshole and an idiot and **please don't respond to this message**. 1351521207 This type of reasoning was funny when it was used to justify flying-spaghetti-monsterism. When these guys try to invoke it seriously, it just makes me sad. 1316831225 what the fuck? 1345464780 That was precisely my point : what is "safe" ? safe for whom ? 1319543027 My sister was talking about the new fitness facility she works at and how it includes acupuncture and chiropractic "medicine". After about 15 minutes of me explaining why I think both are completely useless and going on a bit of a tangent of "there's no such thing as harmless pseudoscience" etc. she frustratedly proclaims: "You're such a skeptic! Why do you have to be so cynical about everything??"\n\nI thanked her for the compliment, then tried to understand why wanting proof of a claim makes me a cynic.. 1309926809 Thanks for the link! But that is exactly why it was so interesting to me. The way Hall depicts them is much more realistic. Family groups and day to day life. And the way he dictats the stories comes across as he is telling the truth, from memory. But of course i have to admit there is no real proof except for the memoir that he kept. 1327843504 Min.us is much better. It doesn't strip exif and supports much larger photos without compression.\n\nIf you absolutely need to transfer something in perfect condition then don't use an image host. Just about every host that's dedicated to images will mess them up in some way. Use a traditional file host like Mediafire or Depositfiles in those cases (although that's excessive for this situation). 1350336470 Oh, just typical "I don't have to answer for myself because I'm anonymous" internet stuff. It's fine, I was expecting it. I'm actually surprised it didn't start sooner than it did. 1343606372 Ah, got it, thanks. I have no idea about the nutritional and/or therapeutic value the oil may have. 1345238321 A vaugely similar story, i went into a phoneshop to arrange getting my phone upgraded and i was told that i needed to sort out an appointment to do so.\nThe woman asked me when was a good day and then went to tap it into the computer, then she just stopped and looked at me and said that the computer already had the exact same appointment for the exact same date with me. I had absolutely no memory of going in there to sort it out, but then i also found a reminder in my phone for it!\nIt was bloody strange but i was more embarrased by the queue of people chuckling at me so i hotfooted it out of there with a red face. 1339345194 Maybe he was and I just haven't seen the videos, I mainly have just watch his debates and read his books. I don't think he is seen as infallible, I think most people who like him disagree with him on his politics, and even more on his views of feminism/women. 1329887987 Whatever truths exist beyond earth, I really hope we are not alone in the universe. That is for some reason scary to think about. All those empty planets and shit. Damn 1345252168 >Could you calm down for 2 seconds and stop being so combative?\n\nI'm chill as a cucumber. But I'm only still here to be combative with people, as I've already been persuaded against homeopathy by some of the earliest comments.\n\n>I'm not even the person that made the comment so I'm not actually calling myself witty.\n\nYeah I realized that after I commented. I don't really keep track of who I'm responding too.\n\n>I'm just pointing out that the guy didn't say anything close to what you interpreted\n\nLook... Imagine he had asked me to do some difficult physical task and I replied with "I'm not Superman". Do you think that I actually, literally expected him to have been thinking that I was a superhero from another planet? No.\n\nThink it over.\n\n>There's a lot of people here trying to help you and I've noticed you've been given a few of them quite the attitude.\n\nThey had attitude. I already thanked the people trying to help me politely, and they did help me. I am convinced. 1333648164 Uh, the top rated comment is asking her to prove it. Sounds good to me. 1342462813 What about "stage" hypnotism, where the hypnotist vaguely waves his hand in front of volunteers who then promptly fall into a deep sleep? Are they all in on the act, or is the suggestive power/placebo effect enough to actually put them under?\n\nI've always assumed that if it is just suggestion, every so often you'd get a die-hard skeptic who goes up on stage knowing full well it's bullshit and just stands there with a shit-eating grin on their face after being "hypnotised". But for some reason it never seems to happen. 1307507216 That you all very much for the varying advice and opinions. I will ask my mother if she has seen anything since she's still living in the house. I haven't said anything to her because i don't want to sound crazy. But maybe she's seen it to.\n\nThanks again! 1339982247 Was hoping you'd save me the time as I'm really not invested into this :(\n\nI'll be sober sometime tomorrow and will check it you rmeind me\n\n 1306317148 Yes, that is the latest piece of crap being debunked - if you actually cared to read about it you could have seen at the very top:\n\n> *According to David Middleton, "Pat Michaels debunked this particular Warmist myth back in 2008". **In reality, it was Patrick Michaels' article which was debunked - by Dennis Schmitt, the discoverer of Warming Island. The rebuttal was given at the invitation of Andrew C. Revkin who posted it in this article. It is in the nature of some people to ignore rebuttals and just keep churning out the same old 'not happening' and 'natural cycles' climate change myths as if there had never been any scientific evidence against them.** This creates a need for ever stronger rebuttals, which we seek to establish here.*\n\nBut I guess that your [fear of Cognitive Dissonance](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cognitive_dissonance) is stopping you from reading anything posted here - [a very good way to expose you as a 'fake skeptic'](http://www.reddit.com/r/climateskeptics/comments/kwgys/skeptics_did_i_miss_something_had_anyone_ever/c2ns2be)! 1317741780 yes, please I'd like to be able to read these articles.\n\nThis opens up the question of whether the subject needs to be consciously aware that a chemical is in their environment, or whether it only requires that they be subconsciously aware of its presence.\n\nHopefully soon there will be studies on the effectiveness of different neurological therapies at treating the MCS symptoms. 1316499693 Their only purpose was to be on reddit 1245707830 >As somebody who is very interested in the phenomenon it's an insult to my intelligence when somebody decides to yell wolf without looking into it or using reason.\n\nMaybe you need to just take a moment and get over yourself. \n\nThere are a lot of people in the world who are just becoming aware of this stuff. Educating them and discussing the 'why' of it usually works better than calling them a fucking moron. JMO.\n\nI should add that 99.5% of redditors think we are ALL fucking morons here in r/UFO. 1295995354 When you came back to your body, you took that guy up your poop-chute, didn't you? 1321153329 You can be skeptical and still be wrong. However, *being a skeptic* is different than *being skeptical*. \n\nIt's about evidence, regardless of where it comes from. I think it would be helpful if you clarified what specific issues you are concerned with. Admittedly, trying to argue that the earth being an oblate spheroid is wrong because it is the "official theory" won't go very far here. 1289766822 I've always struggled with this idea. Lazar never really wanted to profit from his story, no books, no movies, and he only had an out-of-date and cheap personal website. His employment/school history was disappeared except for a single pay-stub from los alamos labs. His friends confirmed the story of lazar showing them where the UFO's fly around. He passed multiple lie detector tests. He has no interest in the ufo "community", in fact he declines every interview and remains private.\n\nI can't think of any motivation to lie about all this. Oh well, just another fascinating story that leaves more questions than answers. 1335936139 It is on no way drastic. Of your GF were to receive a note like that, and you don't know who wrote it, its defiantly better to be safe than sorry. 1344715448 And so I remain free, ever to live in fear of exposure as a free thinker and stretcher of boundaries. To hide, cower even, amongst the masses. 1314413740 My apologies as the camera *clearly* wasn't set up ON the volcano. I apologize for the wrong word. It is fixed now.\n\nNow that we are done dissecting the use of a single word in my post....\n\nWho filmed this? Why did they set this up? Were they a scientist (vulcanologist?), when did they film this? With what equipment did they use? Etc, etc....\n\nIf you would rather focus on a single word in my comment then maybe you aren't focusing on the right concepts here. 1315247459 I read somewhere that the ringing is actually something you hear when one of your brain cells die. 1348415398 Because western medicine isn't diverse [at all] (http://www.surgeongeneral.gov/about/biographies/biosg.html)... 1329825438 I have nothing to add just wanted to say I have been watching your videos and had to subscribe.. Great job.. You make me laugh and I really enjoyed your reason rally video. I hope to make it to the next one and if I see you there you can hang with me and my brother. You have gained a fan today, sir.. Keep those videos coming. :) 1343248394 My god, kimchee is like crack cocaine. The most addictive thing ever. I would open the fridge and wolf down some, do some errands, the open the fridge again and slurp slurp urghllmmnnffffglp...\n\nGood thing I eventually emptied the whole jar. 1340234977 nope. hes talking aboit the guy that foumd a safe in his dads hotel, thrn cut a deal with oprah. 1339470370 I understand what you're saying. I wasn't claiming that her experience was evidence just because she is scientifically-minded, I was just mentioning it because it seems interesting. I am actually unaware of the vast majority of evidence against the immunization/autism link (or even the supposed evidence that supports it - but I'm assuming that is non-existent outside of anecdotes), so after work I will start doing some research. \n\nI completely agree with you on all accounts. I'm just struggling with this situation. 1288976403 One here. I love em, they're the myths of our time. They've taught me lots of healthy skeptical things such as never to trust anyone just because they speak with authority and can fire off strings of facts to back themselves up. When you've watched someone list in intimate compelling detail the many species of alien that they are in regular contact with then you end up giving even the most compelling orator a sideways glance. 1327798469 In that regard, I imagine we're not any worse than any other non-science publication that attempts to write about science in an accessible manner. However, we're more entertaining and have more aesthetically pleasing genitals. 1333052947 "How did we get these and know they are real??" "God said so, and magic" 1356850545 I believe it's a combination. Much like how life varies in form on Earth, surely, life outside of Earth would vary similarly. We may have space faring civilizations with similar capabilities as ours, or we may have beings that have transcended physical space. The scale is huge. It does not benefit us to limit our understandings to "hyper-dimensional" or "flying saucers", as again, life varies and life in the Universe most certainly varies. 1326969302 >... bs, bs, bs, but no intrinsic magnetic field.\n\n[It still has a magnetic shield](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atmosphere_of_Venus#Induced_magnetosphere). Are you trollling?\n\n 1351572442 It's an overburdened for-profit system, and high-risk liability laws keep away a lot of good OBGYNs. Women's health needs some major focus in this country, and healthcare needs some fucking reform, but running back to the dark ages isn't the answer. I'm sure you agree, I just wanted to add my two cents. 1327729903 No it wasn't. If a scientific breakthrough like that was made, bricks would have been shat. The source where you read that was either biased or misleading. 1335065935 Non science should not be debated in science class. 1340914863 I place my skepticism above my politics, to some extent. So while I'm a (small l) libertarian, I very much dislike Paul for some of his blatantly anti-science views. 1314035978 [Karl Pilkington meets a human magnet!](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lQ81b_0ZxtI) 1352837226 A lot of the aspartame-specific references seem to be written by two MDs. MDs are not biochemists, and clinical research is usually of such poor quality as to not be worth reading. 1294264201 > if anybody with any expertise can enlighten me on that I'd be grateful.\n\nWithout a lot more details it'd be pure speculation. I've got a bunch of guesses, but it'd probably be better to wait for some more facts. I hope we get some. 1335311640 I can't read it either. Anyway, I sign a contract with my oil company annually where I will pay whatever their rate is up to a certain maximum price. If it goes over that price, then I simply pay that maximum. The "catch" is that the rates below that max will be slightly higher than the market rate. It's not so much a scam as a bit of a gamble. If prices skyrocket, I'm not affected. If they are low, I pay a little more. Maybe this is the type of thing we're looking at? 1317386089 I enjoy your user name. Very well done. 1325943667 Stoners are often nice, intelligent people, but really unless you're also a stoner they tend to make absolutely terrible friends, at least in my experience. 1325292961 lol im a girl. and i was smoking a j at the time haha 1344943287 The dude in the jumpsuit really does look almost exactly like him 1344872217 Shhhhhhhhhhhhh ;) 1348310799 At how many men does a social contract become valid? 1343100925 I think there are some things that are worth thinking about in this talk - for instance, that sounds can be considered like visual art in that there can be foreground, background, hues, shades, positive and negative space. Also, there's no doubt that there are various kinds of sounds that people will prefer, and can help reduce stress levels and increase well-being.\n\nWhere I am skeptical is in his apparent connection with real physical health effects, in which it sounds like he attributes more than merely feeling better because the nice sounds are relaxing.\n\nEven more dubious is the attempt at making this scientific by invoking an evolutionary explanation for preferring certain kinds of sounds.\n\nOr that a compressed audio stream forces us to "fill in" the lost data; I have a hard time even understanding that one. 1285509540 You should probably shove the leaves off the other side 1353821842 I can see that nylon webbing destroying my feet. I'll stick to my Brooks shoes and barefoot workouts. 1349454425 *This* *is* *an* *automatically* *generated* *TL;DR*, [*original*](http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/16/science/earth/in-heartland-institute-leak-a-plan-to-discredit-climate-teaching.html) *reduced* *by* *88%*.\n\n> Leaked documents suggest that an organization known for attacking climate science is planning a new push to undermine the teaching of global warming in public schools, the latest indication that climate change is becoming a part of the nation&#039;s culture wars.\n\n> Heartland did declare one two-page document to be a forgery, although its tone and content closely matched that of other documents that the group did not dispute.\n\n> The documents raise questions about whether the group has undertaken partisan political activities, a potential violation of federal tax law governing nonprofit groups.\n\n[**Extended Summary**](http://www.reddit.com/r/autotldr/comments/psjzj/in_heartland_institute_leak_a_plan_to_discredit/) | [FAQ](http://www.reddit.com/r/autotldr/comments/pbcxq/faq_autotldr_concept/ "Version 0.9, ~3764 TL;DRs so far.") | [Theory](http://www.reddit.com/r/TheoryOfAutotldr/comments/phhg5/official_autotldr_theory_discussion/) | [Feedback](http://www.reddit.com/message/compose?to=%23autotldr "PMs and comment replies will be read by the bot admin, constructive feedback is welcome.") | *Top* *three* *keywords*: document^#1 Climate^#2 group^#3 1329414341 The statement that "the food supply is being controlled by a few handful of individuals" doesn't follow from this diagram. This is a map of corporate ownership, not individual power. The CEO of Kraft can't just call up someone at Motts and tell them to stop making apple juice. 1349811902 lost me at 'green and red lights' 1342533004 See, because he's a basketball player, and because you proclaimed yourself a "competent skeptic" (meaning that you read skeptic blogs and go to /r/skeptic to get upvotes), you gave yourself permission to view the sighting "for" Deron Williams. Even though he said it obviously wasn't lightning, he should have also said it wasn't a transformer explosion. 1352690567 I don't think you fully understand this meme. 1349378604 Sure.\n\nBut I'll just point out that all I said was that it was an annoying misuse. Not that I didn't understand what was meant. Just that the sloppy use of language annoyed me, and I think is actually a sign of sloppy thinking on the part of these people.\n\nI think that this kind of misuse has lead to an irrational fear of "chemicals". I'm not the only one that is irritated by this sloppy use of the word 'chemicals', there is a group, I think it might be the Royal Society, that have offered a huge monetary prize for someone that can provide an object that can be held in one's hands that isn't made of chemicals. 1316439522 This was acknowledged in the heading of the post, where /u/logic11 said "(part of)".\n\nBut that's hardly important. The message is the Atheist community is rotting. That's why I left. 1347373341 You could also watch the Carl Sagan Tribute Series (think Symphony of Science, but without the autotune):\n\nhttp://milkywaymusings.tumblr.com/videos\n\nMary Jane was a significant contributor to the production of these videos :) 1289000517 Very true. I've found, though, in my own experience, that I have much better form both walking and running without shoes on. It's actually one of the few things that's helped me recover from really bad knee problems (patellofemoral syndrome). \n\nAs a scientist, though, I must of course include the standard disclaimer that I have just given you anecdotal evidence. I'd really like to see more legitimate studies in this vein. 1316122370 http://i.imgur.com/tz2hG.png 1355696984 This was my initial thought, but the article states that the researchers controlled for caloric intake. 1348018879 It's a joke. 1309637818 It's a joke. 1311974821 Common conspiracy trope. Think 9/11 Truthers, Faked Moon Landing, MIB, Area 51, etc...\n\nhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_helicopter\n\n 1339193014 If the claim is anything beyond they smell nice, then yes, it's woo.\n\n[This page is especially bad.](http://www.doterraoil.com/wellness.html) 1347660979 I have a real turd in my panties over these "second hand account" stories and things that happened to a family member at the turn of the century. \n\nI suggest we keep it to first person accounts only. You can't account for a bug in someone else's program 1326604895 The fundamental difference between MD's and DO's (which hasn't changed) is that MD's only learn science based medicine whereas DO's also have to learn the quackery that their profession was founded on. \n\nWhat has changed is that DO's practice this quackery less and less today (though not entirely and the AOA will viciously defend any DO who does still practice it) and in the US they are *functionally* equivalent to an MD (whereas most of the rest of the world classifies it strictly as alternative medicine). 1337363817 I agree, could be a trick of light. But still no other photos to see what is going on.\n\nAnd if footprints were concrete evidence than there would be no dispute over bigfoot. 1340064582 By not lying to her just so she can feel "normal" around other kids... which means she'll get used to defending herself against other peoples' irrational beliefs... 1296087865 Dude, by posting all of that info about ur dads military career, it wouldn't be hard to pinpoint who he was and who you are...discretion 1345416235 :/ I am *to* now,\n\nedit:\nMwhaha, dance puppets dance!! 1354129007 Yes, of course, with the state of UFO study in America it's always possible that the Govt. is lying. But there's not a lot of evidence for it, and explanations like "they responded differently because it wasn't immediately apparent the object was, in fact, a downed balloon" tend to ring more true that sophisticated cover ups. I'm not saying that Mogul was definitely the identity of the object, I'm just saying its the most likely scenario, in my opinion, proposed thus far. Barring evidence, I can't jump to more grand conclusions.\n\nBut you're right. There are individual aspects of the story, changed over years, that have risen questions about how true it is. In general, though, those "holes" in the story have not been so substantial as to invalidate the stories.\n\nHell, it could have been a secret munitions experiment for all we know. But I wouldn't assume it was until I was shown the appropriate evidence.\n\nLike you, I'm no expert. I just want the realm of ufology taken seriously, so we need to be particularly vigilant about separating fact from hypothesis. 1302223420 I got into an argument like this with someone who is convinced that hemp oil is the miracle cure for everything based on the anecdotes of a guy named Rick Simpson. The guy has no background in science, and has zero proof for his wild claims. And because I questioned that, I got told that I believe everything "Big Pharma" says and that I'm a sheep, blah blah. \n\nYou can't argue with these people. 1353364417 Why is it so dark near the top? 1330252189 When you make a post you automatically up-vote it yourself. It's like the karma game on hard mode. 1345229472 I'm assuming you might have been sleeping on your back and sneezed up, so it rained back down on you? But then I guess you'd expect to see some on your pillow too... 1344350363 Depends on the nature of the signal. I was presuming something obviously intelligent. Prime numbers would be nice :) 1337658808 Whilst I don't like Ron Paul, the fact is *he is* a doctor.\n\nNo true Scotsman people, jesus. 1326647425 As you are entitled to your opinion that is fine.\n\nhttp://www.abovetopsecret.com/forum/thread385474/pg1 1332174875 This kind of stuff always makes me think of the movie [AByss](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0096754/)\n\nStill is a great movie I think. 1283976469 Also ours was not disturbed by a helicopter so we were able to view it for an extended period of time and from our distance we knew this thing had to be HUUUUGE! 1342319996 It was only a joke. I was 'getting into character' about the whole matrix thing, and pretending that you were naive to believe that these *obvious* glitches in the gigantic simulation in which we all live were actually harmless technological glitches (of course, that's what *they* would want you to think such glitches are...)\n\nEDIT: to be clear: I don't really think you are '*so* naive' 1342649932 Maybe its that your friends are not a good enough representative sample of society. Your conclusion was rushed. 1335086704 Right, because I equate unidentified flying objects with aliens. You must be new here. 1343841526 Right? Mine are no where near this complicated and awesome. 1328902088 They sound ridiculous most of the time...but they only have to be right once. 1349371194 Here's a good lesson in developing a good sense of skepticism. For example, check this statement:\n\n>In general, the **one ton of gaseous expulsion created by a grass-fed cow is estimated to trap twenty-three times the amount of heat as that of a factory cow** – a.k.a, producing twenty-three times the amount of greenhouse gas. At the same time, grass-fed beef is generally agreed to be fattier than corn-fed beef.\n\nThe author was nice enough to provide us a [source](http://www.grist.org/article/2009-05-21-on-cow-burps-meat-and-methane) for this information, so let's check it. Lo and behold, the source says:\n\n>Bovine gas (the burps more so than the farts) is problematic because cattle, jolly cud-chewing ruminants that they are, digest their food through enteric fermentation, which emits **methane, a gas approximately 23 times better at trapping heat than carbon dioxide.**\n\nThat's right, the 23X number is a comparison between carbon dioxide and methane, not between corn-fed cows and grass-fed cows. Now, either the author has a severe reading comprehension problem or is being purposefully disingenuous. In fact, just read a little more in that same [source](http://www.grist.org/article/2009-05-21-on-cow-burps-meat-and-methane):\n\n>What was surprising (at least to me) is that grazing, grass-fed cattle--those happy cows we all like to celebrate, and some of us (hi, Ed) like to eat--will, according to Eshel, emit **four to five more methane than corn-fed cattle.** *But wait -- that doesn't mean that you should reach for a CAFO burger. "There are many reasons why grass-fed is superior," says Eshel. "I don't want anyone to think that greenhouse gas is the be-all and end-all. We have so many environmental problems."* 1310532464 Yeah, nasty stuff. Watch out for Dihydrogen Monoxide as well. That stuff will REALLY mess you up!\n\nI've never met a sick person who wasn't hooked on the stuff! 1284665406 Actually, with some govt. run systems you have the options, with others you don't.\n\n> Not with my money.\n\nPrivate insurers are doing it with your money, just like public insurers.\n\nYou can more or less choose your private insurer -- you have a point there. But if all the good choices pay for quackery, then you end up in the same place.\n\nI don't know how much the latter is the case. 1257458224 The Germans have a word for what just happened: Fremdschämen. 1339662682 What does statistics tell us? Do people tend to hang alone or in pairs? Why do they do the things they do? From what you are telling me, you do things that make you happy. \n\nAnd regarding choices... Not matter how big or small, you can always do a choice once. If I really want a chocolate shake after dinner today and get one, then I get chocolate shake after dinner today. If after one sip I change my mind and get a vanilla instead then I am not making the choice one more time, I am making a new choice. Point is that we can never know how life would have been with us taking the other choice. \n\nYou tell me, your wife and yourself that you would be perfectly (btw, careful with that word) happy if you had not decided to be with her, but that is extrapolation. It might have sucked as well.\n\nI have many happy memories from things I've done alone, but it does not come close to the amount of good memories together with someone. Be that with friends, unknowns, a dog or a significant other. It's not important that it's with a life long partner at its not always because of what others do. But for some reason most of the happy memories I have was together with others. I am not alone I this. \n\nThere is no guarantee that others would be much more happy all alone in the world. It could well be someone would love that. I think they would be abnormal compared to the average though. 1320756517 **UFO OP, UFO.** 1315661539 Where's the strawman? From the article, "'A seven-year-old girl was sacrificed by two persons superstitiously believing that the act would give a better harvest,' Narayan Das, the police chief of Bijapur district, told AFP by telephone," and "Police said the men had confessed to the crime." 1325459464 He very well might have reversed his opinion on that. I don't know. I'm reluctant to assume he's suddenly shining a skeptical light on everything though. However, I would LOVE to be wrong on this. I like Bill when it comes to atheist issues and (many) political issues... If he were to become a voice for rational thought too, that would be amazing. 1356242557 I'm wearing my Mystic Mayan Power Cloak right now, just in case. 1323271006 No. That was an example of baiting.\n\nThat was a simple insult. You accusing me of simply being pedantic instead of addressing what I say, however, is a perfect ad hominem.\n\nThank you for playing. 1351969190 When would a demolition crew, who would have needed weeks of unrestricted access to the building and who also would have had to do a lot of welding/cutting of main columns, etc, have had the chance to do this in a building that was used on a daily basis by thousands of people without anyone noticing? The only time this could have been done is during the construction of the buildings, and if thats the case the dynamite would have had to be over 20 years old and would have never gone off. \n\nThe myth of the 'hyper-competent government' covers all aspects of the 9/11 shit, unless people really think G.W.Boosch was a genius super villain, the government could have never have pulled off and inside job on 9/11. I'm absolutely convince that the children who think this have just seen too many movies and read too many comic books, and thats really fucking sad. 1286996485 Upvote for point #1.\n\nAny actual interference by God is a violation of free will. 1276864808 If water has memory, wouldn't it kill us when we drink it? 1297901389 The idea isn't to stop using fossil fuels entirely, it is to continue transitioning away from them, towards renewables.\n\nThe problem with the economic argument against a reduction in the use of fossil fuels is that the calculated costs of inaction (both in economic and human terms) are much higher than those of mitigation.\n\nThe technology is already there, and keeps improving. We need to step up the transition and push for political action. Even China has indicated it would be willing to sign a binding agreement on emissions by 2020...it's not an impossible task, even if it's not going to be easy. 1353799848 What does Friday the 13th have to do with it? Doesn't anyone win on any other day? 1326557516 >There are people with enough money but not enough sense to fund this shit?\n\nThere are enough idiots to make this a succesful bussines. Remember people buy into homeopathy. 1301190858 Me and my canine teeth disagree strongly with the article. 1334884947 Lol fair point I guess. This became quite the tangent from a discussion about sugar ;) 1344878046 It was gone. I kind of got home put the groceries away. Went to my Xbox. Plop. Look and there it was. 1333551766 Anyone whose interest was peaked by jaxxil_'s comment could give this Rationally Speaking podcast episode a listen: [RS46 - The Varieties of Skepticism](http://www.rationallyspeakingpodcast.org/show/rs46-the-varieties-of-skepticism.html) 1353282177 Has she been checked for Lyme disease? Might be a dead end but worth a look.\n\nhttp://www.lymeinfo.net/multiplesclerosis.html\n\n\n 1306771983 Mirror 1356214025 My advice: your brother is too young for the cigs. 1332396568 It may. Most insects dislike being sprayed by water. It's kinda an "active" repellent in that you have to continually spray insects as they land on you. Could be a fun game if you're into tediousness. 1340456801 here's the [permalink to the thread](http://www.reddit.com/r/DoesAnybodyElse/comments/d82rq/dae_absolutely_despise_the_taste_of_most/c0y90ac).\n\n[Have a listen](http://tinyurl.com/skeptoid-fluoridation) to the skeptoid episode concerning water fluoridation. 1283388881 Perhaps not "by being hardcore atheists", but there are plenty of atheist whack-jobs out there who would let someone die for any plethora of reasons. These people just happened to use a reason connected with religion, even though almost all others would not. 1320250355 Impeccable timing....like the delay for flight 93 that prevented it from ever coming close to its target? 1320939673 luckily, you only get chickenfox once. 1335991327 Fair enough. I don't have trouble believing his stories, but the old "money first, information second" attitude makes me think twice. Still, the circumstances of his 'suicide' are a bit suspicious. I can't think of a good reason why his physical evidence wasn't analyzed (other than simple dishonesty), but it's interesting that all his samples and quite a few photos were gone when they found his body. Oh well. 1340390721 I think you need to learn how to spell.\n\nUm, "at his son's birthday", not "at his sons birthday". Come on. You're not typing on a cell phone. This is not that hard.\n 1324839499 It depends on your perception of 'sinister', and whether you consider a less sinister explanation to directly indicate the truth. Looking at human history, I find no indication to suggest that there is any depth humanity can not sink to ( nor either any height it can not rise to). Whos to say who's right when looking at the evidence, but yourself. 1329872763 He did it live though 1252588182 touché lol 1315793139 I'm guessing that slipping would also be a given for your friend, as well, if he were running with you in such conditions? 1317579702 How do you think they get to the location of whatever it is they are wanting to do? Say they talked to you and decided to check on family, what then? Poof and they disappear? That brings up another question for me, could they interact with the physical world enough to get in a vehicle I wonder?\n\nOn another note, has any persons religious views came into the conversation when they spoke to you? Have any spoke of their god/gods? Are you religious?\n\nSorry for all the questions, just a few I hadn't seen asked and was curious about. 1333954163 http://www.cnes-geipan.fr/\n\nhttp://www.online-translator.com/\n\nhttp://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/GEIPAN 1347033464 Which, again, contributes to the strawman paradigm we all tend to carry around about the subject. \n\nI think if we were going to really attack this topic we would need to spend a lot of time defining terms and abstracting things out in a way that mitigates pedantry. 1355609299 I recall some guy from some bullshit anti-smoking/anti-drug propaganda organization doing that trick in high school where he had one of the largest football players hold his arm out and he pushed down. Then he made him hold a cigarette in his lips and did the same thing but different so he pushed down. He even repeated the second attempt and told him to resist harder but hold the cigarette in place. \n\nHaving smoked for about 6 years by the time I witnessed the presentation, I knew damn well that it was a trick and I was very tempted to challenge him but I was always the quiet and shy type (not to mention that I didn't want to announce in front of the whole school that I smoked heavily) so I just ignored it. 1309963462 I agree with a lot of your position, but I feel you are making your argument unnecessarily combative. \n\nConsider this: both over regulation and under regulation, can be damaging, either economically, competitively,environmentally.\n\nIt can also lead to results the opposite if the intent behind the legislation.\n\nI am uncertain fracking is all that great or bad, but it is alleged to be responsible for methane (powerful greenhouse gas) release, that is not factored into the intent of carbon cost plans.\n\nIt looks to me like some energy companies see the current carbon economy climate as incentive to push into previously less viable fields (more expensive) and extraction technologies for gas over coal and oil.\n\nIt's clear that regulation and free markets are a complex beast.\n 1355529055 Yeah, I would like to know what they mean when they say the missiles could not be launched. Sounds fishy all around. 1285622952 Yep, that's the one. Thank you :) 1329872785 I don't like to side with Chopra's mumbo jumbo, however this isn't really the intent of his statement. What I gathered from his words is he meant using our imaginations, as it were, to visualize an image from memory. Yes we can see what a cat sees by reading those particular cells. The true question is when we imagine an image and visualize it does it stimulate our brains in the same- or similar manner. I don't know if that's ever been proven, although I wouldn't be surprised if there's some paper showing strong correlations.\n\nIt would also certainly depend on the subject's brain. Someone with synesthesia may have a much easier time creating imagery which they interpret as seeing. I only know of one case, but her imagination is quite vivid and she has told me visualizing to her is quite comparable to seeing. I am different: conjuring images, like the rose or my mother's face, is difficult for me. There are vague shapes and colours but nothing quite so clear and representative as others have described to me. 1340001836 I see that you are a genetics major. By any chance do you have any other resources on the topic of GM Crops. I am unfamiliar with the topic and writing a report on it for school. Most of the stuff I have read is very biased. This comment was the first thing that has helped my understanding. Thanks! 1354594676 People do have different learning styles. However, the theories regarding these styles, how they relate, what causes them, and how best to accommodate them as an educator--should be considered educated suggestions more than they should be considered scientifically sound.\n\nResearch shows that students learn more, and retain longer, when the information is presented in a variety of formats. There are a few good reasons why this is true, regardless of learning styles.\n\n 1254528862 This is a much better version of that Ghost Hunters game show on Sci fi. I usually find myself laughing as a group messes up or make them self look stupid. It's not a bad show though. 1313080810 We live on Vancouver island. We were also looking west over the pacific. 1345534389 > They also use ozone instead of chlorine for the most part to disinfect, which produces far less carcinogenic byproducts.\n\nGood thing ozone isn't [toxic](http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/6376815). 1338749111 Hey, there. I have several similar experiences, one of them happened exactly 2 years ago. I was visiting my mom in Bosnia and stayed in our house. I was out with my cousin to the local bar and had 5 Heinis (these are the little bottles of Heineken pipi/girl beer). I admit I was slightly drunk/tipsy. Anyways I get home, my mom is already asleep and I go to the first floor where my room is, get ready for bed and lay down. Just a year ago we had central heating installed, so back then it was wood ovens for heating. I usually didnt touch it, because I have no clue about making fires... \n\nIt was not unusual that late at night my mom would come upstairs and add some more wood to the fire. So I lay down, tipsy ditsy and start to doze away, laying on my left side with my face toward the door of the room.\nRight next to it, to the left is the heating oven. I hear the door opening and someone coming in. I'm not paying attention, thinking it would be my mom adding to the fire... Well, it wasn't my mom. 'It' closes the door and moves past the oven and stands on the other end of my bed, watching over me. I notice and want to turn around but I can't move. I want to say something, I am scared but only mumbling comes out of me. I couldn't turn nor scream... I feel it watches me and I don't know why, initially I was scared shitless but pretty quickly I calm down and fall into a very deep sleep. \n\nThe next morning, remembering what happened, I would ask my mom if she came upstairs to add wood, but she said she didn't. \n\nI know what it was or better, who it was. My dad died in the house in 2005. He had two strokes in 2000 and since then had Alzheimers and Dementia. Five years later he died from a lung pneumonia that was discovered too late. \n\nWhen I was a kid he used to come into my room, when I was about to go to sleep, to tell me not to have my knees bent otherwise I wouldn't grow any taller (actually I stayed pretty short) and then he would tuck me into my blanket and leave and I would fall asleep.\n\nI took great comfort in hoping/knowing that it was him who came bye to look after me. To see if I would have grown any taller maybe. I was looking for signs from him ever since he died and there it was. Or maybe I was just drunk... \n 1356735588 mermaids in burka's 1304537709 And I asked him for his evidence that I was wrong and got nothing, and it was obvious early on oftheblah was completely convinced witchcraft wasn't real and his beliefs were deep seated only in science, and at that point I realized that the debate was a dead end because even if God came down from heaven and shook his hand he would say it isn't real because Neil Degrasse said so or because it wasn't in his science text book, and It's obvious you're the same way,that's why you're holding a torch for oftheblah or you're him using a throwaway. btw why did I have to explain myself again? wasn't all this obvious enough for you to see in the original comments or are you trolling me too? 1335610884 Probably nothing but does kinda look like a sad old man face 1343654419 Reminds me of story Green-light. An atheist liberal pacifist democrat evolutionist muslim feminist socialist gay jew communist catholic unionist abortionist professor (and a member of the ACLU and NAACP) was bitching at a college class and she told the class that she was a strong independent menstruating womyn and she was going to prove that there is no GOD (peace be upon him). She screamed, “GAWD, if you are real, then I want you to knock me off this platform. I’ll give you 15 human minutes, and I’m glad all those people died on 9/11! Also all men are rapists and I have abortions for fun.”\n\nTen earthling minutes went by. She kept taunting God (peace be upon him), saying, “Here I am, GAWD, if that is your real name. I’m still waiting. Is my strong, powerful, and financially independent vagina too much for your patriarchy? You stupid man!”\n\nShe got down to the last couple of minutes and a brave, patriotic, pro-life marine just returned from the War of Independence and honorably discharged and newly registered in every class backflipped up to the professor, hit her full force in the face with a spinning flying drop kick (with metal as fuck jet-boots on), and sent her flying from her platform through two panes of glass, two twin towers, a pile of cans, a young mother pushing a baby carriage, a nun and a pile of boxes. The professor struggled up, obviously shaken, with three broken legs, two broken arms, a broken jaw, a broken skull, 12 broken ribs, internal bleeding and a missing spine. She bitched, “What’s the matter with you? Why did you do that? Are you afraid of a strong beautiful black womyn? You stupid Christian, I only worship my vagina!”\n\nThat marine replied, “GOD (peace be upon him) was busy watching over MY buddies engaged in combat in the coke wars (Never forget). So… he… sent… ME!”\n\nThe professor cried a single tear and said “I was wrong to want equal rights for homosexuals, women and minorities. Barry Hussain Osama is a Muslim socialist atheist and he hates America. I am now pro-life, pro-guns, and pro-capital punishment”. The professor then burnt her copy of Origin of the Species, shaved her legs, put her bra back on, and started to make the marine a sandwich. “If Trayvon Martin didn’t want to die he should not have been wearing a hoodie!”\n\n“Welcome to the Republican Party” Said the Marine.\n\nThe students applauded and all registered with the Republican party that day and accepted Jesus as their lord and savior. An eagle named “Small Government” flew into the room and perched atop the American Flag (where it shed a single tear).\n\nThat professor was Richard Elizabeth Dawkins. That college class was The Beatles. That young mother was Sarah Palin. That nun was Michele Bachmann. That eagle was Ron Paul. That marine’s name? Albert Einstein. 1355540636 Yeah, always read the labels and see what kind of medicine it is, ding dong. 1294139843 I already did last night, nothing but tossing and turning. 1338440655 he does the bait and switch... for jebus! 1352682238 Most of these claims about alleged golden ratio relationships and golden spirals in nature are spurious, or simply outright false.\n\nThese pages debunk and discuss some of the more common claims:\n\n* [Fibonacci Flim-Flam](http://www.lhup.edu/~dsimanek/pseudo/fibonacc.htm)\n* [The Myth That Will Not Go Away](http://www.maa.org/devlin/devlin_05_07.html)\n\nIf you're looking for something more in-depth, Mario Livio's book [_The Golden Ratio: The Story of Phi, the World's Most Astonishing Number_](http://books.google.com/books?id=bUARfgWRH14C) is a highly recommended read: it covers all the things that make the golden ratio legitimately interesting, alongside debunking all the things that don't. 1338295300 I'd ask what _is_ "natural aluminium" and what's the difference with non-natural aluminium. 1318543961 This is not the same thing as alpha and beta brain waves. \n\nAlso I'm surprised that you mention alpha and beta radiation but don't say anything about the much more dangerous gamma radiation. 1339672914 While there are a fair share of skeptics who frequent r/ufos, there are plenty of tin foil hat wearing weirdos too, this is evident in the amount of garbage that gets posted to this subreddit from time to time. r/uap is a better place for constructive thought on this subject IMO. 1342713467 Tim Minchin sums up my anger towards this show\n\n"What are we fucking two? Do we actually believe horton heard a who?"\n 1261536692 I like to think that in the alternate universe of the show, the science is real. In our universe though, not so much :/ 1282101154 Of course. I have every right to lie about products I sell, although it's not in my best interest. It wouldn't take long for people to find out I'm full of shit and stop buying them, and to organize boycotts or public defamation. The lost revenue from losing my customers' trust is almost certainly more than anything I could make from a short period of false advertising. 1286227756 >good bits\n\nthat's selective, innit?\n\nfor me, it's more of a framework/themes thing. also, baggage of tradition. 1337099576 In France, a [guy](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Claude_All%C3%A8gre), a scientist (also former politician, and former minister -*not* the religious kind), was a loud denier, so the science academy was asked to issue a final opinion on the issue to settle it. And their conclusion was : there is no doubt that climate is changing, that the cause of the change is most likely mankind, and that shit is about to hit the fan.\n\nAnd for my opinion on the whole thing, yes, it's quite real, no, nothing will happen. Corporations will do whatever is good for the next shareholder's meeting, states will do whatever is good for the next (poll, meeting with the corporate supporters, election)... \nThe whole thing will run it's course unimpeded. And I see it more or less this way :\n\n* 2025, first country (an archipelago in the Indian ocean) to disappear because of rising sea levels. Stops being a news story after about 5 weeks. \n* 2026, emergency meeting of the G30. Nothing much happens after many declarations of goodwill. \n* 2029, first large scale *water war* between India and China after China diverts most water from what's left of the Himalayan glaciers to its territories leaving all territories south of the mountain range dry. \n* *at this point you're really going to wish you're already dead* (although I could easily continue the story beyond that point)\n 1292270530 I like [Psychic Tanya](http://photos.lasvegassun.com/media/img/photos/2011/08/22/Tanya-ShaneONeal_t650.jpg) better. 1315591643 Jenny McCarthy and Jim Carrey both published their retarded vaccines-cause-autism screeds on there, for starters. 1285784421 Why so political? Because I hate it when politics are influenced by woo. 1311942895 It's more than shorthand, it's the lack of effort you put into your posts. Like for instance, you misspelled "determines" and dropped the 'g' in "typing". Whereas the people responding to you have taken the time and care to respond in a clear manner.\n\nNot to mention you fail to capitalize a few of your sentences, but make sure to capitalize UFO.\n\nAnd what do you bring as evidence and proof? Hearsay. And "regression therapy". You know what the problem with regression therapy is? It relies on our imperfect memories. Memories that are highly susceptible to suggestion. 1340043362 I was just reading some especially bad websites and they literally pulled out a half-quote from someone and then in a later section bashed that person's reliability. It was pretty epic. 1339049886 It's worth noting that chemical castration is reversible by just not continuing the medication. 1346855374 I just stopped. It was maybe a once/twice a month type thing, but it just sort of stopped happening. 1343028003 AVN... I was thinking Adult Video News. Carry on. 1249684271 > Studies have to be paid for. So, find out who is paying for the study.\n\n> The person doing the study, what do they do for a living ? If they are a politician, what are their leanings ? If they are a uni researcher, what is the gist of the their main body of work ?\n\nI'm sorry, but I think this is **very** bad advice. I would have had no problem if you said: If there are flaws in a study you could, if you like, try to look at these things to find a motive. But it doesn't work the other way round and in my personal opinion is the reason for a lot of this conspiracy bullshit (a study financed by a pharmaceutical company where it concludes that a product made by this company works as intended is automatically disqualified - that's not how science works).\n\n> The information itself. Is it scientifically sound ? Is it reproducible ? Is the sample size big enough ? Is it representative ? Is there a control group (if the study warrants).\n\nThe problem I have with this is, that it is getting next to impossible to be at a level to judge these things in all sciences. You are fooling yourself if you think you can look at every study or every paper and form an opinion on it.\n\nI hate to say it, but for the most part we have to rely on experts. We have to rely on scientists in the field who know what they're talking about. And you have to trust the other scientists that they will speak out if someone in their field is bullshitting the public (and they do that - just look at the NASA study on arsenic-based life forms or the cloning scandal in Japan a few years ago). 1343657918 I don't know if religion would collapse like a lot of people expect. I mean the Pope said extraterrestrial life is not evidence against Christianity. If they believed it before I don't see why they wouldn't after. 1325604158 You've obviously never been with a squirter. I was with an Olympic-level squirter for over a year. I can assure you I know what her squirt fluid and pee looked and tasted like, and the squirt is definitely not pee. This pee/squirt equivalency bullshit is produced by pointy-headed academics with no grasp of the real world, or sex for that matter. 1324667603 Maybe we should give it a bit more time? It's only been, what, less than a week?\n\nI think it was very silly, on the level of 'rods' and paranormal photos of 'orbs', but in the interest of objectivity I think we should give it a bit more time. 1352864468 Nobody is getting up and saying "Stop saying that!" They're getting up and saying "You're wrong!"\n\nBecause free speech means freedom to disagree. 1321895928 Newton? 1344613467 I don't read the rage comics either, just as I don't parttake in every other facet of atheism. I don't feel the need to call something "retarded" (which is ableist, btw) and other insults just because I don't share it or like it. I avoid insults, my critics revel in them. 1324046217 Awesome, but probably fake. Like the [alien mummies.](http://www.ufocasebook.com/tinyalienchile.html) 1318550651 Most of it. I can only really speak to the topic of yoga though. Yoga merely means to yoke oneself to God. There have been hundreds of forms of yoga over the centuries. For many of those forms, including the modern form, the most important aspect of the practice is breath control. Believe it or not, stretching is considered very much secondary to breathing. Diet can also be a huge part of yoga. Hell, sex can be a huge part of yoga. You can't do those last parts of yoga in a classroom. The author qualifies all this by saying "yoga as we know it today." Well, which of the hundreds of forms of yoga? What about the ones which are nothing like what we would consider to be yoga? There is no one form of yoga. There are hundreds of forms of yoga. The article is nonsense. It's a poorly constructed argument, and it's poorly researched. \n\nI'd tend to agree that Aton LaVey invented Satanism. Also, I always thought that the Ouija board started as a board game, or a parlour game. Do people honestly believe otherwise? I don't know. I don't know anyone with a brain who would claim that all of these things are "ancient" at any rate. It's kind of a tacky premise to begin with, but it is a Cracked article. 1310069637 you can't just throw everything that you don't want to believe/look up into the same bag; the new age bag in this case\n\nthat's doing what non-ufologist are doing to all ufo-related subjects even if it has nothing to do with one-another\n\ni won't express myself about vibration and all that; but I have looked up enough to believe free energy devices are possible but have been suppressed since forever\n\n[this is NOT what i'm talking about but is just a wink](http://geometrybox.com/file/114) 1329233283 Maybe they'll accept a homeopathic payment.\n\n$19.99 at a dilution of 30C... any mathematicians want to work that out? 1315387477 Can you tell me why I believe in Bigfoot? 1327107757 I had to do the same thing. My son had blood in his stool, and when there wasn't, it was green and runny (it's supposed to be yellow and kind-of oatmeal-like). When I took him to the doctor's, he told me to go easy on the dairy products. Within a couple of weeks of eliminating dairy products, his issues were solved. His little rash also went away, and he also didn't cry half as much anymore. \n\nI stayed off dairies for about 18 months and my son still has some issues when he eats too much dairy products. 1346076846 Here is the audio if you haven't heard it already. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=14MJXC0h4TU&feature=youtube_gdata_player 1351010245 Could be, but judging by one bit of the YouTuber's video description a kite doesn't sound likely.\n\n> It flew off to the north after about 45 minutes and disappeared.\n\nOf course, there's always the possibility he's lying about that part since it's not on video. 1339524099 Because it's interesting to note that Sagan's opinion on the subject isn't as clear cut as skeptics would like to believe. It's also *very* noteworthy that his recommendation was that the phenomenon is worthy of further study. Not that it was bunk and everyone should go home, but instead continue to gather data in hopes of formulating a solid conclusion based on *science.*\n\nI'd be willing to bet that most people didn't know he testified in a [1968 Congressional hearing](http://www.ufoevidence.org/documents/doc1987.htm) on the matter. 1331941294 I'm guessing the OP didn't read the article mistook their use as a kooky medical treatment. MDPV is essentially just a more dangerous cocaine, though. 1326529800 Priceless 1354285211 Christ, haven't these people been subjected to enough, and now we're giving them crap medical treatment.\n 1347484637 Do you not think it is realistic that even in a highly advance future people will still hold on to supernatural possibilities to explain the unknown? 1348862150 "If man were merely a random product of evolution in some place on the margins of the universe, then his life would make no sense or might even be a chance of nature," he said.\n\nI was about to call the pope a tool. But he's right. Life doesn't make sense. 1303716634 Honestly, I think stuff like this gets written by people who feel a need to prove themselves intellectually, but aren't actually intellectual.\n\nThey probably have some deep psychological issue and have been bowled over in the past and really impressed by people who *sound* smart. Whether or not the speaker actually was smart, or the listener even grasped the topic being discussed.\n\nSimilarly, they probably want other people to be as impressed by them.\n\nUnfortunately, they aren't of an intelligent mindset. By giving off these type of words (construct, geometrical, conscious primal currents) they give the illusion that they are talking about well-defined "scientific" ideas and have a firm grasp of the concepts. It's kind of a cop-out. Goal achieved, no work necessary.\n\nIt's pathetic.\n\n**TLDR** Really they're just spewing words to give the illusion of intelligence. 1289319541 I think it's irrational to place your own gods above all others and make yours so holy and sacred, and others as "voodoo". Can you be specific in the exact differences between miracles and magic? What about some examples? 1324399462 This has gotta be a troll, Obviously a fish!! The mods should be kicking shit like this out of this sub reddit.... 1325640171 My girlfriend and I have both seen a ghost cat that lives with us. It's all black and disappears in direct light. It plays with our two living cats, chasing them and running around the house. It's become another member of the family. 1352230454 I'd say!\n\n 1336142187 Haha. No blame on you, but as you've seen it happens all too often! 1338160965 Oh hi spicy_ckicken_wings. 1313870600 This line of argument about crop circles has been around for as long as crop circles have, and I'm sure someone has done legitimate research on this point. I don't have any links handy, though. But more importantly, you're not going to see that kind of rigorous research from BLT Research. 1330484270 Scientists don't know everything. 1331898782 The government probably used alien technology gathered from the Roswell UFO crash to fake it.\n\n/s 1356289376 Just a minor quibble; here in the UK (and New Zeland and Australia) osteopath is a protected title and the training is purely evidence based medicine. They're regulated and, critically, their training does not stem from the debunked theories of [Vertebral Subluxation](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vertebral_subluxation). 1291209521 Me --> ROTFLMFAO 1321565048 i know the feeling i used to get this quite alot, i get it sometimes now, i'd get a random scene and maybe some audio, and several months down the line this happens, if i remember correctly, people call it "future sight" 1317308113 Could you give a source for that please? I'd be interested to incorporate that into my arsenal of knowledge. 1326051746 Of course they were. 1331538041 There seem to be a lot of sightings lately with a similar theme. If these are real, there is probably some kind of message in the formations. Maybe an intergalactic "hello". \n\nIf we could show a coherent message in these sightings, it would link them together undeniably. Can we put together a compilation and ask the geniuses on Reddit to take a crack at it? 1291059055 George W. Bush went to Yale, this man went to Harvard. It all makes sense. 1335582061 It's possible, but I was sitting in the house and I do remember hearing a motorcycle go by. 1340259149 Well, yeah, they don't have a pharmacy, and I don't think they sell ANY traditional nation-wide brands. They don't have ms. baird's bread, they don't have Coke, and they don't sell tylenol or advil.\n\nBut if you looked harder I bet you'd find aspirin! 1349189601 You know, it's probably pretty safe to dismiss any claim at all that's prefaced with "Alex Jones says". 1337140401 I saw three UFOs tonight, the ones that hover over cities in the triangle shape. They were bright blue, they slowly moved towards the city (Minneapolis) and then they disappeared. It was a magical experience. did anyone else see them? 1288406447 Whew-- they are lucky the Earth doesn't generate any electomagnetic fields on it's own... I mean, if there was something like fluid iron that made up a large portion of the interior whose movement led to a dynamo effect that produced magnetic fields on the surface... man, they wouldn't be able to go to West Virginia to escape it! 1315954402 The funny/sad/good thing about this video is that the footage is actually decent. \n\nThe commentary, oh dear. 1353359223 Wow this is dumb 1351269482 Last July I was camping high in the Appalachian mountains along the Kentucky-West Virginia border. At about 4 am I had to take a shit, so I walk about 200 yards across the clearing just inside the treeline. As I'm relieving myself in the pitch black I notice that all the insects and frogs down by the creek fell silent. Then I start to hear these really heavy footsteps. They get closer and closer and then they stop. Whatever it was stopped about 20-30 feet away from me and started grunting, whooping and throwing rocks. So I shined my flashlight in the direction of the sounds and rock throwing and all I see is two huge red eyes about 9 feet up in the trees and a flash of reddish-brown fur. When I shined my light whatever it was took off howling. I went back when it was light out and found some 16 or 17 inch tracks, snapped tree branches (12 feet off the ground), and the grapefruit sized stones near my shit-hole. I packed up camp and got the fuck out of there. I don't think I've ever been that terrified in my life. \n\ntl;dr I think I saw a Bigfoot while I was shitting in the woods last summer. 1336069675 Should have walked up to the guy and asked, "Are you a wizard??" 1306629095 I am a scientist and not involved in the paranormal in any way, spare the fact that I find it interesting from a mythology standpoint. \nThat being said, when I was going through puberty light bulbs would burn out or flicker, cups would fly of counter-tops, and once a crystal bowl exploded. I looked into it, then, and many of the explanations I found dealt with "poltergeist" activity-- the notion that one's own internal conflicts are becoming manifested through manipulating the outside world subconsciously/telekinetically (sp?). \nNow...THAT having been said, what I really there are natural explanations for all these things, even if they aren't readily apparent. For example, replacing the wall clocks' batteries from the same faulty batch or the change in atmospheric moisture content and temperature leading to more resistance within the lighting fixtures COULD account for what you're describing. As for me, a draft can knock over a stack of cups and a rapidly cooling crystal bowl can explode (as it was just taken out of the dishwasher). IMHO\nTL;DR: There are likely natural explanations for what you are describing, but when we're worked up b/c of the day-to-day stuff, it all seems more overwhelming and somehow connected. \n 1317261479 Can't tell if real or nosleep... 1350603540 Technically, nothing is a settled issue. And given how unfounded these counterarguments seem, I remain skeptical of their skepticism. 1348752591 100% serious. I was 16 at the time. I'm trying to rationalise it but I really don't know. 1335647902 It appears you don't know the difference between anecdotes and data.\n 1304284208 What I was wondering is how people who have been blind since birth can describe these "visuals." They're not going to know what "white" is or what "light" is, so how are they going to say they saw a white light? 1319678738 I have seen those shadows that you speak off. One time I saw a shadow that seemed to be a person, it had the outline of a tall individual and his figure was darker than the night and it ran towards my bedroom. Went in checked everywhere, no one to be found. I did not fall sleep easily that night. But if I learning anything from it was that I should not be afraid. Now I am waiting to see it once more and chase it, understand it and find out what it may be if I can. Kinda weird I know. 1350090926 Thanks for sharing. =) 1256057208 AWOOHH.. 1350816903 Thanks for the pertinent links to a great site dopp3l. \n\n\nI think Grant Cameron has more FOIA docs and info on that site than 99.9% of all ufo researchers(with the exception of [Greenwalds Black Vault](http://www.theblackvault.com/m/articles/category/UFO%20Phenomena)) could accumulate working together,... and Goldwater is a dying breed unfortunately,...a motivated US Senator,... 1339622613 I have no control over up or downvotes, but i'm not in argument with you. All I was saying is that they do seem like the same event, and if not, it would be a repeat performance of apparently the same maneuvers. \n\nObviously by existing back in Dec. 16, 2009, your date takes precendence; that being said, it doesn't invalidate that this is an alternate perspective of either the same event or a very similar future event in the same place. 1317258633 Isn't it obvious as shit that the cat is simply swatting at something off-camera, and not the television? 1327523925 I wish my food would multiply like that. 1356642903 Sometimes I think that people would rather defend something that is clearly nonsense then admit that they were fooled by it. 1283812321 The field is real, but the science behind it is complete bullshit.\n\nFurther reading: http://www.nature.com/news/2010/100526/full/465412a.html\n\n"Simply put, people (including professional lie-catchers with extensive experience of assessing veracity) would achieve similar hit rates if they flipped a coin," 1282099922 oh sorry. lol I thought I had posted the ling in there my baddd\nhttp://dfwparanomalresearchteam.tumblr.com/ 1344291480 That goes with my theory that the paranormal wont bother you when your high 1352710459 > “Those students who are not magical are not typically those who enjoy going to parties,”\n\nSince when does happiness equal going to a party? I happen to be a little bit introverted, but that doesn't automatically make me depressed. Seems like this article is making some very large assumptions about what makes human beings happy. 1341856900 Wow, awesome! I wasn't expecting a legitimate reply. Upvotes to you, kind sir! 1326462653 Does our universe exist? Is it possible to truly know anything about it? Does a god exist?\n\nScience deals with the empirical and falsifiable. 1346359675 There is middle ground here. I tend to agree that the light source is on the other side of the glass - I thought at first it was a flashlight reflecting but the refraction has convinced me otherwise. But I don't think it's the Star Family. \n\nIt's just a distorted rising light, nothing can be determined from that. Most likely explanation I think is some sort of electrical arcing.\n\nAgain another video where the phenomenon moves out of frame and the camera doesn't follow it. What's with these shitty photographers? \n 1342289309 Seriously man the whole experience was so weird that I find myself thinking about it randomly playing it through my mind trying to figure out what happened. One thing I forgot to mention was when we left for lunch the other employees were also clocking out but nobody seemed to understand what I was talking about and were acting like lunch just started when we got back. 1354044468 Interested but too lazy to google. What's the rest? 1341031570 As a holder of a doctorate in computational chemistry, you should be telling us how to compute those stats! 1319126171 And I shall deliver...\n\nOne night, Dani and I just chilling with some battlefield 3 going on, and his graduated sister shows up and has a party for all her grad friends. I know most of them, so it was really cool until I noticed the wierd stuff..\n\nFirst, Jackson tells me something, and his body is bent over all awkwardly. After I came out of the bathroom, I turn to see the EXACT same thing, no differences at all.\n\nAt this same party, I get put in charge of music because every one else is getting hammered. I do a Spotify playlist that I thought I was familiar with, until the songs changed and the lyrics were about a grad party getting broken up by the cops. I changed genres completely, only to hear the same thing basically. I closed the blinds on the massive bay windows just as a police cruiser pulls into the neighborhood.\n\nNot terribly strange, but noteworthy nonetheless. 1342227143 This is awesome, thank you for sharing 1334267198 Yes, I think we all have this problem. 1285361078 probably more like 5 people. 1289787034 I am the yellow name/black avatar. 1306456106 'Wrong' about what? What their lying eyes told them? They could be wrong about their *explanations* of an event, but how can they be wrong about what they've witnessed? 1333834578 a) I did provide a simple, concise explanation. I pointed out the use of the word "our."\n\nb) I wanted to clarify the name of the philosophical position d3sperad0 was illustrating to anyone else who might be reading.\n\nAt this point I would expect anyone who was interested in the thread to simply look up "solipsism" and "epistemological idealism" on their own. We're using the internet, after all.\n\nThank you for apologizing for your assumption and for revealing your true intentions. 1322446262 To be fair guys, I think he means taking the person into the reactor itself, not that the plant is unsafe. But hey, continue your impulse downvoting. 1354090069 no idea, I doubt I'll ever know. I can't really listen to that voicemail anymore except for when I'm drunk. 1326612708 We are probably talking about the products of a Mr Bushmills or Mr Jameson here. A few of those and you'll be able to talk the hindlegs off a donkey too! 1273175568 Sure it is. In the US, we've replaced use of that term with the phrase "African-American", because it was considered offensive. However, the phrase that we have come to use is not applicable outside of America. In this instance, the acceptable word in Spain is *negro*, which is the word that was originally replaced for being offensive. Irony. 1352322991 In a sense adult boosters are even MORE important, as we may not even show signs of having a particular virus/disease. 1311098565 I've heard some convincing arguments that de-leading gasoline and access to abortion are the two reasons that the crime rate plummeted late in the 20th century.\n\nIt's awfully hard to prove this sort of thing, though.\n\n-- edit,\n\nSpecifically, airborne lead generally lowered the cognitive functions of people and raised neurological disorders including lower control of impulses. One of the effects was increased likelihood of committing a crime. Lowering lead intake made people more stable.\n\nChildren of mothers who can't take care of them or do not wish to tend to have problems, including fitting into society and following its rules. Abortion greatly reduced the number of children who had insufficient maternal guidance. 1349815822 Could it anger it? Yes. \n\nHowever, the signs of protection are there to protect you. \nUnless its fairly strong, it would be unable to do anything. Stronger usually dont bother with you unless you have some talent with the occult. 1350299322 more experienced = more money paid 1326097664 Call Sam and Dean, they dealt with one at some point. 1355219921 The only thing that made me skeptical was the reddit design, but maybe that was just a coincidence 1348868264 The top post right now is,\n\n>To those who are going to post negative things on this page\nWould you please refrain from it, this is "NOT" a scam or any form a way of getting or asking people for their hard earned money or their support this is a page for exposure for Jesse and his condition ... at the whanau/families discretion this is the direction we have chosen and the direction we see best for the life of Jesse.\n\n>Wether you or anybody else think or believe we should be heading somewhere else please email Cameron, Shane or Michelle to discuss this in a private forum ...\n\n>This is a page for Jesse and his well being and health so if it is not supportive of our efforts please look somewhere else\n\n>Thank you.\n\nI want to post "dear, you are not the scammers, you are being scammed". But I am just ... well... I just can't do it. Maybe I will drop a private message to them. 1330844207 I am now honor-bound to find an apt application of the word "phallacy."\n\nMaybe the next time people start talking about average penis sizes... no, gotta do this right.. 1331676275 if it prevents from getting actual treatment, like it did my mom, it can. I'm generally pretty chill, but people being stupid like this about medicine will make me blow a fuse. 1277491650 That's a horrible dream, but I don't believe it has anything to do with demons. Young children scratch and claw themselves in their sleep all the time, even more when they're having bad dreams. Considering the dream you had, I have no problem believing that you scratched the hell out of yourself. I believe it was a case of night terrors. Anyone who's had them would likely agree with me. 1339085750 Are you...dumb or something? Do you not know what christianity is? It's believing christ died and came back. That's...literally it. 1347498377 faith != trust 1285528941 Ok, we can have a discussion, but only if you stop with the victimization bullshit. You're not being downvoted because you blasphemed against our god of modern medicine. Your initial comment strongly implied that we only differentiate medicine from alternative medicine based on what pharmaceutical companies decide to produce. *That* is why you were downvoted. You did not say anything profound or challenging or about healthy skepticism.\n\n\nNow.\n\n>Are you going to have a doctor say "you should eat two cloves of garlic a day"?\n\nA doctor recommending that you alter your diet is not at all unusual, but that is not alternative medicine. That is just normal nutritional advice. Eating garlic to promote health or avoid a certain condition is fine. But that is not the same as claiming garlic is an alternative to a tested medicine as a cure for a specific disease. People learned to eat citrus fruits to avoid scurvy. The medical test would be if someone did a proper double blind study to show that the rate of scurvy is much lower or eliminated in the group eating the fruit. It's not medicine, it's nutrition. Knowing what is and is not healthy to eat also requires the scientific method. That is only one claim. Eating citrus fruits reduces or eliminates your risk of scurvy. If you want to claim that they also protect against the flu, then you need another study to test that claim. And if you say it will cure you once you've been infected, then it is being claimed as a medicine and that claim also needs to be tested.\n\n\nSo, 2 questions:\n\nWhat are the proposed benefits of garlic?\n\nWhat studies do you have to support each specific claim?\n\n\n>Labeling a field as categorically stupid and employing stereotypes as justification is completely against the idea of skepticism.\n\nHow exactly did I use a stereotype as justification for anything? 1319761387 yeah that is interesting..... waiting for the follow up 1311327499 As have I. The only issue I take with that episode is that when you drink too much, you "just have to stop drinking" (or something to that effect). While this certainly applies to most people (like Randy), it's not the case with everyone. Some alcoholics actually need help because they are so physically addicted that simply stopping isn't really an option. \n\nMinor gripe aside, I love that episode. 1321658855 Yeah, could be! \n\nI have another one very similar to that in that last one in the set. Unforunately imgur doesn't let you zoom far enough in to see it but it's green at this point and looks like 6 individual lights perfectly aligned 3x2. 1355940781 Yeah this is interesting. 1356274228 Child abuse. 1320269166 Unless you are a strict deist, then there is quite a bit of evidence against the existence of most every definition of God...since the claim of existence is a scientific claim, it must be weighed according to probability and certainty according to the evidence. If you believe in logically defined definition of God, then you must also believe in Russell's teapot as well as the invisible dragon in my garage. 1305573212 Deleting all the stupid people works too. 1344875442 That's weirder than there BEING UFOs and E.T.s 1330332378 Looks a bit like a mirror. 1347304415 No, the wikipedia article is wrong. But it has since been [edited](http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Gary_McKinnon&oldid=518490216), so that's a moot point.\n\nMoreover, if he was able to view the image, was it not technically already downloaded to his computer? It would take him roughly 10 hours to download a 256MB file using a 56k modem. In other words, he would have to somehow reduce the file size in order to view it. 1350567978 Aliens ARE REAL. 1319951483 Holy shit, this went through my head when reading the title:\n\n>I was walking down the street when cell phone tower.\n\nAwesome story. 1327366315 To be honest, I don't think this is a UFO. I think this is one of those new drones that some police forced are using around the world now. The drone I'm speaking of uses propellers - perhaps counter rotating propellers - and is used to observe crowds. \n\nSomething like this: http://www.anunews.net/blog/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/aa-drone-unmanned-police-drone.jpg 1323843998 is it cold 1325215767 tl:dl *What are they, why are they, what do they mean?* 1316444191 im glad good job. its amazing that someone was actually willing to listen. 1313354070 Ohhh wow. I'm so embarrassed for them. But they deserved it! 1349080027 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lbVdyPZiOLM\n\nYou can edit your self posts, you know. 1340760487 shape changing ballon that doesn't tumble or rise? sure thing brah. 1295985496 go for it then, and make a nice website too 1283799920 She's also for Homeopathy.\n\n> "We will promote complimentary health care – through support of chiropractic, naturopathic, homeopathic, and other non-western practices. The Green Party of Canada recognizes the value of good health as a fundamental human right, and also the key to the most vibrant, inclusive and sustainable Canadian society possible."\n\nTechnically it is not officially Elizabeth May's opinion, but it *is* supported by The Green Party of Canada. 1317229489 I seriously dont see what the big deal is. They use the most sophisticated training equipment and technology science can give them so basically it becomes who has the best genes. Screw why not allow the drugs and monitor them for abuse or overuse and keep it to uze within responsible limits. I d love to see where science could take the human body. 1345947638 Edit: should have just used telepathy to make your point. 1316223644 He's referred to as an "almost teenager". Could be anywhere from 10 to 13. 1351452962 what you encountered is known in physics as a [closed time-like curve.](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Closed_timelike_curve) basically, you enter an area of spacetime that is so warped that you end up traveling back in time to the exact point in which you entered the curve. since you immediately start at the curved point in spacetime, there is (theoretically) no way to escape such loops. you continue travelling faster and faster through the curve until eventually you reach the speed of light. \n\nobviously, you found a way out of the loop, so good for you! you broke physics. 1346041501 Randi is such a douche bag. 1284754763 Quackcast has a nice [episode](http://www.quackcast.com/spodcasts/files/podcast_31.mp3) on this crap\nbtw, its nice to see another mycologist here 1248802600 Did he forget to take it? 1274099825 Is that from something? Or are you just clever and funny. 1334032900 At least someone understands my feelings! 1341273251 It was dinosaurs. 1341069497 Someones dreaming here. Let me provide seven reasons why Disclosure will never happen.\n\n1. We are barking up the wrong tree. The govt is no longer in possession of the info we`re pushing to get disclosed. The US govt itself is a false construct, a fake choice of two parties that act as one entity, designed to make us believe that somewhere there is a civilized structure to society that looks out for the better interests of the public, when in reality, the govt does little more than provide laws and protections for the corporations in the hopes that the success of those corporations provides the security and needs of the people, that the govt claims to be responsible for. Unfortunately the corporate psychology has no such intent, unless it feeds their bottom line. Disclosure doesnt feed that bottom line,...therefore there is no real impetous to acheive it.\n\n\n2. The majority of the historical documentation & info that the govt may have had, has long since been purged. When we have former heads of the CIA like Bush Sr, who, when asked about what the govt knows about the UFO subject, was cryptically quoted as saying, "You don't know the half of it,...(/sinister grin)". Do you really think someone like Bush Sr., who has an enourmous sense of entitlement, the position of power, and belief that the info would have serious reprocussions on his society, wouldnt destroy as much of that info as possible to maintain plausible deniability? I maintain that info simply no longer exists. I know that's what I would do with a secret that I believed was too dangerous to risk leaking.\n\n\n3. Physical evidence has been deligated to privatized industry. Any resources(tech, info or biological), from crashes or theoretical tech exchanges, has been firmly locked up & diseminated over so many tech generations, in black budget shell companies, such that there is no longer any clear indication of where that resource originated from. Furthermore, a privitized company has no obligation to reveal any of that info. Make no mistake on the issue; even sighting reports now being deligated to the privatized domain,...(brilliant move imo). How can we expect to get disclosure from a corporation that has no interest in sharing the resources that the govt has provided them for research & development. May as well ask Batelle to tell us where the inspiration for Nitinol came from,...\n\n\n4. We've already lost alot of the 'old time' witnesses to the original crimes. The US govt made the clear & informed decision to keep the subject from the public back in the 50s(perhaps earlier). I'm sure the continued delaying actions on disclosure come from hoping they can put it off indefinately, or at least, ideally, until there is no one left from that era to hold directly responsible. 25 year NDAs help, and the testimony from such dated sources have a very limited impact, as witnessed by the lack of MSM coverage of the UFOs & Nukes disclosure last week.\n \n\n5. Disinformation will keep the boat a rockin until it sinks. The Ufological community is, at best, in disarray. There are too many cooks pulling in too many directions to ever get anywhere. People like Greer, Project Cameltoe, Maussan, Icke and Hoagland, are doing far more damage(perhaps purposefully in some cases), than convincing people to take a serious look at the subject in an objective manner. The fact that people still flock to these disinfo mongers and charlatans tells me(and perhaps the powers that be) that we are indeed still gullible sheep, and that there really is no need for disclosure until we stop believing every pile of BS lobbed at us no matter how high or steaming it is, or how much it stinks. The truth may be every bit as unbelievable as the lies, but why stop now if the lies are still working,...?\n\n\n6. MSM is tied to the corporatocracy directly. NWO theories aside, there are only a handful of media conglomerates on the planet and they all have to deal with respective govt bodies. While UFO stories may serve to attract customers, and perhaps make the sheople feel like the issue is moving forward, this is still playing the delay game, and we swallow it over and over,... If MSM really considered UFOs a news story, there would be followups on every UFO sighting reported instead of a 3min segment and the end of the broadcast for filler. MSM has no time to reveal hoaxes or report on genuine unknowns in followups, it doesnt feed their bottom line. They have no real interest in revealing info that could bring down their religious institutions, law makers and greatest advocates, bring them embarassment, resentment or reveal them as outright liars. All of this would shake the status quo one way or another & that's not their job; their job is to make money.\n\n\n7. The govt has no definative answers. Disclosure already has happened. It's just burried in that same mound of BS, like the 2001 Disclosure movement; it's up to you to decide what's real and what isn't, but the govt has already had all their secrets spilled by someone at sometime. Good luck getting any further clarification of the facts from the people who want to maintain plausible deniability,...\n\n\nOn the other hand, France had disclosure long ago with the Cometa report,...wake up people, I'm not sure what your expecting here but you're sure to be disappointed if you can't see the truth has already been revealed; albeit amidst a heaping, steaming pile of BS,... 1286135888 > I don't think this is by any means analogous. If me not wearing a helmet could cause you harm, then it might work.\n\nWhy are you talking about other people all of a sudden? You said:\n\n> its a "better safe than sorry" precaution\n\nIt would also be safer to wear a helmet while driving a car. Why don't you do that? I'm asking if the "better safe than sorry" excuse actually has any merit. It has to some extent. But after 20 years it's getting silly.\n\n> With this comment, you have exposed your ignorance on the topic\n\nAre you fucking stupid? I told you what the content of the video was because you felt the need to comment without actually watching it.\n\n> Strange; your armchair half think/intuition didn't anticipate the electromagnetic spectrum, huh?\n\nI'm happy that someone who "feels qualified" chimed in and graced us with his wisdom. Go ask engineers what they think about cellphones and laptops in airplanes. Please. 1335214283 Too stupid even for the video version? Wow, this must be a record even for the deniers!\n\nIn plain words Lindzen Choi 2011 **ass**umed ocean energy variation is only about 2 times bigger than the variation from the clouds, while Spencer Braswell 2011 **ass**umed a ratio of 0.5. The observational data shows that the ratio is somewhere around 10-20 (meaning 20 to 40 times more than the values **ass**umed by Spencer). 1315582811 What everything I've been linked to seems to say is that "It works short term, but no one quite knows why."\n\nThat's very convincing... 1291692302 Also, the most important factor here is that it wouldn't take *our governments* to hide an alien presence. They could very well do it themselves, and with more ease than we think. 1332163030 Indeed, the Lunar Module Pilot of Apollo 14, Ed Mitchel, is a major whackjob (UFO's, conspiracies, Physic phenomena) and that didn't stop him from been a major figure in the space program. 1281172474 da-de-du -double post 1328558859 Meh, I don't watch it for the "evidence" anymore. I watch it as a comedy. Those guys make me laugh.\n\nDo they help the paranormal field? Not really. Kind of makes us all look like jack-asses. BUT they are testing new equipment which is showing it to us that we may not have known about before hand. One piece of my equipment I've gotten as a direct result of watching that show. Hopefully soon I can add a second. 1348520378 Or it could be aliens. Or even Dracula! 1333595612 `a xor b` is equivalent to `(not(a) and b) or (not (b) and a)`. 1288645811 This is the only one I'm aware of as well. 1352268592 Were you there?\n\nIs it possible that she carved them into herself?\n\nIf it is possible, then you should try to help her, as her friend, if you don't mind me saying so. 1337654068 Can't wait to see this! 1343966854 They make it almost sound like aliens. 1356055613 I dropped out of college because of my peers. When it became clear to me that I was sitting in a room with a bunch of people unable to draw conclusions from what was presented to them I got up and left. I was almost more upset by the fact that instructors accepted this as par for the course and were willing to work with it. 1311097362 I always ask folks who are into that crap "If you were having a heart attack, would you go to the holistic homeopathic hospital, or a real hospital?" 1356721134 it consisted of two thin metal rods, both bent into an Lshape 1305935729 Dry? Really, I found it hilarious, especially his retelling of the Carlos Hoax.\n\nMore than that though, he's gentle and compassionate. He's concerned about the dangerous of credulity and I think that would make it the book I'd recommend for someone not familiar with skepticism.\n\nThat said, I haven't read Shermer's book, and he can be quite compassionate too actually. 1344823912 sigh, here is your evidence. I await your confirmation that everyone is delusional or crazy. http://www.disclose.tv/action/viewvideo/81461/SECRET_ACCESS__UFOs_On_The_Record__FULL_/\n\nIf only laziness was not so common among deniers who accuse people. Well you were right about extraordinary evidence at least. 1328117482 I think someone posted a video a while ago that was "Homeopathic Tech Support" or something like that. Using pyramids to get rid of viruses ect. Damn, I wish I could find it. 1347033487 What? I'm serious man. I've never watched\nThat movie. 1325721616 Again, you're absolutely right. The problem is, to ever begin to explain anything you need a hypothesis, an educated guess that in some ways assumes things that are presently not fact. Often the people who make the biggest leaps in science make some outrageous claims through educated guessing mixed with observation, then testing.\n\nYou may not like the concept of science doesn't know everything but it's the truth. Science *can* explain everything but presently doesn't. Until then we make educated guesses, observe and test. 1282447375 You've got to be kidding... 1313689235 According to one of my teachers, Elsevier has a 36% profit margin. I haven't checked his figures, but I suspect he would know.\n\nI believe this is a short-term windfall profit due to the shift from print to digital media. The journals and the databases are making out like bandits while they can. 1316314554 Can't do that, sir. We'd have to call every religulous holiday the same. Imagine the confusion. 1305118001 That a policy that can result in the death of women is a worse thing than a policy that might not prevent a far smaller number of sexual assaults, or that all men should not be judged on the actions of some men, apparently. 1347381319 Well, points for using the apostrophe properly. 1331607201 No, you're fine. Wikipedia is a fine stepping stone. If other people can't take the time to go through Wiki's sources or do their own research, that's on them. 1335733295 You lack imagination. I was using mine. \n\n\nI can argue the veracity of photos as well. The moon landing only exists in photos, it never was real. Just an illusion. I need tangible evidence. ( facts: moon rocks exist on earth, tracks exist on mars, mirrors can be placed by robots) Prove that man walked on the moon. Go. 1344006323 From the article:\n>*Was it a meteor? He’d heard there was a green meteor shower taking place from 6 to 9 p.m. that evening — **but no way was it supposed to show up in the earth’s atmosphere**.*\n\nThe article makes my brain hurt. The author tosses the meteorite argument out completely by saying that "no way was it supposed ot show up in the earth's atmosphere." This completely ignores the sole ingredient of a meteor shower, namely meteors burning up in the earth's atmosphere. Just like what appears to be happening in the very poor quality picture.\n\nOn top of that the author's allusion to the "father of three and his 10 y.o. daughter" seems to be a backhanded way of discounting any questions of credibility. I offer this [wiki article involving a father and his children and a hoax...](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Balloon_boy_hoax) as food for thought. Sorry but the source needs either vetting or corroboration - the author offers none. 1301969624 Figures. It's freaky crap. I'm wondering how many more people remember that. 1327200551 Having lit Chinese Lanterns recently, from my experience, they stay in the air for about 2 minutes before extinguishing and floating to the ground. Unless there are different kinds which last longer, I would not blame lanterns. Still, I doubt these are actual UFOs they filmed. 1354341682 There is also a reflection in his glasses that looks like a flat-screen monitor.\n\nMy searches also keep leading me to a guy named Gerald Celente, which leads me to think this is a marketing ploy. 1352755441 I have never seen a flare go off personally but this thing went up then it would mosey back down and it moved side to side too. Eventually it started going up again. If I can get a video of this filmed close to a big monitor I could actually show you (based on the flames and luminescence) the way it traveled. 1347622009 Aw. I know another one on this thread that was debunked, but I didn't bring it up. I don't want to ruin the fun of the legend, you know? I'm going to check out the link. 1347061464 pretty good, but what's with the neckticles in the last panel 1282681743 \nThe vaccine has a limited duration. Your immunity fades over time, so a vaccination for a disease you receive at 5 (or whatever) will be protecting you in your childhood, but is weaker by the time adulthood rolls around (I was finishing high school). \n\nThe doctor was being tongue-in-cheek. The whole idea behind inoculation in the first place is that your immune system can prevent you from coming down with diseases you've already had. The principle behind many vaccines is the idea of giving you a "killed" virus that your body can form antibodies to, but won't result in full-blown disease. \n\nIf someone contracts the disease, they'll eventually have similar immunity, but this isn't necessarily as helpful as being vaccinated from a herd standpoint. If they contracted it, they're producing and spreading the virus while they're ill. For instance, the exchange student spreading the virus resulted in several of us contracting pertussis and missing months of school. \n\nHowever, the few of us that got sick before this was clamped down on were all older high school students. For the purposes of a respiratory illness, we were practically adults. Less healthy targets could wind up dead (and many in the world do). Even if you don't die, pertussis can last about three months. There's also secondary issues that can be caused by having it, rib fractures, and so on (if death weren't enough). 1327324381 I'll be there! Can't wait :) 1340994334 It was a fungus. You can find the story on http://www.adn.com under Alaska stories 1313911653 nobody wants to take responsibility 1328719082 There's a big difference between dead and *mostly dead*. ~Miracle Max 1346462100 Interesting happenings, thanks for taking the time to share! I think it would be interesting for you to put aside your fears for a bit and delve deeper into meditation, since "thinking about it" can only take you so far. If you ever do, please write an update! 1353287432 Thank Xenu. I really loathe that show. 1349367043 By chance did your version of the phantom menace not have jar jar binks in it? Worst character ever? if so, your reality was downgraded... :) 1340328975 >No, it is the process of genetic manipulation itself which damages the plant\n\nThis is pretty baseless. There are also many possible processes for genetic manipulation. \n\n>They all suffered from a process that damages the genome.\n\nThis is highly subjective. With the infinite number The number of possible changes is essentially infinite. To say that anything would be "damage" is rather absurd.\n\nBasically any possible problem is an engineering problem that depends very much on the specifics of the modifications.\n\n 1279826599 One more thing; you of all people here should realize that skepticism has a much deeper and more profound philosophical tradition of both outward and *inward* doubt that has been usurped in name by the Randi-worshipping skeptics of the secular/atheistic variety. 1241570500 The figure looks to be transparent against the trees in the background. Also, the person who shot it isn't going to say if it was a bigfoot or not. he just encountered one of the most mysterious things that he can't even give a better description of the encounter for the news?..wtf 1338682097 That's a pretty genius idea. I've little doubt that such a show would at least get one full season, if not more. All the people that I've met that love the ghost hunting shows also love the house hunting / fixing shows. It's a perfect match! 1288574807 If I believed there was a God who was judging my life and would decide if I spent eternity in heaven or hell, I would damn well be thinking about Him every single minute of every single day. I would devote my life to him.\n\nAll those so called Christians who just see God as a hot water bottle for a little bit of comfort and who spend most of their lives doing "more important things" aren't very serious about their religion. Their lack of devotion to something that they putatively claim is so important makes me doubt that they believe any of it really. 1338914152 Exactly! And even if those proposed remedies are harmless on their own, they may interact with drugs that the doctors have prescribed. The fact that her behaviour is unethical is enough to report her, even if it doesn't cause harm to the patient in *this* instance. 1311351827 sound like one of those complex seizure things that make people go on auto pilot for long perioids of time. 1353881861 I'm glad skeptic weighted in on this, I voted no, despite many of my peers urging a yes from everyone. I came to a no vote with doing a ton of research -- I found not only is GMO safe, the testing they do on the crops are insane -- more testing than, say, what the meat industry does to test for disease.\n\nAn article called GMO "the climate denial of the left". I think I agree. And this article states it bluntly; it's hatred for a multinational. Sure, Monsanto is shitty. But these scientists -- they work hard. And Monsanto, at the end of the day, is still a company. They aren't going to risk putting out a crop that has an allergen and lose a ton of business. The fact is GMOs are safe and the crops Monsanto provides seeds for thrive -- and the yes voters just infurating, somehow.\n\nBetter idea: this movement has legs. Start a regulatory commission that can test if something is GMO-free, everyone kick in a few sheckles to pay for this non-profit. Your organic grocier will eat up this label. And it doesn't depend on the government regulating it.\n\nIt's so perfect it already exists. 1352478485 Whew...that brought back memories. 1300068310 It is probably best to avoid discussing these things with them... unless they are blowing big chunks of money on it or putting their health at serious risk, in which case it might be worth the effort to translate the specific literature appropriate to the situation. 1279316712 True I am thinking its a overexposed construction light. 1302884710 Thank you for your fantastic reply. Your arguments are really... non existent. 1329484978 But it is funny because he had a secret. Guess what it was. Guess.\n 1308821969 *Why are they still pouring? IT'S FULL!* 1346018774 I tend to ask what other things were being done as well as what ever "healing" ... people especially kids too young to understand...so probably too young to actually tell you whats wrong as well so we are usually guessing as to what the problem is... do just get better sometimes. 1292957231 It's at times like that that we need to say, in our best John Cleese voice, "But… *this isn't an argument!*" 1312269266 Interesting how the article was commented [by the local deniers](http://www.reddit.com/r/climateskeptics/comments/11fwl8/global_warming_stopped_16_years_ago_reveals_met/). Also in [science](http://www.reddit.com/r/science/comments/11gpxj/global_warming_stopped_16_years_ago/) deniers seem to be very present :)\n\nBut today [I had already lost too much time with a moron that can hardly do basic arithmetic](http://www.reddit.com/r/climateskeptics/comments/11ghbs/wheres_the_anthropogenic_global_warming_signal_in/) so enough for me :( 1350247198 That's what I mean - even a hypersonic object would leave a contrail which was not completely straight over those sort of distances due to upper atmospheric winds. 1311995052 Sucks to admit, but thank you for making that clear right away. 1343180221 http://circleinstitute.com/works/1_recovering/images/11-8_djinn.jpg 1313509293 what the fuck? I'm an Aries. I AM OUTRAGED!!!!!!\n\nseriously though, how silly. 1324641011 I've told people I was lactose-intolerant for years because I hated the taste and it made my stomach hurt to drink regular milk (which was true, but it didn't bother me too much if I drank it with food). Cheese and yogurt didn't bother me as much, but then I became vegan to try to clear up a blood sugar problem and several months later accidentally ate some cheese cooked into a soup at a restaurant. My sinuses started immediately filling up and my eyes were watering, and then the waiter told me that they added a lot of cheese. Maybe I really was intolerant! 1273759179 Yeah.. Soon we'll make an awful cheesy TV movie about how they met.\n\nOh, wait, Hollywood beat us to it. 1303070712 Now turn around so I can cup the other side. 1316670998 People who use the internet? 1337769352 I'm glad you calmed down more as you finished writing the title. 1342376581 JEEEZ! I'd better stock up then. 1245244728 Holy crap, someone on the Internet admitted he was mistaken! Well, I guess it would be in /r/skeptic of all places.\n\n> The term "ambient" means something akin to "from the environment" .... therefore, not man-made.\n\nEh, as a photographer to clarify a little we'd still call it "ambient" if it's man-made. It just has to be a part of the environment such as the lights that are usually in the ceiling of a building or the street lamps along the road. If you bring a light specifically for the purpose of shooting a portrait or something (or in this case see a "psychic orb" emitting its own light) then we're not talking ambient anymore. 1345139202 > it seems like Neil is making points without backing or research on the subject\n\nThat's what always bothered me about this particular Neil Tyson clip. Just the other day it [was posted to /r/videos](http://www.reddit.com/r/videos/comments/itvtt/neil_tyson_how_to_prove_the_alien_origins_of_a_ufo/) and had received a ton of upvotes. Never once does he reference any historical case data or even hint that there have been some truly unexplained events. But that won't stop non-believers from using the video as a sure-fire way to dismiss UFOs as bunk. It's a shame, really. 1311253038 I'd vote for Joe Biden as Miss Teen USA.\n\nIf I had the opportunity to rig that contest to make Joe Biden win, I would take it. 1354111763 And yet you skeptics refuse to believe in the power of quantum entanglement and hoe it can enrich your lives through its holistically fluctuating energies which are derived from the mapping of holographic bio-field enhancers (using the heisenberg uncertainty principle of course). \n\nWhen will you open your all seeing third eyes!?! 2012 is upon us!!\n\n\n\n...I'm JohnnyMi25 and I approve this message\n\n 1323698349 HOw can you be sure that she is telling you the truth? 1332739633 On the contrary, I think it simplifies the issue. When you say you're an agnostic atheist you're stating you don't know but don't personally believe. That's a clear starting point for further discussion about the nuances in your position. \n\nSimply saying "I'm an agnostic" doesn't really say much about belief and, honestly, it's only now being used by atheists who don't like to call themselves atheists because they think it has negative connotations or (and I see this more often) people who want to feel intellectually superior to both theists and atheists by sitting on the fence pretending there's no dichotomy. 1308115242 Yeah, I seem to remember hearing a talk (maybe from TED) about how being able to cook food really makes us apart from easy classification at all. 1353119485 This. Couldn't have said it better myself so upvote for you my friend. 1326256261 [Watts up with that](http://wattsupwiththat.com/) 1324218219 I'm not sure if they check immunization records as late as high school. To the best of my knowledge, I only heard about our cases. From my diagnosis, and talking to her later - she said she'd gotten it from her younger brother and they thought it was just a really bad cold (sick a few months, etc.). She was from Columbia. I can't speak to their vaccination program, though pertussis is on the list of "routine" boosters/vaccinations to have before traveling there.\n\n 1327448893 No longer available in the UK after they went a little heavy on the [bromate](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dasani#United_Kingdom). 1291359252 People are douchebags on the internet. We call them out. Therefore we are douchebags.\n\nNice logic for someone who calls himself skeptic. 1351184798 I wish I spoke Spanish. The video looks like it could have been faked, but since I couldn't understand anything, I couldn't tell what the source of the video is. Does anyone know? 1355108876 I'm a computer technician, and I assure you that they do not use binary at all. \nWouldn't it be obvious to children if that were the case? 1347580712 >But that rather begets the question, why not just see a physiotherapist, or an MD? \n\nBecause the excess for my chiropractor, who is a qualified physio also, is $10. The excess for my physio is $22. \n\n 1329456727 Thanks for linking to that. I think I understand the concept of stabilization. Correct me if I am wrong but is the idea to erase the shake of the camera operator Maybe I want to believe or something but in this stabilised version he cites the wobbly ufo as evidence of cgi but it looked to me as though the stationary buildings shook also.\n [related The Cure for Fundamentalism: Why the Bible Cannot be the "Word of God"](http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0054H1XJ6?ie=UTF8&tag=polidebanews-20&linkCode=xm2&camp=1789&creativeASIN=B0054H1XJ6). 1309077813 Isn't it usually AFTER you've bought the house do you find out an un natural death has occured? I recently read somewhere that haunted homes sell for much cheaper than otherwise not haunted homes. 1237893758 Why do you oppose that part, given it's talking about drugs? Of which [/r/psychonaut](/r/psychonaut) does. 1324995198 Point being. Case studies have been a great way to develop hypotheses, but are not sufficient in proving or disproving them. experimental procedure is required to support a theory with statistical evidence. 1319768544 What are you, the [reddit police](http://i.imgur.com/N9alv.jpg)? 1302572395 Witnesses describe seeing a column of water under the object which matches [other UFO/water sightings](http://www.waterufo.net/PIufoW.php)\n\nI think most people are capable of identifying fire-fighting helicopters that use [buckets](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:US_Navy_drops_water_from_a_helicopter-borne_firefighting_bucket.jpg) to haul water 1327300226 Mine happens to be Dalmatian. I heard Sharks and Dalmations go together very well, if they respect the differences in needs when it comes to habitat. 1281883952 That one may be BS, but [this one](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A25FRpkbDxU) isn't ;) 1296901871 Most conspiracy theories are not even theories anymore most have been accepted by perpetrators within to a degree where they dont even care what people know. I.e Rokafella,Rothchild, and corporations like Goldmen sachs. i follow information related to conspiritorial matters and ive seen enough to penetrate skepticism towards so called theories(some are i get that). I think if you don't want to believe something or its against your understanding cognitive dissonance seems to come into play. \nIm gunna look into the guy hottel case i didnt even know it had been debunked, cheers for the heads up anyway.\nThis might be well far out for your liking im undeniable a spiritualist,and am very much into jungian Psychology and Stanislav grof's work. Also experiencing hallucinogenics im intuned in transpersonal/religious nature. Anyway i've been reading Ra material Law of one and its been so enlightening and has really made coherent connections/correlations to extra terrestrial presence. Research what the books about and give me your thoughts. 1344109379 I'm losig tem all, oe by oe! elp! 1321285585 Truly amazing 1348714012 Actually, I don't. 1335316408 crop circle is irrelevant. What is up with the FABULOUS PONY in the distance??!? 1340715688 yeah that happend to me with this meteor that came sunday. I dreamt i was somwhere in the mountains with my class, and then there was like an earhquake. i ran outside and the i saw the meteor in the sky!\nI told this story to my Parents before this even happend, and i told them that i think a natural desaster is going to happen. 1335267691 10, 9, 8, 7, ....\n\nNote: You reposted something from FtB, how is that any way controversial or questioning of their beliefs? Atheism+ is an extension of FtB. 1349919056 900 calories is a starvation diet. \n\nThis has to be one of the dumber ideas for losing weight. 1350073334 "Yeah, just shut up and pass it over man" 1326636724 I think I might write it out as sort of an AMA on r/ufos. That way, I can tell my story to the right audience and will [undoubtedly] get much better direct questions. :) I didn't know anyone'd want to hear it. 1318211394 This should be in youtube, anybody seen it?\n\nEdit: I started looking for it, and ended up watching a debate... and I thought I'd be getting some work done today.. sigh 1354031476 If only there existed a Shift key. Think of the uses! 1325765145 So this is the History channel that I hear Americans talking about? 1293928205 I'd upvote ya twice, ya glorious bastard. 1355568776 >Pure ad hom.\n\nNo, it isn't. It is a statement of the fact that I'm *skeptical* about the claim by the Heartland Institute that the document is a fake. Considering they are a mostly a Lobbying/PR outfit (i.e. they are paid to lie), I don't see any reason to believe what they say at face value.\n\n>like the downvote I get every time I see a reply from you\n\nPeople who complain about downvotes are losers. I get downvoted all the time, do you see me complaining about it?\n\nEDIT: just in case that wasn't clear enough, I did just call you a loser. 1329346699 About what specifically? 1320940977 That seemed really fake. 1295714879 As per usual, the comments section take a lot of wind out of your sails. Some people are just too invested in their delusions to be willing to consider that they're wrong. 1331479476 Well, to be honest; it was working better at first. We would go out a lot and share some laughs, there was real intimacy. But, eventually life caught up with us. Swamp gas has children from a previous relationship with Weather balloons so it made my position more difficult in her life. Eventually, we parted ways. I'm starting to see others now. I have a date with No Comment tonight and was talking online with Chinese Lanterns earlier today so fingers crossed. 1342815128 Did the fillings just appear? Most folks get cavities first, then go to the dentist to get the fillings. I think you've found a time and money saving shortcut! 1338780643 I feel it is called magic so that a persons belief can be swayed in a different way. I think that when a young person is shown something, and told that it is magic, that person can hold it close with their true beliefs as something very special.\nTelling a young person that these abilities are really them picking out subtle non verbal clues could perhaps not hold the same special importance in belief structure as "magic".\n 1345000765 I was taught evolution in primary school. And it was in the late 70s\n\nDo they really don't teach it nowadays in the UK? I can believe anything from the US, but, hey, the UK????\n 1314922879 There are [other sources](http://www.touregypt.net/construction/) if you don't like that particular link. [This one](http://www.livescience.com/1554-surprising-truth-great-pyramids-built.html) discusses some evidence that many of the pyramid stones were cast, rather than quarried, which I thought was pretty clever. 1343733225 Go back, get video. 1319457994 Too true, although Phil should have used "Scientists are from Earth, the public is from Uranus." 1319051837 The only thing we really have to go on is his sense of certainty- and he seems VERY certain, although it proves nothing...time can only tell. 1223411123 Explanations and sources are always preferable to statements of opinion.\n\nCare to elaborate? 1312978278 > "The White Sands case had puzzled many skeptics, because\nthe Pentagon had cleared the published report. The author,\nCommander R. B. McLaughlin, was a regular Navy officer. As\na Navy rocket expert, he had been stationed at the White Sands\nRocket Proving Ground in New Mexico. In his published article\nhe described three disk sightings at White Sands.\n\n>One of the disks, a huge elliptical craft, was tracked by scientists\nwith precision instruments at five miles per second. **That’s 18,000\nmiles per hour. It was found to be flying fifty-six miles above\nthe earth.**"\n\nVery eerie stuff indeed. Also, most of the material in the book is quite believable. 1334880203 "Something like 80-90 per cent are people mistaking things like Venus for UFOs."\n\nNote that Venus is now near the Sun and will [transit the 5th of June.](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transit_of_Venus,_2012) 1337587097 Bare trees signify exhaustion/depression. Trees can be indicators of a cycle in your life, like something ending. 1317687140 I'm pissed at this "Quackwatch guy is a quack!"-silliness at a much more basic level: Being biased doesn't make you a quack. Talking half-truths, untruths or just bullshit does.\n\nOr: Being a quack makes you biased, but being biased doesn't make you a quack. 1289846981 >In support of a general disposition towards conspiracist ideation, Douglas and Sutton (2011) showed that **endorsement of conspiracy theories was associated with people's willingness to engage in a conspiracy themselves when deemed necessary** 1355483339 Not necessarily. It may be that helmets increase the severity of torsional injury to the neck, on account of the greater leverage afforded by the thickness of the helmet. It is also possible that a helmet may impair vision or hearing in ways.\n\nI'm not claiming that helmets are definitely bad for you for any of these reasons, but the burden of proof remains on helmet proponents to show that they are definitely good for you. 1318702745 The US also has a higher rate of overweight or obese mothers, which is associated with all kinds of problems during pregnancy and birth. 1297560286 >If you show me any studies suggesting that we can focus on one aspect without any other processes interfering, please let me know.\n\nI am suggesting the opposite. We cannot focus on one sense and disregard other senses. However we can still focus on a certain memory or emotion, even with other processes "interfering". I seriously don't see how is this even an issue for discussion. If you can't even focus on an issue or emotion, how can you do any form of therapy at all. In fact, how do you even manage daily living? \n\nThis is what was taught by the founder of EFT Gary Craig and what I practice for myself and with my clients. You can see it for yourself [here](http://www.wikihow.com/Use-the-Emotional-Freedom-Technique-(EFT). \n\nI am not sure why you are asking for studies that show how a therapeutic technique is carried out. Are there even such studies? \n\n 1343143070 Is /r/skeptic turning into /r/atheism now?\n\nWhat do you want, a pat on the back? A cookie? 1337324355 Pretty much this, its why capitalism works (most of the time) 1336068392 Thanks for the info. I did not know Kombucha was so well endowed with B-12. But being vegan, I usually get my B-12 via supplementation. However, I have also read that B-12 can stay in the body for quite a long time, therefore ones potential for going deficient is less than what they might think. But, I was quite malnourished when I was getting the shots *eating disorder*. 1322971565 This is why we still live in the Dark Ages: the guys that made the original crop circles came forward in 1991 to confess to the world that it was they that constructed the circles. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crop_circle#Creators_of_crop_circles\n\nYet 18 years later people are still in awe of this simple device. \n\nIf volume II of the Bible was ever discovered proving the whole thing to be a good bed-time story, people would still flock to the church on Sunday.\n\nWhat's that expression, 'there's none so blind that refuse to see'.\n\n\n 1246750409 Exactly. I mean, there are chemicals that can kill HIV/AIDS on surfaces, but I don't plan on drinking it if I ever get either. 1354105845 I been wanting to call someone yea. I doubt it was telekinesis. Lol 1333042941 I don't get it. Since when is hitting on a girl in an awkward manner a terrible, horrible, despicable thing to do, akin to attempted rape? \n\nI make awkward passes on a weekly basis. I wish someone would have told me about this earlier. The girls I hit on should also be informed that they're being horribly objectified, and the portion that accept my advances should be shamed for encouraging my objectifying, misogynistic, *predatory* behavior. 1310000361 >No need to apologize, I was looking forward to a point by point reply :)\n>\n>But because of your need to apologize, I'm assuming it might be a reflection on how you think about these long responses so now I feel the need to apologize.. sorry about the length!\n\nAh, I was more concerned about you and other readers (though by now there are probably not many still reading this). Personally, I'm happy with long replies.\n\n>It's true, there are a lot of unknowns, but on the other hand, there is also a lot of data pointing a certain way. And let's not forget the learning experience, it would be a huge opportunity whether it succeeds or not to put some theories (as theoretical as the theory of evolution or gravity) about human behavior to the test.\n\nYep, that was what I meant in my previous reply about an experiment - how do you do an experiment like this? You would need complete buy-in (so to speak) of all the individuals in the experiment area, and also to prevent people from outside the experiment area from taking advantage. So you would need to basically have a large commune to do it, and to prevent selection bias (most of those who take part would already have bought into the system), it would need to be populated by people that already live in the area. And it would need to run for decades. You would also need to have a contingency plan for failure, since you would need to revert to a currency-based economy, and there would no longer be any traditional businesses in the area to employ people, so it would probably take decades just to return it to something like it was previously.\n\nAlso, if it's an experiment of an RBE and not just a sociological experiment, you need to be able to ensure that all the resources you need are in the area - some resources are currently hoarded by certain countries (returning to helium, the US holds the vast majority of the worlds limited resource, and it's required for coolant for things like MRI scanners). Having to ship in resources may upset the economic part of the experiment.\n\nSo, it'd be a very difficult experiment to do, and I'm not sure many leaders will want to risk their political careers to implement it.\n\n>So with that in mind, it's not about if it is possible to turn around people today (though that could work for the most part I assume, and we're already doing this by exposing people to this information) but it's generational thing, the education and environment of the children (think of the children! :)).\n\n:)\n\nYep, I agree - if it works at all, it'd likely take centuries. Not that it's a reason not to do it, I'm sure we both agree that just because you'll never see the pay-off doesn't mean it's not worth doing it for future generations (though not everyone will see it that way).\n\n>I have met a surprisingly growing number of people that tell me that our system will eventually change itself to a RBE, and that there is no real need for what TZM does.\n\nYou mean spontaneously, without anyone actively working towards it? Interesting - how so?\n\n>But to answer more specifically, education can change people so they live a life free of waste (or keep it in mind and motivate them to do something about it) and share resources instead of hoarding them. Education would make it clear to them that it is in their personal interest to behave that way. And what benefits them (a more clean, healthy environment, less crime) benefits others automatically.\n\nYep, education would work to a certain degree, but what we'd need to change is the consumerist attitudes I referred to previously - people would need to be convinced that they don't necessarily need the latest and greatest things, and to use resources responsibly. Would we be able to change attitudes to the extent that, when it comes time for currency to be abolished, there's very few who will act as people generally do now?\n\n> It's all about intelligent management. There are today already alternatives to certain resources, and I don't mean exact replacements, we might have to do with less so we can do more. And I'll exaggerate with my example but you'll get the point, maybe instead of a solid gold chain you could have a gold plated chain (with comparable weight/feel). Not that people would actually want a gold chain in a RBE, this is just an exaggeration :)\n\nWell, I don't have any jewellery at all (I've never seen the point), but yes, I see what you mean :)\n\nBut at the same time, it's hard to tell if alternatives can be found for all the resources we need (as opposed to want) in the future. Different elements and compounds have different properties, and an application may only ever be able to use that particular one - such with MRI scanners, as I mentioned for helium above.\n\n(Yes, helium is scarce, but it's also cheap, so instead of helping to save lives it gets wasted on party balloons, and hardly anyone realises the implications. Sad, isn't it?)\n\nBut anyway, these will run out whether we stick with a CBE or switch to an RBE, as we agreed, so there's little real debate between us here.\n\n>I get this. And I wonder how that experiment would've looked if there was no money involved and equal access. Those are 2 components that have a very big impact on any system. Would it have failed as much? Would it have failed at all? I don't know, but it's food for thought.\n\nGood question, I wonder that myself, and I'm not sure that we can really ever know. But that's not to compare communism and an RBE - they're both socio-economic and political models, but they differ in many ways.\n\n>I agree completely. And you might have already distilled my view on this, it's not because we don't know the outcome beforehand that we shouldn't at least try it. Eyes on the prize, and its a very attractive prize (world peace, comfortable lives, equal opportunities, no slavery (payed/unpayed) or prostitution (of any kind)).\n\nWell, I can't argue that it's a great prize if it works out. But the risks of failure need to be taken into account as well. I'm not so sure that it's as simple as going ahead and trying it, I think we need more evidence of its feasibility and to put measures in place to recover a CBE (in some form) if it fails, before we go ahead and do it.\n\n>Unless it costs more to do a complete recovery :) If you can't make any money by solving the problem, why solve it? That's the profit motive for ya ;)\n\nPoint taken :)\n\nTo be honest, I'm not sure if it's possible to completely recover more (or indeed, all) of the material, not being in that industry.\n\n>True, it might make things more complex if you have to also keep in mind the recycling part of a product. But if we're not living in a system where you only have a certain budget/time (to market, being faster than your competitor) for R&D and need to cut corners to make it, things will look very different.\n\nYes, but what I mean is, while part of the reason things are designed the way they are is because of time and budgeting constraints, part of it is also because they need to be designed that way or they wouldn't work at all. You can design things better to allow more of them to be recycled, but there's a limit.\n\n>Also, in a RBE, collaboration would be to the benefit of this facet of product design. Instead of having thousands of different corporations with their own R&D and patents, having a world collaboration of all those minds.. imagine the possibilities, it's easy to see the potential benefit(s) in this.. like for example the learning opportunities!\n\nTrue, collaboration would be beneficial, and it would be good not to have to worry about who's going to rip off your IP (as a creator of IP, I'd *really* like that). But we need to be careful not to let that thought blind us - we'd need to consider everything before steaming ahead. 1317844853 But make sure to dilute the medicine down to 1 part per 1,000,000 kibbles. 1272237489 Morpheus....is that you? 1343217621 Apparently in order for you to take my objections seriously here, I'm going to have read *Discourse* to see for myself what the difference between that and *Meditations* is.\n\nBut Meditations is still very much one of Descartes' influential works, and it still very much reflects what his philosophy his. And in *Meditations,* he **does** argue for the existence of God using ontological arguments, and he **does** claim that the existence of God is the way that we can consider reality to be true and break free from the Skeptical position. You cannot separate the views expressed in *Meditations* from the views expressed in *Discourse* that easily.\n\nYou do realize that Empiricism is considered to be one of the philosophical underpinnings of the scientific method, right?\n\nAnd your claim about the universe is that it is impossible to create something without external rules is why that video is a sufficient rebuttal: because it provides a possible explanation for how the universe could have come about from nothing, without requiring external rules to create it.\n\nYour claim was that it is impossible, the video refutes that. The fact that it ends with an admission of not knowing is irrelevant, because of course we don't know for certain. We can't know for certain. But mathematically and physically, there is no reason it is not impossible.\n\n(Of course, I've failed to mention so far the obvious ludicrousness of the universe requiring something to be exist first in order for the universe to have been created. What created the previously existing thing? What created whatever created that? And so on up to infinity. Eventually you have to reach something that was not created, or you have an infinite chain of creation that itself was not created by anything. In either case, why assume that our universe was created, instead of being something which did not require creation?) 1355430952 Anything anyone has to say about deciphering an alien language is going to be pure speculation. I just don't subscribe to a Star Trek-style anthropocentric notion of alien species and languages. 1346569424 The obnoxious behaviors we associate with A+ existed before A+ formally assembled. The Skepchick community has been rife with it for a long time. The reason some people, who could rightfully be called bullies (or just dicks) have been picking on "Surly Amy" is because of these behaviors.\n\nYay, Amy has worked to send people to TAM in the past. That is great, but that doesn't make her immune from criticism. FFS, the cliquey Skepchick crowd has been saying awful things about the "old white men" that have worked their asses off for decades, but as soon as someone hurts one of their little feelings by criticizing their tendency to act like victims, they go down like a Brazilian soccer player. It's just more of this deplorable shit:\nhttp://puu.sh/148rI\n\nI haven't heard anyone say that they don't want people from all areas of the spectrum to take part in the atheist community. What people are decrying is that this sub-set seems more interested in establishing themselves as victims first, and demanding up front that they be treated as a protected class. It's fucking obnoxious. When Eugenie Scott goes up on stage and presents, I do not have any thoughts about her gender. At all. It only became an issue in my head when Rebecca Watson started issuing Fatwas against casual flirting because she was personally tired of the attention she had been getting - attention which she had in the past appeared to take in stride and even enjoy.\n\nOh, there I go again, "blaming the victim". 1347379367 Love the ICP fallacy. \n\nFucking magnets, how do they work? 1327310848 > you do realise that the video provides proof that chi exists\n\nAre you trolling or just plain dumb? 1281190742 Not really, but good point, whatever floats your boat and all that. 1320548251 You don't have shit. You have skewed studies that show a slanted, national propagandized study. For example, the Japanese study on mmr and autism is bunk because the Japanese heavily "urge" other vaccinations prior to mmr. The danish study is also similarly skewed. You people are so stupid, and your methods of propaganda are getting old. You use the same bullshit chopped-and-diced crap as the "omg, the arctic ice shelf is melting!!111one" and leave off the images of the arctic ice shelf growing. Of course, the stupid sheeple-zombies that don't know shit freak out and want everyone to engage in a carbon tax-and-trade system. 1283193658 Jesus christ, try to control your temper. It's hard to focus on what you're saying when you snap like an angry child. 1314224015 Not only Russia, my sister heard it in Rio de Janeiro, the thing with these sounds is that it is really easy to just ignore and keep watching tv. 1323423510 Although there does seem to be [a pleasant rumbling...](https://secure.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/wiki/Boobquake) 1305098063 You really don't have to worry.\n\n1. You are likely young and your body will survive just fine eating half the calories (or less) than the average American eats. In fact there is evidence that calorie restricted diets can help prolong life.\n\n2. You would be hard pressed to give yourself a vitamin deficiency unless you are literally starving. There is free basic food everywhere. \n\n3. Human beings have lived 100,000 years on diets FAR FAR FAR worse then anything you might have to expereince.\n\n4. So cheer up, loose some weight and save some money. My expereince is that reducing your calories is a good thing. 1329342349 If go to your local park, the nearest forest, etc, you will probably find that 80-90% of all the plants you see are non-native. The natural balance has already been greatly disturbed by the introduction of invasive species, and bad land management. It's great that you want to help restore some sort of natural balance to the ecosystem, but GMO crops have virtually no impact on that. 1345076489 No, I think this one was shorthand for the ascii-picard. 1339598896 thanks. Most excellent.\n\nWhere did you find this?\n\ntoo much UFO stuff are things that go away when you have quality photography, data, etc. 1309530764 Thanks for the advice. I've heard some debates over tape recorders vs digital recorders and was wondering if one is better than the other. 1340480959 I can't help but wonder if the patients in the study thought the researchers were lying to them. Scientific studies have a history of deception that even most laymen are aware of. So I don't think the people in the study were 100% sure it was a placebo. I don't know how I would control for that though. It would have been interesting to compare the effects of knowing it was a placebo versus not knowing.\n\nAlso,\n\n>Nope, it still works.\n\nFrom the actual study:\n\n>Conclusion\n\n>Placebos administered without deception may be an effective treatment for IBS. Further research is warranted in IBS, and perhaps other conditions, to elucidate whether physicians can benefit patients using placebos consistent with informed consent.\n\nNot as unequivocal. There were only 80 patients, after all. I'm going to remain skeptical of this claim for now. 1344041590 Interesting... I'm a huge fan of the SGU but I really can't say the same about This American Life... I still subscribe to it but find that many stories don't interest me. Another podcast in a similar vein that I find much more appealing than TAL is the Radiolab podcast. 1288051935 Just a quick search, all of [these planes](http://911research.wtc7.net/pentagon/analysis/compare/jetcrashdebris.html) were almost completely incinerated. 1304499425 This is a proper glitch story. None of this ghost shit that should be in /r/thetruthishere 1335750277 Interesting. I am quite certain this is man mand however as it has two flashing lights on either side, like all man-made aircraft. This is to help determine if it is coming towards you, or moving away, depending on the orientation of the lights.\n\nEDIT: Nice catch IntimateShine. 1323796596 Yes, it is true that placebos vary in efficacy based on a large number of variables (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Placebo#Expectancy_and_conditioning). That, however, does *not* mean that acupuncture is anything more than a placebo, which is what you were arguing above. Sham acupuncture (both with needles in the "wrong" points, and with fake needles in the right ones) works just as well as "real" acupuncture. 1326058280 And your point is... what? [An organic pheromone-based pest management system](http://extension.psu.edu/ipm/resources/nrcs/programs/conventreefruit/pheromonemating/at_download/file) doesn't pollute groundwater and, more importantly, is [pest-selective.](http://www.independent.co.uk/environment/nature/pesticides-blamed-for-bee-decline-6296322.html) Many organic farmers prefer to use trap systems, while others use rotational planting and [intercropping.](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intercropping) You're eager to criticize organic farming, but you haven't bothered to substantiate anything you've said. You don't seem to know much about organic farming. 1338697390 Well, I for one love and embrace science. Anyone with a sense of wonder should realize that science is one of the greatest developments of our species. Technology allows us to grapple with our environment, but science allows us to broaden the scope of our awareness, allowing us to create new technologies. \n\nTo discredit it because it doesn't play nice with our worldview is to stagnate intellectually. \n\nBut by the same token, when people begin to treat science as ideology - another world-view - they tend to defend it with the same vehemence that others defend religious beliefs. The scientific consensus becomes irrefutable fact, holy writ. \n\nIn reality, you look at even our most fundamental theories like the Big Bang, and a lot of what we know is based on conjecture. There's a plethora of observable evidence that directly contradicts the big bang, though it remains our best explanation for how the universe came to be. Theories like Inflation arise to answer some of these anomalies, but there's not mechanical explanation for why the universe would suddenly expand more rapidly and then slow again - all we know is that for the big bang to have produced the universe we see, it must have happened. \n\nThe point is, science is in flux. It's constantly open to re-interpretation, and that's a good thing. It means the more we learn, the more opportunities we have to learn. 1353780271 I always thought of vampires as a way for early society to find a way to explain sex offenders and molesters without delving into to the ugliness of reality.\n\n 1352406777 fake or not we aren't the only intelligent beings in the universe. 1341421226 I still have a hard time believing "most American atheists" could be considered to be skeptics. Atheism by itself is not entirely incompatible with irrationality. 1313096903 lmao.. so lame I just had to upvote you 1290167217 How far away did she live? I used to use my portable phone in middle school to listen in on neighbors' conversations. I had it down to a science. \n\nIf she lived within a two block radius or so, it's plausible that you were just communicating over the air and not via a telephone signal. Of course, this isn't at all likely -- unless you were BOTH on 49 MHz phones that were tuned to the exact same channel. 1327250559 No correct answer ... vote for the folks you really like 1308761905 Wow that's an amazing experience! I've had a few of my own, more than enough to make me believe that they do exist. 1334794961 Can't wait for another 4 years of war escalation, evisceration of civil and human rights, torture, and indefinite detention without trial. 1313890668 You make a valid point, but they also make no claims of "absolute fact". They more or less parrot the information in the linked article, to boot. I'll also point out that I didn't upvote them, whereas I downvoted nmoline (and thus tried to provide an explanation for my downvote).\n\n[Here's a comment that I did upvote.](http://www.reddit.com/r/skeptic/comments/ywf37/the_american_academy_of_pediatrics_today_reversed/c5zfm4n) 1346076625 What did it look like outside of the window? \n\nLooked like a reflection to me... 1318611663 Wow, I didn't realize my discussion with you was hostile? I was just discussing. I'm sorry if the way I came across in text seemed angry or argumentative.\n\nI have nearly three years of study in psychology and sociology. I'm not by any means an expert, but I *have* looked at the literature. This Münchausen by Internet is, in fact, a disorder, just as the other disorders I've mentioned. Yes, they are faking various illnesses, for reasons such as getting attention or sympathy. That is, in itself, a psychological disorder. So no, I'm not wrong. A person who functions "normally" in society does NOT create illnesses - a person who has a psychological problem does. Münchausen and Münchausen by Proxy are both also disorders. If you looked at the literature regarding Münchausen itself, and related issues, you'd have seen that.\n\nSorry for engaging in discussion with you. 1337859538 Rebuttal's fine. Being a dick wasn't necessary. 1326711528 Ifeelyahbro.jpg 1328451974 Can someone please amuse me as to what the point of this post is? 1355339321 someone should post those clowns the mexican military footage with the infrared formation 1342674275 I'm a vegan who knows many people in the AR community in my hometown. It scares me how intertwined animal rights and pseudoscience are. It's taboo and off-limits to question any tenet of the dogma, be it health, animal testing, organic foods etc.\n 1287245025 Chhattisgarh has a population of 20.7 million people. I would argue that two children an one innocent adult murdered for no reasons is in par with statistics of any more educated area of similar population. Basically those people are serial killer psychopaths and just use their belief for justification. \n\nThen I read this in Wikipedia:\n\n> ... in recent years, 2,500 women accused of witchcraft were murdered by stoning, hanging and beheading by neighbours. \n\n:-( 1325498087 boo hoo 1335848883 I'm not sure what is going to happen on 12/21/2012, but it inspired this 30 second [youtube video](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ak_ollSPaZM) 1354585111 If I had a shit-ton of money, what I would do is make a camera especially for UFO's. Here's how it would work.\n\nUser would set up the camera on a tripod. Camera would have a computer in it, or maybe an Android device, Raspberry Pi -- whatever. You'd point the camera in the general direction and the computer would try to target that. A laser would help it target, and would also try to determine distance. (I guess it would need *two* lasers then).\n\nThe camera would have infrared, and be very light-sensitive. I don't know much about cameras, but that's what I would do. \n\nYour video is not nearly as bad as you think it is. I can stabilize it, but I'll need a few hours. If I have to do any real work today, it will wait till the weekend. 1352381297 Oh, wow. 1347379511 That's pretty sweet. I'd be a proud dad if my kid did that. 1312411149 I'm going to make a similar movie about how the world actually works. How we're all stuck at work watching these entertaining things that aren't actually true and how we're getting old and eventually dying in front of the tv. 1337632322 Wait, you have had experience with ghosts and supernatural entities and then became an atheist??? 1336119799 Yeah, that's true too. I was watching *Ascent of Man* and there's a whole episode basically dedicated to the serrated scythe. Though I guess that's confounding manufacturing and agriculture. Seems they're intertwined in ways that should be "worshipped" too, :P 1314553546 I'm a big fan of the series, but I haven't watched the new season due to the cast being swapped. 1356882921 That question is equivalent to asking if a homosexual is "incurable". It is very unlikely that you will be changing anyone's sexual inclinations, but people are quite capable of not acting on them. Also, as a politically correct disclaimer, no offense was meant in the comparison. 1328828775 1. Why does government have to spend money? Why can't we just let people spend money on what they want to buy? There is no reason why the govt needs to invest in R&D, companies are already free to research new technologies. If they lack the capital, they can go to banks, investment firms or companies that would be interested in a partnership etc and apply for a loan or some other agreement to develop their technology. This ensures that the loans are only given out to people and ideas with potential and if it fails it's their loss, not the government's loss. My argument is that millions of brains of private people and companies are better at reading the market and producing what people want than the government, to argue otherwise is to suggest that central planning (aka socialism) is the ideal.\n\n2. Yep! The US Dollar is currently the reserve currency which is a huge benefit and arguably will not last. Watch the US's credit rating drop as the world realises that the US cannot pay their debts just like Greece.\n\n3. Got anything to back this up? Any tax given back can be used for people to get out of debt or spend buying things. Why is that a bad investment?\n\n4. Yes they are. You think if we imposed a tax on say all fast food, that the fast food restaurants will just shrug and let the tax eat into the entirety of their profits? You would see a number of different things. A) Fast food places putting their prices up to cover the extra cost. B) Fast food places reducing the quality of their food even further to cut costs. C) Fast food places shutting down because they can't turn a profit anymore, why bother operating?\nThis is just an hypothetical example but you can see how it would increase the price of burgers, make them crappier and also reduce the availability of them. Directly influencing consumers.\nA increase in corporate taxes would have the same effect over the entire country, it's just much more transparent. 1351982574 Decapitation would reduce the incidence of brain cancer to zero. 1330723423 Your delusional consistency is remarkable. 1290774039 I missed this post! Yayyyy for internet. I love Tim Minchin. <3 Saw him here in Portland, and he was *just* as amazing in person as he is .. everywhere else. I got to hug him. ;;\n\nFangirl mode OFF! :) 1322125303 You actually may have to be born in the United States. There's no clear case law on it, but:\n\nYou must be natural born, not naturalized. According to the US DoS Foreign Affairs Manual (7 FAM 1113, ACQUISITION OF U.S.\nCITIZENSHIP BY BIRTH), definitions\n\n>Naturalization is “the conferring of nationality of a state upon a person after birth, by any means whatsoever” (Section 101(a)(23) INA) or conferring of citizenship upon a\nperson (Sections 310 and 311 INA). Naturalization can be granted automatically or\npursuant to an application.\n\nNow, those born on American soil (7 FAM 1114, ):\n\n>a. Until 1866, the citizenship status of persons born in the United States was not\ndefined in the Constitution or in any federal statute. Under the common law rule of jus soli--\nthe law of the soil-persons born in the United States generally acquired U.S. citizenship at\nbirth [see section 7 FAM 1116.1-1 ]. ...\n\n> b. This rule was made part of the Civil Rights Act of April 9, 1866 (14 Stat. 27) and, 2 years later, it was adopted as part of the 14th Amendment to the Constitution.\n\nAcquire citizenship _at birth_, and are therefore natural born.\n\nOn the other hand (7 FAM 1111.2, Citizenship):\n\n>(2) Jus sanguinis (the law of the bloodline ), a concept of Roman or civil law under\nwhich a person’s citizenship is determined by the citizenship of one or both parents. This\nrule, frequently called “citizenship by descent” or “derivative citizenship”, is not embodied in\nthe U.S. Constitution, but such citizenship is granted through statute. As laws have\nchanged, the requirements for conferring and retaining derivative citizenship have also\nchanged.\n\nPeople who are born to American parents are _not_ citizens at birth (unless also born on American soil), and are therefore granted citizenship status statutorily. If we apply this to our definition of naturalization above, then it's _possible_ that people who are citizens solely by virtue of blood may be considered naturalized.\n\nThis is further backed up by ACQUISITION OF U.S. CITIZENSHIP BY\nBIRTH ABROAD TO U.S. CITIZEN PARENT (7 FAM 1131.6-2 Eligibility for Presidency):\n\n>a. It has never been determined definitively by a court whether a person\nwho acquired U.S. citizenship by birth abroad to U.S. citizens is a naturalborn\ncitizen within the meaning of Article II of the Constitution and,\ntherefore, eligible for the Presidency. 1306522883 I didn't ask for any. 1349643603 > This demonstrates a lack of understanding of the fact that chiropractors utilise a range of treatments, including postural advice, reassurance and exercise.\n\nSo, in addition to giving people massages, you tell them to sit upright and get some exercise? Why do I need a chiropractor for that? \n\n> This overlooks the fact that many accepted medical interventions have little or no research evidence to support them.\n\nWTF? Name them. If they are "medical treatments" they need to be tested also. 1245195438 or so help me.... 1326566062 You constant reliance on a meaningless appeal-to-authority, arrogance, and pretense of some sort of 'special knowledge' indicates **you are immune to logic**. Especially when you rely on logical fallacies.\n\nUnfortunately, your faith is so deeply ingrained that anything that counters it will be taken as proof that you somehow know more or know better. Like it's some sort of mystical knowledge. It isn't. 1287016731 As a Swiss, I feel offended.\n\nHah. 1329509893 You are looking at it from a 3rd dimensional bias. If you train your mind to see it it from the 6th, you'll realize this is actually a stairway that you are looking up at as it reaches up into the distance. You have to climb up it. 1346433795 Awesome quote, "Craig Eversley, a quantum physicist at Berkley commented that he would rather fall down the stairs and crack his head open on a rock than read Deepak Chopra’s latest book, because “It would be less embarassing if someone saw me doing it.""\n\nI'm definitely using that one in the future. 1292457374 "Meat tastes Great, Cows are stupid."-Heard that a few too many times. \n 1340753699 > Perhaps the video in question itself sources legit info. Does the PDF give specific citations?\n\nNo it does not. It says things like "according to the UN" and "according to the MPAA" with no specifics or references section. \n\n> Ad hominem?\n\nMy comment is to do with the vagueness and utter uselessness of citing YouTube as a source, they may have well cited "The Internet" 1328118858 Thank you.\n\n>I recommend reading Carl Sagan's Demon Haunted World\n\nBeautiful book. 1343926945 That the universe must surely be finite in expanse. I *know* everything we have points to it being infinite, but my mind does not want to believe it. 1307110504 Magnets. Same old shit, different brown bag. 1273656281 How does it work? 1339808849 65% is still too low to me. 1351802629 MLK didn't talk about tolerance. I'm pretty sure he never mentioned it once. He fought for equality, respect, and fairness in the treatment of all races and peoples. Tolerance is a petty thing compared to all that. 1307817188 The exact same thing has happened to me my whole life. 1328677850 They aren't. There has been no MSRA that's been documented that's started in livestock. Countries that have experimented with limiting antibiotics given to livestock (like Denmark) have not seen reductions in the spread of MSRA. 1347162542 So you're saying that people using it as a term for a severe smashing of the other contributes to people actually raping each other? Bullshit. That's the kind of post-modernist nonsense that really boils my blood. It says, you cannot use this word colorfully or in this context because another meaning of the word is this over here - and that meaning is horrible and shows an ugly side of humanity. 1351172740 What makes you think so? 1350549963 What makes you think so? 1267878550 tweet tweet!\n 1340860187 It seems to be doing fairly well here, but I reposted this again. 1302577828 I remember it wasn't a very common name, it very may have possibly been the coincidence of a lifetime though. Still doesn't explain them using the same phone number and order. 1356930644 http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/ana.21743/full\n\nhttp://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/mus.21533/abstract\n\nhttp://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/mus.21521/abstract\n\nTry using Google scholar next time\n\nhttp://scholar.google.com.au/scholar?hl=en&q=Dr+Steven+Novella&as_sdt=1%2C5&as_ylo=2007&as_vis=0\n\nIt looks like he has been co-author on heaps of stuff which I would expect. Very few people release work in just their own names in modern academia. Especially not something as complex and cooperative as medicine. \n\n*edit - oh.. and excellent taste in podcast you show there. ;)\n\nBut yeah.. leaning to do a good search for academic papers can be tricky. You might also try pub-med\n\nhttp://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed\n\njust type his name in the search field and a couple variations on it. Eg: Steven Novella, S Novella, etc... I get a whole page of publications like that. 1294878129 Now THIS is a good idea. :D Haha! 1269152717 "In every country and every age, the priest has been hostile to liberty. He is always in alliance with the despot.... they have perverted the purest religion ever preached to man into mystery and jargon, unintelligible to all mankind, and therefore the safer for their purposes."\n— Thomas Jefferson 1344552747 Well, the Catholics have no official problem with evolution. The Catholic Church does a lot of good science and history research. I don't like the Catholics totally (especially since they denied the whole "we have guys who touch the little boys" thing for so god-damned long)..... But I have a lot of respect for some aspects of the Catholic Church. Some aspects. 1296220437 I feel that way right now. I have been joking about the whole alien thing but now...now this is the coolest fucking thing EVER! 1291273673 If its thinning your worried about, another thing to focus on is the tightness of your scalp... You should be able to move it around quiet easily... If the skin gets too tights it constricts blood flow and the follicles start to die out. So while you have hair scalp massages are a good idea... Your stylist may have mentioned minerals because of the condition of your hair... Hard water and soft water can dry hair out if your not balancing the PH levels with good shampoo and conditioner. It's a tricky thing that thinning hair... I wish you luck!! 1354164616 Please see my posts at\n\nhttp://www.reddit.com/r/skeptic/comments/r6iwk/remember_how_yesterday_i_was_very_skeptic_at_the/c43fet0 1332356748 Ha they conspired to turn it over to the town so they would not pay the real estate taxes of about 25K per year:) 1344029011 Well, give us some credit; the lemurs don't do the logging themselves. \n\nI think you have to consider that an alien race would have multiple interests. So, saying they have an interest in us or an interest in some material, they don't have to be mutually exclusive. You have to be practical and consider, though, that even an advanced alien race is probably still governed by basic economic needs. Gold, or whatever other material, might be in scarce supply throughout the universe. It would thus influence where you decided to set up a colony or puppet species/government. \n\nExample: the United States has multiple interests, one of which is humanitarian aid and development. But above all, there is economics. And so while various countries around the world are suffering from civil war, starvation, genocide and the like, chances are the US usually only intervenes in those that pose a threat to our economic stability (read: have lots of oil).\n\nInterestingly enough, the gold harvesting theories could explain why contact has been minimal. Aside from the natural concerns of not wanting to destroy human culture and delusions of free will, the aliens would also not want to reveal their *needs*. If we knew they wanted/needed material goods from us, we'd have a strategic leverage point against them.\n\nWhy pay for the cow when you can mutilate it for free? 1305932325 Not so true: http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xex9wu_the-placebo-effect-knee-surgery_tech 1333491638 > Kinesio tape is different, he says, because *it lifts the skin* to assist this lymphatic flow, which, in turn, reduces pain and swelling.\n\nCall me a stupid, reductionist, mechanistic physicist who knows nothing about medicine - but how can something that sits *on* the skin at the same time *lift* the skin? 1341313607 I don't feel that "footprints, his alleged bed and possible hair samples" should be considered indisputable proof or a confirmation of existence. 1318262301 Someone taking me to the airport and showing me the spraying equipment built into/on a commercial airplane. And the holding tanks of the millions of gallons of "chem" agent. 1329931824 Haha I mean no one knows that I feel bad. 1353439899 I have to disagree in this case. His subtle mannerisms give it away. He struggles with the story and then catches himself, gets back into character, makes a remark, and then back with unconfident struggle of lying. Another tell is how he keeps trying to sway from the story and looks uncomfortable and gets back into his computer. Compare this with all the other rehearsed and delusional stuff he says, and its clear 1346905021 My doctor asks what I've been eating every time I go to him. 1335662184 Guess he should blame god for all his outs.\n\n Can’t we silence these Christian athletes who thank Jesus whenever they win and never mention his name when\n they lose? You never hear them say, “Jesus made me drop the ball” or, “The Lord tripped me up behind\n the line of scrimmage.”\n -George Carlin 1312341028 You can't throw people away for the rest of their lives for murder unless they actually had malice and wanted to kill the child. Justice has to be measured and appropriate. If you have a justice system where your own personal pet peves are punished worse than other forms of manslaughter, then you'd have an unfair system indeed. \n\nBasically, wanting them to suffer worse punishment for manslaughter because you personally hate *their* reason more than other reasons is the same as people who also want *their* own personal vendettas carried out through the justice system. It's the same path that racists and religious fundamentalists take. What would be the difference between *your* religiously-based punishment and *their* religiously-based punishment? No, how about we instead punish people for the crimes that they actually commit? This couple committed manslaughter, and they are being punished for that crime.\n\nThese are the facts: their negligence criminally caused the death of their child. They didn't have malicious intent, and their culpability didn't meet the criteria of a worse or lighter charge than manslaughter.\n\nI'm really glad that the general sentiment in the comments here seems to completely disagree with you. It's a good thing that your "they should suffer worse because their religion is dumb" idea isn't popular. If you want to promote skepticism in the world, please do it through the marketplace of ideas, and not by demanding blood. Thanks. 1320342161 It's more of the same. That stuff is called "Spidertech" which is a company that does nothing but manufacturer the stuff 'pre-cut' for easy application. \n\nIt's amazing to me the amount of woo in the olympics. I've seen this silly tape as well as cupping and such. Why does anyone buy into this BS? 1344005785 Hah, amazing. Love Steven Fry and just starting watching this a couple weeks ago. Currently part way into season 3. 1292093183 >5. Only the top students should consider becoming math and science teachers. No C students allowed.\n\nConsider who the best coaches are in most sports. They were not the star players. In baseball, for example, the best coaches have been career minor league catchers and the like. 1340364123 >Obviously if we didn't feel it was necessary we wouldn't believe such experiments were morally justified anymore.\n\nRight. You wouldn't get a pointless experiment approved by an ethics board. 1343178265 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ty33v7UYYbw 1285263033 Determinism has already been shown to be defective in areas of quantum mechanics, so it's not an absolute. (Not getting into woo here, just pointing out that determinism is not absolute. We all know quantum effects don't directly apply to the macro level.)\n\nWhen you consider chaotic systems, which, unlike quantum effects, *do* directly apply to the macro world that we're all aware of, it is readily apparent that completely accurate predictions of behavior depend upon the ability to measure values with infinite precision, which is not possible. Because of this, I would argue that determinism is not absolute at the macro level either. Lacking the ability to measure with infinite precision, we will never be able to completely predict behavior. This makes the reality of the situation approximate free will. I would argue that it's indistinguishable from free will, and in fact equal to free will in the same way that 0.9999... == 1.\n\nBecause we *appear* to have free will, I argue that the assertion that we do have free will should be the null hypothesis. I believe that the burden of proof is on the determinists in this case, which so far remains unmet. Every argument I've really heard from them is based on the assumption that determinism is absolute, and we already know it isn't. 1264254994 Not even that it can be used for power, but what it is in general.\n\nI actually don't think most people would know that it's an element on the periodic table. 1337328793 My room is not far from where she left I could here it shut. 1337265148 >I am not trying to portray hard evidence.\n\nThis is *exactly what I take issue with.* You're throwing someone under the bus because you have a feeling about something with shitty evidence at best to support it, and you're doing this on a *skeptic* board, a community that's ostensibly devoted to evidence-based decision making. 1355520590 Haha exactly XD. 1346529462 I've seen personally the strong libertarian bias.\n\nIn any case, rationally, the amount of time someone put into something is an incredibly weak argument if it is an argument at all. It only weakly excludes the middle between 'something worth that time' and 'utter bullshit'. How's about results? edit: actually, can you just link a few works on rationality that you consider good. E.g. you mentioned formalizing rationality. Can you link any formalisms?\n\nA year or so back their site used to boast that they are applying insane amount of science, which was fairly hilarious but I see that they removed the obviously childish bits. 1347120482 >The Psychic Twits\n\n 1352260429 This is the thing that bothers me. The FEMA camp and the martial law. My dad feeds into that crap a little bit but he doesn't even realize Alex Has been saying this crap for 20 years and it's never happened. He only heard about Gw Bush and now Obama. I always say they were wrong about Bush declaring martial law and killing everyone they are wrong about Obama. But he is convinced! 1337178437 I think that's what he wanted you to say first. 1319188201 I'll file this under: Conspiracy Theories I don't need to care about. 1340866710 I'm just wondering if you have an article that is more current than 3 years ago. Are they solving the problem or is the problem getting worse?\n\nBut I guess being inquisitive is a bad thing on a forum for skeptics. 1333642853 She has looked at things I'm sure. 1323826112 Yeah but aliens so there 1330446758 **B** Warning: Midnight Meat Train movie spoilers inside.\n\n!!\n\nOh shit. I just read the [Wikipedia on Midnight Meat Train](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Midnight_Meat_Train).\n\nDamn. That is a pretty damn cool twist, man. I gotta say I kind've didn't really expect to see that coming.\n\nPretty darn cool.\n\nOkay, now that being said, I will still say that THIS particular scenario, I wouldn't necessarily say is one to "fear".\n\nThis is the deal: Reptillians are said to be the *original* terrans. They are said to call us humans THE ALIENS because they say they were here first and we are "newcomer babies" to this planet.\n\nThere is actually a bit of data on Repitillian information, not the least of which deal with the things that the African Shaman Credo Mutwa explains in detail. Yeah. For the most part, reptillians do pretty much seem to suck.\n\nBut, you know what? WE suck. We human beings are sucky, shitty, ignorant assholes. I mean why is it exactly that we say and feel Reptillians suck and are mean and scary? It's because they treat us like we treat COWS. So what's the big fucking deal then? What's going on here is that we're getting the kind of treatment that we give untold MILLIONS of animals every year.\n\nHonestly I'd say serves us right.\n\nWe need to get our act straight. If we figure our shit out, emotionally, intellectually, spiritually, etc, then we won't have much to fear. We would really be growing far past all this Reptillian stuff, etc. I don't feel there's much to fear even if Reptillians ARE real and they ARE using human beings as a food source like we use cows.\n\nWe are not our bodies. We are not human beings. We are spiritual identities that happen to be taking human physical shapes to manifest on this planet.\n\nWe need to focus and work from *that* place, and if we do, we will concentrate more on tending to and developing THAT true self - the spiritual self that is not dependent upon the physical body or organism.\n\nWhen one begins to understand this kind of reality and works toward focusing there, then the whole Reptillian thing - although I admit it can be pretty disconcerting (even if fake, to say nothing about how downright harrowing it would be if it is REAL) - is *still* nothing to ultimately fear in and of itself.\n\nIt is an obstacle to work and develope *through* - not something to fear and keep you from growing and moving forward. 1339442813 i think the most obvious thing is that in the picture you can clearly see how dry the soil is in the dead plant. they just didn't water it. 1335415256 Oh man... That song in the link... so great. Hilarious. 1323998287 True, I guess I tend to group sugar pills with homeopathy 1332626835 In [this book](http://www.amazon.ca/Trick-Treatment-Alternative-Medicine-Trial/dp/0593059042). 1333905157 Imagine the fun I've had since I realized I'm an Ophiucus. :) 1319354316 Please post the original pictures if you wish to disprove the people saying it's on. You will be able to tell if anyones watching. 1341634514 Since when were chemical engineers more reliable at history then historians? That's like grabbing a Psychologist and say "see he thinks global warming is false." 1356449108 More likely fake than not. 1320947744 Good point Meg... The new book written to aid the PTSD population of our military should be written by some rational person without the need to push a dogma and fear on the already burdened minds of these brave men and women! \n\nCan we start a petition with a selection of potential authors and have people toss it about, for the military to digest? Perhaps contacting some noteworthy authors in the field and asking them to write about this topic to aid in recovery...? 1313693783 Makes sense to me. Thanks! 1328279938 Has this been reported on by any news agency that doesn't lead with Amy Winehouse? 1311476785 I don't get it. Why isn't the facilitator going to jail for making false rape claims? 1294997163 This show is also one that got me into the paranormal. This and the X-files back in the day... 1354593830 Asimov, Clarke, Sagan, and now Martin Gardner. He was one of the giants. \n 1275148574 Wings are generally not as solid and reflective (translucent) as the body. 1355029485 i just came here to say that your choice of font sucks. 1330557379 I know bugs and most bugs don't fly like someone flicked them into the air. Though in some spots i see how it could look clearly like a horse fly. The only thing I wonder is the smoke and fire bursts the hairy man points out. There is not enough evidence here to say this is a UFO and the area looks much to populated that something like a UFO in the sky would go unnoticed by everyone else. I'm for the theory of incredibly small aliens drinking and driving. 1353370403 The Sagan will be with you... *always*. 1285161072 I got it out of a book, so I unfortunately assumed it was his original. If it is that guys then I wasn't aware he was being quoted. \n\nNot that two people can't come up with the same simple statement though.\n\n\nEdit: Also, the exact quote seems to be in contention for him. "Faith is a wonderful thing, but doubt gets you an education." Anyways, I'm just nitpicking.\n 1285550930 That was kind of my point when I said this:\n\n> If you're implying that they don't prescribe steroids during some cancer treatments, you're incorrect.\n 1329936540 The fact that the church is using a fake miracle to make money. It should be exposed, those giving are probably the least able to afford a donation. He is exposing an outright fraud. 1334239665 Thanks! 1268416282 Thanks! 1308769384 Thanks! 1311619946 Thanks! 1311976455 Thanks! 1326755492 Thanks! 1329498915 Thanks! 1329705754 Thanks! 1329920328 Thanks! 1330785249 Thanks! 1331479414 Thanks! 1332870914 Thanks! 1333306508 Thanks! 1334641014 Thanks! 1335717377 Thanks! 1337912238 Thanks! 1338148381 Thanks! 1340263152 Thanks! 1341058741 Thanks! 1343466874 Thanks! 1343594869 Thanks! 1344899228 Thanks! 1348805374 Thanks! 1349462984 Thanks! 1351781101 Thanks! 1352579705 Thanks! 1352826770 Thanks! 1352937377 Thanks! 1354110517 Thanks! 1354408855 Thanks! 1356330433 Thanks! 1273764670 Thanks! 1274645896 Thanks! 1281448272 Thanks! 1288147806 Thanks! 1288992468 Thanks! 1289355570 Thanks! 1289840230 Thanks! 1295300651 Thanks! 1297762795 Thanks! 1303882746 Thanks! 1304733778 Thanks! 1309480318 Thanks! 1309912843 Thanks! 1310085539 Thanks! 1311957538 Thanks! 1312744547 Thanks! 1316099089 Thanks! 1316140039 Thanks! 1316595630 Thanks! 1316805611 Thanks! 1317317368 Thanks! 1317662202 Thanks! 1319058646 Thanks! 1319935288 Thanks! 1324493092 Thanks! 1324941414 Thanks! 1325715063 Thanks! 1330864173 Thanks! 1331078244 Thanks! 1331951789 Thanks! 1332514811 Thanks! 1332637080 Thanks! 1333010315 Thanks! 1333943904 Thanks! 1337793771 Thanks! 1339518160 Thanks! 1342727138 Thanks! 1343467398 Thanks! 1347135530 Thanks! 1347319277 Thanks! 1348600831 Thanks! 1348879040 Thanks! 1350177016 Thanks! 1350559107 Thanks! 1350965458 Thanks! 1353512679 Thanks! 1356454524 I'm not impressed by the footage (for me it seems a little weird), but with the kids screams, which are astonishing. If the video is fake, those kids deserve an Oscar. It's a shame that non-fluent portuguese speakers are missing that.\n\nALSO, I didn't make the video. :) 1346508577 Yes, the book is called by ''The Buddha In Daily Life: An Introduction to the Buddhism of Nichiren Daishonin''. Richard Causton. 1311275458 Yes. If you're getting it more than once every day or so, it's a sign of epilepsy. This doesn't mean that the OP necessarily has epilepsy, but it is definitely worth checking. 1333338040 I tried this for about a month. Fira week was terrible. But after that, I felt fucking awesome all the time. Every half hour felt like a full 8 hour sleep. Also had lucid dreams all the time. I stopped because I got a girlfriend and wanted to sleep with her. 1323682772 Holy shit, I had never considered how many nutjobs she spawned. You're right! 1330105411 [Mind bullets!](http://25.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_krgnz7Uy9K1qa2q7do1_400.gif) 1345081114 I am still not seeing it.\nhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/No_true_Scotsman 1315767779 It does make way more sense to think of this whole thing as a coincidence, but it just seemed so weird at the time. \n\nWhat's most striking to me about the experience was that I was so sub-consciously deliberate in my walking to the attic and opening the door, despite the fact that consciously, I intended to do something totally different.\n\nAlso, I'm about 97% sure I didn't leave the light on; It was someone else. 1354359147 Jez,\n\nThis is a practice any person can try for themselves and evaluate it's legitimacy first hand. This isn't something you have faith in. This is a practice that can generate real world results you can observe and others can as well. \n\n 1350672100 Are you sure this isn't just a dentist office in a hurricane? 1356313922 fires in colorado:\n\nhttp://dfs.state.co.us/NFIRS.htm\n\ncrime statistics are out there too, etc. contact the police department or city hall.\n\nhowever, I'm sure your mortgage company requires you to have suitable insurance to cover the building....since it's theirs until you pay it off :-)\n\nif you're worried about the cost of theft insurance, just pick a policy with a high deductible and it should be pretty cheap. 1299894159 [Oh please.](http://jordankinley.com/gif/backpedal.gif) 1330645873 its not so much an attack on the her as a victim, although she is an idiot, but an attack on the stupid naivety of religious followers in which they believe nonsense and put massive trust and responsibility on the unqualified and unskilled. you see it in all religions and cultures, and its the reason there are still people being needlessly oppressed and abused around the world with issues ranging from child rape to dangerous genital mutilation, from barbaric executions to suicide bombings. stupid people buy into stupid stone age religious ideas sold by men in costumes and are then shocked when it all bites them in the arse. 1343066066 Guys! CHILL OUT!!!\n\n"American Ghost Hunter" was filmed almost TWO YEARS AGO.\n\nWhen you are producing and editing a movie PLUS shooting episodes of "Paranormal State", things take a bit longer. They had NO studio help and did everything themselves. 1307249884 Did your submission really need the detour over that link collector site? 1310601853 >If you cannot correlate the data, that is not anyone's fault but your's.\n\nI'll believe your calculations are correct when I'll read them in peer-reviewed literature.\n\nIn any case, you missed the glaring error of logic in your little exercise, as I demonstrate below.\n\n>Well sited stations return temperatures markedly different than the alarmist modified temperatures of the generic stations. \n\nI'm wondering if I should tell you or just wait until you realize it yourself. Here's a hint. Earlier, you said:\n\n>*The NCDC 144 station Climate Reference Network provides that the result for July is 2 degrees lower than the previous record.*\n\nNow I ask you, when was the previous record you refer to made?\n\n>The excuse that the data must be manipulated\n\nYou know that belief in conspiracy theories is a sign of mental health problems, right?\n\nAnyway, I'll give you a few minutes to figure why your argument is complete crap and come back later to reveal it to posterity.\n\n**Edit**: if anyone else wants to take a stab, go right ahead, I'll come back later tonight. 1344563647 I haven't checked the thread. Was there overwhelming support (upvotes etc) for the shitty comments only? \n\nEven then, it might still be a shitty (heh) generalization depending on how many unique redditors participated and how many subscribers /r/atheism has. 1325082371 But the problem is, even genuine/potentially genuine submissions are trolled. 1355865062 I use olive oil instead of conditioner because it makes my burly skeptic beard soft and not greasy... :c why is this silly? 1343977510 Why didn't his chakras/spirit guide/celestial animal tell him he was doing it wrong? 1341421350 "The Union of Concerned Scientists is the leading science-based nonprofit advocacy group"\n\nyet\n\nthey are "working for a healthy environment and a safer world".\n\nThey manage to discredit themselves in the first sentence of their own introduction. Science and advocacy are not related at all. Science does advocate anything. You can interpret scientific evidence and advocate policy based on that but the 2 are independent of each other. So they're trying to create a healthier environment and they are conducting science that supports their pre-disposed position? 1348415211 My neighbors claimed to see orbs floating around the street then shooting up into space while they were having a smoke. They said the two orbs were white balls.\n\nWitnesses are nut-bags amirite amirite? 1343921745 After being deployed for 11 months near Kirkuk at FOB McHenry (the most heavilly mortared FOB in Iraq at the time, baby!) I can safely say that the medics who favored acupuncture quickly abandoned the practice once a serious injury came in. 1331703031 That's actually really interesting, and could explain much. 1351398863 I've had this argument in various forms over the last few years. I'm genuinely not interested in having it again. Thanks. 1348834157 Well, in some cases he never responded, in others he ignored it and went on to spam other articles, and in at least a couple cases, he forwarded our objections (Mnementh's and my own) on to the man himself, and we got responses which were also easily torn apart. 1288706562 Hi. Your story gave me the face-chills I get when I'm reading/hearing certain stories like this. I don't know if the chills amount to anything but my own reaction to what I'm reading, or if it's an indicator of an awareness of something more, but it's a thing that's always happened to me. 1353501931 You're looking at the wrong object. Watch the video. 1332248212 What the fuck? Who buys upvotes? Who even knows *how* to buy upvotes? Is it so hard to believe people like something that you don't? \n\nA better question, what are you even doing on /r/skeptic if you make such an accusation with absolutely no evidence other than your own emotions and childish rage? Would the highest upvoted comments me criticising the article if I were using something like that? I doubt it.\n\nPeople who do that have sites with *advertisements* on them, and they profit from it like that. This has no advertisements, only original content, so I can't see where you're getting this idea from other that you find it **so** difficult to believe that others like things that you don't, that you resort to something like this.\n\nWow. Just. Wow. You're that far gone. Not worth reasoning with. 1314004526 I believe that you are correct about it being the NewLeaf. It was several years ago that I read the book (and several years previously that he must have done this), and some details are sharper than others. 1331420194 Alright here's the problem.\n\nThat device is going to generate hydrogen using electrolysis POWERED BY YOUR CAR'S BATTERY. The battery gets it's energy from the running of the motor and the burning of gasoline. Generating the hydrogen is going to actually REDUCE your gas mileage. \n\nSome of that energy (the conversion to hydrogen is inefficient) will be put back into the engine when the hydrogen is burned. Obviously though because this is a closed loop you can only hurt the vehicle's gas mileage by doing this. 1291091636 Sure a lot of serious folk around here. 1313923317 I came here to post that quote. When I read it I clutched my chest and went "Oh *Asimov*! <3". 1283133191 What does your post have to do with the subject of the original post? The OP is about improving a clinical trial system that is already in place, not whether or not people and corporations should be free to buy/sell whatever they like without the product having been tested first. Maybe you should take your comment over to /r/freemarket, because it doesn't appear to belong here. 1311828045 Lacking some details but my best guess is that it's just your eyes playing tricks on you. I have a teddy bear sitting on the windowsill in my bedroom and damn near every time I come in I think its one of my cats. I'm willing to bet your eyes glanced on something and your brain decided it was a cat. 1326991407 My money is still on his only brain malfunction being the need to concoct stories such as that found in his post in order to make his life more interesting. \n\nWhich is good news for him, psychologically speaking. 1328057955 I sense another libel lawsuit in the making! 1331343402 we were one of the last countries to accept plate tectonics for the same reason. It really should be a thing this country should be embarrassed of.\n\nsource a short history of nearly everything. Bill Bryson. 1331526119 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3wZSeTKDBP4&feature=youtube_gdata_player 1341969551 Ask her how any such thing would get a picture to someone else? It's not as though most people plug their televisions directly in to their cable modems... 1301910042 One of my favorite bands, Epica, is coming out with a new concept album called "Design Your Universe".\n\n>The album title, 'Design Your Universe', deals with new breakthroughs in quantum physics. It proves that we are all connected to each other on subatomic level. Also, it shows that we can create or at least influence matter with our thoughts… a very interesting fact. Because it changes everything for us, our whole worldview collapses once you accept these facts and integrate them in your lives. So this had to become the new album title.\t\n[wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Design_Your_Universe)\n\nTheir music is fabulous and I'll probably end up seeing them in concert, but I won't be agreeing with this album >_< 1249716735 I drank a glass of water and almost died. They had to give me an Everclear IV to lower my BAC. 1356654569 I notice that he's pretty hostile to people sometimes, it's like *dude, chill out* 1346662522 Sorry, who said the missile was of alien origin? Looks like it came up from the surface.\n\nAlso, why would it need propellant to maintain velocity in a vacuum - it could easily have reached that speed, using propellant earlier and then simply maintained its trajectory. \n\nYou haven't explained the coherent patterns in the other video or the fact that the 'dust' follows a path and stop dead in line with the other 'dust particles'.\n\nYou aren't very good troll, are you? 1343977226 I am not able to fully understand this article. Could someone smarter than me throw it in layman? I can grasp space time concepts, but this was a little hard to visualize. 1342963324 > I grew up in a house in [Aurora](http://www.ufocasebook.com/Aurora.html), Texas, and not only did I live close to where the purported alien crashed, but my father built our house with our back fence to where the windmill was knocked down by the craft. (EDIT: also, our house was a few hundred yards from the cemetery where it was buried)\nRaised in a religious home, but I always had my thoughts about what "God" was capable of creating if he made us. Then as I slowly drifted away from those ideas and towards a logic and reason based life, those ideas began to evolve.\n\n\n\n**Actual Story**\n\nOne year, my parents went on vacation and I was left at home with my cousin watching me for a few nights. I was about fourteen years old at the time (2005). Little did they know, he had barely been there at all because of his dutiful party schedule. Three nights in a row, I recall having the most peculiar dreams I've ever experienced. Firstly, I never remember falling asleep. Not before that and never since then have I been able to recall the last moments before drifting off, but these nights were different. I remember seeing the normal bright vivid colors on the back of my eyelids but then suddenly after about 10 minutes they slowed and stopped. It was as if my eyes were open in a completely pitch black environment with no sound whatsoever. I'm not sure if it was just quiet in my room, but eventually I couldn't even hear my heartbeat. Two white lights began to creep in from a distance, but it felt more warm than bright. I could *feel* the light, more than see it. Then for some reason my brain knew it was sleeping or something, so it may have gone into dream mode.\n\nFor about thirty seconds, I felt like my body was weightless, then another bright light that I could actually see in my dream more than feel came into view. Everything went black for a split second and then I felt myself extremely cold, but still lying down. Things became fuzzier after my body feeling came back, but I still felt like I was dreaming, just not in control of what I was doing. Then, something fucking crazy happened. I see the two lights again coming in from the side and as they get closer, they dim out and there are two faces with translucent black eyes staring at me. I immediately knew it was a dream but was so excited that I was dreaming about aliens that I wanted to go along with it. Normally when I do that in dreams, I'm awoken, but this one was weird.\n\nThey continued their warm presence which was all I could really describe what I felt at the time, and all I wanted to do was ask them questions. I could hear myself asking them in my head but I couldn't talk, and (just like the 'god' voice people hear in their heads) I heard soothing sounds and what sounded like words made of electricity or energy. It wasn't like a voice or a resonance of vocal chords, but more like frequencies emitted that I could kind of sense.. Really hard to explain.\n\n\nThis continued for maybe twenty minutes at most and then my dream went back to black. Woke up feeling great but wished I had dreamt more, as long as I had slept and all. \n\n\nThis would be shrugged off normally, but if you remember from above, nearly the *exact* same dream occurred for two nights after that. The *feelings* more than visuals, the inexplicable voices in my head, the drifting off to sleep consciously.. I don't know what happened to me, and I've never really written it out before, so I'm going to assume it was a dream until they come back this year. Haaah. 1327766393 Shame avoided, great show! 1288057089 It's on CW at 1:30am. 1350480527 ["Electrogravitics is a *failed* hypothesis proposed by Thomas Townsend Brown"](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electrogravitics). This /r/ can handle the reality wikipedia toes the party line.\n\nHere's [two](http://peswiki.com/index.php/Main_Page) [sites](http://www.zpenergy.com/index.php) I like, and a [related project](http://www.americanantigravity.com/). 1306327749 I did my version of this as a mind map - I really should post it sometime. \n\nIt's hilarious. 1318006477 Dude, nobody knows what you're talking about.\n\nRon Paul is definitely anti-vaccination. If you support doing something that makes something not work then you are against it.\n\n"Ron Paul isn't against traffic lights, he just feels that people should be given the choice to follow them or not."\n\nLike vaccination, traffic lights only work if everyone follows them. Whether he has technically said the words that he is anti-vaccination is just a matter of semantics, he is in favor of policies that make them pointless. 1326675202 If you watch south park, he's the subject of the episode "the biggest douche in the universe" 1314728716 Just in case some of you skeptics weren't already convinced! \n\nAlso, check out his response to objections: http://records.viu.ca/~johnstoi/essays/courtenay2.htm\n\nand his article Creationism in the Science Curriculum: http://records.viu.ca/~johnstoi/essays/creationism.htm 1355090326 I've seen plenty of giant plastic bags get swept around in the wind currents of giant stadiums. They act exactly like the object in the video. Sorry, I know you desperately want to believe it's something more. 1315847862 The alien theory is much more entertaining. 1284155942 First thing I would do is try to shake it's hand. IMO they have been studying us for longer than we think and would know a hand shake means no threat. Afterwords I would give him/her/it a grand tour of my house, as any respectful human would do. I would answer any question they had, if any. Only then would I begin to ask them the works of the universe and if there's a reason why they are here. So in other words, I would treat them as if they were my own, and would expect the same from them. Even if it means being kicked in the balls as a form of "Hello". 1352240418 Obligatory "The truth is out there." 1332269631 > he was saying that the British royal family sacrifices and eats toddlers in a Satanic ritual to gain their powers\n\n\nIt's true. I've seen it. Also batboy was there and bigfoot and the loch ness monster and twelve UFOs. 1352419493 >logic does not apply when it comes to theism\n\nI honestly don't see how this is a defensible statement, any more than "logic does not apply when it comes to astrology".\n\nPlease elaborate. 1298571624 An interesting description of a shooting star (meteor).\n 1354745503 And what should we have respect for? What makes something respectable?\n\nHaving it be made up, unverifiable, and unfalsifiable isn't giving me a lot of reason to respect it. 1322694309 [Yes they do.](http://www.garda.ie/controller.aspx?page=36) 1344185629 Thank you. I gave you his home page on thought you might be interested in other subjects he covers.\n\nIf you click on Noreen Renier on his home page it takes you to the page you linked to.\n\nEither way, you're there. 1281469898 That seems like one of the more plausible explanations actually. Doesn't explain a thing though... except maybe why we're obsessed with having nice lawns. 1312269864 I know there was one author who claimed to have some kind of space brothers knowledge in a series of books, but when the actual members of his tribe were asked about it, they said it wasn't true.\n 1333471958 glad it was already said, but Wikipedia's first definition is as follows, which actually sounds very logical and reasonable and has nothing to do with alternative medicines with 0,0001% of some herb as the active ingredient:\n\n>Holistic health is a concept in medical practice upholding that all aspects of people's needs, psychological, physical and social should be taken into account and seen as a whole 1332952017 YOU WILL ASK NORTH KOREA NOTHING ABOUT LABOR CAMPS THAT DON'T EXIST HOW DARE YOU INSINUATE THAT BEST KOREA IS ANYTHING OTHER THAN A WORKER'S PARADISE!!!\n\n/end caps-lock-apalooza 1330504194 USO didn't catch on, so I'm afraid ULO doesn't have much hope either. People already know them as UFO's, no matter if they're in the sky, under the water, on the ground, or in outer space. 1303097010 He may be an expert on Lord of the Rings, but who says he's an expert on how that story actually relates to reality? 1305591318 no drugs at all.. and how could it have been like this for over 2 weeks now by smoking something or eating something? 1339955719 This guy is browsing /r/jailbait. Don't help this jerkoff! 1323709788 Holy Roman Empire. \n\nNeither HD, nor Pretty Good (many of these are debunked or natural/man-made phenomena), nor a compilation. Wait. The last one is true. 1347516681 I'm 23 and it was in 2008 but I know that phenomenon. I'm not trying to dismiss every possibility to make it more mysterious than it is. But, what you're talking about is the audible frequency range getting smaller as you get older. So correct me if I'm wrong but that means I would stop hearing really high pitched and really low pitched sounds... 1334406356 no. thats the sad thing. anyone deluded enough to believe this stuff is either a follower or a so completely far gone that any charisma. leadership and organisational ability is drowned out by being absolutely out of their mind.\n\nthat's why its silly and dangerous to portray murderous tyrants as insane. they aren't. they are just ahead of the curve. we would do well to remember that the next time we elect one. 1269043317 I'm not refuting the (purported) evidence, but take a look at this:\n\nhttp://www.reddit.com/r/UFOs/comments/un5on/i_thought_you_guys_might_like_this_video_its/\n\nEyes on the skies! 1339122140 please refer to the NIH's and Hopkin's most recent studies involving acupuncture and pain relief, fertility, mental and emotional health...etc. also, be aware that the education some of us receive includes more allopathic medical training in the first two years than the majority of RNs. we spend more time in clinical settings in the US and abroad than a Hopkins student. we are mastering not only the utilization of herbal remedies (where all pharmaceuticals are originally based), manual manipulation of joints and muscle, trigger point massage (used in allopathic medicine based on chinese medicine), psychological counseling, and dietary training. Now, I fully agree that there are frauds and fakes out there but i do what i do because after being offered a full ride to Hopkins, I decided to pursue a more wholistic approach. afterall, something that has withstood the test of 4000 years must have some validity. and while i know it is anecdotal, without chinese medicine I would not be alive...fortunately, i have helped several hundred people around the country with the skills i have gleaned. please do some research before you bag it completely. although i understand the skeptic mind, I'd like to remind you that any good skeptic and scientist is beholden to at least test the hypothesis they pose. 1318754515 Is there a rule against being here? I just like to read the stuff people post. I find it interesting. 1356971790 I think that speech must be almost absolutely free, but people should be encouraged (but not coerced) through example, education, etc. to use their speech responsibly. In fact, I would say that the law as it stands is pretty effective, the only thing I would change is to make people slightly more liable for their words. In this case, for instance, I think that the parents of sick children, whose children who either did get vaccinated or were medically unable to get vaccinated should be able to sue figureheads of the anti-vax movement. (That is not to say they can not currently, I just think that that is the most important way to combat such nonsense) 1317696525 \nThe first videos look like some type of Crane or Heron, similar to this http://s190.photobucket.com/albums/z257/americanwildlife/Bird/great-blue-heron.jpg\n\nThe third "video" just shows a pterodactyl looking object but it doesn't move its head or body or anything. Looks like a remote controlled plane. 1287067619 Sounds like you have a story to tell! And I think it belongs here, yep. 1326834025 We should question everything and approach each post with the idea that it's NOT paranormal. When all "normal" explanations have been exhausted, we can confidently say that the experience is actually paranormal. Any trustworthy investigator will tell you that.\n\nConversely, if someone posts a story about their personal experience, don't be a dick and tell them it's bullshit. Help them understand why it may or may not be legit, and show some respect and decency. 1355865863 Good. Let's hope they do. Otherwise, they'd be delusional. 1344123973 Thinking about it now, it kind of makes sense right? 1322073843 Well hey, what can you say? Loosing a lighter is inevitable. 1335762239 it doesn't say it was carried here by a balloon -_-. 1302384367 That the substance in question is not what the business mentioned in the OP is selling and has not been proven to be effective in humans. 1350236536 Not sure why everyone's disagreeing with you. That's some pretty solid evidence right there. 1319525192 CRTs emit a high pitched squealing noise. 1315927342 I love this casein/glue argument. They like to ignore the fact that many "excellent glues" are made from things like rice and flour. You know what I use to make my books? A mixture of flour and water. Flour + water + heat + stirring = quite a sturdy book glue. So maybe you shouldn't be eating fried dough or bread anything while drinking water... b/c you know, glue. ... and all glue is always toxic... Oh and if only they knew just how many things casein was used in. It's used as a binding agent in anything from medicine to nail polish to soy cheese (which a lot of people mistakenly consider to be vegan). 1346015360 he wasn't working for the BBC 1353376197 Do you have a source for that? I have friends who believe the Chinese live longer and better than us in the West. 1297025306 1. Hold still, while simultaneously freaking the fuck out.\n2. Ask if it spoke English. If so, well enough. I'd try and communicate with it. If not, proceed to 3. \n3. Attempt, through the use of math, to demonstrate to the alien that I am a sapient being. Being that I'm absolutely horrible at anything besides arithmetic, that might not work out so well, but that's about it. 1352245711 1. Hold still, while simultaneously freaking the fuck out.\n2. Ask if it spoke English. If so, well enough. I'd try and communicate with it. If not, proceed to 3. \n3. Attempt, through the use of math, to demonstrate to the alien that I am a sapient being. Being that I'm absolutely horrible at anything besides arithmetic, that might not work out so well, but that's about it. 1352245744 I'm kind of surprised that there is so much support on /r/skeptic for this movement. I'd never heard about it before today, but watching their lectures, reading their literature, and seeing interviews with the Venus Project's founder, all lead me to the same conclusion. **This is a movement, not of scientists, but science fans.** They have no grasp on the reality of what they are saying. \n\n[This is the Venus project](http://thevenusproject.com/index.php) that is being promoted by the Zeitgeist Movement. You'll notice that they will give you an e-book in exchange for your email address. [This is that e-book.](http://thevenusproject.com/index.php) Read it; it is full of vagaries and wishful science fandom. Now, watch [a 1974 interview with the founder of the project](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RVOPkGAtt48), and author of the aforementioned e-book. If your woo-dar isn't going off yet, take a look at [a project](http://www.rbefoundation.com/) to work out the details of resource-based economy. Finally, notice [this section](http://www.rbefoundation.com/documentaries.php?c=2) of the REBEF site. This doesn't seem to be a movement of critical thinkers. 1314225445 The comments are worth a read, especially when the king of quackery Dana Ullman starts in, and promptly leaves when pressed into a logical corner. 1340117718 Yes, I think we could probably turn to Reddit's front page to find an example or two of ways in which the government or some regulatory body has failed to make provisions for expected eventualities (something about BP and the Gulf of Mexico maybe?)\n\nI don't understand your "death panels" reference. I'm Canadian, I'm not afraid of socialized medicine. And I do understand the importance of vaccines in public health. I'm just wary of giving any body the right to interfere in personal health decisions. 1301518778 >Not sure if you're taking the piss\n\nI'm quite serious. Confirmation bias happens when something happens infrequently, but is given more significance than it deserves. OP is talking about something that happens very frequently, not to mention that these abilities run in her family. It strikes me as rather absurd to chalk it up to confirmation bias and call it a day. 1326848135 Honestly, it's okay. I would love to see proof. I would love to see you succeed. 1335471389 James Randi busted this back in the '80s. \n\nHe's my hero. 1222008800 The funny thing is that (justified) nerd-rage over overpriced cables goes back to before HDMI was even widespread. For years there have been articles claiming to show that even expensive analog cables aren't worth the extra money (beyond a certain level). 1331449861 The point is not propaganda, the point is that the US is even more of a threat to, say, Iran than Iran is to the US. \n\nIt's incredible how demanding Americans are when it comes to foreign policy. The world is expected to trust whatever government may command the US nuclear arsenal with their lives, however when it comes to non-US countries, people like Harris start arguing pre-emptive genocide before they would trust another nation with the power they currently hold over any other. 1269689617 Randi often gives the award to a respectable scientist who doesn't deserve it. Dr. Oz has performed thousands of intricate heart surgeries and came to understand that research science doesn't hold all the answers to healing the heart. What has Randi ever accomplished as a scientist that earns him the credentials to belittle such a dedicated and knowledgeable physician? 1304541017 A lot of his other stuff is spot on. He generally speaks with an erudite wit. Also, being serious about the reptile thing is what has kept the anti-defamation league from suing him. So maybe it's a cover, maybe he did a pile of hallucinogenics and believes this, maybe it's a metaphor for the greedy and primitive violence that is part of humanity. After all, we all do have a lizard brain hiding out underneath our higher brain. \n\nhttp://www.ted.com/talks/peter_ward_on_mass_extinctions.html 1248636459 Most of the complaints I've seen have been about the use of ammonia. 1350585663 It's happened to me before. It's very, VERY rare, but it happens. 1334436503 I'm also interested in finding out whether or not you can 'connect' with specific spirits or if they just come to you? 1349070779 It was the Gremlins! Now we're in trouble! 1340582584 So, do you feel that psychic phenomenon somehow *can't* be demonstrated experimentally or that it simply hasn't been? If it's the former, I can see the problem. Actually, I can see the problem with the latter as well, but I'm willing to listen to evidence.\n\nEdit: Also, of course stating that "psychic phenomena... does occur in human beings" on a skeptical forum is going to be greeted with hostility. 1309812141 You are right that "all" is a bit strong. However, the reason people think that they have any effect at all is because researchers can never bring themselves to more certainty than "it is highly unlikely that homeopathic remedies have any effect", even if they contradict laws of physics and chemistry. People interprent "very probably have no effect" as "could possibly have some effect". People need to be taught that when a scientist says "it is highly improbable this homeopathic remedy will cure you" he means it in the same way as when he says "it is highly improbable that a narwhal will materialize in front of you and start singing christmas carols". Any sane person would know the narwhal thing would never happen .. but one could not know that _for sure_. \n\nAs for people using "homeopathy" to describe anything other than substances so diluted that they are unlikely to contain a single molecule of the original substance.. I haven't really heard about that before. 1300719151 Don't say that in r/Science they'll bite your head off... 1337700405 >What "happened" was that he propositioned her in a way that way that was implicitly (if unintentionally) threatening. \n\nI do not see how it was implicitly threatening... at all. In fact he said "don't take this the wrong way", said he found her interesting, asked her for coffee. My point is that if someone finds that implicitly threatening... it's a personal problem, not a societal one... or maybe it is societal problem, just the other way around. \n 1310338286 For your list, the first n in my name is lower case...\n\nSince insurance is tax-deductible while ... money isnt, that artificially increases the price of insurance by pushing the supply/demand curve, since people are able to spend more on insurance.\n\nAs someone who pays for insurance out of pocket, its a lot.\n\nIf, otoh, this tax was reinstated, the price would go down due to the simple laws of economics (many could not afford insurance at that price, therefore the price would go down the demand curve).\n\nBut I appreciate you knowing so much that you don't have to make logical arguments, you can use faux-common-sense to magically ignore reality.\n\nAlso, I would assume you are a capitalist, this is a capitalist solution, let the market sort this shit out, don't try to pick winners. Personally, as someone who is relatively healthy (and has a medical background) I have no problem paying for healthcare out of pocket, and consider the presidents mandate to be quite vexing, but at least taxing it will bring the private cost of insurance back into balance with the cost via organized health plans. 1283578815 In the fist half-minute, the narrator explains that by today's science, *light particle wave packets form matter*. Really dude, not quarks but light forms atoms ? Can't really listen from that point on. 1299691118 The problem with the Monty Hall problem is that we are much better at avoiding trickery than we are at doing math.\n\nOn a real gameshow, you assume that opening another door and asking if you want to switch is *optional*, and the host is trying to trick contestants sometimes. Under this analysis, you might deduce that the host wouldn't offer you a chance to switch unless you *had* picked the car.\n\nBut this isn't the setup of the Monty Hall problem: to get the standard "you should switch" argument to work, you need the assumption that the host's probability of showing you a goat and asking if you want to switch is independent of whether you have initially chosen the car or not.\n\nFor example, suppose that the host only offers contestants a chance to switch if they already have chosen the car. If that's how the host acts, you should never switch. As another example, suppose that most contestants switch when offered the chance to do so, that the show's producers have a fixed number of cars they want to give away, and that the producers have told the host to try to give away the right number of cars. If that's the case, then you should guess whether the show has been giving away lots of cars, and choose whether to switch accordingly.\n\ntl;dr: The standard analysis relies on the host's behavior being independent of your initial choice. People don't generally do that outside of math problems. 1297186496 Interestingly enough, we could survive on only meat. \n\n[This](http://www.jbc.org/content/87/3/651.full.pdf) is a study done by two men who ate nothing but animal parts for an entire year and were perfectly healthy. \n\nI honestly think the only major health issue as far as food goes in the Western world is over consumption. Vegans are proof that we can do without meat, that shows we can do without everything else, and the dietician that lost all that weight by eating nothing but twinkies and vitamins showed even on shit we can still lose weight. \n\nIf only we had an ounce of self control. 1334890099 It says in the comments she won't burn it for fear of 'angering the spirit attached to it'. So why doesn't she throw it away? "We spent money and intend to get money back"? They spent $50. Not a big loss if this supposedly haunted dress is such a big terrifying hassle. People sell bs 'haunted' items on ebay all the time to drive up the price. I remember someone selling two ghosts in a bottle for $10,000 a few years ago. 1348270648 I watched Richard Saunders do a live version of this at Tam Oz, and quite a few people have been replicating it to educate people about this. \n\nAlso, don't forget you can get your own [placebo bands](http://skepticbros.com/placebo-bands/) for much cheaper than the brand name one, and they work just as well! 1291081905 >I thought the paranormal put off alot of Electro Magnetic Fields?\n\nThere's no evidence of this. If you have any, please share. 1345579610 Search for this topic on r/fitness. I believe it's been touched on there a few times. Wish I could provide more info, but it's been awhile since I read anything about it. 1350066071 can you clarify this? I'm not sure I get what you're getting at... 1332375607 Your doctor is clearly an idiot. Only crazy shiny bracelets can stave off diabetes. 1287700835 The creep-factor is as much from the near-humanity of it as from any predatory features. The unnaturally thin, deformed limbs and head suggest illness or death, which triggers a whole other set of ingrained aversion responses. \n\nAlso there's some "uncanny valley" effect there, where something not-quite-right is more disturbing than something clearly different from us. That sort of 'alien' feeling is heightened by having it move like a quadruped despite having human-like anatomy (this also feeds into the predator thing, as most predators are quadrupeds).\n 1338997505 Don't know whether to upvote or downvote this article. According to the latest from Penn, the Salon article is not correct. Here's his latest tweet:\n\n"The article is wrong. I didn't start the MLK quote and I didn't do it on purpose. I checked before posting but not enough. My mistake" 1304549146 Just continuing the thought.\n\nA functional heuristic can give rise to a bias. Biases affect experience. At every point in the process from the sensory effect down to the bias there is potential to change perception. Memories are mostly experiential and it stands to reason that their perceptive component is very significant. 1351631318 The problem I have isn't in the thought that people try to do something like the idea behind NWO. I have a problem with the absurd notion that anyone would be capable of it, even if they had the necessary influence and power (which would require a level of cooperation that I am skeptical of). The simple truth is that we incredibly shitty at predicting our own culture(s). The idea that someone would even know how to do it is simply ludicrous, especially considering that the source of the knowledge that would enable it, scientific research, does not seem to be highly valued by those in position to make use of it. 1302632058 7- Mostly because we are quite capable as a species of deluding ourselves into almost anything that makes our world-view fit with what also profits us. 1301657711 Your statement is the exact opposite of what the article stated. 1345058585 >Nutritional science indicates that fasting for extended periods leads to starvation, dehydration, and eventual death.\n\nHold the fucking phone. WHAT? I need to make a few phone calls, and quick. 1335456575 [related](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aura_%28symptom%29) 1311133513 pure speculation: someone was trying to connect with you on some level. who did you give school photos to? They must have used it as a bookmark and traded in the book. :) 1340396122 hey, I have to take a vision test to drive a car, and I theoretically have to prove that I know how to drive it safely without running other people down (although that's a subject that's up for debate, since driving tests in this country are pathetic as far as actually determining whether or not someone is a safe driver, but that's for another debate). I own two shotguns (not entirely by choice - they've been in the family for generations) and never had to take a test to legally own them when they passed from dad to me, never had to prove that I could see (which seems, you know, important. Would suck if I shot the wrong blur because I was nearly blind). My SO has guns that she bought herself, and never had to take a vision test for them, and since they're hunting rifles, never had to take the classes/tests/etc that you'd have to take to carry a concealed handgun. \n\n\nBTW, many municipalities forbid you from having unregistered cars on your property - mainly to keep people from having junker cars up on blocks in the driveway and bringing property values down. So the argument can be quite successfully made that cars are far more regulated than firearms. Hell, many places have required vehicle inspections to make sure that your car is safe. My shotguns have never been inspected by any experts to see if they're safe to use (and in truth, they probably aren't. They haven't been fired or cleaned since I was a little kid, and have been sitting in basements and attics un-cased since then).\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nThe concealed-carry requirements don't apply, because I can't conceal my car while driving around. Better to look at open carry laws. 1356036339 I wish this was an AMA because I would ask how anyone in her field takes Bill Birnes seriously. 1315112681 Well, at least where I am it's not included in my taxes. My water and electricity both come from a distinct semi-governmental organization. \n\nBut we are essentially in agreement. Water's cheap in a developed nation, such that the bottle is likely more expensive than the water. 1321810791 Are you kidding? At that strength, it'll kill you. Or make you immortal. Probably both. 1301651071 I'd say "That's no argument", but then... We're talking about creationists. 1330263627 Read Oliver Sacks's The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat. There is a story in there about a woman who lost all sense of her body and had to consciously will herself to do every movement. So many things we take for granted as givens are the work of our brain not so much reflecting reality as interpreting it. Something like that is going on in the experience you relate. 1354365312 The Indian suicide thing is quite crap.\n\nIf you look at the figures really closely over the last 10 years the rate is no higher than students and housewives in India.\n\nIt is probably going to get worse though because the media has focused on the issue and now the government is giving the family of the suicide victim compensation. so they have incentive to commit suicide. \n\n 1325609021 I would love for the title to have included some warning that I was about to see a mutilated animal. 1314995323 Actually the benefits to our national healthcare FAR out weigh the "Waste of taxpayer money" that is the miniscule fluoridation of the water supply. 1337795148 I like that the climate and environment of a country that never raised cattle prior to us bringing them there is getting the credit for this and not the anal-retentive devotion to perfection that the japanese are known for. Kobe beef is delicious because the meat is extremely well-marbled and the cows get very little excercise. It's also expensive because the japanese are spending ten times as much money feeding the cow. The implication that the same techniques can't be replicated out of japan is disingenuous to the extreme and it just shows that the aritcle writer is a food snob, not a skeptic or a scientist. 1334506966 Well, not really for painkillers - I generally lean toward ibuprofen or acetaminophen, which are sold in bottles with enough doses to last a couple of years. Mullein in syrup form is about the only thing I take that's an actual *herb*. 1304017777 Turn off the tv 1356964282 this is quickly becoming my favorite subreddit. 1344994985 Please feel free to pursue [this survey of human evolution](http://www.pnas.org/content/104/52/20753) for details... 1345775353 Lot's of random things help fight some cancers. It's hard to say what is possible. 1345246587 Hahah, well now you know, I guess? No worries mate. 1329224627 That is an insect. 1249656295 WAKE UP!!!!!! 1252813857 Would you consider though, as the article does, that "angels / demons" are simply less specific, less scientific names for things like multiple personality disorder, mania, obsession... meaning that they don't go away?\n\nIf you take the belief out of religion what phenomena still do remain? Religion was invented, for lack of a better word, to explain strange phenomena in some sort of orderly fashion to the so called "primitive minds". If you throw away all the dogma the original phenomena still exist, the challenge is to explain these types of experience without the religious framework in terms of psychology neurobiology or whatever else causes these bizarre occurrences. 1243442796 It seems like person B is just referring to anecdotal evidence. \n\nI don't need to see an acupuncturist (X) to know that there is no mechanism by which acupuncture should work (Y). 1305906781 >Not necessarily; different studies in evolutionary studies have shown there to be a common theme between attractiveness and things like facial symmetry, specific proportions and hair texture.\n\nThings are still only as beautiful as we perceive them to be. That we are biologically pre-disposed to like certain features does not change that; it just explains overall patterns in things humans see as beautiful.\n\n>If you wanted to do something from a completely objective point of view it would be seeing how common the occurrences of such traits are in a specific race.\n\nBut that's almost irrelevant. How people rate attractiveness is much more important information. If people rate blacks as less attractive even though they are perfectly symmetric and have perfect facial ratios, then that is valuable information and not something you pick up on just by measuring people.\n\n>if we are to assume that the study can be based on opinionated statistics yet still be labelled as objective)\n\nThe statistics are not opinionated, the statistics are measuring opinion. And that's fine, because beauty is just a type of opinion. 1306367032 While not reliable enough to base vital judgments on their readings alone, polygraphs *do* provide *some* insight into whether someone is acting deceitful. It isn't just a prop, it is a tool with its own limitations to be used in conjunction with other tools (including your own ability to read body language). 1351536143 That is actually really sad. he might still be alive today, having made 30 more years worth of music. God Damnit. 1329023014 Than they wouldn't be writing shit in corn fields or drawing attention to themselves by turning off their cloaking devices while they fly around. \n\nThink about it, we are only a few years away from being able to successfully render invisible (cloak) any object, including a moving one. There are working prototypes already. The fact that UFO's aren't cloaked mean that they were either A) Produced here on earth where cloaking isn't yet a viable technology), or B) They want to be seen, therefore no prime directive. 1351874822 > This statement is false. I need only provide one example that falsifies (b). Lets say a company produces electricity from a nuclear reactor and dumps the waste into a water supply. Some of the people (lets say 1,000) that drink the water get cancer and have to pay $1,000 each for a cure. Total cost to society of power plant: 1 million.\n> Lets say a coal plant could have produced the same amount of electricity but without the deaths, but would have cost the company .1 million more. You can even assume if you like that it would cause .5 million in damage to society from asthma if you like.\n\nLet's assume that travel by airplane is less safe than travel by car. (Check figures of deaths by nuclear plants vs deaths by coal power plants, you'll see how this fits right in)\n\nLet us now proceed to draw an irrelevant conclusion that does not reflect reality because the assumptions are flat out disconnected from reality.\n\nLet us now pretend that I have made a cogent, relevant post.\n\nLet us now pretend that I am being downvoted because my contribution to this post was logical and meaningful.\n\nLet us now complain about me being downvoted three times in a single thread. \n\n:-) 1315375472 That's a great question. My best guesses would be: respected sources. ie. Snopes, wikipedia, /r/AskScience, etc... \n\nI know if I hear the Mythbusters explains that the EM from Power lines is safe I'll likely just believe it. But if I hear the same thing from Fox & Friends I'll assume they're either lying or guessing. 1313497287 I'm interested to see if there will be any comment about the elevator mishap on this weeks SGU. At this point, I wouldn't mind if she never showed up again. 1310148074 10,000 reports, taking up 6,700 pages. Dont worry it took me a second also. 1342583029 That's nice of you to say! Thank you.\n\n>Have you looked into the idea that a ghost could be a psychic imprint of a consciousness rather than the "soul" itself?\n\nI'd have to know what this means, really, in order to talk about it. By "psychic imprint," do you mean that ghosts could be physical manifestations of our consciousness, and that our consciousness is capable of interacting with people/places/things after our bodies have died? 1344602929 Why should they suppress such books and movies? The subject is already ridiculed in the mainstream media, there's no need to conceal it, the public will not believe it anyway. That's a very strong weapon, mind you. 1338304140 >Since the evidence overwhelmingly supports the theory of man-made global warming\n\nWhat evidence? \n\nWe put an extremely small amount of CO2 in the atmosphere and \nit happen to get warm for an extremely short while.\n\nThat is not evidence. \n\nMangled, manipulated climate models. \n\nThat is not evidence.\n\nEvidence is the money trail leading from government to so called climate science. That is evidence.\n\nShow me a model where you plug in todays data, run it backward\nand get an accurate result for some known past date.\n\nThat would be evidence. That would be some damn good \nevidence, but we'll never see it, will we.\n 1354402659 My favorite podcasts are really diverse.\n\n* Metalinjection - For listening to funny potsmoking metalhead.\n\n* DistortedView - For listening to.. well, distorted news and laugh at horrible stuff\n\n* PC gamer - For the gamer side of me\n\n* SGU - For the skeptic side of me.\n\n* Naked Scientists - For the British skeptic side of me. 1272035929 There's no need to consider all possible possibilities separately. Take them all together, and remember them as a nudge to consider the extraordinary. There's no need to start every statement with "Je pense, donc je suis" and derive everything from there, but completely ignoring anything else is a bad habit as well.\n\nWhat *proof* does he have that his brain glitched? None whatsoever. It's merely the most likely hypothesis, within his worldview. An animist might consider the trick of a spirit the most likely hypothesis, within his worldview. I sincerely think that being aware that we so often accept the most likely hypothesis in good faith, without proof, improves the quality of thought. 1254175349 Well.... they do really make them :( \nhttp://www.ritecare.com/homeopathic/guide_firstaid.asp 1326531437 Oscillococcinum is probably the most sly homeopathic medicine there is. It has all the dress of an allopathic remedy: big unrecognizable name, [professional packaging](http://www.ritecare.com/images/oscillo_6.jpg), and a little tube of pills with special administration procedures. To top it off, it has the added appeal of being a medicine that basically amounts to eating sugar. I was surprised, though, when I first found out it was homeopathy. 1314035716 Because people really love their dogs and get desperate when Fido is in pain.\n\nProtip: Johnson's Medicated Food Powder. Shake it all over the dog. Fleas flee it. 1342030630 Might be a little more appropriate in /r/nosleep. 1349712439 I see you there, ponymoticon. And I offer brohoofs, fellow skeptic.\n\n/unrelated 1323092576 My phone can allow WiFi use in airplane mode but it always asks first. 1307964630 Agreed. Nutjobs give skeptics a bad name. When it comes to facts, there aren't two sides to hear out. 1289593815 Perhaps! But since it was only a drop, maybe he was just shaking off. ;) 1356546258 I shat myself just reading the comment. 1348108941 I have been eating mussels since I was 8 or so and love them. Unless they smell bad, I eat them all. It's actually pretty easy to see if something has gone bad when you are dealing with seafood. 1286047131 I think anyone who watched that video is qualified. A psychogenic disorder that only manifests when cameras are around? Hmmm. 1323352728 You're quite right. I wasn't trying to suggest that OP's story couldn't have been real, just providing a relevant tidbit. 1335159739 A placebo *is* a mystical health thing. Or at least a mysterious health thing. The placebo effect is really interesting. 1327335188 its called pareidolia 1356196892 I personally think skepticism cant be something that is bestowed onto others, rather something you need to find out for yourself. \nHearing about quackery and charlatans might raise awareness of it, but until you lose money, see friends/family losing money or at the very worst see your own or somebody else's health deteriorate as a result of things like homoeopathy or spiritual healers, you can't really appreciate the real need for skepticism in life. \n\nAtheism is something that can be bestowed onto others though. To teach a child the origins of the universe, without the need for fruity metaphores and stupid mythos, you can get across a logical, well cited, factual explanation for it that cannot be refuted. \n\nUnfortunately people can find more and more slippery ways to trick you into getting your money and until you see it happen to you and yours, you won't fully appreciate the real need for skepticism.\n\nWhereas atheists have a lot of skepticism towards any rhetoric a religious person throws at them or anything anybody says that sounds like it was cited from scripture, atheism doesn't really have any connections to general skepticism, as a lot of atheists tend to have general secular beliefs that could adhere to a lot of this pseudo science bullshit. 1341782814 It's a cheap additive which is a result of a large industrial process. Its a component which any reasonable consumer wouldn't expect in their ground beef - this being pieces of beef and fat of a particular percentage ground up and packaged. And because this beef required disinfecting, it's obviously not a wholesome ingredient in the first place. \n\nSince the use of this was not listed in the ingredients, it's a component which the processor is obviously not proud of using.\n\nAll of these factors lead any reasonable consumer to feel cheated and abused. It reminds all consumers that getting the most money from them is the one and only goal of any large food processor and/or retail operation.\n\nIt's one thing to add this to a product like hot dogs which are produced with trimmings and scraps and then ground an homogenized. It's another to add this as a hidden component.\n\nI look forward to heavy and costly class-action suites against Cargil and other mega-food processors and markets. 1332896492 yeah, good luck holding on to that belief. the hivemind has spoken. 1335042918 yeah.... im not seeing anything 1344799438 Don't forget the abandoned mental hospital in Malboro 1317994190 There's a vast gulf between "milk is not a wonder-food" and "milk is bad for your health." Many of this article's arguments lie soundly on the former side of said gulf, while its conclusions lie on the latter.\n\nFor what it's worth, the dairy industry does tend to sell its product with questionable health claims. But I wouldn't make a strong claim about its health effects without some kind of study, say a comparison between lactose tolerant/intolerant folks. 1353344361 Yes give money to the homeopaths that will show them. 1297204994 I saw a UFO once. Then it was identified.\n\nIt's a massive jump from UFO to alien space craft, and one of those idiots said it's unreasonable to expect stronger evidence than testimony. Perhaps. But it's still completely irrational to jump to the conclusion that they were extraterrestrial space craft without compelling evidence. All you can state is that it was, at least for you, a UFO. 1302307646 Tho I agree that psychiatrist have been overdiagnosing and over medicating people without necesity, calling autism a made-up condition is completely false and disrespectful to those who have to deal with this.\n\nThe fact that there are assholes who will take advantage of our lack of understanding of the causes and inner workings of this condition doesen't change that some families do have to go through this dificulty. 1327058726 Why is that ghost foot casting a shadow? So fake it hurts 1356367952 >Skeptics don't deny climate change.\n\nNo, because they accept the evidence behind anthropogenic climate change.\n\n>Most of us agree with the global warming alarmists\n\nUse of the word "alarmist" betrays you agenda. People who accept the current science are not alarmists.\n\n>We are also skeptical of the alarmists' catastrophic predictions.\n\nDefine "catastrophic predictions." The current science indicates a climate sensitivity of 2 to 4.5C, which a likeliest value of 3C, for a doubling of CO2.\n\n>This article explains the global warming debate\n\nNo, that article is a piece of anti-science propaganda similar to those you post daily on /r/climateskeptics. It is quite revealing that you always post links to blogs and Conservative-leaning organizations, but not from actual scientists.\n\nWhat I find really pathetic is how you always use the same copy/pasted responses to make it sound as if you are a rational and reasonable contributor to reddit, when it takes only a few minutes of reading your actual submissions to understand you're nothing but a propaganda relayer.\n\nOh, and you still managed to change the subject. Every time you do, you confirm my original point (and further show the folks at [/r/skeptic](/r/skeptic) how you guys really aren't skeptics at all - after all, they only have to read you past comments to see what you really think of them). Undoubtedly you'll avoid responding in your next post as well, followed by another of your pre-canned responses, I imagine.\n\nPerhaps you don't realize how much you sound like an actual PR hack. If you haven't considered this as a career choice, then you definitely should. Your lack of intellectual integrity makes you the perfect candidate for the job. 1332742429 Woo is woo, it maters not who shovels it. 1351734906 I don't know, if you have a tumor on your head and you decide to not see a doctor does that make the weirdo you decided to see responsible for your illness getting worse? \n\nIf anything it seems like you are just priming yourself for a Darwin award. 1346682951 I saw the same type of object over my high school in central Florida, last year. It popped up in the sky multiple times, shifted colors, and made seemingly impossible maneuvers. Everyone chalked it up to an RC 'copter; which, was bullshit. \n\n**EDIT**: Here's what I was seeing, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ES9ArxfCaWc. I didn't take the video, but it's identical to the object I was seeing. 1356307150 I can't argue with you because I do not have any information to claim in contrary, however, the only "evidence" we have of ET visits have been overwhelmingly positive. Naturally, the sensational "I twer probed in my butt parts!" and alien invasion genre movies are very extremely accessible to the general public, some of the fringe religions and spiritualists (including the Hopi Indians, modern followers of the Aztec religions and some eastern cultures to name a few) view visitation as direct contact with their deities. It does come down to personal belief because there are no hard facts to refer to, but my understanding which has been built through a lifetime of curiosity about life (within and outside our planet) and spiritual growth has led me to believe that our 'first contact' will likely be positive. A positive outlook on visitors to our planet will undoubtedly lead to a positive interaction if and when that interaction occurs. 1352154386 It might be that he uploads about two videos a year (if you're lucky). 1332697769 How on earth do you rob a gun depo? Surely they have.. defence? 1355748532 That seems like a good idea; GF should let her know times have changed, and young women are not the helpless flowers they used to be; besides, you love GF and would never hurt her. Girls in the dorm will be all right without her, and would like to help her get home to her folks; it's okay to go toward the brightest light she can see now. The Ouija is not necessary for this, and I don't know if having the suitemates present, or yourself, would help or not. 1355361504 Here's another possible explanation: It didn't happen. I've heard of this story before, but I've been unable to find any credible source that supports the original account. 1301938206 The best advice for most OP's in this subreddit 1336570219 It is still better looking and easier to read than most other paranormal sites, which look like they're from the Angelfire days...\n\nAt least they took the time to look professional. 1351787249 That's actually what makes it so damnably popcorn-worthy (and me trying to eat healthy!)—that homeopathy's arbitrary, make-believe rules are considered too stringent and unwieldy for the average naturopath to find profitable, so they should be simplified in order to bring them into line with the arbitrary, make-believe rules which govern the rest of naturopathic canon.\n\nIt's like kids at a birthday party ganging up on the one kid who wants to play Monopoly when the rest of them would rather stick with Candy Land. 1339786158 He certainly wouldn't have to. Just consider the ingredients in major brand leaders of counterpart products.\n\nJif Peanut Butter? No HFCS. Welch's Jelly? Yes to HFCS\n\nFrench's Yellow Mustard? No HFCS. Heinz Ketchup? Yes to HFCS\n\nPost Honey Bunches of Oats? No HFCS. Kellogg's Frosted Mini Wheats? Yes to HFCS\n\nEven my local grocery store's ice cream is flavor dependent on whether or not it has it, and remember, that's the cheap stuff.\n\nJust about everything he's mentioned, as far as I've noticed and I've been paying attention, agrees with what dbe's statements suggest. I don't see it in chips, bread, canned food of any kind I've used, powdered drink mixes, juices, yogurt or mayonnaise. Breakfast cereals are about 50/50. \n\nYour reaction to dbe's post suggests you're not in the habit of reading food labels too often. 1344919310 Were did the tire go? It would not of rolled far. 1355737075 I can't bring myself to drink milk. No allergies, it just grosses me out that it's milk from another species. Ugh. 1346006022 >But to think that humans are the pinnacle of civilization not just on Earth but in the entire galaxy is pretty arrogant in my opinion.\n\nOh, definitely. I couldn't agree with you more. But that has absolutely nothing to do with whether or not those Temple vids are real or not.\n\nOf course I don't know either, if they are or aren't. I'd like them to be, and maybe you are right. Personally I strongly suspect that they are a hoax based upon a multitude of similar incidents over the years that were initially praised/hyped and then eventually disproven, but I also honestly think that, regardless, it matters less than you think because videos will *never* be considered proof of UFOs. Ever. There are already many vids out there that are very compelling and probably very real. Ones that many people also think are fakes.\n\nEither way I don't need to be sure about these tapes, but that may be because I am convinced about the reality of UFOs for other reasons. Just don't lose your own beliefs if these are eventually shown to be fake. It has no bearing upon the reality of the phenomenon. 1297488709 UPDATE: UFO becomes IFO.\n\nSpecifically a very unexciting old PA28/Piper Cherokee with a strobing banner under the wings.\nChopper cameraman fooled.\n\nNot a good day for us UFO enthusiasts.\n\nhttp://www.news10.net/news/local/story.aspx?storyid=51021&catid=2\n\nhttp://www.airport-data.com/aircraft/N56414.html\n\nhttp://flightaware.com/live/flight/N56414 1227647638 I don't think its about understanding, it more about acknowledging. The more of us that now, the more stupid the government looks, that sort of thing. 1340841564 It wasn't astounding or anything, it was a catchy little country tune with a message that wasn't about drinkin a six pack, driving pick up trucks, or your wife leaving you. 1279081565 You've demonstrated that eating slightly more than the recommended daily amount of fruit is better than soda with junk food. *slow clap* I am in awe of your intelligence. \n\nHowever, I didn't say that fruit is worse than or as bad as soda, nor did I say fruit in reasonable amounts. I said fruit in large amounts can be bad for you in response to a statement implying that there was no way someone could get too much sugar from eating fruit. \n\n\n 1343533589 a bit larger nit to pick: the back is not just a mechanical structure, and definitely is not a lawnmower. and if my lawnmower was broken, i would not "turn it over, try the wheels, do things to find out what works."\n\ni would call a chiropractor! 1327472577 Your brain does a lot of strange things before you fall asleep. Read about "Old Hag Syndrome". A lot of people have it. Totally normal. 1343089725 Precisely.. But seriously, the SNR on the audio is ridiculous. Either the people making this video were using top classified military technology ahead of its time (and even then going on what we know of development of digital tech back then, the bit / sampling rate is way too high), or this is fake. 1352801464 were the fuck is the follow up post? 1353226823 It's similar to step 6 in that instructable, but it's a 14-minute sequence that uses I think 8 or 10 different frequency pairings throughout it. It's essentially doing the same thing. The Ganzfeld effect using straight sensory deprivation is different, however, since it takes time to "kick in", whereas using the Brain Machine causes instant visual hallucinations. No need to wait, just flip the switch. 1320912594 *NO MORE QUESTIONS!* 1309838932 There are some pretty interesting videos out there, but the lack of mass sightings in urban, American cities is a little frustrating. I stay interested in UFOs thanks to a sighting I personally had a few years ago. I do wish that there was more new and credible evidence out there, but I will follow Ufology for a long time regardless. 1329402982 That's a good point. I'll use better judgement next time. 1342151848 \nYou might want to consider a new room, with a new roommate. 1344125382 Just because it is possible to postulate something, does not mean it is reasonable to do so. \n\nThe simplest solution is that they are hearing noises from something mundane like an aircraft, or construction work. The fact that there exists multiple videos of similar sounds from the billions of hours of video available does not make a strong case.\n\nThere is very little reason to suspect that these noises are related. They could be related, but that still gives you no reason to suspect that they are not mundane phenomenon. This is [auditory pareidolia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pareidolia), combined with [The Pattern Seeking Fallacy](http://blog.asmartbear.com/pattern-seeking-fallacy.html)\n\nI was dismissive because of how preposterous it is to ascribe importance to meaningless stimulus. Were someone to start collecting videos of sunsets during which there is a cloud formation that is snowman shaped, would you assume that this was noteworthy? *But look at the videos, they are coming from all over the world, and they all have the same snowman shaped cloud!*\n\n 1326819099 this sentence demonstrates intolerance of alternative religions and violates the first amendment. \n\n/sarcasm 1320190834 You're right, but the tetrahedra form helices. I suppose that is what they are referring to. 1322588370 Real, human caused, but do not think we should do anything about it 1294768860 yeah definitely. actually I think they're blinking satellites, inside balloons, that are tied to weather balloons, that a 12 year old taped flares too. 1326297246 [Explanation](http://25.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_m6tu22yikh1rxukuoo2_250.jpg) 1343517486 And this, my friends, is called a fallacy fallacy!\n\nI did address what you said. I said you were being pedantic, and overly critical of the wording, because the wording was pretty much saying what you're saying. Just not as pedantically.\n\nI feel so sorry for you if you studied philosophy and this is all you got out of it - the art of being a pedant. Can I have a double cheeseburger meal, large size, with diet coke please? kekekekeke 1351969444 They did a good job with the "Funny how" bit. 1316175542 Everytime I see stuff like this, I think that it is really possible that aliens are protecting us from big catastrophes which would destroy the earth.\n\nWho knows. It is a really fast object. But I dont think it is a missile either. 1351361289 What the... how is this even remotely considered a glitch? A glitch is a short-lived fault in a system, not a coincidence. 1345658387 Sure you can...just let me grab my strap-on. 1345642893 I was scanning the website and thinking, "why would people believe this?" \n\n\nThen I saw that it is purportedly Japanese. 1324965809 It's alright dopp. Keep on posting. You provide a great deal of content. And you are dead on right. 1311437873 Hey, my gut instinct is better than your so-called "facts". GTFO. 1354198106 I seriously considered that I may have been seeing things. Even now, it's no entirely out of the question...but for what it's worth, I've never used mind altering drugs and I'm a pretty rational and logical person. I've never been able to explain this, though. 1332557400 So.... It's a Clearly Canadian? 1351278850 So, you just flat-out think it's unreasonable, when someone does something that makes you feel uncomfortable and unsafe, to mention it and ask other people not to do it? 1321166998 Teeth missing for a few days...didn't bother to ask. Probably a molar. 1312399346 To be fair, if you burn yourself you're *meant* to douse it in heaps and heaps of water. 1300687366 I don't think so. I can clearly make out a combed-back hairstyle and even glasses, I think. It's too defined and humanoid to be a misinterpretation of light. Either way, this almost made me jump when I saw it.\n\nEDIT: I opened it and increased the exposure. By doing this you can clearly make out the facial features. This is definitely interesting. \n\n[Semi-not safe for sleep](http://imgur.com/n1XYY.jpg)\n\nEDIT EDIT: It looks Asian and also it looks like an elf. Santa's watching! You better watch out, you better not cry, you better not shout; I'm telling you why! SANTA CLAUS IS COMING TO TOWN\n\nEDIT EDIT EDIT: I now see something on the wall that look like a china cabinet. It could be china-ware. But the question is, why is the face very defined, and the other things in the perceived cabinet not bright and clear? I don't see any evidence of a flash either. 1356218354 Please speak for yourself. 1320315053 The cameras are big mostly to house all the live broadcast hardware. 1353203675 Thanks :) 1304611066 Thanks :) 1313420488 Thanks :) 1338227762 Thanks :) 1340202217 My point exactly. And since we are not used to seeing reality in this way it makes identifying whatever you capture on tape a lot harder. 1345364155 I wonder what the size of the largest star in the universe is and how our sun compares to it in size? \n 1334252553 Funny thing about Zicam. I just heard on the latest SGU that the guy who makes Zicam is now in legal trouble for importing and selling a [non-FDA approved remedy for bird flu](http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2011/06/02/state/n135609D39.DTL).\n\nAs far as homeopathy (and other alternative "medicines") go, the only rule they have to follow is not making specific claims to treat or cure disease. They get around this by making weaselly claims to do things like "boost the immune system." They also carry a disclaimer on the packaging that says something to the effect of, "This product is not meant to treat or cure any disease" in super tiny small print. So, legally, you can't do anything about homeopathy or herbal remedies unless they specifically claim to treat or prevent disease. 1308721338 Show him this.\n\nPenn and Teller MLM Episode [Part 1](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y60XdZJG83U) and [Part 2](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4m_4S5BtIbk) 1301458975 We had a full blood Chow named Sheena, she was given to my mother by my father on mothers day the year I was born. Well about 10 years ago Sheena got really sick the vets couldn't do anything for her because she was pretty old, The day before we were scheduled to take her in to put her to 'sleep' she didn't wake up.. Sadly Sheena had passed in her sleep. Well, as creepy as this sounds Sheena used to sit next to my moms couch and would scratch her self you'd hear the jiggle of this little charm/name tag she had. We still have the couch and if you sit on the right cushion at night you can sometimes hear a "jiggle" of a chain or what sounds like change. This has actually brought my mother to tears before and I've heard her say "Go to sleep Sheena" and it would stop. 1340610401 I think so. Plus I'm actually fond of them when they're not being insane (which, post-baby, seems to be all the time, but I think that is common with a lot of people) 1309536982 No charges were filed; the judge agreed that this was a blatant provocation.\n\n[Bart Sibrel](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bart_Sibrel) is a crackpot douche bag who has a history of stalking astronauts.\n 1289572510 I never espoused the belief that no life forms exist which do not use DNA as their hereditary material; only that we cannot say with certainty that they *do* exist. 1291273268 That really is a nice message and its great it made you feel better. 1345306929 Most are doubtful, some are dangerous. Drinking other people's breastmilk is sharing a fluid, so there's a risk of disease including HIV. These risks are outweighed by the immunological benefit conferred on the infant, but probably not worth it for an adult.\n\nChemo and transplant patients are likely to have things going on with their immune systems which makes breast milk (or other non-pasteurized substances) a bad idea. Applying breast milk to a serious burn seems like a bad idea as well.\n\nI don't have any research on this; maybe I am wrong. However I would suggest the onus of evidence is on the claimant. 1299564469 it is one of the problems that make me wonder if this is more of a "yelling fire in a crowded theatre" free speech problems.\n\nits even worse in a way. People with autistic children are desperate not only for a cure but a reason. You have doctors saying "most of the increases in autism are simply due to us expanding the def and more people getting checked for it' WHich isnt very satisfying.\n\nand then you have this idiot, saying VACCINES DID THIS TO YOUR CHILD. and the parents saying "oh shit we did get them vaccinated" and they have a "why".. they are made with mercury, and the parents go "ooo mercury, that explains a lot, remember mad hatters were mad due to mercury"\n\nit's insidious, it plays on their desperation and it is dangerous. (plus we do have a problem when companies like Merck, hide the fact that their own inhouse scientists were saying their drug causes heart problems and them withholding that info. THIS SHIT, as well as their stupid slap on the wrist for getting people killed, helps the anti vaxxers spread their misinformation)\n\n\ni'm just not sure how to stop anti vaxxers from yelling fire in a crowded theatre without creating a dangerous slippery slope.\n\n 1350749734 Thanks, this is great. I didn't realize how much I'd value these answers until you asked the question. I'll just add the podcasts I've been listening to myself.\n\nScience:\n\n* Dr. Kiki's Science Hour - Dr. Kirsten Sanford\n* Material World - BBC Radio 4\n* Quirks and Quarks - CBC Radio\n\nPhilosophy / History / Religion:\n\n* Ideas - CBC Radio\n* In Our Time - BBC Radio 4\n* Philosopher's Zone - ABC Radio National\n* Tapestry - CBC Radio\n\nSkepticism:\n\n* MonsterTalk - Skeptic Magazine\n* Skepticality - Skeptic Magazine\n* The Reality Check - The Ottawa Skeptics\n\nOther:\n\n* Spark - CBC Radio (technology and society)\n* Radio Free Burrito - Wil Wheaton (general geek)\n* The Age of Persuasion - CBC Radio (media and advertising)\n 1299870469 How much do you want to bet that one or more of his patients Googled his name and came across your blog posts? She's scared that this will hurt his business, and she's lashing out. 1323896352 It was? I thought it was on Fox. 1322752623 I'd keep going but every time I look further into actual homeopathic remedies(which each of those are) I lose more faith in humanity and its getting tiring. Also what is up with them and quartz its literally the second most common mineral in the earths crust. [This](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quartz_oscillator) is still the coolest thing quartz does. 1290614342 Nope, I don't see a round object. I see a really really big tornado. 1336583907 Love it. If only there was an explanation for the similar noises here in Ontario. 1318548882 I didn't realize Ali G used /r/paranormal 1326884029 Personally, I think it's just an extension of their gullibility. 1336816676 Why do you say that? I'm not really aware of any solid predictions IQ scores can make with respect to groups, but with individuals the predictive ability of IQ scores is incredible. 1350177859 I was really hoping to find a little note somewhere, saying "It's a joke, guys! Don't worry!" Of course, there wasn't one. 1290568856 He sure does. I've bought all three, and asked him if he'd make a doodle on the 3rd one. It was a sort of... conehead looking confused dude with stars circling his head. 1330497447 Whoever put this together has no clue about objective reality.\n\nIf the government issued interest-free money, how would that eliminate taxes? Does he suppose the government would just print more money whenever it was needed, say to build roads?\n\nThat'd trigger rapid inflation. It's called [Zimbabwenomics](http://longorshortcapital.com/zimbabwenomics-pioneers-even-freer-trade.htm).\n\nDoes he suppose the government would just cease to exist?\n\nThen whence our new roads? Magic?\n\nDoes he suppose the government would stop issuing new currency at some point? \n\nDeflation.\n\nIssue some US Notes to this fellow and direct him to buy a clue.\n\nAs far as relevance to Presidential assassinations? It's a safe bet the Fed didn't assassinate Lincoln, since it didn't exist until 1913. 1312480593 I'm already sick of this story. It's been everywhere I look all week. Those people are morons. 1334778473 He's presenting it exactly the same way the other side would.\n\nStatistics are a way to tell a story. And most people are going to use them to argue their point, and ignore them when they do the opposite.\n\nDon't let them argue influenza vaccine, make the argument about polio. 1333977690 Atheism is just a natural bi-product of proper skepticism.\n\nAnd there's more than enough of The Amazing Randi to go around. 1328118391 True story... I forgot about those subreddits. That is some crazy shit.\n\nBut it just goes to show that if that content is still around on reddit, the nuts spouting tripe in /r/conspiracy should have to right to post their content as well. 1291059100 No, I just get called closed-minded. 1280599258 And that's why I posted this in /r/skeptic and not /r/bullshit or /r/alternativemedicinescam or the like. A more critical evalulation of this procedure is needed. 1290402452 Here you go...\n\nhttp://www.dvdactive.com/images/reviews/screenshot/2004/10/pdvd_008_copy2.jpg 1328540774 Seriously, I'm stumped what's her obsession with cutting things in half, and how tires work, and how fast she could do a mile, and converting it to miles a minute?!\n\nI think it is important to understand her thought process, because how else can we deal with people who's understanding seems to be so fundamentally flawed.\n\nor troll? 1332114813 Haaha, imagine that! I would mind fuck with everyone on a daily basis if I had a twin :P 1337879501 The problem is most parents who are scared of vaccines are going to refuse whatever age their kids are. 1297125293 > It wasn't clear to me whether you were being skeptical of helmet use per se or of helmet laws. Sort of a mishmash of both, then?\n\nI became skeptical of the usefulness of mandatory helmet laws.\n\nThe data for helmets being useful in certain types of accident is convincing but there data showing that helmets reduce the percentage of riders who suffer head injuries is not.\n\nMy theory for Australia, and I can't find any good data for this either way, is that people were already wearing helmets in situations that made sense. So the mandatory helmet law here really only discouraged people that weren't at a high risk.\n\nIt's a political no-go area here. Most people will never question it and politician's simply aren't interested. It's lead to some fairly heated discussions about the Melbourne bicycle share scheme's lack of success.\n\n> Have you seen the IIHS data?\n\nI had not, thank you. That's exactly the kind of data I was looking for.\n\nI'd really like to also see data comparing rates before and after mandatory helmet laws are introduced. What little we have for Australia and New Zealand shows no meaningful change. There aren't any other countries with helmet laws as strict as either of ours. We're often actually used as an example of the folly of such laws internationally, it seems. 1311809556 Bad diet kills. Our cultures current dramatic over-emphasis of carbs and nutrients and "natural" is distracting from actual healthy nutrition. For what its worth, I think this is the best food-related web page I've seen in ages. 1333579014 No. Rebecca Watson publicly berated the guy to his face in a crowd full of people at a conference where she was *supposed* to be talking about something worthwhile. The guy was not given the chance to defend himself and so posted to his blog, which enjoys a fraction of Watson's readership and doesn't really qualify as a reasonable chance of defending himself. \n\nThe point is this: If you disagree with Watson you're a misogynist and no longer deserve being treated respectfully. 1310588569 I pick DunksOnShaq next. 1259553605 Thanks, I'm glad you enjoyed my story. If you like I could take some pictures of the mirror, my room, and the hallway where she was standing if you like? Btw that link is actually to my own personal forum. Its brand new and I'm looking to start bringing in some new members - if you are interested :) 1318540140 that not what you've been saying you've been asking a ridiculous question of "what would it take". This is called a valid side of an argument. take notes. But the likely hood of them being fake is a lot less than of them being real. 1302222496 Yeah, now that you mention it, shooting lighting out of your fingers isn't that impressive when you're standing on a space station that can shoot planet destroying lightning without using any magic at all. 1285337869 I really do think that we should be pointing out a lack of skepticism in the reddit community where ever we see it. Reddit as a whole usually is quite skeptical, but we should make a point of calling it out when the community isn't. 1323464777 I respectfully disagree. Or it really depends on the makeup of the jury. There is plenty of credible and convincing testimony. There is a great deal of photographic and video. But there is no physical crime scene evidence. There is no extraterrestrial craft we can go visit at the Smithsonian... Yet. Much to my personal dismay I might add. 1310746892 That was creeeepy. And just as it finished, a random piece of fluff floated in my peripheral vision making me jump out of my chair. thanks. 1351535632 You're right. Implicit in my argument was another premise and here I can make it explicit:\n\nP2: The best president ought to be reelected for as many terms as allowable\n(and I suppose P3: Reelecting Obama is allowable) 1328820970 Not necessarily. When I still worked in TV news, we called that "Teleprompter Eye." Interns and new anchors would look quite a bit like that when staring into the camera. They were so amped up about being on camera and getting it right that they wouldn't blink. It was especially bad when they were reading their script on the prompter, but even when there wasn't a prompter, they'd still do it.\n 1340224461 You've probably heard of him. He wrote the Watchmen, V for Vendetta, and League of Extraordinary Gentlemen comic book series, among many others. He's a pretty brilliant guy. 1309225211 Wow... Super, super bad science. The second paragraph:\n\n"Finding only one case of the disease in the investigation of hundreds of Egyptian mummies, with few references to cancer in literary evidence, proves that cancer was extremely rare in antiquity. The disease rate has risen massively since the Industrial Revolution, in particular childhood cancer – proving that the rise is not simply due to people living longer."\n\nQuestions that immediately come to mind:\n\n* Who was being mummified? Everyone? Or just certain people?\n* Out of that number, how many of those mummies exist today?\n* Is an analysis of cancer in ancient literature in any way valid?\n\nI don't know about the first two, but the third I'd have to answer with a resounding "NO!" While you might find some references to cancers that are visible growths on the skin, damn near every other kind of cancer is going to be a "wasting disease" or something of that sort in the literature of old, and entirely useless for an analysis like this. 1287118713 You have a degree in baloney! 1326746005 Aye, That be the magic teleportin' lady o England.\n\nBut seriously, weird glitch 1326715670 1. Clock Reset.\n\n2. Dream. 1345202430 I thought both the Mythbusters and Penn and Teller bullshit episodes on the Lie Detector fell way way to short of actually going into why the lie detector is actually a lie and why even the lie itself is pseudoscience. 1317408186 It looks like somebody has already answered it, and was promptly accused of being a shill. 1319737686 Any credibility to this goes out the window cause you were stoned. I smoke up too but never in the same day that I'm investigating because your mind has a tendency to matrix alot of stuff when being influenced by thc or whatever your drug of choice is 1335314533 "Young Living Rose essential oils" probably doesn't have a frequency of 320 Mhz though. 1350161353 Seeing him live in May! Can't wait! 1304073372 Why you guys hating? Several people felt better after taking them! Several!\n 1329849742 wow that sounds really interesting. Listen if you want to join, then send me an email at logicbomb.main@gmail.com so we can work out the details and see what projects you can help with or create. 1321307522 Here's the worst part:\n\nA libel suit like this is a covert shifting of the burden of proof. \n\n WDDTY says "Sunbeams cure diabetes."\n Singh says: "There's no evidence of that. You're fooling people."\n\nWhat WDDTY *should reply*: \n\n a) oh you're right, we don't have evidence, we'll retract that, or \n b) no, we do have evidence, and here it is!\n\nInstead, with a lawsuit, what they're saying is: \n\n Saying that we're fooling people is libel *until you prove that we are in fact fooling people*. \n\nNow Singh has to make a case for the sun *not* curing diabetes. He's been given the burden of proof. If he fails, his claim is defamation. What the actual * * * * Libel should be about unfounded attacks on a person (or, I guess, an organization). The proper questioning of ideas and vocal concern about the consequences of those ideas *is not libel*. 1349338136 The world would be a better place if everyone thought about what they said and how they said it as carefully as you do. (Or in the case of online discourse, what they wrote.) 1341595613 One of the big reasons is because of religion. You tell some of these hardcore religious people that hey, there are others, where are they in your holy book. It brings up alot of problems. Also, when we find out there are aliens, people will start realizing that the government isn't the most powerful thing in the world, madness would ensue. 1343280461 There is a complete list (and I mean COMPLETE) here.\nhttp://skeptools.wordpress.com/2012/04/10/how-many-skeptic-podcasts-are-there-please-help-me-find-them-all/\n\nBTW, Righteous Indignation is, sadly, no more. But the newest is Consequence by the JREF. \n\nYou can get a lot of info by browsing old episodes of podcasts as well, look for those with topics you like.\n\nTwo I NEVER miss as soon as they come out: Skeptics with a K and Monster Talk. 1340991114 While I didn't *know* that Santa was fake, I set traps for him every year so that I finally *could* know one way or the other. 1322355594 I gave you an upvote for creep-factor. Even if you only edited this file, I am still thoroughly creeped. Have you experimented with it since then? 1338938200 i've had to take the myers-briggs, DISC, and something else i don't quite remember. each time i thought it was stupid and more or less watered down choose-your-own-adventure astrology for human resource departments.\n\nmy experience has shown them to be bullshit shortcut weeding devices to sort out candidates, which i suppose i can understand why HR departments seem to be smitten by them. \n\nso, no. not science.\n\nalthough i may concede that my reaction to the tests might identify me as a sociopath. 1355374761 I would love to talk to one of these people and see how they justify their beliefs. \n\nAnyone know where I can meet one? 1294608177 How is "Quantum Medicine" in any way scientific-sounding? haha 1297094577 I recall a reporter starting an interview with Nelson Mandela on his visit to the US, going "As an African-American..." and he interrupts her to say "I am just an African."\n 1352306938 I believe it was just to show he found it in a trustworthy location, not in like a reflexolgy institute or something 1349992802 Special pleading. 1338608577 Wow, I had this too when I was a kid. Just with ancient Greek, I shit you not. It was a meaningful sentence or two, but my mum lost the paper which said what I have said. Same thing with my bro, only with Spanish.\n\nEDIT: Oh, and I should mention, neither one of us have ever had any contact with either of these languages, except maybe Spanish through those soap operas my grandma likes to watch. 1332202140 No, he's crow. 1346561286 My coworker saw one of these and got it on video. It looked like a crazy ass blue UFO but it turned out a local RC plane store had a group that rigs their planes with blue led's like this. 1349715353 Seriously. Best new sub-reddit of 2012, mark my words! 1326821505 Paint 1333636986 There would be something to be said for going through with this experiment. Would you have any sound at all on the CD, like white noise, or just silence (and leave it to the person's imagination)? 1304635824 Along w/ what I mentioned in the post I also tried speaking to it just like you said. I don't know if this was the reason why nothing happened last night but it may be a contributing factor. Right now we are taking this night by night which brings up another point I had not mentioned: these happenings have only occurred at night. 1351103424 Thanks TheTartanDervish! You are the first person so far who responded to me that have actually experienced this technique, though you don't know it as EFT. I have heard of EFT practitioners bringing EFT to [Rwanda](http://www.eftuniverse.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=4333) as well as to [veterans](http://www.nwmedicalhypnosis.com/documents/The%20treatment%20of%20combat%20veterans%20using%20EFT.pdf) so I believe that what you experienced is indeed EFT even if the instructor didn't call it by that name. \n\nDifferent practitioners may teach EFT in different ways, so I don't know how did you learn it, but when you were told to do the tapping, were you asked to focus on the triggering memory or the feelings of panic at the same time? If you were, then even if you were partially distracted by the tapping, a part of you will still be connected to the memory or feeling. At least this is how I teach EFT to my clients, by asking them to focus on the issue while tapping. I would be interested to know how you used the technique. \n\nI don't know how you define the word "treatment", but to me, the fact that it provides relief makes it a treatment, and there is scientific evidence for EFT as a form of therapy which I mentioned in my original post. May I know why would you be skeptical of EFT as a treatment? \n\nMay I know what was your experience of EFT? It's ok if it's too personal to share, but I am sure there are others who would be interested to know. 1342971260 That very interesting. I'll keep my eyes open for any news on the next jackpot winner. 1330601583 How did you feel when you saw him, was it unsettling or peaceful? Did you get the urge to warn them? Or did you get the feeling that everything would be fine? \n\nMaybe ask if they are open to the idea of spirits before telling them you saw a deceased loved one enter their home. 1344966396 Do omega-3 fatty acids neutralise cancer? Cool. 1346646297 The thing about this, is that skeptics never give a shit when they're wrong. They'll go with a theory with decades, then it turns out it was another misidentification altogether, and they're still gonna be like "I told you so!". \n\nIn my opinion this is more likely a piece of glitter that got caught in the wind. The tumbling action and the two sides of bright reflection is more likely in this case. 1353518255 As I understand it the consensus on Valerian root in ordinary pill form for sleep is a wee bit more positive, than Vitamin C for a cold. I have taken it for my own insomnia, and I at least feel as though it had a calming effect on me, but my mind was still so busy and anxious that it didn't have any really positive effect for my sleep. So I just switched back to marijuana :P Pricier, but no skepticism required lol. That shit works.\n\nAlso you might consider taking the valerian root in conjunction with melotonin pills. When I took them together for a few days it did seem to help me more than just the valerian. 1321828282 It's not THAT bad here man. 1355092837 I suspect the you are a on a soap box. I am not interesting in being a foil for you. 1302155040 Whoa.. I'll try this out - *thank you* 1336113687 Oh man, I'm sorry to hear that. I can actually almost relate, my last grandmother passed away a couple of months ago too :( I'm sure your grandmother is now in a happy and better place. My cousin had a dream about my grandmother, my cousin had planned (and did have) her wedding in May and my Grandmother couldn't make it til then :/ but my cousin had a dream where my grandmother said to her "it's alright, i'll be there at your wedding." And that was before she had passed. I'm sure they all have moved on to better places. 1345146146 Timmy, are you there? 1352869645 [Only men in my family....](http://i.imgur.com/f7EXB) 1347472885 Um... did you actually watch that video? He's a 4Life distributor trying to recruit people. 1335300139 Facts are controversial?\nI don't want to live on this planet anymore. 1321393254 The risk of complications may be low statistically, but were a complication such as obstetric hemorrhage to occur, it could be almost immediately fatal. \n\n5 minutes to the hospital is too long in that scenario.\n\nSome might argue that 5 minutes is too far to the hospital in lots of non-childbirth related cases that are statistically more likely to occur. My personal opinion, though, is this: Why risk it when the outcome could be your child being born motherless?\n\nI would rather have all the medical facilities immediately accessible to address any complications the mother or child might experience. Still not a 100% guarantee of survival, but should complications arise, it drastically increases the odds for both mom and kiddo. 1298064128 There is a gulf of insanity between the average mildly-religious person who wants to believe they won't die and someone has a plan for the universe, and the full-blown psychotic who actually thinks demons are running around causing headaches and sucking gay dicks.\n\nInsofar as skepticism is largely about public education, it might be worth recognizing the distinction. It's hard to know where to begin with the latter group; it might be a complete lost cause. 1353979636 actually it doesn't, because how they're constructed is not an isolated concern. The mode of creation is connected to other issues about crop circles that aren't settled by simply arguing that human constructed circles have been documented. 1312231178 Micro-economics might be like meteorology, but macro-economics should be more like climatology and it isn't. I've seen more predictive power come out of long term global climate studies than economics. 1309142989 I have seen the original post, but your comment has worth the repost. 1326065621 If you read Thunderf00t's subscriber base, you'd agree with everything except the homosexual part. 1350619143 lol I just got done arguing with that Daemonicus idiot from another thread...\n\nHe's biggest fucking retard I've ever met. 1311040533 >Would you be concerned if a scientist said that "Evolution is true"?\n\nYes, because it is an equally ridiculous statement. I'd do the same if anyone said the same of the Standard Model or Relativity.\n\n>Which means that AGW deniers are not acting in a rational, skeptical manner, because they are greatly exaggerating the probabilities that AGW is incorrect in order to make it appear as if the theory is controversial, and not well-supported.\n\nI disagree. Any whiff of dissent is met with pretty brutal personal attacks in a manner that is unbecoming to science. 1328287153 People who hoax do damage to legitimate research. 1351815682 Sorry, just not entirely certain if that was a "yes" or a "no"... 1356382808 I used to work at a plant that processed flax for paper... we tried running hemp through the mill a few times in the past, but it's strength makes it very difficult to work with and as a result does cost substantially more to process. 1342123269 The show is not too bad, though. However, I don't know if I have it in me to watch another "LOST"-type show. 1285167780 I understand the other criticisms to my interpretation, but I am sorry, I don't understand this one. Are you saying that sharing knowledge is arrogant, or that everyone's knowledge is equivalent? I don't feel like I said that at all. 1336653357 Not by itself it doesn't. You need other things like sodium as well. 1321934747 I have no interest in debating you about the merits of lack thereof of a subreddit with ~1 million subscribers. It is entirely irrelevant to the discussion at hand.\n\nYou chose, for no apparent reason, to degrade and denigrate the members of a different subreddit in an entirely unrelated discussion. \n\nMy response was to politely suggest that you were displaying the very traits that you were ascribing to others, and then recommend that you take a good long look at yourself and your behavior.\n\nIf you truly believe that this makes me a "superior denigrating asshole", then the issue is with you, not me.\n\nAgain, look to yourself and stop blaming others for your actions. 1342673802 Also don't little kids see weird paranormal shit? \nI don't really mind it. I'm don't believe in any religion but I'm spiritual and believe in bad entities. The story I just posted is the only good entity I've ever experienced. I guess that's just because I like scary shit. Oh well 1342942207 No it's not. Extreme experiences induced by hallucinogenic drugs can suggest legitimate (if rash) hypotheses. Real stupidity would be to deduce that these experiences are conclusive proof rather than avenues of inquiry. Blackmore went ahead and probed such avenues, accepted the randomness of her results and after years of research admitted to being wrong. This, I call guts. Her only fault is buying too quickly into the hypotheses suggested by her experiences with drugs, something that, more often than we would like to admit, we are all guilty of. 1284890364 What a beautiful, positive and joyful religion Catholicism is... 1342911644 Funny - the people doing the hiring don't have any experience finding ghosts either. 1346350141 Like Stross, I take a skeptical view of the time table put forth by Kurzwiel and all the utopian promises made by the singularitarians. The movement smacks too much of wishful thinking and something to fill a void for people who are atheist only out of fashion than a true non-belief.\n\nUnlike the author, I however do believe that something like the singularity could occur. My reasoning is this: I, you and everyone we know and who has ever lived are examples of what we (loosely and with much debate) define as 'intelligent'. Now disregarding any unprovable supernatural elements, you and I are mere patterns of atoms and electricity. There are people undoubtedly 'smarter' than us who are just slightly altered versions of the same pattern. They're over six billion samples of intelligence on this planet right now, that came about with no other influence other than nature's. If patterns like ours can sprout up with only evolution as a guide, than creating something like us artificially should be possible.\n\nIf we fully understand the pattern that defines 'us' and gain the technology to replicate the pattern and alter it: We'll have something we created that is more intelligent than the creators which is then capable to create another even more intelligent entity. This is the biggest step towards the post-singularity infinite rate of technological progression.\n\nIt doesn't necessarily have to be a computer program as a genetically modified clone could just as easily get the ball rolling. As long as we create something smarter than us, it doesn't matter if the pattern resides on a server somewhere or inside a skull.\n\nI can't imagine placing a timetable on this and I think anyone who does is just yanking our chain to sell books and seats at expensive seminars. The singularity just means: anything past this point is unpredictable. It doesn't mean instant utopia, eternal life and some form of demi-godhood for you. It just means: "Undefined."\n\nOh and by the way, Accelerando sucked. There's a lot better singularity Sci-Fi out there with more likable characters.\n\n**tl;dr:** I think the singularity could happen, but there's a lot of noise in the signal. Beware people who claim to know when it'll occur or want to tell you all about how awesome it is for a nominal fee.\n 1309053417 most likely a bit of something left over from a shipwreck, like an old ship boiler or something. 1320945115 lol feels like they're out in full force today... 1291433990 It's not a street light i have a far off picture and there isn't a street light.\n 1341147709 Look more into what?\n\nLook, you're asking me to present a thorough case using only primary evidence for a set of scientific discoveries being discovered only by humans without the help of Aliens. I can't present this case. I also know that you can't present a persuasive case to the contrary. \n\n I can however point you to every other scientific breakthrough in the history of humanity, discoveries that required moments of brilliance and departures from generally held thoughts, that were sometimes so revolutionary that they may have appeared to come out of nowhere. Was Godel inspired by Aliens when he discovered his Incompleteness Theorem? Was Einstein just copying Aliens when he proposed General and Special Relativity? Did Darwin get his ideas for Natural Selection from Aliens? If your argument is that Aliens helped us create the semi-conductor because it "came out of nowhere", then every other scientific discovery that seemingly "came out of nowhere" was also given to us by Aliens, or your argument is flawed. I don't need to give you an extensive history of the transistor to show that your argument is, quite frankly, bullshit. I just need to apply your general argument to the wealth of Humanity's scientific discoveries and show a contradiction.\n\nAs for holding "UFOs to sme crazy level of standards", I don't think I am. I think it's reasonable to expect some form of consistent, testable evidence before reaching a definitive conclusion. \n\n 1329000727 I'm a merchant mariner and this show drives me nuts because it props up people that are using very dangerous tactics. Regardless of what you think about the politics surrounding whaling or the Antarctic whale sanctuary, they are endangering the lives of people.\n\nI personally think that the discovery channel supporting them is very irresponsible because of how dangerous they are to people. 1311439700 So I downloaded the ghostradar app for iphone. It seems pretty fake but i swear before it said pot and i heard a pot clank in the kitchen sink. It was still daylight, I was alone, and I ran outside like a baby. 1314749530 Could try that, thanks. 1347126723 Essentially, it must've been a controlled demolition, because...... it looked like a controlled demolition? 1315773235 Pat Tillman, Jessica Lynch, Suicide epidemic among veterans (see below), government hiding true debt levels (see below), the fact that social liabilities are "off-budget" (illegal), and plenty of others, but I have to run. \n\nhttp://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/11/13/cbsnews_investigates/main3496471.shtml\n\nhttp://www.news.com.au/business/breaking-news/us-government-hiding-true-amount-of-debt/story-e6frfkur-1225926567256#ixzz106MjZzOz 1285161682 I had a key come off of my keychain ring while in my pocket once. *HOW DID IT DO THAT?!* 1337183757 Agreed, also, they make neat apps on android and im sure iphone that will record all night but only start recording when it hears sound. Nifty for this or sleep talking/dreams, etc. 1354866819 I wouldn't say it was a huge benefit to the US to get involved in Afghanistan and Iraq. It furthered the administration's foreign policy goals, but in the long run turned out to be a costly mistake with no clear victory. As I said, if the goal had been to remove the Taliban and Saddam all along, an event like 9/11 was not necessary to carry that out. They simply seized on the opportunity when it presented itself.\n\nIt doesn't hurt to be skeptical but I believe we have established by now that the US government did not have a role in planning or carrying out the attacks. There is simply no proof. 1354827524 Yes! I'm from Cleveland and the Mansfield Reformatory is crazy! Definitely check that place out. 1350370549 I love Ancient Aliens. I had an opportunity to interview Phillip Coppens from the show about some of the questions I had....Here's a YouTube link if you're interested: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bdg20HA_rTQ&feature=youtube_gdata_player 1349374590 I would like to know more about this. 1281147475 Wait, is something wrong with yoga? 1335647794 Passwords solve that problem easily, and soon every kid will have a smartphone with internet access. 1329202679 How did he do the trick in the video then since there was no paper involved? Were the audience members just in on it? 1346379766 I agree it would be nice to have one irrefutable piece of evidence put forward, but in the meantime... there's an eye-opening exercise at hand that is to put 'all the pieces together', that serves as evidence just the same; all the evidence ever collected over the years...reports, accounts, testimonies, research initiatives, photos, videos...all of that accounts for evidence of a genuine phenomenon, whether pathological or otherworldly in nature. \n\nThat's worthy of more research and open discourse, imo. Contemplating random photos and videos will always send us in a worthless tailspin. 1322944952 I like this wiki, but this article in particular doesn't have any scholarly links to support its claims. I believe them, of course, but if I'm going to show her a site, I want to make sure she can't shoot it down because it doesn't have support. Maybe I'll check out the credentials of the editors? 1346881164 On Day 4 after Matt sees the injuries on his leg, did you guys just drop the topic and continued playing or did you talk about it? What did you talk about? How did you feel? 1344867340 I have a ton of gadgits but my core kit includes: a digital voice recorder with external microphone, video camera with infra red/ultra violet, illuminators for the camera, a digital still camera, a still film camera, EMF detector, flashlight, and pen and paper.\n\nSince you are starting out you don't need all the fancy stuff yet. Learn how to use the basics first then add on new toys. Learn to observe your surroundings and to always be aware of what is going on around you. That alone will take you further than any equipment can. 1344537141 > But just think how we could save the world by teaching starving people to do dishes!\n\nI thought we were already doing that? 1277686542 The story doesn't seem legitimate. The man without a country doesn't mention the name of the country, as they most certainly would've taken note of. 1354226915 This seems like the movie *Donnie Darcko*. A guy who is told by a creepy bunny costume the world will end in october 31st I think... Anyway, he soon discovers in the movie that wormholes occur and appear randomly anywhere in the universe. As long as you have a metal craft (according to the movie), you could safely travel through time. Reading these kinds of things make me think that it could be possible to do without. 1352693538 Strange things have been known to happen near I-29N. 1339162743 If the only source is the FDA, then you aren't very much of a skeptic. The FDA has approved many things that turn out to be harmful later. They are bought by the people they regulate, just like every other regulator. 1341970413 I myself am atheist, yet I have a strong belief in ghosts. Less of a spirit idea than the escape of an energy that is connected to an area or community. 1341462808 Next on the agenda: let's talk about the dangers of [dihydrogen monoxide](http://www.dhmo.org/msdsdhmo.html)! 1339593251 If their belief in Santa was to tech pseudo-science that can be dangerous, you should speak the fuck up or you are just as guilty. 1318452725 If you can say that then you run with the moron crowd. 1336389728 I watched The Doctors TV program the other day and they recommended rubbing Epsom salt in the scalp before showering as a help with dandruff. That seems like a more effective use of Epsom salt in a warm bath.\n 1295419884 Your logic is based on the current definition of slander.\nEdit: I should expand on that. "Social" truths are subjective by nature. How confident are we that a lawyer couldn't "objectively" prove that a social truth was slandered in a court room? 1316991557 I'd wanna know why he sued his girlfriend for killing his rose bush :/ 1342567770 Thanks a lot! Always looking for some new places to explore within a days drive. 1331591301 Goddamn mobile reddit. This is in response to the Dudley rd. post. 1347376850 http://www.channelguidemagblog.com/index.php/2011/09/23/long-island-medium-theresa-caputo-talks-to-my-dead-mother-for-real/\n\nThis is just cold reading...... 1317934348 Perhaps they should start a scheme whereby audiophiles can specify how much they'd like to pay. Of course there's a lot of cachet in spending more than those other suckers. 1263937737 >If you disagree that CO2 is not a greenhouse gas and that we should not attempt to reduce emissions your are purposely murdering our planet.\n\nThese are opinions not actions. Opinions don't hurt anything, only actions do. Emitting CO2 in an unsustainable way murders the planet, believing this is false does nothing of the kind. 1333725884 I am trying to raise the question, and you may take it as an attack if you like. \nIt seems like even raising a legitimate question, which him owning slaves in a government that he headed, in which the ruling class owned 93% of the wealth, and owned serfs or slaves, certainly is. It is also reported in multiple sources that his party owned approximately 6,000 slaves. When I raise the question, though, I am attacked as though I have an ulterior motive or something. Or people accuse me of being a Chinese sympathizer, when I think that the Chinese government is one of the worst in history.\n\nNobody should be beyond question, and it seems as though he is. Even posting a differing viewpoint elicits anger and scorn from nearly anyone on Reddit, much in the way criticism of Mother Teresa used to before all those stories came out. Instead of researching it, everyone of the 50+ sources I have shown to others have been dismissed, and I have been accused of bias. I don't know of many other public figures that get this level of loyalty and support without question. It seems fishy, when he said that he lied for years about taking the CIA's money and guns to train guerilla fighters, after denying for 50 years that he did it.\n\nLet me ask you why you think I'm attacking him when all I'm doing is raising legitimate questions? And why does it "seem painfully obvious?" It is a 6 word, direct question I asked. How could you read into it what my motive was?\n\nI am merely a skeptic who is allergic to bullshit, and I don't care what a person's status is. 1353912085 I have a couple of these kids living in my house. My sons have super dark eyes, so dark it's almost impossible to tell where the pupil ends and the iris begins.( I also have the same eyes.) Good to know I'm right when I say they are acting like little monsters 1335294964 Oh man. Something does not want me to see these pictures. I logged in with Facebook and it's just blinking and refusing to load! 1331090789 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eWoNAagCbsM 1319257738 Maybe because he was "Trespassing"? 1351522147 Did you even read the article? 1349279376 Did you even read the article? 1354431573 They meant sodium chloride... move along. 1241387625 Bromine was exactly the answer I got when searching for an answer to this a few months ago. At high dilutions, it wouldn't irritate his hands and would warm up just fine, I suspect. 1309630668 I hope that soon we can get rid of the cultural belief that fit = thin, lazy = fat. It's really just how much food you eat, nothing else. Of course it's harder for the very fat to exercise, but that seems to be the only actual correlation. 1345908117 Yes, and that is not equivalent to "Islam is the only source of Middle Eastern problems." But it is pretty similar to "Islam is the major source of problems in the Middle East."\n\nIf I edited the image to clarify that it is the major source of problems in the Middle East, would you then agree with this post and what I've been saying all along??\n\nBecause I feel like the major source of animosity in this thread, is the fact that people think I am claiming if we just get rid of religion, somehow the Middle East will become Europe---never do I say that. I am simply saying that Islam is a major source of problem and we shouldn't be so reluctant to dismiss the influence of religion has on these countrys' tragic situations. 1347871351 > but it was indicative of a larger problem that is a big deal, and which was made evident in the responses to Watson's comments.\n\nNo, it wasn't indicative. \n\nhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clustering_illusion\n\nhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Texas_sharpshooter_fallacy\n\n 1351154529 You don't seem to be able to argue either side effectively from where I'm sitting. Your links certainly don't do the job. 1341321781 Nothing about this is stupid. Everyone has their own take on things. I personally dont like the word "Psychic" or honestly believe in them (but I am open to the idea for obvious reasons. I just have a hard time with people who pray on peoples money during times of loss.) \n\nIt is very well possible that she was there guarding you from your accident. And I have read when people have near death experiences or extremely traumatic experiences, that they experience a "quick connection" with the other side. \n\nWhile I am in no way shape or form an expert on this, but I think it could happen. \n\n* and im glad to hear you are okay after such a scary accident :( 1333899574 It's because it's a Silly Con Watch 1305658710 perhaps the glass was poorly placed in the cupboard and a very slow slippage occurred. perhaps there was a small earth tremor which knocked over the glass. perhaps a shift in air pressure. perhaps the house shifted on its foundations. perhaps the dog bumped into the cupboard.\n\nmaybe i am an idiot but doesn't wave function and superposition apply to sub atomic particles and not objects such as glasses in cupboards? 1342783427 Possibly I was more strident than I should have been, I still can't tell since it's 5:40AM and my blood is dangerously low on caffeine. As you say, drug references are a staple of mass media throughout the western world and much as I abhor the concept of commercial prisons I don't think a sinister conspiracy is required to explain the graph I linked above. 1336107195 Tagged you as "legitimately thinks milk is a carcinogen". 1328526324 "Are you that starved for recognition that you have to put your entire post in quotes and then attribute it to yourself?"\n\n-The most insightful person on the internet 1339708503 I took the time to look up the "founders" of higher criticism or as he called it, the critical historical method, I saw that of the one of the first men to apply that kind of reasoning to the study of the bible, was a catholic priest. He was very controversial on many of his views (advocate of free will and stuff) but he was still a priest. I think a priest, even one who fancies himself as a philosopher born of the age of reason, will hardly apply any form of criticism in a way that would be so detrimental to his faith. Using “reason” in this way is quite convenient when it comes to validating one’s “holy” texts. Then again, the man could have been without bias… because the Church is well known for that. 1306446780 From the article: \n\n> The helmets shielded their wearers from radio waves over most of the tested spectrum ... but, surprisingly, amplified certain frequencies: those in the 2.6 Ghz ( allocated for mobile communications and broadcast satellites) and 1.2 Ghz (allocated for aeronautical radionavigation and space-to-Earth and space-to-space satellites) bands. \n\nExcuse me? They're saying that a simple piece of foil can *amplify* a signal? Where exactly is the power for this amplification coming from? \n\nNow, I could believe that a conical shaped foil hat might focus radiation that leaks in from below since it will "trap" it inside the hat... \n\nAnyway, any paranoid person with a little bit of sense knows that the only truly effective tinfoil setup is one that covers the whole body, going all the way to the ground. That way you have a full body Faraday cage (with the ground, being a fairly good conductor and *somewhat* thick, acting as the final side).\n\nThe only downside of this getup is that you can be mistaken for a very shiny futuristic member of the KKK. 1349123216 Just because you have never had experences, dosent mean others havent. You quite possibly could have, and never recgonized them as such, your not open to it. A lot of people arent. I know what i have experenced in my life and after seeing my dead ex boyfriend in my back seat, in my mirror, telling me to pull over right now, ( and beleive me ,I did) and watched a semi go through a the redlight. If I hadent of pulled over at that moment. I would have gone through the green light on my side and been hit by that 18 Wheeler dead on. THAT was all the proof I needed. 1344011298 I found a [link](http://www.amazon.com/12-Piece-Sand-Water-Playset/dp/B0080XVB2A) for you. 1347749798 Lol'd 1350267738 I don't think you understood what the article was about. 1289960184 I happy for you guys for sticking to healthy eating habits. \n\nSimply addressing the logic behind this diet. Modern agriculture is not bad, is not causing illness, and athletes are not better off if they avoid rice. \n 1292294189 Atheism isn't "Patriotic". It is the non-belief in God or Gods. Period.\n\nOne can be an Atheist and be extremely Partiotic or a complete traitor. 1341357215 So OBEs are not related to astral projection?\n 1320325251 which i did, before going here:\n\nhttp://www.reddit.com/r/askscience/comments/gzlto/simple_question_suicide_post_has_this_been/\n\ni even get less of a reply.\n\ni should have formulated my question this way: how can a plank bend wheat without breaking it? 1304097599 YES!!! PLEASE! 1349815418 Okay, it's more like a teacher. She has a Masters and this stuff is definitely not curriculum material. 1332005009 Well, does it? 1318536291 In all likelihood, it's probably a bug. 1344211545 I'm sorry, you might have confused heavy metals with something like riacin. You see, they aren't. Hooray! Because it is not uncommon to ingest various heavy metals throughout your lifetime for a variety of reasons. Such as a penchant for predatory fish perhaps. God only knows, but, thankfully, heavy metals aren't dangerous unless certain thresholds are exceeded. Else, there would not likely be one Japanese person who could form sentences due to mercury poisoning. 1256737290 [The Long Run Blog](http://thelongrunblog.wordpress.com/) 1334288600 I think you meant 93% of dumb people and 98% of people who can talk. \n\nDumb means you can't talk 1342160501 As if they need more people wasting their time and making life harder for them. See: Wyclef Jean's Yele charity bullshit 1350902781 Protip: They are made by people. 1283451218 for fuck's sake. I explained this on another thread(s).\n\nHomeopathic quacks will do _both versions_.\n\nwith the stupidest people they will say that you dilute a poison to cure a poison.\n\nWith others, they say you dilute a medicine in order to increase it's potency because water 'remembers' what's been in it.\n\nIt's about the money.\n 1279052215 Yes I do. They are exploiting people in the same way. 1305346285 What! Huffpo publishing unverified bullshit!? THIS IS OUTRAGEOUS 1278544195 I believe it may have to do with blood pressure/flow. 1340058741 As a skeptic I really don't have an opinion about acupuncture besides knowing that there is no substantial evidence or logic for how or why it works. I'm very willing to listen if new evidence or a new theory of acupuncture comes to light.\n\nThat being said, why go chasing after something that, by your own admission, is just barely able to show any appreciable effect? Why throw billions at CAM when there are far more promising therapies and drugs on the horizon?\n\nI guess I'm just lost on why someone would defend something that's really not that big of a deal. 1346292533 Zero. No chance. \n\nPeter Panic summed it up pretty well. 1340742510 Firstly, it’s called a [*doom*buggy](http://www.doombuggies.com/).\n\nSecondly, your description of the location of your mom and sister doesn’t make sense to me; at Disneyland in California, the doombuggies turn left to face the hitchhiking ghosts, so the doombuggy in front of you with your mom and sister would then have been to your right.\n\nIn any case, do you have a source for the story of the death of the teenager? 1341959613 Sounds like breatharianism. Well, Breatharians supposedly live on air rather than sunlight, but you get there by the same method.\n\nhttp://whatstheharm.net/breatharianism.html 1298067474 Just for the record, I haven't downvoted you. I believe that there are ET vehicles, I believe they can be caught on camera - but that doesn't mean I turn off common sense. \n\nYou seem to do, though. And you try to make it sound like I say pretty much the opposite of what I do. I think people are right to downvote you. 1351280890 Or wearing a hat and riding about in a tank lookign like snoopy. 1319016809 TL;DR? 1291527145 This may be weird to most of you if not all of you, but when I went to school in the... ahhhemm.. 1960's, our straw wrappers, not the straws, were sweet tasting. Yeah, they were so sweet, us kids would chew the paper of the straw. Why would these wrappers be tasting so sweet? I don't know, but I did hear some rumors of them being sweetened with aspartame. What's with that? Was this a testing ground? Were we guinea pigs for the product? I am only now questioning this since I see no need for aspartame to be used in straw wrappers, and the sweetness is still in my memory and I can assure you it was aspartame. 1278716785 might want to observe 'rational', poster of this, is the same guy. 1288248336 I agree....seems like something significant happened so it would be nice to see and judge for ourselves. 1242856221 It's likely a higher being interacting with you and extremely likely (IMO) to be one of your guides or something. It's easy to develop a fear initially (I definitely did) but once I got into reading/understanding these things, those fears quickly subsided. Best way to look at it... imagine a loving, mentor-like parent who you unfortunately cannot remember at the moment trying to get your attention and strengthen the connection between the two of you. 1346551517 Awesome. A bit about my confirmation bias: I've had pot 6 times in 8+ years and haven't cared for it. I much prefer alcohol. A couple of times I've had pot because I was traveling, forgot my painkillers, ended up in a bad situation, and the only painkillers strong enough people had on them were medical pot, which works, but is short lived and kind of annoying. One thing that I have found to be fascinating about pot is how drastically different some strands are. It is almost like pot is multiple different types of drugs under one name.\n\nAnyways, the study doesn't go over brain chemistry, or 'brain damage' yet it implies as much. I think people forget that IQ change in a person is tied to personality, not genetics, and therefor to look at IQ change you look towards personality change not brain development. The idea that minors have a lower IQ from something physical and not something tied to a personality change seems unreasonable, yet implied, which is kind of annoying.\n\nI'm not doubting the study, but more the implications.\n\nWhat do you think of my perspective? 1346350345 You're right, our president wouldn't have the spine to do that, such an action would require change. Instead he will continue playing the same old game and keep it a secret. 1328080646 Here's what happened in plan layman's terms: The solar radiation from the CME (coronal mass ejection, aka solar flare) hit dust particles being left in the wake of an extremely hot planet with no atmosphere to keep all the surface dust contained when an meteoroid hits. This dust is being pulled along by the magnetosphere, thus when the solar radiation hit the ionized particles and was refracted through the magnetosphere, we see a phenomenon very similar to what we on earth label an aurora. 1323429202 The basis for chiropractic theory - subluxation is completely false. There is no such thing. So, what do you think of someone that trains in an occupation for which the very basis is false? 1322339806 Came here to say exactly this. 9/10 "paranormal investigations" are done for the sole purpose of people scaring themselves, with any "evidence" being largely anecdotal. \n\nI'm not saying ghosts don't real, but most ghost hunts are just for fun. 1341039333 *\\*sigh*\\* I seem to have taken this thread as my crusade *du jour*. Be that as it may, I might as well proceed.\n\nConsidering that the Norwegian Medical Association is a member or the WMA, I'm pretty sure that you, too, adhere to the principles of the [Declaration of Helsinki](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Declaration_of_Helsinki) and it's later revisions, that state e.g. that:\n\n*"The benefits, risks, burdens and effectiveness of a new method should be tested against those of the best current prophylactic, diagnostic, and therapeutic methods. This does not exclude the use of placebo, or no treatment, in studies where no proven prophylactic, diagnostic or therapeutic method exists."*\n\nThis means that controlling with only a placebo - i.e. a sham treatment with no physiological effects - is *unethical* if there is an already effective treatment available. Otherwise, the use of a placebo is only acceptable if the treatment studied is *"for a minor condition and the patients who receive placebo will not be subject to any additional risk of serious or irreversible harm"*. \n\nYou cannot study e.g. a cancer medicine with half of the subjects only getting saline injections - that would be a death sentence to those unlucky enough to be in the control group.\n\nThis doesn't mean that the studies do not take into account the placebo-effect, but that they just do not use an actual placebo.\n\nThere is no need to test each drug against a *bona fide* placebo to determine that it fulfills the effectiveness requirement you mention. If you test against a prevailing treatment you pretty much know already that if you do better than it, you certainly do better than a placebo. Broadly speaking, the success rate requirement only really applies to somewhat suspicious treatments trying to get approval to be called a medicine, like herbal remedies - e.g. whether [echinacea extracts](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Echinacea) can be called medicine or not. Nobody wants to develop a drug that is e.g. overall less effective as a painkiller as ibuprofen - a drug like that would never go into production from economic reasons alone, even if it somehow gained approval (which it wouldn't).\n\nI swear I'm not making this up, these are international treaties and guidelines, to which each individual Medical Association has agreed. Check with your friend, I'm pretty darn sure they'll agree with me. 1326136771 ? | You should change the upvote and downvote signs to question marks on this subreddit\n------------- | -------------\n** ¿ ** | \n\n 1309473609 The [Cash Landrum Incident](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cash-Landrum_incident) is, in my mind, the best example of what you're looking for.\n\nMultiple eyewitnesses, measurable physical effects, and evidence of government involvement from reliable sources. \n\nI've been to the site once. It's a surprisingly isolated area, despite being so close to Houston. Definitely creepy too. 1346712731 I worked summer jobs on a biodynamic (Demeter certified) farm for years during high school and can attest your introduction to the topic is quite spot on. While the 'organic farming' bit always made sufficient sense to me, seeing the farmer dowsing amidst the cauliflowers made me question his sanity. 1330276098 Wow... I consider myself pretty well versed in all things UFO, but it never occurred to me that Rendlesham and the Cash Landrum case were separated by only a few days. That's quite the interesting coincidence. 1344565866 I could imagine myself crapping my pants if that were to happen to me, freaky stuff. 1336309180 My issue was with your first sentence. Theism is about belief. Gnosticism is about knowledge.\n\nStrong atheism is "I believe there is no God (or no gods)."\nGnostic atheism is "I know there is no God (or gods)." 1288376197 Sorry, where is the proof? Was there a voice mail left from an alien, on an ancient Mayan Nokia phone?\n\nDon't get me wrong, I want to believe and thing there is life out there, but please stop saying we have effing evidence unless E.T. shows up and says, "Yo". 1331684203 I don't care about chiropractic at all.\n\nThe thing about acupuncture in regards to cronic pain is that there are a few big and independent studies that show that it actually does help.\n\nWhat doesn't make a difference is where you shove the needles, as long as you pierce the body.\n\nCheck this out, it's an artical on a large study done by german health insurcance companies to evaluate the viability of acupuncture:\nhttp://translate.google.com/translate?sl=auto&tl=en&js=n&prev=_t&hl=en&ie=UTF-8&layout=2&eotf=1&u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.spiegel.de%2Fspiegel%2Fprint%2Fd-32565481.html\n 1326043112 Exactly! Every Ghost hunter-ish show is way too dramatic and 'hokey' IMHO. I'd love to watch A group of ex-Navy Seals or Army Rangers systematically go through a place that is 'haunted'. 1334124116 You can learn to spot the person who doesn't care if they're telling the truth or not because when they write to try to convince, they just list a bunch of things that they think might change your mind. There's no structure, no organization, no plan - and no attention to whether any of the things contradict each other.\n\nSomeone who actually cares about the answer sets up the question, identifies whatever factors it might depend on, forms a plan to investigate, and draws some conclusions. 1317752056 My skeptic brain is confused by this wizard I see. Rethinking factuality of LOTR. 1300559936 Is this really any worse than relying on prayer to heal an injury or cure a disease? It's all a bunch of clap-trap. 1335514197 TheCookieMonster posted [this video](http://www.reddit.com/r/MMA/comments/bi43j/ki_master_vs_mma_old_video_but_im_posting_it/c0mvkvk?context=1) which may shed some light. 1269568321 I don't recall whether or not my insurance covers homeopathy, but it does cover Christian Science practitioners. &#3232;\\_&#3232; 1342741595 Being dumb? Like taking vitamin pills that you don't need? Yeah. 1314453663 Yea. To get banned from /r/mediation you have to be really a kook.\n\nNut wasn't a strong enough term I'm sorry to say. 1351367551 I'm not 100% sure myself but it's something that should be added to the general conversation. 1287560267 Let's do it! 1304750864 Or a medicine! 1321909803 That's why it says "undergraduates." And 52 is not a "small" sample size. 1325647929 (It's worth noting that the video mostly focuses on the question of safety of artificial sweeteners, not efficacy for weightloss. That doesn't make these points less valid, but is relevant for any redditors wondering what the video is all about.)\n\n> Several large scale prospective cohort studies found positive correlation between artificial sweetener use and weight gain. The San Antonio Heart Study examined 3,682 adults over a seven- to eight-year period in the 1980s [18]. When matched for initial body mass index (BMI), gender, ethnicity, and diet, drinkers of artificially sweetened beverages consistently had higher BMIs at the follow-up, with dose dependence on the amount of consumption. \n \nCorrelation, not causation. I thought I was in /r/skeptic here? I am disapoint. \n \nOver-eaters tend to consume a lot of things, including sodas (diet or otherwise). Skinny, health-conscious people avoid sodas (diet or otherwise). Thus, being fat will lead you to drink more sodas (diet or otherwise). Artificial sweeteners might indeed make you fat, but this study does not in any way prove that.\n\n> In addition, consensus from interventional studies suggests that artificial sweeteners do not help reduce weight when used alone [2,25]. BMI did not decrease after 25 weeks of substituting diet beverages for sugar-sweetened beverages in 103 adolescents in a randomized controlled trial, except among the heaviest participants\n\nSwitching to diet soda didn't work...except when **it did work**.\n\n> double blind study subjected 55 overweight youth to 13 weeks of a 1,000 Kcal diet accompanied by daily capsules of **aspartame or lactose placebo**. Both groups lost weight, and the difference was not significant. Weight loss was attributed to caloric restriction\n\nUm...no one is saying that artificial sweeteners miraculously cause weightloss. I'm pretty sure the claim is that replacing sugar with an artificial sweetener -- assuming all other variables remain static -- will result in reduced caloric intake, which then results in weightloss. Comparing aspartame to a placebo and having both groups lose the same weight in fact suggests that aspartame does NOT lead to weight-gain.\n\n> Similar results were reported for a 12-week, 1,500 Kcal program using either regular or diet soda [28]. Interestingly, when sugar was covertly switched to aspartame in a metabolic ward, **a 25 percent immediate reduction in energy intake** was achieved [29]. \n\nHey, look at that.\n\n> Further, the research in this review indicates that artificial sweeteners do not activate neurological satiety loops in the same way as sucrose, *meaning they actually increase appetite*\n\nNo, the study says they **may** contribute to increased appetite. Sounds like a hypothesis to me, not a conclusion.\n\nAlso, why *should* a zero-calorie drink trigger your full satiation response? You aren't satiated at all. Is there any indication that it SUPPRESSES a satiation response, if consumed during a meal? There's nothing in your excerpt at all. Nothing that supports the idea that artificial sweeteners would lead to binging or cravings.\n\nBTW, the normal pathway (as I understand it) for a satiation response is Grehlin, which is produced by a drop in blood sugar, which normally comes after an insulin response. Artificial sweeteners don't produce an insulin response, which is (one of the reasons?) why that chain fails, which is a GOOD THING -- because an insulin response would: \n* Lead to an inappropriate fall in blood sugar, resulting in an actual, acute craving \n* Trigger fat cells to store fat (and to prevent them from releasing energy from fat), which would res \n 1311965910 i don't think this Dr. Nathaniel Jeanson, in all his time at harvard learned anything. to him biology was probably verbatim regurgitation of things he read with out actually allowing them to sink in, he most likely spent the whole time just going through the motions until he graduated. i want to know where he was on the ratio of pass to fail when he sat his finals, i wouldn't be surprised if he only just scraped through. 1335588966 >Often the news media use the words "highly diluted" when in fact homeopathy is just highly delusional. \n\nGreat line. :D 1283382057 That was in reference to her blog, she frequently write about publications and takes them out of context. If you then correct her in the comments, she'll delete the comment, ban you, and update saying since no one disputed her she must be right; even though anyone will tell you that's not how a skeptic acts. \n\nAnd then there was the elevator incident when some guy asked her for coffee while waiting for an elevator and she just flipped the fuck out; Richard Dawkins even got involved and wrote a letter she over reacted, and she went on diatribe about how he being a man he could never understand how traumatic it was for her. 1346204674 What is the paranormal connection exactly? 1310213173 There might be evidence that any unsubstantiated claim occurred. But this guy presented none. That's why it is a story. 1352401092 nope. 1354397063 There is definitely a conspiracy of reality against christianity. Trillions upon trillions of particles are conspiring to behave according to laws that go against christian dogmas and canon. They all seem to communicate almost instantly with invisible waves to coordinate their actions. If that's not a large scale conspiracy against religion, I don't know what it is. 1344611346 >my ringtone was bohemian rhapsody\nI signed in on three accounts to upvote this. 1329121191 This is why I cannot stand when the media reports on video games. It's very clear they have no actual understanding of what video games look like or what it's like to play them. I have even seen actual news report something like, "Grand Theft Auto, a game in which players are rewarded points and gold coins for killing cops". That's a slight paraphrase but very close to the actual quote. 1356005411 Not sure, but this site is highly known here, maybe thats why?\n\nWelcome though. 1334835166 I love how they make it look like cake and cookies are better for you than steak or turkey. 1346445372 How government should work. 1343257769 Or maybe the UFO flap that happened in the 40-60s that started the whole flying saucer thing has faded and real sightings are much less frequent... 1348530771 Not clear what you consider *real* evidence. I find that people who call themselves *skeptics* have generally made up their mind beforehand, and frankly you come off like you are spoiling for an argument. 1313510696 Check in particular the Pambakian family. 1328362004 Must be a spaceship then. Just look up space debri on wikipedia to get an idea how much random junk is orbiting earth. I don't want to burst your bubble but its most likely debri. 1346774404 I'm constantly amazed that women aren't ranting day and night with rage about how they're often portrayed and the messages their media representatives give them. 1294485416 I am a woman and an atheist. If a man, or anyone for that matter, did the same thing as the man in the elevator indecent I would decline and just go on with my life. I see that there is no issue with what this man did. Words are words. He didn't even speak rudely. He never threatened her or intimidated her in any way. Not even one physical touch. In my opinion as a woman this is meaningless. If a person asks me if I want to play baseball with them, but I just took the bar I would turn them down to rest. The two are the same in my mind. 1351116053 Again, I'm not limiting this to marijuana smoking. [Here](http://www.emedicinehealth.com/smoke_inhalation/article_em.htm), [here](http://burningissues.org/health-effects.html), I didn't read through all of the sources on this [one](http://www.drugscience.org/Petition/C2B.html) but it appears sound. Again, I'm not knocking marijuana, the message trying to be portrayed is smoke=bad. Vaping and edibles should be the preferred method. 1332797923 I just got of the phone with a buddy of mine who as a biology/general science teacher had some pH test paper lying around. Lemon juice (fresh squeeze) came in at a pH of 2 to 3. Since the chart didn't specify whether it would be just the juice or the lemon as whole he popped half a lemon in a blender and tested it at a pH of about 4. \nThe point you made about distilled water seems to have been sufficiently discussed in the thread you linked to, so I don't see how that justifies your observation that 'there is no scepticism here'. 1339624465 lol. i read that as " Christiano Ronaldo claims end of the world is on May 21 2011". 1304980932 Dawkins is DEFINITELY a liberal! 1306594175 There ARE weapons of mass destruction in blah blah blah. People lie someitmes. 1304503910 you are not verbose, but you are a gent. great post. 1331825455 >7. If you can pedal a bicycle at an average of 10 mph, how long would it take to reach the moon riding your bicycle taking a three hour break every fifth hour?\n\nIt would take just over 4 years\n\nWhat the fuck does this have to do with Darwinism?\n\nI was gonna say that. 1307725492 back in the day, Perry DeAngelis was a pretty good reason too. RIP 1310043170 I guess I'm mainly looking at the 2nd box in the first panel ("Because for each thing...").\n\nThe protagonist's choice not to make fun of people comes not from the humility and self-awareness of understanding that he himself does not know many things, but rather the idea that his knowledge is special and obscure and so, gosh, all those regular ol' folks out there can't be expected to know what I know!\n\nIt is entirely possible that I am reading far too much into this and/or projecting and/or misinterpreting and/or need to cut back on coffee. 1336589592 The orwellian use of the word "complementary" has nothing to do with the fact that it complements a primary treatment regimen. Treatments are not singular entities, in the same way that most diseases are not discrete problems with singular etiologies. Alt-med nutters use the word because it makes it seem like they aren't trying to deny the earth is round and revolves around the sun. It's like "intelligent design." 1319521920 Best thing that comes to mind is your camera flash plus the quickness he needed to take the pic caused a bit of a blur. I personally have had that happen on both my iPhone and a regular camera. I also have never captured anything close to a ghostly phenomenon on film (but I have had more than enough personal experiences.) That being said, I have to ask: why should it freak you out that it might be a spirit? 1354947522 That is freaky. There's a Highway that leads up to a place called Genting Highlands in Malaysia. Apparently stuff like this happens pretty often there. It is said that the people seen crossing or running across the road are victims of fatal accidents that have happened there. Maybe what you saw was a spirit of a victim? Or maybe just one passing by... 1334395177 I know! That's some hateful shiznit, eh wot! 1315797305 Derren. 1331133979 >You are confusing the serious complications from the smallpox study with general complications.\n\nLike I said, I don't know what these complications are. I'm a physicist. Please provide me something to work with here. What is a complication from a vaccine? I've read a lot of literature about the field, I'm not totally ignorant of vaccines. But, I'm not sure what you think a "complication" is. Could you please be more clear about this? I'm actually genuinely curious. I'm merely being skeptical of your claims. I think this is the right subreddit for that, right?\n\nAlso, I never claimed that the US one is better than the European one. I more or less assume that they are the same until proven otherwise. I think that burden is on you, not on me. You're the one claiming that there is a benefit, yet you admit that you have no real evidence of that other than a conversation or so that you've had with people about "complications" that they have had. I don't know anyone who has had complications from vaccines here in the US. Could you please explain this to me? 1316112149 So you agree that they can't explain it then right ? 1356303637 The fuck is this? 1323601236 The fuck is this? 1289532587 ^ this guy right here is using his brain. This is the stuff. 1348106757 Forget it. He cannot recover. He is mentally ill and needs some kind of medical attention - but will never seek it. 1347287008 We live in America unfortunately :T one of her old friends is a Wiccan but sadly, he's not the brightest of people. At the moment, I'd say it's fairly low key other than some malevolent giggling we heard a couple weeks ago, which I have to say scared the crap out of me XD 1341335551 looks like some type of sanding/blasting media:\n\nhttp://www.kingspolishing.com/pro_detail.aspx?contentid=814\n\nThey even list a 'tri-star' shape, but there's no photo. 1343809586 This, unfortunately.\n\nThis. 1332274169 "He made us in his stupid image."\n\nSuddenly, the existence of creationists makes sense. 1321546921 I guess I should spell it out. Conservative sources like those listed above tend to either\n\n1. Shed doubts on anthropogenic global warming\n2. Downplay the negative effects that it has\n3. Shed doubt on our ability to do something about it\n4. Or shed doubt about the degree of anthropogenic global warming.\n\nThe UCS is in the business of sheding light on just how bad global warming is an strongly advocates doing something about it. It's no wonder they aren't fond of more conservative publications like these. It's analogous to a bunch of jews rating arab news agencies. 1348425919 I really have never tried or know the answer, but can one easily change their IP address? 1317508466 I know an actual astrologer who does readings. He draws out all the charts by hand and is deeply into it. He is of course insane. 1319393472 I'm no expert on Asia, but I'm pretty sure they eat mammals there too. 1289329739 It just doesn't make science. 1300868355 For fuck's sake. Anyone can disprove the minute details that this shit debunks, and anyone who is looking to disprove this movie on a whole will go "Oooh a link that aligns with my sheltered worldview! TL;DR The movie was complete and utter bullshit and that's that!"\n\nThe truth will set you free, and if you think everything in this movie was conspiratorial coincidence ask yourself this: What does this man and the organization that created this movie have to gain from "tricking" you into believing this? He's the heir to Procter and Gamble! \n\nNow ask what the establishment/Illuminati/13 families/Dark Occultists/Banks/Corporations/whatever-the-fuck-you-want-to-call-the-people-screwing-over-EVERYONE-else has to gain from the lies they spin? Everything: Us as slaves, the wealth of the world, and power.\n\nOpen your eyes, wake up, and realize the truths that are right in front of your faces. 1338328644 I think there's room for both approaches and that both can be persuasive in different ways. It all depends on who you're trying to convince. Are you trying to convince the guy who is convinced that magic water fixed him? If so, you won't get very far by insulting him. Are you trying to convince the audience to whom this guy is trying to sell his magic water? Well then making him look like an ass would be one of the easiest ways to convince them. 1344609702 I've been around the internet for a long time, and nearly everyone that sends out stupid threats is 14 or a total troll. If there are some people that are serious, they're idiots; however, they're likely a very small, yet vocal minority.\n\nI just don't take internet threats at all seriously. 1351135509 Some poor kid is looking for that because they dropped it while shopping with there momma:-/ 1342301311 Woman's son= man 1306110989 So really it should be 'survival of the sexingest'? 1335084327 Doesn't have to be that way. People will believe any stupid shit as long as you give them some sort of logical-sounding reason. My relatives read somewhere that freezing water before drinking it changes its crystal structure for a better one. When I told them that once you unfreeze it the crystals will be gone anyway they fell back to "at least this kills bacterias and the newspaper said its good for you" and continued to do so anyway. 1317226738 Looks like they were smoking 1331898020 Pfff... if they were really "max strength," the capsules would be coloured red. :-) 1338818998 Pretty sure that's [Redmond](http://i.imgur.com/YRkXO.jpg), not California. 1343148203 Mm. That definitely is interesting. I wonder what it was... 1343476847 If it was not be tested on animals, it was tested on poor people.\n\nI don't buy anything that was not tested on animals. 1331838754 This stagnant growth is a property of cost effectiveness and political attractiveness, no? In the U.S., at least, nuclear power was a non-starter for decades because of political pressure from environmental groups. Ironically, this forced US power generation largely to coal, which is about the most environmentally disastrous source of energy imaginable. 1328558121 So in your opinion, society is irrelevant and we shouldn't care about things like racism or sexism as long as we aren't directly affected by it? 1351179224 Interesting. I just watched the [original](http://youtu.be/2w0myRrAewA) video, and a few things struck me. This one seemed to be drifting quite a bit. The one I saw traveled at a constant speed at level altitude. Even the speed and direction(s) of the tumbling were constant. I probably should have described it before as being as it was as if it was spinning on multiple axes. The video will give me something to think about, though. Thanks! 1321810112 Fake 1270980562 Fake 1293603479 Fake 1326097948 Fake 1326736075 Fake 1331787811 Fake 1335752959 Fake 1345741568 Fake 1304532094 It's an ironic page that was meant to show you the face of God. 1297796317 I have lightly dleivered, check /r/paranormal now. 1341467221 I have lightly dleivered, check /r/paranormal now. 1341467228 I have lightly dleivered, check /r/paranormal now. 1341467238 I have lightly dleivered, check /r/paranormal now. 1341467261 Barrett has [previously responded to Bolen](http://www.quackwatch.com/11Ind/bolen.html) and has, in fact, filed a libel suit or two based on thing Bolen has posted and others have re-published. Many of the claims being made a provably wrong, and he has won several settlements.\n\nRead Barrett's rebuttal and decide for yourself. From my perspective, it looks like Bolen has a bone to pick and dosen't have the truth on his side. 1287637661 Where can I see your recordings? 1341504071 This has taught me some important lessons. First, that I can become immune to psychic attack by having my tongue "in the wrong position". Also that if that doesn't work, I can always fight off psychic attack by raising up my big toes. \n\nThe excuses people come up with when their woo is proven wrong is both amazing and rather sad. 1330571054 The "victim" sounds like the dumber one. 1346645750 they have a mini alien they are doing something to at the end. they were messin with the eye socket. 1356697373 There is clearly the danger of legitimizing someone's view by accepting to debate them. And perhaps that risk is large enough to warrant declining such a debate.\n\nI do however think it would be hilarious to tackle creationists by arguing them from the point of view of alternative creation standpoints. \n\n"What nonsense! Clearly humanity wasn't created by Cannanite wargod Jahwe, everyone knows full well that Men were created from the vegetable world by the gods Odin, Hoenir and Lodur. One day the three gods were travelling across the barren earth and came across two trees with life-less twisted trunks. Odin shaped each of the trees into a man and a woman, and gave each of them breath. Hoenir gave them a soul and the ability to reason. Lodur gave them warmth and the fresh colours of life. The man was called Ask and his wife was Embla, and they proceeded to create the race of man."\n\nThis is clearly evident if you compare the genetic material of plants and humans, there are clear genetic similarities which point to humans having been created from trees. Silly christians! 1347549731 For the gods' sake, they're having to confirm remains by DNA due to the nature of the crash and the condition of the remains. Who the fuck tries to give an 11-yr-old hope in that situation? 1355441694 It has been in clinical trials for almost a decade now, it is a real thing. \n\nAny sort of HIV fighting aspects of it have not been nearly as well researched (if at all), as the article mentions. 1333493130 Fully agree on this point. When the student group I advise did a [protest](http://skepticink.com/gps/2012/11/16/protesting-pseudoscience-a-how-to-guide/) of John Edward last spring, I brushed up on my cold reading skills beforehand. I did 10-12 readings and got some really nice hits, shocking most people and showing em how it was all trickery. 1356400162 The only thing this video is good for is studying logical fallacies.\n\n"Jet cirrus" clouds, what she means is "jet stream cirrus clouds." Four and a half minutes into the video and she has already proven to me that she is irreputable source. She has demonstrated that she doesn't know what she is talking about. She has proven herself to be credulous. Far from compelling, sorry. 1325905430 The focus on women's reproductive health. It's politicized and ghettoized. Many women's health issues are taboo to talk about, or deemed "gross," but we have tons of boner pill ads all over the place. 1329154780 Doesn't really look like a fish. For one thing I can't see any fins that would propel it that quickly in any conventional fashion.\n\nIf it had just moved away at a slow speed it would have been more mundane, but that thing just *took off*. 1240812827 Cat type eyes - nope.\n\nEmits blue green light from them - nope\n\nCan see in the dark - highly unlikely he has any better perception that other people. 1327462933 I believe the story to be true so far as his personality completely changing, but my (completely uninformed) guess is that it didn't actually turn him gay - he was previously homosexual, but forced himself to think he was straight and act accordingly. The stroke could have affected his inhibitions, or robbed him of cognitive resources he had previously devoted to try and suppress his sexuality. \n\nBut who knows; there's evidence that there are not just hormonal, but structural differences in parts of the brains of homosexual versus heterosexual males. Perhaps trauma to certain areas could alter someone's sexual orientation. I really want to see a case study for this. 1320904069 Dunno. Going by the nearest thing to empirical evidence we have, deities and apparitions choose to manifest almost exclusively to peasants and nomadic camel traders. Don't think that theologians even get a look in. 1274058942 Someone say my name? 1341521694 That does makes sense for all we know there could be someone pulling open off camera. 1327422537 do you remember why you were saying that? 1326522199 >And then my second thought was that making a claim like that without being absolutely certain would be unbelievably stupid.\n\nI've said it before, but it bears repeating: The Bush administration was *absolutely certain* that Iraq had WMDs, and it turns out they didn't. And nobody even cared. 1304560948 You are welcome. I hope you have a better day tomorrow. 1331861195 this was on the front page the other day, and is a dead animal up in the beams rotting away in a rotting old house.\n\nwhy is this here? 1346005499 Thanks for the in depth and thoughtful reply. I'm a bit off my tits at the moment, so please forgive me if my answer appears disjointed. Its refreshing to hear someone from the skeptic community acknowledging that despite the mass of conspiracy data, there will be nuggets of truth with in it. \n\nI think every perspective has a piece of the puzzle.\n\nI dont think its really fair to say the conspiracy community is quite as autonomous to say they all say the same thing - some will say they know the truth, some are asking for the truth - and there is a cross over in data shared between the conspiratorial community and the "secular" crowds, and despite its cultic appearance, the people and the perspectives involved in the conspiracy community are incredibly varied and differ substantially on deeper inspection.\n\nI guess my criticism comes from the appearance that the skeptical community is usually quicker to deride the conspiracies than take a deeper look - but perhaps your answer has helped me consider something else...\n\nPerhaps it's a case of the loudest voices in each camp making noises which risk us making basic assumptions about the groups they represent.\n\nI think the vacuum of truth that comes from a knowing mistrust of official sources, as you've rightly acknowledged in your initial paragraph has created an inadvertent power vacuum for competing perspectives on reality - and the antagonism that exists on both sides is a consequence of this jostling for views in putting the world to rights.\n\nRegardless of the accuracy of perspective held up by either party, (or the perspective dismissed by either) I've sensed having gone through a full-blown "awakening" to the information in myself, that the need to defend it (and ultimately proselytise it) was in part an unrecognised product of doubt I still had in my mind about the information. I'd suggest that the same applies to those in the skeptic community who appear to spend more energy ridiculing the conspiratorial community than having a good hard look at what the data is saying. \n\nAs you say, there is so much we just dont know.\n\nI'm interested in building bridges through these competing perspectives because I often find myself seeing correlation between both sides, having passed through an intense phase of information gathering and becoming quite frankly quite intoxicated by it at times.\n\nNever the less, I've found myself passing through it with a growing sense of ambivalence to both skeptics and conspiratorials alike - it's occurred to me through the process that there are more fruitful and bigger fish to fry than screaming till you're blue in the face with someone doing the same back. It's all interesting information.\n\nI cant find a bigger question than "what is the nature of mind?" these days, and that question has superceded really my entire fascination with the NWO/Conspiracy lore.\n\nAnyway, thanks again for taking time to reply, best wishes and thank you for your efforts dissolving the fence between the camps....maybe it's all about what we identify with at the end of the day.\n\nPeace\n;) 1306623804 /r/atheism is its own cult. Not all cults are religious in nature, yo. The have a pretty strict code of conduct there. If you don't agree with them may Great Old Ones help you. 1353075695 This really is the bias test for /r/skeptic\n\nThis sort of submission is why I'm here. We need more critical thought and less circlejerking. \n\nBad studies? Poor methodology? Corruption? Just because the FDA or a pharmaceutical company says something is safe or effective, it doesn't mean we shouldn't be sceptical. Remember what happened here the next time someone makes a claim. It could be a homeopathic study or a pharmaceutical study. Don't just back up a source uncritically because you like the outcome. That's religion at that point. 1329827333 Clearly he is neither an Academic or Historian, he is just some crazy old fucker that managed to drum up some second rate media attention. 1350812572 >1) that many of the people making threats are members of the skeptic community, who seem to think it's acceptable to make threats, because:\n\nIt's just as likely they are opponents of the skeptical community and wish to discredit it. See creationists, acupuncturists, global climate change deniers, and so on.\n\n>2) the skeptic community is much quicker to condemn her for talking than they are to condemn the people who threaten to rape her.\n\nI'm sorry. That sounds like complete bullshit and stinks more of a personal opinion than an established fact. 1351129696 > The sound track\n\nhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=73PnAymHAHk\n\n...in case anyone wonders 1310204379 Alright, seriously? \n\nYeah, obviously this girl isn't familiar with the hivemind because then she would have steered far and clear from posting this to reddit.\n\nBut, really? You guys were just assholes. There was no call to completely out her and attack her like that. You WERE attacking her for simply posting about a festival, not even HER festival. Seriously, what the fuck? Way to further the terrible circlejerk reputation r/atheism already has on the rest of reddit. Way to fucking respect her right to invite people to something she's interested in. Just because you don't want anything to do with it, does not give you a license to e-thug her to tears. Polite discourse does not involve attacking someone until they're at their wit's end. Not only that, but you are misconstruing the festival itself, the majority of which is Yoga, music, and food. Sounds like a good time honestly.\n\nShutting down her voice because some gullible people might be taken in by a few things the festival (not her) have to offer is akin to that annoying nice guy, white-knight, all-women-are-fragile-flowers bullshit.\n\nFuck you.\n\nYou should apologize to her and for making this additional post. 1298655967 oh, you.\n\n*ruffles hair*\n\nscamp 1332289223 Can't make out anything the guy is saying. 1336967134 I found some here: http://www.abovetopsecret.com/forum/thread760104/pg1\n\nI like that second vid, where the object hesitates and then continues. 1318050258 I posted the video of Current's explanation because the OP posted a video by him, not because he is some sort of authority on structural engineering. If you're looking for more information, I'd suggest an explanation released by Ramon Gilsanz P.E. and S.E. writing for [Structure Magazine](http://www.structuremag.org/Archives/2007-11/SF-WTC7-Gilsanz-Nov07.pdf) as for your claim that the government hasn't released an explanation, you're full of shit. Here is a PDF of [The National Institute of Standards and Technology Report on the Collapse of Building 7](http://www.nist.gov/customcf/get_pdf.cfm?pub_id=861610)\n\n 1315750013 What if I told you, that's what the IT world is becoming. 1347049249 Deepak Chopra isnt a scientist- He is a self help guru. Does he claim to be anything else? 1323611461 > I never mailed any threat to anyone's house. Please stop telling lies about me. I am not a liar. `-jcm267`\n\nWait, you're calling *me* a liar because I sourced [something that *you* wrote/confessed?!](http://i.imgur.com/7siJt.jpg) HAHAHA!!!\n\n> I paid like $3 for the address of some kid who I was in a lot of classes with in college and **who I didn't always get along with** (this kid was a nice guy but **completely insane** and **I just couldn't help myself but push his buttons**) so that **I could send a kazoo that I bought with my winnings at Dave & Busters** ***to his current address***.\n\nSo are you lying now or then? 1356560389 You go to any web site where you can post comments and you will see this. The internet enables the "locker room" and "sewer" jokes to be displayed out in the open with no repercussions. 1325654809 I just saw him at a performance a couple weeks ago. He was somewhat weak from a round of chemotherapy, so perhaps his spare time is minimal. 1307197158 Sounds like a double standard to me. I don't see how some could be angry for being objectified after posing semi-nude or marketing themselves as "the sexy skeptic." It's like if I marketed a drug to cure a disease, then got pissed when people used the drug to cure their disease. 1310430293 Damn, I hope it's not Xenu. The very last thing I want my last words to be is, "damn it, the Scientologists were right!" 1355942989 Since, I'm a skeptic, I want to first hear the numbers from various different labs, what Dr. Oz reported, and what the FDA approves as safe levels, BEFORE I arrive at any judgment.\n\nI think there are worse things Dr. Oz has done, than this. 1316184957 Haha! Those crazy vodka laden Russians. 1355137010 You can't prove that a living, breathing, metallic pink-and-purple-polka-dotted elephant doesn't live in space orbiting Pluto, completely unprotected.\n\nDo you ever say 'but I cannot assuredly say that I'm 100% sure that elephant does not exist'?\n\nEver?\n\nWhy does God get the benefit of the doubt - but not the elephant? There's not one shred of evidence that says God is more likely to exist than that elephant. So, why do you have to hedge your bets with God, but not everything else? 1351061657 I actually used to tell people I built my diet around my assumptions of what a hunter/gatherer diet would be like until all of the paleo people started telling me I was wrong because their illogical extremes made all the difference... it's good to find out that this isn't what paleo diet researchers are pushing. 1347627138 You’ve “defined” chiropractic with a century old definition. That’s the logical equivalent of defining current medical practices with Victorian standards. It’s asinine, and it exposes your bias.\n\nHealthcare, like all science, is reliant upon self-revision and does not rely on doctrine like your example of religion does. Physio, for instance, has only adopted spinal manipulation as a form of treatment relatively recently.\n 1330028377 Aww, it's alright. It was pretty cool while it lasted anyway. 1333041906 Scenario: \n\nPerson A drinks a single beer, observes funny lights in the sky (which have a rational explanation other than men from outer space), and shares it with person B who was not witness to the event.\n\nPerson B smells the beer on his breath, and decides that he must be drunk. Dismisses his story as the ramblings of a drunkard and tells third parties that person A was drunk.\n\nWould this not be an ad hom? Remember, truth here is subjective. 1347499815 > GM foods are annoying in many ways, but most of the good arguments against them are about how 3rd world farmers are forced into massive debts by companies selling GM foods.\n\n[Citation needed] 1333171656 She digs up woo because there's massive profit in it for her, too. She's a 'stamp of approval' that people are willing to pay good money for. Don't think for a second that she doesn't know it's all bullshit. She keeps selling the snake-oil because it helps her brand too. It's a vicious cycle. 1346738836 > Ouch. It worries me to think that fans of this book might honestly believe that situations like this are dictated by thoughts.\n\nTragically, I've heard people make that very claim and attempt to defend that position, usually with an unintentionally condescending attitude along the lines of: *"Oh those poor people, they're the cause of their own suffering by focusing on the negative and not making their dreams a reality. If only they understood."*. \n\nCome to think of it, I'm not sure that any of those people even read The Secret. This bullshit did not begin with that book and has been around under other names like 'the law of attraction' or 'the power of intent' for a long, long time. 1313121308 It's funny because of eugenics. 1330139735 I would sort by relevance so you get more videos people liked (since you already have selected videos from today) 1299936521 You are joking, right?\n\nWhat do you think "side effect, possibly fatal," means?\n\nOr do you never watch TV with all those ads for western medicine? 1349063877 I always advocate polygraphs(even though I know they can be dead wrong sometimes) for witnesses, but after listening I am 90% convinced these people believed what the were saying. Some were definitely scared of what they saw. 1350727030 The obnoxiously high amount of contingent variables which led to the development of technological civilization on our planet leaves me doubting that there is any place like Earth with Earth-like beings out there in the universe. I know the universe is big, but given the limited sample size of known instances of life I'm not convinced that there are any good reasons to believe that the evolution of intelligent life has occurred more than once. Even if it did happen, or is going to happen elsewhere, someone has to be first. That could be us.\n\nI'm more partial to possibility of bacteria-like organisms. Given what we know about life as it arose on our own planet it seems a lot more reasonable. But until we get a second data point (i.e. life arising somewhere outside Earth) all we can do is wildly speculate. 1296089000 > TIL That during the filming of The Exorcist, many actors were injured, the set burned down, a priest was brought in many times to bless the set, and the actor who played Burke, Jack MacGowran, died from influenza. (found on r/TIL) coincidence?\n\nSure that you want to base your finding on a sample size of one? A ridiculous comedy of errors may happen on the set of every movie. In fact, knowing Hollywood, I wouldn't be surprised to discover that this were the rule, and not the exception. 1355108919 Lmao at using "Satanic invocation" and then calling Jewish mysticism "mumbo-jumbo hebrew shit"\n\nLearn your fucking roots. 1351410516 Traditionally Inuit and Masai don't live sedentary lifestyles. 1299616171 It is trivially easy. Measuring earth-propagated sound was a key part of my job, and it's easily achievable with very cheap equipment you could buy off the shelf for maybe 100 bucks. You could measure any non easily-audible sound with a very cheap geophone. 1307888476 I can't wait to see James Randi's face when he's forced to hand over $1mln to this group after they comprehensively prove the power of prayer. \n\nOr maybe not 1346606645 The authors rate each included study on multiple factors (proper control group, sample size, proper statistical analyses, using reliable measures, etc) on a scale from 1-16 (low to high). Of the 66 included publications, there are none that score above a 12. In fact, the average score is just 6.3. As with most meta-analyses, garbage in = garbage out. 1298225154 Bad ideas are bad. 1342070639 It would be entertaining to watch you explain why free association and you being prevented from involuntarily injecting people is wrong. Tip: Crying heard immunity doesn't cut it. 1347492073 To use your example, let's say a dozen people saw a dog walk through your yard and someone has video of it leaving the footprints.You'd have someone claiming that the witnesses were paid by the police chief with the paw print boots and that he faked the video. \n\nThere is a point where it doesn't make any more sense to hold on to contradictory beliefs, let alone add more of them. Some people don't seem to be able to let their beliefs go because they're so sure the official story is a conspiracy/cover-up. There's a strange inability to jettison the lame hypotheses, especially when they're proven to be lame, and other lame hypotheses being added to consideration just because they contradict the official story.\n\nIt's one thing to consider a handful of contradictory beliefs when you just don't know and you're looking for an answer, but it's something else entirely when you cling to those beliefs in the face of evidence or answers that you don't like. 1329759423 it's not that it's improbable. it's that all the people putting those claims forward are (more or less) crackpots. if they would only stop dreaming up stuff, we wouldn't have to deal with it. scifi is sweet and all, but don't take it into real life. 1340031729 I find this a total stretch of plausibility. Otherwise known as bullshit. 1329083533 Seriously? You can't figure out the difference? You can't see the difference between believing something, that is taught to you from birth and most of society around you also believes, vs. simply doing stupid things?\n\nSorry, but if you can't even figure that out, there really isn't much use discussing anything further. 1330328411 Thank You. 1331090026 Are you sure someone else isn't home? Say, someone they don't trust with taking care of the cat... 1343982759 Aw, thanks. I've only been dealing with this stuff for 6 months, but I have had 7 spiritual encounters in that time frame.\n\nAm I dead wrong on any of these things? Or are there any insights you have that you'd like to add? I'm always seeking to increase and correct my knowledge on these things. 1323803118 Um, no, actually r/skeptic is generally *pro*-vaccine due to the scientific evidence. 1262294636 [PubMed](http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed?term=%22Bovine%20colostrum%22) does not agree with you.\n\nSince I don't have an account, I can't read all the results of those studies but I can confirm you that research has been done. Now if only someone could give us the results. 1311338973 Where, exactly, do you get that statistic? 1342701729 I've never talked about it online anywhere before, I was just adding my personal experience - feel free to ask me anything about it :) 1344264008 Huh, there's at least 3 viewpoints (over shoulder, wider from left, and facing richard) cycled between in the videos, granted they're all a bit crappy in terms of 'professional interview' style, but they do the job. 1339251022 I ve looked into that sight,so let me get this correct.. I should believe a president of the United States met the aliens just cause some guy wrote that? hmm... it took me some time to get to the point in my life that I dont need religion,this my friend is just the same.I should believe something someone said to someone? with no hard evidence? no data? no research? cmon.. I would be the first one to jump from happiness if aliens appeared .. (good or bad,fuck it) but I cant believe something this far stretched. 1349454813 At the moment, I lack the desire to fully respond to this, but I want you to know that I agree wholeheartedly with you. I believe ET, under the same laws of physics that we experience here, would develop not only similarly to us, but would most likely follow a very direct path along evolution's line. Every creature needs its basic senses. To see, an eye needs to be evolved. To move, appendages. To hear, auditory receptors, etc. \n\nEverything we perceive here, we would undoubtedly be able to perceive on another earth-like planet. After all, we aren't the *only* place in the universe where our laws of physics apply. \n\nPeople are so quick to assume that *we* are the ones who stand out. I for one think we are a very naive and self-absorbed race, and we have a long way to go... Oh what I'd give to just travel the stars and nudge intelligent life along. 1328503053 Also, if eating grains were bad for people, we would have died out thousands of years ago. \n\nKnow why cities like London and Rome are thousands of years old? Because they lie in geologically stable areas. \n\nKnow why humans have survived for tens of thousands of years without modern medical knowledge? Because we learned what was safe to eat and stuck with it. Mammoth good. Wheat good. Juniper leaves bad. Get it? 1268106807 Dismiss it if you will.\n\nWhistleblowers on ETs are abundant and have since been killed.\n\nYou don't have to believe they are among us but...I would rather listen to people that lost their lives trying to get the information out for the greater good than people who are skeptics. 1345135425 Do you have any opinion on the Nazi Bell machine? True/False? If it was true, they were definately up to something sinister. 1317128554 I agree with everything you said, but I wanted to point out that the author is a "she." 1287430348 Both of your assumptions of me are incorrect. It just seems that every skeptic tries to come up with an immediate invalid explanation. I apologize, but that display could not possibly be bats or moths. If you see a plane fly overhead, you can clearly see that it is a plane by the way it behaves: lights, straight balanced flight path, and lack of flapping to create lift. You can tell it isn't a bird. That is an observation made based on experience and you see it as fact. It is how our minds view the world. If some full grown man sat beside you, pointed at the plane and said "That's a blue jay!" or "That's a moth," you would suspect he is either dicking with you or somehow mentally incompetent. Or, he simply views the world so very differently. Either way, you can tell the difference between a plane and a bird. I, and people not clouded by complete skepticism or a lack of knowledge, can tell you with %100 certainty that the objects in those videos(regardless if it was sky divers, extra terrestrial life, or a government test ship)that those objects were not moths or bats by the way they appear and behave due to our knowledge of the observable universe. 1333068376 That's what he's trying to do by asking a forum of supposed skeptics for their input. \n\nAnd if the health defects have been found, but not through peer reviewed studies then how have they been found? Anecdotal evidence? Supposition? "Studies" with undisclosed parameters?\n\n\nAlso regarding more effective cancer treatments: [citation needed] 1294244391 There is a hilarious "documentary" on Netflix called ["Paul McCartney Really is Dead: The Last Testament of George Harrison"](http://movies.netflix.com/WiMovie/Paul_McCartney_Really_is_Dead_The_Last_Testament_of_George_Harrison/70144861?trkid=2361637). Check it out; it takes the conspiracy deeper than any other "source" I've found. 1340896842 This is why he says we, and all we create, are nature. Everything in the past has led us to where we are now.\n\nI'm fond of the idea that our "consciousness" is actually us in the 4th dimension, and we are like a slug, composed of all states of our life from birth to death. I always kept the idea of us separate though, you are one slug, and I am another slug. His metaphor about the hand passing through the second dimension was really eye opening to me. I know the concept of a 3d object passing through a 2d plane, but to think we are all just fingertips of a larger hand connected in a higher dimension is awesomely comforting. Damn you pseudo-religion! 1344993413 looks HAARP related... 1344782900 Lol i think club would be the right word for them. I also am deeply fascinated by Egyptian culture especially the pyramid's and the sphinx. I personally think that they didn't build them using slave labor they either had assistance by terrestrial or extraterrestrial entity's or they used a technology that has somehow been lost in time.\nhttp://www.reddit.com/r/Paranormal/comments/kayx6/in_1923_a_small_100_pound_man_hand_cut_moved_over/ 1316939001 >From what I've read, acupuncture has statistically significant results for some conditions - mostly relief of pain.\n\nI haven't read any peer reviewed, methodologically stringent study (eg. properly blinded, randomized, large N, etc.) that showed acupuncture had any effect that differed significantly from acupuncture placebo/sham groups. In other words, the studies (so far) illustrate that the efficacy of acupuncture are easily attributable to the placebo effect. If you know of studies that say otherwise, do share.\n\n>Acupuncture is a poor choice for the author to be critical of here because it has statistical significance above sugar pill placebo, relieving some instances of chronic pain where other treatments did not help.\n\nI have read about some interesting studies done recently that show that non-invasive or small placebos differ in effect compared to larger or invasive placebos (I haven't read the studies as of yet, so I cannot say that these differences were significant, or that they were significant). Ben Goldacre just did an interesting TED talk where he described such a graded placebo effect: with regard to placebo "efficacy", small sugar pill < large sugar pill < salt water (saline) injection. This is suggestive that placebos that are perceived by the patient as being more invasive tend to have a greater effect than those that are perceived as less invasive. But be mindful that we are still comparing placebos to placebos, and this evidence does not yet validate or justify placebos as being used as bona-fide medical treatments, especially for serious conditions. Also be mindful that such results are new, as we are just starting to dig into (with science, that is) what the placebo effect is and how it actually works.\n\nThat said, Novella is not declaring that placebo is bunk (his very first sentence implies the opposite). Rather, he is saying that people have a poor understanding of what the placebo effect is, and what it is not, and we should be careful claims that exploit this ignorance. He is also illustrating exactly why we should be wary of anecdotal claptrap (take a look at what ranza is serving up, for instance). 1317569721 Questions like "how can snakes and bushes talk?" and "how do people walk on water?" 1355000200 Those are both just mp3s I opened with audacity. The top was obviously digitally mastered and distributed because that's the only way to get the sound so uniformly loud (That's not the point though because it would sound just as bad if the same thing was done with analog equipment). The bottom is a rip of a 70's record, though it could have easily been done digitally today. \n\nI would have no problem with the loudest sound wave hitting 0db; the problem comes when you amplify every part of the song to make it as loud as it can possibly be because that flattens out the song and makes it sound like garbage, regardless of how good the song really is. Bands and labels do it at the expense of sound quality because they don't want anybody else to be louder than them, and the music industry is still failing (not that I'm implying causation). Many classic bands are re-releasing their old albums with this mastering. I have Black Sabbath's original records (as mp3s) and also their remastered versions of the same songs (also as mp3s with the same bit rate as the mp3s of the originals). The originals sound great but the remasters sound terrible. 1343570987 If something happens once, it surely happens again. Its the rule of nature. 1340031573 You should post this in /r/askscience 1343216512 If I was a doctor I would recommend that shit. Placebo for the win! 1268871496 More importantly, would they have hilariously high-pitched voices? 1354284595 Yeah, how ironic would it be if AOL had to tell the HuffPo how the world really is... 1297088387 On R/conspiracy, they say Iran is only a pariah because they don't have a Rothschild controlled central bank! It has nothing to do with the oppressive theocracy.\n\nYou can't even make this shit up. 1320958097 Fabulous, thanks for the info! 1317941477 [Yes, this page is also good](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fallacy)\n\nAny thoughts on my example though? 1281148664 You said they looked like the Phoenix lights. What else am I supposed to go on? 1344574828 >shot while eating out with a model\n\nWhere to start.... 1274850563 [Here's an article following up on his comments] (http://images4.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20111002053618/simpsons/images/b/b1/Hi.jpg) 1355433017 Functional Medicine is a legit field. FM has a focus on holistic practices and things like diet, in addition to conventional medical practices. I really doubt that that M.D.s that use FM believe in homeopathy.\n\n 1300840798 Im almost 100% it was weather balloon safety lights. After some thought, I recall a TV show called Fact or Faked where they covered this exact same thing. I'd post a link for you, but I'm typing this on my phone and it's a bit of a hassel to find it. \n\nI kinda liked Cloverfield btw. 1336359241 "this is not a hoax and I am not an actor."\n\nOh, OK. 1344786144 Wow. A guy with a gun shooting a guy without a gun CANNOT be self-defense. What kind of country is this? 1333592113 And you think it's going to differ an order of magnitude?\n\nA median doesn't have that enough deviation for that study to apply to one can. 1313520319 No way 1297439217 Do I still need the MMR if I know for a fact I will never have children? 1341048486 I bet it would work quite well over here too.\n\nWell, less on the burglar thing... that tends to lead to gunshot wounds or a baseball bat upside the head. 1304071163 You people need to learn to read. I think Monsanto is despicable... what they do with GMOs is despicable... but being anti-GMO because of Monsanto is lunacy... it's equivalent to being against programming languages because people write computer viruses. 1325914251 First off, check the usernames. I'm not SaoJoao, the person who said the things you are arguing against. I'm the third party that read the thread and saw where some of the confusion was coming from.\n\n\n\nSecond, I understand that you are trying to "prove that it happens." The problem is that that is completely meaningless - something happening and something being likely or probable are completely different, which is why anecdotal evidence is ignored. If you want to show that fraud or misdiagnosis is likely or the most plausible explanation, it would serve you better to provide statistics, hard numbers, or solid studies on the prevalence of these events, instead of individual anecdotes of times you've seen it happen. I've seen a computer with a mouse nest inside of it, but that doesn't mean I assume that's the cause every time I see a computer crash - I check for the statistically more likely causes before the one I've anecdotally encountered.\n\n\n\nThird, I'm not sure if it's intentional, but I feel your tone is coming off as somewhat abusive and insulting, which is unwanted and unhelpful. Sorry if I've misread you in that regard; text can be unclear at times. 1323368708 Point taken good sir. I merely have one last question. Weren't all planes grounded at that point in time? Except obviously the CNN helicopter which apparently doesnt give a fuck. 1311182267 Thank you for the explanation. I realized that last question was sketchy as soon as I posted it. 1348024984 My friend, his name is Aladdin. 1351479293 You, OP....are a curious individual but sometimes hesitant to ask questions, as they sometimes get you in trouble. You're affable, but often hold part of yourself back, seldom comfortable revealing your entire self even to the people you love. Speaking of love, your love life has occasionally been a challenge and you have had occasional trouble meeting or even fully understanding your sexual desires. You consider yourself a largely rational person, but your emotions may play more of a role in your thinking than you are sometimes comfortable with. You have suffered financial difficulties in the past, and know what it's like to struggle to make ends meet, but that's changing with time and you have a bright financial future ahead.\n\nHow am I doing so far? ;) 1338860192 Dude's a neurologist and assistant professor. At Yale. And he puts out a kick-ass podcast. Weekly.\n\nMake time for Reddit! 1303351716 Nowhere do they quote her as saying that she wants to prove the doctors wrong by demonstrating that alternative cures work; nothing that she says even remotely resembles that sentiment. In addition to continuing chemotherapy per her doctors' orders, she's also pursuing alternative treatments, and that's all there is to this story. That fact alone is utterly unremarkable. As a true skeptic, I would try alternative treatments unless reliable studies had concluded that they do not help at all, and many of the treatments she's trying have not been studied. If modern science is telling her she's definitely going to die relatively soon, then I think it's completely rational for her to try treatments which have not yet been deemed ineffective by science, even if they end up hastening her death.\n\nThe only thing she says which expresses disagreement with her doctors is that she believes that their estimation of the time she had left before death was inaccurate, which apparently it was. \n\nThis submission is stupid. 1339302363 Hahaha. I've never been told I was closed-minded by a psychic. That must be a majestic experience. Along with the followup "well, I'm open to the possibility that psychics are frauds." 1318827069 I hope in the future people can discuss culture and genetic differences without worrying about sounding racist. As per your oriental = aliens hypothesis: They did a sketch on Mr. Show w/ Bob and David about San Francisco that made the same claim. 1306902548 To be fair, they use *bad* scientists to do this. They pre-judge a situation, don't properly investigate it, blunder into the unknown and an alien they didn't think would be hostile eats them alive as a result.\n\nThey should show it in high school science classes as a warning about what happens if you assume things. 1340976311 >How can this community pretend to be skeptics but believe blindly in global warning?\n\nThat's because we don't blindly believe in it, rather we accept it is very likely to be true (and very unlikely to be false) given the compelling empirical evidence supporting it, as well as the lack of evidence against it.\n\n>The whole idea of being a skeptic is being skeptical of everything.\n\nTo be skeptical does not mean to doubt everything, all the time, it means not believing things that aren't supported by evidence.\n\nDoubting everything all the time quickly makes life unlivable.\n\nhttp://rationalwiki.org/wiki/Pyrrhonism\n\n>I could just as easily post a link saying ' energy band denier mis-reports facts about energy bands', shouldn't we be skeptical about both sides?\n\nOne isn't skeptical of a "side." If one side is supported by scientific evidence while the other isn't, then a skeptic's role isn't to place himself in the middle. 1330663345 yes, part of why i joined r/skeptic 1295166097 You do realize that not vaccinating your kids is everybody's business, correct? 1309894317 Funny stuff. :) 1314803568 I'd like to address this: "Even where fad diets work, it's not because the fad diets worked, but because they happen to, among everything else they push, comply with these points."\n\nSo, if a diet makes you lose weight because you eat less, the diet itself didn't actually work, it just made you eat less?\n\nEdit: I think the first paragraph of your post is awesome, though. 1339709629 >There, I'm finished. Hurry up and downvote the fuck out of me so nobody will see this. \n\nWhy can't you just post a comment without this childish rant at the end? 1317200682 Happy ending? 1330242682 I promise that I do not. I just lay the slightest amount of disagreement, and try to edge my classmates to follow through. 1312687790 As has already been mentioned it's Adam Curtis' documentary "The power of Nightmares" which aired on BBC 2 in 2004 (according to Wikipedia).\n\nIn terms of how credible it is, i would also be interested in other opinions on this. His documentaries are definitely not considered "fringe" and he's not an Alex Jones or anything and although his documentaries have an editorial tone he backs everything up with facts, references and tons of archival footage (not a plus in the "should i believe him" column but makes for very good documentary films).\n\nI find Adam Curtis to be pretty trustworthy factually and most criticisms are attacking his ideology or politics (perfectly reasonable but subjective judgements).\n\nWhen looking up that air date on Wikipedia I found out that he called Michael Moore "a political agitprop film-maker" which made me like him more, although doesn't affect his credibility obviously.\n\nedit: I didn't mention that the person who posted this clip (sans context) to Youtube with the headline "BBC Now Admits AL Qaeda Never Existed" is an idiot 1299112851 Let me translate for you: despite claims of objectivity, gugulo is not listening to what you're saying, and just assuming that his pet explanation has to be correct, so anything you say will just bounce off his complacent assumption that you're just some poor, confused thing. \n\nI'll quote: "*He sees me typing a number obviously longer than the area code. I freeze, realizing what I had just done. The customer looks confused, and I say sorry can you repeat the number? He does and it matches the one I typed.*" \n\nThat's nothing like a schematic memory error. That's glitchy.\n\nAlso, steer well clear of anyone who suggests that James Randi is anything other than a crusading materialist zealot and crashing self-publicist. He's the kind of idiot who gives scientific objectivity a very, very bad name. 1349704972 Sure, it very well could be a model. Point is that it is an UNIDENTIFIED FLYING OBJECT. It isn't a cgi hoax and represents something real in the sky.\n\nIf we knew what it was we wouldn't be debating it. 1310220232 You gotta root for the home team. 1296731697 All I can say is that when I was a kid(about 7 or 8 or so) I had strep throat for the first time and I had a very high fever and I began to hallucinate and felt like I was falling infinitely, so if I had a kid I would be terrified of that happening to them. Fevers don't seem like anything to fool around with. 1351727890 as another commentor said, his formula would benefit from definition of terms. 1334681159 Same same.\n\n\nRational part of my brain says it's hoakum and the guy clearly has some other kind of agenda.\n\n\nParanoid mental part of my brain wonders if "god" will see I'm generally quite a nice person and let me in on some kinda "new player friendly" mode.\n\n\n\nI've never really cared about religeon, that's not to say I believe or not, I just don't care. 1305892406 That's fine but you made a blanket statement in your initial comment, you said ufos is a belief system, you should have said people who claim to know ufos are aliens are involved in a belief system. I agree with you there because no one can definitevly say what ufos are providing a real mystery exists (imo there is a real mystery but involves a very small percentage of ufos). 1320081855 I thought they did it in orbits of the galaxy, so 26000 years? 1331420628 wow i wanna hang out with yous guys. 1315592073 Good to start with some facts on the table, thank you 1351525583 Too colorful, didn't read 1326575519 It _is_ a leaf. 1315692630 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Help:Wiki_markup\n\nEnjoy. 1342200420 Most convincing?\n\nA) You don't know how the universe was created.\n\n*(Yes, I know it isn't that great. But he asked for their best argument.)*\n\nAnd the best argument you never hear them say:\n\nB) God is a temperamental childish prankster god who likes to screw with us and play hide and go seek and other games, much like a kid with a magnifying glass likes messing with an ant hill. 1303092035 I have vivid and lucid dreams very often, which I guess is different than astral projection, because I am aware I am dreaming but usually don't have good control and my thought is slugglish. Typically once I know I'm dreaming I start 1. flying around 2. conjuring a hot guy up to have sex with. Not even kidding, it always happens. I even have a "check" in my dreams to tell if I'm dreaming. I either "hover" above the ground or walk through walls/ceilings. Last night I kept hovering over the ground to convince my friend that I didn't actually hit his car and that I was dreaming him and the whole situation up. Weird.\n\nAnyway, wanna know my fool proof tip for starting lucid sleep? Go to bed. Wake up about two hours before you normally get up, then go back to sleep. I always have extremely vivid or lucid dreams when I do this. Another tip is to "check" if you're dreaming during your waking life, like, every time you touch a doorknob, ask yourself "is this a dream?" Eventually you will do this in your dreams. I started doing this way back when I was a teen and I'm pretty sure that's why I have such crazy dreams now. Also, certain foods tend to help, lots of dairy or spicy food can affect your dreams. I know you're asking about AP but learning to control your dreams is pretty awesome. 1343939130 I always thought it had something to do with where they came from. 1345570899 from yale.edu\n"Primary sources provide first-hand testimony or direct evidence concerning a topic under investigation. They are created by witnesses or recorders who experienced the events or conditions being documented. Often these sources are created at the time when the events or conditions are occurring, but primary sources can also include autobiographies, memoirs, and oral histories recorded later."\n\nHow does the above video testimony not qualify? If your still not satisfied, how about this.\nhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WkO0lZ7BZJc\n\nHonestly I thought this was a place for skeptics, not people who ignore solid evidence because it doesnt fit in with preconceived notions.\n 1340671737 if we dont know what it is, it could be anything, including an alien spaceship. So no, that would not be a whole other conversation. 1331976806 They do. 1296192660 They do. 1324350827 I have a very good friend who is in marketing. He is also a (diagnosed) sociopath.\n\nThese things are probably related!! 1334438986 > >The question is, is your beer noticeably better if you were to use cold tap water vs hot tap water?\n\n>The problem is I can't use the hot tap water to make beer right now because I have to keep the temperature low enough that the yeast doesn't die when I add it.\n\nSo that would be a *Yes* to sequentious' question? 1332543581 I just picked 80% out of nowhere, it doesn't have any specific meaning. But, in order to have much practical application, it would need to be higher than 50%, right?\n\n\nBeing just over 50% doesn't make something accurate, does it? I wouldn't be comfortable arresting 5 people correctly and 5 incorrectly for such a serious crime.\n\n\nIn any case, I would still eat my hat if she guessed over 50% correctly out of a batch of 500. 1332911125 I used to watch Real Time ever week, but when he went on his flu vaccine rant, I felt like I had been punched in the stomach. 1333505257 The alternative seems to be to believe every claimant that comes along without using a shred of critical thinking. \n\nThis destroys the community altogether by undermining the research effort's credibility with anyone who doesn't believe the subject, and removing the possibility of actually discovering the truth. To do the latter you actually have to use critical thinking to separate truth from fiction. \n\nThe UFO research community is full of hoaxers and the deluded. They are holding back discovering the truth. Let's get rid of them. What's the problem with that? 1348630926 I kind-of work in a complimentary field and you wouldn't believe how they get around the legalities so they can say/push that shit on people. It's incredibly unethical. 1313319330 The problem is that meaning opf 'conspiracy' has been distorted over time to have connotation of being some sort of global thing. In fact, conspiracies do happen all the time. They happen any time a small group of people get together to secretly do something If you don't believe that people, in fairly large numbers on the planet, form agreement between two or more others to break the law or take some sort of covert against someone or something else at some future point, then you're not paying attention to how people are. 1346350020 >As we unfold the awesome gift of who and what we are, as supreme physiological beings and forms, our avatar abilities will naturally unfold along with the vastly expanded perceptual framework to both our planetary and cosmic existence.\n\nWait, so this is Scientology? 1282742657 This is a nice list but I would be interested in learning more about why and how these orbs manifest. Specifically, I have always been amazed by the "blue pearl" that is sometimes associated with spiritual development and some meditative states. I have seen these orbs before in purple and red colors as well, but had always considered them to be "spirtual" phenomena. My initial belief was that orbs are more traditionally associated with ghosts and other paranormal phenomena, but maybe that isn't always the case? 1324064373 The açai berry thing would be far more suited to just "Try our berries, they're tasty." \n\nDo they really need to go through all the trouble of faking medical cures and diet programs? 1334423848 Neither the headline nor the article ever claim that the drug caused the infection. They do focus on the drug because it is relatively new, but explicitly state that\n\n>there's a risk of infection with any sort of injection, even in a hospital. 1326520559 I stopped when he talked about helium exploding. The only way to get that to "burn" would be through fusion. Not that I have to tell you fine people that. 1353393587 This is an example of [samadhi](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Samadhi) which I was introduced to by improvising music.\n\nThis is a taste of what meditation strives to bring about in normal day-to-day life. Meditation is very similar to that feeling you get, but rather than having it apply to solely welding, to existence. 1275337801 Yeah, he read it better. 1333182056 Well actually, due to relativity, he wouldn't reach light speed until he accelerated for.... approximately eternity. To us, he would get really really close to light speed (99.9999+%) but never quite there. To him, he would always be accelerating at 1g.\n\nLet's not talk about the forces need to keep that up though.... 1343695801 Not even philosophy class. The ONLY place it has ANY room is some sort of comparitive religion class. Or Sunday School. 1332422968 No shit. Ouch.\n\nYou'd think with all that cash he'd buy a gun and do it like a man. 1317760652 nothing to do with ufos but its a hell of a lot more complex that just a line, there is a sort of grid with many more ancient structures. 1323065305 Well, thanks for all that. Like I clearly said, I'm not able to competently debate this one due to a lot of emotional attachment (indeed, snake-oil cancer cures are where I cut my skeptic-teeth). Maybe the "patently false" statement...that one I'd retract. "Unproven conjecture", I'd replace it with that one.\n\nAnyhow, the real heart of what I'm saying is that the way this is presented should raise bullshit flags for even the most mediocre skeptic. I'll admit I wasn't clear with that... 1338591726 Imagine those little glaring eyes HERE please. 1295730350 Those commies polluting our bodily fluids... 1319300302 The something imbalance hypothesis is just today's manifestation of old thinking fallacy (recall all the woo concerning imbalance in life force).\n\nThe brain is much more complicated. You can have not enough *receptors* for instance. Then you can take a totally unnatural drug that is in totally unnatural way blocking the re-uptake of neurotransmitters that latch to those receptors, resulting in totally unnatural imbalance between its production and removal, and then you'll feel better. \n\nOr you can have low connection strength somewhere upstream of that, or you may simply live in a rather depressing environment, or anything. Either way this re-uprate inhibitor will get you feeling better. So will a sugar pill if you think it helps, and it will be almost as effective.\n\nThere's nothing per-se wrong with totally unnatural solutions, except the marketing perspective. For marketing it is far better to say that there is some balance that is off, which is being made right by the drugs. To equate mood with chemicals and to make you form a mental model of something like diabetes. \n\nBottom line is, we do not understand disorders like depression, and we treat them by prescribing drugs that have opposite (mood lifting) effect. That's it. The same thing we'd do 1000 years ago - recommend 'em some euphoric drug (we didn't have double blind trials back then but we sure knew what the psychoactive drugs were). The chemical imbalance is the sales pitch, the same pitch medicine sellers have been making from long before we figured out what chemical elements were. If someone has a problem you don't understand, and your medicine solves it, the best pitch you can ever make is that your medicine is correcting things to normal. Now this sales pitch is outdated - we have a glimpse of the immense complexity of the issue which does not admit any chemical imbalance model.\n\nedit: better article detailing how it is primarily just a sales pitch and public image rather than an accepted hypothesis per se: http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/releases/99356.php 1348729270 I couldn't agree more and it's a shame. It would be borderline impossible to keep the public's faith after something like that but it could be quite advantageous. What if every time a minor drug was prescribed half the time it was a placebo. We get on-going massive scale research and people aren't significantly disadvantaged. 1269871132 was the person taking the picture smoking? 1302487749 @ 0:05 in the audio recording there is male voice saying something. 1341500907 Oh come on now. You can't just say "compound A has similar effects to compound B, so they must do the same thing!" Skepticism is great, but this line of thinking is dismissive and...well, shitty. Look up vinpocetine. Look up AC-11. Actually, look up all of the components of the supplement you're badmouthig. Maybe even try a bottle. Then come back and tell us how it's the same thing as a cup of green tea. 1337665652 yes it is 1312559571 yes it is 1315530248 yes it is 1312564683 what i have no time for are the people that dismiss without looking into stuff, people who dismiss UFO's and any conspiracy theories, the 9/11 offical story and so on, they dont want to look for truth they just want to believe whatever mainstream tells them. I cant stand those people 1331694981 >I have no affiliation with either the right or the left as my beliefs and values align closest to Libertarians.\n\nLibertarians are truly objective as the only political leaning not colored by bias. Got it. 1354468460 I don't see how ["Two wrongs make a right"](http://www.nizkor.org/features/fallacies/two-wrongs-make-a-right.html) is necessarily a logical fallacy since "right" and "wrong" are not defined in concrete terms. I'm not saying that two wrongs can make a right, merely that without defining a moral framework you can't claim it to be a logical fallacy. I wouldn't be shocked to hear of a conception of right and wrong where "two wrongs make a right" might apply even if I don't subscribe to it. The conception of morality in terms of justice via punishment for example has a similar sentiment. You could define morality in terms of "treating others as they treat others" as well, and while I may not agree I can certainly see right and wrong defined in such terms. The difficult part would be making it apply as a general rule, but the examples stated on the page don't even allow for "two wrongs can make a right under conditions X, Y, Z."\n\n:Cue appeals to authority to prove me wrong.: 1283193097 The program airs from 1-5 AM Eastern time, with the section on the lie detector beginning at 2 AM. 1323135377 Could you calm down for 2 seconds and stop being so combative? I'm not even the person that made the comment so I'm not actually calling myself witty. I'm just pointing out that the guy didn't say anything close to what you interpreted, hence it's unfair to jump down his throat for something that's entirely in your head. There's a lot of people here trying to help you and I've noticed you've been given a few of them quite the attitude. 1333609010 There are only 5 posts on the blog till now, but the blog in chronological order will basically make the case + give updates as it has developed after posting. 1331246006 I know you've gotten a lot of other responses but I can show you one flaw that couldn't have come about after the fall, it had to have come about before humans were in their current form.\n\nBe warned, they dissect a giraffe in it.\n\nhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0cH2bkZfHw4\n\nSo no. A lot of the flaws only make sense as old stuff from what we once were. Even via random mutation there is no reason that nerve would spontaneously change from a sane path to one like that. there was a reason for it to be like that in the past that no longer applies. \n\nchanging it to a path that makes sense doesn't have a strong enough reason for selection (no one dies from it and if it was fixed via a random mutation theirs no reason it would make them more likely to have children) to change in any reasonable time frame.\n\n 1308735006 Thanks for the sources, I'll check them out 1330327518 Maybe Einstein travelled back in time to rip his paper off? 1335813529 > They're not so good when attempting to debunk scientific studies.\n\nI didn't see them attempting to debunk any scientific studies. Actually they usually *refer to* scientific studies to debunk stupid ideas people has, and they did *precisely* that in this show.\n\nAnd the way your comment was worded, although ambiguous, seemed to imply not that scientific studies and experiments are not biased (which by the way, also are biased!), but that scientists aren't, and many people do assume this to be the case (including many scientists), which is why I might trust Penn more than I trust many scientists: because he is more honest with himself and the world about his biases. 1249680665 Ouija boards, not even once! (seriously, I wish people would stop using those and stop with the stupid blood magic) 1318317659 Oh yeah and for the record people like you disgusts me. "i should contact 'the catholics' <- this makes me cringe" Wow. 1350414518 No I gave three guesses of what I think it might be, I didn't basically said it could be anything. 1326167462 In my opinion there's a rather large distinction between a metaphysical claim of a supernatural thing guiding evolution and the physical claim of young-Earth creationists. It's only a minor point of hers though. 1340124841 "You want to know something? We are still in the Dark Ages. The Dark Ages — they haven't ended yet."\n\n-Kurt Vonnegut in "Deadeye Dick" 1329698137 Naw, northern New Englander born & raised. 1339251202 William Colburg, http://www.micro-a.net/experience.php , a propulsion engineer (ctrl+F his name for credentials), had this to say about him.\n\n*"Just surfing around and found this site which contains many\nreferences to this huxter.\n\nI am a propulsion engineer and I can tell you with great\ncertainty that David is NOT a propulsion specialist or "rocket\nscientist" as he is so often labeled. He knows virtually\n_nothing_ about propulsion systems save a few buzz words that he\nconsistantly uses incorrectly.\n\nHe in fact makes exactly the same mistakes as made on "Extreme\nMachines" and the Discovery"s excellent series on Rockets! He\ncouldn't be doing last minute cramming now could he? Mistakes\nand all?\n\nI know this is old hat information now, but this guy is so far\nout in misrepresenting himself that it deserves to be brought to\nlight once again.\n\nBill Colburn"*\n\nI'm not an engineer, but when people like him have things like this to say about Adair, I find it hard to argue with them.\n\nThere's actually a pretty good email trail on http://ufoupdateslist.com/1998/aug/m01-010.shtml that discusses his credibility. I haven't read all of it, but it seems like most people are pretty skeptical of his claims. The fact that I find his name beside Philip Corso makes me somewhat skeptical myself.\n\nLong and short, I haven't formulated much of an opinion on him as of yet, but I'll do some more research tonight and talk to some of my connections. 1348605993 BUT AT THAT STRENGTH, WON'T IT DEHYDRATE ME? I'M SCARED! 1301635354 Yup Slenderman is fake, sorry bro. It's always amusing seeing people talk about him or having experiences with him when he doesnt even exist. 1324551949 Not really. Stupid and easily duped people will take their ersatz miracles wherever they can get them, logic be damned. It's sad, but that's how it goes. 1307651521 orly? 1351040950 Gotta love that she's so fucking sue happy that this couldn't get published and that disclaimer had to be placed at the top. I know I don't have much risk as some anonymous commenter on Reddit, so this is hardly a grand gesture, but whatever. \n \nSally Morgan, you are a sickening human being. You are consciously defrauding the grief-stricken and hopeless for the sole purpose of monetary gain. Everything you do, from your deceitful 'performances' to your enthusiastic use of the legal system to silence your critics should be offensive to anyone with even a partially functioning moral compass. 1330540521 GMO: Or how I learned to stop worrying and love the crops. 1331257386 [I linked to this topic in my original post.](http://www.reddit.com/r/atheism/comments/dr8zb/jesse_ventura_is_a_fearmongering_conspiracy_nut/) 1287342311 >Even though you might think you're a mind reader, you're not...\n\nYou don't know that. :-)\n\nSeriously, I was asking a question, not making an affirmation. That's whey there's a question mark ("?") at the end of the sentence.\n\n>What exactly do you mean by "scientific truth"? Are you referring to your belief in agw?\n\nNo, I'm referring to the goal of attaining scientific truth. Please don't make this about your adolescent "we can't prove anything" argument again, I'm not interested. 1329337658 I have mixed feelings about this.\n\nChiropractics are just scammers, it's an overglorified kind of massage and can be downright dangerous.\n\nOn the other hand people often either feel sick or that something is wrong when nothing is actually wrong or have an illness they can pretend they don't have with a placebo. In both cases it is surely better for a chiropractor to do his or her thing to make the hypochondriac patient feel better.\n\nOf course this justifies astrology and other retarded things.\n\n\nIn any case Singh has my support, keep fighting the good fight. Fighting for the truth is seldom a bad thing. 1242393358 Here's her whole reason, with citations. If you can poke holes in it, I'd be glad to send the info to her myself. \n\nhttp://greenparty.ca/blogs/7/2011-07-28/twitter-fire-storm-and-why-i-said-what-i-said-about-wifi 1311959093 Well, when i read the intp page, its like reading an operation manual for myself. 1338741496 did you watch the video? He shows the skull of humans both normal and deformed and the the paracas elongated skulls are too long and different from human skulls in several ways 1333680852 Yes, and it can be very, very bright. Also the lingering trail left behind is a dead give away that it was a meteor. I was very fortunate to observe a weird phenomenon where when a meteor explodes in the atmosphere you hear the boom first and then you see it. Chances of witnessing this phenomenon is slimmer than winning the lottery twice, in a row. I'm gonna go buy a ticket. 1330130441 So what did he say?\n\nThat guy's the Britney Spears of UFO abductees. 1327940908 my netbook cried a little when i read this. totally worth it though 1318079288 Wrong. That's not science. When conducting a scientific investigation you gather evidence and then form conclusions. If you're wanting imagination to drive research then you invariably end up creating conclusions and then gathering evidence to support them. That's where ufology has gone wrong. After the first few cases gained publicity researchers started looking for evidence to support their conclusions while disregarding items that contradicted them. 1326514338 Having new digital & encrypted channels is going to to matter if someone finds your frequency and overpowers your signal with garbage. 1331354671 This was my second podcast ever, started listening about six years ago. Just wanted to say hello, thank you for how prolific you've all been, and ask if it's ever weird doing regular stuff with Steven given he seems to know everything about everything? 1346229487 Check out this website! http://topdocumentaryfilms.com/\n\nI've been in a documentary phase for whatever reason and this has been a great source for me. 1347558208 What does r/skeptic have to say about the scientific methods applied by Mr. Stubbs? 1318353787 The Harvard article implies that the main concern for that is the plastic melting. In my experience while corn gets hot, it doesn't get boiling water hot, and I've never had the plastic melt to the corn. On the other hand, I'd be inclined to avoid it, or at lest avoid overheating it. 1307498219 The really frightening thing to me is: the calender on my wall ends December 31 2009! Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhh what is going to happen?\n\nGASSP\n\nThe end is nigh... 1245350753 try using [this web client](http://webchat.freenode.net/) or download your own stand-alone client. [mIRC](http://www.mirc.com/) is pretty awesome once you get it set up. We'd be happy to help you. Hope to see you there :) 1337050076 Depends... what's your star sign? 1334581833 I'm happy to say I was there for this talk. He was, ahem, amazing. 1279693240 Ah, yeah, I mis-worded my response. \n\nYou explained it really well however. 1350427360 I am not saying it is real in any way. Why do you think it is a fake? 1314901581 Honestly, a sliced piece of garlic placed in my ear worked for me on a couple of occasions. I know that's not scientific, but I swear it did. I was skeptical but desperate the first time I tried, and all I can guess is that the fumes put out by the cut end of the garlic must have somehow interfered with the swelling or the nerves or something. To be clear, it quickly stopped hurting - in about 10 - 15 minutes after hurting for a few hours. I don't know if that was because the infection got better or whether it just helped the symptoms. 1351732411 Something is definitely fishy about this. 1336272075 Now we must all shoot ourselves. 1343608109 Please read my response to a comment that stated I was a little too drunk and he said I had a holy spirit of a protector in me. Thanks. 1317267966 Don't forget that when the flame inside the chinese lantern gets extinguished, it is supposed to fall to the ground. Don' think it'll keep floating about for long. 1337399284 is the blue spiral going towards the ground, coming from the ground, or is actually behind the white spiral and going into space? 1260409713 Very interesting and thanks for the info, I've used Audacity, works pretty good. Reason I asked was because I've caught some EVPs on my iPhone using the voice memos app, worked but terrible at managing long recordings. I'll definitly look into that recorder. 1339982816 No acid involved...but I was walking around my neighborhood the other night a good [6] on weed...and I was really freaked out by a strange sound coming from my neighbor's house. "What the fuck *is* that!?" I was thinking. "Is he using a power drill at 11PM on a Saturday?" After a couple minutes contemplation it finally occurred to me that it was his AC unit. 1317084002 You spend half an hour of your life each day just standing the dirt? That's probably not something you would find in "The Seven Habits of Highly Successful People" 1331451971 Well done whatever it is. The only question I have is why does he have the camera running and pointed at the ground. 1326725855 go to jkcinema.com for the full length flash version! 1331361170 More than that, you desperately want the slick sales website to be true. You don't want to believe the stuff that's saying no one can fix your child.\n\nPeople with cancer can understand the hell out of information about their cancer. It focuses the mind beautifully. It's just that they want to survive. 1356575569 [What the hell, dude?](http://www.reddit.com/r/skeptic/comments/o9amj/the_red_flags_of_quackery_v20/c3flj1k) Within 24-hours you go from saying that downvotes are not for disagreeing with a statement, to claiming against me that...\n\n> r/Skeptic does not adhere to Reddiquette on downvotes. A downvote here simply indicates disagreement with your opinion. \n\nYou don't get to have it both ways. You probably get away with this sort of hypocrisy on a regular basis, though, don't you? 1326231105 Its a toy! 1275450066 [This is what's next.](http://images2.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20090407173704/avatar/images/archive/1/16/20101227162259!Fire_Nation_airships.png) 1344909427 haha, well, the aliens are assholes excluding us from their nightclub. 1329934955 In before someone replies with "This is how bad CO2 is." 1274005346 * Jokes about the earth being 10,000 years old.\n\n* Jokes about evolution being only a theory. 1274455483 please? D: 1332016664 They waste *your* time? ~~What a jerk.~~\n\nEdit: Not really for me to decide. 1338657186 "I don't do science, science does me."\n\nCan't say I've heard that one before. But giggity. 1327364222 My grandparents and my mom always tell me they'll pray for me for the upcoming test. \nI reply that if that's the case, then I don't need to study for it anymore!\n\nWe all laugh, for different reasons. 1303265340 Hey, as long as you agree it isn't really science, I'm satisfied. However, I obviously disagree with you that any observations made under unscientific conditions have meaning. It's impossible to establish controls and, without controls, it's impossible to assign meaning to any result. 1317668484 Oh, and by materialism standards mind is just matter and soul is not on some separate plane. Will that imply that the mind is just the brain, so if I find out how the brain constitutes the mind and replicate the brain by those standards I would essentially copy the mind right? 1354081167 There is a broad range of commenters here. Very few here use actual science. Some imagine they do simply because they question things or cast doubt, but saying "this looks shopped" isn't "sciencey". 1349127426 Were you on fire, by chance? 1314468033 the reason for the existence of a language is to convey one idea to another person. if you were able to understand what i wrote which you were it means that my version of that language did everything it was required to no un-nessesary effort need be put in. 1353559092 I saw a video about this. When you're not wearing the bracelet, he pushes down and away from your feet, and when you're wearing it he pushes down and towards your feet. It's almost impossible to stand up when he's also pulling your arm away from your body, but it's easy when he's pushing in and helping you stand up. 1309910368 Exactly, if you're only teaching rote memorization you may as well close the school and save some money. That's not useful for anything at all, *especially* when so many people have an Internet-enabled computer in their pocket that can pull up information like that in under 20 seconds. Any high school that *isn't* all about teaching critical thinking skills is a waste of space. 1340967691 You're funny. :-) 1354893089 I really doubt that anod those have been tested to a have guaranteed effect, anyone can just say that it does 1347914686 Terrible, had almost nothing to do with science. 1311950824 This form (Neuroendocrine, I think it's called) is much more operable. 1318673367 It's dust really close to the lens. If you notice it's all in front of the image, they don't interact with the image. It's not like they go from the front to the back of the image. They all stay at the front. 1342842711 Are you lot seriously trying to convince me that all water tastes the same? Do you read the same words I do here? 1321836443 Proof or schizophrenic 1351049827 She forgot something and went back. 1339270678 Just out of curiosity, what MW2 map/where on it? 1341982903 They guy looks like the villan from a horror movie. 1298166797 Of course! What you just said is fairly scientific, actually. You can't rule anything out, but you must be honest about probabilities, and how new discoveries affect said probabilities. If evidence for one thing continues to shrink the possibility of another thing, you have to take it into account. If the evidence is undeniable, then you have to accept the change in thinking and accept that you were wrong in order to remain honest. That's all. Galileo disproved Aristotle's ideas on momentum. Einstein vastly improved upon Newton's laws of motion. After we discovered the electromagnetic spectrum, the use of radiation gave us a much more accurate age of the Earth. Part of honest inquiry about the universe is knowing when you're wrong, and moving forward. 1344025610 Oh, there's douchery going on here. No doubt about it. Butthurt douchery. 1310967943 He was forced out on his arse and the two people at the university who did it received knighthoods.\n\nSeriously. Charles is a fucking embarrassment. 1312043965 Just looking at the therapy from a skeptical point of view, it seems like a device specifically for the purposes of "reprogramming". I guess I'm just overreacting. 1290282231 Seriously, though: a source would be nice. \n\nAlso, to the OP: I was going to give you several links/sources to check out, however most would fall under the "channeled" category, which you seem to have already ruled out (it was probably not a valid/thorough search imo, since you are here asking this question :)). Unless you yourself have first/second hand information (aka MEET AN ET!! or a person who claims to have met one), then I think you will find your search to be extremely difficult. 1300618497 Supposedly nano-thermite was found in the WTC dust, which reacts more explosively than normal thermite. 1346054081 > This article was posted on July 24, 2003.\n\nThat might explain the bad design and clip art. 1331800051 I like how Magnet Man anxiously peeks over Randi's shoulder to see what he's doing as he puts the powder on the brush, LOL! 1330834921 Better than seeing him on TV at 8pm. 1316092252 Check the ingredients. Most nut milks have added emulsifiers to give it the texture of milk. That texture comes from fat. That's why skim milk feels so watery. I can tell you right now that real coconut milk tastes and feels nothing like cow milk. 1344459507 Same reason I do, it makes you cringe but then you feel better about yourself because you're not a complete moron and you're like, "well, life could be worse." 1356641617 Peddling cures that work quickly and effectively would greatly reduce their income. There must be planned (and often implied) obsolescence inherent in their medications for their ever-growing wallets to be satiated. 1313384776 The world is not America.\n\nBesides language naturally evolves, if you don't believe me find some teenagers that are texting, they speak an entirely different language,all you'll be is a dinosaur fossil. 1337624719 >By declaring the question answerable, you are implicitly declaring that a 'non-chicken' laid a 'chicken egg'.\n\nNo, you are wrong. That is not at all what we are saying. And that's also why you do not understand evolution. 1304371000 It's not been proven electromagenetic frequencies aren't harmful. \n(I'm skeptic about this reddits skepticism.) \n(well really i'm not, experience makes it safe to assume this is as much a circlejerk as most subreddits) 1317253179 He's also a Chemtrailer, which is probably the weirdest of the 3 IMO. 1340517834 So there's an alien invasion happening.... 1351725395 Sorry, didn't even bother to read the comments to the post. I generally don't to posts like that one as there is really little comment about. Its a good quote and I left it at that. The fact it was x-post from r/atheism made it a bit annoying as I really hate that subreddit. 1346339624 of course testimonials can reflect truth but they can never mean anything on their own compared to the efficacy of say double-blind. the simple fact there is no control variable should raise red alarms for finding truth in anything.\n\nthere are a ton of skeptics who are very critical of the pill popping industry (watch Ben Goldacre's TED talk) , and no one will argue doctors are always honest or that their institutions are infallible. that still doesn't mean that people should get away with promoting alternative treatments with such confidence and conviction when they have no real information to back it up. usually they've been unable or are unwilling to do the testing to prove it and just resort to more theatrics to engage peoples' emotions like we see in these documentaries. 1329260511 do any of these people know who NIST is?\nthe ignorance is breathtaking! 1291016946 I know I'm late, but do you just mean for mental issues? because the saline/morphine experiment is pretty convincing. 1291089132 A few things things, since all of them are pretty crazy. I'll separate them by the houses they occurred in with dashed lines.\n\nWhen I was about 9 years old, we finally got a computer and internet working. Since all my gaming equipment was on the bottom floor of the house, the computer was also stored there. Note that my room was also on the bottom floor of the house, that my room had no windows, and that the only way into my room was the door we built to it a little before buying the computer. One day, I'm surfing the internet when suddenly I hear someone banging and screaming from behind my bedroom door, trying to get out. I was frozen in my seat, and I didn't know what to do. I just sat there and listened as I heard something like a woman with very high pitched screaming banging on my door. When I realized what was going on, I ran upstairs to find my father giving my little brother a bath, as if they didn't hear anything. I never brought it up to them. \n\nI also remember eating dinner with my family upstairs, when I heard all my toys downstairs crash. The toys were in a huge container that definitely could not be tipped over. My grandma told me to ignore the sound. \n\nWhen my grandma would get a babysitter for my brothers and I, she would always tell the babysitters to never let my little brother look at the kitchen light downstairs, and that if the kitchen stove downstairs turned itself on, then to ignore it. My little brother was never allowed to look at the kitchen light, because his nose would bleed profusely every single time. For the kitchen stove? The dials would turn themselves, even though they were the kind you had to push in to turn. \n\n------------------\n\nWhen I moved to Minnesota, my family bought a huge house for really cheap. At the time, I had no idea how we got it so cheap. When we finally settled in, my mom bought two couches and a TV, and put them in the downstairs living room. At the time, Adult Swim was new, so I would stay up and watch it every night. However, one night, I hear someone open the laundry room door behind me. Now, nobody was awake at the time since it was late, and if anybody were to come downstairs, they would have to open the door that led upstairs, which I shut. My brothers were sleeping in their rooms down the hall from me, and I would have definitely heard them opening their doors since their doors were very heavy. Back to the laundry room door opening, I was freaking out. I looked back and saw that the laundry door was open. Then, I heard something opening and shutting the washer and dryer doors, and it sounded like it was also just unrelentingly slamming on the sides of them. This went on for what seemed like ages, and I remember that I just started sweating like crazy because I didn't know what to do. I don't remember falling asleep that night, and I woke up still wet from sweat. I think I fainted from being so freaked out by the noises. I'll never forget that night. \n\nLater, my family learned that there was a teenage girl who was shot to death in the hallway downstairs before we moved in. \n\nTL;DR - Lived in haunted houses. Shit happened. 1336037129 Thanks for clearing that up. I wasn't sure how remote desktop apps work.\n\nThat one press of the "printscreen" key could've changed the world. Too bad. 1350650713 Imagine the guilt. 1339464480 She absolutely does, though she was healthy when I first knew her. It's an issue of personality susceptibility - just like there are predispositions to become an alcoholic, but no one is born an alcoholic. In this case the susceptibility to paranoid delusions really starts to manifest in the person's attitude towards the first conspiracy videos they encounter: are they agonizing over it, spending a lot of time doing research, and talking to everyone/trying to convince everyone about it? Does it become one of the most important things in their life? The behaviours surrounding the belief are cause for concern, more so than the belief itself.\n\nIt's still not cut and dry - some people just go through phases where they get really interested in something, but abandon it later. What I think I learned, and wanted to pass on, is that its very easy to dismiss the signs of delusional paranoia right up until it's too late to do anything about it. Because it alters your perception, it is very difficult for paranoids to recognize their own illness, and so early intervention on the part of a concerned friend or family member may be the only hope they have (much as we all hate being paternalistic towards our fellows). 1315762108 Honestly mostly photo editing, but I imagine it could do anything I wanted it to if I tried. I've actually just switched over to using light room recently on this computer, I used the free trial for CS for a while (I had CS 5), and I didn't really use any features that light room didn't also have. I do nature photography, so a lot of the features on CS were just REALLY expensive playing around toys. I try to limit my manipulation. I'm sure I'll probably buy CS 6 in the future, just not going to pull the trigger until I feel it's worth it. I've used the free trial on 3 PC's just to see how it worked though and it did fine (including some playing around time, so not just adjusting exposure etc). \n\nMy desktop was actually built for mid-end gaming instead of photography, so I don't really know if that makes a difference. It has no problem supporting my obscene 30" 2560 X 1600 screen though. Specs: AMD Radeon HD 6800 X2 (crossfire), dell U3011 monitor (as I said obscenely big, but relatively affordable and it does the job), i5 processor (2500K CPU @ 3.30GHz) and an MSI motherboard (though don't know what type). I'm sure there are other interesting things I could list, but my x built me this computer and I sort of just told him do it for under 1500 and have a grand ol' time. It does the trick for pretty much everything I want to do. The only thing I would add to this computer (right now, someday I may want an uber graphics card) is a solid state drive, I should have ignored my X when he said they wern't worth it my new laptop has one and it is fabulous. I personally hate the idea of all that top down stuff with macs, but I can really see how some people would love it. I have no problem with people using a mac, and for many people it's what makes sense for them, I'm just saying that you can build a desktop for relatively cheep to your own needs. I'm sure if I had built this desktop specifically for video editing, it probably wouldn't have been that much more expensive (no clue what you need, but honestly unless I get some sort of uber graphics card apple doesn't even offer, I can't see it being that costly). At the same time, I would probably never buy a premade PC desktop either. My laptops have all been pretty expensive , though probably with a bit better specs than equivalently priced macs, my last two were a think pad ( the best part about my think pad was that no one would ever steal it because it looked like it was shipped straight from 1995, despite being a brand new $2000 computer) and an alienware (yes I know I over paid, but it's pretty and stuff... I hate myself for saying that).\n\nI like to tease my parents about macs all the time, but I honestly have no problem with them, I just hate the idea that somehow they will magically make you a better artist or other silliness. I know people who buy macs specifically for photo editing... with PS elements. It's silly, yes macs are great, but if the only reason you buy them is so you can do basic photo editing that can be done on a machine for $1000 less it's silly. My sister LOVES her macbook air. It's tiny, it fits in her purse, it weighs next to nothing, and it allows her to surf the internet, sync with her iphone and pretty much never to think about her computer system, and that's fricking great for her. My brother and I would hate it, as well as a friend who uses extremely user unfriendly linux OS's but for my sister and the rest of my family it is great. I hate syncing, I like files and windows and folders and all that old school windows stuff. I am a huge fan of the drag and drop. I like to be able to fool around with the guts and nastiness easily. And I know this isn't really an issue anymore, but dammit if I want porn on my phone, I should be able to get a damn porn app. I don't have a porn app on my android, but knowing that I COULD have a porn app made me happy. \n\n 1341542758 Tell her you never put much stock in fortunetelling. If they say the future looks bright, that doesn't mean anything unless you do your part. If they say the future looks bleak, that doesn't mean anything either, because you'll face each challenge as it comes, and decide for yourself how bad it was after you've come through it.\n\nMaybe you do have a destiny, but that doesn't solve your problems today of living your life as best you know how. I live *today*, learning what lessons I can from the past, and making what plans I think best for the future. And whatever that future holds, what I have in front of me right now is *today*, and that's what I take care of.\n\nIf some astrologer gave me advice that was anything other than what you can read in *Tao Te Ching*, or the Sermon on the Mount, or *How to Win Friends and Influence People*, or *How to Stop Worrying and Start Living*, or the Book of Proverbs, it's probably not advice worth following. And if they just give common sense advice, my grandma already did that for me. 1301422640 > I sat fuming in the basement hating life.\n\nYou should really hate yourself for not having a spine and letting people treat you like putty. 1294513498 Hah, you should see how angry the followers of *Jesus* can become... 1353978804 Damn you natural selection! Work faster! 1302731269 No, that's Jim Jackman. You're thinking of that guy who played the jury profiler in Runaway Jury. 1305020864 > Astrology to me is half religion half science.\n\nhalf-science? I guess we can stop the discussion here, you probably dont know the meaning of science. 1310672004 That's a good point. If it came up, the government could just claim it was a rogue faction within the government and hang a few long dead officials to blame for it all.\n 1334861061 And a mickle fistress. 1304224854 First thing I thought when he started talking: "This guy is an actor." \n\nThen I saw the link to his other monologues. Confirmed.\n\n[here is one](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V2DlOtBuYTQ).\n\nHe painted a mole on his face. :D 1344867419 > Thats the same thing that my mom's alt. medicine practioneer tells me when I question her methods.\n\nHere's where Occam's razor might come in handy when first investigating claims of alt medicine. Again, it's not a law, it's just a tool to use when you investigate these claims. 1338757063 Not sure how 173 items can be called concise, but nicely done. 1334910791 To anyone who just watched the Daily Show tonight, he had a guest on who wrote a book about how cancer is the result of inflammation. \n\nThe misinformation is everywhere! 1328261112 Ah, I hadn't caught the mention of the second dog. That does rule out my guess then. 1336779901 >>There’s nothing about the dramatic increase in weather-related catastrophes worldwide:\n\n>Which are easily attributable to the change in what is deemed a \nweather-related catastrophe.\n\n>>There’s no mention of the increase in declared disasters in the U.S.:\n\n>Same\n\nYou actually sort of have a point there, if what you're saying is actually true. I'd like to go back and look at all the disasters that were declared during the period of this graph and see if there really is a lower threshold and, if so, what would the new graph look like if some recent disasters had not been included. I'd also try maybe going back and including previous storms that were not counted, but honestly I don't know how to do that since some of that information might be hard for me to gather. I'll give it a try that way as well if I can, but first I am going to see if someone already has.\n\nDo you have any thoughts on where the line should be drawn as to what to include or not include? I'll be totally up front here and admit that I full expect you to shift the goal posts if you dislike the outcome, so I want us to actually commit to a level of proof that will satisfy both of us beforehand.\n\nEdit: So far I found this: http://www.grida.no/graphicslib/detail/trends-in-natural-disasters_a899#\n\nAs you can see, it does conclude that other factors are increasing the rate of reports of these incidents apart from climate change, but things that would be attributable to climate change are increasing at a rate much faster than earthquakes, which would not be. I wouldn't call that alone conclusive, but it's certainly a start. 1353087066 I.E. she's a fuckin crazy loon who never even knew her great grandfather, "a new, humane order on earth" no more wondering who the black sheep of the family is 1295629315 Can we all agree that going forward whenever something like this happens, we take the shit back to the store and demand a refund for being sold a fraudulent product that doesn't work as promoted. 1311016439 > it's just a reader who will never change his/her mind about vaccination.\n\nFTFY, if that was what "made up his mind" then his mind was made up already. 1349633175 >~~Democracy~~ Republic 1352258964 Well, I eat meat and I don't think it's "ethical" in the "sentient life is sacred sense," but if I REALLY wanted to know about it's production I'd pursue accounting practices in the industry- somewhere in there are accountings for death by conditions, meat sold at reduced rates from sick animals, etc. 1338276388 Thanks for your agreement on my points. \n\nI'm curious to know how can you tell if the parties conducting the research are impartial or not, because I can't and I would definitely love to learn how to. \n\nWell, even though the existence of acupoints still cannot be scientifically proven (just like [gravity](http://wiki.answers.com/Q/Has_gravity_been_proven)), there are studies which show the effect of acupoint stimulation on the limbic system (as mentioned in my original post), and this is one way of explaining why EFT works. What do you think about that?\n\nI am definitely looking forward to the day when there are large, reliable studies on EFT conducted and made known to the public. Personally, I have experienced so many good things with EFT that it seems like a waste to me that not more people know about it. 1343118360 IIRC, this was specifically for the cold relief gel swabs, not for the pill form. 1324976650 Alright, I think we're going in circles now. I already mentioned 3 comments ago I understand your point about just b/c all theories are exhausted that it doesn't automatically makes the remainder the default answer. I get it: The Appeal to Ignorance.\n\nHowever, there is still something to be said about this... b/c again, it was either an inside job, or it wasn't.\n\nAnd, as I said before there is evidence of implosions, specifically w/ bldg 7 given how it collapsed in a equilateral motion and that the only way this could have occured is if *all* the column supports were *simultaneously* collapsed... also, thermate evidence.\n\nSo, it's not just a matter of eliminating theories, but also how there's direct evidence of an actual implosion (not my words, words of structural engineers).\n\nedit: in short, one has to weigh the evidence. On one scale you have the explosive theory, which is quite heavily weighed with evidence and on the other scale, you have basically zero evidence for the plane and/or fire theory. When one objectively weighs the scales, it simply weighs in favour of the explosive theory. 1324949177 I've seen a lot of "lights" falling from the sky like this lately. I wonder what that is or what it could mean. 1336614483 We have a **CHRISTIAN** (wtf?) radio station that has a weekly program where [a local "psychic"](http://www.thealbanynewyorkpsychic.com/) does readings for people. "Must know Mondays" or something like that. She's not very good. A couple of highlights:\n\n* A woman called in asking if she'd meet someone (for a relationship) soon. The psychic asked her if she worked in a college, said that she got an impression of tall buildings around the caller, and said it'd be someone the caller met at work. The caller worked in the infirmary at a prison. The psychic said "prison, college, what's the difference, right? AAHAHAHAHAHHAA"\n* A man whose wife died two years ago called in to ask if she was still somewhere near him. He said that he still visits her grave **twice a day** and hasn't thrown away anything of hers from their house. The psychic said she was still around and that the man needed to try to get in touch with her. (WTF. Dude's severely emotionally damaged from his wife dying. You're an asshole.)\n\nAnd that's just the tip of the iceberg. I've been tempted to call in several times with a fake story about a nonexistent dead relative to see how it'd work out, but I'm not that much of an asshole and I've got shit to do during the day. 1320733717 I am also in a train station, but bipedal hominid locomotion began about 4 million years ago. Interesting to note that the advent of shoes began about 40 thousand years ago. 1326038272 http://www.fda.gov/BiologicsBloodVaccines/SafetyAvailability/VaccineSafety/UCM096228#tox\nToxicology of ethylmercury is not well studied. It is known that it is less toxic than methylmercury, but not by orders of magnitude. It was a dumb idea to use it in a preservative intended for human consumption without first doing proper clinical trials of its effects, even though it turned out to be probably mostly harmless at the doses at which it was used. 1315212241 By definition. 1284003669 Fawlty Wires 1332174229 Airplane contrails at dusk, most likely. 1314634547 They named a planet after a radio station? 1337918963 Any time someone claims to be a doctor but then authors histrionic paragraphs like this one I know that Dr. stands for douche rag. \n\n> This is deception at its finest: begin with a shred of truth, and then spin it to fit your own agenda. 1278721135 I'm drunk and karma whoring.\n\nStill, I thought you might appreciate somebody going on the record, albeit sort of.\n\n 1341635654 sorry, but it looks like you or your friend just used paint or something. 1340722014 Romney. He looks less human. 1347270876 He embodies my concept of evil. Evil is not some woo woo demon chasing me, but simply a banality, the lack of empathy and concern for his actions. Unfortunately at the moment the ban only extends to Iraq and Afghanistan. Considering this bit of junk has been sold to over 40 countries, I hope the UK govt actively contacts the countries security agencies involved ( includes China it seems) and provides assistance in bringing legal action. The card was a particularly nasty lie as it contains the cheapest looking bit of electronics available ( shop theft detector strips) that are not in the least programmable or active for purpose. The full woo on his [web site](http://www.ade651.com/) suggests requests for things to be detected can be provided on cards. Even "Human research". And of course he grabs more cash by insisting on training. I hope he is hammered by the law. Repeatedly. 1264256534 Damn, I was going to take this test when, come to find out, it costs $10. Of course you can take a sample test for free but the full version with "a much higher level of accuracy" than the free version.\n\nI am going to take the sample test and report back, afterwards I'll look around and see if I can't find any papers for you to look at.\n\nP.S.\nIf you are in college you can usually go through your libraries website and get free access to about a gazillion research sites with peer-reviewed papers that usually cost money to the general public.\n\n**EDIT:** I'd like to point out, before I take this test that it says this:\n\n>If you have answered honestly and accurately, your basic personality type should be one of the top three scores.\n\nHoly shit, out of only 9 possible types that's pretty fucking vague don't you think?\n\n**EDIT 2:** I've come out as Type 5, "The Investigator"\n\n>Type Five \nThe Investigator \nThe perceptive, cerebral type. Fives are alert, insightful, and curious. They are able to concentrate and focus on developing complex ideas and skills. Independent, innovative, and inventive, they can also become preoccupied with their thoughts and imaginary constructs. They become detached, yet high-strung and intense. They typically have problems with eccentricity, nihilism, and isolation. At their Best: visionary pioneers, often ahead of their time, and able to see the world in an entirely new way.\n\nTo bad that just by reading through the short, one paragraph long descriptions of each I could be ANY OF THEM.\n\n**EDIT 3:** Check out the MBTI link that dwchandler posted. You can find a whole crap ton of studies on and related to MBTI. 1272482749 If that's amended to "unreasonable hope," the chart itself is evidence in it's favor 1344226417 Oh, I missed that part. 1336005714 But if it walks like a duck and swims like a duck... 1311905565 You assume they'd try to use reason and not change the subject/run away and try to forget everything you said. 1356245808 clinically significant means it has a noticeable effect which this does but only over nothing not sham, look at [this](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/8c/Standard_deviation_diagram.svg) and suppose it represents all the results for back pain after sham acupuncture, with the peak representing the average and also the majority of cases.\n\nnow look at the 1 and -1 at the bottom, those are 1 standard deviation from the mean. Now imagine an identical bell curve over the top of that one but centre its peak 0.23 to the left of the first peak. you would see that there are two distinct peaks (significance) but that they aren't very far from each other (standard deviation).\n\nHence there is a difference but a very small one from the sham . in osteoarthritis and headache the SD from the mean was only 0.15 and 0.16. but a noticeable, aronud SD = 0.5, difference from nothing.\n\nThis study does say Acupuncture is better than nothing, but about as clinically significant as the sham acupuncture, which a skeptic could easily agree with, if you had an option between nothing and acupuncture i'd go the acupuncture. 1347410001 Interesting. [Weatherspark](http://weatherspark.com/?#!dashboard;a=USA/CA/Pleasant_Hill) shows steady wind from the north until about 6 PM, at which point it dropped off. At 10 PM it shifted, coming out of the west heading east at 3.4 mph. But overall, very little wind. \n\nOP, how fast did they move? Faster than 3 mph? The wind direction seems close. 1330144336 #EANF# [pertaining to Purveyors of Bullshit](http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002HFLZZK?ie=UTF8&tag=idenprop-20&linkCode=xm2&camp=1789&creativeASIN=B002HFLZZK). 1309060056 They probably see us humans as mere gazelle, stupid and inferior beings to not warrant teaching us their ways...\n\nIt's not like humans are in a rush to teach Giraffes advanced trigonometry or algebra.\n\nThat's the analogy... 1312692218 In low doses, it's perfectly fine. I used to work at a state environmental lab, and we didn't test tap water sources very often (cities and municipalities get private companies to do that), but when we did, it was ALWAYS right under 4 ppm. However they figured out to keep it so constant, they're doing it right. 1337772375 That makes no sense. 1356375224 I haven't watched it, but if the basic premise is that humanity is dependent on a functional ecosystem, that premise would be based in reality. 1346274853 I tried to downvote one, realized I couldn't and just stopped there. 1328841705 i believe some do to an extent. Even i have predicted things thru dreaming that happen to come true IRL 1328324396 I get dry skin when I take hot showers. It's really starting to bug me and I should cool it down a bit. Well, when summer starts. lol 1303016303 Hmmm, will look into this. 1352083358 According to my anti-vax uncle, polio has been renamed to [Guillain-Barre Syndrome](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guillain%E2%80%93Barr%C3%A9_syndrome), and that's why there are no more diagnosed cases of polio.\n\nAlso, according to him, cases of polio began to decline as farmers stopped using DDT as a pesticide, and the vaccines did nothing. Logical. 1351805495 Different angles, and even at that they look pretty similar at the top. I am 99% sure this is the same guy. 1344868647 Fair point and I did not downvote him. However, others have noted that this user rehashes arguments all the time. If this is the case, it is not reasonable to expect the same arguments to be rebutted painstakingly every single time.\n\nIn addition, I'd like to say something about poor sources, just because it seems relevant. While it is true that every _argument_ must be judged on its own merits and doing otherwise is fallacious, _claims of fact_ are not subject to the same requirements. You can reject a claim of fact from a source that is not credible. Rejecting a claim does not mean taking the negation of the claim to be true, however. 1332307273 Oh yes. My wife is one of them. 1332173649 Doesn't that prove that there is no single one-world government? 1302654445 Ask and ye shall receive http://imgur.com/a/1OKMG 1349840075 No - it doesn't. They are very close. I see you deny objective morality by saying in order to be moral, you have to have belief. But morality deals with right and wrong. As Wikipedia defines it:\n\n>Morality (from the Latin moralitas "manner, character, proper behavior") is the differentiation of intentions, decisions, and actions between those that are good (or right) and those that are bad (or wrong)\n\nThe question here is are morals subjective (meaning our thoughts, feelings, etc. control it and will differ from everyone else's) or objective (meaning are these universal truths based on reality that stay constant no matter what we think). I argue that no matter what you may think, feel, or say, there is a right answer, the ultimate right answer, true no matter what, and that everything else is wrong. Some less wrong than others, but still wrong because it is not the ultimate right/good thing to do. 1341336664 Yeah, knowing what it is makes it so much less scary. It only happens to me sometimes, but the first time was awful because I had no idea what was happening. 1338473587 Right, another retard that claims that AGW is just a conspiracy and he knows better than the peer-reviewed published climate scientists ... but since he 'predicts' a "global cooling of 0.2 to 0.3 degrees Celsius by 2035" at least we know he will go away in 2-3 years top ... or just publish another crappy book for deniers and conspiratards in which he will just predict something else ... or just move towards telling the other retarded theory = "yes, it IS still a warming but it will not be bad" !!! 1328722339 Some background:\n\nQ&A is an Australian TV show where members of the audience ask questions of politicians, media personalities and subject matter experts on a range of issues.\n\nThe man the question was asked of is Peter Garret who used the be the Environment minister and is now Education minister (also used to be lead singer of midnight oil).\n\nThe show is broadcast live and shows a twitter feed during the show. 1331295439 [This one is better](http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Cvl3DvYIqfk/T39lki7_NPI/AAAAAAAAAyg/VeKeego4ISk/s400/i-like-this-planet-you-get-off-futurama_2_.png) 1340567615 It is now. 1288308150 She must be proud, reviving her all-but dead career on the back of bad science and her child's learning disability. 1241455428 It was a homeopathic remedy she gave me. She was really into that sort of stuff 1300713373 Well you sure convinced me.... 1315753639 I understood what you meant, I just disagree. I mean, there are probably some races like that, but others...well, we just can't assume that much about their nature. Perhaps they developed all that ability just *so* they could conquer, rape, and pillage. Maybe their just a mindless swarm with no real introspection other than to spread. Maybe their sense of joy is derived from hunting. There may just simply be some things that are rare in the universe and worth coveting and fighting for.\n\nI understand that it's natural to think of advanced beings as enlightened beings, but I genuinely do think there is danger in ascribing human attributes to the unknown. Some things can grow without the light. 1345192163 I would like to divert your arguments to the larger thread (one of about 3 or so now already) for future posts http://redd.it/132nc0 1352834969 Love it, thanks so much for this. I've been obsessed with the Bell ever since I read [Joseph P. Farrell's](http://www.reddit.com/r/josephpfarrell) book [SS Brotherhood of the Bell](http://www.amazon.com/The-SS-Brotherhood-Bell-Majic-12/dp/1931882614/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1334212881&sr=1-1).\n\nI'd love to get my hands on Igor Witkowski's [The Truth About the Wunderwaffe](http://www.amazon.com/Truth-About-Wunderwaffe-Igor-Witkowski/dp/8388259164/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&qid=1334212780&sr=8-5) but boy is that book hard to come by. 1334212843 I find it more likely that we would be visited by interdimensional beings (see: tool's faaip do ooiad) than by something lightyears away... unless they're using interdimensional travel to reach us. I think that's how the mayans disappeared. 1335049499 I'm sincerely curious about this also. 1290153558 I want to see one too 1349531936 One of the most widely used chemical solvents in existence! 1327967657 They're taking the piss out on truthers being jobless sucks who waste all their time handing out flyers, exchanging links to Zeitgeist and doing nothing productive with their lives. But since it's the onion they're doing it from the truthers "I don't understand why things aren't working out for me even though I've alienated myself from friends, family and work by being and insufferable conspiracy theorist" pov. 1348005071 Depressed? [Spray those worries away!](http://www.ascendedhealth.com/sprays/spray_IamBlissful.htm) 1297201435 I retract the "cheap shot" comment. 1351354792 I just went to gsk.com and downloaded their pdf's on their various vaccines... it's all there. You may have to do some study and research to find out what things like "thimerosal" and "mrc-5 human diploid cells" are, but it's well worth it. 1256146992 No, not really. There are two main "divisions" within anarchism.\n\n* The Anarcho-Socialists tend to believe money, property, capital, rent, and employment are evil (or something like that, they're hard to understand). They also believe in democracy and redistribution of wealth .... hopefully I'm not misrepresenting their POV.\n* The Anarcho-Capitalists tend to adhere to prefer the (a) non-aggression principle and (b) property rights, and many within the Austrian School of Economics (Such as Rothbard) are Anarcho-Capitalists. Also note that AnCaps use "Capitalism" in the classic free-market sense. 1313575641 Having both been to AA meetings and been in a homeless shelter, I found the similarities were striking. In both cases, you were expected to accept God, or you weren't fully accepted into the group. In both cases you had to attend group meeting to talk about your problems. In both cases, you had to do "humbling" menial labor like clean the coffee maker or sweep the floor.\n\nBottom line is, they both resemble typical traditional Christian proselytizing of the poor or oppressed. 1321671673 How did my phone get all the way over there? 1331988062 1. What is her opinion on religion? I imagine that the truth is vastly different from current day interpretations of Iron Age mythology.\n\n2. Whether there is a god or several gods or nothing at all, it seems there is still a hierarchy of sorts in the afterlife with entities that seem to project their authority over other spirits - at least that's what I presumed from reading NDE/OBE stories ("Do you want to die now or do you want to go back to your life?" or "Hey! Get back into your body!"). Can you elaborate further on this? 1343765415 He gives a good illusion of being logical. The reality is that he has a really strong tendency to base his decisions on the cultural atmosphere he surrounds himself with. At that point he'll use logic in defense of the already decided issue. But only to a certain extent. He'll debate it, but as a debate. And not as an attempt to actually examine the issue. \n\nHe's a really funny, really smart, guy who provides an example that intelligence and education don't always mean understanding of scientific methodology. 1279246573 Science isn't about war, you calmly explain the facts and if the person you are discussing with is open to it he/she will accept it, if not then too bad.\n\nYelling and screaming is not what scientists should do nor should anyone who seriously wants to promote fact above fiction should ever do. If you feel compelled to get angry and go into pointless arguments then you are really no better than denialists. 1265535020 Man, that story sounds like nothing but a flaming bag of p... *oh*. 1306867960 Obviously Dr. Stuhlinger took the high road here instead of finger pointing. 1344315489 The fingers he was using to point to the phallic symbols looked quite phallic to me 1307892828 I'd say the dice are sentient. Also, they will inevitably betray you, at which point you should curse them. 1335083554 Thanks for the info. It's something to think on - we seem to agree on most points. I'm just not sure I smell disinfo (not that he isn't). 1351727898 Bare in mind that most of the time when we're talking about alternative medicine we're talking about practices that have been tested, often extensively, and show no results. \n\nAs to the holistic approach to medicine, you are absolutely right. There's nothing wrong with the term holistic in itself, but it has been co-opted by people who are not trained medical practitioners. \n\nI'm sure that there are many doctors out there who take pride in treating people in a "holistic" manner. But there is no licencing for "holistic healers". I could set up a shop and call myself a holistic therapist right now, and be happily stuffing interesting things into even more interesting orifices in no time. 1298936523 But did you know that the presence of dihydrogen monoxide has been detected in women with breast cancer? A recent study involving 40 breast cancer patients showed that 99 percent of their tissue samples contain this chemical. Dihydrogen monoxide can enter your body through deodorants and antiperspirants. 1348902586 Joehillsays? 1348269106 Honestly between the crappy video quality and the rednecks shaking alcoholic hands it could be anything. 1326519846 Enter...E.T. 1338918517 wow, amazing detail! hopefully your post can help set something straight. 1346457589 there is no evidence except videos of the parlour trick. which is not evidence.\npeople do look at these and they make up their minds - its just a silly trick with some pre prepared paper soaked in chemicals. That has been proven in hundreds of actual real science papers (not silly made up ones you claim exist). You really should look at that evidence and use your own analysis to decide. 1349990350 I just checked all my resources on the subject.\nIm pretty sure it was the cancer. \nUnless the alternative medicine was a bullet. Then if steve had a bulletwound we might reason to believe it was the alternative medicine.\n...\n\nI just checked again, no bulletwound, it was the cancer. 1318635078 With all the galaxies, planets, moons out there, it would be foolish to think we are the only life in the universe. 1271074833 FYI, stalks is more appropriate than stocks. As a noun, stocks can mean many things, while stalks only means stalks. 1341530308 I read psychics as physics. I was quite intrigued by the title. 1339713789 To Kurzweil's credit, a great deal of his success as an inventor is owed to his ability to, at the very least, see short-term future innovations down the road. He began development of his reading machine before the technology to make it possible had been fully-formed. Likewise his digital keyboard began development ahead of the tech curve so that it was able to come out the moment the tech was ready for it.\n\nThere are a lot of angles you can attack his ideas about The Singularity from, not the least of which being over-optimistic about the likely speed of development. But when one compares a modern smart-phone to the computing technology used during the Apollo 11 mission, one can't help but marvel at how fast this shit is moving. Upon getting my iPhone 4s last year, I was taken aback by how much talking to "Siri" felt like speaking to the deck computer from Star Trek. (And Siri is very much one of the predictions that Kurzweil nailed. He thought it would be on "PCs", but he also thought there would be tiny PCs that we would carry around with us at all times, using wireless communications as well as voice control. That's a pretty damn perfect description of my current phone.) \n\nAnyone performing a thought-exercise of looking at current research in quantum computing, cybernetics, high-speed networking, and fabrication robotics, would find it hard to avoid arriving at similar end-games to what Kurzweil is talking about. He might be a little over-optimistic about how long some of this will take, but most of the ways we're likely to improve technology, including biotech, are probably not far from what's coming. 1353089047 I appreciate your apology, and I appreciate your thoughts. \n\nMy wife, as a midwife, attends peer review once a month. As a naturopath, she's required to fill continuing ed credits just like any other medical practitioner, and is under the governance of a state-certified licensing board. \n\nShe became a naturopathic doctor and a midwife because she was interested in the *practice* of healthcare, not the *business* of healthcare. Her practice allows her to spend much, much more time with her patients and focus on increasing their wellness, rather than getting 15 minutes to prescribe this drug or that. Not that there aren't any number of conditions that should be treated with prescription medicine - but that so many of the chronic conditions that lower quality of life really respond best to diet, exercise and counseling.\n\nThe problem she faces - **all the time** - is that most people interested in "alternative medicine" have fundamentally given up on allopathic care. They're the ones who know in their heart of hearts that vaccines give you autism, fillings cause brain damage and that [laying on hands](http://www.naet.com/) will cure your ills. And frankly, you *have* to get a little woo with them just to get them to listen to you - I got to discuss anal swabs over dinner last night because my wife is trying to get her partner to swap over to a more accurate hepatitis test and her partner doesn't even really believe in *germ theory*. Meanwhile, most people on the Western side of things think that anyone telling you to get more sleep, eat better and get some exercise so that you can stop taking blood pressure medication is a charlatan and a witch out to drain your bank account.\n\nI dunno. It just gets tiresome defending one side to the other every day and then getting pilloried by both of them. Your viewpoint is diminishingly rare.\n\n 1279936953 I like the story of that one military officer that touched the craft in Rendlesham Forest, and got some kind of flash of a bunch of binary that he couldn't understand. Some time later, a computer science guy gets ahold of the binary message and it turns out to be the alien equivalent of a license plate. That is the kinda thing that gives me goosebumps, a completely reasonable and mundane piece of information that a craft would have on it. 1337952668 Way to be skeptical about being skeptical, job. 1355710380 In the one you hear the cat meowing in you can hear a train whistle blowing at one point. It sounds far off and very faint. Just kind of gives a perspective on how close a cat would have been to you to get picked up that well. 1340416955 I think Economicvoice.com is guilty of blatant sensationalism.\n\nGoldman Sachs does not say that "the economic collapse is coming." A single Goldman Sachs trading strategist (Alan Brazil) says that $1 trillion *may* be required to shore up European banks.\n 1315805757 Maybe like... A year and a half ago, also I feel like I'm constantly being watched. It's the strangest feeling in the world. The angel's an average sized human. There's child sized ones too... Jesus christ, I feel like a fucked up Dr. Suess 1335595220 GCI? 1305359997 >Today, any idea can be promoted as worthy, irrespective of facts - and tolerated in the name of "fairness."\n\nSad, but true.\n\n***FACEPALM*** 1322489080 call back and ask what the lady said 1342875423 [Yes yes yes](http://www.newint.org/features/2008/09/01/message-in-a-bottle/) don't buy that shit. 1334687348 You can come with me if you want to....I can still save you... 1351725846 Can dirty hermaphrodites be gay? 1347800072 dont worry. The same thing happens to me when I'm laying down in bed trying to sleep. 1334864491 I would stop trying to reason with the hostile 12 year old. The fact remains, whether its good for you or not, cracking and popping joints releases endorphins in roughly the same manner as a massage. I would never recommend anyone to go to the chiropractor. That doesn't change the fact the if people feel better, then it works, especially if there is no measurable cause for their pain. 1349496425 That sounds downright anti-democratic, actually. 1330488927 How do I avoid them? 1329975860 I'm not so sure (no expert here), if proteins were fully destroyed by the digestive process, there would be no such thing as food allergy, right? Peanuts, eggs, milk, wheat, and so forth, all allergies to proteins that the body finds within as foreign. \n\nPerhaps instead of 'all', we should consider that some portion is making it through the digestive process. Now, what comprises an effective dose is hard to say, but if kids can die from minute quantities of peanut, I wouldn't expect much colostrum to be necessary to register with our immune systems. 1311355922 Transcript [here](http://www.corbettreport.com/911-a-conspiracy-theory/)\n\n>On the morning of September 11, 2001, 19 men armed with boxcutters directed by a man on dialysis in a cave fortress halfway around the world using a satellite phone and a laptop directed the most sophisticated penetration of the most heavily-defended airspace in the world, overpowering the passengers and the military combat-trained pilots on 4 commercial aircraft before flying those planes wildly off course for over an hour without being molested by a single fighter interceptor.\n\nThis can be broken up into a few assertions:\n\n* A plane cannot be hijacked with box cutters - Sure it can. Why couldn't it be?\n* Al-Qaeda isn't organized enough to carry out such an attack - They sure as shit are organized. And the "caves" they they live in aren't so much caves as they are literally vast underground fortresses.\n* If it were a legitimate terrorist attack, then jets would have been scrambled immediately. - Fairly thoroughly debunked [here](http://conspiracies.skepticproject.com/articles/911/norad/) \n\n>These 19 hijackers, devout religious fundamentalists who liked to drink alcohol, snort cocaine, and live with pink-haired strippers, \n\nIrrelevant\n\n>managed to knock down 3 buildings with 2 planes in New York, while in Washington a pilot who couldn’t handle a single engine Cessna was able to fly a 757 in an 8,000 foot descending 270 degree corskscrew turn to come exactly level with the ground,\n\nDebunked [here](http://conspiracies.skepticproject.com/articles/911/hijackers/page/2/#hanisucks)\n\n>hitting the Pentagon in the budget analyst office where DoD staffers were working on the mystery of the 2.3 trillion dollars that Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld had announced “missing” from the Pentagon’s coffers in a press conference the day before, on September 10, 2001.\n\n\nDebunked [here](http://www.911myths.com/html/rumsfeld__9_11_and__2_3_trilli.html)\n\n>Luckily, the news anchors knew who did it within minutes, the pundits knew within hours, the Administration knew within the day, and the evidence literally fell into the FBI’s lap. But for some reason a bunch of crazy conspiracy theorists demanded an investigation into the greatest attack on American soil in history.\n\nNot even sure what he's trying to say here. There was speculation about the perpetrators in the beginning, and intelligence agencies said it was most likely a terrorist attack. Can someone chime in and tell me why this is relevant?\n\n>The investigation was delayed, underfunded, set up to fail, a conflict of interest and a cover up from start to finish.\n\n\nDebunked [here](http://other.skepticproject.com/articles/quotes/view/27/911-commission-member-said-commission-was-setup-t/)\n\n> It was based on testimony extracted through torture, the records of which were destroyed.\n\nWhat about the people who claimed responsibility while they were halfway around the world, not being tortured?\n\n> It failed to mention the existence of WTC7\n\n\nDebunked [here](http://www.debunking911.com/pull.htm)\n\n> Able Danger\n\nDebunked [here](http://conspiraciesrnotus.blogspot.com/2007/12/dismantling-able-danger.html)\n\nHonestly, I'm getting tired of this. All of the shit he said has been thoroughly debunked. He just dressed it up in satire and made his assertions even more ambiguous. There is nothing new to see here, except a slightly higher production value in the crazy people videos than normal. 1331094543 Really man really!!!! 1313688733 Seriously, it's like these people have never heard of the Food, Drug, & Cosmetic act. Drugs and therapies performed by doctors must be safe *and* effective! If it's not both, the drug is pulled and the therapy is halted.\n\nIt's why, just a couple of weeks ago, the FDA removed metastatic breast cancer from the indication of Avastin: it wasn't effective!\n\nETA: Just tried to comment on the article. Why am I not surprised that my comment must be approved by the admins? 1322410693 And driving.\n 1329888003 Yes! Me, too! And then I have weird dreams. 1344560886 Answer: Are there any scientific studies published in peer-reviewed journals proving HAARP caused the earthquake in Haiti? No? Then the earthquake wasn't caused by HAARP. This is the only rational answer. Anything else is unscientific. 1265543104 I found this review of Fitzgerald's book, which seems to take issue with a lot of the arguments he makes. \n\nhttp://armariummagnus.blogspot.com/2011/05/nailed-ten-christian-myths-that-show.html\n\nThe main issue seems to be that Fitzgerald makes a lot of arguments against a literal/fundamentalist reading of the gospels, showing they can't be true, but doesn't quite make the connection that this proves there was no historical Jesus. It's an interesting critique after you've seen the talk (which goes over the major points in the book). 1309559655 If you happen to dream about who wins the World Series, let me know. I've got money, a car, and I ain't that far from Vegas. 1350972277 There are literally thousands of videos of the events of 9/11. You can find many of them on youtube. 1349670500 >The answers require out of the box thinking but you are insisiting the box must stay.\n\nI'm only insisting that the known fundamental laws of the universe must stay if we're to have an honest conversation about interstellar travel in that very same universe. Do you think this is unfair? If so, why? And if we are to eliminate the known fundamental laws of physics in the conversation, then where does one draw the line between realistic vs. unrealistic hypotheses? If we were writing a science fiction novel, then I would absolutely agree! But we're not. We're talking about the real world, and I don't know if there's value considering possibilities that aren't known to be possible in the real world. Know what I mean here? We have to work within the framework of what we know, not what we don't know. 1345051289 It's more likely that every UFO "sighting" was hallucinated or misinterpreted than the idea that we are being visited by intelligent extra-terrestrial beings. Also, you're the one here claiming that we are visited by aliens and until you show me something that can't be 'debunked' I'm going to continue to believe that these phenomenons are earthly in origin. Does that mean we know what they are? No. But jumping from that to ALIENS! is just fucking stupid. 1332250968 I found the real C2C when I was in fourth grade. Art Bell was the voice I fell asleep to for years. It's just not the same with out him at the helm. 1350462983 >Nobody said they believed this was paranormal.\n\nThis original post is in /r/Paranormal. You replied to me in /r/Paranormal. I'm replying back to you right now in /r/Paranormal. 1347455149 Well when you defend "creationist scientists" in /r/skeptic, you're inviting such gems. The very fact you were wrong and continued to argue it just shows your immaturity and lack of self-reflection. 1292611717 This is just like the bollocks claim that aliens must have helped people build the pyramids, because making a big pile of stones is so much fucking hard work! 1325858798 *cringe*\nThe very same :D\nThank you very much! 1326564080 Allopathy is the term the CAM community applies to evidence-based medicine. \n\nIf a certain intervention is proven to work, it's just medicine.\nIf it doesn't work, it's not medicine at all, though it might be presented as such. \n\nMaybe that is a narrower definition than that of 50 million Elvis fans, but I'll stand by it. 1302028078 Not really. They're mainly songs that pop in to my head, and I think that I'd really like to hear it. Or hey, I haven't heard this song in a while. Then it will pop up somewhere. The songs aren't popular either. Just random. 1327885569 I'm having a hard time thinking of a scientist more impressive than Newton. 1348704932 Well, it doesn't belong to /r/nosleep because he went back to sleep. 1337336891 If I remember correctly, there were issues with some of the earlier DNA testing. That being said, I still am not sure if I buy any of this just yet. 1330661222 My standard disclaimer is that while I remain skeptical, I acknowledge there are a myriad of phenomenon that human beings are not normally privy to. I can't deny anything I can't disprove. Still with me?\n\nOk.\n\nMy thought? [Spirit Guide] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spirit_guide) 1343407823 There's also [water intoxication](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Water_intoxication), but your point still stands. 1283897398 Isn't that the Nuremberg defense ? \nSo what your saying is that you work for frauds but they are not really really bad frauds so that's ok. 1304403862 Well, those clappers were probably just the nuts who follow Chopra and Houston around on "tour" and listen to their radio show. Probably not the usual Caltech crowd. I can only hope. 1283291310 Actual example :[1](http://tech.slashdot.org/story/09/02/10/2211220/false-fact-on-wikipedia-proves-itself)\n\nThough, maybe this didn't actually happen but rather a rushed writer writing on the topic of Wikipedia... 1321453138 Don't get me wrong, I don't disagree with you. The issue isn't that government wants/doesn't want to control birth rates and such, because they often do, but that the current debate on marriage and associated rights doesn't have much (if anything) to do with government's desire for that birth rate.\n\n> Government control of marriage is actually a pretty ineffective way to encourage procreation.\n\nIt depends on how you view it. Having a codified system could be good, in the sense that contract enforcement helps businesses be able to deal with one another. The 'extra layer' may help create the conditions that allow people to raise children in extra safety or whatever. My comment should only be taken in the context that making absolute statements (government does not want to, government does not help) weakens the overall argument.\n\nFundamentally the argument is flawed because gay and lesbians probably won't have kids outside of marriage, but could (at the very least) raise kids in marriage. Allowing them the same rights would increase their ability to 'have' children, either by proxy, adoption or some other means. 1335475134 > A law the prohibits bullshit\n\nis a law against freedom of speech.\n\n> A law that stops homeopathy\n\nis the first step on the road to authoritarianism\n\n>, for instance \n\nis a left-over from the copy-and-paste 1267494156 Sounds like a shoddy ticketing system. 1355839918 He's right though we should be skeptical especially if they agree with our beliefs (I need a different word, I feel like "beliefs" implies some kind of unchallengeable knowledge, maybe just how I was raised though), I hope this true though, being skeptical of a claim and wanting it to be true aren't mutually exclusive. 1329529954 That's oxiclean's active ingredient. 1301474448 2 things after reading this :\n\n- we/i don't actually know that much about the chinese POV on all this (govt and civil) . \n- there are "quite some" people with 6 fingers on each hand out there .. i always felt it wasn't that unnatural .. i wonder what the deal is 1323882281 ....Nope. 1353413465 ^ This is the only constructive comment here. ^ 1343964672 It is for those of us allergic to corn. Corn syrup takes the chemical components that cause an allergic reaction, and condenses them by roughly 1000 times the ppm.\n\nCheap pancake syrup nearly killed me twice as a child before they figured out what it was. Now I have to have my pancakes and waffles with real maple syrup, poor me!\n\nedit: I a word. 1340426729 Trolls are pathetic, committing the most facile lies while deluding themselves into believing those lies are clever. \n\nAny internet discussion forum just makes what it can of the content presented to it. /r/Skeptic eventually saw through this lie and that doesn't negate that better people than the troll-OP were able to conjure some meaningful thoughts and exchanges about the content of the lie. 1355690169 Whoa... 1345683639 But when it is, that will be the bad thing. Looks like KillAllTheWhiteMan needs to cross ceolceol's palm with silver. 1315404407 just a story with 0 proof. nothing more, move along. 1347140716 Wicca and Witchcraft are cool/fun. That perception colors the world in interesting ways. If anyone can be excused for believing in Wicca, it should be kids. As a kid, roughly at that age, I was into that sort of stuff too. It was *fun*. I wanted magic spells damn it. At this point its just him being a unique kid. He's just got an active imagination. Most likely he'll come out of it disillusioned by religion in general. So, don't worry about it. Give it another five years, then *start* to worry if things haven't changed. 1288736449 Germany showing intolerance of an ancient Jewish ritual? I'm shocked...Ok I actually think this is a good thing.... 1340825659 From the webmd link:\n> Most of these claims have no evidence backing them up. Some -- like vinegar's supposed ability to treat lice or warts -- have actually been studied, and researchers turned up nothing to support their use. 1305185506 This is a big problem, in need of a solution. Maybe some kind of double-blind test to determine which are the good psychics? 1306521611 And these exact reasons are why we'd try to actually attack them, to steal this technology, and put it in the hands of the big corporations, who would then bury it. 1295015996 Sorry, I keep seeing this. What is SRS? I googled it, but I get results like "sexual reassignment surgery" and "scoliosis research society," and I am pretty sure that's not what you guys are talking about. Thanks! 1347373272 My reaction was so funny when I found SGU. I was like, "Wait, I'm a skeptic? You mean there are other people in the world like me?"\n\nI felt an instant bond because I finally found a group of people who I could identify with. People who would almost obsessively research a subject and examine evidence. People who examined every facet of life and thought about it. People who genuinely wanted to know how the world worked.\n\nAwesome show, I look forward to it every week. 1346184786 close. Salt.\nhttp://www.livescience.com/22954-changes-ocean-salinity-voyage.html 1348863837 Here's a much better photo of [Aristarchus Crater](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f1/Aristarchus_and_Herodotus_craters_Apollo_15.jpg) which you can see looks nothing like "fusion reactor." In fact, since no one on Earth has ever seen a fusion reactor, by what basis can anyone claim that this crater looks like one? 1316094581 The problem is that if they are able to somehow come to the conclusion that evolution, a scientific theory that has only been bolstered by every bit of evidence ever found, never called into question by any kind of legitimate evidence (there *is no* "contraversy,* and no biologist worth his weight in salt would say otherwise), and is in fact observable in our every day lives (virus mutation, breeding of dogs, speciation occurring in various animals, etc.), then what *else* are they capable of denying without cause?\n\nThe willingness to stubbornly deny evolution on the basis of fallacious arguments denotes an inherent problem with their decision making. Imagine how much *better* that brilliant surgeon, chemist, what have you, might be if their thought processes were corrected to eliminate this flaw.\n\nEDIT: I accidentally a word. 1336759634 Honestly it's hard to say what it could be, but I do not believe it is paranormal. \n\nMore than likely it is a natural event that we haven't been able to explain. 1348803189 ah ok. the video didnt show up when i was viewing with firefox. 1340058432 Interesting, but none of these are completely silent and none are able to hover in one place. That is a key distinction; these are still airplanes and need to be moving forward to stay aloft. Most triangle sightings are characterized by silence and hovering. 1298062179 What are these credibility issues? 1345601009 My friend who I talk about in the entry has spoken of the shadow people. I will read that, thank you. 1327361423 Why just imagine? 1317103248 I'd also like a link please. 1345660494 Cocaine is a helluv a drug 1351957580 Dr. Ketchum appears to be a legit researcher with relevant qualifications, and prweb appears to be a legitimate site for news and press releases which points to DNA Diagnostics (although the website looks like it's from the early 90's, it appears to be a legit business). It is however just a press release.\n\nI am extremely skeptical, and will wait to see the evidence and if it merits it, further independent study of the samples. 1353872629 Yes, we've all seen the image on the internet. 1337455653 The correct term is "eugenics," if I'm not mistaken. 1340934504 >there might be something useful that can be learnt.\n\n- there is no degree of absurdity that the human mind cannot find to be reasonable. 1331214879 Gotcha. Yeah, GBS can sometimes result from auto-immune responses to a vaccine. I always find it curious that it so often gets brought up in the context of vaccination but almost never elsewhere. GBS is a haywire response of the immune system and it also occurs when people actually get sick, including when people get the flu!\n\nI suppose it is more dramatic when a healthy person gets GBS after a vaccination. But it's also valid to point out that flu sufferers can see GBS after being sick. 1256945186 Billy Meier is a fraud. 1352865914 Why should we assume that extraterrestrials would communicate with radio signals? I don't think that silence necessarily means anything. 1323199738 The would also be able to avoid crashing into a planet, or nose diving into a volcano for that matter. 1351857307 [No true Scottsman pseudo-fallacy.](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/No_true_Scotsman) Which I'm starting to see everywhere...\n\nThe "true" assertion this context amounts to [pathos](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pathos) because you haven't defined it otherwise.\n\nI would say, "No skeptic who submits belief in the christian deity to skeptical analysis will thereafter believe in the existence of said deity." Wordier, but avoids the issues with "true skeptic". 1329857213 Organic means governmental certification. It's not necessarily great. Most small farms are not able to get certified as organic because it's too arduous and expensive. 1338687579 i dun 'now wat u say\n\n 1345040321 Well put. Thanks for your contrivution and the excellent examples you provided. 1339632412 > There are news paper articles from the time that described eye witness accounts of the phenomena. Both in Norfolk, VA and in Philadelphia, PA.\n\nCitation needed. 1348164387 Why is this guy getting downvoted? It was hilarous! 1296065398 I would take the lead any day of the week. After all, what's the off chance of brain damage compared to the choking hazard presented by phallic foods? That's why I don't eat hot dogs, bananas, squash, or Popsicles. 1326719080 >into nothing more than a small version of /r/atheism where all we do is tell each other how smart we are and how stupid everyone else is.\n\nYou're missing so much of the point. Humiliation, name-calling and chastising are imperative tools. Why act like someone's ignorant, uninformed opinions are somehow worth respecting by virtue of them being someone's opinions? I find myself in the face of pure, unwavering ignorance and you want me to be *respectful*? To tin-foil hat wearing crackpots and jeebus freaks? \n\nThe fact is, there's no excuse in this age of information. The information is there for people. If they can't find it or understand it, or simply won't try to break out of their shell all the while accusing me of being closed-minded, it's not my responsibility to do anything but let them know how much I revile their pathetic, flaccid intellects. 1341555388 Their reaction was the strangest part of this. I think I recognized those boys (they were maybe around 18 - 20) as friends of a family who lived nearby. They would always ask me for cigarettes if they are the guys I think they were. Although that family still lives nearby, I haven't seen those guys since that night. \n\nTheir reaction really was very bizarre. While the part of my mind that loves mystery and conspiracy, regarding both as exciting and fun, I rather think that their reaction might be somewhat typical: the reaction of people who don't want to believe their eyes. I'm sure you've seen that mentality with some people in the past - where looking away and going about your business is easier than accepting that there is no "non-fantastic" explanation for something that's right in front of you. \n\nTo answer the question if I noticed something else, no. I kept and eye on my watch from the moment I first spotted it and noticed no "missing time", saw nothing prowling around in the area or anything else unusual aside from the thing hanging in the sky above me. \n\nSomething I haven't mentioned, though, those guys who turned and walked away silently, they walked along the side walk that wrapped around the building and did not return. I remembered them always parking in the ample spots in front of the building in the past. \n\n 1318456380 1:1000000000 chance encounter 1353936637 That's my point exactly.\n\nThe superficiality of weight doesn't really mean anything unless you go to the extremes of morbidly obese or anorexic. \n\nKeep in mind, that when I said this: \n\n>Probably because it will be used as an excuse for far too many people to absolve themselves of any personal responsibility.\n\nIt was meant as an example of what people like xpda would say. 1327432987 These scenes are how we turned GH into a drinking game. 1352555989 [The noise I make any time I hear/read the name Deepak Chopra](http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=NmNObROcBOo#t=2s)\n\nHe is such a dick :/. 1321353485 Nope, most likely, power saving mode. When battery is below a certain percentage, the automatic setting on most laptops will cut the screen off after a minute or two of no user input. You moving it around when you plugged the charger into the laptop probably brought the screen back up. If it had truly died due to a dead battery, you would have had the whole boot up sequence when you plugged in the charger, assuming it was actually plugged in and providing power. 1326739491 According to the label it is not made with raw cream..no where does it state anything about "raw". That makes much more sense, it isn't raw..\n\nhttp://www.greenpasture.org/public/Products/ButterOil/index.cfm 1351443477 Also, one more slight glitch I have encountered. A friend of mine I had back in high school that I would hang out with on a regular basis, had a string of 3 months straight of looking at his phone or a clock at exactly 11:11. Whether we were in school or hanging out, he would always make a note of saying, "hey guys, if you was wondering, it's 11:11." \n\nFor the first few weeks this happened, all of my friends were kind of weirded out by it, but as time went on, we just accepted his friendly reminder. 1326435917 That's fine. I just didn't want to the analogy (which uses a *person* for AGW) to can confused. It's easier to imagine a train on a train than a train on a person, even if it's all trivial. 1354899073 Yeah I've had this before too. Even got to the point I double checked what time it was so I knew I wasn't just getting numbers mixed up. Still haven't figured it out either :) 1331860125 It touches upon the paranormal, and people here are more often self taught and practical.\n\nNot to say it's unscientific of course. 1322425503 still no arguments. 1345701864 Your username is pretty relevant, too. 1332845491 Juicing? The patient's wallet? 1349896175 Futurism is, at least for me, a fun bit of show. At the heart of it is pure speculation, taking current trends and extrapolating out from there. Just as an economist cannot possibly predict two months into the future, so the same is with future technology. \n\nI worked at a video game company ten years ago and we predicted that cell phones would be the big market for games a decade later (we nailed that) but we had no idea technologies like Twitter and Facebook would be the titans they are on mobile. Disruptive technologies will always arise and throw off the linear curve that a technology was going on.\n\nAnyone that believes strongly in the singularity needs to critically evaluate how slow our medical progress really has been. We are not just our brains, our whole body make up the what we are. What we consider reality is just what our brains composite in aggregate from our senses. It isn't enough to simulate a brain, we'd need to simulate everything from sense organs to circulatory systems. People with artificial hearts have reported trouble sleeping because they lack a pulse. (Citation needed of course, my father and grandfather are docs and mentioned this last year at christmas dinner)\n\nI think your skepticism is well warranted, but don't miss the chance to experience the world the way it can be. I think starting a sentence with "What if . . . " usually ends with a fantastic conversation. 1352731432 From the sources on wikipedia's Teflon article, I found [this article](http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18419647), which seems to indicate that teflon and related cookware account for a very minor amount of the PFCs a person absorbs. I'm not sure if that's just likely to make your mother worried about the food and water that the article says account for the majority though.\n\nTo further that point, the natural news article itself notes that the study took place in the Faroe islands because uptake of PFCs is associated with eating fish, and nothing quoted in the article by any scientists mentions absorbing PFCs from household appliances.\n\n 1328302121 That was mind blowingly dumb 1354214074 And he recovered eyesight too!! double miracle! 1276861086 I disagree, look at how many people are attached to their religious beliefs. I know quite a few in my town. I can safely say, everyone in my wifes family, including my wife, would be extremely freaked out over this. They are very religious Catholics. I think it is much better to just let this information trickle out to those that want to find it. 1346495587 Interesting 1356402221 Better safe than sorry! Thank you! 1350414398 Interesting. Like the gambler who keeps betting to dig himself out of the hole because he thinks the jackpot is coming? 1337886121 And some conspiracy theories use science...they are not mutually exclusive. 1333838470 Mothman is scray. If you have netflix they have a documentary on it that scared the shit out of me, its instant view. We need more people to have a mothman discussion. \n\nAs a Jersey resident i have to tell you a secret. Jersey devil isn't real. It was made up during the Revolution to scare the superstitious British out of the Pine Barrens. Reasoning: Records from the Continental Congress including 1/3 copies of the Declaration was kept in the same barn in the Barrens. 1306384548 Jupiter is visible to the naked eye, and if you catch it on the right night it looks pretty bright. 1289397017 > Is there not? The supporters of organic foods that I talk to seem to do this and watch the grainy youtube videos that support all sorts of inaccuracies.\n\nI don't think there is. I am not even sure which grainy videos do you refer to. I would prefer you referred to facts, such as the regulations. For example, do you not think that you would prefer to drink the milk produced according to the rules that I have cited, or do you really insist on your cow being fed plastic and manure?\n\n> Obviously this is only my experience but from what I've seen Brian has been great at preventing more misinformation from being spread. \n\nNot about organic food. He has picked a few and well between facts, and he has painted a picture based on these facts. Yes, organic food does indeed use fertilizers. But also, while they are fertilizers, it uses fewer kinds, which is good for people who want to avoid certain pesticides (and other chemicals) more than others for social reasons. For example, I may want to avoid roundup not because I think it is somehow more poisonous than other pesticides (I am not sure which pesticide is the "worst"), but I may have a gripe with Monsanto for its corporate tactics. As a customer, I am happy to have that choice.\n\n> He usually goes over a number of claims (for everything from Bigfoot to organic food myths) and discusses why they are factual or not.\n\nWith organic food he has chosen to paint the picture that suited his opinion. He has chosen a few and far in-between facts and he has mischaracterized the organic food idea entirely. He stuck to the fact that fertilizers and pesticides are allowed in organic food and blown it out of proportion. I do agree that many people want to have food without chemicals, and, currently, there is no official standard in US to label such food. There could be, but there isn't one. Still, to many organic food consumers it does matter that the list of allowed chemicals is limited. It matters even more that organic food is about much more than just use of chemicals. It is not perfect, but certainly most of us would read many organic food regulations and wonder how on earth are such things allowed at all. Feeding cows plastic and manure is just but one example. There are some things like point (8) that we all know most animals in industrial farming will never get. Also, check my link to Google Scholar for scientific evidence that organic milk has clear advantages over non-organic milk. So there is science. 1352468995 Here. Have a glass of water. 1283358510 A long term Stossel-Shermer interview would be painful. Both of them are intelligent, but they also each have that voice that makes them sound arrogant and annoying. \n\nThe bit about the "noble savage" really is bothersome, I find myself explaining to people all the time that native peoples weren't any different than us today, although primitive societies are much worse off due to their basic human nature (combined with simple ignorance that requires time/generations to accumulate). On the other hand, you get those ancient astronaut folks trying to claim that early humans were too savage and dumb to build the pyramids or develop agriculture. 1311878496 Even a broken clock tells the right time twice a day! 1326768940 I exploded the flashes into images and put them in imgur albums. Makes for easy stepping through the frames.\n\n[First flash](http://imgur.com/a/FjUZu#0).\n\n[Second flash](http://imgur.com/a/jsXIX#0).\n 1342018639 Personally, I'm concerned a significant psychological/sociological study might be produced in the future proving that it's in everyone's psychological/sociological best interests to say believe in God or follow a religion for example.\n\nThat it's possible that evidence could support ignorance, when held up against certain metrics, and that politicians would move accordingly.\n\nFingers crossed in the mean time 1350146084 And according to Wikipedia, it's a dilution of about 1:10^400. So, it's sugar water. Well, it does say Homeopathic on the label. Heheh. 1329264495 Other side of what? Because I doubt that those people who are aghast at the rape/violence threats delivered to Rebecca Watson are the same ones threatening this person.\n 1351109616 Red Cross letter to US State Dept:\n\n- *"We had not been able to discover ANY TRACE of installations for exterminating civilian prisoners"* \n\nsource: http://i.imgur.com/Jcczo.jpg 1356337901 You must really hate talking to your friends. \n\nExpressing concern about a program someone is about to enter is totally normal among friends. If my friend was going to get a degree in something the first question I would ask them is what they're going to do with it, and then how they plan on getting there. These are normal things that normal people talk about, and expressing concern for your friends is a good thing, not a bad thing. 1288895699 But it's on the FBI site itself. The FBI is worried about hits? 1302465813 This study sparked a furious debate over the peer review process when it was published. Here is a recent article from Goldacre on this debacle, [Backwards step on looking into the future](http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2011/apr/23/ben-goldacre-bad-science) 1310225537 That was the one. While I would not say natural medicine and other practices have no value I am skeptical in the sense that many people have given it a bad name in while trying to make a buck. Also I am skeptical that natural medicine is effective because it is largely ignored by the scientific community and hence not enough empirical evidence to effectively evaluate those treatments. A catch 22 if you will. This is complicated by the fact that large scale trials are hugely expensive and probably not a big enough profit margin for companies to purse serious research in the area. \n\n"Even if purely psychological, if it's proven to do some good, any at all, it should not simply be thrown to the curb by the skeptics like so much I see here in r/skeptic."\n\nWhile I agree with you that if it does some good it should not be discarded out right if I broke my arm and the pill on the left will relieve 35% of my pain (statistically significant and homeopathic) or the pill on the left will relieve 100% percent of my pain (pharmaceutical) I can guarantee you which one I will take every time. That is not to say the pill on the left does not deserve greater study. What makes it work, how can we make that more effective etc. \n 1311020611 Post the footage itself, not you pointing at a screen. 1300181376 lol I'm on a insane rage fest on ignorance and stupidity right now. PEOPLE SOMETIMES MAN, GUILLIBLE IDIOTS 1335023600 Homeopathy is bullshit. Magnet therapy is bullshit. Acupuncture, when done by a trained healer, is a great thing. \nMy experience has been that seeing a doctor of Chinese Medicine is more helpful than seeing an MD (I am sure other people have had different experiences with different doctors).\nA healer is not necessarily an MD, and an MD is not necessarily a healer. I don't think I have ever, in my life, met an MD who had the ability to listen and communicate well with me as a patient. It almost seems that they train MD's not to listen in school.\nOf the doctors of Chinese Medicine I have gone to, I have been lucky enough to find a real healer 2x. By that I just mean, someone who listens to symptoms and applies their knowledge to me as an individual.\n 1296824950 Well, yes, of course.\n\nBut quack medicine will always be quack medicine.\n\nI think that getting *real* medicine back in order is more important, actually, as it should be the system that cures patients and fixes problems. If real medicine can't be trusted, then what do people have left?\n 1348515945 The best statistics we have suggest that the Iraq War, justified by the September Attacks, is very much genocide. 1290774678 I've said it before and I'll say it again:\n\nThe *only* good documentary about UFOs that I have seen is the 1956 docu-drama **[UFOs: The True Story of the Flying Saucers](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4bGTLtdwPHM)**. \n\nWhen I say "good", I mean, "it has an impeccable and honest commitment to 'the truth'; it has a near-zero percent chance of being fake/hoaxed/disinfo; and by watching it, you learn *more* facts about UFOs, not *less*." I can't stress how important the last point is, and how easy it is to miss when a documentary has limited your perspective and attentions rather than expanding them. \n\nGetting back to my recommendation, [The Montana](http://www.nicap.org/mariana.htm) and the [Utah Films](http://www.nicap.org/utah2.htm) remain two of the best documented, best analyzed publicly known Unknowns -- and yes, you can see them online but I suggest watching the entire **UFOs** movie for invaluable context. Both were specifically declassified for public consumption for this film. And indeed, this fact has fueled some speculation that the whole production was an attempt to test the waters for a full-blown public disclosure, whatever that would have meant in the mid-50s. \n\nThe film is downright boring in its commitment to fidelity to facts over dramatic action. And considering that both Edward Ruppelt and Dewey Fournet worked extensively on the film to help ensure accuracy, it has *by far* the highest intellectual standards of anything you can watch about UFOs this side of **2001: A Space Odyssey** and **Close Encounters of the Third Kind**. Finally, the US natinal security state -- to take Richard Dolan's excellent phrase -- evolved a lot between 1956 and 1966, let alone the present day. UFOs is a document from a time when the government was less sophisticated in its use of PR, and the Great Taboo that the CIA's Robertson Panel dreamt up in 1953 hadn't truly had time to ferment yet in the American subconscious.\n\nI challenege anyone to take the assertions made by this film and attempt to verify/disprove them (your choice of course). You will find that almost every detail, assertion and narrative scene stands up to scrutiny and skepticism of the highest intellectual degree. \n\n**TL;DR**\n\n**[UFOs: The True Story of the Flying Saucers](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4bGTLtdwPHM)** rewards serious scrutiny while most other UFO documentaries don't (if your standards rise above the **Zeitgeist**/**Loose Change** level).\n\n**EDIT**\n\nHaving checked out Drmorose's [suggestion](http://www.reddit.com/r/UFOs/comments/j4jk6/ufoaliens_documentaries_is_there_is_anything_else/c295k5j), I have to say that [UFOs It Has Begun (1976, 1979)](http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=7100303682843029418) is a second "good UFO documentary" by my own standards. But I should have expected no less from a documentary so strongly influenced by Jaques Vallée. 1312151606 I to am in favor of whatever works. This is why I'm opposed to psychics. How about some goddamn police work - who are the Glendale police anyway, a bunch of rubes at a carnival? This certainly doesn't inspire much confidence. And I thought Joe Arpaio was incompetent. . . 1320117788 >Things like souls, the afterlife, a supernatural creator, the resurrection, prayer, original sin, immaculate conception, transubstantiation, etc, aren't testable at all, and those are the things that form the basis for most major religions. \n\nTransubstantiation seems pretty borderline to me, Catholics just assert that it can't be tested even though the claims certainly seem testable. Though some of them might claim that it changes only in the spiritual dimension or something.\n\nMany of those other things can I think be render superfluous, and I think that most religious people are intelligent enough to know that, if something is superfluous when it comes to explaining the natural world (sorry this sentence is fully inadequate but I think you get my meaning), then it's not worth believing.\n\nEven believers in ancient aliens building the pyramids I think would abandon belief if they thought the aliens were superfluous. That's why they direct so much energy at trying to discredit any explanations of how humans could have built the pyramids on their own. Equivalently many religious people try to discredit ideas that would render their beliefs (creationism) superfluous.\n\nTo think that religious people would continue to believe while accepting that their religious beliefs were completely superfluous to explaining the natural world, would I think be hugely insulting. I do not believe that the vast majority of religious people could be that different from us. 1348137660 Looks like an Imperial battle cruiser to me. 1326479224 I just read through most of it and the guy seems to believe *every* conspiracy theory ever. Illuminati? Check. Aliens? Check. 9/11? Check. JFK? Check. Believed Osama died in 2001? Check. \n\nEvery response with even a smidgen of skepticism is getting downvoted to all hell. Silliest AMA I've ever seen. And, of course, he does it all under the guise of "evidence." 1345538638 I didn't see any movement that couldn't be attributed to camera shake and deliberate panning. The whole thing seems set up to me for some reason. The opening shot of the sky looks exactly like I would expect for dusk with the first planet becoming visible (usually Venus or Jupiter around here). As others have posted in this thread, when something is out of focus, it can take on a strange geometric shape, and there's just no reference point on the ground when the "movement" takes place. 1342415386 I really like keeping up to date with environmental news so I read it often. I am just annoyed with a bunch articles posted now and then of dubious nature. \n\nIt can be a small community at times. 1331511765 If the U.S. wanted to attack themselves so they could convince people to invade Iraq, they would have framed Saddam, not Osama Bin Laden, since Bin Laden had nothing to do with Iraq. It could not have been a false flag, since it didn't even have the flag on it that the Conservative neo-cons wanted to go to war with. 1349630421 I predict that no one will succeed 1280717183 With cheese. 1314065236 That may be the best use of the Look of Disapproval, ever. 1306947263 I don't really disagree; however this subreddit has a bad habit of mixing the jam with the cheese, so to speak. For example, the articles quoted in another thread as being "devastating" to the claims against chiropractic were *specifically* all studies that measured the efficacy of spinal manipulation in treating things like colic in children.\n\nWhich is good for what it is -- except that the OP asked specifically about the efficacy of chiropractic in treating neck and back pain in adults. The fact that some chiropractic claims are stupidly inflated does not mean other claims are automatically invalid. \n\nAgain, not really arguing the point. My own experience is purely anecdotal. I just wish that here, more than anywhere, logic would be paramount. 1306560107 Yeah I came across that passage as well. I see your point. However, we have to consider that ancient cultures were elongating their skulls so their children would bear closer resemblance to the gods. The only thing, is that these look strikingly similar to the "starchild" skulls of pre-columbian Mayan civilization, and less like the ones proven to have been elongated by humans themselves. Those jaws are massive. Cpt_Wolf I also wonder how they got to Northern Mexico. What with the recent finding of egyptian hieroglyphics in Oceania (ie: Woy Woy site North of Sydney), one must wonder if canoe was really the only way to get around 3, 000 years ago. I believe there is something distinctly *non-human* about this. 1355778006 >Logic exists, therefore *my* god exists\nFTFY 1275939148 As you should. I like visiting this subreddit to read spooky stories, and some of them are quite well done. The ones that are entertaining to read, I can just ignore thinking about how improbable they are in reality and enjoy them as fiction.\n\nHowever, the crazy & paranoid posts that crop up so often are just a chore to downvote & hide. You can talk to dead people, you say? Could you please prove it, and give immeasurable comfort to millions of people, grieving over loved ones? Or just to help answer one of humanity's oldest questions regarding death? Oh... No, you're not willing to provide any evidence... You just want to spout nonsense for attention.\n\n...and so on. 1335495702 That's a lucky coincidence. 1346571231 What do you think of the Rebecca Watson "[Elevator incident](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rebecca_Watson#Elevator_incident)"? 1346183208 not just alcohol, but 87% alcohol. That's very nearly the alcohol concentration of everclear! 1272059784 It sounds like you need to read up on atheism. It's not a claim, but a response to a claim. 1309203825 I disagree on one simple point: not every article needs to be written for every audience. Ars isn't reaching an audience that likely needs any explanation of why it's a crock of shit.\n\nThis isn't USA Today, it's a narrowly focused audience. There's nothing wrong with the article focusing completely on a different type of dishonesty from DI. Their readers already know the organization is junk and ID just as junky but seeing them be so blatant is worth a quick article. 1356108346 You clearly don't have a ffing clue about what it takes, so whatever.\n\nI'm the guy who thinks basic objectivity and factual information will eventually show disbelievers that UFOs are real. \n\nI'm also the guy who thinks that people (like you) who pull their feel-goody fantasies right out of their asses and present them as valid information with zero basis in reality are the primary reason that UFOs and those who believe they exist are considered to be idiots and kooks. \n\nAll you are doing is setting the entire field back with every bullshit 'theory' that you 'intuit', and you steal away credibility from the people doing the REAL work, like Rich Dolan, Liz Kean, Stan Friedman, etcetera. They actually **do research** and **collect facts** to form their ideas, rather than just go with whatever gives them a warm glowey self-satisfied feeling.\n\nYou can bet that I'll be contacting you on December 22 so we can give each other a big hug and marvel at how different everything is for humanity even though nobody did the goddamn spiritual legwork necessary to actually *deserve* such a change. 1351887096 "Greatness relies on infinite experiences"\n\n"Culture nurtures your own possibilities" \n\n"The soul is rooted in great knowledge"\n\nAnd my favorite (it's the last one I got so far): "Freedom creates universal creativity"\n\nI had no idea who Deepak Chopra is or what he did, but if these can come out randomly out of his tweeter feed, I'm a devoted follower! 1339967291 Oh I could come up with something much more expensive! I've read most of rube goldbergs stuff! 1321993047 Had a cell phone that would behave like this whenever it got a little water inside it. \n\nI would often spend time by the neighborhood pool and walk home for lunch, sometimes it would vibrate, sometimes there would be an odd text half-typed (nothing legible) and sometimes the screen would flash on/off between menus. 1331371264 I'm about as skeptical of alien encounters as ghosts. I agree that any species advanced enough to make it here wouldn't need to probe us and mutilate our livestock. I was just saying that I think it's more likely that alien life exists somewhere out there in space than ghosts here on earth. 1341293724 There's something to be said for fucking Mexicans. 1347560749 Went there to find naturalnews.com and left satisfied. 1320773017 Oh, dang, I think I finally got it. The door I picked was not going to be ruled out in any event whereas the other remaining door has just passed a sort of test by not being ruled out, making it more likely to hide the car than my first pick. 1306379865 Thanks! I appreciate the reply 1351209487 Yes you've made it clear that you're not a Creationist, and I never implied you were. You were corrected on your use of "theory." Get over it. \n\nYour rationalization of why he is a Creationist is pointless. Creationism is not a competing theory to evolution. Someone could find evidence that contradicts evolution and form a new theory based on the evidence. This is how Science works. You don't have to automatically be a Creationist. This is what I was talking about. That all these theologians and "scientists" that attempt to disprove evolution through Young Earth Creationism are not doing Science, and I would actually be interested in someone challenging evolution through actual Science and not magic. 1335546529 I'm talking more about Percy Schmeiser. I haven't heard anything about a mandatory 5-10 year period of laying fallow. 1325621415 He's not a pedant, he's simply *wrong.* ... I think. It's a little difficult to know what he's actually saying due to that high blood pressure of his. 1313552084 "by Mike Adams, the Health Ranger" -- already know everything you need to. Everything to follow: 100% bullshit. (is it a coincidence his pic looks like daniel tosh?) 1330139865 Wikipedia has some details about it: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transexualism\n\nSome schools of thought feel that it has to do with hormone imbalance. Some feel it is a variation of hermaphroditism. \n\nI am curious as to why you are putting forth this question, though. My thoughts on the matter are: does it really matter? As far as I am concerned, every individual's mind is their sovereign property, to do with as they please. The body, being the housing of the mind/brain, is merely a vessel. If I wish to transform the vessel housing my mind in a way of my choosing, then why shouldn't I? \n\nChange my gender? Ok, sure. Lop off an arm? Why not? If I make someone else uncomfortable to look at me, is that any legitimate reason for me to limit my own personal expression? Neck tattoos look completely stupid (IMO, clearly), but I see no reason to legislate against them. Once we achieve the technology, should people wish to do so, I see no reason not to add a third arm, or 10 fingers on each hand. \n\nIf I feel as though I wish to alter my appearance in any way, that should ultimately be up to me, no matter the reason, and not be limited by whether or not someone else feels uncomfortable by it. 1323366586 Claude Vorilhon is a known cult-leader and scam artist. Don't believe a single word of anything related to the raeliens movement. Not saying that you do, just saying. 1327712813 \n>Do adult ANYTHING drink milk besides humans?\n\n[Dat naturalistic fallacy](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Naturalistic_fallacy#Appeal_to_nature)\n\n 1346012289 Well, then, what do you think about burn victims fixing their faces? They don't medically "need" it, but we think nothing of it. People's bodies are their own; we don't get to decide what other people can or can't do with theirs. 1323370058 That is a wonderful strawman you have there. I am merley pointing out the problem of incommensurability and relating it to creationist psuedoscience. This is a substatial topic in philosophy of science and is most notably is advocated by Kuhn in "The Structure of Scientific Revolutions". I am in no way saying that science is equivelent to psuedoscience. I am saying they share a functional element in incommensurability of theoretical values. 1331532234 I did not ask. Perhaps strange, but true. I guess I was coping with it in my own way, and that was just to continue on and let it roll.\n\nAs far as the strangeness of Golden Bay. Let me mark some key experiences.\n\n- when I arrived into Golden Bay, biking over a mountain range to do so, I rolled into town and asked this man outside of the grocery store where I could free camp. He directed me to a bridge just down the road. I went there and beneath it there were around 25 other travelers. From all over the world. We all played music together and then played a soccer match in a cow field. It doesn't sound that strange, but it was, it was beautifully strange.\n\n- when I arrived at the Buddhist sanctuary/camp ground I stayed for a couple of days and it was a magical place. However on my leave I was standing by a tea house overlooking the ocean, saying good bye to one of the travelers, an English guy. Right then a large cicada landed on my chest. It was oddly timed and awkward. My friend pulled it off me as I was having difficulty. Later a different friend told me that Cicadas have special relevance in Buddhism. \n\n- I met a woman there from Spain who was very quiet, we talked a little and she drove me and some others around. So I leave Golden Bay after about a week and I meet this same woman again about 1000 miles later in a small mountain village. She told me she was running from her past. She exclaimed that who she once was was very manipulative and she was literally living on the run from what she claimed was a dark personality. We talked into the night. She had suffered a really bad drug trip, but this also enlightened her to some extent to her former controlling nature, and so there she was.\n\nThese may not sound strange to some but my whole experience in Golden Bay was different. Besides sleeping in fields of sheep and sandflies and being surrounded by beauty. It's as if when I crossed over the mountains I was in a place that was governed a little differently. This is probably mostly cultural. But otherwise, these events left a deep mark on me. 1354393910 Why bother? It's like trying to change the mind of a leftist professor. It'll never happen, no matter how much sense you make. Understand that certain professor's want to brainwash you and sometimes it's better to give them what they want to hear. Get the best grade you can and move on. Life is a lot like this BTW. 1345428587 My answer to him was, "John, when people thought the earth was flat, they were wrong. When people thought the earth was spherical, they were wrong. But if you think that thinking the earth is spherical is just as wrong as thinking the earth is flat, then your view is wronger than both of them put together." 1356541580 *prejudice 1333742275 Who are you? Why do you insist on ruining this sub? 1345499407 I don't know anything about the skeptic society but tl;dr stands for, too long, didn't read. its a summary for people that don't want to read the whole post, article, etc. 1298426067 This. Particularly points 2 and 3, IMO, are germane here. Given the immense size of even the Milky Way galaxy, and assuming that some species had found a way to travel close to relativistic speeds (.7C+), the amount of time to reach a given star system in a galaxy 10,000 light years across makes the frequency with which we have been 'visited' during recorded history practically 0. 1346513659 Way to read the thread she only talks to the dead 1333840311 I suspect "Truthers" probably watch too much television. 1340802145 This UFO Hunters episode provides a very plausible alternate suggestion.\nhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ce6QUJ0idYo 1264454011 The reason behind this is the UK's insane libel laws. You can't outright call a psychic a fraud in England unless you have the time and money to spare defending yourself against a ridiculous libel suit. Everyone has to carefully couch their language to avoid being sued. 1321727567 Light seems off on the UFO. 1355436245 >in short, no one i knew well was questioning it, and we were taught that anyone who did was overly concerned with knowing how it worked rather than whether it worked.\n\nVery interesting. Acupuncture does work, though, so I suppose it's an attempt to cover the fact that the explanations behind it are really bogus. Thanks for your response! 1306289487 What is this article saying?\n\n1) In the face of ever more faceless enemies (let's look at that "enemies" claim in a minute), the world needs sharp, savvy critics who are unafraid to stand up and loudly challenge systems which exploit and victimize innocent people.\n\n2) People who follow James Randi select easy targets to debunk.\n\n3) James Randi is unqualified to have opinions on current events because he is not sufficiently educated. (Again, let's look at this in a minute.)\n\n4) James Randi's creation of the JREF was merely a maneuver to increase his notoriety and attract followers.\n\n5) Penn and Teller, two additional stage magicians, are setting themselves up to inherit the torch of theatrical skepticism from James Randi.\n\n6) **Skeptics are every bit as susceptible to the desire to form tribes as any other human being. The real issue is not that skeptics are deliberately evil, or that they don't challenge themselves against real targets, but that skepticism is becoming a venue for people to feel superior in a crowd of like-minded naysayers.**\n\n7) **Skeptics are addicted to the thrill of taking down their opponents, and must continually seek out new enemies to vanquish.**\n\n8) True telepathy has been discovered, and brain implants/other technologies amplifying telepathic abilities will be widely accepted in the consumer market by 2020.\n\n9) Skeptics refuse to believe that the military, the government, and other powerful figures and organizations have been performing unethical mind control experiments on innocent people for years. **The victims of mind control experiments who come under fire from skeptics for claiming that their experiences were true are hurt even further by their treatment at the hands of skeptics.**\n\n10) **Skepticism is no longer a tool being used to take down charlatans, but has become a movement enforcing conformity and strict unity of thought.**\n\n\n 1289917313 Thanks for sourcing some current numbers on that. I'm still awed by the amount of artificial stuff circling our heads in orbit. 1314027631 yeah, it's people. Persons is like when you're picking out certain people. People comes from populous, and refers to a whole collective entity. The difference is that when you use Persons, the individual is important, when you use People, the group *en masse* is what's important. \n\nIn the same way Peoples refer to more than one collective entity. If he were explaining it to many different peoples it would be like explaining it to the English, americans, jews, arabs, chinese etc. 1319932728 This might actually be a good topic for r/philosophy, for me it boils down to the Drake equation and similar estimates of probability of intelligent life, but whether that's sufficient proof depends on what you believe to be the nature of the universe - and that's something modern science simply can't conclusively answer.\n\nIf you believe in an infinite universe, then there is almost certainly intelligent alien life and the remaining question is whether any of them have come here (and that's something I'm absolutely not prepared to get into here).\n\nIf you believe in a finite universe, then as a skeptic you ought to want more proof than a probability equation, and I haven't looked into the question nearly enough to render any sort of opinion one way or the other on whether such proof exists or is credible.\n\nFinite universe? cognitive dissonance. \nInfinite universe? cognitive harmony. 1328331928 *Banksia Robur* for vitality whilst robbing banks. 1298269150 Incidently, I stumbled upon this via a video posted by another user yesterday. I've posted a link to this in the comments section of that post but thought this astounding paper by a respected scientist warranted its own post. If this is bad practice, please let me know and I'll either delete this post or my comment. If you check my stats, you'll certainly see that I'm not one who seeks Karma; I simply wish others to view this remarkable content if they haven't been privy to it before. Thanks. 1311860934 You need to refer to my post above, i mentioned 3 schools that still teach it, Palmer was one of them. Many professions use SMT. 1349584483 Cause it falls under "Things people say" catagory. 1356300756 And yet this person clearly described the UFO so well that you knew immediately that it was falling debris. I see no problem here. 1312272985 >But why should the rest of us believe them any more than crazy Aunt Hattie, who swears that she had a sexual encounter with fairies?\n\nReally there is no black and white, everything is a shade of gray (no pun intended) when it comes to figuring out fact. If lots of people with abductions experiences have non-terrestrial objects in them (without any incision scars), I'd say it paints the ET hypothesis in a lighter shade. \n\nI don't mean to sound insulting (I know I'll sound that way anyhow) but I don't think guys like you will ever budge until *The Powers That Be* give you permission to change the way you think. You don't really want physical evidence (even though you initially asked Oryx for some); you want Katie Couric, the Deans at MIT, and the White House to tell you that ET visitation is now sanctioned as a serious subject.\n\nAnyway, if ETs ever become widely accepted to be real it won't be because of reason, science, and data; it will be because people with high social status said it's OK to think that now. 1264497519 I think with immense generation towers, and fatal reception by golfers in mid swing, we could reduce the population and demand for electricity greatly, thus there would be more resources for fewer people. As more and more people were electrocuted by wireless long range electrical transfers, the cost of the electricity would start to approach "Free." 1353267245 FLIGHT OF THE NAVIGATOR WAS REAL! 1323945888 This whole E-Cat business still raises all sorts of skeptical flags for me. What do we actually know about this thing?? Its a magical black box where some unknown magical thing happens using some unknown magical catalyst. Does it have the radiation we would expect to see in a fusion reaction? *Dunno...* Is it even a fusion reaction at all going on inside that machine? *Who cares...* Can we see some papers about how this machine works so that scientists can lear about it? *Shut up and give me money!* Rossi seems to have little interest in doing good science or even helping out science with his discovery, and everything he has done so far indicates to me that he is at best greedy and at worst a total crank. 1321161955 Oh whats that? Link? 1332463038 So, because he doesn't punch like a boxer, that makes his technique bad? He didn't train to win a "match". He trained to live in a street fight scenario. Competition is way different than street fighting. \n\nThat video is of him showcasing power punching. It's not a video of him sparring with a heavy bag. 1312930398 So basically ITT rogue astronomers words and the musings of ancient civilizations which may or may not be even interpreted correctly are now more official than the scientists alive today whos job it is to actually test this stuff. OK.... 1344634767 This! The reason some of these being look like they are coming from outer space is because they have to leave the gravity of earth to be able to switch their material selfs to different dimensions. In my opinion it is not possible to switch dimensions with the gravity or magnetic field of earth disturbing your switch. 1335620205 According to what sources? Don't you dare say the Mayan calender, not with all the silliness surrounding that myth. 1340203046 the entire time I was reading this I kept imagining it as a How I Met Your Mother episode. 1328427677 You can't explain that. 1320855464 You can't explain that. 1318582075 You can't explain that. 1327987565 I LOVE when that happens. It just makes me feel so connected to everything else, kind of like in Avatar. 1339704768 So if I have sweaty hands will I get a better reading? 1350438639 So, NASA was able to ascertain DNA from skeletal remains on Mars and have linked them to Skull & Bones members? Is there anyone who is taking any of this seriously? Seriously? 1278604757 [The Pink House.](https://www.google.com/search?q=The+Pink+House&oq=The+Pink+House&aqs=chrome.0.57j64l2&sugexp=chrome,mod=12&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8#hl=en&tbo=d&sclient=psy-ab&q=The+Olde+Pink+House+ghost&oq=The+Olde+Pink+House+ghost&gs_l=serp.3...11814.12375.2.12663.5.5.0.0.0.1.825.825.6-1.1.0.les%3B..0.0...1c.1.hFgyEnwFY9U&psj=1&bav=on.2,or.r_gc.r_pw.r_cp.r_qf.&fp=1d332d38cdc82502&bpcl=38625945&biw=1600&bih=732) 1353309149 "Fucking disks, how do they work?"\n\nAnswered. 1343608284 I always lie. 1344963633 Interesting viewpoint. It appeared to be a fairly obvious joke to me. Then again, I don't believe in the rapture. He also donated all ad revenue to charity, which is pretty cool. 1337979135 Haha whoa, ok there, true believer. Never mind that I didn't even say half that shit, or that "higher standards than the AMO" means absolutely nothing when it's an organization you founded yourself and all the members are your own family. 1313980213 yes. My grandfather *(moms dad) was the first. He passed alone when he had a heart attack at his home. My grandmother (who is still living) was at work and when she came home she found him. It was so sad. I still miss him.\n\nMy grandmother (dads mom) recently passed in November in a tragic accident. She was knocked over by a person in a bar (she was a wild and exciting woman for her age) and hit her head. She became unconscious and slipped into a coma. She passed after being taken off life support. \n\nI have yet to see my grandmother, however I dream of her often. But I saw my grandfather a few weeks after he passed. He was in the kitchen with my grandmother. Standing behind her, propped up on the counter. Just watching her while she cooked. he tried to brush the hair from her eyes, and just smiled at her so lovingly. he looked at me and "shhhh'd" me, and winked. Like it was our secret. He then leaned over to kiss her cheek and dissapeared into the back room. My grandmother swears sometimes that she can hear him laugh or sometimes snore when shes alone. :) I never told her about him visiting but I think she knows. Once I caught her talking to him. she was just talking out loud and said "Now James (my grandfathers name) if you keep waking me up at night I swear I will burn one of your favorite records!" lol she always threatened him like that when he was alive. I think it was an inside joke between them b.c they would always laugh after she said it.\n 1333767599 >Wow, that's...really not a lot of birds. So, a small figure that will continue to decrease as birds learn to stay away from large turbines.\n\nYou must have not read my comment. That figure is expected to *increase* to at least one million birds killed by wind turbines each year:\n\n""A 2008 Department of Energy report calls for the U.S. to generate 20% of its electricity from wind by 2030. By then, wind turbines are expected to be killing at least one million birds each year, and probably significantly more, depending on the final scale of wind build-out."\n\nhttp://www.abcbirds.org/abcprograms/policy/collisions/wind_policy.html\n\n >birds learn to stay away from large turbines.\n\nBirds don't "learn to stay away from wind turbines".\n\nThe Altamont Pass wind farm has 5,000 wind turbines and has been killing Golden Eagles for over 30 years. On average, 67 protected Golden Eagles are killed by the Altamont Pass wind turbines every year.\n\n\n\n 1332739892 When I saw the promos before it started, I thought it looked really cool. Then after watching it, I realized it was one of those "Night vision" shows where nothing actually happens. I hate shit like that. 1333481587 This website proves nothing. Not saying it's a real photo of an alien space ship, but this "forensic assessment" website is worthless. As a photo manipulator myself, I do somewhat enjoy the way this website manipulates people into thinking a vague jpeg artifact enhancer is proof of anything whatsoever, but it's a detriment to ufology. 1349076729 Like they say " there's more than meets the eye" there so much we don't know about this existence its not funny, unless something funny pops up that is. 1350569863 Conspiracy? No, just theater.\n\nI'm curious as to where else people are told to turn off their electronics or risk disaster. 1335229894 seems like they are posting on this thread too... silly salespeople 1345246316 As a person who also studied paranormal phenomenon and other worldy entities, it is hard to understand that only those who would believe to happen can be affected. I have come to find out that harmful entities only hurt you if you think of yourself as a weak being compared to the one you handle. Never let your shields down. 1350877548 No strap at all on the camera. Was my wife's little pocket cam thing. 1325543727 \\* Sova Nu is available for the low cost of $2 per night and works best with 7-9 hours of sleep and a regular exercise regimen. 1287435129 I've taken Paxil myself for 3-6 months at a time after my mom passed away from cancer. I have to say, it's one of the weirder drugs I've taken. Takes a week or two for your body to adjust to it, and then you're pretty much hooked on it because of the very unpleasant withdrawal effects, regardless of whether it's doing anything for your depression.\n\nAfter about 6 months on it, I realized it really didn't make a huge difference - the only thing that really helped was getting my life in order (exercising, not letting the house go to shit by not doing dishes/cleaning/etc.) and deciding to do things that the voice in the back of my head said I'd hate doing because I felt sad and wanted to crawl into a hole. I suppose depression is a personal journey that's different for everyone, but I stand squarely on the side of Paxil being an ineffective drug that has mild, if any benefits and plenty of drawbacks that would lead me to say it really shouldn't be prescribed. \n\nGiven the enormous amount of studies on SSRI's that show only a slightly better effect than placebo, seems that my anecdotal experience is backed up by the science. 1334326888 > /r/MensRights keep telling everyone that accusations of rape by women are 99% false\n\nI'm subscribed to /r/MensRights and I've **never** seen someone say that 99% of rape accusations are false, so you have to provide evidence that someone did so and **wasn't** downvoted into oblivion. 1345168607 I have been playing too much Borderlands 2...I almost commented to correct your spelling of "eridium" :/ 1354075473 > After reading other sources\n\nI'm impressed, you looked up your own sources. I'd be more impressed to know what they were so I could actually comment on their contents. You can call "my guy" a hack all you'd like, but your lack of research is quite obvious at this point. 1331952783 The spill will be a hit when the beans shit a fan. 1346709759 I'm not a believer in all things alien, but hypothetically speaking, the government has unlimited resources. Really. Unlimited. With all the reports of billions of dollars here and there just being "missing" with no trail or indication of where it could be, there could very well be trillions of dollars in hiding. Being spent on god knows what.\n\nImagine recruiting the smartest people on earth for a project that could last forever. A project that you have trillions of dollars to experiment with. How much did it cost to develop the first iPhone that blew people away? Now think a trillion dollars. We're talking real world sci fi type stuff that if people saw it, would not believe how far we've come. Perfect invisibility, teleportation, mind reading, quantum computers/dna based computing, robots that think like real people, faster than light vehicles. If i was a conspiracy theorist, i'd say the US shut down manned spaceflight programs because it was just a public face. Because our government already has the technology that would easily dwarf what nasa's doing right now, but is keeping it secret. We could very well have technology that allows us to travel to the moon in minutes. Imagine having that and spending billions on a space program. Waste of money right? Pointless right? Fun to think about 1331946557 Yes it is. That picture has been around for months. This isn't a government coverup, it's the media not checking their sources. 1304362422 You need those to cleanse the toxins. 1323636517 Delightful.\n\n[If water has memory, then...](http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_sRDhbC46aKs/SdqTq9ZM--I/AAAAAAAAAIs/iBlLxTBOcO4/s1600-h/HN09poster1A.jpg) 1286449268 Here she is in the amazing and spooky film[ Kwaidan](http://www.youtube.com/user/masakikobayashi4u#p/c/F53B23F0A52C4AC9/4/vSvL8lE7Bpg).\nOne of my all time favorite films. 1296878641 6 examples of people with nothing else to do.... the 6th is the person who wrote this article 1355168600 I like the approach, but this article needs some work. \n\n\nA better way to address #2: if we could see the future, optical illusions wouldn't work [reference](http://www.livescience.com/strangenews/080602-foresee-future.html)\n\nOn the other hand, \n\n>"Psychic abilities ... would be widespread throughout the animal kingdom, just as eyes and ears are." \n\nWatching pack animals cooperate, I'd almost believe in psychic communication. It makes more sense than "They're magically born knowing what to do".\n\n\nNow that I'm thinking about it, what's really psychic, anyway? I mean, you're reading my thoughts right now across thousands of miles. 1275140316 Quite a bit of this is misleading, even if true. More green space doesn't reduce crime, more green space is a sign of wealth in a city, or else low population density, either of those would explain a decrease in crime.\n\nThe green space doesn't cause less crime, the lower crime rate and the green space likely have a common cause. 1341015579 How close did it get? Did you think it was observing you? No criticism on my part, I find your story very intriguing! What do you think it was? Did you see it leave? Could it have been trying to communicate? 1348702984 What is means is not that liberals are correct, but that reality doesn't reflect republican ideas, because the current age of republicans are living in a bubble far far away from reality. Both economically "trickle down economics" and pretty anything that has to do with their social conservatism / christian right authoritarian stances. When you watch Fox News, they don't rely on facts or evidence at all for their arguments, they lie all the time, because they don't care about truth, they care about furthering their narrative.\n\nThis is why reality has a "non extreme christian right, free market corporatist" bias.\n 1330472578 [Shoe on head?](https://skydrive.live.com/redir.aspx?cid=e3914fe6ddc4cc35&resid=E3914FE6DDC4CC35!1574&parid=E3914FE6DDC4CC35!1563&authkey=!AJQc7Rvun5f1fmU) 1332999168 Did they have a contract to be together 24/7 in the 80s? 1308448991 Who sits on lawn furniture in the middle of a hallway?! 1341469855 Could be. As a one-off, it may be very hard to try to figure out exactly what happened... but awesome stuff! I love those moments when the world just calmly smacks you right in the face with some sort of "Fuck your idea of what's possible" moment. 1347123922 Lon, if this isn't fake -it's one of the more amazing visuals in the sky I've ever seen. 1262634583 Told to an actor and his actor son a week before a major movie release about...aliens. I'm guessing even the President isn't above a little cross marketing. ;) Gotta wonder how big a donor Will Smith is to his campaign. 1337353690 You must have missed this part:\n\n>And this of course depends on the subject of the debate, for example someone denying the existence of the sun or something. Certainly some things are inarguable…\n\nThanks for the downvote though. 1325885740 Sounds like just lucky enough to move into several haunted locations. That man in the doorway is the only thing leading to being followed I'd think he'd be the only candidate but not likely IMO 1319361026 Haunted Mansion at Disneyland, unreal activity. 1335572118 This video is on r/skeptic about once every 3 months. 1298483451 Worked for me. Try on a computer instead of a phone. 1325475382 ... It is if you interpret it scientifically... 1338390296 Aha, thanks! =) I'll read it.\n\nBut GOD that site has some buggy CSS or whatever. 1333125312 Lol thanks man. It took us a while, but I enjoy it a lot. Lemme know if you really want one. I'll see if I can't get a redditor discount. 1317000749 "Attributing such quotes to famous persons to give the quote more credibility is ridiculous" - Sir Winston Leonard Spencer-Churchill\n\n Also this one uses A.E. as an authoritative figure... 1294506600 ya i woulda said, "fuck that!" gotten up, and promptly left. 1354584292 Oh is that the one where Joe Claimed to have "clowned" Phil Plait. I think I heard about that on the SGU. 1331519942 It didn't close down. It's homeopathic education. The less they get the more intelligent they become. 1276480647 Again, over simplification and jumping to conclusion. You seem to know the foundations here, so you would know that its more complicated than that. They couldve done a Cost Utility Analysis to show that there are more quality life years gained with a chiro versus other options, etc Also their research mustve shown that people placed high priority of chiro's. Back and neck pain from having a car totalled is not something that can be fooled easily with a placebo effect from the mind. Im sure you are aware that is some of the worst pain imaginable and also that hardest to manage. Thats why all your chronic opiod users are people with long term back pain, because nothing else works but strong narcotics and heavy anti inflammatories. \n\nSo point is, with such a severe injury, why would people keep turning to chiropractors if they didnt work? Its not like other so called "quaks" that you wouldnt know the difference if you had or had not gone there, and so the "doc" takes the side of "you didnt get a cold this season, therefore the herbal mixture you've been taking worked as expected"....We are talking about extreme pain that either have, have less of, of no longer have. When dealing with extreme pain, its an easily distinguishable difference, and if nothing but heavy narcs can control the pain, i believe placebo effect wouldnt help it either. 1331593192 If you listen to coast to coast for the credibility you're going to have a bad time. Coast to Coast is like a canvas, they throw anything and everything at it, some stuff is more credible than other stuff. Its agenda is primarily entertainment, not so much having credible people on the show.\n\nEdit: Unfortunately I can't steer you to another show because I don't listen to much radio. 1341966775 Well, it's economics and logistics, but it's also public perception, fear and misunderstanding of science, so I'd say science is a part of it. When the folks at the UN don't understand the science, they're risking making a disastrous decision based on ignorance and fear. 1355794718 > [College:] “Well, we aren't endorsing them.”\n\nI say, next time the situation arises, skeptics ought to *demand* a booth for Voodoo healing, one for Harry Potter-esque curative potions, and -- if you don't mind the hatred it would generate and want to *really* drive the point home -- a case for virgin-rape curing AIDS. There is just as much evidence for the potency of these examples as there is for any alternative medicine and this fact should not go unsaid. 1320882880 It looks like this will be the choice I'm going for as this book is coming up again and again in the thread. I'd better grab a copy for myself too! 1311269960 Older woman, hair tied up, wearing hat, facing away from the camera looking out to sea. Within a few seconds she had moved on. 1340438993 >Approximately 30-35 million Christmas trees are sold each year in the U.S.\n\n>Nowadays, more than 3 million Christmas cards are sent in America alone!\n\nIf accurate, this is really interesting... but it seems counterintuitive to think that 10x as many trees as cards are sold per season. Any idea on real numbers for these? 1355260133 I shall PM you, as there's something quite uncool about giving away magic secrets on public forums. 1354285407 Your assumption is based on what exactly? That you were standing over my shoulder making sure I didn't watch anything. I watched them just fine. \n\nROFL, for you to use Science as a way to describe paranormal activity makes you just as dumb as the other people who believe this show.\n\nI really can't believe that you take a show going 8 seasons and fact. It's an entertainment show. These idiots have been caught making shit up before.\n\nBut, reality doesn't get upvotes in this thread. Only far flung ideas and idiotic stories about "I heard something."\n 1345160152 The basis of osteopathy is quackery. However, they have stumbled onto some treatments that do have clinical benefit. As others mentioned, though, a licensed physical therapist is your best bet. 1340212779 Have you ever met anyone that saw it personally? According to the documentaries, approximately 10,000 people saw it. Have you ever brought it up at gatherings of any kind or inquired about it? 1330804629 >the US second amendment is mind-boggling to me\n\nI knew this was going to be mentioned. I could explain it to you in a rational way, but you need to first promise me that you haven't already made up your mind and are open to the possibility that the second amendment is a very important part of our constitution. The gun debate is extremely politically and emotionally charged and I won't discuss it with anyone who will blindly subscribe to 100% of the political ideologies of their "party" or who will listen to emotional arguments rather than rational ones.\n\nPenn and Teller's explanation of the Second Amendment touches on this but also misses a few of the important points, IIRC. 1325085877 Yep. I've got a motor vehicle-related neck injury I've treated for a decade or so with Chiro. Not exclusively, just as part of the overall approach, chiro is good for when the pain is acute. Definitely offers relief and reduces tension, which allows for preventative measures (strengthening, flexibility) to be deployed. 1291193249 Here's all I can find on it from a credible source.\nhttp://www.nasa.gov/centers/marshall/news/news/releases/2003/03-199.html\n\nI can't find anything about a NASA study supporting all 300 claims. 1327519544 No eclipse. The Moon will be just past first quarter on those days.\n\n> solar radiation will increase very hard at the End of 2012.\n\nWhy do you think this?\n\n> It was one of the Mars moons that was hollow (dunno if Phobos or Deimos, though)\n\nThere's no reason to think either of Mars' moons are hollow. 1318883495 This explains the popularity of Pabst. 1295437183 Try nuclear reactors of 1980s and 1990s, e.g. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/THTR-300 1328605991 Same here. The whole premise of it is ridiculous. The existence of gods cannot be proven. Plus, O'Reilly is one of the most dishonest, mealy mouthed, sly persons alive today. I just don't understand why he has a show on a news channel. 1320378706 There would be no way to tell who is truthful, who is delusional, and who is straight up lying, so why does it matter? 1332343967 You will make it to some sort of success, but I don't know if it's med school or not. Your success is rooted in helping others, but I also find that as you heal others, you destroy yourself. You need to be wary of this, and balance the pursuit of flesh pleasure with spiritual pleasure. Likewise, you need to heal yourself before you can heal others, and your cards suggest you are carrying some sort of secret baggage from your past that you need to unload. Do that, and you'll be a goddamn juggernaut. 1353400156 West Virginia Penitentiary. 1331952159 That's why I come to /r/skeptic: A well thought out, rational, skeptical, and - above all - sourced laying out of facts.\n 1350674864 Funny how people can see the same thing and come to different conclusions. A balloon was *exactly* what it looked like to me. 1339537601 That doesn't look anything like a pitchfork. 1323361200 why even browse /r/UFOs when all you do is debunk almost everything related to UFOs? what a waste of time on your part. 1326416793 Very interesting site, but I'd like to recommend that you have your web designer proofread before publishing. There's so many errors on this website that it actually takes from your credibility. 1320580670 Let's talk about something else. I'm making a post now, check the new posts to see what I've got on the grill. It should be up in a half hour or so. 1342754990 I recently started listening to "Skeptic's Guide to the Universe", hosted by Novella. Very entertaining and informative, I recommend it to anyone reading this comment. 1323409074 I have a ~~temple~~ heart pimple! #*pop*# \n\nWhew, just in time. 1346307476 That seems like a good idea. Keep it as simple as possible. As for the usability, here's some ideas I can think of:\n\nIt is quite confusing to display *"If you know of any, please use the links below"*, followed by three lines of *links* that are not the ones the user is looking for. The link (singular!) the user is looking for is in another paragraph and is not a link, but a button ("Rebuttal"). I think it would be much more intuitive to see something like this:\n\n>**No rebuttals yet**\n>\n>(button) Submit a rebuttal \n>(button) Request a rebuttal \n>(button) This page rebuts another \n>\n>*Help | Random discussion | Contact us*\n\nAs for the interface for pages *with* rebuttals, I think the most important thing is to get rid of as much clutter as possible, and to create an hierarchy from design. Here's a [mock-up](http://i.imgur.com/HhF6e.png) I quickly made. I would imagine up and down vote buttons on the right hand side of the little score numbers.\n\nAlso, when clicking random, I landed on the tutorial "Faux News" page in a particular instance. This should of course be eliminated from the random sequence.\n\nIf you have any questions, I am glad to help.\n\nGood luck! 1338281351 Go smug myself? This coming from a person that is telling me that they are a better scientist than I am, even without knowing what I do for a living. I was merely pointing out an inaccuracy, as you have been doing. If you want to talk about cherrypicking, perhaps you should realize that is exactly what you are doing. \n\nThe whole point of the subreddit is to be where scientists give answers, if they are wrong, they are downvoted or removed. If you don't want scientists giving answers, then you can go to /r/askreddit, where any question is answered by anyone. \n\nIf you don't like the subreddit, don't visit it. 1310978087 I have no idea what I said. I never asked anyone, I was pretty shy at the time and didn't want to seem any weirder than I already was. 1353178316 Doesn't stop bible bashers posting in atheism, or vice versa. Although i didn't know this was in the skeptic subreddit, but think what I posted. It makes sense, but most people just want to downvote and say that you're wrong, without saying it... Common sense > proof, I don't need to see someone pissing in a toaster to know it's a bad idea. 1344257997 His name wasn't Tim was it? Because around the time this guy I knew got dumped because of his reiki rock therapy and general woo, he started to really get crazy with his co-workers, trying to "heal" them and stuff...he said that it would help my carpal tunnel, so I humored him (because why not - free rock message!) and it actually made my hands feel worse...I told him it hurt and he said it was proof that it was "working to heal the nerve damage". What a loon! 1351049472 http://www.ajol.info/index.php/ajb/article/viewFile/14900/58644\n\nhttp://www.springerlink.com/content/crr91wgknhf5v58g/\n\nhttp://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0924224406002470\n\nhttp://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1567576906001172 1349130301 Don't even bother. It's easy to see that regardless of science or evidence presented, he'll find some other area to criticize. Typical denier and/or truther strategy. 1344905320 Well that menhir (aka large standing stone) was pretty near him .. Could that be the cause of the slight reverb?\n\nJust asking and not assuming anything. Great theory though. 1349866808 > but legally organic means something different - about how it's grown, fertilized, protected from disease, etc.\n\nwhich is an absolute joke.\n\nThis spoiled tomato im about to eat is organic so it must be good for me!! 1316285073 He may be new to the subreddit. 1342383414 Hell Yea Sounds Very Intersting 1352519116 ;) Just doing a reality check to see who's paying attention. There seems to be a lot of new faces around here who have trouble discerning or displaying critical thinking skills. 1298065747 I get Jill Stein as well. 98%.\n\nI can't find any smoking gun in regards to chemicals. She's against phthalates such as BPA, but I don't know enough about that issue to comment either way. (My position would depend on what evidence we have supporting such a risk as well as what alternatives we have. Basically a risk/benefit analysis.)\n\nI did find a claim that nuclear power emits more carbon than renewables. I'd find this claim questionable. (Google "lifecycle emissions nuclear coal wind solar" or something similar to find the research - which does not appear to have a consensus.)\n\n 1345480447 >a resistance has developed to it in less than 40 years.\n\nI suspect that's enough time for evolution to kick in if selection pressures are strong enough.\n\nThe domesticated silver fox, which looks like a dog, was managed in about 30 generations I believe. 1350695029 What the fuck. 1333870714 From the documentaries that I've seen, the Phoenix Lights was a massive media event and it had people and the media captivated for days (at least in the Phoenix area). The fact that multiple people witnessed seeing such a huge craft in the sky along with the grainy videos that we have on the event make it one of the most scrutinized events in UFO history.\n\nI think most of the other reports that you see on local news channels do not reach national attention mostly due to the fact that the footage is mostly inconclusive. Considering the amount of fake videos, misidentification of flares, regular military aircraft etc, it is not surprising that most videos or pictures are not looked at it more detail. Why would someone waste time or money investigating a video of a series of distant blinking lights taken on a cellphone camera? \n\nLook at the amount of buzz that the 'paperclip' UFO generated about a week or two ago. It started off as a local news broadcast and eventually reached the attention of the national media. I read about the event when someone posted a link to a report in this community. About two days later, I saw it on the front page of CNN. \n\nI don't agree with the fact that the media does not cover UFO reports. In fact, I think they do pay a fair amount of attention to it. One could argue that they do adopt a condescending tone sometimes, but they are fairly active in covering UFO reports.\n\nI think what we need is a massive sighting bang in the middle of a major city on a clear sunny day with the object in sight for more than 10-15 minutes. I think all hell will break loose then. I bet the media would love to have such an event happen and it'd whip up a massive frenzy. 1352439663 Thank God! :D 1303700732 I agree. If anyone ever compiled a video of all these similar craft sightings, I think it would be pretty interesting. \n\nAgain, its the multiplicity that has caught my attention. 1-off UFOs dont impress me, but when its the same shape/colors/behavior over and over again...\n\nI'm on your side, i just can't say for sure. :) 1287782961 This is one of my top 5 things I hate about the UK - pseudo 'correctness' and not being able to deal with being 'offended'.\n\nRight after that it's calling a racist someone who is anti-theist. 1321373344 I don't understand the downvotes, love the topic. Cheers OP. :)\n\n1. Will there ever be a turning point on Earth, from where we are currently heading, to where i wish we globally were?\n\n2. How many other races exist in our universe? 1346166071 That place is 20 miles from my house.. Should we go check it out? 1343180076 Lost in the Saint Louis sub. I didn't see it. 1352665726 How about if the sticker is applied to the display rather than the product itself? 1331064447 It seems you are right about this. TIL. I'd still be wary of diagnosing OP's friend with a personality disorder based on such a small amount of information. 1348781078 Whenever motives are mentioned. Yes the US did have a motive for making it appear that we got to the moon first. The pharmaceutical companies have a motive to suppress perfect cures. Big oil has an interest in the failure of cold fusion...\n\nIt goes on and on. Need something more than an interest though. 1322254993 Well, your request is very large in scope.\n\nThere seems to be an abundant amount of physical evidence of a crime and coverup. There is a huge amount of motive. There are many reasonable arguments for government involvement.\n\nYou could throw a dart and hit reasonable motive and evidence. 1314720321 What? no 1351121996 So a half victory. I wrote up another response to his first bit, because I'm not sure that he understands the context of how research works and is published in the first place. 1327331078 So pouring homeopathic arsenic on a zombie would bring it back to life, in effect killing it? 1328279529 You should just go crazier and use Bond villains!\n\n> Don't you know! Blofeld is stealing the sky to use against the French! 1340937912 It's hard making multiple angles sync up, man. It's just hard. 1300143967 The other aspect to organic foods is sustainability. Not everyone eats organic for health benefits. 1349200598 It's stuff like this that will ultimately bring about the dissolution of the United States of America. Good. 1337735010 When some girl in a bar asks what do you do, do you say "Oh, I'm a special agent, but I can't tell you anything more."? 1325705015 I'm not saying it's dangerous. I'm not saying I believe in the conspiracy theorists claiming it's about mind control or sterilization. I'm saying it's unnecessarily fueling these fears. Give people access to all the flouride they want by all means, but forcing it on them is bound to make people nervous. 1344658210 My best friend has a Doberman ghost. I slept in her basement and I woke up to it whimpering and pushing it's old bed around. 1344987684 I just don't care anymore. 1341472112 Or go elsewhere. There are tons of schools to choose from. 1354773130 It would be nowhere near 100%. If you were lucky you could hope to get it up from 30% to maybe 60%. That's nothing to sneeze at, but it's still not going to do anything like reversing global warming. Again, the waste heat given off by all our devices and power plants and other activity doesn't cause global warming. All the heat given off by all human activity is an utterly insignificant amount of energy compared to what we get from the Sun. Even if you could completely eliminate all waste heat, you'd still accomplish nothing of any significance. 1338539948 [Rationalwiki](http://rationalwiki.org/wiki/Main_Page) would've been a better place to start this... 1321251166 America did change it, for a while... 1295029381 >These are not skeptics.\nSome Scotsmen might want to have a word with you about that. 1321233449 imo keep doing it but only debate Ann Widdecombe 1302826843 Or I've had something to do with them. 1335508401 Take some homeopathic sleep medicine and report back in 5 days. 1300735487 This reminds me so much of people back in high school arguing about whether or not people were true punks. 1280195425 Thanks for almost blowing out my speakers.. Shit man! 1349722252 \nmy question is why would they imprint the picture of the alien with the message. 1320850985 When you are a christian, you have already showed the world that evidence is of no importance to you and you are willing to accept any kind of bullshit at face value, no matter how crazy it sounds.\n 1356031855 I don't comment unless I have to. 1351236180 Hi let me explain a little about the pro pit movement. This very small group of people are very well organized and funded well by the industries, groups and charities that make huge amounts of money off these dogs. \n\nThus they cannot afford to admit the obvious truths. They have a set of at least 25 myths, misinformation and lies they use to try hide the truth and deny the problems that exist today.\n\nMyths such as the Nanny dog myth, the ATTS myth, the its always the owner myth and on and on. Each of these myths has been disproved and yet they continue to try to convince people they are true.\n\nHowever there are many facts backed up by empirical evidence that show the seriousness of this growing crisis. Here are some\n\nFact: pit bulls kill more people than all other types of dogs combined.\nFact: pit bulls dismember a body part on average every 5.5 days or less in the US alone.\nFact: pit bulls kill a person on average every 16 days or less in the US alone\nFact: pit bulls escape confinement 14 times more often than other type dogs.\nFact: pit bulls turn on and attack their owners 6 times more than other type dogs.\nFact: pit bulls are the only dog known to attack adults as often as children.\nFact: In every study done by cities t on the numbers of bites and attacks in their towns. pit bulls have been shown to bite more, attack more and cause much more damage than other dogs.\n\nPit bulls are inherently dangerous for many reasons and the pit bull advocacy is continuing to knowingly make the problems worse just to protect their income streams.\n\nPit bull advocates have been exposed for their efforts to try to skew polls by flooding them with their calls to actions, by calling for harassment campaigns against media outlets and government officials to try to silence those who speak the truth and prevent any laws being passed to protect the public from the dogs and their just as dangerous owners.\n\nThey have even gone as far as to put out a call to action in Ontario telling their members to call and email their representatives every day and make them fear pit bull owners and advocates.\n\nMost of the pit owners may not even be aware of the truth in all matters but they are in some and they still choose to be deliberately deceitful and knowingly dishonest in spreading myths, misinformation and lies that put people in harms way, get people hurt and killed, and help to make the problem grow worse year after year.\n\nThe pit bull advocates in many cases have ben caught making comment such as the following:\n\n"I have pit bulls because puppies ruin carpets but kids ruin lives" This from meagan krumpholz on facebook and her pinterest page.\n"The kids deserved to get mauled" On kgun 9 on your sides page.\n"I hope the dog dies" This by the owner of a pit who had just pulled the owner by the leash into someone else's yard and attacked their small dog.\n"the dog is the victim" This we hear often after a fatal mauling. No compassion for the innocent victims and no concern for the human life lost.\n\nFinally go to almost any story of an attack by a pit bull and watch the pit bull owners and advocates start coming up with complete nonsense in an effort to blame anyone, anything and everyone except the dog that did the attack. They heap insult and harassment upon the victims and their families, they heap abuse and hate upon them and even the dogs owner all in an effort to try to protect a dog that has just seriously mauled or killed a person or someones beloved pet.\n\nYes be very skeptical of the pro pit bull movement as most if all care nothing for the truth or honesty just protecting the pit bull no matter what in any way they can try. 1337628109 I'm more than willing to admit I can be an ass at times, but I don't think I could have been more pleasent during this exchange without sugercoating it in kind words and compliments. And that's not how I treat people whom I respect. Of course, dissenting opinions (or facts) always appear hostile to close minded people. 1329993227 While talks and interviews are nice for the layman, science based medicine relies on vast amounts of data. I could hop up on a news program and talk about how Martians are causing global warning, but that doesn't make it true. 1298322269 OK, But birds is still an unlikely explanation. Did a quick search and found some info on birds...\n\nhttp://www.stanford.edu/group/stanfordbirds/text/essays/How_Fast.html\n\nIt states that in some cases birds can reach a speed of 60+ MPH and that the highest alt. they would ever reach would be 20k feet. Lets say that commercial jet shown is flying at 20K and we know that its moving way faster than 60mph. Yet the objects in question are moving much faster than the jet. \n\nBirds flying at 60mph/20k feet would be moving across the sky at a much, much slower rate. Please point out where I am confused. 1310683224 ... What's wrong with homeopathy..? I've actually used this exact stuff on my cats. Homeopathic worm treatments and fleas treatments. Both worked. I like non-homeopathic stuff too, but sometimes I feel safer using a natural product. So you want to strangle me now? Grow up. 1311055410 That they all seem to 'land' at the same spot leads me to speculate that this video is in reverse, and that the 'landing' spot is actually where these things are lifting off. Flares would tend to fall straight down, and even if they didn't, I can't see how they would originate from a constantly shifting aerial platform and then all fall to earth in the exact same place. That the sound is proper forward motion leads me to think this is a mildly more intelligent than usual hoax (though not by much), but a hoax nonetheless. Combine that bit of knowledge with what we already know about how flickering is indicative of chinese lanterns or other candle-powered lighter than air balloon systems, and this could be more accurately labeled "WORST UFO HOAX on video November 30,2012." Also, it's either in black and white due to some sort of night vision mode, which is unlikely because we're not seeing any more detail than would normally be caught at night, or it's in black and white to disguise what would otherwise be obvious orange candle fire. 1354405430 >Again, are you going to claim that knowledge gathered through the scientific process is just opinion? \n\nI can't even see how you can come back to this idea having gotten this far. Your just throwing out strawmen.\n\nHow difficult is it to understand that our current knowledge has limitations and emerging science can be easily riddled with issues. Can you not find a middle ground between accepting the existence of limitations and "opinion"?\n\nAnd yes, if you don't know what the hell you're talking about you shouldn't be picking sides. Is this a controversial idea? You propose a situation where a layman has to choose between two conflicting experts. How the hell are they supposed to choose? Why *shouldn't* they be suspending judgement? What is the virtue in picking one for the sake of taking a stance if they can't decide for themselves?\n\nThe thought process you have behind this is really just reinforcing the issues that I'm poking at.\n\nMy points are as follows:\n\n**Literature has limitations. Citing it ought to acknowledge as much.**\n\n**If you support scientific consensus without knowing anything about the topic, that's OK, but it isn't skepticism**\n\n**Skepticism should involve the *logical debunking* of an idea, not merely appealing to what is already said regardless of how valid it is**\n\n**If you don't know what the fuck you're talking about and there is no clear consensus, DON'T PICK SIDES**\n\nThat is consistent with everything I have said. If you want to take an issue with anything in bold I'll listen. But no more of this "science is opinion" crap. 1325829828 Watching Ancient Aliens ? aren't you ? I thought about that possibility too. I had another post somewhere... but it got downvoted to hell. I asked what it took for any type of scientest if they landed on a virgin planet like earth without any tools to create what we have on earth right now. It is hard we got where we got without any external help 1318871691 Did you speak about her after the incident was over? Does she have any memory of it or what she also part of the "as if it never happened at all"? \nAnd if she does remember it, what the *hell* did she see that you didn't? 1352214851 Wow. They didn't make fun of him. 1249480440 Ah yes, let's teach evolution in among the ABCs and addition tables and shoe-tying and other stuff so basic that it doesn't actually matter if you can think critically about it. Hey, it's not indoctrination if it's true, right?\n\nPretty sure when I was five they had me convinced storks delivered babies. I mean come on. It's shit like this r/skeptic... 1314932249 Iirc todays anti-vax started with a study that linked vaccines wit autism. The study was later shown to be false and non-credible. 1355922610 That's my thing, it's almost like scamming people out of goods. There was one that really got me saying "oh come on". It's like they couldn't find anything then a mobsters garrote shows up. I also read ppl are skeptical of him due to his credentials. He clames doing this for forty years but his record shows it not being as long. Also something about his work w the Warrens on the haunting in Connecticut. (Google) I watch it when nothing is on, but not like some of the other more plausible ones. There was one on travel channel from England that seemed legit minus this one psychic. They had. A paranormal psychologist who would solely look to debunk things. 1348509861 *Than* possible. 1329517665 God is busy getting Rick Perry elected. 1326382399 Apparently you only skimmed over that last sentence, or else you would show some knowledge of its contents beyond the words contained within it. (I won't go into your 3 hilarious misspellings, as I feel it cheapens the discussion (har-har).) Since, according to your comment, you think you have the right to command another adult how they can talk about themselves, we stand on completely different moral grounds and the "discussion" should be finished here. But I would rather convince you that my standing on this matter is very reasonable and justified, as I (naturally) believe. Also, I'm bored.\n\nI belive that nobody, neither me nor you, have the right to condemn what consenting adults privately do. Nobody is harmed by any such thing; those eager to be offended by anything they wouldn't enjoy personally don't even have to see it.\n\nSo, what *do* you see wrong with it? Perhaps you feel it is cheating in a kind of competition taking place in your head to have the most sex possible that there are people who are happy with a same-sex partner while your attempts to woo a member of the opposite sex were tragically unsuccessful in the past? 1270337331 Bird spotted during SF Giants Game, September 11, 2011. 1315833643 Sorry for being unclear. By debunking I mean all of the red comments on the right. "Debunking" the "original" image in the center, which was doctored.\n\nMy assumption is that one person originally created the altered "original" image, and also created the red text, to deliberately make Fox news look bad. \n\nI could understand the satirical argument, if it were just the original image. But this kind of choice I realize is very subjective. 1332760847 but thats the fun of debunking! 1355972149 Speaking of ghosts, that's how she fell. A ghost pushed her. Haha. She's always talking about how as a kid her grandparents house was haunted and she always saw peoples ghosts face to face, and that objects would get picked up, stop in the air, and then just drop to the floor. Whats up with that? More false memories? \n \n**tl;dr Ghost confuses child with jenga tower.** \n\n\nShe also believes that she's been talking to god since she was a very young child, and my idea is that because she has such an unshakable belief in god; naturally she'd convince herself she knew of him before ever being told. Demons, angels, ghosts, god, the devil, my schizo father, believes in all of it. Obviously a very superstitious person. Makes sense she'd make up false memories, or misinterpret them.\n\n\nWhy do some people develop these beliefs? Defense mechanism for lacking a sense of security or knowledge of the world? Parental replacement? Escape from a reality they find disappointing? Middle child syndrome, feeling alone and unappreciated, thus adopting a belief that places them in the center of the universe? What do these beliefs say about a person?\n \n\n**tl;dr: I see crazy people. Walking around like regular people. They only see what they want to see. They don't know they're crazy. They're everywhere. **\n\n 1314068706 I think it was too long, so I didn't read it.\n\n**tl;dr tl;dr** 1289148679 Is there a list somewhere of semi-abandoned, vacant, and/or no-trespassing old buildings like this? 1269259589 /r/Psychonaut is great :) 1344483228 | It's vigilante vaccination - you know, taking immunity into your own hands."\n\nI always find attitudes like this fairly interesting. Consider this statement from a completely objective standpoint (without casting judgment on vaccinations, or bringing into the topic the idiocy of shipping pathogens, etc.)\n\nWhose hands am I to put my immunity into? Is she implying that individuals cannot be trusted with their own immunity, and that they need to be helped along by some entity (the State?) 1320866516 Yeah, too bad the judge can't just dismiss the plaintiff as "flippin' retarded" or something. 1340493432 "If you're watching it, it's for you."\n\nSame for "reading" and "listening."\n 1353284212 I am fairly sure that from the pov this pic is taken at, her left is also our left. Just thought I would throw that out there. 1346881996 I would never touch a ouija board. Just a friendly suggestion to save your life. Although they look harmless enough, they are dangerous spiritually. If you access the spiritual relm without understanding what you are asking for you could find yourself in a dangerous position without even knowing what is happening. \n\nOn another note Ghosts should not be attracted to you. Especially without being able to be helped. Ghosts are lost spirits generally don't want to be disturbed unless you can help them. There are people called spiritual mediums with the gift to see spirits and help in this process. 1324022119 Scumbag George Knapp:\n\n"We gave the tape to experts for analysis."\n\nGives tape to hypnotherapist. 1341991671 [Rational Wiki](http://rationalwiki.org/wiki/Mohenjo-daro) 1342808875 Yes, we all have photographed snowflakes and ashes, and had our cigarette smoke look like ghosts.\n\nHowever, self-propelled dust? Not buying it. 1353986162 Ah. On you go. I'm into the Skulls now, so another hour twenty min. to go. \n 1349282830 I always end up with 0 :( 1345833284 It's amazing how many people would willingly vote for the Christian version of Sharia, even though it'd probably be the last time they ever got to vote on anything. 1326531352 I myself have not, but I've read quite a few different stories in which people claim to have visited a Reddit-like site in a dream before they really did. 1335735786 It would have been more interesting if he did not put in so many [redacted]\nI believe Redacted 8 may have referred to [this](http://www.airspacemag.com/space-exploration/Soviet-Star-Wars.html?c=y&page=1) 1345736574 I also heard this mentioned last week on the SGU podcast. 1302966964 No, not this time :) few months ago some eight of us and a bong for 30 minutes saw these lights above the capital city from a rooftop - best smoke I ever had. 1311750599 I miss the times when the history channel showed history on it. 1300877328 Maybe because he is lying. 1355874167 I don't know if I accept that excuse, what about the people who are in a traumatic position and retain their ability to think and realize that using a psychic will do nothing? 1320171836 While absence of proof is not proof of absence, there is the possibility that we're not currently being visited. 1337952374 I'm not an american and don't understand any of it. I've heard about how dollars used to be green and it isn't, or the opposite, but both bills on the picture are gray, and I have one green dollar on my wallet right now. How can a banknote be "tax-free" or "interest-free"? \n\nInflation, taxes and interest are not an inherent property of money, but emergent properties the rules a society lives by. You can have inflation in an economy based on Apples, ask for interest in your lending of stone peebles and require a tax on the production of antelope meat.\n\nCare to explain what a greenbacker is? 1312480610 Honestly, once you've read Cryptonomicon, the rest of Stephenson's work should be pretty smooth for you. That's probably his hardest novel to digest.\n\nI actually place "The Diamond Age" on my list of Books That Permanently Changed The Way I Think. 1354322288 Maybe it is someone just looking out for you. Perhaps, a relative on the other side. 1342771962 Weird thing happens at work (student internet express market) for me too. I'll be wiping down tables at close, and one of the computers will just turn the bleep on. Sometimes the xbox and playstation will turn on or off on their own too... 1338534346 Nice try, Calabrese mobster from Toronto. 1355807485 All I can think of is Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy and I hope that there is a bowl of petunias lying somewhere nearby also. 1317404517 The "sexy" compliment is a manifestation of misogyny in that it's a form of the first (and often only) thing most people pull out as a compliment to a female speaker ("You look great!").\n\nWell, fuck how she looked - was her talk compelling and well presented? Did she get you thinking? Because that's what she's there to do, not to titillate you, and to treat her like her personal worth hinges on her appearance is a slap in the face.\n\nEDIT: It's like the way TV interviews almost always show guys from the shoulders up and women from the breasts up - it's not intentionally meant to be sexist, I'm sure, but the fact it's so consistent really does contribute to a sexist environment; the message becomes very clear that what a woman happens to be saying takes a back seat to our ability to ogle her tits. 1338675137 I just know she gave that ghost crabs. 1353262900 The home/natural birthing movement attempts to help people with methods and practices based on idealism.\n\nObstetrics attempts to help people with methods and practices based on science. \n\nThat's pretty much all you need to know to make a rational decision. 1298049956 I believe in free will, the wisdom of the crowds, and Discordianism. 1299451889 Ok, so american soldiers will kill american unarmed and peaceful people for the sake of keeping a secret away from them? Does this not mean that we should probably change something in this country? 1342057258 No arguments there on any account. A fool and his money and all that..\n\n\n 1318970788 Yeah yeah I guess. They were borderline skeptical, they questioned institutions more than observations and science. 1317531181 I take it that you live in Tromsø?\n\nDo you have any idea how hard it is for someone to move to and live in Norway? I'm a Dutch & New Zealand citizen (my wife is a Chinese citizen, which may or may not be a problem).\n\nTromsø looks like an absolutely awesome place for someone who is into astronomy, so I would love to move there, or even just work there for a year or so. 1300838304 So, if Chist *really* did walk the Earth, he was probably not the milky white Caucasion that modern Christians imagine he looked like. He probably would have been darker skinned, and looked more like bin Laden. 1324504869 I live in the Phoenix metro, PM me if you ever find anything. I've never pursued the paranormal, but I'd be interested. 1314771894 You are very kind thank you.\n\nYou also predate the cars, but you were not classed as 'other' back then. Your return to metropolitan streets in number sufficient to generate significant journalistic effort is welcome. \nHowever the sheer number of "car drivers are mean" and "don't judge us all by the actions of a few articles" coming from recent converts to two wheels who only a few years ago were a four wheeled risk to me, raises a wry smile from my (still hopefully youthful in the right light) lips. 1348697889 I dunno, all I know is that artificial sweetener makes me stummy hurt 1294264312 I was going to write "A few hundred deaths will turn this movement around", but then I thought better.... even 1000s will not do it. 1322909333 Because "psychics" use sociology, psychology, and common sense to derive a randomly vague response which the end user(s) interpret to their liking.\n\n"You are in grave danger".\n\n* You're going to be hit by a car. (Physical Danger)\n* You're going to lose your job. (Monetary Danger)\n* A family member may die. (Emotional Danger)\n* Your mouth will be chopped off at work. (Social/Physical Danger)\n* You're going to win the lottery. (Inverse Danger [note it's still *danger*]).\n\nAlso:\n\n> Because there's no such thing as psychics. 1252972104 He said that magic is real and that you make sigils of desires to make it happen and that the idea of the self is fraudulent because we're all one. He also said that amorphous silver beings from the 5th dimension offered to show him whatever he wanted and they showed him Alpha Centauri - and they showed a landscape of our universe outside of time where humans looked like centipedes-all their actions through their life blended together as one. 1344992117 Have they tried playing music to their eyes? 1331195586 According to the replies there, it's because you debunked the wrong movie. 1296240274 No, Yes. 1296169667 Oh I'm well aware that a man of his stature has no reason to be contacted by ET's above anyone else around. He just has really implementable and helpful ideas that everyone should impose upon themselves. 1316629516 The person who made this is a redditor actually: [callum_cglp](http://www.reddit.com/user/callum_cglp), [and](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p_naQhynOg0) [he](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lPM-vKpiKR0) [has](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0xUAR6vbxxU) [eight](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3zb6gAPG3yM) [others](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D4tYTgV1x28) [so](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z-6wXZXOUV8) [far](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KYt85mcI-bk). They're quite good. 1300579682 He would have gotten away with it, too, if it wasn't for those meddling kids. 1305674103 You are safer being unvaccinated among a herd of vaccinated people than you are being fully vaccinated among the unvaccinated.\n\nWhen those around you are healthy, you are more likely to be healthy; thats why universal healthcare is so important. Your health affects others. 1334528095 It wasn't in the shape of human, but it was the size of a large adult male. Solid black, oblong, whispy edges, from what I recall. 1347213812 Any being capable of finding this shithole of a planet probably wouldn't care to visit. 1293051640 Point being it's not morally justified simply because the ends justify the means but because we don't value their lives anywhere near as much as those of our own species- rooting for the home team essentially. From an evolutionary perspective it's not unsurprising that we would. That said we try to avoid doing so because it's still somewhat morally repugnant to us to use them in experiments. Obviously if we didn't feel it was necessary we wouldn't believe such experiments were morally justified anymore. 1343177377 Well just stating it for the record, I havent upvoted or downvoted you a single time. Actually I take that back, according to reddit enhancement whatever Iv upvoted you once. 1351005645 > It very greatly depends on what the \n> actual statement is. "Life is very likely \n> to exist outside of planet Earth" is easily \n> falsifiable, so it is a scientific statement\n\nI'm a little bit confused. How are you proposing that we're able to falsify that statement? 1290520929 Favourite comment of Peter Joseph's counter-rebuttal "I hate to sound condescending..." 1296633570 I can't remember the episode, but penn had a two or three minute talk where he explained that what they do is not scientific, and that everything they do is blatantly biased by their beliefs. that said, they are usually pretty spot on 1321126011 This. If we are to learn the lesson of Thalidomide, it is the intervention of government regulators that literally saved hundreds of children's lives in the US the 50's and 60's. 1348335386 It's funny that the tailpipe analogy is somewhat correct - stop breathing out C02 and the body will become [acidotic](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acidosis#Respiratory_acidosis). 1339692060 >Miles concurred in an interview with NPR's Michele Norris. "What happened here was yelling 'fire' in a crowded theater," Miles said. "The claim is very important because women will make important health decisions based on the idea that mental retardation may be a side effect of this, which there's no evidence, so far, that it is."\n\nThis is absolutely true. The Democrats may not be the saviors this country needs right now, but the Republicans' strategy of playing on people's fears via outrageous falsehoods in order to grab power is not just slimy, it's destructive. Humans are naturally curious, rational creatures who want to learn about the truth of their environment, but fear can trump reason all too easily. Not to beat a dead horse, but what we need are more scientists and engineers in power, and fewer lawyers. 1316892885 if you listen to some of the UFO channels they explain some of that as perhaps your future self as an alien visiting you. Unfortunately most people freak out or experience traumas or black out... 1326606428 Ctrl + Print Screen (Prnt scr), then open up Paint and copy it (Ctrl+V) into the program, then save the image, crop it, upload it, etc.\n\nOr some keyboards have a specialized Print Screen button in the Function keys.\n\nFor future reference =) 1353804261 I have a friend who *insists* he is allergic to all fruits and vegetables and uses it as an excuse to ingest nothing but bullshit. 1273773545 Stars are renowned for blinking. "Twinkle, twinkle, little star", even. I don't mean to be snarky, but ya'll need to get out in the country at night ... you're going to love it. 1348899675 Please don't upvote shit like this on r/skeptic. 1326010078 Breaks my heart. But we have at least come together long enough to plant seeds of curiosity. Even if they break it up, power users, engineers, DIY enthusiasts, and all kinds of willing and dedicated people will come up with a new way to communicate freely over large distances. People may be super dumb, but others may be equally intelligent and genuinely act in the best interest of their fellow man. Just not, you know, the ones in the ruling class. Lol 1345217572 It needs a Bigfoot Shopped in the trees! 1310995326 The chances are that their difference is larger than the average difference in humans. 1298657819 I've only had a chance to read through the 8 pages of the Magnet rpt and frankly I am amazed to see the words written on actual government documents (unredacted) that plainly say (essentially): "We don't know what they are, but they are real, and we've ruled out anything man-made. The fact is that we have to put aside what we want to believe and accept the data which leads us to believe this is in fact aliens visiting us. Now that we have accepted that fact, the goal going forward needs to be obtaining this technology for the obviouse benefits that it would provide." It then goes into a page on how they think the propulsion system somehow exploits gravity and explains briefly some of the ways they plan on investigating this phenomena and then ends there. \n\nI've just never seen a government document that I read from a government website say "Our conclusion is that UFO's are piloted by aliens, we don't know why they're here but they're here, let's accept it and move on" , shocking really. \n\n\nNote: The quotes are not actual quotes, they are very sloppy paraphrasings, they do specifically say it is extraterestrials and not of human origin though. \n\nI think disclosure is happening all around us, but I bet you won't hear much about this on the news tonight. 1317328265 The Nopalea thing is just part of the whole "superfruit" health fad, it actually looks fairly generic. 1308658139 The tv was probably on. 1337897407 But do you enjoy...SURPRISE FISTING??? 1320963246 Is am good. 1350424617 *and technicians. \n\nAlso, these people aren't managing a McDonald's - they're operating huge fleets of scientific equipment that scans the universe for signals then they're filtering all the data. More than likely everyone on that team would be getting paid far more than that if they worked for a privatized company that did the same work. 1312999236 This was examined pretty well in [Mary Roach's Spook](http://www.maryroach.net/spook.html) 1355297703 A couple years back I went there and Chiropracty was listed as a legitimate thing. It really made me lose interested in the site. Looks like that has been fixed since. 1340041280 That was my thoughts on the subject, I thought digital would be "cleaner" with less interference. 1340515294 >It means we know that we don't know the truth. Don't you care about that at all?\n\nI love how truthers always phrase it like that. What we _know_ is that there are people who have questions. What we _don't_ know is whether or not the "official story" is what really happened or not. The way you state things is that because person A still has questions, then event B _cannot_ be what everyone else thinks it is. The math just doesn't add up. In no way does some people questioning the official report mean that we _know_ that what is described in the official report didn't happen. The people doing the questioning could be just as wrong as those who wrote the initial report. 1290886068 *Which* Kennedy assassination conspiracy? 1356638543 Actually, they do exist and they're called manatees. 1341448074 >I tend to ignore her to avoid feeding her.\n\nLiterally feeding her... and wiping her fake tears with wads of that ad revenue. 1351202895 The Great Cabal That Controls Everything...unmasked by some moron with a loose grip on reality and some cheap-ass free-to-download video editing software.\n\nMakes perfect sense. 1330123404 Dang! 1340728803 No. Not at all. In fact it's a sham. 1321667982 And from the quack's wife, no less. What, wouldn't any other lawyers take the "case" or whatever you'd call it? 1291840632 You don't know if those pics are fake or not. They are interesting because they are of the same thing but they look like they are from two different cameras and thus two different people. That is kind of a big thing. It still needs to be confirmed of course but.....why dismiss it so quickly? That's almost like trying to pass it off as a souyuz rocket or something like that. \n\nYou cannot know for sure. 1279569089 Apparently they've been around since 2006. 1336955326 I agree, though I think it precipitated the problem. I'm hoping to get through to my older sister before she goes over the deep end with this, too. And evidence is the way to get through to her. 1297018493 Thank you for the clarification. 1278737640 Xe would have him in a fortnight. Or can we just put seal team six on retainer? 1331285741 I was wondering why "Chinese Feng Shui" has a term for something that only happens on the Gregorian calendar. 1297867270 A Canadian or British paycheck. 1301597246 I highly doubt that the jet shot down a advanced craft that can travel the universe. 1351743031 TIDES!!! 1316371991 What do you want to hear? 1316220488 those women are insane and Penn is the only calm genuinely compassionate one there. 1356124884 >How many people study sciences (mainly physics) or related fields here? Or work in a science-based area\n\nMuch like Penn Jillette, I'm a science enthusiast. I'm not a scientist.\n\n>How many people here are religious, or feel spiritually inclined?\n\nN/A. The deepest thrill I get is looking up at the night sky, but there's nothing religious, spiritual, supernatural, or mystical about it. But if I had to choose an experience that I would classify as transcendent, it would be that: contemplating the universe.\n\n>How many people here are like me waiting to be convinced that the paranormal COULD be true.\n\nThe paranormal already *could* be true. I'm waiting for repeatable, testable evidence that cannot be more eloquently explained by our known models of the universe and, even more importantly, the understanding of how our brains work thanks to advances in neuroscience. 1343143140 Looks like a tiny, lonely cloud. 1341323898 woah....that's a lethal ratio, dude 1320914807 This is pretty silly. It seems analogous to those libertarians who call all government action "socialism", or those Democrats who can invent a reason that any policy they don't like must be "racist", or those Republicans who find ways to associate all manner of evils with "liberalism".\n\nIf you're a Republican whose definition of "liberalism" is so broad that it includes Stalin and Hitler as well as Obama and Kucinich, it's probably not a very useful definition: it pretty much means "things I don't like." It surely doesn't aid you in predicting what modern "liberals" will do ... except possibly that they'll do things you don't like.\n\nAnd likewise, what exactly does calling evolution "a religion" accomplish? With this broad definition of "religion", what else will we sweep in?\n\n*Professional sports* have their temples, their sacrifices, their irrational rituals, their holy days. They even have elaborate ritual costumes: a fan dressed in team colors with his face painted is even more dramatic than a cardinal's robes.\n\n*University education* has temples both elaborate and expensive; it charges many of its acolytes a steep fee for participation (almost as expensive as Scientology, or heroin); it has its priesthood in the form of the full professorate; its rituals such as graduation ceremonies.\n\n*Literacy* itself could be regarded as a cult practice. Parents spend much effort to initiate their children into its mysteries. It has its temples in schools and libraries. It practices discrimination: Those who do not convert to this religion are scorned as stupid and incapable, and excluded from polite society. \n\nOr how about *driving cars*? Confirmation in this religion is an important rite of passage in young adulthood. There are temples in the form of dealerships. Those who do not practice the appropriate rituals of regular maintenance are regarded as irresponsible ... and those atheists who choose not to partake in this religion at all are frequently denounced as hippies or freaks of various sorts.\n\nWith a sufficiently broad notion of "religion", we can simply subsume all organized or semi-organized human behavior: government; economy; even dating. And insofar as we can call everything "religion", *doing so tells us nothing at all.* 1272518719 Exactly, as soon as you start calling UFOs, aliens. Well, they aren't UNIDENTIFIED flying objects because you just callled them ETs and you should go make another subreddit called /r/disclosure or someshit. The less bullshit the better. 1316206939 The explanation is easy and does not require magical thinking.\n\nThere are billions of people in the world. At any given moment, positive things are happening to some and negative things are happening to others. \n\nOn the same day, some other people had heart attacks and just died. Some others had heart attacks and lived, but didn't win any money. Still others won some money without having heart attacks.\n\n**TL;DR, this is pure coincidence.** 1353948221 Yes, I am often thinking of this. It would be neat if all the stories are true (sort of) but I think often about the CD player analogy. \n\nI think that the mental construction of authority is much more important than people think. I have many qualms with how governments abuse authority and how too many people trust it blindly, but in the same vein, a too precipitous denouement of that authority might be catastrophic. It might even be worse if "they" never land, the suspense might be too much maybe? Taunting our RADAR for years and years? Or perhaps they are trying to goad us into further development by challenging us and taunting our limits. I spend a lot of time thinking about this.\n\nI agree, if they are thousands of years ahead of us we probably cannot get much. I wish it were otherwise. Although perhaps we are not yet responsible enough. Who knows?\n\nI love thinking about these scenarios. To me they truly are on the frontiers of thought and possibility.\n\nAlso, I am sometimes confused by reddit's reply system, is our conversation being declared as dis-info by posters below? 1328163605 That's fair! I just came into this thread expecting that people would be providing evidence in answer to OP's question, instead of saying it is "common knowledge". It might very well be the case that this effect is accepted across many fields of study, but I was hoping there would be more studies cited from the outset, instead of me having to prod people to produce them :P\n\nAs far as research to prove I'm not a fool (owch!), I would direct you to the general work on cognitive biases that began with Kahneman & Tversky about 30 years ago, that led to research on how social positioning affects perception ([maybe start here?](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_cognitive_biases#Social_biases)). I know next to nothing about wine in particular (oh no, a fool!!) but my standpoint was more of the general skeptic seeing commonalities in the area of wine glassware and the sorts of domains I'm more familiar with (like scientific reasoning and that jazz). 1301507124 To be fair, we measure water pollution in parts per million (ppm) and parts per billion (ppb), so a concentration of 10^-9 M, or 1 ppb, for an active ingredient is not negligible. 1295287232 If he created "perfection", I would take that to mean he created a being which would make a choice to become imperfect. 1308753927 Those are mad skills, also SHUT UP AND TAKE MY MONEY!! (Seriously, you meant something like [this](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xv3_zFD6_xE)?)\n\nEDIT added the seriously [4] 1321947956 I'm afraid to inform you that you are an awful kisser. 1354533493 Dude: spend 30 minutes over at r/UAP. Seriously: you're going to need to educate yourself a bit. There is a plethora of very solid documentation over there. You want me to condense a very complicated topic with many facets into a tidy summary here for you and that just isn't possible. I'm sorry that there's no dummies' guide for this. Kean's book can be read in an afternoon.\n\nTheories and hypothesis need some factual basis or evidence to be valid. What is yours? The ET hypothesis has a lot. Whether you have time to review it or not, it really speaks for itself. And this isn't just my opinion; it's the general consensus of those who have spent their lives studying this stuff.\n\nEdit: [here is a great debate between Dolan and Dr. John Alexander, a military officer. Leslie Kean moderates. It's a podcast called '2012 UFO ‘Cover-Up’ Debate'; scroll down and there is a download button. Dolan presents some of the best evidence in a very concise fashion here.](http://inceptionradionetwork.com/archives/irn-2012-debate/) 1330321533 I half expected goatse. 1256686591 The point is he took the opportunity to insult people on national media. He was not called in for that reason. Also, India has had laws about insulting religion since the British were there - ostensibly to foster peace and tolerance between different religions, but instead used today to lock up dissidents. He knew that and he took a risk. It's ridiculous, but you don't see me going on TV in Iran and saying Allah is a pig for much the same reason. 1353868011 With no battery?\n 1326653018 [Snopes says this is false](http://www.snopes.com/legal/et.asp) 1304997040 So.... he took seven minutes to basically say that the interviewer was too stupid to understand the actual answer, and he would just have to accept that magnets work because they work. ;)\n\nHe is fascinating to listen t, though. 1292609068 I used to take that. Now I just drink coffee. 1287815151 I wish trigonometry were that easy when I was in school.\n\ntan(1) = 10 \ntan(2) = 20 \ntan(3) = 30 \ntan(4) = 40 1335631206 >Unicorns are magical creatures, they don't die and leave bodies around. They just look like horses because that is how they have chosen to be viewed in this plane of existence.\n\n*Everyone* knows *that*… 1312516598 I don't usually drink, but today was the day for me to raise a glass or three in his honour. 1324851936 2.44, he zooms right back out. Palm trees are clearly in another yard, I would imagine there was no other viewpoint to film from. 1317031220 A close family member of mine build rockets, and has built rockets for 30 years. After showing this person the Norway Spiral video they could equate it to *no known type of missile/rocket*. Their exact words were "interesting" with a slight smirk. This was the most telling thing this person has *ever* stated when it comes to this topic of strange craft/phenomenon. 1302371220 Oshit. 1328442683 It's been *quite* a day here in r/ufos. 1336805509 A friend of my parents, a guy I used to really respect and like when I was growing up, has just revealed on Facebook that not only is he charging people for spiritual readings but he has also won Psychic of the Year award for the state. He has also charged my mother for a reading.I posted a skeptical video on my FB wall (a video of Derren Brown talking about cold reading to Richard Dawkins) and he sent me a very abusive message.\nI'm just taking the "ignore it and it will go away" approach to our disagreement but as I'm moving back to my home country soon I fear I will be seeing him at social gatherings. He's a big guy, ex navy and the president of the state chapter of the Masonic Motorcycle Club so I am very intimidated by him.\n\nJust venting. Thanks. 1355506726 This is probably the most reasonable and intelligent thing I've ever heard anyone say about airport security. 1296094776 Came across this in my quest for reliable nutritional information. Maybe not entirely reliable, but entertaining... 1320640273 Every time I try and talk about this stuff with environmentalists all i ever get from them is shit about displacement of people and what not. No one can ever give me evidence that fracking is causing any environmental issues (which they may well be but i haven't seen much for evidence) and I show them things like this and they claim that its either conspiracy or exxon trying to spread misinformation. 1315955872 That made me lol too. Wtf. 90% imaginative and 10% physical. That's pretty a bold statement. 1329168406 ahh. ok. saw it. mhm... could be anything tho 1337617043 I had one of those on my crotch for two hours at WalMart once. I was working electronics and not a single customer mentioned it.\n\nI also kept a handful of alarm stickers behind the desk to drop in customer bags for lulz. One time we dropped at least 10 of them in a jerk-bag coworker's pocket. Pretty sure he noticed before exiting the store.\n\nWe also stuck them to carts underneath and placed them wherever possible including inside of TV boxes. 1331090511 I just don't understand the Big Pharma theories. Is the root of it all that people are upset we can send stuff into space and harness the power of the atom but can't cure a cold? It's a big business; if a local soccer mom invented a cure for AIDS, they'd either buy her out in a second or pretend they came up with it on their own (dishonest, but AIDS is still cured) and make billions. \n\nI can make sense of the 9-11 "truthers" and the Moon Landing Hoax and such, but I can't even begin to understand the Big Pharma one.\n\n/rant 1334432395 This is the real reason why one should be vegetarian, to get rid of them bastards!\n\n\nEdit: secret 1310107008 Fine... Now you have to explain what "photosynthesise" is and how it works, and also explain cell-division.\n\nProceed. ;) 1312241896 I know what I'll be doing when I get off work. I love me some alien conspiracies. 1343040575 "You know what would really screw with the earthlings? Lets shine some balls of lights in the sky, so they're all like "WTF?!?" 1355897539 I did look relatively the same, yes. 1326465185 Do you have any idea how old this is starting to get? 1342321418 I love NPR but the issue I have with this idea is that NPR gets to decide what 'truth' is. I realize that at times the truth is pretty obvious and it is ridiculous to give the opposition equal time - like an example below about making sure flat earth believers get equal time. But too often the 'truth' is very dependent on the viewer. What happens when NPR decides something is the truth when it is simply an opinion? At least presenting both sides of an issue gives both the reporter and viewer an opportunity to understand not only what is right but WHY it is right and the other is wrong. 1330461626 > Who decides what is or is not logical?\n\nNonsense. What is logical is a matter of fact, and no one has to decide it.\n\nAlso, data don't matter to logic. Logic is about general, formal structures, and applies to everything.\n\nThe idea of the sun revolving around the earth is not a logical truth, and never was one. 1272309119 Haha, I wouldn't have thought it was as weird if I had heard her listening to it a bunch. I think it was a private thing for her. Plus I was really young and she kind of even hid his suicide from me at the time. And the post says the first I'd ever even heard of the song was when my piano teacher had me learn it in middle school. 1326756725 No shit..I agree..so sick of seeing bullshit contents like that just because the rest of the world hasn't found time to troll the Internet 20 hours a day.. or maybe some people are just starting to look into these things. I'm glad people post things like this. My boyfriend has read and watched tons on aliens and UFO's, and has gotten me into it. So a lot of this stuff is new to me. 1352501099 When the author stated repeatedly that 75% of the world's population is lactose intolerant, and provided a citation . . . well, I just had to read it for myself!\n\nHere's his statement: \n\n>6. Not everyone can stomach dairy.(v) About 75 percent of the world's population is genetically unable to properly digest milk and other dairy products -- a problem called lactose intolerance.\n\nAnd here's the citation:\n\nhttp://consensus.nih.gov/2010/images/lactose/lactose_finalstatement.pdf\n\n>The prevalence of lactose intolerance is difficult to discern because studies have varied in their interpretation of what constitutes this condition. . . . The prevalence of lactose intolerance in the United States cannot be estimated based on available data. None of the potentially relevant studies identified in the systematic review used an adequate definition of lactose intolerance or evaluated a representative sample of the U.S. population. . . . Although these studies shed some light on the epidemiology of lactose intolerance (discussed below), they cannot be used to estimate the prevalence of lactose intolerance.\n\nand\n\n>Despite the limitations in the available studies, there were several noteworthy observations. First, lactose intolerance determined by self-report or nonblinded lactose challenge is less frequent across all ethnic groups than is lactose malabsorption determined by breath hydrogen tests or lactase nonpersistence determined by biopsy or genetic testing. Second, lactose intolerance, lactose malabsorption, and lactase nonpersistence vary across racial and ethnic groups with the lowest reported occurrence in European Americans and higher although variable occurrence in African Americans, Hispanic Americans, Asian Americans, and Native Americans. The systematic evidence review notes that the racial and ethnic variability in lactose intolerance following nonblinded lactose challenge was not as extreme as that reported in lactose malabsorption and lactase nonpersistence. Third, lactose intolerance with nonblinded lactose challenge and lactose malabsorption was low in young children, but increased with age. In children younger than 6 years, lactose malabsorption was low in all the studies and peaked between ages 10 and 16 years. Little evidence suggests that lactose intolerance increases in older persons.\n\nNowhere in that statement from NIH is the assertion made that 75% of the world's population is lactose intolerant; in fact, it says quite the opposite, that we have no idea.\n\nBased on Hyman's blatant lies (not even a misunderstanding or misrepresentation) about the NIH statement's content, I would be disposed to disregard anything else he has to say. Either he is a willful liar, or incapable of checking his own references. \n\nEither way, he's not a reliable source of information. 1353347884 Will be interesting to see how all this turns out. I'm still hoping soon, but we will see.. 1244844785 Do we expect Nobel laureates to endorse the law? This is good news but not at all surprising. 1331132833 Curious as to why you think being vegetarian isn't realistic for most people? I might agree on the vegan front, but being vegetarian is vastly different than being vegan. 1290444807 you only need to know its slant before recommending it? shouldnt you...... read the book before recommending it? 1355333202 Obviously, conservation of energy applies here, but I think the poster is asking for a more in-depth answer.\n\nI can't explain how magnets work in plain English, because any analogy I might try to use will likely rely on electricity or magnetism, itself. Richard Feynman explains exactly why he can't explain in [this video](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wMFPe-DwULM). \n\nThis explanation will necessarily be a simplification, since you can't get a good understanding of these things without looking at the math. In my understanding, though, magnets interact via photon exchange. Magnetic forces are caused by particles tossing around photons, little packets of energy. The particles don't actually *produce* any energy, they just exchange it, so if you pull energy out of the system, the system will still run out. \n\nThe physics of this are more complicated than simple attraction and repulsion, and most "perpetual" motion machines using magnets work based on how people *assume* magnets work, not on how they actually behave. \n\nFinally, the behavior shown is not perpetual motion or energy production at all. Even if the machine in the video actually works as shown, you'll notice that the hand holding the magnet is constantly moving slightly. That motion is required for magnetism to work properly: magnetic fields don't apply force to objects that are at rest relative to them. In moving the magnet, the man is supplying the system with energy, and I can guarantee that he's supplying it with a great deal more than you could possibly collect. 1269135118 My grandfather told me a somewhat similar stories as in the 20's spirit-ism was the rage. During a "ghost party" (people gathering around a table with the equivalent of a scrabble board game), he knew the answer of a question asked by one of the attendee to the ghost and "thought it" with a spelling mistake. The "ghost" answered the question with a spelling mistake. 1341965367 So everyone should be afraid of men. 1351117883 This would be great filming a UFO!! How?\n\nWell think about it, most UFOs travel within "a blink of an eye"- speed. So if we had this camera, we can better understand and possibly see the movement in which the UFO craft travels.\n\nI mean I have watch countless vids/reports/research regarding UFO craft movement. \n\nGenerally we think UFOs move from Point A to Point B in a "straight" line. BUt there have been videos showing that UFO aircraft moves in a "wiggly" pattern from Point A to Point B. \n\nThere was this video of an old woman who filmed UFOs for over 45+ years?? and just recently came out with her videos(over 80+?). She said as she played back the video of the UFOs frame per frame, they made "streaks of light" when they moved from POint A to Point B. Not sure what the VIdeo was called, but it can be found on YouTube. 1345262301 I would imagine that innocent people confess for a number of different reasons but here are a few:\n\n1. bad legal advice - don't listen to your cousin's uncle's best friend's legal opinion and overworked public defense miss things (or worse);\n\n2. guilt - not being guilty of the crime in question doesn't mean that you aren't guilty of something else or guilty of knowing details and not doing anything, etc etc. so in an effort to keep one secret, they 'confess' to a lie;\n\n3. fear - fear of everything - the cops, the courts, the people you know when you get out, your family, your job, etc etc. If you are looking at possible life with a jury and, say, only two years with a plea bargain if you confess, some people would rather do with the devil they know even though it's wrong;\n4. and this is the biggie - trust - you trust the system. If you are innocent and arrested for soemthing you didn't do (and I speak from a minor experience on this one) you just keep thinking that it will be okay because... you didn't do it! Of course they will do their investigation and surely I will eventually get let go and maybe even an apology. But then things just get worse and more surreal and then you realize that they are really going to arrest you. And then you ARE arrested and you STILL trust in the fact that you can't possibly be found guilty because you aren't! there can't be evidence because you are innocent! But when the dust settles and you are still on the hook, innocent people may do a lot of dumb things, not least of which is confess to a crime they didn't commit. 1330364846 This one is interesting, considering this specific theory about dreaming which basically says that the dreaming part of sleep occurs during the short period of time we wake up, the loud bang triggers your waking up and starts the dream which incorporates the event and make up a most probable story about the cause of the bang, then you finish waking up and the most probable story happens.\n\n\n\n\n\n 1326495307 The moon landing truthers have the same attitude you have. \n\nTruthers think everyone else are just 'blindly' believing whatever the government says about the moon landing. \n\nYou're doing it wrong. 1316788332 What a dreadful shade of blue. 1333024479 They are not ufos, they are a new type(more like WIP) of stealth aircraft that has been kept secret by the US military since at least the early 1990s\n\ni believe the general identification name that it most commonly goes by is the "chameleon".\n\ni can assure you that the craft is not extra terrestrial at the very least.\nhere at the NAS in pensacola, they test and train with them all the time. Though this is not all they do that is classified at the base.\n\nThey like doing these sort of things at NAS because of how relatively low it is on the"raises suspicion" scale, along with the facts that it has a natural waterway barrier on one side, as well as having a dense blanket of trees surrounding the base.\n\nmost people wouldn't suspect things go on here, simply because they base seems so open to the public with the naval aviation museum and the blue angels, as well as the other shows and displays they have, if it wasn't planned out, then it was a really convenient for them to have a base that is both seemingly public, yet has so many ways to hide the really important things in a rather obtuse location for these sort of things. 1337701968 But as the saying goes, "you can't reason someone out of a position they didn't reason themselves into." 1296327277 The purpose of the lawsuit is (almost certainly) not to win the case. The purpose of the lawsuit is (almost certainly) to convince a cancer patient to not go through the expense of defending the case and settling, by, say, taking all the text criticising the homeopath off the internet, agreeing to never criticise them publicly again, and paying a smaller settlement for having the temerity to criticise someone. 1263135974 There's an infinite continuum of "what ifs" out there and it doesn't make any sense to try and examine each one. Without any evidence the idea that the phases of the moon have a causal effect on human psychology can be easily dismissed. 1353439169 That is a brilliant YouTube troll! 1317794904 It might be interesting to ask him to talk about his distinction between science and magic. As a scientist, he seems very anchored to the "nuts and bolts" theory of UFOs (or as he still calls them, "flying saucers"). But if these are real, physical objects coming from (for eg) Zeta Reticuli, then they must be essentially magical, or at leasr supernatural, because they are defying what we know to be fundamental physical laws of nature (ie, speed of light travel). So I would like to know how he reconciles this in his own thinking. 1331030052 Claiming mega doses of vitamin C can cure all kinds of things from the common cold to cancer, and responding very negatively to those who did subsequent research and found no evdience to support his claims. 1334016156 My understanding is that Pusztai fed the rats raw potatoes, which rats don't want to eat anyway, because they're not nutritious enough to live on. He basically starved the rats for a couple of days, and the two varieties of potatoes were substantially different.\n\nHere's an [excellent breakdown](http://gmopundit2.blogspot.com/2006/02/analysis-of-pusztai-study-on-gm.html):\n\nUnfortunately, Pusztai’s analyses of the chemical composition of the transgenic lines were rather superficial. And his quick leap to the conclusion that the variation he observed was attributable to the fact that they were transgenic was simply unwarranted. This mistake has proved costly to Pusztai himself. And unfortunately, the expertise battle that sprang up around the experiments has obscured the importance of carrying out well-designed experiments to evaluate the food qualities of transgenic crop plants expressing proteins that have the potential of affecting human health. Lectins are clearly in this category.\n\nPusztai has been criticized severely for the quality of his experiments. His experiments have been attacked for their small sample sizes, the use of inappropriate statistical procedures, and the fact that a diet of raw – or even cooked – potatoes is a bad diet for rats (people too), even when supplemented with a bit of extra protein. But oddly enough, in all that has been written about these experiments, no one seems to have seen their central flaw, which was that he did not use appropriate controls. A “control” is the part of an experiment that allows the researcher to examine the consequences of just the change (in this case) or the treatment (in the case of a drug) under study. In Pusztai’s experiments, the control potatoes had a different history than the transgenic potatoes and, in particular, that history included a culture procedure that induces somaclonal variation. The likeliest source of the variation he detected – and of the differences he attributed to the fact that they contained foreign DNA – was the culture procedure itself. In order to be able to attribute the deleterious effects of the transgenic potatoes to the newly introduced gene or to some other part of the introduced DNA, he would have had to make a comparison between potatoes that had the very same history, but either had or lacked the transgenic construct. This can be done, but the study that Pusztai participated in was simply not designed for such a test.\n 1333150098 They look too bright to be fire lanterns. I thought it might be a reflection in the glass of the window, but I don't think so. 1327294714 I love the idea that our Sun is a fucking Stargate. 1342765750 why would they? 1296652248 The way you replied looks exactly like someone shaking as they pound on their keyboard. Use more punctuation next time. 1328497456 If he had followed it with a joke, like hey maybe a ghost did it, then yes, I would assume he was fucking with me. 1333895295 Lame. Duly noted. 1299369777 it seems pretty far off the mark, to me. you didn't need to quote the relevant passage; i read it.\n\nit's clear that this psychic schmuck doesn't think skepticism = pedophilia. he's referring to his perception that skeptics sit around their computers at 3 AM, plotting ways to ruin the lives of psychics, just as a pedophile might sit around at 3 AM plotting ways to fuck children.\n\nit's quite clear from the passage that he doesn't think that skeptics are pedophiles, or that skepticism is *the same* as pedophilia.\n\nis he attempting to slander a group of people through the comparison? yes. but he doesn't think asking questions is the same as fucking kids. \n\nsorry. 1273608958 the full paper is here if anyone wants to go through it in detail:\n\nhttp://www.methodesurrender.fr/docs/art_bsem_2009.pdf 1326141722 I love the "It took me one week to get over the flu with this." Yeah, that's about how long the flu lasts completely untreated. 1255717969 lol http://i.imgur.com/7SUqm.png 1328236613 How embarrassingly backward. 1303648549 Well, for one, if you're vegetarian/vegan, that rules out gelcaps, which are often the only non-liquid source of DXM in pharmacies.\n\nThere was a general consensus among DXM-heads that Zicam Cough spray was the fastest-acting, hardest-hitting DXM product in existence. It was popular among abusers; it's possibly why they stopped making it. It had slightly more DXM than a whole bottle of cough syrup in about one-eighth the volume of liquid. It tasted absolutely unholy, but there was a sick pleasure to be found in it. (Again: if you're into that kind of thing.) \n\nWhatever you're imagining about how disgusting chugging a bottle (or bottles) of cough syrup is, you're probably right. It's *self-violation*. There are many people out there who puke at least once every time they do it. \n\nI was one of the people who never puked. Never. If you knew what it's like to be full of cough syrup, you would know that this was a very mixed blessing.\n\nBasically, people drink cough syrup for the hell of it. Or because they get used to it. Doesn't cough syrup just taste like something that will do strange things to you if you drink enough of it?\n\nOr because it's the cheapest suitable product at the local pharmacy, and even cough syrup addicts have better things to spend their money on.\n\nHopefully I'll never go into a big off-topic monologue on cough medicine on reddit again... 1325011099 Organic food is only a label, [skeptoid](http://skeptoid.com/episodes/4019) did an episode on Organic food and nothing has really changed since it came out. There was a [study](http://www.royalsociety.org.nz/2010/05/27/science-organic/) done on bird preference of organic vs standard seeds, the birds preferred the standard seeds.\n\nAs for recycling, the big issue is that it takes a lot of energy to recycle materials and that energy use may be more damaging to the environment than just putting the material in a landfill. The thing about that argument however is that some parts of the world actually have renewable energy plans and will have a majority of energy coming from renewable resources in the near future. The energy can be renewable, while the materials and land use are not. So depending on what you are recycling and where you live this can change rapidly (smaller places may have much less land for landfill use, such as Japan so recycling may still be a good idea there) 1325080250 how do you 'test' the existence of ET ufos outside of having a spaceship on display? \n\nwith that said, are you surprised we don't have any 'testable evidence'? or do you think it's just not available to be seen?\n\nsome would claim all of us have UFO tech around us now. From transistors to teflon to fiber optics to kevlar, all arrived out of nowhere out of black military programs and government contractors. it's all in how small you want to make the box. 1328992150 Wait wait. Accidental misreading enables teleportation? 1278955590 You're being downvoted because you're reporting an entirely subjective experience and implying it had some objective meaning or relevance - the same kind of elementary error made by people who believe their *strong feeling* God exists constitute proof.\n\nThe error you're making is believing you're a reliable narrator, even to your own experiences. [You are not](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_cognitive_biases).\n\nRather, each time you recall an event you recall it imperfectly (and it's also influenced by the context in which you recall it), and each time you recall it your memory **re-**imprints it in your mind, diminishing or erasing the original[1]. Memory isn't some chiselled-in-stone record you look things up in, even though it subjectively feels like that. Rather, it's more like a rumour, where instead of a list of facts you're forcing experiences to conform to a defined narrative, [every telling changes the story somewhat](http://scienceblogs.com/cortex/2010/06/memory_is_fiction.php) and how much it changes relates to how strongly you feel about the subject. After a while it can diverge surprisingly far from reality.\n\nFor example, it's entirely possible (although you won't *feel* like it's true) that you had a strong feeling you'd catch a ball on one occasion and actualyl caught it on another, and your memory has mixed the two memories together to make a better, more satisfying narrative. Alternatively, you might have wanted to catch the ball many times, but because you never did you forget about it. Then the one time you *did* catch it is a big deal, so you remember that occasion but forget the others... and "I *really wanted* to catch the ball and I did" easily becomes "I *knew* I was going to catch it any I did" over time.\n\nAlternatively I would have thought every kid in the ballpark wanted to catch the ball, and at least some of them are going to be the kind of precocious kids to announce they *will* do it (outgoing kids are prone to assuming if they want something enough they will necessarily achieve it). So in a group of thousands of kids at thousands of games across the country for many years of baseball games, eventually you're going to get a few kids out of that group who both believed they would catch a ball and caught a ball. It's not significant - it's just a fluke of statistics that seems special because your brain latches onto it[2].\n\nWith the greatest respect, you're not getting downvoted because you've offended anyone's sensibilities, but because you're making a basic error we all know about and have moved past - your post is simply *wrong*, not controversial. <:-)\n\n[1] This is really true, incidentally - [studies are being done](http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/health/article3850302.ece) where they take victims of PTSD, load them up with happy drugs like MDMA, then walk them back through their recollections of the traumatising event.\n\nThanks to the drug their present emotional state is relaxed, happy and accepting, so when they finish reliving the memories and re-imprint them, they lose much of the emotional trauma associated with the memory, and because the memory is re-imprinted the effects persist indefinitely, even after the drugs wear off.\n\nIt's a relatively new area of investigation, but the studies are showing good results.\n\n[2] A good example of this trend is if someone randomly shuffles a pack of cards and I pull out all four aces, most people would be amazed - that's millions to one, right? Amazing!\n\nEqually, if I pull out - say - the ten of clubs, the four of diamonds, the jack of hearts and the seven of clubs nobody would be impressed even though I have exactly the same chances of getting that as any other combination, *including all four aces*.\n\nThe only difference is that *you think of four aces as being significant*, and other "random-looking" sequences as not. Again, a cognitive illusion caused by your brain's penchant for pattern-matching, which has no real objective significance. 1276852635 Right, but the headline suggests a link between the nature of the ceremony and the collapse - that superstitious ceremony was behind this tragedy, when really it was just the setting for it. 1276203581 "...overwhelm the immune system"? REALLY?!\n\nFFS, read up on some medical literature from this century if you're going to speak about it in public like this. 1331153485 Now if only we can get high res images of all the things floating around the sun that miraculously don't burn up (if it was space junk) 1346082956 > Humour, Memory, **Stutter Decrease**... WHAT?\n\nfabulous. now i'm going to have people telling me i just need to think before i talk AND to stop whacking it.\n\nFYI for anyone reading this, telling someone who stutters that they just need to slow down and think before they talk makes us hate you. 1344266431 Ah, the old call for backup. I thought it was getting too nutty in here. 1290764585 This is one of those obnoxious rhetorical questions I was talking about. 1329691752 Well I only believed one. That's because my doctor told my mom not to let me sleep the night I got my concussion. 1338691661 Thanks, I'd totally forgotten about that! I *so* suck at statistics. 1323672470 blogspam? why? 1243796796 I'll be in the 27% because I do remember that video coming out later, not sure if the next day or a couple of days later. It was the video of the sewer repair crew... or something to that like. 1347389732 Over to the left there's another area that looks like it has a face, except it looks like a fish tail is halfway in what would be its forehead. 1354658175 New site coming soon....wanted to set-up a reddit link. 1275547682 Perhaps she can go on a speaking tour with Sara Palin? 1325701256 I'm just guessing here, but maybe the much of the milk based products just don't have enough calcium for a healty diet, unless you like to drink milk straight.\n\nI presume this is why we find other products, like orange juice and Tums, having added calcium? 1346561980 Correct. Don't get me wrong, I agree that both are equally stupid, but that would be what the policy says. 1345222449 Rocks have spirits? Seriously. 1352779754 There has been a great deal of polygamous relationships in many societies. 1338287573 Harris defends his philosophy just fine. That isn't the issue here. The issue is that Craig is a disgusting manipulator and liar. Craig never debates anyone. He always lies and sets up straw men. 1303228191 Pshht, everyone from /skeptic/ is like this. Haven't you heard? 1286952657 If I had been flying an unauthorised drone over Israel I wouldn't be in a hurry to put my hand up and claim responsibility. 1352196522 Well, no one usually goes around saying I lack the cognative skills to understand what (_________) is therefor it either isn't real or magic/aliens/religion. 1355848339 And then there is this one:\n\n"Sad, but with all respect John you are part of the corrupt system. Why won't you invent a product yourself that can block EMF pollution. Microwave radiation/cellphone towers/EMF/dirty electricity/and electromagnetic weapons are all used to harm our planet and children. If you want to give this product a bad name, then invent your own that will prove these technologies should be used in the correct matter of living. Prove it, or just keep your false comments to yourself. Peace."\n\nI hope it was just a joke. 1340719696 Let's consider the fact that fusion rockets only exist on paper in the year 2012. Somehow, David Adair, was able to create one in 1971, when he was 17 years old, with a help of his father, who was a NASCAR mechanic or some such.\n\nIn other words: rocket scientists, engineers and various other incredibly intelligent people cannot build a fusion rocket now, with today's technology but a teenager in 1971 was able to with a help of a mechanic? 1348192849 I see now what you mean. Let me rephrase: "I believe that other non-string theorists will not invest much energy learning or supporting string theory unless it can be shown to provide some practical use, as manifest by predictions which can be tested in normal/practical conditions or through the creation of useful technology". \n\nI am honestly interested in understanding why I should support (or not) string theory. I admit I made the mistake of thinking that others were under the same opinion as myself and I should not have assured you of anything. If anything, i'm just trying to understand. You appeared to me knowledgeable in the subject, so I thought you could help me. Perhaps I was wrong. 1327791667 Personally, I think he's a thoughtful and compassionate person. He doesn't sound crazy to me. I sense more 'crazy' in the average cable news pundit than I do in Icke. While Icke's ideas are far from the mainstream, he offers support for them, to varying degrees depending on the theory.\n\nThis isn't a crazy man or a propagandist. This is a man with wild ideas who genuinely believes them. Take or leave him, but he's genuine. 1320689250 http://xkcd.com/435/ 1328274527 A million upvotes to you. The thing that makes skeptics is that they change their minds when presented with new evidence. 1283468241 'Fucking creepy' about sums it up. 1317090937 I'm in pharmacology and did a project on the toxicity of aspartame in my 4th year. There's a comprehensive review (100 pages) of the studies done on aspartame up to 2007 which can be found here: http://informahealthcare.com/doi/abs/10.1080/10408440701516184\n\nBasically, no strong scientific evidence for the notion that it is toxic in humans at our consumption levels. In recent years, work by Soffriti et al., has claimed to demonstrate a link between aspartame and cancer in rats: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16507461 \n\nhttp://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17805418 \n\nhowever these studies have been criticized by numerous scientists and health organizations including the FDA, NCI and the European Health Commission etc. \n\nedit: review requires subscription. I uploaded it here for anyone who is interested - http://drop.io/ifejia2 1276902523 >Mostly due to the deliciousness of meat\n\nI assume you mean this somewhat facetiously.\n\n> we do produce enough calories even with meat production to feed everyone.\n\nThe problem with meat production isn't a lack of calories; it's the damage done to the environment. [Cattle produce more greenhouse gases than cars](http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?newsID=20772&CR1=warning#.UKb_usy_XUI), most of it in the form of methane, which is 23 times more effective as a greenhouse gas than carbon dioxide. [Livestock are a major contributor to water pollution](http://www.nrdc.org/water/pollution/ffarms.asp).\n\nAnd that only considers domesticated animals. [According to a Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) estimate, over 70% of the world’s fish species are either fully exploited or depleted](http://www.un.org/events/tenstories/06/story.asp?storyID=800).\n\n\nWhile I'm not trying to sell you on veganism, I do feel there are sound environmental facts in favor of reducing meat consumption. [Americans eat twice as much meat as they did fifty years ago](http://www.npr.org/blogs/thesalt/2012/06/27/155527365/visualizing-a-nation-of-meat-eaters), while our nutritional needs have remained largely the same. Surely we can afford to scale back on what is essentially a luxury food. 1353118874 Sambucal is a homeopathic remedy still undergoing clinical trials: http://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT00375115\nFrom their own website:\n>What clinical evidence is available to support Sambucol?\n\n..."Sambucus nigra or the black elderberry is a plant native to Europe, Northern Africa and parts of Asia. The flowers and berries have a long history of use in traditional European medicine as well as the berries being used to make wines and cordials. (1)\nThe black elderberry, due to the dark pigmentation of its fruit, contains high concentrations of the flavonoid group of antioxidants called anthocyanins. It is these natural antioxidants that give the elderberry its purple pigment. This means that the fruit of the black elderberry have powerful antioxidant capabilities. Studies looking at the antioxidant activity of many types of fruits, including the black elderberry have shown that the total antioxidative capacity of the elderberry was higher than that of the blackcurrant, gooseberry, cranberry, blueberry and redcurrant\nDue to the amount of stress that modern society places on our bodies, it may be beneficial to take an antioxidant supplement to help boost the Immune System, particularly at times such as when suffering from a cold or the flu virus.\n\nDietary supplements containing extracts from the black elderberry have long been used across the world for treating cold and flu symptoms, including aches and pains, coughing and nasal congestion. Supplements are available in many forms including expressed juice, teas, syrup and lozenges."\n\n...in other words; none. 1301308927 This is the fourth "robert the doll" related stories I have seen today. What is it? 1342338909 Yes, actually that is helpful. It explains why there is a switch in the graph. 1284152085 Phil Plait still has quite a bit to answer for for his "that was a potential rape" statement. \n\nThat was a failure in logical thinking of epic proportions. As far as I've seen, he has not backed that statement up. \n\nI'm inclined not to listen to people who fail so miserably in rational thinking. I'll listen to him about astronomy, but given that there are many others out there who can give me the same information, I'm inclined to go to them, all other things being equal. 1321220062 There's also an XKCD app. 1342299943 Doesn't this now count as a "book?" 1277805685 Help? He probably just needs some friends who likes space ships as much as he does. 1257842536 Richard Black at the BBC undertook a similar exercise with climate skeptics. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/7092614.stm\n\n 1254007459 Not quite, meth is manufactured from crabapples. 1330737777 There is a really good Dr. Oz show where he invites leading skeptic and neurologist Dr. Steven Novella on to his show to debate alternative medicine, the youtubes are linked [here](http://www.sciencebasedmedicine.org/index.php/watch-steve-novella-on-the-dr-oz-show-on-tuesday/).\n\nSteve is also has a terrific podcast, [skeptics guide to the universe](http://www.theskepticsguide.org/). He does a post-show analysis in [podcast 302](http://www.theskepticsguide.org/archive/podcastinfo.aspx?mid=1&pid=302). But you'll want to download and listen to the [entire archive](http://www.theskepticsguide.org/archive/podcast.aspx?mid=1), it's been voted best science podcast in 2010 and best educational podcast in 2009. I have listened to every episode multiple times, they really are terrific. 1326857227 [Here's something from an AMA with a guy that was one of the kids on the show.](http://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/hpzcx/i_was_one_of_the_kids_on_bill_nye_the_science_guy/c1xdz2w)\n\nHe describes that he was annoyed that MORE people didn't bother him and, in one instance, mocked a kid because of it.\n\n 1322523219 Haha thats weird 1342469506 Maybe your polarity got reversed. Try yelling "FLAME OFF!!!". 1354836107 I completely agree so long as that "governing body" have absolutely no part in the government (moral and intellectual authority but no legal authority). Make it a massive and glorified Consumer Reports and I am in like Flynn. Try and suggest to me that the FDA is a good idea or effectively executing their task and I am out like a Obama's clout. 1345186589 Fabricated evidence or not, full disclosure won't come from the government, it'll be served as feigned ignorance through our media feeding tubes until we get angry enough that we don't know the full truth. 1339085155 I know of one such limited condition! I think chiropractic disease theories are ridiculous, and so did my chiropractor. I got into an accident, had a vertebral misalignment, and my insurance recommended a guy. My preference would have been a DO. But this guy had a shared practice with a licensed physical therapist, and took before and after xrays to prove it had moved and been put back. It was a lot more PT than manipulation. \n\nHe was clear: "Chiropractic manipulation can't keep anything it moved permanent, if anything even needs moved. Without PT chiropractic is useless; everything will just drift back to where it was if you don't build the muscles to keep it in place."\n\nI was floored years later when I discovered how much bunk most chiropractors run on. 1326768661 They are nothing but a waste of money. 1282371179 At first I read "physics classes" so I thought "Way to go Colorado" then upon second reading I was completely speechless. 1344862965 This may or may not be a quote, I'm not sure\n\n*If your mind is too open then any kind of shit can get in.*\n 1282678038 Possibility 1: animals can read each other's body language\n\nPossibility 2: animals can develop a magical connection to each other\n\nLet me think about it... 1286846836 Could you maybe track them in Edit2, so that the distinct lights can be differentiated? This is great work, btw. All my upboats. 1352880350 Goons and redditers are both the annoying college frat guy that only hangs out with other college frat guys, and is awkward/an ass with anyone else. 1327404140 If your Drivers' Ed class didn't show you an abundance of car crash movies, they weren't doing their job. 1272497869 > I would find it very odd if there wasn't a lot of life in the universe.\n\nYep.\n\n> Doesn't mean however that anyone has contacted us yet. \n\nIf you undertake a critical examination and investigation of the phenomena on this planet, you will find that amongst the rubbled mountain heap of loony stories, debunked anecdotes, hyperbolic tales, and disinformation campaigns, there have been an untold number of valid, verifiable, and truly unexplained contacts that have taken place.\n\nLooked at in isolation, any one of these contacts might not mean much. Taken en toto over the many decades and entirely disparate areas, countries, regions, and walks of life that these contacts and reports have taken place on, one gets a *very* clear understanding - just by the laws of probability and chance alone - that there has indubitably been a significant amount of *real* contact on this planet.\n\nAdditionally, there is nothing like personal experience to settle a matter one might have doubts about. I have had occurrences in my life that are similar to what many have described in their own encounters.\n\nThis, along with quite a bit of other data I've come across (as well as the info I pointed out above), let me know that we not only have been contacted before on this planet, but that we are currently being contacted *now*, and that there are beings from other areas of the cosmos already on this planet as we speak. 1332439953 before my last move, i used to go to a chiro about once a month. i paid cash, 65 dollars a visit. great back, neck, shoulder, and glut massage (yes he massaged my ass, i'm an athlete, i need it). then he would pop the shit out of my back. it felt great. \n\ni don't know if it did anything, but to go to a massage therapist cost 70 bucks plus tip for the same thing, minus the back popping. 1291189962 It's almost always such a choice. 1347135099 You know I honestly thought it might be different this time. I don't know why. 1356137915 You betcha!\nBut really, I was downvoted immediately and then everyone who *does* decide to reply apparently only read the first half of the article (I'll give you a hint: It's not supposed to be about Sarah Palin). I think being frustrated to the point of prodding sarcasm was justified. Though I wonder who I thought I would attract with such silly venom? 1297956843 Could it be that you have a recurring memory which interfered with the order of how it happened? I'm not saying I don't trust you but I study biology enough to know the brain is a tremendous chemical computer server. Bugs that could mess up the whole database emerge all the time. 1326477740 You know what? I'm okay with this...mainly because I'm 30 years old and still wake up in the middl of the night with that goddamn veiny, pipe-smoking, head growing out of the ground on the cover in the back of my mind.\n\nI...I just can't bear to unleash the horror on the younger generation. I'm not sure they're strong enough to handle it... 1334667691 More specifically: get infected with HIV and then have it develop into AIDS.\n\n(actually, no - I really wouldn't wish that on anyone) 1308391002 That all points to some form of psychokinetic activity. \n\nAre your parents under stress or do they live - and this is weird - near a teenage girl in puberty OR is your mom going through menstruation? 1336196340 Just be sure no one confuses it with electro gonorrhea, the noisy killer 1315955858 I don't think most OWSers even understand corporate personhood. 1339187528 The only thing that separates parlour tricks from "divine miracles" is time. 1302636323 > Your mom is now bit more familiar with the world around her. Well done mate.\n\nFTFY 1302347979 Good points. In return however, I'd like to see more fellow skeptics have the balls to call themselves atheists and not cringe away out of a false feeling of accommodation. 1323541997 I prefer to all the banking cabal a banking junta. 1338555674 If GhostHunters were real, if their tools could actually be used to detect ghosts, you know that cemeteries would be making a killing by having people pay to spend time with a ghost of their choice or something. 1287564259 I can't get through the first minute of this.It makes me cringe, I wonder what (if they even have one) is their social life like? 1330708737 You don't have to shout 1335673726 I'm honestly surprised you haven't been downvoted to hell for this. Reddit has a hard on for cycling. No one wants to admit that they are an antiquated nightmare that has no place on modern roads. If you were to walk up to someone who had never heard the idea before and suggest allowing someone riding a flimsy piece of metal on two wheels to share a 35 mph road with modern engines, they'd laugh at you. It'd be as ridiculous as suggesting we allow Go Carts on the road. But the smug factor locks in, because they're **saving the earth** or **healthier than you pigs in your cars** who just want to get to fucking work. 1348760228 He seems pretty certain about that... 1327186541 The difference is you are not trained as a surgeon.\n\nIn the states I hear anyone can be a midwive, but not up in Canada.\n\nI've known many girls who have had huge problems at hospitials. Doctors rushing through the birth or forcing a c section just so they can get the next patient in and out.\nOne doctor pulled the umblical cord out rather then letting the mother birth the placenta and she hemoraged and almost died.\nI think someone who has 4-8 years of school based soley on medicine and the birthing proccess will be better than a doctor who is not focused just on birthing. 1259681786 Phenomenon. Singular. One phenomenon, several phenomena. 1282934978 I don't believe a non American can be president. I think that's in the rules somewhere. 1351907215 A fun point, as made in the comments:\n\n>Astronomical observations are eyewitness accounts – the finite speed of light ensures this.\n\n>Astronomers can answer that “were you there?” question with an emphatic “YES, I WAS!” 1353980760 [97%, actually](http://www.skepticalscience.com/global-warming-scientific-consensus-basic.htm). 1331413938 Using any personal data for *any* purpose other than expressly agreed to by the subject of the data is illegal under [EU law](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Data_Protection_Directive). Considering you(r company) nominally supplies the UK market, take heed. 1349940558 Yeah, I thought a lot of you guys would say that, and that's why I wanted to include that, before I threw the box away, I vigorously shook it, just to make sure they weren't stuck at the top. Then, I threw it away and this happened. 1346380351 I visited a psychic once out of curiosity and entertainment. She made some clearly obvious observations about me, followed up by generalized statements that could apply to nearly every 25 year old male, and always was asking leading questions. It was amusing in its own right, but I can see how people that desperately want to fix something broken inside of them can fall prey to it. 1344466688 Thank you very much, kylev! 1314036256 [Feel like debating a Chopra 'chatbot'?](http://www.wisdomofchopra.com/) 1354127261 So showing him your thought process as you evaluate this claim wouldn't be helpful, in your opinion? I beg to differ, sir. 1312503362 There's also some striking differences. 1314302784 Your australian aren't you... 1340269518 I don't, but my father in law had this experience. I posted the story [here](http://www.reddit.com/r/Thetruthishere/comments/pagi8/fam_alien_abduction/). 1348025909 you're mom never mentioned her step brothers? 1350321360 Excellent follow-up. I was hoping a daylight shot would materialise. 1328813830 My best answer is: Why you shouldn't? 1335737164 It's interesting that *all* of the mentals on reddit always come to that conclusion. 1291036587 If you have evidence that chiropractic isn't just a placebo, I would honestly be interested to see some. 1305086542 Here's another good discussion in this series - [Perspectives on the Self: Conversations on Identity & Consciousness.](http://www.nourfoundation.com/media-gallery/videos/Perspectives-on-the-Self/To-Be-or-Not-to-Be/The-Self-As-Illusion.html) It's moderated by Krista Tippet who has this cool radio show called [On Being](http://being.publicradio.org/) and also has [Dr. Pim Van Lommel](http://kuriakon00.com/celestial/science/dr_pin_lommel.html) on the panel. He's a cardiologist that did a big [study](http://profezie3m.altervista.org/archivio/TheLancet_NDE.htm) on near death experiences in hospitals.\n\nEdit: You can hear his thoughts on NDE and cosciousness at about 21 minutes into the clip. 1326037365 Pretty sure most astrologers will still talk about planets going into retrograde... Though it could be argued that such language is inaccurate in the same way as talking about "sun rise".\n\nI met an astrologer once though and asked him if he used the Ptolemaic model and he said he did.\n\nRegardless of what system they're using they're still producing Barnum statements, and the people who think astrology works are often counting the hits and ignoring the misses. 1341187327 I read 'Chariots of the Gods' twice in the last two years, I know what are saying. 1320791946 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electric_blue_(color)\n\nSomething like that 1320619042 Cart before horse. 1341186677 I was part of a cult called church of the first born. No, you can't google it, they don't use computers. Anyway, they believe in faith healing and babies die often. Actually, people of all sorts die often because they don't go to doctors. My uncle died of a spider bite. I had a great aunt who's intestines would fall out of her ass regularly until she died. The women don't cut their hair or wear shorts or pants, they can't wear make up. The men are straight out of the 1800's. Lots of inter-familial marriage. They sing 19th century hymns and church lasts from 8 in the morning until 3 in the afternoon sometimes (they have to be "lead by the spirit"). Creepy and illogical. I later became a moderate christian, then I just figured nobody knew what happened when we die. Now I'm an agnostic atheist. I was fortunate to be born with a questioning mind. The only downside is that I have a hot cousin in the church who I probably could have boned. You win some, you lose some. 1306472617 That seems to be referring to the art. The fact that some meteors even bounce back out into space seems to defy your assertion that they never change direction. I will wait for the expert to weigh in. I posted the question to him on allexperts; they are supposed to respond within 3 days. 1320023603 Ah well, he's not going to do that again is he. 1318651200 Good link! [Here's part two](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QIr3Lo9zlLs), where you can see a delusional parent claim that her child "is vaccinated" because he's taken a homeopathic "vaccine" for polio and measles. &#3232;\\_&#3232;\n 1308915826 We are in agreement. Also, please, if you don't mind, post this on my subreddit. 1336795807 This is so lame, sorry to say that. People nowadays buy all the kind of apps... 1335021061 how do you do the spoiler thingy in this subreddit?? 1317757697 Anonymous is often not even a group in the classical sense of the word. People operating under the affiliation,"Anonymous"(What with the mask and other elements of style) - have both done stupid and mean things and great things. 1352128739 Unrelated to the analogy? \n\nWhether or not having an abortion is LESS of a loss than suffering through the hardship of a developmentally retarded child does not somehow negate that having the developmental retarded child and needing to abort it is sad.\n\nLikewise, the fact that you're better off fixing a leaking drain quickly as it will cost you less long term does not negate the fact that the drain being leaky in the first place puts you in a position worse off than if you HAD NOT HAD THE LEAKING DRAIN IN THE FIRST PLACE. 1328868758 What next? Are we going to hear words like "disinfo agent"? 1294665464 That bracket... close it... please... *twitch* 1344725916 bologna* 1289764187 Or /r/climatedeniers 1355129000 lovely, just as I requested. 1326624155 Here's the thing; The evidence IS in. The European Union spent more than $425 million studying the safety of genetically modified crops over the past *25 years*. The conclusion of these studies can be summarized in one sentence: Crop modification by molecular methods is no more dangerous than crop modification by other methods. It has been studied- it's just that people don't want to believe it. Serious scientific bodies that have analyzed the issue, including the National Academy of Sciences and the British Royal Society, have come to the conclusion that GMO crops are safe. They've been in use for dozens of years and there has yet to be proven any link of health risk for GMO foods.\n\nAnd this is what get me: people want food labelled when there's NO REASON to believe that GMO crops are of any more danger than the foods you have that are non-GMO. It's a fear campaign, it's based on ignorance and ludditism. 1336285482 Plus, he needs to leave his town and instad of going in Paris or in any of the other thousands of tows of France, he just cross the fucking ocean. 1353678187 Experiment tried... 1311035010 you clearly haven't discovered the joys of paranoid nutcase literature then. paranoia magazine is one of the most reasonable and mild-mannered publications in the genre, not that i believe anything they say. for example, i have a whole self published book on how the earth is hollow and inhabited by aliens and has huge holes at both ends for their spacecraft. 1276649533 This sounds like a job for logical fallacies. She might not be able to counter or refute them all.\n\nhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_fallacies\n\nYou can not win with truth, evidence or facts. Maybe you can win with deception and guile. 1348165118 if it didn't track muscle loss it's basically useless imho... 1327447395 I saw a UFO a few years ago around sunset in mid-summer. I was just casually looking up at the sky which I sometimes do and I saw what I had at first thought was an airplane. As soon as it caught my attention and I was looking at it more, it flashed and disappeared. At that point I knew it wasn't a plane for sure. I asked my friend who was with me at the time if he saw it, but he wasn't looking up and said he didn't. Then again, I can't say for sure if that's alien. 1305173953 I think I am of the belief that the skeptical community shouldn't try to get directly involved into politics for the most part because political arguments are often based on a certain worldview whose truth cannot be objectively verified. That is, arguments often based on opinions rather than facts.\n\nHowever, I am all for debunking objectively false claims. 1274821480 Thanks! I'm usually a grammar nazi, too. I'd rather be corrected and learn something, personally. 1343780230 Do you object to pepper? salt? garlic? I don't really get this argument. 1296091758 There are two specific issues in flight here \n1) A claim that acupuncture works with no actual data to backup that claim\n2) The fact that this got through peer-review\n\nBoth truly knock all this into the WTF category.\n\nI've personally seen acupuncture work successfully ... hint: think placebo (I'll not befuddle you with the details, its an old story, the patient if 100% sure it really worked)\n\nHowever, what is of fact more concern is that this got into the British Journal of General Practice 1306867328 Lmao! 1353791017 I thought that, but the fact that wet bed sheets could be actively "harmful" perhaps makes it valid. \n\nIf it had been an ingested water "remedy" then a fairer title might have been "killed by reliance on homeopathy" etc. 1355086932 I think the best reason to be skeptical on this beside the fact that teeth observably can't repair themselves (elderly people who still have their teeth but have been worn down over the decades are a good example) is that she didn't provide a before and after picture. Also I couldn't see any outside confirmation either. \n\nAs for it disappearing (assuming it did) is it 'healed' or is something just stuck in it? Like putting wax on your car to cover up minor scratches. It didn't make the scratch go away but it gives you the illusion that it is. 1351445231 I don't think that the holes in the official story completely disprove it or anything, I just think there's a lot more that we need to know before I'm convinced.\n\nI'm always in downvote hell here, it doesn't matter how I word my posts, I have a slightly different opinion so I am worthless. I thought this was a **discussion** board but I have been repeatedly proven wrong about that. 1320855389 That's crazy, how would he know it was binary in the first place? In another special they said he had a camera and took several pictures. I want to know what happened to the film. 1314389136 Guys, I'm opening up a new restaurant. I recently realised that all my life I've been eating all wrong. All the substance of food is what causes disease. With my new techniques, we extract the vital force of food into a water solution; the water "remembering" what food it came in contact with. By extracting this essence into the water, we can eat without having all the indigestible toxins polluting our digestive tract. Come to my restaurant and enjoy a 30C steak, some 30C potatoes, and our trademark 50C soup. Since preparation of these foods is so labour-intensive, we have to charge more than you'd normally pay for the dishes, but your health is worth it. 1347039817 > There is no distribution system for hydrogen\n\nThat's fitting, since there's no Thorium infrastructure either.\n\nNone of this is proposed as a "shovel ready" project. This is about a multi-decade recreation of our entire infrastructure from the ground up -- it's about seeding the very beginnings of investor interest. 1328545480 Clearly, the Fox agenda here is this:\n\n"LOL stupid scientists think dinosaurs farted themselves to death! See? All science is clearly bullshit, leaving only one possible explanation: Jesus created the earth 5000 years ago, and satan buried dinosaur bones in the ground to deceive us into thinking otherwise" 1336507466 If it is a Power Balance bracelet, be sure to keep [this other video with Saunders in it](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ynbx5JfEwcA) in your bookmarks. It contains the exact type of blind test you're talking about. 1273788082 First off, Mothering magazine has already shown its bias--allowing anti-vaccine articles and ignoring actual science.\n\nSears, too, is a [known anti-vaccine advocate](http://scienceblogs.com/insolence/2009/08/dr_bob_sears_stealth_anti-vaccinationist.php), though he hides it behind a "delayed vaccination schedule."\n\n[Here's some actual science on the issue](http://www.chop.edu/export/download/pdfs/articles/vaccine-education-center/aluminum.pdf). In short, a baby gets 2.5 times more aluminum from breast milk, much more from formulas.\n\nSo if aluminum was a problem--which it isn't--there would be things other than vaccines we should be worrying about. 1296098737 What, like trying to treat TB and HIV with homeopathy? 1300046065 So... Blind people are God? 1281672182 [Relevant](http://diaconspiracyfiles.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/obama-denver-airport.jpg) 1326981093 Promise I am not getting trolled? :) 1342740281 It's possible that omgdonerkebab was asking why lskalt would converse with such a person in the first place. The obvious answer is that lskalt didn't know the person had such views prior to the conversation. 1285220462 Thank you! One of the most important things people must know about "scientific theory" and "scientific law" is that they *don't imply certainty*. A "law" describes one thing, and a "theory" describes another. A "theory" can never become a "law," and a "law" can never become a "theory." A "theory" is not less certain than a "law," and a "law" is not more certain than a "theory." 1345133841 Well now ... don't get excited. :) 1344615910 Myers quotes Kyle Hill as saying:\n\n> "When I talk about skepticism, I believe that I am talking about something that encompasses many other similar philosophies like atheism, humanism, and freethought."\n\nI'm not sure such silliness is worth an impassioned blog post. Hill is just confused. \n\nMyers takes some time to point out Hill's first confusion, which is just the logical fallacy of affirming the consequent: even if we take it as a premise that skepticism implies atheism, this does not imply that atheism implies skepticism.\n\nBut even more confused is the idea that skepticism should encompass an ideology like humanism. Unlike atheism, which is just a certain belief about a single topic which can be subject to skeptical inquiry, humanism, and other political ideologies like socialism, communism etc., are complex sets of beliefs that are ultimately based on subjective values. Skepticism cannot possibly "encompass" humanism any more than it can encompass Christianity or Islam.\n 1343004853 I think I see where you're coming from, but I don't mean to say that we should just give up! I just think that you're being *too* optimistic. I mean, take your statement "everything that can't be explained will be." This statement would require (effectively, if not literally) infinite explanations of physical phenomena (and possibly, though seemingly unlikely, other currently undiscovered kinds of phenomena); we could never even come close to verifying it empirically, and so to take it as true is simply dogmatic. Even in the theoretical realm of mathematics there are things that can't be proven: the axioms, by construction, are not provable, so it will never be clear as to why we need these and not others (mathematicians please call me out if I'm wrong about this, I'm a physicist), and there are in fact certain mathematical statements which can be proven to be unprovable. In physics we're continually searching for the "theory of everything," but there are at least a fair number of us who don't think that it's even possible for us to construct one, myself included. This isn't proof by any means, but it seems compelling to me that to have a theory of everything in our system (the universe), we would need to have some kind of special vantage point outside of our system. From our current understanding of how things work it seems chimerical that this will ever happen.\n\nAnyway, my point is that we shouldn't just "give up," because if something is unknowable we don't know that it is (as far as I know there are no physical results that are proven to be unprovable) and so we'd better keep trying in case that it's not. 1340476626 I am confused lol sorry, only after I posted did i think to check who I was actually replying to 1340909883 I guess if you want to deify random events, then, yes, Loki controls the weather. 1326551567 he, there was a joke which i picked up somewhere \n\nGalactic counsil :\n\n- we should welcome the humans in our mids as they have discovered nuclear power\n\n- "great, they will be flying about in space in no time then"\n\n- "not quite"\n\n-" how so, don't they experiment with nuclear power in space"\n\n- " no ..."\n\n-" .... "\n\n\nsorry, i'm bad at telling jokes but you get the idea :p 1321522476 Mine as well. Except for the third Ravenor book. I wanted to strangle him for ruining all that setup with such a flat ending. 1289133630 Deepak, is that you? 1327778089 Me and my gf got hungry so we decided to go and get some food. We were driving down princess anne heading in the direction towards the airport right before military highway. I looked up and saw a kind of shiny light/orb just floating over the area where the airport was. It just kinda sat there not really moving or making noise. Next thing i knew the damn thing shot straight up in the air at an incredible speed. I kept driving with my mind trying to process what i saw. I thought i had just imagined it until my gf turned to me and asked me if I had seen what she did. I asked her what she saw and to my surprise she said the exact same thing that i saw. Neither of us really knew how to react to that. 1345604421 I'd love to hear the recording. 1326175736 Really? I didn't know that. I assumed it was defined as a change in the ratio of phenotypic expressions within a species because of natural selection, and that said repeated changes of these phenotypic expressions is what causes a group of individual organisms to become a different species from their ancestors and now-cousin species (or evolve, as it were).\n\nI think we have different definitions of the word microevolution in mind. 1350495748 Either real person, or shopped :) 1356058671 I had a friend of mine sound like this once. He had consumed two bottles of Grey Goose and a handful of Vicodin he bought in a Mexican pharmacy... 1289311080 First off, get the dogmatic part of understanding out of your head, or "karma" is just another bullshit religious word people use to get your money or control your behavior. Good: now you're thinking like an atheist Buddhist.\n\nFor me, karma is much simpler than that. When I show compassion for others, they respond in kind. More important, I feel better and more worthy of happiness. If a cashier gives me change for a $20 when I gave her a $10, I will correct her, because my dignity is worth more than $10. We both benefit. That's karma. 1329960524 Thanks for pointing that out. Didn't even notice it until i read your comment. 1332421930 "We are not alone in the universe"? "Proxemic of human sexuality?"?\nAnd Brian Eno is a scientist now?\n\nI'd love to believe the first but unfortunately we have no evidence, no matter how magnificently, soul-shakingly massive the universe is, and no matter how enticing the Drake equation may seem. Some of the statements made in the article are quite interesting however, particularly those from *actual scientists*. I wish they kept it to strictly science and not wishful thinking or esoteric sociology concepts. 1328264518 I eagerly await the reports of increased concentration and improvement on grades after the evil waves are shut down. 1287517722 Oh wow, very interesting. Too bad a majority of the posts felt like it was better to be derogatory but, hey, that's reddit. Hopefully he comes over to this sub. 1331950705 Can meteors cause a flash grenade effect? 1329329699 [What does that mean](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U8BWBn26bX0)? 1278120344 I wish I knew. I have done, and continue to do, my best to rid us of this scourge of unreason, but the endarkenment is a very powerful movement. 1265129489 Gentlemen, we have success: http://bitey.com/2010/07/pilliga/ 1335146768 You're welcome :-) ! 1340092549 Obamer's birth certificate, dude. Did it shoot JFK from the fake moon landing? 1316768734 http://www.youtube.com/user/filmscribe1 \nMany videos on this account (The uploader of the two posted above) \nreally look suspicious to me. 1344869797 >Sheldrake has shown in the past that **he is not afraid to be labeled a rebel**, thanks to his theory of morphic resonance, which suggests the following:\n\n> Natural systems, or morphic units, at all levels of complexity are animated, organized, and coordinated by morphic fields, which contain an inherent memory. Natural systems inherit this collective memory from all previous things of their kind by a process called morphic resonance, with the result that patterns of development and behavior become increasingly habitual through repetition.\n\nAs the good folks in CJ would say - 'So brave'. The derp is really strong with this one. 1329642329 Please be aware tho that he has a considerable and sometimes obvious bias. I love his research, but its not the most objective source out there. 1298344920 [JREF](http://www.randi.org)? 1305344435 This is a pretty good how to:\nhttp://www.wikihow.com/Cold-Read\n\n\n 1356399972 So, Aussies. Next target? How about those magnet bracelets that [chemists (pharmacists) are selling](http://www.chemistwarehouse.com.au/healthinfo/article.asp?ID=3368)?\n\nAs far as I am aware, they are about as effective [as a power balance wristband](http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/4582282.stm) 1306137948 sorry, I was not suggesting that all Italians are part of the mob! Frankly, for my mother to tell me not to date an Italian, just because she had a bad experience with one, is pretty bigoted of her. Obviously the vast majority of italian-canadians are just normal citizens and not part of organized crime. It's unfortunate that negative stereotypes of Italian people still exist 1355798925 Let me re-phrase then. Who decides if something can be described as being logical? 1272323311 I mean, it's possible. I just have a really hard time believing that that could've happened in the area it was in. 1352005017 That occasionally happens to me 1350566838 If you study the incident you'll find it involved many different objects, not an object. Also there's no evidence earthlings have a physical model of reality yet that could be used to construct such technologies. People are throwing billions of dollars at supercolliders because we haven't even discovered fundamental natural forces and particles, however Congress did cancel construction of the Superconducting Supercollider in Texas so what that implies we can only guess, does some faction within the USA know something the Europeans don't? Maybe they had reason to believe the more modest European effort would be a success so the US version was unnecessary. 1330307127 I don't know about endorphins, but I certainly enjoy the feeling of popping my knuckles as well as my back. 1302200710 Because I don't want to go home just to swap radios? There'd still be the cost in gas there. 1347747103 he convinced them he was a psychic - that's like convincing someone you're the easter bunny. it's their fault for being stupid enough to still believe in the easter bunny. 1340476368 Ethics is the study of how to act. The consideration here, of when to require scientific certainty and when not to, is an ethical consideration. Not so much good/evil morality, but how to act. Don't be afraid of ethics, it's the most important philosophical branch. 1322709456 I have no clue if these suggestions will work but they sound like quite brilliant ideas with high probability of success. 1311008676 I suspect that you're being over confident about your own intelligence, unless you're not a human and a member of some more intelligent species.\n\nI doubt that there was a conscious decision process going on in the heads of most of these people "oh I've had a vitamin pill, that means that I can eat some more chips and smoke more". Of course if a similar line of thought did go through the heads of these people then that is worrying, because that would be a really stupid conclusion to come to... 1314451188 At the time it was really scary but after it happened it was like an amazing experience and like I said I'll never forget it. \n 1340485713 I was given a litmus test for dis-info quite some time ago - anytime someone produces a date. It hasn't failed yet. 1287608423 Notice that it was published in 2009. [Here's the abstract](http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21058170) the article refers to. Read the abstract and notice that the authors used statistical regression to find the supposed link between the vaccine and autism. [Here's the article itself.](http://www.ncims.com/articles/ThirmerosalandDevelopmentalDisability.pdf) The authors tie thimerosal to "EIS," an acronym meaning "early intervention or special education services." This is not autism; the article itself says, \n\n> While this study uses EIS as a proxy for developmental disability in general, but not specifically autism, autism merits consideration because it is a developmental disorder with recent notable impacts on EIS.\n\nSo the authors state that EIS is a proxy for development disability but not autism. \n\n[Here's an article](http://leftbrainrightbrain.co.uk/2010/09/autism-causation-and-the-hepatitis-b-vaccine-no-link/) debunking the Hep B/autism link and bemoaning the fact that the accusations never end.\n\nThe other problem, as noted in Gallagher and Goodman's article is that thimerosal is no longer used in American-made Hep B vaccines (It's still in use in a flu vaccine, I think). However, the CDC [points out](http://www.cdc.gov/vaccinesafety/Concerns/thimerosal/) that thimerosal has been used in vaccines since the 1930s, and I note that its use was without the current hysteria about autism for all those decades.\n\nThe [CDC's study](http://www.cdc.gov/vaccinesafety/Concerns/Thimerosal/QA_Pediatrics-thimerosal-autism.html) was conducted with about a thousand children, about half of whom had no evidence of autism and about half were on the spectrum of some form of autism. The CDC found no connection between exposure to ethylmercury (the "bad" ingredient in thimerosal) and diagnosis of some form of autism. The study looked at vaccinations received by pregnant women as well as by newborns.\n\nThe CDC's study did not consist of running regressions on existing data to find correlations. They looked at the actual immunization histories (Gallagher and Goodman asked parents for their recollections); follow the link for the details of how the study was conducted.\n\nI mentioned that thimerosal is no longer used in Hep B vaccines. [This article from WebMD](http://www.webmd.com/brain/autism/news/20080107/thimerosal-down-but-autism-rising) points out that although thimerosal is no longer in use, autism diagnoses are still rising. Normal people would expect that if thimerosal in Hep B vaccines caused autism, removing it would mean autism diagnoses would either cease or decline. Especially if, as alleged, Hep B vaccines caused a three-fold increas in autism.\n\nI call B.S. 1337982663 Mike Lacelle is a co-producer of the 5X5 and he's having serious health issues. Without him our schedule is just too full to record it every week. We are going to look for interns(should mention this on the next show) to help with our workload. Right now I have 6 projects for the SGU including working on the board of directors for NECSS, the new Occ videos(please support us!), two conferences, a video game and a yet to be mentioned project that will hopefully take off. 1346183619 I can smell it from here 1335708041 It's not a total solar eclipse, it's an annular eclipse (meaning you will see a "ring of fire" around the edges instead of being totally blacked out). Not that it would change their conspiracy theories. 1337448420 Nobody here is skeptical of this story? The kid's parents didn't notice their child was missing a tooth for three days? 1312422830 When you were watching your life was it in first person? 1340569639 There are a few studies here and there showing mild differences in nutritional content, certainly not enough to show up on nutritional labels. Personally, I just prefer not to ingest traces of pesticide if I can avoid it, and farm land used for organic farming produces less toxic runoff, so I guess I prefer organic produce for primarily environmentalist reasons. I really doubt there's much real difference in what ends up on your table. 1287379257 That whole article sounds like an "if I had killed her, which I did not, I would have..." type of thing. Very poorly written if the author is trying to persuade people who disagree. 1304568244 >ometimes that standard of discussion is "males check your privilege plz," and whether or not that makes sense or is defensible I don't think it counts as discrimination.<\n\nThat is exactly where you loose me. While male privilege exists (as does Female privilege, though many refuse to even discuss that idea) it is not to the extent that many people like to claim it does. Well, I think extent is the wrong word to describe that. I think that male privilege is not nearly as significant or as powerful as people want to believe it is...that is closer to what I mean. As another way of restating that, only because I feel my thoughts aren't translating well, is that male privilege in the vast majority of situations does skew the situation toward the male perspective it is likely that skewing is on the order of providing males 1-2 points of additional credence on a 10 point scale, where pretty much anyone using the term "check your privilege" likely believe it is more like a 9-10 point bump. I also believe that, while nearly 100% undiscussed, and outright denied by a large majority of feminists, female privilege is just as common and has an equal impact on societal discussions. Personally, I would go so far as to say that there is no such thing as gender privilege, but that would get me cut out of most conversations on the topic. I truly do believe that basically everything I have seen cited as a "privilege" is something that the other side would actually define as discrimination, so both parties feel wronged. \n\nNow as to why your statement causes me a great deal of pause. I truly do consider myself egalitarian, and while I tend to take on a greater number of male rights causes (because my perspective is irrevocably skewed to the male side of things) I am a staunch defender, some may say militant, of women's rights. I love researching gender topics, and have read a significant amount of research on the subject (though today I generally dismiss anything coming out of a Women's Studies department due to essentially dismissing scientific process and displaying massive bias) and also seek out gender studies blogs and news stories. This has led to me having many conversations, both IRL and online, with both Feminists and with MRA's. Throughout years of involvement with egalitarianism and activism of this sort I have noticed a number of consistent behaviors, but no so consistent as the use of the phrase "Check your privilege" to remove a persons voice from the conversation, essentially stripping them of their own agency, and place a person squarely in an out-group identifier. Not only this, but the constant aggressive use of that phrase creates a self-affirming group-think fueled environment in which critical thought is quite literally impossible lest you be placed in the "privileged" outgroup. \n\nIn online forums "check your privilege" is most often followed by an immediate ban (or at minimum, much more scrutiny which usually leads to a ban) which means that the person who is supposedly "privileged" isn't given the choice or even the opportunity to identify where their behavior may have been inappropriate and actually learn to be more conscious of triggering statements (which only exacerbates the problem), but more sinister is that they now have yet another piece of evidence about how feminists are "man haters" or "female supremacists" who "won't even let a man speak". See, the use of the phrase actually produces a more voracious misogynist but one with greater evidence, thus increasing their ability to draw other people further away from an egalitarian mindset. \n\nI'm not going to get into how I feel that this action, the creation of ones own enemy out of a potential ally, is definitive of the current feminist movement participants as that is a much longer conversation for a different time. I will however say that it is my honest to god conviction, and one which I have come to after significant reading and interaction as well as after being raised as a feminist and involved in feminist organizations, that modern Second Wave (and to a lesser degree Third Wave) feminism has been the single largest driving force behind the continuation and development of nearly every problem that currently faces women in today's society, not to mention the creation of a significant number of overt and covert misogynists. I know that is a HUGELY controversial statement, but one which I have not come to lightly or without evidence. If you want to discuss this further I am happy to do so, however I do have to warn you that my school begins next week (which means I'm already 2 weeks behind in the quarter) so my time and energy will be pretty limited. Translation: it may take me quite some time to respond to anything and it may not be as coherent or as well cited as it should be. \n\nPS: I wanted to point out to you, since you used it as an example in a semi-mocking manner, that it is not fallacious to state the wage gap is a myth, it is now a well researched and evidence-based argument. An argument, I might add, that is supported by a long-term and massive study conducted by the Bureau of Labor Statistics overseen by a number of outspoken feminists and conceived as a study which would provide incontrovertible evidence of a major wage gap that necessitates legislative actions such as the Equal Pay amendment. It is best if you don't continue to canonize "the wage-gap" as your argument of societal sexism, as it is a major indicator that you may be the type of person who cares more about ideology than about facts. Just an FYI as many people do not know about the BLS study and because they have heard the stats so often have accepted the wage gap myth as a fact. 1348029074 Could support this statement somehow?\n\nIt seems to me that having roundup resistant crops wouldn't change the amount of roundup you need to use because you're just trying to kill weeds and stop pests. It should just stop your crops from being damaged. 1350623485 cartooncorpse, change every instance of "you" into "I" and spend some time reflecting on that. 1297581444 This is the worse potato recording I've seen yet. 1354957091 I'm aware of that now thanks to this thread ... it's just not something they generally verbalize from what I've seen 1311955360 That Looks so fake! 1348862018 I have no idea why I didn't remember one of the main parts of the theory. Thanks. 1345743004 No, by question everything I mean question everything. You haven't done that if you don't think 9/11 was an inside job. You did not approach the matter objectively with the idea that it *could be an inside job* in mind. You approached it with your mind already set, solidifying your previous held judgements against the idea created by propoganda, like Bush saying "We shall not tolerate outrageous conspiracy theories about 9/11." Perhaps at one point you thought you might give the evidence a chance, but the bias still remained and you only discovered information that was most likely condescending in nature and only reaffirmed your already held belief. The truth does not persuade you, what everyone else believes and more importantly, what everyone else ridicules is what persuades you. You are not a skeptic. 1331181896 I didn't know fireworks moved around like sperm.\n\nTo me, they're alive, bugs or birds.\n\nIf alien, those crafts are probably alive, like cylon. 1342557827 >"You're the one using ad hominem attacks and saying "it's quite a step," you bet it's quite a step"\n\nThat's not what ad hominem means, and actually the UFO guy was the one who attack Bill Nye personally 1324639080 Ya it's a fun ride, I always enjoy it. \n\nIf you're already a big fan of the Ancient Astronaut theory but haven't seen the show, the show will give you a ton of topics to read up on yourself.\n\n 1338646464 DO NOT DO THIS. Lexi_Laura is trolling you. 1352766973 That's a good point. Are there any costs associated with a well as far as bring taxed? 1336832411 Well, I'm done with the internet for the year. 1337311055 I have two of his books. He's a terrible writer and insane. 1304640167 Alan Watts. \n\nI hope you look into his work, He speaks better about the subject that I ever could.\n\nhttp://isohunt.com/torrent_details/58458581/Alan+Watts?tab=summary 1274663906 So we should make lying illegal. Kantian deontology for all! 1309702635 [This](http://www.expelledexposed.com/?gclid=CIeS0Lf_86oCFWUZQgodDGbBLw) site has responses to everything in the movie. Also, the NOVA special [Judgement Day: intelligent design on trial](http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/evolution/intelligent-design-trial.html) is another great resource for why ID is not a scientific proposition. There are also some books out ([Why evolution is true](http://www.amazon.com/Why-Evolution-True-Jerry-Coyne/dp/0143116649/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1314603649&sr=1-1) and [The greatest show on earth](http://www.amazon.com/Greatest-Show-Earth-Evidence-Evolution/dp/1416594787)) but it is very likely that he would not read them.\n\n>He refused to listen to any facts from me and actually hung up on me.\n\nThere is the problem, there is no amount of discussion or evidence that will get through to him until he starts acting like an adult. 1314603753 In the "Life Expectancy Variation Over Time" section it shows a table that says the life expectancy drops from the upper paleolithic's 34 down to 20 in the neolithic. It then slowly crawls back up. 1327556191 Or perhaps stop posting while drunk. &#3232;\\_&#3232;\n \n\n:) 1313678738 I believe all of this is true and more. If in fact they are keeping this information from us and this technology from us, they are in essence enslaving us upon this planet. They are controlling us by controlling information and technology that will give us much greater freedom from their way of life. More importantly, if this information is true and they are lying to us, everyone has a vested interest to hold them accountable for their actions. For enslaving us by keeping this from us. For this reason alone non believers should be on the front line demanding the truth and the end of the lies. If they are among us, they are part of the conspiracy and may include them controlling us for their own purposes. \n\nThis is why I believe that non believers should be the first one's to be helping us non believers get to the truth of the matter. Non believers serve as roadblocks or speed bumps to the truth. You are playing into their hands of deceit and lies. \n\nIt is very hard to realize that everything we have been told and taught is a lie. Its hard for me to believe but when you start to look at ALL of the information that is out there, how the government responds or lack of response, the warnings from people in power, the history of man wanting to control man, etc, etc, etc, you can easily start to see through the lies and deceit. \n\nThe world could be such a more better place than what we have no. We are totally under their control and most of us don't even know it. Extremely pathetic. 1336144587 And people aren't allowed to test medicines on themselves, its pure supposition without masses of people actually trying them. 1306187505 It looks like Legos, therefore it must be Legos.\n\nI'm sorry, but there is a huge trend to claim that things that look like 'something' ARE that something, and it's just too simplistic to be considered valid to me. I wouldn't rule out that *something* could be on the dark side of the moon, but this is pure fantasy.\n\nAs an aside: people who can't manage basic spelling and punctuation should avoid blogging.\n\nEdit: misspelled 'legos'. How humiliating. 1329768301 The actual document issued by the regulator: [PDF](http://stakeholders.ofcom.org.uk/binaries/broadcast/guidance/psychic-tv-guidance.pdf) 1324659819 and just as easily other people could just not be paying attention to the sky. what would of caught their eye, lights? there are lights everywhere. something your mind might totally dismiss without second glance. sometimes people are actually looking - and see things. 1344122108 powerful 1354702817 How can I be skeptical of someone I've never heard of? 1342995028 if it was actually cheaper i would agree with you. Some small towns may not have a physiotherapist but they usually do have a chiropractor. I have been to one myself when i had a pinched sciatic nerve. after 2 visits the pain was completely gone. I'm sure not every chiropractor buys into the whole philosophy. they just learned the basics and got the certificate so they can help people. 1347015845 i enjoy it. it's fun, and i usually learn something in the first half. 1348546522 It's a fantastic book and should be required reading. The other book required for reading should be Bill Bryson's 'A Short History of Nearly Everything'. 1289951290 This guy creeps me out to no end, he should at least have the decency to use his original first name [Piyush,](http://cenlamar.com/2011/09/07/alexandria-attorney-greg-aymond-governor-jindals-first-name-is-racist/) rather than that ridiculous Bobby shit. 1337346025 The authors of the modern constitution put in some clauses which essentially states that statements deemed offensive members of any community are punishable. This is just a case of the law being taken to the extreme. It may cause a lot of debate in chatrooms, but will never stand up in a court of law. Any lawyer worth his salt can get these charges dismissed.\n 1334243469 Swamp gas trapped inside a balloon shaped like Venus. 1288079318 Criticism him personally all you want. I am not his fan boy. The issue is that he works at the most prestigious science university in probably the world. They don't tend to give tenure to quacks. \n\nI tend to think global warming will occur if we don't mend our ways. That said, my confidence that I evolved from a common ancestor with a chimp trumps that by a long shot. I find it hard to believe that this is a crazy opinion. 1355969900 That house is fake! 1354404022 I find Quantum Physics to be stranger than Religion (and I do NOT believe in any Religion) 1335052448 There are thousands of mysteries in science. Some of the bigger mysteries include:\n\n* Unification of gravity with quantum physics\n* Confirmation of string theory, m-theory, and other speculative theories in physics\n* Specific mechanisms involved in the origin of life on earth\n* Specific mechanisms responsible for some of the more complex diseases and neurological disorders - Alzheimer's, autism, depression, etc.\n* Predicting events in chaotic systems - earthquakes, hurricanes, etc.\n\nThere are many large scale conspiracies that skeptics scoff at, but in a lot of cases we tend to believe in similar conspiracies just at a much smaller scale. For example, there quacks that claim that pharmaceutical companies have a secret cure for cancer, completely own the FDA, and are poisoning your children. I believe that pharmaceutical companies have systemic bias in their research that tacks on a few percentage points to the effectiveness of their products. If they are hiding that bias it qualifies as a conspiracy, but ultimately it's nowhere close to the paranoid conspiracies that other people believe. 1353902661 The scientific method requires control over variables, which has been more or less impossible in the "study" of UFOs. They tend to appear and disappear quite unpredictably, and thus rarely leave us with anything other than ad hoc optical recordings and witness accounts.\n\nSo it's difficult to either fault people for being unscientific, or to discount the phenomenon as not being something truly novel. We have enough data for it to be interesting, but not enough to be particularly elucidating. So, like all phenomena that cannot be reined in with controls, it stays relegated to the "paranormal" playground. 1337195742 I think it is safe to say that no one understands Quantum Mechanics. (Richard Feynman)\n\nThey don't know what they are talking about. 1325297774 Other countries that are hardly comparable to the United States in terms of culture and crime. You can correct me if I'm wrong, but I don't believe any other developed country has the same level of organized crime that we do, especially in gangs that are already involved in international trafficking of drugs. Within the United States gun control has been proven to be at best ineffective, and at worst simply disarming citizens while leaving guns in the hands of criminals. 1342992147 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2BEM-ObMXJY&feature=player_embedded#at=492\n\nIf it's this I'm not impressed. This shot was called "The most compelling UFO footage ever" by the guy who put it out there. That's not saying much. 1301947427 >>*Schizo* guy takes advice from a guy with dementia<< \n\nFTFY 1350919109 Why would you think anyone is offended by this? they probably read it, thought "thats dumb", downvoted and never gave it a second thought. 1340607736 Wow that freaked me out. Question : why is the video quality so good? Most videos transcoded to Youtube from the 80's are poor quality. 1352755785 >Perhaps it's not an official "peer review", but a scientist (I'm assuming this researcher IS a scientist) giving an opinion about another scientist's findings, even to a journalist, would count for more than if the journalist asked some joker in the DEA for his opinion, dont'cha think?\n\nNot at all, because we have no understanding of his background, potential biases on the topic, and most importantly, we only have a soundbite. We don't have his written report, and for all we know, the journalist snipped out that section to fit in with what they personally think of the study.\n\nThe fact that it passed peer review is a sign that there are no major methodological or theoretical flaws with their conclusion.\n\n>point number 2 is something I replied to in your other post. what WERE the methods employed in finding their sample population? it doesn't say, which is another part of this story that smells bad to me.\n\nWhat do you mean they don't mention the methods they used? The authors have a whole section called "METHODS" where they discuss this in detail. Here's what they say:\n\n>"A population-based case-control study was conducted in Los Angeles County, California to investigate associations of testis cancer risk with exposures of the perinatal period, childhood, adolescence, and early adulthood. Eligible cases were men diagnosed with TGCT between December 20, 1986 and April 4, 1991 in Los Angeles County; who were ages 18 to 35 years at diagnosis; spoke English; and were born either in the United States, Europe, Canada, or the Middle East. The Los Angeles County Cancer Surveillance Program identified 201 men who met these criteria. Of these, 8 had either died before being contacted or were too ill to participate, 6 had cognitive difficulties precluding participation, 14 could not be located, 2 were not invited to participate because health care providers denied permission to contact, and 8 chose not to participate. The remaining 163 eligible cases (81%) participated in the study. For each participating case, we attempted to enroll up to 4 unaffected control men who were matched to the case on date of birth (within 3 years), race, ethnicity, and neighborhood of residence at the time of diagnosis. An established procedure was used to identify potential controls by defining a sequence of housing units on a specified block; attempting to identify the sex, age, race, and ethnicity of the inhabitants of each unit; and thereby determining whether 1 or more appropriately matched potential controls were identified. If no potential control was identified after canvassing 150 units, then race was excluded from the matching criteria; and, if a matched control based on the relaxed criteria was not identified within 150 subsequent units, then the case was not included in matched case-control analyses. The procedure described above identified 371 individuals as potential controls for the 163 eligible cases. Of these, 292 men (78.7%) chose to participate. We enrolled controls that were not matched on race/ethnicity for 24 cases, and we were unable to enroll any matched control for 24 additional cases. From 1 to 4 matched controls were enrolled for each remaining case: We identified 1 control for 16 cases, 2 controls for 95 cases, 3 controls for 26 cases, and 4 controls for 2 cases.\n\n>Interviews were conducted in person at participants' homes and were administered by trained interviewers using structured questionnaires. All participants were interviewed between October 16, 1987 and December 15, 1994. Information was requested for a reference period up to 1 year before the diagnosis of TGCT for cases and the same date for each case's matched controls. Participants were asked to provide demographic information; family history of specific cancers and urogenital conditions; personal history of some infectious diseases; and personal use of tobacco, alcohol, and numerous recreational drugs. Participants were asked whether they had ever used each drug, and ever users were asked the first and last years of use and the average number of times per week of use."\n\nIt seems pretty comprehensive and detailed to me. Did you actually read the paper, or are you trying to judge the quality of the study from the newspaper article on it? If the latter, then you may want to look at the reasons why you are arguing against this finding. Are you arguing against it because it is scientifically flawed (which you can only know by reading the paper itself), or are you arguing against it because you smoke cannabis and you don't want to believe that you have increased your risk of testicular cancer?\n\n>I'm not sure if you know what "disinformation" is, but it's crucial to spread it if you want to reinforce a bullshit drug war that costs taxpayers billions and erodes our Constitution like sand on a beach.\n\nThe authors don't get paid for their findings. They get paid whether there's a link or not. What you are suggesting is that people who have dedicated their lives to fighting cancer, would risk funnelling millions of dollars into a line of research which they know is fruitless, and would knowingly end up killing hundreds/thousands/millions of cancer sufferers, just to continue some vague conspiratorial notion of "spreading disinformation".\n\nThat's bullshit. At least read the fucking paper before you implicitly accuse cancer researchers of being mass murderers. 1347418258 You know how much reddit likes TL;DR 1326842993 > to say that science will answer questions of morality and values is scientism\n\nLet me add my 2 cents on this specific issue: you and I both understand what is meant by that statement, but taken word by word, the statement can be interpreted as the assumption that there exists a "right" answer out there a priori, which science is just incapable to figure out.\n\nThat assumption in itself is a scientific issue, no? Whether the notion of objective ethical answers make any sense - it should at least be a valid scientific position to look for evidence.\n\nSo when you and I talk about it, we probably both mean that it's NOT an empirical issue (with an a priori "right" answer), but rather a decision to be taken by people, which is, of course, outside the domain of science.\n\nScience can inform us on the outcomes of decisions, but not on which decision is the "right" one to take. Not because science can't do it (and some other tool can), but because as far as we know, answers to these questions are subjective, not empirical in nature.\n\n> scientific evidence is the only valid form of evidence and that all other forms are lesser, or should be rejected entirely, which is also something we should avoid. \n\nWell, this obviously depends on how fool-proof you want your claims to be. If you claim you saw a red car today, I will probably accept that without asking for a peer-reviewed scientific study, because the claim isn't extraordinary. But certainly if an extraordinary claim is made contradicting a position which has been thoroughly documented in the scientific literature, I am justified in being skeptical and to ask for more credible (scientific) evidence, no? 1346695871 The image link has a line at the bottom of it which mentions the West Virginia Republican Party, which is why I thought they were pushing it. I understand that both parties had a hand over the years; I was making the same point you were making. 1353816140 I know that it has already been commented several times that this chart is out of date, but to further add to the "out of date" mantra, [Unilever](http://www.journalgazette.net/article/20121008/BIZ/310089989/1031/biz) is starting to sell off some (most?) of its food products divisions so they can concentrate on their core health care and personal care line.\n\n 1349832437 "You should have eaten free-range all-natural organic fish without artificial mercury, like Dr Oz recommended. Close but no cigar." 1339086545 I like mine better, it let me believe that I have a wild imagination and that shit ain't real 1341162983 >in a centre called the Burzynski Clinic in Houston, Texas. \n\nMaybe read the article before making irrelevant statements. 1322497138 i can only respect that you can comprehend that. I cannot at this point in time .. not to mention that it makes everything kinda pointless lol ..bummer 1321559706 SVEN LAW, LAWLESS, etc, etc 1329165961 Part II of a scary ghost story! 1304978631 I feel I must point out that we've gone to a lot of effort and expense searching for extraterrestrial bacteria, or even signs that some once existed :)\n\nBut yes, the implications of crossing the galaxy don't sit well with the UFOs are aliens explanation. 1278576771 Level/field 1328282492 shouldn't balloons ascend continuously until it pops? This seems to stay level. Of course there could be a string attached that we don't see but still. 1295974434 Equate toxins with "evil humours". Now everyone talking about toxins is a quack. Nice. I especially love the sentence "waste products are metabolized by organs like the liver". Which is just a different way to say that toxins are detoxified by the liver. The liver is a detoxification organ primarily. Go ask your doctor - that is mainstream science. Toxins are created by the bacteria and yeasts in your intestinal tract - and your body can metabolize or detoxify them just fine assuming you are healthy. No need for colon cleansing or detoxifying cleanses thank you very much. I agree - detoxification and cleanses are *totally* abused by the alternative health community. But toxins (be they drugs, pollutants, pesticides, byproducts of our immune systems and metabolic processes, intestinal flora, heavy metals, etc) are real and are a part of mainstream evidence based medicine. 1250656630 You must be a really fun and great person to hang around with. 1309551627 Sorry you're getting some down-votes, but your honest question looks indistinguishable from some of the trolls we get in r/skeptic. Looks like you've gotten the information you needed, though.\n\nAnd, since nobody has mentioned it yet: you get more mercury exposure from eating a tuna sandwich than you do from a flu shot (some of which still use thimerosal as a preservative in multi-dose vials). 1284935333 [Hate to say I told you so 2 months ago,...thanks for noticing,...](http://www.reddit.com/r/UFOs/comments/8od8c/nitinol_titaniumnickle_linked_to_roswell_debris/) 1250711356 That sounds an awful lot like the cure for dehydration and almost exactly like the cure for chicken pox. Which I'm pretty sure is just the same as the cure for rashes. 1296521973 If I am correct, that is a quote from [Elane Lewis](http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:bYvg15bjOeYJ:hpathy.com/the-hpathy-team/elaine-lewis/+&cd=16&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=us) who is a homeopath, and has something to do with the hpathy web site that had published the recipe. It really does sound like trolling but apparently she is sincere. 1327281896 http://www.skepticforum.com/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=14976\n\nhttp://coastgab.com/index.php?topic=3202.0\n\nCan't find a copy of the video, but the first link worked fine for me, and I even tried it again just now. The second link shines a bit more light on Dr. Leir 1354648712 I detected a hint of sarcasm in his post. You might want to recalibrate your sarcasmeter and check again. 1294277150 Oh please. Am I not allowed enough of an ego to be heard? Why can't someone simply post to this subreddit without it being caught up in some filter cause they used the word 'orb' in the title? Again, it's not the point of reddit. We're all here to share. If we hate something, we will flame and downvote to hell. Why can't that be the case here as well? 1316232537 Dogs are able to smell and hear things that we have insufficient senses to detect. It is likely an animal of some sort. Any time a cat or dog (or other animal) behaves "strangely," this is, by far, the most common reason why. There's nothing paranormal about it. Your apartment is A-OK (although you may want to keep your ear out for noises in the walls, or set mouse traps, or something). 1337096923 [Jerry, just remember: it's not a lie, if you believe it.](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vn_PSJsl0LQ) 1343765699 That is a FANTASTICALLY written piece. I lost it at the phrase "walking suggestible." 1303812103 First law of thermodynamics and conservation of energy. Energy must be transformed by generating heat or doing work, and it is not something that can be created or destroyed unlike, say, mass.\n\nIf you wanted truly perpetual motion (indefinitely long, at least) you would need a frictionless system in a vacuum that would move in a straight line under its own inertia a la Newton's Third (e.g. the Voyager probes). 1350240399 that would actually make sense (ref: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flatland) I never really thought about that as a possible answer. kudos to you, dr. 1296710365 Yea I agree about what you said about the brain.\n\n 1317358292 Do you even know what thermite is, you blithering gobshite?\n\n 1349578393 If new evidence comes up that challenges the theory, I will once again evaluate it rationally. 1328390205 Well not wholly. In the case of beliefs that have been proven false, we have a good scientific understanding. 1288026764 The 4th and 2nd seem quite believable to me. But considering one of them is obviously a fake, who is behind that video and why? If no more videos are released, or witnesses come out, I guess its a hoax then. 1296672073 I just used a 32" hd tv too find it out but achieved nothing... 1354321218 Great thanks, though in the modern criticism section there is this line...\n\n>Former U.S. Chairman of the Federal Reserve Bank Alan Greenspan gives most credit to Ludwig Erhard for Europe's economic recovery. Greenspan writes in his memoir The Age of Turbulence that Erhard's economic policies were the most important aspect of postwar Western Europe recovery, far outweighing the contributions of the Marshall Plan. He states that it was Erhard's reductions in economic regulations that permitted Germany's miraculous recovery, and that these policies also contributed to the recoveries of many other European countries. Japan's recovery is also used as a counter-example, since it experienced rapid growth without any aid whatsoever.[citation needed] \n\nSo I don't know if it's true or not that Japan did what it did without aid.\n\nStill the Marshall Plan does seem to provide a good example where America has after helping in the military defeat of a country (Nazi Germany) then went on to offer significant aid to that country.\n\n>But some on reddit like to believe it is the root of all evil and can do no good.\n\nYes unfortunately. I'm not one of them though. The American constitution with its focus on individual freedom has had massive positive effect all around the planet. Many countries owe their modern laws, and freedoms that come from them, to the founding fathers of America. 1294751812 Thank you kind sir. I am downloading a few episodes now. 1339895239 So you have no evidence, but you think it's a conspiracy? 1350905943 I thought the whole point of this was to act as a placebo effect. How can you have a placebo effect if you don't know what's happening? 1306957710 exactly :D 1354490831 did the ancients have a printing press? 1322091840 I know the Nnnghk you're talking about, he's a little shit. Always stealing my tinfoil hat.... 1342723125 >QM isn't an assumption\n\nYou misunderstood. I meant assumptions made by the author of the video, not assumptions about quantum mechanics in general.\n\n>I can easily point to MANY books\n\nPlease do. 1299706803 Oh solipsism, because your mind is such a powerful tool that it governs all that you do. Even though the placebo effect doesn't effect every disease or, yet we are all contained within your mind, because you deny both science and technology to believe what you want to believe. 1333526873 It craps out on very complicated sites, but it seems to be getting better.\n\nA couple of months ago it couldn't save any reddit sites, and no [it does an ok job](http://backupurl.com/5c2m1j).\n\nMany things are ruined when cached, but it's still better than a screenshot. 1292713639 For the record, I **am** an asshole; However my comment was made in jest....\n\nThough the only vegan I've known was an outright cunt, I recognize the reason was problems other than the lack of meat in her diet. 1346053089 Quite true. 1332476257 Come on! We're not creationists here - you can spell his last name as Myers. 1294215846 Or any food that has been in a factory, truck, warehouse, etc. 1286103037 >There was one exception, however; anxiety disorders were 32% less frequent during the last lunar quarter. \n\nEven the study shows evidence of a correlation between anxiety disorders and the lunar cycle. I daresay, when reaching their conclusions, the authors of the study exhibited the same confirmation bias as much of /r/skeptic seems to; dismissing evidence in favour of a predetermined conclusion. 1353476938 Holy cow. You are a right badass. 1321284104 The parents and many involved are saying it was resurrected. Perfectly ripe for skepticism. 1334278254 > But don't let the word intellectual scare you off.\n\nI hate that they felt a need for a caveat. 1299477164 Thank you very much mate. It's been incredibly tough but life stops for nobody, and I know Dad would have wanted me to push through and get my life back together. Definitely agree about the comments, some excellent theories and ideas being shared. 1308482424 You might want to note that Steven Jones is a Biologist and he says "... and **we're** turning really not into evolutionists, but into theologians."\n\nAlso, I tend to agree with him about much of Evolutionary Psychology in general, and I don't think Pinker's response to Jones' criticism was substantive. 1290221367 >What’s with the Mayans suddenly? The Bible is much more authoritative on the end of the world but there is no date in the Bible. People always want a date. I can say with certainty that the end of the world is not this year. We could be heading into some very difficult times economically but it won’t be the end of the world as we know it. Especially, since Romney will kick Obama’s butt out of office!!\n\nCan somebody please tell me to stop reading the comments under the article? 1336059186 Relevant youtube video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rKKvmFZBALo 1349290232 I think it sorta looks like Darth Maul. 1341373901 > Go watch the documentary people. No seriously, [7] they are raising some good questions in between all the spin and the [8] plámas, but bring your sceptical shades\n\nVery well put. That's exactly how I feel. 1295028761 > I don't think running us through a meat grinder would be diplomatic at all.\n\nThis is part of the whole brainwashing/indoctrination thing. One would just as easily have a positive association with E.T. contact if it were more commonly (or at all) portrayed in such a manner by the MSM. 1331781855 > This is proven\n\nHi, I'm a dumb foreigner. How is this proven? 1290718540 fake as hell 1312534231 I moved to New Jersey in the mid-70s, and there was an experiment going on at Rahway prison for those convicted of child sexual abuse. The goal was not to punish but to treat them. There were media interviews, and the inmates all said the program was wonderful and that it worked. \n\nSome years later, they studied the recidivism rate for those in the program and those not in it, and there was no difference. They abandoned the program.\n\nYour use of sex crimes and sexual offenders is broader than child sexual abuse, so I don't know if it carries over. The Last Psychiatrist has [an article on pedophilia here](http://thelastpsychiatrist.com/2007/03/a_primer_on_pedophilia.html) if you're interested in diagnosis and treatment. His key comment: " all of our attempts at catching pedophiles before they offend are doomed to absolute failure" 1328842741 On the bright side, fewer people will take the vaccine-autism link seriously now that Trump of all people is advocating it. Seems like even Fox can't seriously find a way to stand for it now that Trump is backing the idea. 1333466576 3.999... is the same as 3 + .999... so yes it is 4.\n\nThink of it like this. 1/3 = .333... 2/3 = .666... 3/3 = .999... = 1\n\n 1306338355 I don't think I believe you 1242174587 Does nano-thermite explode though? I don't think so.\n\nThis whole thermite business is so shady. Ever ask yourself why TNT wasn't found at ground zero, or some other well known explosive? TNT is a really novel molecule, synthesized exclusively for its exploding properties. *That* would be an interesting find at ground zero, since there's really no other reason it would be there than to blow stuff up.\n\nKnow what thermite is? It's a metal oxide mixed with a metal powder. Sound vague? Yeah, because you can make it out of lots of different combinations of metals. Nothing too novel about thermite. Is it that far fetched to think that in all that molten aluminum and iron at the crash site that some metal formed an oxide? Hardly a smoking gun. Truthers just latched on to the one questionable compound that could have reasonably formed on its own.\n\nAnd to top it all off, it doesn't even explode! So silly. 1346071245 Rock, Rock, Photographic Artifact, Rock\n\nOccam's razor bitches. 1347411026 > This podcast features a panel of scientists...and Rebecca Watson.\n\nWhere did you get the idea that all of the other panelists were scientists? I've just looked through their bios on theskepticsguide.org, and while they all have credentials listed that show them to be stalwarts of the skeptical community, the only one whose occupation is listed as being in the sciences is Steven Novella (academic neurologist).\n\nThe only other person who's profession and educational background they mention is Evan: "Evan's profession is in television production, and he holds a BA in Communications from Central Connecticut State University. " - so he's not a scientist.\n\nIf any of the others had an education in the sciences, I assume they would have mentioned it. So I feel confident in surmising that Steven Novella is the only scientist in the group, and the rest are only science enthusiasts.\n\nThis strange contempt for Rebecca Watson, based on these kind of nonsense reasons, is really bizarre. If you just don't like her personality, I can understand that. People don't mesh with each other all the time, that's life. But just leave it at that instead of trying to justify your antipathy. 1330948288 Could you direct me to a list of Monsantos unethical behaviors? \n\nI've read through their wikipedia page, but those things listed there don't seem outstandingly evil, more like standard corporation stuff.\n\nIf you could provide me with something to read, that would be great. I don't want to make an uninformed decision. 1350658145 He didn't ask her for coffee, IIRC... he asked her to "come back to his (hotel) room" which is totally more creepy. 1310154560 I haven't seen that movie, but thank you for the recommendation, I will add it to my list! \n\nI had added the movie "[Paul](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1092026/)" to my list yesterday based on [this clip](http://www.megavideo.com/?v=IHU0G81X). :D 1308088395 > it could be an out of focus object.\n\nYup! Thanks for weighing in. 1353640289 Even if we assume that the data is worthless due to meddling researchers, this doesn't invalidate all the other data done by scientists all over the world that shows similar things about climate change. More research certainly needs to be done, and it's being done. 1259789849 Yeah, to hell with with survival training, and other such inconveniences. We'll just luxuriate for a year in these posh underground digs, and then we'll be set free on a post-apocalyptic world.\n\nWhat could go wrong with this scenario? 1348940447 Well then okay, I agree that extremist Islamist groups are a problem, I don't think anyone is claiming that they are not. It's just a question of whether those groups form because of Islam, or that they form and end up using Islam as a basis. 1347826923 The people that don't give a rats ass about the environment or climate. As long as one is making money, one has little need to worry about details like the climate, environment or human rights. 1340060106 I've started a critical-thinking based political/social commentary group blog at critical-thinker.net. Stop by and send me a link to your blog if you don't mind. 1299116442 Yeah. Easier to disassociate. 1347380162 http://www.goominet.com/unspeakable-vault/vault/361/ 1291989316 i didn't mean to offend you. in my opinion these can all be explained by photography related issues. 1345418836 BRB, going to start selling potions on craigslist. 1345227349 You kid, but at some point I guarantee you're going see new agers espousing the benefits of the coprophagic diet, which will keep you safe from chemicals like sodium chloride and citric acid! 1341781662 I'm a firm believer that our government is currently on the moon, and have been on the moon since the 50s. \n\nWe need to wake up folks. The apathy in this country is destroying our democracy. 1318872017 http://imgur.com/XYYae This is the casing.\n\nhttp://imgur.com/o4Jlu This is the clock location. 1329687498 Wikipedia does not agree with you. Night soil is raw human feces and is not even legal to use in the US just as raw bovine feces is not legal to use. You have pathogens in the feces of animals and people, both of them have to get processed and treated before they can be used as manure, and by that time all the pathogenic microbes have died.\n\nAs for you other concerns, we only mandate putting things on labels if it relates to the consumers health. If we were to start mandating that companies include the environmental impact of their products on their labels then we would start with far more important things like carbon footprint, whether or not ecologically important land has been destroyed, etc, before we started including GMOs. 1352435038 You have to walk slow enough that you dont disturb the ash layer and touch the burning coals underneath, but fast enough that you aren't in contact with the ash for too long. 1343088769 "You have enemies? Good. That means you've stood up for something, sometime in your life."\n\n- Winston Churchill 1354004832 I can't cite sources right now, but my understanding is that in every study that has been done on this condition, sufferers can't tell the difference (with better than 50% accuracy) between a device which is switched on and a device which is switched off. 1315915074 I'm thinking that was a lie. 1296295142 While I definitely agree with you and made an argument similar to yours in another post, it's no point preaching to this crowd. Everyone in this subreddit decides to bring out the pitchforks and downvote any dissenting views before considering a discussion of why this sort of thing is bad. /r/skeptic is turning into /r/politics' bastard son. It's a shame too, at only 30,000 subscribers. 1316989963 It loads!! Thank you!! Super anxious to read it now hahaha. 1331103389 So are you saying that people are compelled to talk to you? and you believe that it's esoteric in nature? 1320676138 I see - apologies, I was approaching it from a different angle (whether the grounding effect worked as they said it did).\n\nTried to find the paper so that we could at least see what that actually says, but I'm not getting very far. Wevers full name is Rutger Wever, and I found hints (but not very firm ones) that the paper was published by Springer-Verlag in "The circadian system of man: Results of experiments under temporal isolation", but that was published in 1979 and appears to be out-of-print - couldn't find any digital copies. Might get it in a library or used if you're curious enough and don't mind the risk that it's not even in there.\n\nAs for the papers on the research page - I'm not qualified in any way to evaluate them properly (especially the health claims), and I wouldn't know where to look for good quality independent medical research. Unless someone else here can help, we're at a dead-end.\n\nEdit: one other thing - I found a lot of references to experiments where Wever put subjects in an EMF-shielded room. I'm wondering if this is what is meant by grounded, since to shield a room like this, you use a Faraday cage, which needs to be grounded (the subjects aren't necessarily grounded themselves)? 1316068219 I'm stealing this and using it for ever. And I'm not giving you royalties. 1335107836 How did she react? 1332114886 Well I still don't understand. Like I said many commenters "took the bait" so to speak, so it seems like the poster was correct that they had the opinion that placebos were bad therapy. So maybe the poster was making a generally unwarranted assumption, but to the audience of /r/skeptic, it was aptly targeted.\n\nYour example isn't fair. A placebo is something which by definition is something "fake", but that has a real effect through expectation. It's therefore reasonable to address a forum dedicated to the criticism of things which are not real to question its value. George Bush isn't defined by having blown up the WTC, he's defined as an anglo male who served as president of the US. Positing that he had blown up WTC would be highly dubious assertion to most circles. That being said, it would have been well-received and therefore rhetorically useful to have made that assumption in /r/conspiracy (although there are some commenters there who would object to the assumption.)\n\nSo why was it a circlejerk again? The poster said, in effect, "maybe placebos aren't bad." Most commenters have taken both sides of the question, validating the poster's framing of the inquiry in terms of the position with which he/she didn't agree. 1278099315 DUDE. shouldve installed a camera 1326574702 Rather famous [trance DJ](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_Oakenfold) from the UK.\n\nThe only reason I know the name is because an ex-girlfriend was a bit of a rave kid. 1303510162 At some point, we wont be able to feed everyone and they will be swimming in their own waste. Where that is, I have no idea, but population control is an issue that needs to be addressed. There has to be enough food and a way to get rid of the waste, or use it somehow. \n\nTake a 55 gallon drum, fill it with 50 gallons of water, put in 20lbs of sugar, then add yeast. Can it support 7 billion yeast? Yes, quite easily. As the yeast consume the sugar, they reproduce profusely producing CO2 and ETOH, and eventually when there is between 10% and 20% ethanol in the barrel, the yeast die off in their own waste. If they cant get out and spread to other areas, they will die due to lack of food or in their own waste. The earth is our 55 gallon drum and we are ripping through the sugar pretty damn fast.\n\nWe can find new ways to produce more food, and new ways to use the waste to produce more, but there will still come a point where we cant sustain it. Weather can make that come sooner or later. 1343490869 I've actually never heard of the case until now. Morehead seems to have quite a few strange happenings, though -- Mr. Gatti's, Nunn Hall, and Clack Mountain all come to mind. People seem to believe those are all haunted locales. 1354073237 Fair enough. It does look and feel like blogspam though, which is why most folks chose purple. 1354295221 Looks like a droplet of water on the lens. 1349248065 I take issue with the word dismissive, because that makes it sound like religion was tossed aside without due consideration.\n\nI tossed it aside after much consideration, finding it lacking. 1296183504 That information isn't entirely correct. IPCC represents thousands of scientists, and there's like a couple of dozen skeptic scientists (that are dubious as well). However the IPCC scientists were like 93% sure man made global warming is happening (but that percentage is rising because of the effects that are becoming more apparent.) 1322918505 I came here to post exactly this. I've found that statement to be one of the most helpful things to keep in mind when arguing with people who have no evidence to base their opinions upon. 1356381239 > Skeptics will just claim they are Photoshopped.\n\nThat's because, unless the object is far away and out of focus, the object _is_ photoshopped.\n\nI have yet to see a clear picture of a UFO that isn't obviously CGI'd.\n\nEdit: Downvote, lol? Show me a picture that isn't 'shopped instead. 1295862276 I'll assume you aren't being a jackass -- the point is, he says Bill Nye is throwing ad hominem attacks, when in fact Bill Nye was being completely respectful (while still disagreeing with his conclusion) and then the guy starts in with "Mr. Comedian" which was clearly said in a tone that marks it as an ad hominem attack... Pot calling the kettle black -- even though the kettle wasn't even being black... or something. 1324616811 >Because if an argument only becomes privileged when made by a certain class of people, then I feel that all you've done is admitted that it's an attack on a person and not on the argument.\n\nThat's not what claims of privilege are about. Nobody's opinion becomes invalidated because they are white or male. You seem to be interpreting "check your privilege" as a kind of ad hominem, when it has nothing to do with the person themselves but their biased perspective. \n\nThat is, if a guy is aware of their privilege, and adjusts their argument accordingly (to eliminate all biases and flawed thinking on that topic) then it would be absurd to tell him to 'check his privilege'. \n\nThis is why so many people who understand the concept of 'privilege' get confused when people try to argue that it's used as a way of shutting down discussion or as an ad hominem. It's a way of weeding out shitty arguments and continuing discussion; it only stops discussing if the person who gets called out on the ignorance gets all annoyed and leaves the discussion. In other words, it's like telling a creationist to read a science book. 1347503324 The Mormons can have Independence, MO. It's a shithole. 1351285170 The board doesn't do anything. At all. The [ideomotor effect](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ideomotor_effect) makes the board work. \n\nIf the Ouija Board were demonic, it wouldn’t be sold at Walmart. 1333231967 Obviously the TARDIS. Calm down, its just The Doctor. 1326942249 So you can decide for yourselves, here's a link someone gave me earlier today, supposedly debunking a lot of what is said in Thrive. I haven't read much of it yet, so it could obviously be dis-information.\n\n[http://thrivedebunked.wordpress.com/](http://thrivedebunked.wordpress.com/) 1338017899 I'm surprised they didn't include "Magnets. How do they work?" 1291753646 Many can be explained by nighttime sky divers who do events at airshows, they have to practice... 1341628534 its not news, its cnn. 1293212856 That's what I am saying though - if there is not enough evidence to know either way, that's not skepticism in my book - that's just as bad as belief itself. 1296200942 "Tu fui, ego eris."-What you are, I was; what I am, you will become." They explore something like this in the game Virtue's last Reward. The main character's can slingshot their consciousness through time to either remember something or tell their-selves something at that age. \n\nEDIT: forgot to mention the fact that the character's actually do pass out when they do this. 1353683701 Ball Lightning... Not really. Is that a serious question though? 1321103748 I worked with people that were dying for nearly a decade, I did not find this to be the case. I am open to new info though. Do you have any examples of people being dishonest on their deathbed? 1333952807 I used to have that book. Turns out it was self-published by a total crank. He's in jail now for fraud. 1241398644 People are being rather nasty, but I will say that, if it was real to you, and you're suffering from PTSD symptoms, there may have been something there, something that your sub-concious is terrified of. When children are very young we don't know what to be afraid of, we imagine later on, perhaps it's like a suppressed memory that is causing the PTSD. \n\nAlso, I would like to add that I am scared and exhilarated by the idea of Aliens or UFO's. \n\nKeep the anxiety under control OP, that can do more harm. 1345775852 Using the argument that Muslim women are badly treated so Rebecca should not complain makes no sense. 1351113166 I just drove past it last week. Not so scary now that they remodeled the whole house. 1287435674 What if it did work? What if the nude pictures and sexing *did* strengthen his telepathic connection with the "other side"? We can't prove that it didn't. \n\nAt the very least he could **say** that it worked. And, who could say otherwise? 1340543735 Yeah exactly. If that's a real story, then that nurse obviously did not know how microwaves work. 1333014947 I have seen something very similar in Fairfax, Virginia. I was looking at the stars, then I noticed one begin to move very slowly, then eventually fade out. Every time I've seen one do this, I see another in the same area do the exact same thing moments later. 1355902695 Your childs life is at stake, and you're gambling? 1320149904 a lack of evidence does not disprove something. 1319681722 Sorry to be blunt, but if you think your comment is science then you're pretty simple. 1294272979 Please do. \nI just realized you guys (being American, yes?) have military posts all over, are we talking about domestic military healthcare or abroad, or both? 1345631252 > we'll just have to agree to disagree\n\nFair enough. \n\n> I'm skeptical that a free market could do any better than what we have now.\n\nAnd that's why libertarians seem like evangelists. They want to try to inform others of the information that support their views.\n\n> I see a bad govt and want it better\n\nMay I ask how you would propose making it better? 1313637658 Billions which, were it not for the alleged false flag of human-caused climate change, could instead have been invested into researching and combating the true cause of climate change, up to and including bonafide terraforming. Billions which, in most instances, will never end up in the pockets of the people doing climate research, but rather to those who are instead researching green technology. There is likely almost no overlap between the two. Climatology and engineering are two very different birds.\n\nThere is simply no reason at all for the scientists involved to fabricate evidence, let alone a reason so compelling that a mere 0.17% of them would be willing to dissent. 1353794111 Okay, I'm not going to call CPS on my boss. Especially if I don't know that hiatal massage is not a real thing. I'm sure he would be receptive to some information about it if I had some and make sure his kid makes his appointment with the real doctor. 1295391347 If I just downvoted, you wouldn't know why. I let you know why to help prevent you from repeating being a fucktard in the future. Welcome to the internet. Maybe you should lurk for a while if you're that sensitive. 1352506395 You might like /r/4chan or /r/classic4chan then, it's where we steal and hoard the funny stuff ;) 1345041766 Welcome to the world of UFO videos. 1287765188 The standard of evidence certainly isn't as rigorous as, say, physics. It's definitely a science, but it's a bit of a softer science, like sociology or anthropology. Neurology, on the other hand, is a bit of a different story. 1337863455 So is the entire issue of obesity. 1311134794 Yea. Well, 3 of my friends along with myself joined r/UFOs yesterday **because** of his post in that thread. That one spam link you saw doesn't have anything to do with what he posted. What you saw as endearing and annoying I found to be extremely interesting and eye opening. 1328751342 Agreed. Just because it's *less stupid* doesn't mean it still isn't really stupid. 1342634700 > Personally, I think that if there are Type 3 civilizations out there we may not have found them because they are freaking TYPE 3 civilizations\n\nIt could also be because what we're seeing in space is actually millions of years in the past so they may have not even been created. They may exist and we just can't see them... yet. 1333992765 Thanks for mentioning that you thought they might have corrected themselves. I wouldn't be aware of the...er... clarification (Is it still a clarification if you're clarifying that you have no idea? I guess it is, but it seems wrong to call it that) otherwise! 1346975151 >A great letter, but consider that in 2050 \n\n...\n\n>Given that this will take at least 15-20 years\n\nThat still makes thorium relevant since thorium is so abundant. Do you think we won't be able to make a thorium breeder? 1344352845 I thought you were joking. And wait..is that a picture of the moon with flames photoshopped onto it? 1290964958 Hmm... interesting. I think I understand. 1353536796 At least soldiers get paid and have an infrastructure supporting them. 1354854307 You seem to be redefining terms to fit your viewpoint. It won't be possible to continue the discussion if one party is making up definitions.\n\nSentience and self-awareness are not at all the same thing. You asked for a definition of sentience, so here is one, from Merriam Webster:\n"responsive to or conscious of sense impressions"\nSense impressions means things like smell, touch, pain, etc. \n\nI don't understand why you disagree that human sentience comes from the nervous system. This is not really disputed by scientists. \n\nMany animals cannot recognize themselves in the mirror, but can still experience pain, as is evident by their responses to injury and other hardships. Some nonhuman animals can recognize themselves in a mirror, but I don't think that's relevant.\n\nAs I said before, there is actually evidence that bacteria aren't sentient. Yes, they are alive, but so are plants. There is no evolutionary reason for plants or bacteria to develop sentience, and since we know that in humans it is the nervous system that provides sentience, it is very unlikely that any organism without a nervous system and without the ability to avoid danger would develop sentience.\n\nThe way bacteria react to environments is much simpler than the way animals do. Their reactions are on a basic chemical level. Roombas don't actually have the ability to learn from past situations. They can only react to current situations, or respond to their programming. It is conceivable that a robot could be sentient, but I don't think that artificial intelligence is nearly that advanced yet.\n\nYou asked for evidence of animal sentience. There is a lot. Here is one particular scientific paper: http://www.springerlink.com/content/p4g44725t17126x0/\n\nSince you seem not to think that animals deserve our consideration, do you think it's okay to torture a cat, dog, chimp, or other animal? 1322013113 Whedon or Wheaton? Did Wheaton get it from Whedon? And did Plait get it from Wheaton, or is it Plait's Law? \n\nOrdinarily, I'd just assume it was a typo, but it also seems like something that Joss Whedon could have said. 1341516990 As far as the skeptic goes in me, which resides over a larger part of my perspective than the believer does, this is by a far the best supporting evidence for a real and actual aerial phenomena that we don't currently understand. \n\nThe camera shake was verified but it was only a few arcseconds of the camera shifting during the exposure (as you would expect in a non-mounted night time camera shot). The shaking was not sufficient to make the streak across the sky shown in the picture. This object was also verified to not be the moon or any other known star. \n\nI'm pretty sure day/night superimpositions were made that showed any questionable phenomenon to be clearly airborne. \n\nThere are a few documentaries out that cover the story. They're quite interesting 1312825743 Wow.... and I mean WOW. I am still not sure if this is a total Poe or not... \n\nOnly 11 members. I think the site is less than a year old (not sure - the forums suddenly got locked out while I was browsing them, and I think that was the date I saw in the stats). There are nearly 4800 posts, the vast majority of which are between just TWO of the users. Either two very deluded people, or one VERY delude person, or a very committed hoaxer... 1340867779 I'll keep it up, not so I feel that I'm better than you...Only an asshole like yourself would think I care about trying to be better than you over Reddit, you fool. But keep up your good work troll. 1347364421 It could also be his hand, depending on how he was holding the phone. 1341199084 Schrodinger's sunscreen. 1337537153 The box never said that it worked on nails. Most consumers would draw the conclusion that it would but that's not the manufacturers fault - it's a good strategy. 1274976425 hi, sorry, but if it was rain, i need to go to an hospital...;) 1330771729 "Everyone who goes on ahead and does not abide in the teaching of Christ, does not have God. Whoever abides in the teaching has both the Father and the Son. If anyone comes to you and does not bring this teaching, do not receive him into your house or give him any greeting, for whoever greets him takes part in his wicked works."\n\n2 John 1:9-11\n\nAccording to the bible Christians should only help them if they are also Christian. Your stupid hippy dippy Christianity was invented in the 60s and has next to no bearing on orthodox Christian teaching. 1344345495 No, you have stepped into my clever trap (yeah, yeah, that's it - it has *nothing* to do with needing to be clearer in the first place). Just because 95% of women are *capable* of having a safe and happy home birth does not mean that they all do. If a labor progresses too long, if a mother gets skittish, if - basically - mom ain't feelin' it, to the hospital they go. Generally to get a zap of pitocin, which my wife isn't allowed to use or she loses her license to practice.\n\nWhich outlines how patchwork the MANAStats database is - in most states, midwives aren't licensed *at all* so they have no license to lose. What they'll do in similar situations is put a squirt of pitocin on a cotton ball and put it up in mom's cheek down by the gums, which hustles labor along just dandy. So suppose you're trying to use the MANAStats database to find out about the use of pitocin in labor. They'd likely refuse you the data - because a lot of births in their database *did* have pitocin involved, but the data *might* indicate that (if it's legal in the midwife's state, *might not* indicate that (if it's illegal in the midwife's state and they used it anyway) or, worst case, *might indicate that pitocin was used illegally* and therefore, a midwife with the exact same practice modality in Arkansas as they use in New York could end up facing criminal charges simply for participating in the study.\n\nIt's a total catch-22. Collect the data and risk showing that your members are practicing outside of the scope they've managed to assemble across a patchwork of 50 states... or continue practicing in darkness and never get the laws changed. And what do they get? "*Homebirth midwives don't want you to know.*" 1258390917 If you go into court, proof has to lie on both sides or the case is null and void. You can't claim proof to back up one theory, without having proof to disprove another.\n\nAt the end of the day, we are all observers and there will never be the proof needed to prove or disprove.\n\nUntil such times as other life was to pop down and say hello, or Nasa was to find the building blocks of life (but still wouldn't prove other intelligent exists.) Then all skeptics are going to say to get proof that we cannot possibly get yet. 1354274019 Well I can add something to the list on here. Half of our rooms on the ground floor face the parking lot. I've walked by the window for 109 a half dozen times tonight while outside having a cigarette. Its been dark, no one is staying in there, no has been in there. When I was outside just now I turned to flick my cigarette and come back in and thru the sheer curtains I can see that the light on the night stand is on. Will I be going to turn it off? Nope. 1348653118 I presume you believe the computer on which you are writing exists. You grossly oversimplify a complex and fascinating issue by assuming you are even capable of distinguishing your beliefs from what you think you know objectively. Purely epistemic concerns aside, your cognitive apparatus (and mine) does a superlative job of modeling the world, but in a way which interweaves emotion, personality structure and external input. Our reality is intersubjective. You cannot blithely weed out the beliefs from the statements of fact. And adherents of the 'CSICOP' brand of skepticism often have a perceptible personal stake in seeing that the status quo is left undisturbed.\n\nAs to your second point, I reiterate: we simply don't have the intellectual juice at this stage to judge which places a civilisation one million years older than ours might like to visit nor what technology they might have at their disposal.\n\n 1331843013 You know that was sarcasm right?... 1331869822 Teacher: "OK class. Can anyone tell me why a catastrophic global flood 5000 years ago wouldn't lay down a thick layer of deposits encompassing the remains of every species that has ever lived on the planet; but would in fact lay down literally thousands of layers, with the organisms becoming more and more simple as the layers got deeper?" \n\nJohnny: "Umm, because the layers were made a different times, and the deeper ones were made first?"\n\nTeacher: "NO Johnny! That's just what the Devil *wants* you to think!" 1354994101 Stay away from Monument Blvd. 1352100404 And while we're at it, here:\nhttp://skepticsannotatedbible.com/index.htm\n\nAll the Abrahamic religions have content in their scriptures that encourage violence. When followers of those religions feel like being violent, they find those parts particularly compelling. Never did I say that Islam was peaceful... I ~~said~~ insunuated that all religions are violent and the only reason that Muslims (or, 1/1000% of them) are finding their violent versus meaningful all of a sudden is because of their current geopolitical situation. 1333855298 I have noticed that many rational people start to develop a dice-related superstition when they play rpgs. Partly, it was just for fun (a friend of mine had a pentagram where he would place the dice) but sometimes you can't be sure whether they are serious or not ("Stop using those dice! You keep rolling awful numbers!"). 1332172099 Who the hell is this Eric Bakker guy? He doesn't even have a wikipedia page.\n\nI offer 1000 upvotes to someone who can prove to me that he's a real person. 1312845337 How about showing the unmanipulated picture? WTF? 1339182679 i certainly wouldn't dismiss it, as long as it's assumed it's all going on in their brain. people who achieve those kinds of frames of consciousness probably do it through their own social/developmental predispositions though, not by reading FAQs :P 1341012922 Thank you. I'd love to get her a copy, but it's always been difficult to even talk to her for 15 minutes much less get her to read a whole book. She's an extremely ~~stubborn~~ independent woman. 1328668343 Nice to know that Canadian people are just as gullible as Americans. I hate it when we're the stupidest people on the planet.\n\nI'm guessing that if someone tried to have sex with the girls, they would have "snapped right out".\n\n(Yes, I see they're just kids. But it was such a good line I couldn't resist. In no way am I advocating sex with under-age people) 1339806322 Thank you too. It's been fun.\n\n>My involvement in the paranormal as a ritualist has been to get rid of it, not to prove it's validity.\n\nThat's the difference between religion and science.\n\nAs a skeptic, it still frustrates me to think people are willing to just assign their beliefs and not investigate what really happened, but I'm far more accepting of that than someone who investigates something and stops looking at the paranormal answer leading people down bad science. 1324657683 Watch the show Dead Like Me. You'd like it. 1351716335 [Here ya go](http://ghostsstory.com/blog/497/hauntings-in-maryland/) :) 1349679228 Kinda reminds me of [Prosopagnosia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prosopagnosia), but I don't think that that's sporadic. 1326468008 My only thought is "What the hell are they thinking? 24 hours straight? Are they nuts??"\n\nI guess we'll see how it goes :) 1316799456 Likewise. This is the first time i am reading about a golden disc. Highly likely that it is a frisbee as the article claims(ignoring what the photographer said). But again, it could be something else too... 1330352070 Yes, a random youtube comment is clearly a good place to learn about anonymous. Or any other organization. 1304496981 A lot of them are genuinely convinced. I used to be one of them. 1309736549 It's like the Illuminatus! Sequel. Now with Reptilians! 1316148095 Yes, yes [they can](http://pesn.com/2005/11/16/9600203_New_Nazi_Bell/),...do you have the funding for it? \n\n\nBut this is [nothing new](http://www.searlsolution.com/technology3.html),....\n\n\nThe author of the original post site is using a number of these patents to build one himself, as mentioned in one of the interviews posted below...seriously-do read/listen to the content,... 1275188734 It's a real [thing](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mouthfeel) but yeah, it just grosses me out saying it. 1335297708 If a person came to me saying they had information about my child I'd want them questioned by the police. Possibly as a suspect. Regardless of their claim. 1320121560 Why did you get downvotes for this? Surely, no one thinks this is false. If there's someone who doesn't believe this is true, I need to talk to them and find out what they think is going on. 1285121083 I didn't know stupid was hereditary. 1336666691 All that drama scince elevatergate is so fucking ridicoulus. A while ago i unsubbed from quite a few youtube channels I was subscribled to a long time, something I never did before. Why? The occasional drama vid would be one thing, but there are so many of them I've just grown tired of seeing those faces and hearing those voices. The "old gang" has become very protective of their little clique, and instead of discussing their differences in private, they publicize all their actions in real time on all their channels and blogs. They all do stupid shit, but all sides only see the errors of others and then go on some 5 minute rant about how "we" are all rational and "they" are behaving like creationists. 1345813143 >Again, I never once asserted that he was anti-vaccination.\n\nSo, again, what was the point in saying "Celebrities and Ron Paul" in regards to "evidence against vaccinations"? What else could that have possibly meant other than you asserting Ron Paul is anti-vaccination? That's what the comic portrayed, and that's what you comment portrayed. Like I said before, if I am incorrect in this judgement of your comment, please, let me know.\n\n>He is, however, asserting a public policy that diminishes the effectiveness of vaccination and puts children in danger, **and he is doing so because he doesn't understand how vaccinations work.**\n\nYou keep asserting this, but all you've shown in your articles is that *he is following the libertarian position* on the matter. For his political position he probably values the personal liberty of being able to choose to vaccinate or non-vaccinate over government mandated vaccination.\n\n>So you found the links I provided but you didn't read them. This is a waste of my time.\n\nOf course I read them. If you believe there's something in there that supports your position, then by all means quote it here. But thus far you've shown nothing beyond what we all know and agree upon. 1326665338 >And realistically, saying "I didn't know a severely sick kid needed a doctor" is like saying "I didn't know I wasn't allowed to plow my car into old ladies." "I didn't know" is never an adequate defence.\n\nNot if you truly believe God will heal 1320367035 Yeah I see. Makes much more sense now. Lol 1355609978 I agree entirely. Jack Ruby's connection to the mafia is tenuous at best. Any one who knew him said that he shot Oswald because he thought he would be considered a hero. It had nothing to do with the mob. 1343511918 i think CERN (steins;gate reference)\nthey want my time machine to take over the world! 1326513993 I bet when you close your eyes, the world doesn't exist. 1346771646 yeah, i normally don't make much mention of it. i gauge the opinions of others around me before i come out with this info. i'm well aware that this is tin-foil-hat-wearing-lunatic territory so i know better than to just start blaring on about all the UFOs I've seen :) 1318206401 Okay. So we find interesting signals that could be artificially produced. How do we go about finding if they actually are, and then what? Its not like we would be able to contact them any time in the near future. 1325849935 " This individual may have influenced " - this is why you need control group (some people of approximately same body fat and general health) and rigorous experimental set up. \n\nThere was no miraculous increase in respiration (and thus heat output) as well, two times what you have at rest is not that much. I'm not sure what is even being claimed here, TBH. The claims do not appear particularly extraordinary to me, and this 'influences the autonomous neurous system thing' is significantly nonsense as this system will try to keep you alive in any case. People can learn to consciously control a lot of stuff we don't normally consciously control, and there's not that much point in this because 2x metabolic rate is readily obtained in more natural ways like shivering, or if you want, flexing statically. And none of that has anything to do with saying mantras to yourself. 1349115221 I'm a little late here, 5 days late, but I personally do not believe in the notion of being able to ask a haunting to leave or return. If you want to see things like that again, I would go looking for them. Investigate reportedly paranormal places. 1334155485 Circles made of bullshit.. in crop fields.. daym scary. 1351007147 kinky. 1317332761 Know what happens after the abortion? The doctor reassembles the body parts in a pan to make sure he got it all out. I've seen video. NSFL.\n 1328683590 *grabs popcorn* 1296515202 ANYTHING is a homeopathic treatment. That's the beauty of it. No bothering with researching and rigorously testing for side-effects -- you can just whip up some well-known compound in a bowl, dilute it until it's just water, and sell it as "homeopathic."\n\nThe genius of homeopathy is that you'll get harmful effects from overdosing on just about anything -- usually something in the stomach, heart, lungs or any combination thereof. Therefore, the "theory" has evolved so that there is a wide gamut of preparations and concoctions to cure just those ailments, so if one doesn't work, you go on to the next -- paying through the nose every time, of course. 1290373356 I agree with you on nearly every point. Yes it will be virtually impossible to definitively convince her she's not looking at an alien. Yes one runs the risk of looking like a pessimist or a needlessly argumentative jerk. But while I may personally not feel like it's worth my time to try and debunk this (to say nothing of it being outside my expertise), who am I to tell someone else not to? We can all "triage" as we see fit. But thanks for explaining your point further. 1335486162 She's a religious nut in a nursing home. I mean, I can ask her questions you want to know, but she had only mentioned it because I brought up cryogenic freezing once. \n\nIt's really weirding me out that four or so years later, I see this and realize that there was a depth far greater to Walt Disney than I was aware of. 1318890562 Yeah, it wasn't a rental by any means. It was a retail version of the movie. 1354472429 To be fair, a lot of universities - Harvard included - have some seriously weird courses, albeit hardly as unscientific and superfluous as this one. 1277387183 Yeah, the treatment your aunt received was certainly conventional, science-based medicine. There's nothing alternative about the correct diet and iron supplements, even though alternative practitioners would like to claim so. Diet actually works, after all ;) The difference is that some alternative practitioners overstate the effect of diet to the point where special diets become a "cure" for cancer (and all cancer is caused by the wrong diet), but that's not what r/altmed is about. r/altmed takes science-based, diet-related mainstream medicine and calls it "alternative" in an attempt to make the rest of alternative medicine look more legitimate. It's a strategy that's been used a lot by a lot of alties before - often in the same breath as accusing mainstream medicine for only using pharmaceuticals to treat disease, which is demonstrably wrong, as your aunt's example shows (diet changes, exercise, physical therapy, etc. are all part of mainstream medicine). 1319487037 Is it wrong that during several parts of that video, while the oh so spooky music was playing, my only thought was: good...that's where we're headed and where we need to head.\n\n-1 government world... is this a bad thing?\n-consolidated ID system...definitely \n-micro chip...sounds pretty convenient\n 1299821309 Magic?\n\nSeriously, why would you come here to ask that question?\n\nGo here. http://www.sciencebasedmedicine.org/reference/?p=38 1340808133 Conspiracy theories are such an easy out for people to take. It's much easier to blame shadow governments and immensely powerful organizations for the problems in the world or in your life. It makes you feel like it's not your fault that things are the way they are, that the deck is stacked against you and you never had a chance. \n\nI don't think it's possible to say one thing and convince a conspiracy theorist that they're on the wrong track. The dangerous thing about the conspiracy meme is that lack of evidence or evidence to the contrary is usually interpreted to mean that the conspiracy is even more powerful than previously thought. Anyone who doesn't believe it is either naive or, even worse, in on it. \n\nI think you just need to attack it using Occam's razor and just keep driving home the point that if it's is true why would the secret organizations allow sites like Prison Planet to continue to operate? 1310678215 When you think about getting attacked are you afraid it'll be a man or a woman? 1351124163 Wow, number 1 most of this is BS conspiritard rubbish. Number 2, I'm not going to debate the merits of a a youtube video, rubbish. The iO9 article is about nazis hiding evidence of atrocities, not archeologists hiding evidence that conflicts with evidence their dogma. When they discovered it, they had to change their data, nowhere does it say that they purposely ignored or suppressed new information. Finally, that hheartbeat BS uses biblical nonsense about giants. That's your evidence? You need to come to jesus my friend (metaphorically), you need to see the light. 1354651786 And did you not listen to me when I explained why eyewitness testimony is useless? Please lets not retrace our steps here. If you are not going to raise any new points or attack mine, then I think you should just admit defeat. 1352573820 Cause and effect isn't that simple. But you can isolate the effect of alcohol by seeing whether events with or without alcohol served lead to more or fewer riots, or comparing the percentage of arrested rioters who are drunk to the percentage of event attendees who are drunk. 1332955844 Yuuuup, that's the creationist movement for ya. 1343550280 +1 on Rationally Speaking, SGU\n\nAlso, [Reasonable Doubts](http://freethoughtblogs.com/reasonabledoubts) (counter-apologetics) is very good if you don't mind religion being a target of skepticism. \n\nAnd at the risk of being a self-promoting whore, a friend and I have a [podcast feed](http://beastcast.libsyn.com/) where we do interviews for our website. It's not entirely skeptic-focused, but we've had some good skeptic interviews with people like Ophelia Benson, PZ Myers, Sanal Edamaruku, Gregory Paul, Seth Shostak, and a few others. 1326025307 Liberal and yet defending anarchism and libertarianism. How odd. Liberal yet trying to argue that Somalia is now all better thankfully because of no more guvvvaaament. Yeah, because I'm sure it was the simple fact that government is the reason countries are not thriving utopias. 1313608283 Well, there is significantly more genetic diversity in the "black" Africans than the rest of the races combined. 1298543769 I am a skeptic of religion and superstition but consider myself an agnostic 1296197777 Absolutely :) I'm at work at the moment, but I'll take some pictures hopefully either tonight or over the weekend. 1318556159 Ouija boards are too susceptible to suggestion. I say you should set up a recorder and ask questions. Have someone take pictures, too. 1342339082 Parts of everything are bunk. I make decisions based upon several principles that include: textbook/school education (with a big block of NaCl), clinical guidelines, studies, personal experience, and risk/benefit analysis.\n\nFor example: before going off to school I worked in an office when an older lady (existing patient) came into the office using her cane heavily (she rarely did more than carry it in her left hand, this time it was in her right hand and she was *LEANING* on it). She spoke with a slur had drooping of her eye and mouth. I stopped her immediately, had her sit down, and ran to get the chiro in the office, I knew something wasn't right but hey I just had a Biology degree. He came and called an ambulance who took her to the ER, while keeping her calm. She was in the midst of a stroke and manipulation would likely have killed her and provided no benefit to her neck pain. That is as black/white as it can be but it illustrates the point of risk vs benefit analysis.\n\nI always look through my 'skeptical goggles' when reading research papers, be it my field or just something a friend sends me. I always ask myself: who is writing this, why are they writing this, who verified the results, who reviewed it, where is it being published, why is it being published, and what is the clinical impact. \n\nI recently read & discussed a study about standardizing the material used in transferring gut flora for help with IBD. It made perfect sense that we should have a standardized colony grown in labs with the proper ratio of bacterium and proper dosage amounts rather than using a family member's flora as the transplant source. You not only have better results but it is standardized, something that we should have in all fields. 1342795059 Well it's a joke, mainly because its fake for other obvious reasons. This thread does however still let us talk about the subject in a skeptical manner. 1352853477 I agree completely. I'm not saying there is a causative factor, or even a solid correlation at this point. Just pointing out that the notion that aluminum couldn't pass the blood-brain barrier is clearly false. 1301460048 I believe that paranormal is something that can or may not always be explained through science. The faithless... and I am not talking about religion here... make me sad. You probably can't see things in a way that I do. I believe in a lot of things. Souls (again, not in a religious way), reincarnation, forces of good and evil, dead relatives/angels looking out for you. \n\nI am not going to tell you why I believe in all of those things to prove myself to a stranger on the internet. Just know that I have personal reasons for believing in those things. 1344429799 Yeessss [evolution](http://i.imgur.com/Ybicf.jpg) 1333098888 Which jurisdiction, may I ask? 1342019281 When it comes to climate denial, I've noticed that a lot of otherwise smart people end up denying it because they're opposed to the kind of trash coming out from Hollywood and from nutjob environmentalists.\n\nUnfortunately the message from scientists gets drowned in a torrent of bullshit which just confuses people who don't have the time, desire or critical thinking skills to find out what's really going on. 1273925480 Man, I love those things. They're like rock-tumblers on steroids. 1343839127 This is what everyone is saying, and I can't help but agree with them. Releasing the 6 (?!) other videos in original format would certainly do a lot to assuage the skeptics. But since this happened in 2010 and they just made it public, I have to wonder why they aren't releasing the rest of the video. 1331942642 There is a blog written by doctors that covers this kind of material everyday ( http://www.sciencebasedmedicine.org ). It has a lot of material about the pharmaceutical industry, how good studies are conducted, and various forms of alternative medicine. Here is a couple of their articles I favorited a while back \n\nhttp://www.sciencebasedmedicine.org/index.php/placebos-as-medicine-the-ethics-of-homeopathy/\n\nhttp://www.sciencebasedmedicine.org/index.php/comparitive-drug-research/ 1330555170 touche 1320498380 My bad 1329152273 That is the normal short explanation the issue at hand here (and what normally happens) is what is described by the following quote:\n\n>Dissonance is aroused when people are confronted with information that is inconsistent with their beliefs. If the dissonance is not reduced by changing one's belief, the dissonance can result in misperception or rejection or refutation of the information, seeking support from others who share the beliefs, and attempting to persuade others to restore consonance. 1301253256 Not paranormal, but definitely cool. 1354180766 I regret that I have but one upvote to give. You're braver than I. I'd have been scared that the customer would start spouting, "I HAD A WONDERFUL EXPERIENCE WITH HOMEOPATHY HAVE **YOU** EVER USED IT" and I would get reported to my boss. Alternative medicine is way too popular where I live. :( 1313332126 Hence the "or" in my sentence. 1311720386 He made the camera himself? And then he saw a purple light on it? 1287363973 As some have said, it could simply be a sleep paralysis hallucination.\n\nIt's up to you to decide whether you believe that the things you see while dreaming/under sleep paralysis/lucid dreaming, etc. are a type of external reality, or simply elaborate mind movies that occur internally only. \n\nFor the sake of fun, let's consider that you have had an encounter with some kind of entity that exists outside of your imagination. From your description, this being didn't seem to have the negativity associated with other supposed succubi encounters I've heard of. She didn't seem as aggressive, for one. Or as evil. You describe her as cute and not all that pushy. That might make her something not quite so bad. I actually have heard of a little test that might show her true colors. Up for a little experiment? Then do this: set up a mirror above your bed, or in whatever direction you look while sleeping in your normal sleep position. Try to contact or summon this entity again, if you think you can. Look at 'her' in the mirror. If she is a succubus, you should see... something. I won't tell you what, since then you might actually conjure it up mentally and spoil the experiment. But if you view a succubus in a mirror, you'll know it.\n\n 1326515249 >2 + 2 = 4 is a declarative abstract statement. \n\nThen there would be no point to using that as any kind of proof of truth. It would just be "It's true because we say it is". So either the OP was wasting space, or could have been trying to make a point\n\nAs I said other people have with me here. I'm sorry you can't accept my experience with them, and assume I was being pretentious. Whatever.\n\n>I've never seen anyone who goes on the tack that simple math is not absolute who isn't also a pretentious, pseudo-intellectual asshole. Not one.\n\nSounds like a confirmation bias to me... you see it in me because you've decided that's what I was and there will never be any way I can counter that. Even though I wasn't.\n\nI was giving the guy several benefits of the doubt created by his own statement, combined with the bullshit arguments I've had to endure here... I wanted to avoid a long drawn out mess like this by calling it out up front. It seems it can't be avoided either way... either you don't call it out up front and waste time with unstated assumptions, or you call it out up front and get framed as pretentious.\n\n>I was applying your standard for "technically possible" to your scenario.\n\nNo you weren't. By not accepting what I meant by normal, even though I tried to explain it clearly... even though I later clarified, and you continue to reject it and not address the point with that understanding in hand, you are not addressing my scenario. You are addressing one of your own creation, and avoiding the original point.\n\n> That it is possible to drum up fantastic scenarios for any given situation that can still fit the level of detail supplied\n\nI disagreed explicitly with that point several times. Sure, you can argue with the language, but if you try to understand the what the person means, and see that he has tried to address all potential fantastic things... you should treat it is if he has. \n\nI gave you the reason I trotted out my fantastic examples, it was because the OP didn't indicate whether he was considering that kind of thing or not. If he'd just said "normal", I would have one more clarifying question to confirm that... and we'd be talking about actual issues, not this bullshit.\n\n> but you don't argue in good faith.\n\nEvery step of the way. You've just decided up front that I'm not, so nothing I can say will satisfy you that I am.\n\n> You tried to cite examples of things that can be proved with 100% certainty that, when using the same logic you applied to simple math, can be shown to not actually be 100%.\n\nYou don't see any difference between actual physical reality that we don't know everything about, and a system of mathematics we ourselves created?\n\nThen we have nothing to discuss. Concepts and reality are the same to you and we're just not operating in the same universe.\n\n>And really, all you had to say was that it was 100% certain that there could be no such thing as a square circle or married bachelor. Those are straight up contradictions that anyone who tries to argue against is just demonstrably contrary.\n\nI didn't think of those actually, those would have been simpler examples. However, the God example matched that in my mind.\n\nAlso I stated several times the underlying commonality of those. If you don't control the whole system, you can't specify things enough to completely disprove anything.\n\n 1320775234 OK, the poll is up and running ... you can vote here ...\nhttp://www.skeptical-science.com/critical-thinking/poll-skeptical-podcasts/ 1308760761 Totally emotional. The response is "Thank you for defending my right. Let me show you my appreciation by exercising it." 1318592817 I second this. This website will tell you what % of donations go to project costs, how much to marketing, and how much to administration. \n\nI am very fond of [World Vision](http://www.worldvision.org/) as far as charities go. 1355104660 I agree. In fact, I use this subreddit from time to time for a skeptical perspective, not because I am a skeptic. I'm not trained in science and logic enough to consider myself a skeptic, though I am working toward such a virtue. In the meantime I would appreciate some substance from an obviously learned and wise skeptic, such as yourself, rather than a fucking retarded statement that doesn't help anyone. Please offer a substantive response or go fuck yourself, jerk. 1294897452 oh and formal drug trials... 1259613281 And he bites! Scoreeeeeeee! 1345071337 It's a fake. The image of the creature was used before in a more obvious fake\n\nhttp://i835.photobucket.com/albums/zz280/sadiepoolovee/Swamp_Monster.jpg 1291966476 You can't educate everyone about everything. I cannot tell you how many of my friends – all of whom have at least a college education and are by no means stupid – have bought things like homeopathic or traditional Chinese/herbal remedies thinking that they were actually medicine, because they were in the section with all the real medicine at the grocery store and hey it says on the label that it's totally natural and safe! \n\nI'm not saying that this toothpaste stuff should be illegal, because I don't know exactly what kind of consequences would come from using it – but I also don't think companies should be allowed to put whatever they want on the ingredients label, even if it's obviously bullshit ("high vibrational frequencies"? Really?) Now, I did see in another thread that this company also sell something that supposedly treats brown recluse spider bites – and imho, that kind of shit should be illegal, because if someone used that thinking it was actually going to work they could easily end up dead. 1297197658 To turn it around, why would I expect a system to not work well, because when I think of private regulators I think of AAA etc. \n\nThere's a lot of variables, and obviously a perfect system is impossible or close to impossible to achieve in any short span of time, which is why if a Libertarian got into office he wouldn't be immediately shutting everything down. We have much bigger problems right now like pulling out of a war we can't win and fixing our economy. 1306292851 > The Buddha (or, as I like to call him, that fat Indian kid)\n\nI agree, but I'm going to be nit-picky: 'The Buddha', aka Siddartha was a skinny post-ascetic. The Fat Kid is *a* Buddha of Chinese origin, but not 'The Buddha' of Indian origin.\n\nhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Budai 1311352287 no way. 1288914658 haha ok thats freaky. 1296329216 After having a look at a few of the papers they cite quite a few look like observational studies or small sample sizes. The one with the Aspen Seedlings is a case in point.... 'Because only one treatment enclosure was established for each treatment, differences among groups could not be analyzed statistically.'\n\nThey also seem to be mostly in-vitro and animal studies and that makes difficult to translate how the effects might manifest in humans if at all.\n\nI found a fairly recent review paper (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18359015) and after using meta-analysis etc to look at as many studies as they could find on the subject they came to the conclusion that:\n\n'This review showed that the large majority of individuals who claims to be able to detect low level RF-EMF are not able to do so under double-blind conditions..... The available observational studies do not allow differentiating between biophysical from EMF and nocebo effects.' \n\nThe nocebo effects are particularly interesting in that it seems that when people live near a cell tower they blame any adverse symptoms they have on that..i.e. if they have a headache it's because of 'that damn cell tower' and not because they had a stressful day.\n\nThat kind of ties in to the link you gave as well, as they seem to be blaming everything from headaches to the forests and bees dying out on microwave radiation! 1289236581 As someone who lives right on the shore I assure you that this is algae. 1312782290 > Skepticism isn't about giving the benefit of the doubt to every wild eyed scheme[.]\n\nWho said anything about giving anyone the benefit of the doubt? I can't prove there are no Purple Plutonian Unicorns, but that doesn't mean I have to give one second of serious attention to anyone who says there are, or account for them in any way in any of my reasoning or activity.\n\nI'm just saying "Don't say you know something for a fact until you can demonstrate it." If self-described skeptics don't follow this rule, who will? 1305648610 This article was, in a word, crap-tastic. 1312311310 or throw it in the trash 1348270688 Meh, I don't really care. As long as he knows he's an asshole. Which [he admitted to](http://www.reddit.com/r/skeptic/comments/px7xf/my_daily_routine/c3t03gg?context=3)\n\nDeluding yourself into thinking you're not an asshole isn't much better than deluding yourself and/or others that you're psychic. 1329720735 Woah why wasn't I invited to the mod circle jerk?\n\nDicks.\n\nps- I miss the little matrix reddit alien we had, any chance we could see that return, perhaps to the left of the "GITM" :D 1327005982 Is it not a group of quadcopters? Like the post from a week ago predicted? 1348291501 one molecule through the bladder of Oliver Cromwell? Does that mean water cures being an irredeemable bastard? 1355522177 Oh I'm sorry, I missed the video. I should slow down and pay attention sometimes. hehehe 1343566730 Thanks! (After reading up on confidence intervals and p-values it looks a lo clearer now.) Strange that they're claiming significance, what are they mistaking? 1302778757 Don't worry about easyhistory, he just likes to post the same bunch of links over and over.\n\nhttp://www.reddit.com/r/obama/comments/939bq/a_leaked_gop_memo_says_they_will_engage_in_every/c0baucr\n\nhttp://www.reddit.com/r/reddit.com/comments/936i3/whats_wrong_with_the_media_the_imply_obamas/c0baee6\n\nhttp://www.reddit.com/r/reddit.com/comments/9310q/you_know_that_canadian_woman_who_would_have_died/c0b9p6h\n\nhttp://www.reddit.com/r/politics/comments/92w55/obama_slams_gop_for_opposing_health_care_reform/c0b9cho\n\nhttp://www.reddit.com/r/reddit.com/comments/930yp/obama_calls_on_the_bloggers_to_keep_the_pressure/c0b9chi\n\nhttp://www.reddit.com/r/reddit.com/comments/92yh1/jack_asks_if_its_right_to_soak_the_rich_to_pay/c0b9ch4\n\nhttp://www.reddit.com/r/politics/comments/92x79/rumors_of_the_demise_of_obamas_health_care_reform/c0b9ce1\n\nand that's just the past couple days.\n\nHe also doesn't think it's spam:\n\n>It's not spam. It's responding to different people. If you don't like it that's up to you, but it's not spam if the response is on topic to what is commented.\n\nhttp://www.reddit.com/r/skeptic/comments/92y94/thanks_skeptic_for_pulling_me_away_from_alex/c0bcql9 1248415081 >A "doctor."\n\nA licensed MD who practised for decades. \n\nYes, he's got some archaic and outdated views on some things. \n\nAnd while I think his view on mandatory vaccines is ignorant, I don't think that gives you any right to mock him being a doctor.\n\n(And as a Canadian who doesn't support Ron Paul, you'll get an idea of the kind of objectivity I'm trying to bring here)\n\nEdit: Anyone actually going to explain their downvote? 1326632617 I don't accept the report as evidence. The fact that you assumed so and your language here shows you really are a conspiracy theorist. You are part of a very sad and psychologically confused sub-culture. But enough about you. \n\n9/11. People make mistakes in their reports it happens all the time. But until you have evidence that 9/11 had some ulterior motive other than anger at America for trampling on their holy lands then you have no right to say anything and be heeded. The burden of proof is on you. You have clearly misinterpreted the youtube videos and it's pretty sad. A simple read through of [this](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/9/11_conspiracy_theories) and checking the references within (of which are numerous and credible) should make you skeptic of your own "skepticism." I'd love to believe the government is full of evil secret shit and I'd love to do something about it but I see no proof and no good reason to. Do you seriously think Bush was smart enough to help orchestrate something like that? I used to live in Texas when he was governor, dude's an idiot. Do you seriously think the war in Iraq actually made any economic sense? We spent billions upon billions and we still are in the middle east. If the government was smart enough to orchestrate an attack like this in America you'd think they could plan a decent war. 1334507612 That sounds amazing, I attempted to join a group here in Anchorage, but they wanted me to pay a $250 "joining fee", wanted to drug test me(not that I would have any problem passing) and wanted me to have two seperate background checks done. I thought it was a little ridiculious, and when I asked them when they last went on a case, they said it had been over a year and a half since their last investigation. To be honest, it kind of turned me off for a while. 1321300933 Did anyone doubt that acai berries were a marketing scam? Not saying they aren't healthy, but they aren't any better than any other fruit. 1326762121 I have had a sleep paralysis hallucination where a black cloud with a lot of electricity pulsing through it hovered above my head on the ceiling. There was also another humanoid entity in the room at the foot of my bed who 'made me aware' of the cloud. \n\nFor years, before I learnt about sleep paralysis, I was convinced I had been cursed by some demonic force and the cloud was the 'subconcious' manifestation of the curse. I'm glad there is a logical explanation for the experience because it was extremely disturbing at the time. 1314589639 That's some deep logic you have there. 1351109405 could be those crazy parachuting flare guys again. 1296779195 I would love to see something like this also. I tried to do a bit of research on the place myself regarding the claims and couldn't find anything. 1342954314 [There is even a song about it.](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5eBT6OSr1TI) 1332202211 My patrol guys just came back to check on me, and to get my money for a subway five dollar footlong, so I figured since the quiet was disrupted I'd go upstairs and stop and restart the audio. \n\nI announced my return, and that I was starting up the recording again. \n\nI'll review it. I'll have two two-hour recordings of the dark, empty office up there. Back in the dark. 1348221502 I was mostly joking 1327444596 I get this a lot. And I wish the same thing. :/ Especially my grandmother who passed away suddenly. I have so many questions for some family who passed before I was born. But I dont see them. And I can only assume its because they are in a "better" place and happy :) 1333817109 He didn't drop soda entirely, he just switched to diet. Also, there's no stated evidence that he was drinking ten a day. Plus, he most likely drank cans of coke, which were 150 calories as opposed to 100. 1312570853 Honestly most of the talk on that place seems to originate from some evidence that there are now quasars that have a redshift which might not be an indication of the distance to them or of their real speed - and that for such cases there is an alternative (unproven?) theories that claim to explain things apparently better by also adding some amount of Compton effect or some other effects - however jumping from that to claiming that all redshift in the universe is only from Compton effect and that there is a 'conspiracy' to hide that is just the usual stupid talk that we see from conspiratards ...\n\nEDIT: very likely the standard Compton effect can not explain that ... 1328380305 Stay away from the new scooby doo. the "ghosts" are now real. 1274280973 This guy is a fucktard... he has tricked many people here with his bullshit, and caused lots of fear amongst gullible Kiwis (the people not the birds.. I don't think they would fall for his bollocks). 1314689438 These occupy groups seem like they consist of loons and crackpots. 1337262782 Good point, although you'll notice that the pattern is not exactly the same. Well, I say that but I am also aware that the pic did not quite turn out as intended.\n\nI appreciate the bit about scale. I didn't think about it at the time because I didn't expect to find anything at all and I typically associate that kind of thing with Bigfoot prints. Next time, I'm taking a ruler along for good measure.\n\nSorry about the pun.\n\nR 1344637276 I've suffered from sleep paralysis since I was a child. It causes a sense of panic, hallucinations, and an inability to move. It is frequently preceded by lucid dreaming episodes. So yes, I'd say this poster was dead-on.\n\nA fundamental tenet of paranormal investigation is to do everything you can to account for rational explanations, and only when you cannot provide one to entertain a possibility of the paranormal. Which is something you should be familiar with, given your tag is Sherlock Holmes, who famously said (In The Sign of Four), "when you have eliminated the impossible, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth?"\n\nOr, to reverse that, if you can't eliminate Lucid Dreaming and Sleep Paralysis as possibilities, you can't jump to the paranormal. 1342118341 I'm a round eye so I'd be insulting myself haha. I said "do you believe me? Those floating things are not aliens" 1349139811 I'm ridiculing you, and only you. You're taking the internet too seriously. Take a step back and look at who is the overreacting retard (hint: it's you.) 1285044299 If you want a cirlcejerk, /r/atheism is good for that. The longer skeptics exist in a closed system the more out of touch and incapable of interacting with others we become. This guy is right. He is an outsider coming into the movement so he can give perspective that a lot of us lack. 1335971788 Let me answer you by way of a little story of my second class session in archeology; The professor is a well known (in his field) Mayan archeologist, he manages his own long term dig of a major temple and has done a lot of foundational work in interpreting Mayan hieroglyphics. He spent a good 20 minutes of the class session explaining why the whole 'world ending in 2012 according to the Mayan calendar' was bullshit (his exact words) and then went on to ancient aliens and other assorted nonsense. Basically telling us that not everything on the discovery/science/history channel was worth talking about, and that if we brought up any of that stuff in class we would be mocked. He finished by telling us we were adults and should act like adults when approaching knowledge. 1312741103 Torrent anyone? 1349879249 Is it that hard to believe that there are religious teens that don't want to be gay? I totally agree that it is fucked up to send someone away for religious reasons against their will. 1349801651 He's right, on the surface, looks aren't everything. But to the casual on-the-fence visitor, the site looks like a crazy person built it. Somebody help that guy out! :) 1299423535 No need to air out your dirty laundry here bro. Thanks for your input though. 1355184720 Hmm. I consider it a life skill. 1330744897 In his defense, you'd hit a bitch too, if she were to make fun of your idiotic beliefs. 1329786383 So fake it hurts 1349136465 Being walked to death to the concession of a series of blatant lies to live until the rest of your people are expected to die in poverty is sure to hit anyone hard. 1345176216 Get a bunch of newspaper or website horoscopes from the same day and compare. 1309553023 That's not entirely true about one copy of the sickle cell gene. Look up Ryan Clark of the Pittsburg Steelers when they played in Denver a few years back. A lack of oxygen will convert some RBCs to sickle shaped even in people with only one allele. He had to have emergency surgery to remove his spleen. 1341320822 Right there with you. I tried to just watch the movie as a movie but man did it feel really anti-science and anti-skepticism. Scientists yet again portrayed as people poking their noses where they don't belong. \n\nAlthough I think it can just as likely read as poor writing that resorts to tired rote character decisions that has determined the course of horror/thriller films for decades. \n\nTo be honest Cabin in the Woods made me think even less of Prometheus. I started to think that the something that drove the characters in that were happening to these characters. It made me LOL.\n\nMy most reviled line in the movie is when the "biologist" says "Oh, we're going to overturn 200 years of Darwinism.", I mean we would never hear in a movie that same sentance replaced with Newtonianism, or Einsteinism. Maybe Newtonian Physics or Einstein's Theory of Special Relativity. It's just the way that the line is delivered it sounds so perjorative, and as if Darwin is the one being adhered too an not evolutionary theory which has expanded and changed to include new evidence that wasn't available to Darwin at the time.\n\nI know I should just throw my hands up and say its just a movie, but then the film also pushes the ancient aliens theory, even to the point where it implies that the "Engineers" were involved somehow with Jesus. Seeing as it was approximately 2000 years ago when the engineers decided they were going to exterminate Humans for some "crime" which resulted in a disagreement among the Engineers.\n\nSorry about the rant, I just needed to get it out as I was super excited for this film, and on so many levels did it disappoint. However, it looked great and the performance from Michael Fassbinder was superb in fact I was happy when he started passively dispatching the crew. 1340812819 I recall a totally legit study where dogs were trained on the smell of bladder cancer. Not only did they identify it in urine, one also diagnosed a case of kidney cancer the researchers were unaware of. 1296618657 I think skepticism is a skill that anyone can learn. I think even something simple like the scientific method, or a flow chart with a few simple steps on it could help anyone to think more critically.\n\nFor example when presented with new information:\n\n1.) Is there any physical proof?\n\n2.) Are there experts in the field who can vouch for this?\n\n3.) Who benefits from me believing this? Is someone making money from selling books, selling a product, etc. \n\nI think most people are skeptical, it just depends how far they apply that skepticism in their life. Deeply religious people will definitely carefully interrogate someone who showed up at their doorstep asking for 20$. What do you need the money for?, do you have proof you are my long lost brother?, etc. They might unthinkingly give the same money to a televangelist, without asking what the money will be spent on. 1324602905 it just proves chi. and there is already lot's of stuff that does that. This is just a easy personal demo that anyone can do, with a little practice. 1319651740 My cat is like that too, and she is really sweet and small. About 7 years old.\nSorry that she died :( 1340635659 The big secret is they are both really bad for us but no ones really talking about it. 1344877647 I don't mind when people spout nonsense. It lets you know they're idiots straight away.\n\nMuch like ghetto wheels on a car. 1349629338 These cloud phenomena are certainly showing up at various locations but, I doubt that these are UFO wormholes or portals. I have heard speculation that this is a result of HAARP or other manipulation of the atmosphere. This particular 'halo' is interesting because of the funnel-like formation. 1266440889 Personal anecdote:My parents got a chocolate lab puppy,Nestle, the year I was born. We basically grew up together until she passed away around age 14. She would always drink from the toilet in my moms bathroom.A year or so after Nestle was gone, my mom woke up to the sound of drinking in the bathroom. It went on long enough for mom to get irritated and yell. The noise stopped and a minute or two later she gained her wits and checked the bathroom. Unsurprisingly, nothing was there. There is no way to know for sure that my mom wasn't half asleep and imagining things but it resonated with me nonetheless. 1335638909 I was libertarian for a while. Basically when I first met the idea of Ron Paul. That guy does deserve a lot of respect.\n\nBut travelling to a third world country where it really struck me just how much value a government adds to a society really started me moving away from the more pure libertarian ideals.\n\nI still fully support the personal liberty ideals of libertarianism, but I cannot support the ideals which involve expecting people to fight for themselves when they are down. Compassion really is the thing most lacking from the libertarian ideal (I know, it is meant to be filled in by the average person - I'm just not convinced that works out very well in the end). I want a government that will stop people from being stuck on the street, will stop people from being unable to afford healthcare, and will support the weakest in society at the expense of others - because that is who needs to support the weak!\n\nPrivate systems are just as bloated an inefficient as government ones - but only government systems are *meant* to be for the good of the people, while private systems are *meant* to be for personal profit. Whether governments always succeed at being for the benefit of the people or not doesn't stop the fact that they are at least designed to fulfill that role, while the other isn't even meant to do it.\n\n..I think we got a little off topic here. 1338273948 disappointed in where? 1310156294 The Hopkinsville event had multiple witnesses, and the creatures described were quite different, they were not the typical greys which this account seems to be influenced by. These creatures resemble the Hopkinsville entities in only one respect: small humanoids. Also Hopkinsville included a UFO sighting at the beginning.\n\nThis report is from one witness, the report of another witness is anecdotal. The report comes from someone who appears to know a bit about such accounts. The evidence is weak and sending people out there based on this would be expensive and might achieve what a possible hoaxer wants, attention or whatever other validation is motivating them, even just hoodwinking someone for shits and giggles. They really should come up with better evidence than this, given the story so far. \n\nI mean, if this was happening to you, you'd make a bit of an effort to get better evidence, wouldn't you? Admittedly you'd be freaked out, but if you got good evidence, that would be worth a lot, financially and in every other respect. The guy claims to be armed, he doesn't have to go down the "mine" and his family are out of harm's way, so what's the problem? The dodgy photos seem pretty weak given the account of these things coming right up to the house. \n\nNot worth the effort with what has been presented. 1340273456 What do you mean? I read the OP and commended on it. \n\nYour comment is typical for a believer, you want to shift the burden from the person making the claim to the person questioning the claim. It is the author of the article to provide the evidence and to prove the claims. If the author doesn't understand what constitutes evidence then they are not in an enviable position.\n\nMaybe you should familiarize yourself, with the fallacy of shifting the burden. 1306867999 This post has been removed. This content is not appropriate for this subreddit, please to not post it or anything like it again. 1356011165 But... conspiracies and stuff! There's no time for critical thinking. 1336774324 I am still amazed that the US still has their voting dates during the week instead of the weekends and some of the huge lines that form outside voting zones.\n\nAussie here, all our elections are held on weekends and the wait to cast your vote is rarely longer than 5 minutes. 1352281808 can you post a link to this ? i'd be interested in seeing it. or the title of the episode. Has there been a "bullshit" on it too? 1353265494 "It's immoral to let a sucker keep his money" -Canada Bill Jones 1306461749 No, I'm saying that "I didn't suffer trauma from abuse, ergo religion is categorically worse than child abuse" is a pretty fucking atrocious argument. Again, he allows his personal experience to override any other argument and uses only his personal experience to advance his overall agenda, ignoring or downplaying other experiences in the process. All of which is horribly unscientific.\n\nHe could've said "child abuse is bad. But teaching Christianity is also bad, and even worse!" and duked it out on the terms that actually exist. Instead he attempted to redefine child abuse to not-so-bad-as-all-that and preconditions his argument on that being accepted. Shitty argument. 1351098672 Wait a minute, I thought Geocities was shut down? 1303251522 Lost interest at #2. 1318633452 Derren Brown introduced neurolinguistic programming to me.\n\nhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Derren_Brown\n\n[subliminal advertising](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZyQjr1YL0zg) 1269284042 Im in Fairfax! You post has freaked me out!!! 1348795864 TIL.\n\nAlso, he apologized (Jon Stewart) for the usage of the history channel quote on Monday. 1323817105 You're correct. This is a common magic trick that commonly went wrong so it doesn't happen too much anymore. If you check on youtube, you can find dozens of horrific, home-recorded videos of this trick going wrong. 1295725828 Assume there is an amount of food to be able to provide for a population of Y. Let's say the population of some place is Z. As long as Y=Z, there is enough food (When Y>Z, there is a surplus of food). The moment Y<Z there's going to be less food for everyone. Eventually its going to get to the point where there just isn't going to be enough food, because the rate at which food is procured is slower than the rate of population growth. So people starve to death, which brings Z closer to Y again. More people dead, less mouths to feed. Once Y=Z again, the cycle repeats.\n\nAnd water distribution is usually given by aid groups to main cities, which is then distributed to towns, and then from there, people come from the villages to the towns to get water. They can't just "move" there, for the same reason that someone can live in one city, yet work in another. 1268159786 I heard a similar story and what the guy did was he said out loud "OK, if there's anybody there, please make yourself known, because you're driving me crazy right now..." That guy is [David Icke](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4HAN57I-lnE). 1341713487 That sounds like one heck of an experience! 1343560879 he said no rain, it snowed. I see no issue. 1313551465 Ask them questions. Don't spout your beliefs. Make them do the thinking.\n\nAn easy way to do this is just to take your statements and frame them as questions in a non-judgmental way.\n\n**Example:**\n\nP1: I'm tired of everyone talking about gays getting married. God made Adam and Eve, not Adam and Steve!\n\n*P2: What do you feel about the parts of the Bible that talk more about loving everyone regardless of them doing things you disagree with?*\n\nP1: That doesn't mean they should be able to get married.\n\n*P2: Who should be able to choose who gets married?*\n\nP1: God-fearing Americans. This is a Christian nation.\n\n*P2: Do Jewish people deserve to be able to get married?*\n\nP1: Yeah, I don't have a problem with them. It's just the gays.\n\n*P2: So maybe it's not so much about religion as it is about what you just feel isn't right?*\n\nP1: Yeah.\n\netc....\n\n------------\n\nObviously the conversation could go a million different ways, but if approached in this manner you are much more likely to have a productive conversation that gets to what's underneath the superficial beliefs. It doesn't pass judgement, yet still leads them to think about things in a more critical way. You may find that you just don't agree, but at least you can find out the real reason *why* you don't agree. If it had started argumentatively, the conversation would have just been an argument about what the Bible does and doesn't say, which we found wasn't even the real issue here.\n\n\n\n\n**Edit:**\n\n*Just a downvote without any comment after I spent time typing all of that?* 1341561383 Were you guys driving a Delorean? 1340727311 You've already given me a fair bit to read, and I'm just an uneducated (really, Creationist schooling and only went to university for a short period before leaving) layman. Though this stuff fascinates me.\n\n>However, if it is learnt, and people suddenly stopped speaking and decided to write everything down, a malleable mechanism like learning could adapt to this, whereas the innate mechanism is more "rigid" in that for it to change it requires an evolutionary shift (which obviously takes a few generations).\n\nOkay, do we have any decisive evidence on this issue? I thought that stuff like reading and writing was harder. But as you've pointed out it can be explained either way, because we don't spend nearly as much time reading and writing as we do talking. 1328529485 Anyone else notice the faint Hebrew lettering below the "Ingredients"? It's the first verse of Genesis. 1297205023 >All in all I think a local food bank or shelter might be a better choice than any of the big ones.\n\nDefinitely this. Donate your money/time/goods in your own community, where you can see it in action.\n 1355105164 Why be defensive about being helpfully educated? You've got some serious insecurities there, *bro* . 1340407990 That sucks, Art Bell was a really good interviewer, even though its hard for me to get over his politics. 1350608953 Quite well, thanks. **NOBODY** watches reality TV against their will, it has no physiological side effects, and if people *really* wanted to watch quality television, the equivalent of Downton Abbey would be on every single fucking channel.\n\nYou think we *like* working on "Say Yes to the Dress" over *West Wing?* 1344192969 I disagree - George has the mentality of a child but none of the wonder. Art approached most subjects with logic, topical knowledge, and genuine interest. Noory sucks so bad he even sang an Elvis song live on the air . . . Ugggg what a piece of work. Here's the clip (set to video by a fan): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w9SVj7tQmFs 1354196065 Why would someone make a fake of a video they saw? 1296829468 That is what alarmist evangelicals like to say, but usually quickly followed by a complete lack of skepticism in anything to do with climate science... Despite how much stuff is based on remarkably poor data or based on computer models that never quite seem to be right about much without an awful lot of tweaking and tuning. That's doin' sketipticsm wrong, big fellah. 1309639388 Instead of trying to combat climate change, I think it's better to deal with rising sea levels, droughts, animal extinctions, etc. 1313541535 They're talking about manipulating the upper back and neck (also part of the spine). It can help mobility slightly and increase comfort. No, I don't go to a chiropractor, but I do so using either stuff raided from yoga or simply grabbing my head and popping/stretching my neck (I'm sure plenty of people stretch their neck in various ways when it's stiff) and I'm not sure what benefit one would have from having a third party do it beyond perhaps inability to do so oneself or the ability to add massage (hard to rub your own neck/shoulders as well as another person can).\n\nNot sure how risky it is, there are a lot of blood flow through there and manipulating it (in any way) could conceivably "jar lose" stuff or damage something (overextending the neck muscles isn't uncommon especially if they're tight, the spinal cord is there, etc). Can't imagine it's a massive risk, but perhaps they'll continue research and present actual studies. 1339167203 Does it happen *every day?* 1305857014 It's called the power of suggestion. You run into it a lot with all of that backward song lyrics stuff. 1313431172 This is revolting.\nBut, I'm not buying that the bad reaction was because of the pills she took. It could just be coincidence. The placenta pills probably do nothing at all, other than freak people out. Either way, there isn't any science here. This sort of thing should be subjected to proper double blind studies, hopefully turn up nothing, and be put to rest.\nGross. 1332787118 I'm not gonna lie, my adrenaline was rushing as soon as I turned. I guess I just got scared from not expecting it. Like I've seen videos online, but never anything with my own eyes like this. 1356677243 >She's a naturopathic doctor and midwife\n\nWait a minute. She's *two* things that scientific evidence shows are inferior to actual medicine? I think you need to stfu. 1286837518 Well, it would have been so much easier of them to make the crop design and just park their ship next to it, waiting for us to show up with beer and cookies. 1351860854 Well this thread is great for revealing the butthurt Democrats in /r/skeptic. Thanks for that, at least, but now I feel less like a part of the community. 1306185953 This is exactly right. It's not panic that disclosure will unleash, it is a matter of control over information, people, money, energy. The old guard is desperately trying to keep the lid on, because once disclosure is out of the bag, the whole old game is literally over. It may be a little bumpy, but it's going to be a beautiful ride. 1345181930 So... no fuck is given to hemoglobine, urines, or any of the molecules of the organism wich serves as buffers. Because you know! We piss yellow liquid just because humans beings always liked that color... 1338132167 [This Frontline documentary talks about it in depth](http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/real-csi/) 1336696684 That was either a bad test, or more likely there were many introvert questions that you answered as an introvert. 1338742455 Also, we have only been on this planet for a minute fraction of the galactic time scale. We have been capable of leaving Earth for an even smaller fraction. There is the possibility that we have just missed the other space fairing species by a couple of million years.\nOr we're being quarantined. 1340059777 Combine harvesters.\n\nIf they're space ships, let's see them depart by flying away. Oh, wait, they can't, so they don't show that. \n\nIf you're filming amaaaaazing UFOs, you take footage of the most important aspect, don't you? The part where they fly away really fast or go through a wormhole or whatever it is they do. \n\nYou don't film them manoeuvring around then stop filming before they fly off. "Oh I've got enough footage of this earth-shattering unknown phenomenon now, so I'll shut off my camera and stop watching." Right.\n\nAlso they dubbed the audio in an obvious attempt to deceive. 1346585902 They have hinted at it a bit, but never overtly, so I respect them for that. Not so sure about that religious episode where his mother comes to town though. 1324750127 "Just the placebo effect" doesn't exist. To say that the mind is tricked into thinking that the pain is lessened (as an example) by a placebo pill does **not** explain by what mechanism the pain is lessened. I am not defending sugar pills here, but am simply pointing out that the "placebo effect" is also a mystery that we are just beginning to investigate and understand. \n\nEric Mead gave a very interesting talk on this subject at TED. You can view it at http://www.ted.com/talks/eric_mead_the_magic_of_the_placebo.html 1346873153 The bible says that the earth was given for humans, which means that we shouldn't be able to change it in a way that makes it uninhabitable for us.\n\nOf course, this only works for people who value a single book of myths over mountains of verifiable evidence. 1331667350 What's not skeptical about it? I've only had a chance to read a few of the myths they argue against and they seem reasonable to me. Isn't debunking myths with science sort of a key function of skepticism?\n\nEdit: Nevermind. I read your submission and comment history. Sorry for inadvertently feeding the troll. 1314298035 If a craft is high enough, then the engine noise can be effectively drowned out.\n\nIt very easily could have been a night time training run for aircraft like you describe.\n\nrefueling at night is probably a necessary skill, and one that would have to be trained for. 1321572664 Agreed, and it was never an issue with my son and his father, either. By the time they're old enough to notice a difference, they're old enough to understand why there's a difference. 1330711833 Yup that about covers vitamins. 1309992849 [It can be slightly acidic](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Purified_water). 1339604152 As is "it's"... 1347471582 Has any member of your family been into the occult(Freemason, Rosicrucian,Mormon,Jehovah) or even a "dabbler", or a family member that thinks a dead "relative" from the past spoke to them? have you done anything at a very young age that would have been considered occult? 1342854524 Heh, it's definitely a cool bit of reporting. I checked the SkepDic and found something similar just now, a "magnetic fuel stabiliser".\n\nhttp://www.skepdic.com\n\nInset Fuel Stabilizer\nhttp://www.skepdic.com/inset.html\n\nYou'll like it. This is the Google Custom Search (for their site) that brought it up.\n\nhttp://www.google.com/custom?hl=en&client=pub-3542920166946725&cof=FORID%3A1%3BGL%3A1%3BLBGC%3A336699%3BLC%3A%230000ff%3BVLC%3A%23663399%3BGFNT%3A%230000ff%3BGIMP%3A%230000ff%3BDIV%3A%23336699%3B&domains=skepdic.com&ie=ISO-8859-1&oe=ISO-8859-1&q=car+magnetic&btnG=Search&sitesearch=skepdic.com\n\nI would have posted the page text for those that don't want to go off-site, but it makes my post over 10k and I didn't want to leave 2-3 comments.\nCheck out the skipdic page, though.\n\n 1319408286 > lol u shitlords don;t come to be educated\n\nI was there to learn. I asked questions in good faith. I was shouted down for my temerity. Believe me or not, but that is the case.\n\nAnd if you think calling people "shitlords" demonstrates a willingness to do anything other than attack your audience, you don't deserve to use the term "hate speech" in a sentence.\n\n> ur not foolin ne1.\n\nYou visibly don't have any respect for the people you disagree with, nor do you apparently argue in good faith. That's OK, and I'm glad that you own it. That said, it's never going to win you any support, nor is it going to help you grow as a person.\n\n> certain forms or speech are banned\n\nIn my case, questions about language use and finer points of the balance of rights between individuals. That I did not know the fourth-wave-feminism answers to these questions, how they apparently apply to wider human rights issues, and that inconsistencies in these positions _absolutely don't exist_ was sufficient to get me shouted down. I'm not one to push too hard, so that ended quickly enough.\n\n> it's like if u said that a communist revolutionary party cannot execute praxis because idk they ban libertarians from raising issues at plenums or they bad hate speech altogether\n\nThe question really is, are you planning praxis or are you executing it? For planning, sure, limit discussion. If you're trying to execute praxis - seems to be the necessary purpose of a public space - you need outreach, discourse, and education. Otherwise, you're just impotently spinning your wheels.\n\nIncidentally, the communist party isn't the best example. They have historically done a terrible job at executing praxis, at least in the US. 1347395913 Companies look to make money. Some of that money is made by throwing money at RIAA lawyers (as tax deductible donation to a trade organization that is commensurate with participation in a given field). It's a no-loss situation. Do the companies proper also try to make money via ad sales selling anything that's popular? Yeah. While there's likely no collaboration between these sectors akin to what we might call entrapment, it's still a shitty business practice to have your free lawyers attack people who aren't your customers. Long term, that's not a great way to get more customers. 1345475077 Sorry, typo'ed that one! 1352735969 ***BadAstronomer***:\n\n>&#91;2012/04/10&#93;&#91;15:29:09&#93;\n\n>[&#91;Translate&#93;](http://translate.google.com/#auto|auto|The less you read about homeopathy, the more you understand it. 'google translate this tweet'): The less you read about homeopathy, the more you understand it.\n\n[&#91;This comment was posted by a bot&#93;&#91;FAQ&#93;](http://www.reddit.com/r/tweet_poster/faq 'tweet_poster FAQ')[&#91;Did I get it wrong?&#93;](http://www.reddit.com/message/compose/?to=tweet_poster&subject=Error%20Report&message=[Oops!](http://reddit.com/r/skeptic/comments/s2ndz\\)%0d%0dPlease leave the subject and this link unaltered, but feel free to add a description here. 'report an error') 1334072115 Not just Katrina... some people actually believe that all hurricanes are created and controlled by the gubment.\n\nIt's impossible for a natural disaster to occur without spawning some sort of conspiracy theory. 1337376577 Thanks, I've got ones up on the TAT and projective drawings as well. 1356456505 I do, but opinions and stupidity are two different things completely. 1330641372 You ams confuse basic with bitters, which ams a pretty bad equivalence peoples ams taught for some reasons. Because acids ams sours, and base ams opposite acids so they must be bitter, right? Well, no. Mechanisms for detects acid and bitter things ams different. In truth, many bitter things ams alkaloids which ams basic compounds, but also ams often detects in very low concentrations. Some other bitter things ams like baking soda, ams a salt but ams also not detects in same ways... \n\nGood example of how this will fucks your brain is eat a grapefruit - it ams acids, but also bitter. 1338192450 I'm sure you guys have forwarded this landmark date to CNN .... here's hoping they mention it tonight. 1315067826 Yep!! I wrote about something similar happening to me just the other day: http://www.reddit.com/r/Glitch_in_the_Matrix/comments/13r1pf/synching_words/ 1354211224 Octopi have the innate ability to select the most delicious mollusk, this year it happened to be in the Spanish box...\n\n 1278616587 I have to argue this. If you didn't have companies making sterile crops, and claiming ownership of the intellectual property that produces then we wouldn't have these crops in the first place.\n\nIntellectual property rights are important. What they allows is business to invest in and produce more ideas, new ways of doing things. What incentive is there for a company to innovate if their investment would be copied and under cut?\n\nImagine if they produced seeds for crops that weren't sterile. In two seasons Monsanto would not sell a single seed. It would be cheaper for someone to buy some of their seed just for breeding. \n\nMonsanto would do one or two things from this. The seeds they do sell in the first place would have to be priced at a level that recovers their entire R&D budget (read millions of dollars), or they wouldn't research seeds in the first place. 1335606731 The spiritual energy of Halloween makes psychic readings almost impossible. Everyone knows that, jeeeez.\n\n 1320106446 I think it's a very good demonstration, I'm not too sure what the results are telling us though. 3-4% could be accounted for through stastical error, and I think the length between the two point would very slightly depending on how far away the camera is from the window, 3% difference could be as little as 1cm I would think. this is another lateral movement that would be foward and backwards. Overall I think this strengthens the idea that it's just dirt on the window. I would be interested in seeing you try with teh cleaned up frames. 1327028491 I love the fact that so many professional magicians are also sceptics. Its almost as if they naturally become sceptics as they begin to realise how easy it is to fool someone. 1318114074 Holocaust deniers have been around for a while. I'm not sure why the appearance of a few on the internet would cause *anyone* to panic. 1356501048 The one in Colorado springs looks an awful lot like parachute flares. 1342184812 Farts. \n\nGuess they're healthy to inhale. 1333903724 I already seen it but didn't even think of it again until you mentioned it. 1350864188 So, when 10% hold unshakeable belief "X is true" and a different 10% hold unshakeable belief "X is false", what happens? It's impossible that both beliefs could "be adopted by the majority of the society".\n \nHeadline fail. 1311736504 In my 29 years of serving Christ I have witnessed many miracles and seen many blind eyes opened - God still heals today. His existence in such things is evident in the recreative miracles that take place. God's existence is not contingent upon your belief, but your future is contingent upon what you do with His existence. 1272140019 There are a bunch of videos that show TAPS is faked. Sadly it ruined the show for me. I really used to like watching it. We had turned it into a nice drinking game. Every time they reference a term then cut away to explain what the term or technique meant, take a drink. It got ya pretty numb by the end. 1348499734 Knowing this subreddit, I keep expecting someone to post a thread about how they lost a big, freaking screw in their locked room and haven't found it to this day. o.O \n\n/wormholes. wormholes everywhere. 1326487895 Oh I'll never tell \n\n^_~\n\n 1290835007 Is there, by any chance, a Frozen Donkey Wheel in this well? 1297929124 Wild guess: women were considered semi-divine due to their unique gift of being able to produce new life. Later, when the male role in reproduction was found, that semi-divinity was lost. 1342817208 >UFOs are not physical craft. They're metaphysical in nature. The disinfo is to assume that they ARE craft and that they ARE from outer space. \n\nWell these objects do look like flying "craft" and they show up on radar and film- so they *are* solid, physical objects.\n\nIn regards to your PROCLAMATIONS: you don't *know* anything. The sooner you come to grips with that the better off you'll be. You *believe* these things, for whatever reason. It is human nature it seems. You have to fight it. Quit trying to explain everything like a religious prophet and enjoy the mystery. \n\nHere is what can be known: there are physical objects of unknown origins in our skies capable of advanced maneuvering and speeds, and they have been reported since at least the 1940s. Anything beyond that is speculation and imagination. 1326520424 Another one is north of Indian Springs. 1330138228 Just to give some background information, this is a press release from The 9/11 Consensus Panel, a truther organization. 1339992125 You should both read the Dalai Lama's The Universe in a Single Atom.\n\nhttp://www.amazon.com/Universe-Single-Atom-Convergence-Spirituality/dp/076792066X 1311267524 I used to think the whole building came down all at once, that puzzled me. Seeing this video completely explains what happened, first the internal structure collapsed then the outer shell. 1315522485 Seriously. I have been to a chiropractor twice, for acute back pain. I can't say it helped completely, but it did for me resemble a massage, which was the only way I could afford one using my insurance (read:free (and at least I thought it was the only way at the time)). Not to mention this chiropractor gave me some light back exercises to do, which I think is more than reasonable advice. It was no miracle cure, but damn it if I did not feel better walking out of the chiropractor's office. \n\nI have never heard of chiropractors claiming they can heal diseases before Reddit, but I guess I'm in the minority. Of course, I would never support that idea, which seems ludicrous. What does seem reasonable to me would be the fact that they can help with minor cases of back pain and posture problems and such. For any serious problems, the obvious answer would be go see a real doctor. \n\nOn that note: I can understand the rage against homeopathy in this subreddit, as I know people very close to me who believe in homeopathic remedies, and it pisses me off to no ends. I would be more understanding if they were religious. Think about it - at least homeopathy can be scientifically proven to not work, and as far as I'm concerned, it has been not proven to work. I frequently say that for me to be able to accept that homeopathy works, I would have to burn my diploma and forget almost everything I learned about science. In the case of religion, at least it is scientifically impossible to prove or disprove the existence of god (I'm an atheist for the record). \n\nSorry for the long rant and going off topic a bit. 1310421050 That's not exactly what I meant (atheists that believe in alt. medicine, ufo's, etc.), but it is right on, have an upvote! 1296163187 Seriously, why is Pauling "nuts"? 1333986801 I most certainly do, I drive a car with good gas mileage, work at home (and when I worked at the local university took the bus), have an energy efficient apartment and use energy-saving techniques to cut my heating and cooling costs, et cetera. \n\nBut that makes sense just from a personal finance perspective too. Overall, though, this is the kind of thing that requires public investment and public policy changes; there are structural reasons as to why renewable energy and alternative modes of transportation are still lagging behind. Cutting your personal footprint doesn't change the business economics. 1337307525 also, kim jong il got 11 hole in ones the first time he played golf. true story. 1324329829 Two piles of manure. Don't step in either. 1269256740 Your title made me think of [Placebo](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Placebo_\\(band\\)) 1289458912 This is the single best argument. If The Big Bang 'theory' is correct, and for the sake of simplicity of argument, there is no multiverse, but just this universe: The universe is around 14B years old, and our own system is around 4B, which leaves an awful lot of room (14B years) for there to be systems that support intelligent life more evolved than our own, given the vastness of its size and the sheer time and cosmic variety of it all. Heck, forget about 1000 years, for all we know there could be civilisations 1B+ years ahead of us, given that we ourselves are around 1B years in the making, there's 13B others years for that to be possible. 1351121502 Something that gets past a lot of people using alternative medicine angry at "Big Pharma" is that "Big Pharma" are among the biggest sellers of such remedies in the first place. \n\n*Wait, I can sell stuff in the health market that needs zero research, doesn't have to work and is unregulated by the government? Sure, why not!*\n\nThey would be stupid not to. 1290909969 There's a place somewhere out in that same area we called the Murder House (I don't remember why). Checked it out a few times. There's a dirt basement area underneath with a low ceiling. Ever checked that place out?\n\nOne time myself and a few friends were exploring the area, we went down into the basement to see what was up. We were all down there and accounted for, and suddenly we heard loud footsteps from the house above us. We all instantly froze, looked at each other, and then ran the fuck out! 1337860562 I had seen it in the aisles and never looked into it. Its back to back with aspirin/ibuprofin and just figured it was another of the same. good to know its all BS. 1327348756 This is really neat and all, but, um... Where are the figures, and the suggested reading/listening list? 1338218431 I edited my original comment. \n\nAnyway, I dont deny that man is definitely partly to blame if not mostly to blame for the recent warming. \n\nI guess my main frustration is the topic itself and the "answers" to the problem. 1329330117 How do they get odd numbers? 1305948114 The reason the moon appears so bright would be due to the length of the exposure ie the camera is capturing more light than normal. You will also note that the stars, planets, and city lights are all far brighter than normal. 1317113266 Utah: seriously... why? 1325223818 Can you pull the headers?\n\n1. Log in to Gmail\n2. Open the message \n3. Click the down arrow next to Reply, at the top of the message pane.\n4. Select Show Original.\n\nPaste them here. It will give a history of the message and where it came from, which servers touched it, and the time stamps. 1348087754 If you'll forgive the pop culture reference, I Want to Believe.\n\nI work in a very rational, empirical field. I subbed here because I deeply hope that there's something "more," but can't generally suspend my disbelief long enough to believe it. (For me, Occam's razor is strongly dissuasive of UFOs as extraterrestrial aircraft.) This subreddit gives me a little fodder for keeping that hope alive. 1349445925 I'm in Alabama. [I think this is the same thing I saw.](http://www.katc.com/news/huge-fireball-spotted-over-southeast-us/) \n\n[Here's a \\(very poor quality\\) video.](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q4PLAwuZ77E) 1324588424 Usually doing like with an incense, letting them burn slowly...I just remembered, sage is really good too, and burns slowly 1349741879 That was one of the most convincing UFO videos I've seen. Are you (the OP) the guy who filmed it? 1350061228 Could you describe a little more about what your brother is actually doing or planning to do, for those of us who are unfamiliar? What I got from the wikipedia article and your post is that your brother believes that he has a bank account somewhere containing $630,000, which was given to him for no apparent reason by the US government. And now he believes he can either withdraw this money through some obscure bureaucratic procedure or that he can write cheques from this fictitious bank account... somehow. I'm hoping that the situation is less bizarre than my interpretation of it. 1325031154 I did respond to what you said. You're arguing that their inaction is a justification for our own. 1331416866 Took a look at some of the videos. Some are obviously faked. 1314821066 You seriously linked to someone describing natural selection, as "worship of science", you've got to be retarded.\n\nStrawmanning by pointing out real examples where religious people have started protests over?\n\nThe point of ridiculing religion is to get them to stop getting so offended by it. Similar to how people use to make fun of people who got angry in school when someone insults them, the solution was to not be so offended by it. That's the goal. Religions are so easily offended by everything, and that's only going to lead to violence down the road.\n\nAnd you dislike atheism because it used popular memes like advice animals and facebook pictures to make a specific point or bring to attention a specific issue. \n\nLet me tell you, a lot of subreddits are about to disappoint you (but it's funny that you directly go to magicskyfairy which has all of this).\n\nYou dislike /r/atheism because people show respect to something said by the Dalai Lama? Really? REALLY?\n\n> strict interpretation of the same holy book that they forgo belief in\n\nWell that's why religious scripture was created, to be strictly followed since they are divine texts by God. If we went back in time to the 12th century, they'd hang you for saying you want to interpret a line of Bible as a metaphor. Today's Christians are a lot more modern, so the point of quoting Bibles to them, is to show them, they are good because of modern moral zeitgeist, not because of the Bible (since they don't strictly adhere to the Biblical laws).\n\n>superiority complex\n\nSuperiority complex for believing in evolution, the scientific fact, and being upset that they met people who don't believe in it (AKA uneducated ignorant people)---that's superiority? \n\nNext you'll tell me your math professor has a superiority complex for grading you badly on a math test.\n\nHey [this](http://www.borderofinsanity.com/assets/2012/01/Atheism-vs-Stupidism-atheism-26693291-500-417.png) was on the front page of /r/atheism today. I bet you're gonna tell me that it's offensive because people who think atheism is stupid should not be called stupid because that's offensive. 1347872404 We certainly can take a lot of meaning from the Biblical texts to our lives because, at the most basic, humans haven't changed over the centuries. So to that end, yeah, we can learn from our ancient roots. And I do find a lot of value in that.\n\nAnd, as a church community we have our traditions (that have changed over the centuries) to pull from and our community interpretations that have been peculiar depending on the community time and place you're talking about. \n\nThere is value to be had in all of this and much of it is what I still find meaningful in the church and in our religion.\n\nBut all of that value and meaning in the Biblical texts goes exactly as far as what we bring to it. And what we bring to it is an awful lot. No matter how we might desire to read some sort of plain meaning out of the text, we will always end up reading into the text if we attempt to apply it to our modern life.\n\nThe work of Biblical scholars like John Collins and many others has been to get past the mysticism surrounding the texts and really examine them as documents that have come to us over a very long and complicated timeline. As such, the texts can, in a sense, live again when we're able to see them as part of the community that created them.\n\nA homily certainly does provide the members of that church a way to interpret those texts and integrate them into their lives. But that is not the texts themselves. That's the theology of the church tradition and potentially the personal interpretation of the priest creating meaning and layering it back on to the text. That homily still has meaning, it's just not any more or less valuable than creating a homily based on a Shakespeare play or an epic by Homer. 1313135535 > We've recently adopted a new $100 bill made of untearable and very durable plastic and there are plans to unveil other plastic denominations as well.\n\nFWIW, polymer notes have been around for a long time - in this regard, Canada isn't that advanced. I agree that we have had some pretty neat stuff though. 1326831558 Well, as long as she can cherry pick the data that appears to support her conclusion without actually having to show all the data, why not? It gives her claim the air of legitimacy, even if it is erroneous. How many people will actually look up the study for themselves instead of just being outraged that such blatantly evil things are being forced on our children? 1329149334 Toy store? Seems about right. 1317531502 This is incorrect. 1347386753 The tricky part is the whole "everyone agrees with it" bit. In fact, all native English speakers still have to have this rule pounded into them in elementary school because it is perfectly natural in English to end sentences with prepositions. So from a descriptivist view of English it is in fact not a rule at all, but a made up prescription that has no basis in how actual Anglophones speak. 1300331857 Just want to say I'm glad to see there are some demsocs who are pro gun. Actually following the evidence instead of just following ideology. 1311023018 It's not going to help some with an allergy to honey, that's for sure. :P 1296719418 My wife bought 2 bottles of homeopathic restless leg "medicine" from Walgreen's yesterday. I am mad as hell that Walgreen's even carries homeopathic crap. I am going to complain by email today and I will read the other suggestions in this thread later to see if there is anything else I can do. 1300714615 It's not that people are skeptics, it's that they aren't going to jump at every claim and just start believing it because someone claims it might be true.\n\nIt's the opposite of believing in whatever someone says, just because they said it. \n\nMere claims aren't evidence and the "information" found by one person just can be wrong if it's not supported and verified by others in the field.\n\nClaims need backing evidence, backing evidence that is verified. 1343910771 Whilst true, those people wouldn't represent a substantial number of [/r/atheism](/r/atheism). \n\nSome links get love, some don't - Timing seems to be a large factor. 1334245275 If he is still alive, he and his supporters will get the word out. 1304366695 What used to happen with wine was that the quality of wine would depend on which field that it was grown in, the quality of the soil, the amount of light, the storage containers. It used to be that if it tasted good, the price would go up, and if it tasted bad, it would be cheap.\n\nThen science happened. Modern producers scaled up their operations, bought in grapes from a wider range of growers, who had also been improving their crop, they refined their process, monitored the quality of the source, blended appropriately.\n\nNow there are still some stonking, expensive wines out there, but cheap wines are no longer cheap because they are bad, they're cheap because they are mass produced, and the quality and consistency is on a relentless march upwards as a result of a scientific feedback loop.\n\nQuite frankly, for most supermarket wines it has become a branding exercise, where you pay more for a name than the content, much like most of the stuff we buy nowadays. 1302966737 >The trick would be to have that scientist waiting in the field \n\nEven though *that scientist* would be subjected to the same human observation errors that mainstream scientists use to discredit everyone else's encounters.\n\nIronic, huh? 1314391143 >just so we can have a new mascara\n\nYes. This is what animal testing is about.\n\nNot about producing vaccines and cures for diseases which kill, cripple and harm millions of people a year.\n\nNot about producing vaccines and cures for diseases which kill, cripple and harm millions of animals a year.\n\nAnimal testing is about cosmetics. That bunny DIED so you can have better lashes. That's the sickening truth, people. /s. 1331854570 You have said too much. For your own safety, remain silent about this issue. Under no account should you mention bed-jumping, bed-jumpers, or any other related phenomena. Do not attempt to research the matter. Carry on as normal with your life. I repeat: for official purposes, THIS DID NOT HAPPEN.\n\n...or you know, maybe this guy is just being an ass. I prefer my version. 1346706369 >Because you're arguing semantics. You introduce a new and previously unused term (SRSPrime)\n\nOr, in other words, I highlight the major cause of the misrepresentation of SRS on reddit.\n\n>My statements this whole time have been about the root subreddit, /r/ShitRedditSays[1] , unless otherwise specified. You have, however, intentionally taken them to refer to the entirety of the SRS offshoots, even when I've already said that I don't think that.\n\nAnd the problem is that SRS is just as misrepresented as r/atheism. How many times have you heard people claim that the people in there are angry, hostile, men-hating, etc? 1347423445 I am not a scientist, but I am running for state representative in NH on the idea that legislation needs more scientific basis. I'm regularly appalled by the lack of dedication to science and reality our world lives by. \n\nMy state just passed legislation that allows parents to tell their children's teachers if they're uncomfortable with the subject matter to exclude the child from learning anything the parents disagree with. This will not make for an educated generation, if pop culture can dictate what happens in science class.\n\nIn case anybody's interested- it's http://electfisher.org 1331225360 By stating that some herbs "work", you're implying that skeptics think that none do. This is a straw man. Every skeptic I've met admits that many herbs can and do work. Herbs are just cocktails of drugs, sometimes one or more of those drugs can help, but they can also hurt. 1299558231 and times were different.. then. we werent currently at war with two muslims nations.\n\nwe didnt have a very right wing al quada telling people the west is at war with all of islam.\n\nwe also didnt have the hyper right wing in america going all about islamofascist and how every single solitary 1.6 billion muslims were terrorists.\n\nThey rabid right feeds off each other and that is how things esculate.\n\nNotice they never want to come to the diplomatic table without preconditions.\n\nNotice they all want to blow the middle east to hell and dont see the hypocracy in killing the innocent.\n\nnotice they think tough talk and drawing lines in the sand is a way to de-escalate the problem.\n\nsaying "bring em on" while it gets the rabid right cheering, it isnt the wises thing to say in war.\n\n 1347469450 * Clearly, there is some disagreement about the "general use" of the word "drunk." It is not as obvious as you've made it out to be. Watson made the effort to define what she meant by "drunk" multiple times. So, when there is confusion about what *she* meant, do we defer to her definition, or to an outside definition? When a biologist is talking about the *theory* of evolution, and there is confusion about the meaning, do we defer to the biologist's definition or the "general use?"\n\n* I really don't see her definition as special. She's not the only one that says a drunk person cannot consent. For example, my state university's sexual assault policy states that a person under the influence of drugs and/or alcohol is not able to give consent. So, it would be a stretch to call this a special or extremist position. You can question the validity of policies like these, but it's the codified status quo in places.\n\n* She can later say whatever she wants and have it questioned, yes. However, it's clear to me that the later tweets were her **reiterating** the same concept over and over. These were a **continuation** of what she was saying, not the start of some whole new conversation, completely devoid of context. If there was any confusion about the tweets, she **made a blog post** to clear things up. The tweet is part of a **context**, and to ignore what she said both before and after is foolish and/or intentionally dishonest. 1356045520 The Company, nowadays. 1349653183 This is just a very complicated version of the Bloody Mary game. 1355173869 Doesn't the skunk ape kind of resemble a 'big foot' type creature? This thing was very thin and hairless.\n\nEdit: it's noteworthy that this creature was quick. very agile. 1313789168 "It probably wouldn't work. I've talked face-to-face with creationists before, and the problem is their mind boggling ignorance."\n\nThe problem with atheists is their mind boggling lack of common sense in the approach. Actually you have to put a great deal into God's hand so to speak. You cannot force people's face into truth and expect them to thank you, it's by the grace of our creator that we come to know truth. 1265514535 Earl *Greys*! GASP 1292947679 sarcasm -_- 1326184266 You're now on a list somewhere. 1342058296 Well, that's not the entire context...\n\nYes, they did kidnap him - but they had his parent's permission. If they had done *exactly* the same thing a few month earlier (when the man was 17), it would have been perfecly legal... 1342038385 Yeah, the math seemed a bit wonky on that one. That means just about each one of those people is responsible for a little over 3.1 million dollars each. 1351879573 Healthy cells very rarely actually hit the point at which telomeres become the dominant factor in their dysfunction. More common is that cells cease being able to reliably reproduce vital sections of genetic code, leading to impaired metabolic function and frequently one of many types of programmed cell death. In order for a cancerous cell to become "immortal" however, it must have a modified ability to replenish it's telomeres.\n\nThe "self destruct mechanism" is actually not one mechanism but many mechanisms. By means of these mechanisms a cell can detect if it's genome is damaged or replicated improperly, or if the cell's physical integrity has changed, or if the cell is unnecessary, or even if some of it's error checking mechanisms are not working properly. These self defense mechanisms can work by halting the cell's metabolic processes or by activing other processes. It's a complex system which usually requires multiple mutations in multiple (often redundant!) genes, both genes which check for errors and genes which regulate growth and reproduction. \n\nAs a consequence there will never be a global cure for "cancer", because cancer is a name for one of thousands upon thousands of different types of cellular dysfunction. 1305334953 remember lucid dreming was "pseudo-esque" before it became accepted as well. Along with the world being flat and such. Remember babysteps and never assume something is hogwash just because the consensus doesn't approve...yet. 1347150411 Depends on how hot I am. 1339749638 WTC nuclear demolition! Bwa ha ha ha. Anyone who walks down the street with a geiger counter anytime in the next million years could disprove that one! 1299438536 I love this theory, and often include pole reversals in my "big list of things that could take society/civilization down" I don't think that it holds up for the bird deaths. \n\n 1294506686 Since you're interested, there have been at least a couple major attempts to replicate Bem's results since it was published, and both have been negative. The most recent one ran into some issues with the journal that published Bem's original article, because their policy has been not to publish straight replications. After some hubbub, I've heard that they are actually going to publish it, so that should be coming soon. 1348690481 I hope so. I emailed the people at TAM that I wanted to add some workshops to my registration, but they haven't responded yet. 1339552902 Thank you for the advice, i'm aware its not the most enticing of hobbies, but I just want to have that experience, I guess you could say its on my bucket list, oddly enough. \n\nI take it you have some experience in this. Is this a hobby of yours or what? if you don't mind my asking. 1340563940 Something being natural in no way implies it is safe and good for you. 1338793633 Wow.. a non-evidence based neurologist.... that's fucking scary. 1326062470 A Klasshole, if you will. 1350184788 No way. Not even close. That is a once in a lifetime sort of thing. 1340818323 Thanks for the links. It's fairly depressing that the response you linked is so far down the page, after a whole load of snarky comments. 1270132994 I was diagnosed with schizophrenia and was institutionalized for months.\nWhen I moved to Houston 6 hours away to live with my dad?\nI would see faces in the clouds.. you know.. disoriented type but they've always smiled. Well my grandmother died the next day and the night she did.. I was tired.. In the corner of my bed I felt weight. As if someone was sitting there patting me on the back of my head. \nThis feeling.. of deep sympathy over whelmed me. Like whatever it was felt sorry for what I was gong through. I don't know if it was real or my illness but I believe it was her. \n 1356925065 TL:DR??? 1343954417 This thread is a Penn and teller circlejerk combined with an anti-gun control circlejerk.\n\nIt does not belong in this subreddit. 1356134863 Street view shots are not taken at the same time as satellite images. As you can see in street view it is cloudy, they would never use a cloudy image from a satellite, because you would see nothing.\n\nThose 3 blurry smudges could be something in the clouds, or just dried up dirt that was splashed on.\n\nEdit 1: If you really want to know what it is do not go to wtf, or paranormal. Go to [/r/askscience](/r/askscience).\nThey can distinguish to see if a ufo is a spaceship or a raindrop in no time. 1328112362 1. It's bullshit\n2. ...peddled by bullshitters\n3. ...and believed by people who fall for all kinds of bullshit. 1254832219 I saw the exact thing last night in Los Angeles! 1350068900 I'd agree with that, but that is a completely separate argument from talking about the DMCA :) 1284835601 > Do you have something other than assertion and suspicion to justify this.\n\nNot sure what evidence I should provide for this. Typically, if an "agressive" intervention is uncommon in a society, there is little desire to fund lots of studies to see if there is a benefit of that procedure. Because circumcision is common in the US, there was a lot of interest in figuring out whether there is a benefit of process that was occurring commonly but the AAP had not recommended since 1971 (which was the first time it talked about (I think)). And if you look at [AAP's report from 1999](http://www.cirp.org/library/statements/aap1999/), you can see the length of the section on UTI (approx. 1450 words long) versus the section on STDs (approx. 146 words long). This reflects that the latter studies are a more recent suggestion.\n\n> Males retain ability to orgasm, females do not.\n\nThe studies are mixed on both these. There are several reports of reduced penile sensitivity and delayed orgasms in circumcised males. There are also reports of females happily having orgasms after FGM. But since this is not my primary area of interest, I don't know where the overall opinion lies in these. I agree the intention in the case of FGM is reprehensible but the intentions in the male side are often (a) religious, (b) a desire to fit in, (c) a desire to look like Dad's, (d) health concerns - and (d) is much less frequently the intent compared to the other three.\n\n> I'm not necessarily a proponent for male circumcision, but I do think the hullabaloo is much overwrought.\n\nI am not certain about the value of circumcision and therefore was looking forward to the AAP's recommendation. The press release was a bit hyperbolic for my taste and therefore I mentioned that. I hope I did not come across as too militant. The reason for the general hullabaloo is that it is not (a) a societal norm in most of the rest of the world, (b) the intention is suspect in a majority of cases, and many countries are more sensitive about a child's rights than Americans are (rightly or not), and (c) it is the internet - only the loudest and the most motivated survive. 1346088570 I just realized your condescension was all based on an entirely incorrect understanding of Argumentum ad Ignoratium.\n\nArgumentum ad Ignoratium is NOT the concept that "absence of evidence is not evidence of absence."\n\nIt is actually the concept that absence of contradicting evidence is not proof.\n\nThe two are very different ideas; in fact they insinuate opposing conclusions. You clearly are someone who gets off on correcting people's logic - and not actually displaying good logic - if you just assumed without learning about or so terribly misunderstood Argumentum ad Ignratium. You effectively turned the entire concept on its head and attempted to argue that it suggests the opposite of what it does. I can't believe I argued with you at all about it.\n\nThe teapot analogy perfectly explains why you can safely say Bigfoot doesn't exist. Your semantic focus on the word "probably" is inane. 1346873203 What happens if someone changes the alarm to a time you don't know, will you still wake up before it? 1340400252 The only information I have is that the person taking the picture is the Ex and he lives in the house. He is taking a picture of his gf's tattoo and there are no other residents of the house. They, divorced wife and husband, have both said between the two that they thought the house might be haunted and have witnessed strange things. He sent the picture to the ex wife and he said there was no one else in the house. He lives alone and they are about to put the house up for sale.\n\nI was hoping someone could give me some different colorizations of the photo to send back. I'll see if I can probe for more information.. 1347302032 This is really quite extraordinary the vividness and amount of detail you experienced in your dream. It kind of seems like from what you described that it might be very possible that this vision much like your last could be two years before the event (if it does occur). At least, I think, everyone can take a small breath of relief that it's not anything happening at the end of this year. Still though, I feel very concerned myself about this very likely going to happen and I live in southeast PA which would be relatively close in proximity to this event should it be as large as you describe. \n\nI would say first that I [with my current knowledge base] cannot think of any reason for a volcanic event of such large a magnitude to occur on the east coast of the U.S. . There is no volcanic activity hereabout whatsoever really. Even our mountains, the Appalachians, are very old short mountains without any kind of circumstances that would cause or even presently have anything volcanic going on. And, from your descriptions, it sounds like the lava was coming from the coast/ocean, which is just as weird since there is equally nothing volcanic there. The only thing that would even maybe have something happen volcanicly would be the Great Atlantic Rift, but only I would think if it were affected by some outside source to open into the Earth far enough to expel magma (if that's even possible, I don't know; I just know it's a very large and deep crack from back when the continents separated), but even so the rift is in the center of the Atlantic and seemingly too distant for you [if such an extreme circumstance were possible] to see lava even in Rhode Island. This would lead me to believe something more along the line of an external event, like a meteor; if it were large enough, and went deep enough on impact, AND was close enough to your house in Rhode Island- then maybe that might bring about the circumstances in your vision, but I can't be sure. I would think though it would at least coincide with your hearing a bizarre explosion.\n\nAlso, and I hate to even mention this, but if perhaps what you saw as lava *wasn't* lava but instead something that looked very similar to lava but different, maybe it could've been like a sort of wall of fire and rock that would be reminiscent of what you would see emanating from the center of a nuclear explosion. Perhaps comparing some videos or written accounts of nuclear explosions to your own vision experience might tell you if the possibility of a nuclear explosion is something that might fit the circumstances of your premonition or not.\n\nI'm not sure what else could be possible, but maybe looking into written accounts of meteor impacts or accounts of nuclear explosions might tell you if either of those are likely possibilities. And surely, if some other possibility comes to my mind I won't hesitate to post it :). 1354820197 >[dis is dumb shit, da maker of dis video n ne one hu agrees wit it iz stupid](http://i.imgur.com/mJ5R9.png)\n\n\nFuck, why doesn't YouTube just disable comments by default? Comments are already optional, just make people *enable* them, rather than *disable* them. 1327816519 Yeah... There is nothing there. 1328815062 It looks like some sort of bleed over from a television that's been duplicated almost side-by-side. The woman in the picture is clearly wearing a business suit of some sort and is talking to a man with his back turned. Unfortunately I can't quite make out who the people might be to say where it may have come from. 1353189390 The practical/statistical significance thing is a common error.\n\nGoogle scholar is also very good for getting an overview, especially if you have access to a database where you can view the full articles. 1346088694 You are so full of it. *This guy* hurts the scientific method more than anything else possibly could?\n\nThat's so ridiculous I don't know where to start. What a paranoid idea. 1347231485 Oh yeah...I forgot that part....upfos for you friend..... 1345864849 I should clarify: I was talking more to the "Cafeteria Christian", the person who is in their religion because they were born into it, and while is not particularly devoted to it...still identifies with the beliefs therein. \n\nMy wife is a great example of this, she's nearly a deist to be honest...she certainly doesn't embrace much of Catholicism, even though that's the checkbox she selects. Rather, she lives by the Golden Rule and typically uses religion and church as a baseline in her life, and a source of tradition and community. The "lack of evidence" to support the ideas of God and Jesus and all that aren't a big deal to her so much, because she also is able to acknowledge that her beliefs might not be true. But they make her a happier person, and she gets something out of them.\n\nI think most religious people are like that, to be honest. Fundies and Evangelicals are the corner cases, and they do indeed have many of the same traits that we've talked about in this thread. 1337362582 The fundamental rule of skepticism is, IMO, "Kiss my ass!"\n\nDo skeptics even realize how difficult it would be for them to set a standard for belief? I mean, if all skeptics got together in Vegas for a week and sat down and said, "Fine. What would it take for us to believe in aliens?"\n\nThe answer that they'd eventually come up with, is that they'd believe in aliens if they came down here and kissed their asses! What if the aliens don't want to do it their way? They're busy. They have alien shit to do, and some skeptic convention is saying "We'd believe in you if only ____." \n\nSome people just like to mock the world from armchairs. Let them have their fun.\n\nAs for you, if you think about it, no you wouldn't carve your initials in a tree. But what *would* you do? You know some humans, you've been to Earth a few times. You were born here. What do you think an alien would have to do? What do you think an alien's message would be in the first place?\n\nEDIT: Changed pronouns. 1351877633 Terrible parents. But from a pragmatic point of view (and one I doubt even crossed their minds), there is no healthcare in this country. Who gets a manslaughter charge for someone who is too poor to afford life-saving healthcare? No one.\n\nThe whole crux of this system of healthcare is you get what you pay for. If you can't pay for it, you don't get it. Sure, hospitals are obliged to take you in if you show up, but *only long enough to ensure that you're vitals are stable*, then they can kick you out back on to the streets.\n\nSo what is the difference between opting out voluntarily in paying healthcare versus someone who simply can't afford it? Should a mother who can't afford to get her kid, say, an organ transplant be charged with manslaughter if her kid dies because of it?\n\nNow don't get me wrong, I am not defending "faith healing" at all. It's ridiculous. What I am saying is that this situation is only slightly different from someone who simply can't afford healthcare. The only difference (if you ignore the neglect) is that these presumably had enough money to seek professional care.\n\nIt's food for thought, and something I doubt many people have really considered. Opinions? 1320364568 For a skeptic you seem very sure of that. What makes a good conspiracy is that you can't be sure of the validity. Some are more reasonable than others, but the key is plausable deniability. For instance, take uaps, there is only eye witness accounts and folks like Peter Hellyer (ex Canadian defense minister), et al, who claim the phenomenon is legitimate. Then there are people who claim there are lizard people controlling the world... one of these conspiracies is not like the other when approached with a skeptical mind. 1332300485 Face down, ass up, and they're all deeply corrupt? 1354036877 Not if you have certain brain injuries or problems, as I do. I'm in my thirties. Life still goes by at about the same rate as when I was a kid, more or less, but my perception of what was a week or month has become a smaller packet. 1344959474 Aww, just like Hachi. Dogs are the best. 1348275109 Give it a try. Extract (in capsule form) is preferable to tinctures. It helped me a bit, but had some side effects (hard to describe wierd feeling), so I stopped taking it. 1305757784 >i tested out of high school at age sixteen. as such, community college was my only option (and i even had to fight to get in there).\n\nI met people in your situation when I went to a four year accredited university. What made it so hard for you to get in? 1314582082 See also: [Kary Mullis](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kary_Mullis#Personal_views) and [Linus Paulings later work](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Linus_pauling#Molecular_medicine_and_medical_research) 1308848210 I do:\n\nhttp://www.reddit.com/r/UFOs/comments/10picz/multiple_ufo_sighting_over_cincinnati_ohio/\n\n 1349402271 I'm increasingly of the opinion that the very idea of holding a public debate is rubbish where questions of science are concerned. Public debates are little more than theatre, and it's only marginally more relevant to the truth than a wrestling match. 1313443971 [You got it chief](http://imgur.com/GWycf) 1337310266 http://i.imgur.com/kJ5Oq.png\n\nCompared to jet.\n\nhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=tapiLstStHk#t=48s\n\nON FILM 1353138509 This is a long-held belief amongst Tesla lovers. Unfortunately there is no way to prove it because of the conspiracy against Tesla wherein the government took/destroyed all his notes and machines after his death. 1354746513 Oh yeah absolutely. In no way did I want to imply that he shouldn't call him on it.\n\nBut in retrospect I see how you could misunderstand my comment in that way. I was just extremely surprised that 'calling him out' on this topic is necessary. I was not aware that it was *that* bad in america. 1319548131 Came here to show some charles shaw love. 1302903220 No, I say "whatever" because I don't find the evidence compelling, and I am completely uninterested in having this off-topic conversation. Go find someone else to argue with. 1332268642 I think it is a disingenuous argument used by people who are against nuclear power under all circumstances. \n\nFirst, it was "You'll have to glowing two headed babies!", and now that people are realizing that was a lie, it is "Hey, wind and solar are just around the corner!"\n\nSolar and wind are great...but they have to be paired with an "always on" technology...especial if we want to move away from oil and look at an electric auto fleet. Solar and wind are still emerging technologies, and will require huge infrastructure investments to power a country. Those investment will occur over decades, and won't begin in earnest until the technology settles out.\n\nSo, it is at best naive to say we can water for wind and solar. At worst, it is as dishonest as glowing two headed babies. \n\nNuclear is the best "always on" technology. The 104 anitquated, underdeveloped, underfunded, much maligned 70's era nuclear reactors in the USA still produce about 20% of the electricity. Carbon neutral, with a minimum of pollution or environment damage. If the US had kept building reactors with increasingly modern technology, no telling what degree of energy independence the US would enjoy today. \n\nAs for safety, ask a miner or a roughneck how safe conventional power is. 1276285492 Tied for 5th Place! Thank You!!! 1327074675 I'm seeing him Saturday at the University of Calgary, it's going to be great. 1316581526 I wish antivaxxers would just go live on their own little island so they can die of whooping cough, measles, polio, mumps, and diptheria without infecting the rest of us.\n\nOh, and tetanus. I wonder if antivaxxers get tetanus shots? (Somehow I think they'd be all over a tetanus shot if they stepped on a rusty nail.) 1342810563 The camera zoom and shake on the first video is clearly fake. Haven't gotten to the others yet. 1348349170 Now I get what you are talking about.\n\nI guess you see fighting for acceptance of atheists in the public sphere and the subsequent legal challenges as inherently political. Ok. \n\nHowever, that is atheist organizations promoting atheism on pretty strict legal grounds, not atheist organizations fighting for some VERY broadly defined thing such as social justice... Which literally every single person alive has a different definition of, whether atheist or not. \n\nIf your point is that the so-called new atheism has already set a precedent of meddling in political and social issues therefor atheism+ should not be argued against because they want to do this; then I think you are mistaken. \n\nSeparation of church and state, creationism in classrooms, public displays of religious symbols,.... all of which are well defined legal issues dealing direction with the intrusion of religion and suppression of atheism (and science). Whereas the stated issues of atheism+ are generally non-controversial, what 'social justice' actually means to the group/individual that is the problem. \n\nThere are loads of social justice issues done by individuals in the 'new atheist' movement but these are individual decisions about the issues and what needs to be done. It isn't a group deciding, dictating to their membership and punishing dissent. 1346564414 WTF half of your comments are correcting peoples grammar.\n\nYou arent really contributing to the conversation by doing so,you could at least leave a comment relevant to the thread and then complain.\n\nYou can correct this post aswell if you like,this time I have purposely left out the apostrophes,I hope you appreciate the work. 1353723026 Please stop trying to drag the discussion off-topic. The issues of abortion or atheists charitable efforts are completely irrelevant here, so let's stick to the subject, eh?\n\nSo, back on-topic, would you say you agree with the statement "Parents should be allowed to harm their children however much they want, as long as their *claimed intention* is good and they're acting in accordance with their professed beliefs"?\n\nBecause that's how I'm reading your position at the moment - if I've got it wrong, please do correct me. 1280160112 Rather shortsighted. You're really only focusing on the States as the only area of import.\n\nPseudo-science aside, there is a chance for catastrophe: the hype. Man's history is replete with rash judgements. Notably, in this particular case, we have reports of wealthy (super-wealthy) folk buying apocalypse-proof condos to weather (whatever) may happen during this time period.\n\nIf any of you care to take the time to think about it, those with exorbitant amounts of wealth have always held power over the general population (in various forms). One particular point of interest in our time period, is the ease of sharing information within closed circles. \n\nHolding that in mind, let's go back to wealth = power. The rich elite surround themselves with like-minded and equally influential people. Like themselves, each of these elite is privy to certain fragments of intel (respective to their communities) which is in turn gabbed about through their elite group. Swapping occurs; mostly of "higher-up" rumors or whathaveyou. I've been privy to these conversations as of my vocation. I cater to many, many richer-than-sin folk. \n\nI'm willing to bet that if we do see anything on an apocalyptic scale, it will be of the persuasion of an 'insurance policy.'\n\nWe've all heard that the super-rich are all for the idea that the population should drastically decrease as for longevity and 'strengthening' our species.\n\nSo what would happen if all these blokes were to head underground for an event of cataclysmic scale, only to be left there without any actual event every occurring? Enter the insurance policy; a tactical nuclear strike on a tumultuous region would ensure MAD for all those above-ground.\n\nI am vehemently convinced that any detrimental event will be of the manufacture by the elite groups of the world.\n 1348337141 To get 20 tests, probably. 95% of 20 is 19, so that last study - the green one - is in the 5% that sort of failed. 1302098778 but they don't tell their doctor because herbals 'aren't drugs', they forget, or they don't want the doctor to yell at them. So the reverse is actually true: doctors should always directly ask patients about any herbals they may be taking.\n\nThere's also the problem of content. pharmaceuticals have X mg of whatever in them. However, herbs can have all kinds of different concentrations or substances. One dose of willow bark one day cures your headache, the next dose another day burns a hole in your stomach. 1306532550 However, there are still several climate scientists that feel our effect on the environment is not as bad as most claim. Environmental alarmism can be very dangerous. 1267024552 Spicy peppers contain Capsaicin, and the common curry spice Tumeric contains Curcumin. Capsaicin and Curcumin have anti inflammatory properties in addition to being effective expectorants. They're a decent treatment for cold and flu symptoms but not a cure, per se. 1354123386 If this wasn't for publicity, my guess is they would have found out what it was before telling the world. I'm willing to bet they did send divers down and found out it wsan't important and are now getting the most of what they can out of it. 1309661821 Just like the number of different carcinogens in a product is an asinine statistic, it's not the number of different vaccines that matters. What matters is how likely the product, taken as a whole, is to give someone cancer, or how much more likely a child receiving the complete vaccination schedule is to become autistic. 1306940317 >Infowars.com is a Free Speech Systems, LLC company. \n\nNot sure of the reporting rules for LLCs. 1312397306 The arecibo message was sent to the M13 star cluster in 1974. The message itself will take 25,000 years to arrive. We received a response in just 27 years. So either a) Said alien race receives the message in 13.5 years and sends a return message back the 13.5 years with crop circle technology, truly believing this is the best communication method. b) Some alien race picked up the message within a 27 light year radius, travels the distance and leaves a shitty message. c) Human made. 1355115315 I'm definitely a skeptic, but I definitely think that skeptics and modern medicine have a lot more they can learn from naturopathy. 1303103801 Obviously the socioeconomic factors hinted at in that paragraph could have entire libraries written about it, but, putting it simply...\n\nWhat I was getting at was that it's harder for black people to get into postions of economic power, so they choose to go into sport instead. This is also probably related to the stereotypes mentioned later - white people are seen as naturally smarter, black people as more naturally athletic - and contributes to the issue. \n\nAs for the mini golf - you've missed the point. The experiment shows that both groups performed equally well, until it was mentioned that it was a test of natural athletic ability. When white people felt they were being tested for natural athletic ability which they perceive themselves as not being so good at, their performance plummeted. 1345049890 Great post, would like to clarify one thing, while all water reactors require a pressure vessel, BWRs like Fukushima operate at a much lower temperature than PWRs and do not require a large containment building like PWRs. 1323400672 Iridium flare? Ever see one? 1348206796 Fair enough. I suppose I was misinformed then. 1326153032 If you look at around 30 sec... There's a coin that just falls off rather easily (top right).\n\nIf it actually was magnetic forces, this would not happen at all and he would not be able to remove the other coins simply by leaning forward. 1305502099 When engineers go up there and talk about the actual thing they built , sitting in a real laboratory, that has a real-world use...\n\nI can't complain. 1344531618 Believing aliens exist without proof is no different to believing unicorns exist without proof. 1328344886 Here's another article from the same great source: http://www.theepochtimes.com/n2/science/ufo-filmed-over-thames-estuary-in-london-190575.html\n\nNote to self: Blacklist "theepochtimes.com" 1330471584 Ah, so the claim should be adjusted to include professions that practice quackery in part. I didn't catch that part. 1326157505 This is a bit off topic, but I wish more forums, reddits, etc had a no portmanteau rule. I've never found portmanteaus to anything but halfway clever and are generally strawman fallacy's in and of themselves. 1353362933 note, black's first comment was cut off, oops:\n\nThis research explains why I am misspelling words that I know more frequently and many of the other side effects I am noticing. \n\nI have a little bit of Aspartame drinks left, and that is it. I will drink those but after that no thanks. If I "have" to "have" pop then it will be unhealthy healthier Fructose filled Pop from now on. That just gives you things like Diabetes and Gout instead of the Seizures and Brain Cancer that Aspartame gives. Apparently its a neurotoxin! \n\nI have been on the fence about Aspartame for awhile now, but simply Googling "Dangers of Aspartame" are enough to convince me, that whether it is true or only partially true, it's not worth it when I can confirm memory loss personally. 1305126943 Is there any way I can bet against this? 1336035169 At Skeptic meetings we don't care if people are mistaken about issues, X, Y, Z before they come. Education is the point not ideological purity.\n\nWould you ban a speaker who was an expert on debunking CAM (Complimentary Alternative Medicine) because they were a theist? If the answer is yes, then we have a serious problem.\n\nSkepticism is at its heart about science, would you also ban theists from being scientists?\n\n 1343143167 Are the accidents broken down? Drug errors could account for the third leading source of *accidental* death. It still couldn't be 100,000 though. 1341518161 are you kidding? imagine unsolved mysteries without them. 1337023070 The interviewee should have their own camera recording their interview from start to finish with no interruptions, as a reference. When a discrepancy appears in the broadcast interview, they can then point to their own video and say "here's how it was before it was edited." 1313425614 You know what's less cool? Downvoting everyone who proofreads it. It goes against reddiquette 1303084637 I sympathize with some of the MR complaints (e.g., rape of men being disregarded, the oppression of not being able to be affectionate with children without being suspected of sexual abuse). However, the MR community here on reddit has previously shown to be incredibly [transphobic](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transphobia), and for that alone I have huge problems with them. 1345150224 If I'm remembering right, the claim is that the act of birthing puts a lot of strain on the child's spine, and that is what misaligns it.\n\nAs to why they think it's related, the claim is that if your spine is messed up, your nerve system is messed up, and that makes your immune system messed up. Something like that. If you listen to an extreme chiropractor, they'd tell you that if you were perfectly aligned you'd never be sick, because your immune system would catch everything. 1324020867 could you please back that up? 1348814488 You must have never seen a newspaper then. 1311631238 Wow that's alot of information haha, got lost in there. But let's go in order of questions here. \n*Can you describe this fellow in a more anatomical sense?*\nThe fellow in an anatomical sense was to say very chaotic I guess. Like I mentioned, he seemed to take on a different form each time that I've seen him, such as a dragon, a man in a suit, a man in a king's battle arraignment, a man with an antelope's head, a feral, coyote-like, anthromorphic creature, and a man in a suit, this time with what appeared to be dreadlocks.\n\n*How did he move?* He usually made very slow gestures, unless I approached something that I would sense that he wouldn't want me to touch. His movements then would become erratic and jerky, like a human that is heavily under the influence of cocaine.\n\n*What were his outlines like?* I'm not sure what you mean by this, but he seemed to never have an outline, he was just a mass of shadow and black, so if he did have one, I could not discern it.\n\n*What kind of sounds could you hear?* Most of the time, the dreams would have a hissing sound, and if i remember correctly, in the city dream I heard what seemed to be a sparking sound, like you hear from a fuse on a firecracker.\n\n*What did you get from the Oujia board?* I didn't receive anything, but what I heard from my girlfriend is that she made contact with a ghost, but she felt threatened by the presence, so she stopped. She tried again later the board simply said bad, over and over again, so she stopped for good then.\n\nAs for about me, my birthday is on December 5th, 1991. I love art, and I love music, and I smoke cigarettes. Things that I don't like are centipedes, basements, overly-zealous atheists and religious fanatics. I usually will talk about anything with anyone really, so long as they're comfy with themselves. I'm a very outgoing person, and I love to socialize.\n\nUsually my dreams are half of the time about people I know and having a good time, or making a bad time for me better by changing things to make it appeal better to me. My favorite colors happen to be violet, sage, and yellow, and my favorite number is 17. As for the thoughts, as of lately my thoughts have been about my recent ex, so I can't really give much leeway on that question.\n\nAs for the correspondences, Chicago is to the East of me, Ravens are my favorite bird, I get in trouble alot, Roses are in the garden in the front, I smoke *cloves* in my cigarettes( if that counts), and I love my life for others, so unselfishness I guess also fits.\n\nAs for the things in the numbered bullets, that is where it confuses me. If you could go into detail on what you mean by these fetters.\n\nAs for the way I feel around him, it's a terrifying comfort. It's really hard to describe it other than that. 1343005667 mmm.... crystal brainzzz good 1336513106 Living long enough causes cancer. 1355013642 I own a small brewery so I have the whole alcohol makin' routine down. Interesting method for the wine though... might be fun to try at home one day. 1345832240 She lost me at "more than 50% of our federal tax money is going towards the military." Not sure when this was made but in 2011 it was 19%.\n\nAlso, "you can't continue to run a linear system on a finite planet." I have no idea what that means. 1335561442 You completely changed the title. It says right there "in Their Lifetime". 1336035310 Fox News has our finest seal of approval. Upvote it. 1313064812 Going by that article, because Deepak Chopra and many other quacks put quantum in front of everything, the whole field is bullshit. Post-modernism fuels a lot of new age and other crap, but it's a tool. I don't blame a hammer when I fail to fix my computer with it and banish it forever from my toolbox.\n\nIn history, area I'm most familiar with, post-modernism can be very useful, and even there it produced bullshit. Still, in its very basics it is just the rejection of a single, dominant narrative (be it western, masculine, nation-state, whatever). It is not that the stone drops different for white European man than it does for black African female. It is that they might perceive and interpret it differently. Unless, that is, they use the tools of modern science. Sure, it can, even should, be viewed as just another viewpoint, but a privileged one because no matter the cultural background it gives same results. By that virtue, even if modern science is western in origins, it is still universal.\n 1323501824 from the at least Greek civilization onward, probably well before that, there were people who clearly reasoned that there was no logic behind god and no need for god to explain the universe 1324427166 I'm a cat-based evidence lover myself. 1341921747 I think that a major problem here is also that as video capturing quality develops, so do video editing and video shopping techniques. 1352705193 Aye. It's fuckin creepy. 1339430655 We lived in a house that had "minor" spirit activity. \nThings would fall off shelves (well they were thrown really) at random times, feeling like someone was looking at you when no one was there etc. \nOur Husky would be playing in the house and suddenly stop and stare into the kitchen at nothing. \nYou could call her and she wouldn't even look at you (usually she comes right to you).\nAfter a few seconds she would suddenly just start playing again like whatever was there was gone now. 1315239836 For the sake of argument, there is also a paranormal entity called the ["black stick man" #3 on the list](http://listverse.com/2009/04/24/top-10-bizarre-modern-paranormal-phenomena/). The descriptions are pretty similar, so maybe that's what his GF saw and he knew about Slenderman but not black stick men so assumed it was Slenderman. 1313601201 "for years?" then why didn't dubya take him out to ensure an even better republican victory in following elections. 1304340826 I think you're thinking of Elizabeth May in Canada... and yea, she's nuts. Completely turned me off of our Green party. 1345521188 This article was linked in three other subreddits with no upvotes before r/paranormal was collectively dumb enough to send it to the top. 1322298650 Did we learn noting from the intelligent design fad? These people feed on conspiracy thinking and their oersecution mania. You will not convince them, as you will not convince some that the moon landing was a hoax. Call them out in public forums, when they try to claim legitimacy in the marketplace of ideas, but don't engage them on their territory. Wasteful of your energy, they are not interested in engaging in discourse at an honest level. \n\nYou're arguing fouls on a streetball court in their neighborhood. Play elsewhere. 1343836156 Maybe she'll sue the radio station now. 1320712891 >What the hell is in my house?\n\n- natural shadows\n\n- computer with photoshop program 1344898607 Spider-Man will never web up Jesus. Sir Topem Hat will never ride Thomas to salvation. The Ninja Turtles will never get a pizza with the Virgin Mary's image burned into the cheese. 1332384401 Thanks for your tip. However I'm 100% sure it wasn't a meteor. Read my post again and you'll see why. 1299663978 Do you think they'll have to start claiming it's caused by wi-fi next? 1304014596 Cheese 1330588489 I don't think luck is some kind of force or substance, or magical woo-energy that makes things go your way, if that's what you mean. But it is a convenient way to refer to chance going your way. 1333748915 I hope so because you'd have to be pretty special not to realize that gaping math flaw. 1297868933 And fuck you all for downvoting me. Get the fuck out of your sci-fi shells and look at reality for a second. 1302272906 The Venus de Milo is still in Paris last time I checked. 1352095398 >"blind faith" should be admired.\n\nwtf are you doing in the skeptic subreddit? 1320452516 Yes and no. I was actually thinking about that today and my first thought is that we'd see a lot more Arab scientists and economists is they were also give the kind of opportunities Jews have had in the modern world. If they found careers and got into colleges more by merit than by who they and their parents know, and if the oil wealth of the Gulf was invested into science and research rather than in the pockets of royals and their spawn, they would also perform quite well.\n\nLikewise, the disproportionate amount is rather slight since Nobel Prize winners in this category come from a very wide variety of ethnic backgrounds. I'm sure that the relentless focus on study and achievement helps but we also need to think about access to the resources and opportunities here. 1313632253 That is creepy and I just got a whole bunch of chills through my body. That "wide-eye" look is just disturbing. Like you only see that stuff in the horror movies. 1340122134 That disc player 'trick' was atrocious, not helped by the magician himself being awful. \n\nIf he'd made them properly portable it would have been more interesting but having them attached to speakers just gave far too much avenue for simple electronic shenanigans. In actual fact, one of them kicked in *far* too fast for a cd player which made me think there was an MP3 player concealed somewhere.\n\nNow, what I'd like to do it take it one stage further. Ask them to bring in their own CD... and you give them a specially designed CD player which instead of just playing the CD, also transmits it wirelessly to the player on stage. They, from their seat, choose a CD, and place it in the player, you can then "magically" guess which track they're going to play, and burn the first 30 seconds or so for later use in the trick...\n\n... I've thought about this during my morning shower by the way... :p 1309878335 .....\nAm I alone in love for the wonder that is the camel toe? 1326275429 It's pretty rare that you hear the science writers for a paper actually called on how shitty a job they do. But in those instances, I've always found the answers depressing. Even in papers I'd have considered fairly reputable, the science reporters seemed to just display an outright ignorance of how science is actually performed. They seemed to obsess over the idea of a story. That opposing viewpoints had to be represented, and that the effects of an experiment were as subjective as the pros and cons of any political party. 1300610859 There was an article around a few days back covering the effectiveness of drinks like Gatorade in terms of how they can improve an athlete's performance when they're essentially just sugar water. The gist of the article was that it wasn't the sugar giving the drinker more energy, but triggers in the mouth letting the brain know that something sweet was incoming, making the drinker happier. They discovered this by having their test subjects swish the drink around in their mouth and spitting it out, then go for a run.\n\nHow does this map to this particular concern? Apparently when the testers did the same with diet drinks, they got no benefit from it. It would seem that your mouth knows the difference between real and fake sugar, and doesn't let your brain know if it's dealing with the latter.\n\nNo source once again (can't find the article) but I remember reading it exactly because they made that distinction, and the whole taste-sweet-gain-weight is something I've heard and wondered about before as well. 1312562376 that was dumb 1339685541 She is dead... 1349481653 I think you may be right after watching the video, you never actually see her type. You see her pressing one button then it switches to the computer screen as it talks. How could someone (I'm guessing so this may not be accurate) have perfect grammar, spelling and sentence structure without a normal education. I've been in a school with many special needs students and they never did anything close to that level.\n\nI'd like to be wrong about this, sure its a nice story but I agree that it is probably fake. 1330763713 in related news, it turns marijuana hermaphroditic. 1310471007 Alright, so the topic is how men and women are influenced by society to have sex and or how men/women influence each other using those stereotypes. Yes there are people that don't fit into this category. If you would like to add to the conversation then stand up for an individualized relationship, and please differentiate how your individual relationship isn't impacted by the influence of those around you. That would add to your argument, instead of staying in the realm of "There is an opinion I don't like, I haz the anger". \n 1324590884 http://tiny.cc/thisoneepisode <- You can hear about it , they interview the author, which then was made into an episode . 1352613056 Wrong.\n\nStainless is made of two words - STAIN, LESS.\nIt's stains LESS.\nhttp://www.finishing.com/190/05.shtml 1301506276 I can't get this date to work in the tracker. It keeps telling me to put it in the correct form and I have. Can you take a screen shot of what you get. If it wasn't the ISS, who knows? Believe me I want to be open minded to this as best I can. I just dont want to jump to conclusions. 1350073123 Can't help but to be skeptical, but the flashing lights is throwing me off. It looks like it could be a kid's toy. 1305352261 That's exactly how I felt when the Q&A really got going. People yelling at one another, standing up and offering unsolicited personal testimony, tinfoil hats and everything. 1348510889 How so? From the tutorial explanations on that site, all I can tell is that without rainbowing, it was not likely edited with an adobe product (photoshop). So maybe gimp, but you'd expect brighter dots around the area that's different (edges) while the rest is relatively smooth, which I think is expected (but those ELAs are a bit hard to read to me).\n\nIs it that the background's black in the ELA instead of more distorted? It's an image from January according to the meta-data so it's likely been saved more than once which might account for that.\n\nI'd say it's more likely a lens flare or reflection on glass (taken through a car window?) then a digital modification.\n\nMy guess would be an i-phone taking a picture of a cloudy sky through a car window near a traffic stop at a red light, with the red light oddly reflected off the glass, maybe reflected in a drop of water. 1345596823 You really expect to post such drivel into /r/Skeptic? Lots of kids hopping up and down? Amazing.\n\nDon't you realize that if someone could actually float and defeat the force of gravity they would be the most important person in the world. The entire theory of physics would need to be rewritten.\n\nTM (I assume you mean transcendental meditation) was debunked in the 60's. \n\nIt's embarrassing to everyone that someone would foist this nonsense on us and I'm sure the head of this school is laughing all the way to the bank. 1351124871 [/r/politics](/r/politics) is secretly [/r/circlejerk](/r/circlejerk) in disguise. 1324963465 >Yes. \n\nWell, that shows that you are the religious one here. Your religion is "science" (read: a particular brand of science that denies anything spiritual).\n\n>science has actual scientific proof.\n\nRedundant much? That statement exemplifies the circular nature of your reasoning. As already noted more than once, standards of evidence are subjective. You obviously refuse to even acknowledge that I've made this point, as shown by your refusal to respond to it, and your continued insistence that I have no proof. I think the reason you want to ignore this point is that it means that your attitude toward reincarnation may actually be more *religious* than mine. My attitude towards it is based on evidence. Yours is based on a religious faith in scientific orthodoxy. 1327443707 Legislation to require committee members to consult with actual scientists before the attempt to enact legislation, or even draft a bill?\n\nWould that be possible, and would it work? 1353510561 Yeah I would have corrected my comment but my reddit app lacked that capability, I replied to it instead. Major is the wrong word. 1331752142 Baptisim of the dead is hardly a secret, and no, it's no weirder than most, if not all, religious rituals. Still from what I can tell, this video is accurate; however superfulous it may be. 1351103593 I certainly agree with your intentions here and wholeheartedly agree. \n\nJust to make sure though, as I have several times run across people relating this but meaning something else. Equivalent would mean no change in social behavior, actions or expectations. IE... boob, dick, fart, & vagina jokes are still perfectly acceptable and humorous. Commenting on the hotness of other females or males as the case may be again are perfectly acceptable and encouraged. Such statements made would require a positive response from the female of this group as well as positive participation. Hitting on any other female outside the group is perfectly acceptable, just not the on currently interacting in the group. \n\nI'm only being a bit satirical in the above. What the group always ends back at is that men and woman simple aren't the same. They interact differently, not just within their own gender but across genders. What's acceptable behavior in a group of women isn't acceptable within a group of men and vice versa. Anytime they mix, conflicts will arise. This isn't inequality, this is just differences\n\nAgain I wholeheartedly agree with your intentions, my experience though has been that because this isn't a as straight forward as you've put it, it gets complicated. What if the one of the males is genuinely attracted to one of the women in the group? What if the woman is genuinely attracted to one of the males? If men hitting on women is verboten so is women hitting men. Equal is equal, after all. Can there never be a proposition for a date between the two sides? There are goals that are at odds with in the members of the group and this causes conflicts internally and externally. \n\nIn your scenario of black men and white men there's much less conflict in goals, humor, needs, desires, & expectations are much more similar. The chance that the black man will be offended if a white man hits on him is rather lacking as genders are the same. \n\nKarsh\n 1325799477 cool story if true. but a dead body is very different from a live body, it is cold, and the cold will shock you when you touch it. 1346295909 ['Scuse me? Two more homeopathic lagers please!'](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HMGIbOGu8q0) 1295281170 Because in the original video the camera is farther away, you don't see the spark, but rather a solid looking jet of flame. I'm out now. 1340572089 And you do have this required "comprehension"? Please provide.\n\nSo far you have written ignorant nonsense in to this thread, but my observation may be incorrect. 1351111957 As 50lerp mentioned, he's specifically filming where the disturbance has and was happening.\n\nThe items' behavior (how they move with a sharp jerk and then gravity takes over) looks *very similar* to something that is pulled by a wire. I'm not totally discounting the footage, but I'm still skeptical. 1289939704 are you new? if so, welcome. 1346091970 Amongst the vastness of the universe, we can't be the only intelligent life out there. \n\nWhether or not they want to visit us, or are even close enough to do so is the question. The possibility of such fills me with childlike wonder. I've always wanted to go to space. For something from space to visit us is a wonderful concept. \n\nSo, yeah, I want to believe. 1340330597 But see-through! 1326838999 >could someone point me in the direction of the video?\n\nThere was a documentary that included discussion of the Phoenix lights in 1997 and it included one of the only videos of the actual lights (not the military flares) Maybe someone knows the name of it. I wish I could remember.\n\nDocumented events have been pretty scarce ever since then to my knowledge. I think perhaps the only video since then isn't really video at all but heat-sensing equipment on a Mexican surveillance plane; but many people believe the equipment was just picking up the flames atop burning oil rigs. 1345264345 Umm, isn't this r/skeptic? I think being skeptical about end of the world prophesies is a GOOD thing. To quote Carl Sagan, "Keep an open mind. But not so open that your brain falls out." 1337983066 The Guardian\n\n>Experts say the windows were blown out as each floor collapsed on to the one below, sending debris and office equipment flying out.\n\n\nNIST NCSTAR 1-5a page 412\n\n>...the sources for the pressure pulses that created the wides spread smoke and/or dust puffs observed on multiple faces of WTC 2 are unknown.\n\nಠ_ಠ 1315420657 And "family" means that it's a religious-based hate group. 1325141254 Good thing your not a Mod then since your afraid to let anyone have an opinion thats different from yours. But dude you are coming off like a grade A troll for real. Chillax dude, smoke a bowl or something. Its a stupid movie for Gods sake!!!! 1307316985 Good thing your not a Mod then since your afraid to let anyone have an opinion thats different from yours. But dude you are coming off like a grade A troll for real. Chillax dude, smoke a bowl or something. Its a stupid movie for Gods sake!!!! 1307317214 OK, it seemed partially interesting. But why is everyone pooping their pants over it being a fake if it wasn't that big a deal when it was considered legit? 1301786767 Hence why I ventured out of C2C...and landed in Ground Zero 1345004184 His false prophet. 1330632923 Once I read it, and considered your location, I almost wasn't surprised. UFOs are reported from that region consistently. 1323657254 Same reason why some people are afraid to ride an airplane, but a car is fine. Or microwaves and cell phones are evil, but cigarettes and BBQ are no big deal. They don't understand how statistics work and see maybe a few vaccinations gone wrong, blow those cases out of proportion and ignore how many lives vaccinations have saved. 1320592947 Wow, whodathunk? 1336066423 Forgive my ignorance to some of these concepts, but does your response then contradict JayDee67's comment that "the claim of alignment is bs"?\n\nAlso, do you have any guess why astrologers would consider Alcyone our "central sun"? Does it have any astronomic significance? 1337452432 try /r/science2 1295741251 You are why I love reddit and peer reviewed systems. 1317077251 > If someone makes a privileged statement, then that's something they need to fix.\n\nWhat makes a statement privileged? Does the statement become less privileged if it's made by a transgendered black person rather than a straight white male?\n\nIf you can't do anything but say "check your privilege" then you don't really have an argument. You have a lack of one. You aren't really targeting the argument, you are targeting the person. 1347420511 Except you don't have 65 years of peer-reviewed research, I don't think you thought that all the way through. Nice to see your argument's devolving though. 1356388790 I had take to a few of those for a former job and they seemed as informative as the horoscope on the placemat at every Chinese place. 1355411675 My question isn't about the nature of the condition but about the specificity of the claims. Whether both contradictory claims are valid in their mind at the same time or if they are each valid individually. 1343436190 The page is blank now. Anyone know why? 1329456591 But what are electrolytes? 1271122809 There was a This American Life a number of years ago about a woman who was told falsely she had Aids by a nurse (the nurse then told her to join Hope Ministries ) hoping the woman would join the church, reform from her evil lesbian ways and, I guess, get miraculously cured. The woman suffered through awful medication and thinking she was going to die for over a year until, as a last hope, she went to a new doctor who caught it. \n\nhttp://www.thisamericanlife.org/radio-archives/episode/123/transcript <-- transcript of episode 1339565046 Hooked on phonics worked for ME! 1343826532 Those actions are not inconsistent with psychopathic behavior. The author doesn't understand psychopathy and is operating under a few grand assumptions.\n\nFor instance, he has no idea where the weapons came from. He thinks it's impossible so it must be a government conspiracy. This is the same God in the gaps reasoning Creationists use. 1342886039 Embrace it. This same thing happens to me as well. I don't think it's as often as yours yet. I tried to do the same thing and rationalize it away but the details were too precise. I've come to terms with the fact that we don't know shit about our capabilities as humans. However I get the feeling that's about to change. More and more of my friends are noticing this as well even when I've never mentioned any of this before. .... I get mine in dreams more often and sometimes the span between me dreaming and it happening can be up to a year. 1338642052 How many investigations do you want? I contend that the 9/11 truthers will be screaming for another investigation until one finally confirms their preconceived notions to be true. This will never happen because what the truthers think happened on 9/11 didn't happen. 1247848966 I thought the skeptic community *was* the broader uneducated American public. 1349071124 You sir, are my fucking hero. Permission to copy paste elsewhere, credited to you? 1283574633 Wait a second. Their religion compatibility chart says that Muslims are the hardest to match, but Muslim women are most compatible with... Jewish men? 1264040624 The look on the dude's face is hilarious... 1347748759 Damn that was creepy. Have you had any experiences with the old man since you moved into your new place? 1353367571 This isn't really the best argument. Cell phones, electronic games, and laptops are all grossly more engaging than books and magazines. It's the same reason the "well cell phones shouldn't be illegal in cars because you're allowed to talk to other passengers and listen to the radio" arguments don't hold water. It sounds like a good argument on the surface, because it's easy to say "thing 1 is a distraction, thing 2 is a distraction, therefore they are equal..." but they aren't. I'm not saying these things aren't also a distraction, but in an emergency, the difference between having your ears open/throwing a book or magazine down, vs. having ear-buds in, having a phone at your ear, or being grossly engaged in texting are not equivalent. Claiming that perusing skymall takes as much of your focus and attention as playing a video game is silly. Saying reading a book allows you to tune out potential emergency communications as effectively as having music physically playing in your ears or a phone conversation in your ears is also silly. 1356952477 But isn't it scientifically unsound to accept something as a priori without it being at the very least testable and reproducible? 1334695151 >I definitely share your concerns about his being a UFO nut and coming forward with the story later. \n\nWell, I understand what you mean, but I wouldn't say he was potentially a UFO *nut*, my view is that everyone is prone to self deception and memory distortion, not just crazy people. Memory is very tricky and weird. This guy didn't milk the convention circuit or write a book, so I think he's free of that. I was trying to be very circumspect in my earlier comment. It's possible he could have been exposed to the subject and at some point disparate memories were conflated unconsciously.\n\nI mention the late emergence of the story really only to play devil's advocate, because this is what critics will do, I don't want to speculate on his motives. What I ask for is corroborating evidence. We have partial corroboration in that he really was at Roswell during that period, which should give him the benefit of the doubt. \n\n>a small detail I think lends weight is that there was apparently not as much debris as one would expect from a full craft.\n\nThat's a good point. This is what I mean by the note of veracity, the variance of the details from other accounts suggests authenticity. \n\nThe other thing is the description of the occupants. He describes them as oriental looking, with parchment like skin which was wrinkled. If he was confabulating, he's much more likely to use the ubiquitous grey alien description, which really doesn't date much earlier than the '70s in terms of its emergence in the UFO literature, and gets big only after Communion. \n\nWhat is interesting is that descriptions of 'oriental' looking aliens with wrinkled skin does appear a few times in some early accounts. I can't think offhand of the cites for this, but if I find them I'll post them. In any case, it's details like this that look more like a true account than a fake one. 1333964382 Their bite is no stronger than any other dog their size. 1333623573 Fuck, my community college has the same thing. 1309645829 The coolest family in which to grow up, if only uncle Hitch was still here... 1346895339 You'll be completely okay :) If you still feel that urge, I think the best option for you is to go to a regression hypnotherapist in search for an answer. If you feel that you ruled out enough medical reasons for your 'condition', I think that would be next logical step. In hypnosis you might be able to explain these happenings, it might also help you to get rid of it if you so wish. However, there is no guarantee and it will cost some money. I wouldn't give up my rent for it, if you know what I mean.\n\nThanks for saying you didn't meant it to be flippant, otherwise I would be crying in a fetal position under my desk for the next two weeks. 1343584942 "You can't reason someone out of a decision that they didn't reason themselves into". \n\nThat's a great quote that I should take seriously from now on. 1340027858 I think most theologians would argue that it's not reasonable to choose a definition for the word "omnipotent" that is inherently paradoxical. So, the word needs to be understood in a nuanced fashion that avoids the paradoxes. Then, it's safe to say that God is omnipotent, at least insofar as this argument is concerned.\n\nAlso, some things can seem paradoxical, although one could reasonably argue whether they "actually are." Wave-particle duality, for instance, has always seemed deeply paradoxical to me. 1299275006 Freaky. Good read though. 1354760672 Go look for other examples of high-rise building fires that went 10 hours without any water and had two buildings collapse shaking its foundation and throwing debris at it. 1290742182 No one understands your ad hominem.\n\nI understand science very well and have an extensive amount of science that supports my skeptical position,\n\nhttp://www.populartechnology.net/2009/10/peer-reviewed-papers-supporting.html 1343577320 I had a similar sort-of thing, although it turned out to be a dream.\nWent to sleep about midnight, woke up at 7 AM, went downstairs watched TV for a while, went to school, came back, went upstairs and fucked around on the internet. go back to sleep... and somehow I slept until yesterday at 3 AM.\napparantly I managed to live out my entire day in a dream, for 3 hours. It was pretty damn realistic, so when I woke up 3 hours later, it was as if I damn time travelled and reset the day. 1345606600 The article, if you look at it from "something is wrong" to the extreme, is suggesting the Nebraska children are going to be told climate change is a myth. No where in the article does it say that, but the article trys to alarm you by the idea that the board reviewed how they will teach climate change. Nothing bad happened because they plan on teaching climate change. 1355105897 Well what's the point in regulating homeopathic remedies if they're supposed to be diluted to the point of being just water? Testing isn't going to find anything significant, and it would end up being just some labels saying 'this product is not approved for the treatment or cure of any disease' (which, in many places, all natural health products do). 1333985439 She doesn't listen to reason, what else is there to do then, but mock? 1342457876 Pseudoscience is rampant these days. 1326885447 Can we see the pics? 1296152381 :) thanks... that made me smile over my breakfast :) 1301271414 This is not my area of expertise but the WSJ quotes that "The combo vaccine produced just one additional fever-related seizure for every 2,300 doses". So if I understand it correctly it's not the difference between 1 in 2,300 seizures and none at all. It seems like seizures can happen both ways with a tiny increase in chances for the combo vaccine.\n\nhttp://blogs.wsj.com/health/2010/06/28/giving-mmr-chicken-pox-vaccines-separately-cuts-already-slight-seizure-risk/\n\n\nHerd immunity does carry some risks but the overall benefit to society is huge. One child might have a seizure but the repercussions of lots of children not getting vaccinated "just in case" is enormous. 1330082591 This is the first time I've seen the statistics on how and why vaccines are being refused, and frankly, it makes me not only alarmed, but extremely angry.\n\nWhy we allow "nonmedical exemptions" for immunization is beyond me. Your right to practice your own religion/philosophy/paranoia/whatever and to exercise your own judgment about your child's vaccinations stops as soon as it starts putting other people at risk. 1265255425 Well I wasn't suggesting that there is a current therapy for ADHD of this kind, just that the suggestion a therapy couldn't be formulated because it's a "brain disorder" is necessarily and demonstrably false - the autism example. \n\nOn the therapy for ADHD though, I feel you're being a little pessimistic. I'm not sure I know of any applied behavior analysis program that is designed specifically for very young children with ADHD, so I'd doubt the scientific validity of whatever program you're referring to. More importantly, whilst there are no fully developed programs to help people with ADHD, there are a number of methods which have proven effective (for example, certain behavioral techniques to maintain on-task behavior) and we know how to implement them so that the effects are permanent. The medication is still important though, given that it's difficult to teach someone something when they're struggling to take in the information you're feeding them, so you can't train someone to stay on-task when they won't stay on-task for long enough to learn how to stay on-task. 1348288020 >informing the idea gun culture with a popular understanding.\n\nI'm not sure I'm following you here. Not to suggest you're not conveying your idea adequately, I may just not understand. Could you elaborate? 1355763186 Subquestion: Why is it called "chiropractic" and not "Chiropracty" as is the convension in other disciplines. Is this to distinguish it from Medicine since it's not really medicine?\n\nChiropractic sounds like it should be an adjective like "pediatric" or "orthopedic" 1329427943 Please do your own research; use discernment. \nWe are participating in a game of sorts in these forums. Information & communication is not used in the ways you'd think. There is a concerted effort to discredit a certain viewpoint thru ridicule. As "laughe8888888888" posted above "keep asking me questions so you can discredit me. thanks"\n\nIf YOU in fact are a shill yourself. Then please, fuck off. If not, Google is your friend. Do not rely on the fake democracy that Reddit tries to expound, they have control over the perception of information, hence, the conversation. 1328104028 Again? 1339411935 That poor kid. 1327985260 The thing is that the simplest explanation is not always the right one, sure when given a lack of evidence for two contradictory hypothesis it makes sense to support the one that requires less hoops to be jumped through, but if you think Quantum Mechanics was a simple solution to the problems facing physics in the early 1900s, then you would be mistaken. In this case it's reasonable to operate under the assumption that there is no creator (for the reasons you outline, among others), but to keep in mind the fact we cannot at this time *know* there was no creator. 1325889239 Hey, what does Jewel have to do with this? 1284741034 I have never understood the umbrella one. I always bring my wet umbrella inside and open it up so it will dry off without getting moldy. I haven't had bad luck due to this practice. 1322410508 Good observations. I have wondered about the fibers in the skull myself. It seems like not much progress has been made in the star child case. Anyone know why it has taken so long? 1328480650 Err, unintentional. I draw terrible. 1356245666 Tres tristes tigres tragaban trigo en un trigal 1304232411 But you're NOT posting facts!! I can understand the whole collapse better just by referring to my god damn 11th grade physics I did years back!\n\nWhat you're claiming is in direct conflict with BASIC physics theories! 1331506589 well ill just put my big pants on 1356097083 I don't think they are saying we didn't go to the moon. I guess what they are saying is if they did go why would there be a need to fake footage. 1319832197 Just a note about firing clients.\n\nI'm an accountant in public practice. I am always willing to fire a client. I have to be; if the client is difficult, or wants me to assist in committing fraud, I have no problem getting rid of them.\n\nThere seems to be this lingering idea from the 90s that the customer is always right, so business owners will bend over backwards and lose money because of a demanding client. \n\nHere's an example. A client contracts you to do a job. You figure it won't take more than 5 hours, your costs are $50 an hour, and you bill $100 for an hourly profit of $50.\n\n Because the client is a pain in the ass, he ends up taking 30 hours, and won't pay you more than the $500 you quoted. No biggy, you just write off the $1,250 and figure repeat business from him will make up for it, right?\n\nWrong. You also lost out on other clients that you could have serviced so not only did you lose $1,250 in time on this client, you also lost $1,250 in profit you could have earned from less difficult clients. Difficult clients are always difficult, and are quite often a net loss for you.\n\nNobody is legally required to provide services to someone. Never let yourself be bullied by someone who is costing you money. 1350314207 Yeah to them, they are skeptical of the official version. Unfortunately, they are not skeptical to their own blog narrative. Considering their idea originates from a bunch of 17 year olds. 1290708701 >What evidence can lend itself to what is universally normal and healthy, and what is abnormal and needs to be treated?\n\nThis is covered in any intro to psyche class. Abnormal behavior is typically looked at by comparing an individuals behavior to the behavior of people of their culture, without any real "universal" standard of normality. Abnormal or aberrant behavior is not considered inherently good or bad, if you grew up somewhere where nobody exercises, but you exercise because it is good for you, then you would be exhibiting abnormal behavior because the norm of where you grew up was to be a couch potato.\n\nMuch of psychology has implications in marketing. Many psychological phenomenon can be empirically observed, such as noticing that the longer somebody waits on hold, the longer they are willing to wait, or observing unit bias in food.\n\nYou can look up psychological experiments and see that they are scientifically done such as in [illusion of control](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Illusion_of_control) where people believe if they flip a coin they are more likely to get the result they want than if somebody else flips it, even though the chance is the same. 1345680493 World police transmissions smoothly into galactic police. 1345587428 This isn't a "paranormal" subreddit. It's SCIENTIFIC OR A SCIENCE BASED SUBREDDIT.\n\nIf its based upon physical/material evidence/technological evidence then, by definition, this is a scientific subreddit and you should label it honestly. 1353875018 Science can be used to prove that there are humans on the planet Earth. In fact, science can prove many things.\n\nPerhaps you mean science can not disprove anything? 1282719886 At least a hospital serving the food would be subject to inspections like any other food service business.\n\nRegular farmer's market goers may get to know the sellers. I wash the food I occasionally get from a farmer's market the same as any other. I also make sure all the crystals I get are certified by the American Crystal and Magic Potion Advisory Board. 1354223185 Why are you so defensive? especially at people who are actually trying to share experience with the phenomenon?\n\nWe're talking about one of the most publicly maligned topics rife with disinfo that you could possibly talk about, and you're worried about policing public sightings caught on the fly? Why spend your energy getting frustrated with people like myself when i'm only providing opportunities to explore the unknown? It may not resonate with you; that's okay.\n\nbut maybe there are a few more people like myself who can step aside and say "I don't know." You have far too much of your pride and ego wrapped up in this. I'm just sharing what I find interesting; I'm sorry to have lost you as a peer in light of that. 1330019434 sometimes i wake up without my shirt on. 1356368095 It pretty much an exercise in speculation, compared to their usual content, a little lacking. Whatever, humorists they be. 1328155604 Sativa + Ancient Aliens = OMG aliens are here 1325225318 I'm no expert, but I thought that the whole idea of giving more of what ails you was homeopathic. Granted, usually in extremely diluted forms. \n\nThe comments on the blog post (there may be more by now) did argue about whether or not wrapping him in wet sheets was homeopathic or not. 1355086936 Modern reactors are extremely safe, and actually emit less radiation into the environment than coal-fired plants. You'd be surprised if you knew how much radiation comes out of those coal stacks.\n\nThe effects of radiation depend on type(alpha, beta, gamma), environment, exposure, etc. 1317184299 I don't see how I was duping people. I listed the different types of doctors you could see if you had back or neck problems (the question asked). I never said which one to visit out of those. I figure any person who was genuinely having trouble would visit whichever one of those they felt best applied to them.\n\n>You clearly don't know shit about these therapies...\n\nMy personal experience only comes second hand. My mother has had 3 discs removed; two from her neck one from her back (I could ask her for specifics if you are really curious). My whole life growing up I witnessed the process of diagnosing and treating her spine issues. The only doctors I recall her visiting was her two different neurosurgeons. \n\n>Being skeptics means you have to be skeptical even of fellow skeptics. You can't just be skeptical when you hear a treatment that's associated with the word 'alternative' or 'complementary'.\n\nI wasn't arguing which treatments were more effective, but provided a list of common alternatives to chiropractors. Being skeptics you should take this list a starting point for discussion rather than assuming I'm suggesting any one treatment. \n\nFor anyone who is interested in reading more about Osteopathy just [do a google search](http://www.google.com/search?client=safari&rls=en&q=osteopathic+medicine&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8) or [check out a Wikipedia page](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Osteopathic_medicine_in_the_United_States). 1318724232 This is a lost cause. Torrent anything you can from BBC and forget about discovery, NatGeo, History and such. 1321619198 I rely on placebos for most of my medical problems. M&Ms work great, and are a lot cheaper than real medicine. But people tell me it doesn't with help mental problems. 1305301814 I can confirm as teenagers my buddies and I often went into the woods for nefarious purposes at night. But not miles away from roads. Was I just not adventurous enough to keep up with today's kids?\n\nedit: btw, op, what's up with the watermark? It makes this totally look like a bullshit story, if it didn't already. 1349832783 [Ok, let's just wait](http://i0.kym-cdn.com/entries/icons/original/000/006/595/1262055260350.jpg) 1342548982 It wasn't CNN, it was a local FOX affiliate.\n\nThe station enhanced the footage to make the objects visible. \n\nThe aviation expert is an expert in safety systems, not in visual artifacts on video. Neither is he an entomologist. 1353052695 No, I just have sympathy for all people in equal measure, I don't know of anyone in particular who is a homeopathic "user", but I can see parallels between this and how people regard the religious, or people invested into other pseudosciences, or w/e. I guess my point is that, while it is true that the unknowning must, at some point, at least _try_ to learn -- that is, they are not fully innocent. However, we are the bearers of knowledge, demonizing and dismissing is not effective. These people are engaging homeopathy for _a reason_, it's more effective in the long run to find out _why_ the homeopathic user is using for a reason, the religious person is religious for a reason, these are mental-drugs. Homeopathy "makes you feel good" -- because homeopaths treat them like friends, and not like machines (which can often occur with proper doctors). People are religious because it _makes them feel good_, because they have a community, a safety net. \n\nPeople use these off-beat brain alter-ers because it provides them with some benefit they are not otherwise getting -- they must, or else why would they do it? What is it that they _need_ to go to the homeopath or the preacher for? \n\nI'm a mathematician, but I'm also an engineer. I can only see things through these lenses, and it seems that the obvious way to dismantle something safely and effectively is to understand it. We cannot understand _why_ religion or homeopathy is effective without first understanding _what_ it means to the people who use it. I _hate_ the fact that so many are fooled by pseudoscience and stupid religion (and not all religion is necessarily stupid, but this is another discussion), but -- while it is true that some responsibility is on the mark and not the conman -- it is more important to understand that even mis/uninformed people are still people, and thus cannot (and should not) be dismissed as "stupid."\n\nI feel like I'm not doing a good job of explaining my position, but it's been a tiring day... 1269302457 >But major feminist organizations often support that status quo.\n\nCan't agree with that at all.\n\n>Feminists have spearheaded the reforms in domestic violence law that have created the present situation (extra-judicial punishments, lack of due process, ease of false allegations for material gain, etc). It's not right to attribute that to the patriarchy.\n\nI don't think any of those things have occurred. The reforms have made sure that abusers get punished, that loopholes are stamped out, that victims get the support they need and aren't pressured, etc. What laws or reforms do you think have been introduced which add extra-judicial punishments, lack of due process, or make false allegations possible? At the very least, we know that all of those claims are false in terms of rape.\n\n>I think the issue is that many of the inequalities which favor women are actually supported and propped up by feminist organizations.\n\nHow so? Examples of such organisations doing so?\n\n>Which is why I think an MRM is valuable, even if they can be a bit unhinged at times. But then again, there's plenty of unhinged rhetoric in the feminist movement, as well.\n\nYou'll get extremists everywhere, but the feminist movement as a whole does have a much more solid philosophy and obvious goal with benefits, whereas the MRM seems to be a much more haphazard amalgamation of various people and approaches, which tends to weaken their cause. \n\nI think it would certainly help if the MRM could set up a kind of core set of beliefs; for example, stamping out misogyny in the group, pushing for greater education on what feminism is and why it shouldn't be opposed, why men should avoid discussing these issues as if they were a minority group, etc. It would lend a lot of credence to their position but, as complete speculation, I think if they exclude the misogynists and people who don't understand feminism or civil rights theory, then they'll be left with very few members.\n\n 1345176572 Why? Obama doesn't have any control over UFO disclosure policy, just like Carter didn't. 1232052223 My best guess:\n\nIn the video, he does something strange when he takes the paper from Sharon where he appears to unfold it. After he shows it to Howie, he looks directly at it just long enough to read it.\n\nThere's really no other reason I can think of for him to ever take the paper from her unless he was going to read it at some point. 1343179424 Aside from the obvious blunder that you can't fit the sun in a carton, this infographic is accurate. They also should really avoid the emotional plea about the mother being separated from their calf and focus on just the environmental impacts of the manufacturing process vs almond milk. One can make homemade almond milk by simply grinding almonds, adding water, and sweeten to taste. 1344393060 Y'know, just about 2 days ago, I did that exact same thing since we're working on a universal influenza vaccine. We did the following experiment just to see if there'd be any interesting results that'd come out.\n\nIn one group of mice, we vaccinated with 1/20 human dose of FluMist (which has H1N1, nasal route) per mouse; in the other, phosphate-buffered saline. In about 4 weeks, we're also vaccinating with FluZone (which also has H1N1, muscle route). After those treatments, we're going to do a challenge experiment to see if there's any cross strain protection due to the multiple vaccines (live attenuated virus from Mist plus HA antigens from Zone).\n\nThis is a super, super tiny experiment that would have satisfied CFBF's requirements... and it can be completed in 12 weeks.\n\nI'm sure if someone else were interested, they could do neurological studies on the mice, and probably won't find any damage. Although, here's the problem: I think CFBF's requirements are similar to many anti-vaxers... they have their own theories, then want science to spend the money to prove against it. Which, of course, is not how science generally works. We don't try to prove that unicorns don't exist nor do we try to prove that little goblins in the vaccines are causing harm. I believe that there are side-effects of vaccines that were noticed in clinical trials that are printed on the label of the vaccine. But, since it cannot be reproduced reliably and since those side-effects aren't noticed in a large percentage of immunized patients, there isn't a need for a huge study to disprove it (even though scientists have already thoroughly wasted money proving Wakefield's original autism/vaccine study was fraudulent).\n\nThe onus is on the anti-vaxers to find empirical, reproducible proof that their claim is real, not the other way around. 1297353835 * *if there had been a top-secret meeting and*\n* *if there would have had to have been a discussion about it*, \n* *it (the discussion) would have taken place in this room.*\n\nWhich does not confirm or deny the existence of ETs, etc. only that top secret meetings on the subject could take place in that room 1337360432 It isn't: AlyssaMoore is a propagandist who spends her days posting pseudo-science links, calling people who accept AGW theory (including the majority of people in this subreddit) "True Believers" and likes to indulge in personal attacks against them in the echo chamber known as [/r/climateskeptics](/r/climateskeptics) (especially when they can't answer because they've been banned, as is the case with me).\n\nThere is a high probability she is a paid shill, and is quick to post pre-canned "damage control" responses. She will certainly respond to this with such a copy-pasted response, along the lines of\n\n>You are probably not paid by Greenpeace or the alarmist billionaire George Soros to troll /r/climateskeptics.\n\n>I don't get paid to submit a few articles that are skeptical of the catastrophic man-made global warming theory. I do it because I am skeptical of the claims and predictions of the global warming alarmists.\n\nI like how she continues here propaganda and ad hominem attacks in what first appears to be a reasonable, rational response ("catastrophic man-made global warming", "global warming alarmists", bizarre references to George Soros and Greenpeace).\n\nAsk her to define precisely what "catastrophic" means, however, and you'll get no response. That's because she and the other propagandists in her gang aren't interested in actual science, but only in smearing the reputations of honest scientists and those on reddit who accept the reality of AGW theory. 1333385409 And you just made a horrible analogy, suggesting each choice has equal merit.\n\nA more accurate analogy - you have a toolbox full of tools and you have subjectively chosen a task to complete. Each tool in that toolbox has _objective_ benefits and detriments when it comes to completing that task - a handsaw is going to suck if you're trying to drive nails, and is objectively a poor choice to reach that goal. Each available tool has a measurable fitness for the job at hand (the handsaw is horrible for nail driving, the sledgehammer better but damn is it unwieldy, and the two pound claw hammer is clearly, objectively, the best); once you have a goal, the rational moralist is choosing moral guidelines based on objective criteria, not subjective, within the context of their over-arching purpose in having a moral code to begin with.\n\n>You are just straight up, totally wrong about this.\n\n*~snort~*\n\n 1341446108 You'll forgive me if I don't automatically accept that from people who have no idea what it means to substantiate a claim. 1321886476 Yes we do, it is great. 1325273889 on fourth angle watch at 31 seconds from the top left of the building in the fireworks, it looks like a spark, but then it moves through the fireworks, follow it for a while. interesting 1325455998 Doesn't mean he doesn't have a point. A decent one, at that. 1355775883 If someone actually believes it is working, they will honestly think it is working. I know that sounds so convoluted...but the mind is amazing. It may not actually do anything to the body except maybe give you a weird suntan line. lol 1273681516 Yeah, shits getting weird yo. I was reading some thing about the queen's astronomer saying we will make contact in X amount of years...I'm pretty sure its already been done for a long while now. 1347518652 in the "llano de la perdiz" Granada Spain. 1328836803 Your entire line of argument is focused on having a go at me, rather than providing anything even remotely constructive with regard to an explanation of the issue.\n\nI ask you again what your explanation for the phenomenon is. 1325964149 I was not that intelligent as a child. I never questioned anything I was told until I became a teenager, really. 1312405331 Thank you. I have often wished there was better terminology in this "field." How do you get a "does not equal" sign? I like the term UAP to make explicit what is really meant by UFO.\n\nIf I could expand upon my prior certain-seeming statement. There *may* be aliens visiting Earth, but they have nothing to do with UFOs. 1353754670 Ack computer voice fail! I can't listen to four whole videos of that. 1225134026 In theory it can, but the Darwinian method is too slow for my liking. 1281126756 I'd also like to talk about the paranormal in this case because I think what I have to say may be comforting to you. Especially if you're new to the paranormal ideas and beliefs.\n\nYour girlfriend has said that she believes a demon is at work here. It should also be noted that this doesn't sound particularly like most ghost hauntings. The main reason I don't think this could be a ghost is that if she saw a full body apparition, that is extremely rare. It's even more rare for a ghost to take the form of something that would look at all demon like. If anything, it would have looked human or like a mist or shadow. Most ghost hauntings also wouldn't follow her around. Ghosts are generally known for sticking to one location. The fact that she has hard things in her car and in her home seems to be odd for a ghost haunting.\n\nSo that would normally leave us with a demon haunting. But there is a lot here that also points away from it being a demon. A demon would, of course, not be afraid of you. Demons are known for being fairly belligerent and challenges are normally met with increased activity particularly toward the challenge. If this was a demon, you would be very aware of it yourself without your girlfriend needing to share any of her stories. Demon activity would normally be different as well. Whispering names and making people feel uneasy are things that could happen but generally the repertoire of activity is much fuller. Demon hauntings will often result in bloody scratches, physical contact (as in feeling someone grab you *hard* or violently pulling on hair) and they are closely linked with very bad, very strong smells and odors. The fact that your girlfriend has seen something but has not been physically injured or smelled something seems to point more towards her own psyche as being the issue.\n\nIf you're looking into the possibility that her father is causing this activity a lot more research would need to be done. There are only a few religions I know of that combine animal sacrifices with the idea of being able to get demons to do bidings. Most of the well-known religions or cultures that have practiced sacrificial offerings have either died out or changed so much that the idea is more historical than anything else. The closest thing I can think of that would cover something like this would be voodoo/hoodoo or Santeria. But with Santeria, there isn't much that goes into someone talking to demons or satan. Voodoo has a bit more because there are so many gods who do so many things and practitioners are sometimes able to communicate with these gods.\n\nIf she genuinely believes that her father is doing something like practicing voodoo and sending paranormal beings after her. It wouldn't hurt to look into getting something like a gris gris to keep with her. 1334294743 D8 is water so clean that you can't have it in glas or plastic bottles because it would make the water dirty. For D100 you'd need several universes to even get a single molecule.\n\nThe point is simply that you can measure the weaker homeopathic potencies which makes the post I originally replied to utter bullshit. Which makes me think that /r/skeptic just upvotes whatever fits into their worldview. 1350050942 THANK YOU!!!!! - From uni-lingual people 1331222953 Thanks for that awesome site. I trolled my conspiracy-nut Facebook friend by posting it to his wall, and he replied back:\n\n"So when there's information that doesn't fit with the everything in the world is pretty much fine theory you put your head in the sand... and later when you pull your head back up you did up the least credible page you can find as a reply?... "\n\nShit, even he realizes how stupid it is. 1290838172 >some Indians even believe it is an ancient Indian "science". People still stare at me in disbelief when I tell them when and how this quackery was invented\n\nThis always annoys me when people talk about homeopathy as natural or some kind of folk remedy. If it actually worked, it'd be on the same level as chemistry and medical sciences, and I bet the alternative crowd would rave about how homeopathic solutions are unnatural and are a scam by big pharma. 1343309470 I think part of the problem is on one side you have a slick sales website promising you the world, and on the other side you have pages and pages of difficult to understand scientific material. \n\nThe average person is going to find it easier to pick the slick website that is promising to solve all of their problems and it saying that they've cured x number of people already. Most people simply don't have the skills and experience to critically evaluate the information they are being presented. 1356561661 He said it pretty loud. I don't need any evidence. 1338597708 first, i would think of the people i love, i would contact them and ensure they are safe henceforth. i would feel a nostalgia for and intense respect for human achievements prior to contact, and a parallel feeling of deep regret for the atrocities we commit against each other and against nature. i would strive to represent and defend my species as best as i can in interaction with alien life, if at all possible, and in interaction with my fellow humans. having said this, i am under no illusion that this will not be a difficult time. 1317952960 I could be wrong, but I think that was the joke. Note the word "frequentist". 1302118106 No didn't say that. No belief that I have is unquestionable. Its just there seems no reason to question it. There isn't any evidence that seems to contradict materialism. 1328244977 That sounds fascinating, you should do an IAMA one day!\n\nI am astounded by magic, even simple tricks, because of exactly what you describe - the utter conviction in some reptile part of my brain that demands that the rabbit has been conjured out of thin air (while my logical mind screams that there must be *some* reasonable explanation).\n\nI saw a show by a magician the other day (actually a magician who gives wellbeing lectures if you can believe it, using magic as a prop) and it was almost impenetrable to reason at the time. It was so seamlessly done, the reality being presented was absurd (you don't just pull metres of ribbon out of an empty cylinder?) but I could hardly disbelieve it even though I tried. Like you say, a bit scary. 1309863021 I'm quite lazy, but this might clear up the curiosity.\n\nhttp://www.ourultimatereality.com/the-ouija-board-and-its-hidden-dangers.html 1352583799 [This](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IPuOL8RN5to) but with a little twist at the end.\n 1336098858 It's their classic smokescreen strategy. Get people outraged about ridiculous litigation and legislation like this, and it turns attention away from the shadier stuff that they've been doing. 1301217036 I've only recently customised my subreddit subscriptions to include this & other subs (I just had the default ones before), so in the past it was either in /r/science or on Facebook, but this thread at least is much different (you all are acting quite civil & nobody's blown up at me). I'm familiar with "herd immunity", but what are NIH studies? Would you mind giving an example? I'm actually open to checking out some of the pro-vaccine research, & I've checked out both sides in the past, but the anti-vaccine stuff so far has been a little more specific & informative (e.g. one of the most recent I read: http://www.healthfreedomusa.org/?p=743 ) than the pro-vaccine stuff I've read, which has been more generalisation & speculation (like the posters all over the hospital I used to work at which were all exerpts from the book Vaccine-Preventable Diseases. I haven't yet read the book but the quotes from it were pretty thin... like the poster about Swine Flu was about "little Billy" who was seriously ill & the doctor wasn't able to determine what was wrong with him, but the father, **not** the doctor mind you, was pretty sure that it was swine flu & that it could have been prevented if he had received the vaccination. BTW, during that swine flu scare, the head doctor at that hospital and his son, and my brother -the only member of my family to get the vaccine-, all got the swine flu right after getting vaccinated for it -nobody else in my family did-). I really don't go around trying to convince everyone that vaccines are dangerous, but I do share my views with people I'm close with & care about (like family) & that I have the right to decide what goes into my body & whether I trust it or not (as does my family). Thank you for your polite reply. I wish I could upvote you more than once. 1317169283 I am not sure about the ekg thing. perhaps he can actually manipulate his heartrate. I am not sure why one would not be able to with practice. \n\nAs far as the telekensis, that definitely sounds like your typical fraudulent setup. They can move very light objects short distances under predetermined circumstances. (he moved knitting needles balanced on a stand 10 degrees. OMG! HE IS A WIZARD! SO AMAZING!)\n\nI would say its is a combination of bad testing procedures, credulous testers, basic psychic trickery, and *perhaps* some ability to control heart rate. 1332085527 >you must be a female\n\nGo fuck yourself. You're just a shittier person than the rest of us and I'm not going to keep reading. Go find a friend to review what you said. Maybe they can explain why you're a horrible person.\n\nThis is /r/skeptic. You don't have to prove a negative. Those are the rules. Any idiot should know that by now if you even found this sub. You can't prove that I'm not a talking hot dog. It's not your responsibility to prove that. It's my job to prove that I am. 1347991947 Just changed a few settings. See if that works now. If not, I'll see what I can do. What sucks is I don't have an iphone to test on. My android worked fine though, go figure. In the mean-time, you can click on "Explore Full Site" and try connecting with Facebook that way. \n\nLet me know if either of these methods work for you. :). 1331092864 That's cool. I can look at a physical UFO in the sky, that is also being radar tracked and say - "that thing in the sky sure does exhibit some anomalous behavior." I can't do that for FSM or God. That's all I'm getting at. 1316439670 This. \n\nPlus, isn't the reason why we are so successful as a species is because we've learned to manipulate the natural world to suit our needs? 1311716053 Should have used a Kamehameha 1269576797 True, it is more accessible. 1320841801 Yea, isn't the Vacc Mercury metabolized and removed from the body with it's normal digestion/waste within a few days, while the more common Mercury can remain for years? 1337105543 Let's not forget that there were multiple witnesses. Shaun Little, a Kentucky State Trooper personally received five calls from witnesses.\n\n>Kentucky State Police Trooper Shaun Little told the News-Express that KSP Post 9 in Pikeville received five calls on Tuesday reporting the object in the sky.\n\nhttp://beforeitsnews.com/paranormal/2012/10/ufo-kentucky-police-receive-alien-activity-reports-video-2444400.html\n\n... Ignore the stuff about the Reptilians. Or not. 1351693204 She was in on it, poo deniers are rife in Belgium. 1326553243 It's ignored because the real truth of the matter is that people *are* indeed, unfortunately, mostly just nothing but sheep. So many people get upset when that word - sheeple - is used, but the fact of the matter is that it does indeed apply to much of how people really act on this planet.\n\nIt's horrendous. :( 1332228017 So, aliens? 1343864833 I find it problematic that the only option saying that god made humans like we are today also includes that it happened less than 10 000 years ago. Either way it's against evolution and thus stupid, of course, but still the option should've been there to answer that it happened millions of years ago. That answer would at least be a little less stupid. 1338631924 don't forget your car and computer! 1294832765 I have to say that reading for him was pretty good, but then again I know him best as House. 1308376118 I'm going to post my sighting here if you don't mind, op.\n\n3 weeks ago, I was walking my dog along the beach in the early hours of the morning (about an hour before sunrise).I decided to sit down and chill for awhile. I observed 2 white orbs hover above my head -moving out towards the horizon infront of me (the sea). They were roughly 100ft high, and I distinctly remember seeing one orb swiftly adjust its altitude approximately by 10ft downwards in a perpendicularly fashion... and I think the other also moved. They were rotating slowly on top of each other (roughly 50ft apart) as they progressed forward out to sea. They probably made one full rotation every 200 metres travelled. The rotation was like a squashed bicycle wheel with the orbs being the reflector lights at 12 & 6 o'click position. I watched until they were no longer visible. My hairs were tingling and standing on end. I stayed until sunrise hoping to see something else, but I did not, nor did I care because I was in awe from that sighting.\n\n 1306201268 I don't really see what's so suspicious. The arrows are not particularly sharp and he's probably wearing something much thicker than that cardboard, so a mistake would not have been too dangerous. They probably took a lot of shots and he hit a few of them, which they showed. 1298514365 You're ignoring the fact that our sample size is woefully insufficient, at a grand total of one planet. 1341076438 It was probably because of the word "befuddled" 1332533263 Yeah, but as we know, vitamin c cures all ailments, so if you are suffering from excessive vitamin c, drinking more OJ or emergen-C should clear that right up. 1310763807 This part made me mad: \n\n>but said it was unlikely that people suffering from cancer may forgo conventional medical treatment because of the statement "Jesus Heals Cancer". \n\nUnlikely? People die on a regular basis because they believe this statement. There have been numerous child neglect cases where parents are now rightfully in jail (and in some cases they should be in jail but are not) because of this belief. This is not benign and if it wasn't a Christian group doing it there would be an outcry. 1335894435 well, shit. if I ever lost my job, my backup plan was selling blessings and spells on ebay. I guess I will have to sell homeopathic remedies instead. 1345168244 Opinions formed without evidence cannot be debated with evidence. It's easier to find a new friend.\n\nPS. Just a tiny bit of logic would invalidate her opinion. Radio waves are everywhere and bathe us constantly regardless of our proximity to devices. Does she use a cell phone? 1350512847 There have been [studies showing](http://www.cell.com/current-biology/retrieve/pii/S0960982209018247) that language development in the womb is important. That being said, the "learning" the baby is doing isn't the same way we learn. It has to do more with brain development. However, as long as your wife and you talk to each other, the sounds you create should suffice for your child's brain development, no weird device needed. 1306420872 Not in the slightest, no one feels bad for a burglar being arrested. In my opinion these people are con artist and a reality check is only a slap on the wrist. 1346548032 Wow. I wanna see the movie they're working on. 1339665990 I don't disagree that we have had general benefits and have so far avoided massive disaster. But how long was it between "figured out how to do genetic modification" and "sold for human consumption"? How many generations of rats or mice or whatever were fed the stuff for how long and tested for adverse results?\n\n 1329265262 I can give you some good advice, check out these websites: ufocasebook.com and ufoinfo.com and check out some of stories of encounters on those sites, it's where I started. ufoinfo.com actually has a ton of humanoid encounters, those are a great read. If just one of those stories are true, it could be one of the most amazing encounters in history. Also, you should read a book called UFOs: Generals, Pilots and Government Officials speak out. It is thoroughly researched and includes cases that are witnessed by the aforementioned folks, who are extremely credibal and have lots to lose by going on record about aliens or UFOs. 1320004534 Thanks! I'll check it out! 1332614964 If they had just a little less faith, they'd have a lot more son right now. 1348150450 And quantity, I believe? Proper balanced diet & what not? 1328498209 Instant shutdown for any account of the afterlife:\n\nIf they're telling you about it, THEY DIDN'T FUCKING DIE!\n\nI read about this horseshit the other day. Thanks for providing the follow-up. Harris is awesome. 1350086992 I'm all for satire, although I think we should allow people to give an honest description of whatever mechanism they think allows homeopathy to work. From thence, debunking can proceed. Otherwise they could reasonably argue we made up our minds ahead of time... which is not a very scientific position.\n\n(vast evidence of homeopathy working only by placebo notwithstanding.) 1296537620 This doesnt make any sense to me, sorry :( 1310516338 I reserve this word for rare, appropriate occasions. What a cunt. 1293499547 Rampart! 1351237952 Actually, [she only rages when you *think* you give her facts](http://www.mindthesciencegap.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/SugarKids.gif). 1349285043 Sorry, but this just doesn't seem to belong in the Skeptic subreddit. 1318858950 Well, *I'd* never heard of an encabulator before, so thank you!\n\nA little research finds that the Rockwell Retro Encabulator is based off of the earlier GE Turboencabulator, which [wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Turboencabulator) is kind enough to describe as well as provide the [GE data sheet](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/d/dc/GE_Turboencabulator_pg_2.jpg). Perhaps the best line:\n\n> Material: Amulite; Tremie-pipes are of Crapaloy -- (tungsten cowhide) 1264893393 yeah, especially since lie detectors are not foolproof by any means 1291384653 [Part 2](http://www.scientificamerican.com/podcast/episode.cfm?id=arguing-with-non-skeptics-part-2-of-10-07-28) 1280396380 I thought it was a scientific and religious consensus that a lack of pirates caused global warming. 1354724119 Thanks for pointing that out. I've been having my doubts about fenderjazzbass' posts. 1342736862 Sorry, I wasn't clear, I'm just asking: aren't they analogous:\n\nAtheism: lack of belief in gods, no worldview\n\nSkepticism: rejecting (any) non-evidence based claims, no worldview\n\nI know the definition is overly simplified, but I think you catch my drift? Neither of them seems to make any positive claims. 1343047265 You're thinking of Pokemon (The electric hero Porygon). This is the only episode of any anime to have these effects. 1344280014 Shooting glasses offer the same benefits. 1355967163 they were pretty fucking close at the least for nukes using heavy water 1335984284 I read alot about this a few months ago, it's fucking hilarious. I love the gif-animations they make of Paul aging as a "proof" of him not being the same person. 1340878058 right first off i am going to say : the brain is interesting it can take information from the world around out, smell sound, sight ect. but it can also trick you. it can make things appear if you really want them to. also it can be tricked to make stuff appear if you are effected my electro magnetism . i beleive this might be the case, especially seeing how you played this slender game. don't worry is my main focus, if it happens for more then a week then please come back to us . 1342087642 Oh I know, I'm just saying that looks typical of tin foil. 1287013335 The SI unit is the Buttload. 1310495837 It's like Google News, except it has an editor. 1320879884 Yeah they were being sold at the state fair which was going on when this happened. Imagine they sold quite a few. 1351544299 xD at first i thought it's some kind of painting on the wall or something, until i see the picture on comment 1344842156 I don't see how a person can be offended fir others and nit themselves. Being offended is an emitional reaction, it seems a person needs to have an emotional attachment to something to be offended.\n\nAR ant rate being offended is a waste. Keep your own house in order, and do what you can to promote your ideals. If thus were a public school there would be a problem, if families want to waste time in this crap they have that right. 1344792335 nah. 1341791562 Interesting story, but not sure I completely buy it. I know there are some composers (e.g. Chopin) who had temporal lobe anomalies that inspired music. How does a brain injury teach you how to play piano, though? 1339093179 So I guess thorium is out as well. \n\nDo they know that geothermal energy comes from radioactive decay? They should be against that too.\n\nOh yeah, and since they're against fusion... solar's out 1310776174 (Guys stop downvoting him. Clearly he's lost.)\n\nYou want /r/conspiracy, good sir. Update your bookmarks. 1326580207 Actually, that's not what I argued. I responded to arguments that were defending trolls, saying they prompt valuable self-reflection or stir debate or whatever. None of those benefits require pretentious trolling, so it's an insufficient justification. \n\nI argued that ultimately it's a pathetic ego trip based in some imagined manipulation, but that doesn't preclude that it might be rationalized (privately or explicitly) by some claimed self-righteous intent of exposing others to be foolish or hypocritical or blind to their biases. 1355762559 I'm a bit of a socially awkward penguin so I don't go outside my social circles much... It will be interesting to see if I can predict strangers' sentences when I head back to college. 1326533337 I'll leave a comment here to watch this later. Ciao 1301502653 hill fo sho 1344511831 I wish I had gone on a date with a guy like that! My dates are always about designer clothes and how whatever I'm wearing is not good enough. 1345823021 I didn't get it at first either until I read the comments, the little girl was there but she was sitting alone. If you look really closely to the left of her you can see another person. 1312334896 oh god, the awkwardness 1258660905 Harmlessly quaffing boxes of homeopathic painkillers is also good entertainment, but it's still bullshit. 1352709233 Great video, though I suspect that the OP's friend will regard the TV program as 'evidence.' 1323827647 I hallucinated for a few years, finally a doctor figured out the cause and it cured a bunch of other things I never would have thought were symptoms of anything, if this is real might want it checked out, my life improved a good deal 1339508186 I hate to tell you this, but you need to go to a doctor! I had a friend who had this happen to him, it turned out to be a tumor. 1354738777 Nothing specific other than watching his abortion of a show(s). Modern addiction treatement, including AA and such, have been the focus of much controversy within the skeptic community, and exploiting their pain, well... 1330624259 Smoking an driving is not really the same as drinking and driving, and if you have smoked pot for a long time a little will barely do anything. 1344146753 >Thank god for someone who actually has some idea what they are talking about.\n\nExcept not?\n\n>Even if he didn't have a sexual motivation, he was still dismissing what she had to say and ignoring her.\n\nNo? You don't know the precise words, or where he was in the vicinity. He may have thought she was just tired of talking to the group. You never know, but you can't make any solid judgments. He even admitted you can't prove sexual motivation.\n\n>Rebecca admonished the guys in the skeptical community not to do that, and a portion of that community blew up, mischaracterized her arguments and put words in her mouth.\n\nNo. PZ Meyers and Phil Plait white knighted and stupid shit was said. This prompted more stupid shit from Watson. Stupid shit storm ensues and the community gets pissed. Elevator coffee request turned into possible sexual assault thanks to Plait. This is what enraged the community.\n\n>So, I'm going to correct the snarky illustration. If I was sitting in a hotel bar with a group of people and I told the group I didn't have any cash so I was going up to my room to get it, and then someone (doesn't matter what race or physical build, either) who was in that group but I hadn't talked to got up, followed me into the elevator, and asked me if I had change for a $20, yes I think I would rightly feel a little freaked out and it wouldn't be unreasonable for me to request that people not do that.\n\nBeing awake isn't a commodity you carry on your person. Minds can be changed and bodies can lie about need of sleep. Coffee, as it turns out, can help change your tiredness a bit. It would be more like asking them if they wanted to come to your room because you have a few quarters. But it's not like that, either, really. The analogy is preposterously inapt and shows how, on a very basic level, the person you replied to failed to understand the situation. 1310756618 Not really sure whats going on here... But UFOs buzzing the Vatican is not too far fetched an idea. 1276226606 [No, it's perfectly possible. It's just bloody difficult.](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1375666/quotes?qt=qt1261205) 1334792706 Two guys I recommend reading on this subject are Gary Taubes (*Good Calories, Bad Calories*, goes into the most detail) and Robert Lustig. I can't speak for the specifics of the 60 Minutes piece but regarding the overall hypothesis, these two guys make a compelling case that sugar is a chronic toxin.\n\nJust saying "sugar" is of course imprecise and unhelpful. Lustig is primarily concerned with fructose. Glucose by itself is fine, he says. Taubes's hypothesis is about the effects of all carbohydrate and what happens when we chronically eat too much of it. 1333724700 That JFK was murdered as part of a conspiracy. Still not likely in my opinion, but it doesn't need magic, a god-person, Bigfoot, special mind powers, or space aliens for it to be true. Just a bunch of people that really could keep a secret. And though unlikely, since it doesn't involve anything new in science or world-view, I think it would be the most likely to be true. \n\nNow, if you ask me which of the various JFK conspiracies that would be.... well, I don't know. 1278973406 Some humans are very suggestible, I suspect that this explains most hypnotism. It seems to also be usable as a very powerful placebo, I read about one hypnotist awhile ago who apparently used self-hypnosis before having surgery on his hand which was done without anaesthetic, he apparently didn't find it painful. I'm willing to believe that, pain is something that can be significantly reduced with placebos.\n\n*Addendum*\n\nStory about man hypnotising himself before surgery. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/sussex/7355523.stm\n\nAlso a discussion about the story on the randi.org forums. http://forums.randi.org/archive/index.php/t-111742.html 1307287332 first of all, your evidence is entirely anecdotal, so let me counter it with my anecdote: I know many vegetarians (not vegans) and none of them have significant health problems. None have ever had to go to the hospital or have even gotten sick, as far as I know, because of their diet. \n\nSecondly, strict veganism or vegetarianism is not more 'natural' than eating meat, but who cares? I don't base my diet decisions on what our ancestors might have eaten or what we are 'meant' to eat any more than I base any other ethical decisions on the behavior of apes. That being said, a diet without meat might be closer to our 'natural' diet than the huge quantities of meat that we eat in the west. \n\nAlso, as a side note, if you are a vegetarian and are having trouble getting iron, you are doing it wrong. Eat some lettuce, dude. 1297868364 I wish they made it so that it was possible to see the top comment just by hovering over the post. It's unbelievable when you have a post with 1000+ points and then a comment with 500+ proving that it is blatantly wrong. OP, I feel like the people who do not check the comments will probably not check your subreddit as well. But I do like the idea. 1332918258 I still think Scooby Doo is the best skeptic show for kids. I know this is talking about science but the original Scoobys(not the movies(live action or cartoon) or that 1000 ghosts crap) were shows that taught critical thinking. Every ghost or alien or magic that occurred was explained though science and trickery. 1347579071 I'm not saying it should, not libertarian in any way myself, but I'm just trying to point out how it's different from the state of nature that hobbes laid out. 1343072738 Man, r/UFOs is a total bummer when you're reasonable. 1346081015 You're the one who posted all the awesome info! Wish I could give you a piece of the peach crisp I'm baking!\nETA: I just sent a report to Health Canada (I believe it fell under the advertising of natural products) regarding her advertised "homeopathic vaccines". Let's see what happens. 1347751052 Whooping Cough will just be blamed by something else. 1334780885 I remember that episode...kind of left you scratching your head. I'm talking like original eastern state penn episode, I remember one with a lighthouse where an apparition peaked over the side of the railing. I mean these could have been staged too, but I just feel the show felt more genuine back then. 1348498105 not sure if upvoted because relevant to r/skeptic\n\nor because *MrWeiner*\n\nas for how MrWeiner did *do*, well... should we consider him "debunked"? or that other one? i daresay this discussion hasn't been concluded... also, i'm not even sure which side r/skeptic is supposed to debunk! 1337343763 70% of people who believe the world will end, think it will be the most ridiculous one. Are these useful statistics for determining the cause? 1336111510 Isn't it possible that you got bounced around to the back seat during the crash? You say you were losing consciousness after the accident, sounds like you probably bounced off the dashboard and landed in the back seat. \n\nLack of other injuries could be explained the same way that drunk drivers don't get as hurt when they get in accidents (not paying attention and don't tense up prior to the accident). 1327942073 Uhh well from a quick glance, the first self post is currently on the third page in at #67 with **60** of the prior submissions being solely pictures (quickmeme, imgur) and without even clicking 8 of them specifically suburban mom memes before it. \n\nThat's fine that there is some deeper content hidden in there, but it's hardly fair to try and paint the whole sub that way when that kind of content is clearly in the extreme minority. 1341549670 It's an old story - the first hit (massage) is free, then you pay and pay and pay and.... 1295409298 Thanks, this is exactly what I was looking for. 1293842486 Christians talk of "accepting" Jesus all the time.\n\nI find the whole thing silly. 1309304613 wow that's very impressive! so you're a magician? 1345149370 My thinking is that if I don’t capture it on my equipment I am going to doubt that it is legitimate. Like the pictures I posted. I know the person and what their capability is and I doubt she could fake them however they look too good to be true. Even with my equipment when I hear EVPs I scrutinize them for any other possible source of background noise first. We also copy all evidence from an investigation and then have three people separately check it and see if they get the same results. Unfortunately with modern technology when viewing paranormal evidence you have to trust the source or take it as a possible fake. 1336488574 The music in this video is Y by Monophobe. Can be found on his Soundcloud at http://soundcloud.com/monophobemusic\n\nHope you enjoy his songs as much as I do! Also, thanks for posting this so I could find his music! 1347508611 > It's possible that there are components of food that we are not yet able to detect or measure\n\n... and there's no reason to suspect those components to be more plentiful in organic than in normal produce. 1289328715 Hydrofloric acid is this mythical acid that doesn't damage your skin, but seeps into your bone marrow and kills you regardless of how much you are exposed to. At least that's what some people think.\n\nIt's frightening what beliefs some people cling to, even when confronted with written evidence. 1296115057 Make it true damnit! 1332387673 Speak the truth, brother. \n\n*GLOBAL WARMING IS A HOAX!* 1353311595 Call it thin-slicing. Maybe it did, I really don't have very strong feelings on the matter. I suppose I have trouble understanding (not believing) why the ejected material was glowing, for one, and why it spun in such a perfect spiral, for another. I've been looking for a couple of minutes (not long I'll admit) and can't find an explanation for those two facts.\n\nEDIT:terrible, terrible grammar 1350224368 They make my brain work to make me stronger? That's a helluva lot better than science! I'll take twelve! 1327321684 Nice, very interesting explanation from professor Andrew Lih as to why it's more reliant on the majority view and verifiable secondary sources. 1330587883 [Oxygen Therapy](http://www.snopes.com/medical/homecure/peroxide.asp) 1243742220 I wrote an essay myself on homeopathy last year for a class. Two helpful books were [Trick or Treatment](http://www.trickortreatment.com/) and [Snake Oil Science](http://www.amazon.com/Snake-Oil-Science-Complementary-Alternative/dp/0195313682). If you are interested in reading my essay I'll gladly send you a copy (my works cited may give you further research avenues.) 1301868528 You've misread the title as well: the active part is "a validation study for a clinical prediction rule". \n\nThey used this rule, with fixed therapies (these were controls, not dependent variables) to determine if this was a viable rule to guide docs in the future. I don't see where you're getting your interpretation of this study. 1349548803 How could that possibly be legal? 1266600262 Yes! I love to suspend disbelief and dive down the rabbit hole. My favorite one is the idea that Stanley Kubrick helped the CIA stage the Apollo 11 landing, but left clues to the nature of his secret deeds in 2001, The Shining, and Eyes Wide Shut. Google the movie Kubrick's Odyssey if you want to see someone make some wild, unfounded claims, that would be really cool if they were true. 1356616718 Yeah man, David Holmes even opened a cafe in Belfast called Mogwai after everyone's favourite noise mongers 1332265370 You don't know what homeopathy is. 1299450719 Cool; love these stories whether there's any truth to them or not. Thanks! 1322253762 This is a skeptic reddit... I am just correcting the information that is false. As a skeptic should do. You want to go to r/politics! 1315422936 Yeah, this is better. I think labeling it as a conspiracy theory is actually worse than just simply calling it nonsense. Both will offend fundamentalists, but the former will also confuse them and make them think that you are weird and potentially stupid. Whether it shares attributes with conspiracy theories is actually entirely beside the point. 1350585243 IDK guy, just seems completely faked. 1330713278 I was tricked into going to a Hell House (that's the last time I go to a haunted house put on by a megachurch) and some guy dressed as a demon said that almost verbatim and without a hint of irony. I yelled "Satan, you're full of shit." The kid playing the troubled goth teen broke character, and I was asked to leave. I didn't get my money back, and I was still witnessed to on the way out the door. AND I got a parking ticket. Worst Halloween ever. 1330467445 The leaders from the right told us all we had to go to war in Iraq, and we did. That was over oil, not security.\n\nDo not make the mistake of assuming that one team is more honest than the other. Why is everyone trying to increase the cost of energy beyond the reach of the lower classes? That is what it is all about, make CO2 producing stuff (coal, oil, gas) more expensive.\n\nScientists are people. Just like priests, politicians and pimps. I can remember getting excited about cold fusion because a few scientists made the claim they'd sussed it back in '89.\n\nIt is possible for scientists to push their beliefs before their craft. 1261162524 RIIIIISE. 1346074058 He was only in there for a second, and he had his paws up on the stove which is on the other side of the kitchen. He couldn't reach that shelf if he tried.\n\nOther thing was an uh.. event, that was a few years back. Long story short is i was at home, realized i hadn't checked the messages on my phone (land line with a big button you had to push to make speaker phone come on), so i looked up, and right when i looked up and had the thought, the phone went into speaker phone.\n\nI didn't have any messages either. :P 1347365783 Why would a helicopter monitor these if they are 'sky lanterns'? How big would these 'sky lanterns' have to be to show up from miles away? Can you post a link to actual 'sky lanterns'? I don't think I've ever seen one.\n\nJust saying. This chinese lantern/sky lantern 'explanation' gets used all the time now, but I've never actually seen one confirmed in real life or on video. 1291241271 Pravda is the russian version of the 'weekly world news' 1291966682 They use less effective pesticides and fertilizers, because if some scientist worked his ass off to make a more effective version of something they don't want a piece of it because it has chemicals.\n\nNot to say that they don't have some reason to go against certain pesticides, but all the time and effort spent growing things organically could be spent trying to find safer more effective pesticides and fertilizer. 1296146478 O mi gad redet is fur srs bzns onli. 1347829682 Haven't done much in the way of chemical hallucinogens, but I have cultivated the ability to self induce states of hypnagogia/lucid dreaming/out of body experiences. Many of these dreams feel very much like hallucinations, including such things as interacting with people I know who are sitting on the foot of my bed (though they are not really there). Other times I have the experience of walking around my room outside of my body, sometimes having trouble "getting back into it."\n\nThis has gone a long way toward informing my skepticism as I can sincerely say I believe I have had the "experience" of out of body AND I cannot rule out that it is just a mental hallucination of sorts (hypnagogia). It has also given me the chance to experiment with extended knowledge by having people hide stuff in a specific place.\n\nObviously this is all just as anecdotal as the person who believes they've really had an out of body experience, but it does give me a different perspective and I can see how easy it is to believe in such things without a very solid mode of critical thinking. 1325608269 Thanks. Facebook can be a bitch 1356125209 NINETAILS HAS NINE FUCKING TAILS AND IS ADORABLE! 1345518389 thanks for being an active moderator 1306728269 Ive cooled down a bit. Boy that vent did feel good though. For the record the camera that shot the movies were unique. This created a problem as there was no technology at the time to just convert and play over television and the players were so proprietary that the films could only be watched on them. The broadcast footage is done by taking a TV camera and pointing it at the screen/monitor of the footage being played. Thus the horrid quality. The footage is still archived. I heard on NPR that a player was tracked down and footage has been being converted. I think that's what's been seen in some of the latest documentaries. 1319837016 I really wish the writing on that piece was better... stuff like this just makes me bonkers:\n> as Arctic ice melts, water that was below the surface becomes exposed to the sun and absorbs more solar energy,\n\n 1336432923 A solar storm has been happening. Probably that 1331330149 In the future, please use /r/debunkthis.\n\nI mean, it's right there in the sidebar... 1346585524 I must admit, there certainly does seem to be something in those pictures... not sure what, but something. 1291865811 unfortunately being 5 and it being my first experience with snow I don't think I ever looked for tracks. I've thought about that before, but since it isnt something I can recall quickly I dismiss it because I don't want to muddle the actual memory up and add elements that werent really there. If that makes sense. 1326555786 I'm curious about the people that downvoted this... 1320909229 Sad that this submission didn't take off:\n\nhttp://www.reddit.com/r/atheism/comments/pa1aa/the_fireplace_analogy/?already_submitted=true\n\n4 upvotes. r/atheism should give it more love, or someone should resubmit it. If it wasn't already a resubmission. 1328698599 Not to be confused with colloidal silver, but I learned form my little girl silver nitrate was once used experimentally on people as should told me about this women who lost hearing as a result.\n\n"When she was about 25 years old, Juliette suffered an ear infection from a piece of rice that was accidentally lodged in her ear at her wedding. She persuaded the doctor to try an experimental treatment, an injection of silver nitrate. This treatment damaged her ear, causing her to lose a great deal of her hearing in that ear."\n\nhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Juliette_Gordon_Low#Early_life 1351710562 I did that experiment once and they still knew. 1336243300 Ex-gay therapy teaches you that homosexuality is something evil that you need to be saved from. By the time they're done with kids they probably believe it too and feel like their life is so much better now that they've cast sin aside even if they're just in denial. 1338520169 "Yeah, that Randi, only being skeptical of unverified claims, instead of being skeptical of the very idea of the scientific method! He's a hypocrite!" \n\nI'd apologize for the strawman, but really, this is just an *accurate summary of their position.*\n\n*Edit* replaced "It's" with "I'd." How did that error even happen? Was I drunk? 1318615382 So I just watched "the secret history 2" on youtube. Is this the same thing?\n\nAlso, in that video, there's an abductee who says that abduction cases dropped off sharply around 2000-2003, and the video was in 2006, did that continue on to today? 1322954416 Wow. That was intense. \n\nI agree with you. There has to be something more behind dreams. 1323866781 His precious bodily fluids must remain pure. 1331238133 Dude, fix the justification. It's very hard to read like that. 1316423668 Check out the [Carbon War Room](http://www.carbonwarroom.com/), where people are putting together market-driven solutions to climate change. \n\nWhile cap-and-trade, and other policy issues are discussed, they're also big into alternative generation, energy efficiency, and providing capital for those efforts.\n\nEspecially as oil gets more expensive, clean energy will be increasingly driven by the most powerful force on earth, human greed. 1306773948 http://www.reddit.com/r/owie/new 1267139314 These were fantastic, thanks for posting! I particularly loved the straw man animation. 1330328248 "Still being posted once an hour" is not suggesting being bothered, nor is it douchbaggy. 1288304665 True. I rather like the idea of a "ghost in a jar" though, it's sort of fun. 1345179803 No, they all *attempted* communism and *ended up* with totalitarianism. It was not for the lack of trying that they failed. 1311010435 I don't know if it's related to anything paranormal, but once, while playing on the Playstation, my controller started talking...\n\nActually it was 2 voices, one male and one female seemingly talking to each other in a language I did not understand. I freaked out and went to my mom (I was quite young at the time, around 10/12 maybe). She came and there was nothing. So naturally I started playing again, only to have it start again. Ran once more to my mom, and it never happened again. \n\nOf course, no one ever believed me, and I would do the same if I was told something similar. Yet, it stays a sharp memory where I'm still not sure what happenened. 1340434183 Aaagh, it evolves! 1314738242 the ones that are real are 1. too complex to be made from the ground, 2. Too large to be made over night, let alone a few seconds that some are reported to be made in 3. stalks have been microwaved and layed down perfectly at 90 degree angles and not broken as it would happen with a wooden board, 4. have complex mathematical meaning, 5. many are made over night near military installations where people would be seen., 6. Never any paths leading in or out to area, 7. Many times those orb things are reported around the area before the pattern appears. 1307807940 living honest and good lives, having a relationship with God. 1332739454 Basically this. It's super interesting that our mind is able to construct these things, and it's amazing to be able to experience it, but I have no reason to believe they're real.\nIt's also super interesting how the experiences are similar to the apparent experiences of others, but I believe that the similarities come from cultural constructions, as above, or a result of similar physical and chemical brain composition. 1318284659 Exceptional claims demand exceptional evidence. -Hitchens\n\nJust because you can say something is true doesn't make it true. Given exceptional evidence of your exceptional claims, I'll be more than happy to believe them. Until such time, I do not believe them. 1300553842 You challenging me bro?\n\nhttp://i.imgur.com/MGcLw.jpg 1345778837 Could be a Satellite. #5 is fishy and doesn't look like a Satellite. 1342814389 Can you point me in the direction of the sources for quantum entanglement not transmitting information instantaneously? I am a bit confused I thought it could. 1344875095 I find it telling that many of the enraged yoga supporters site anecdotal evidence and what sounds like a pseudo-religious dogma when it comes to defending their exercise regimen. 1326572260 Tomato, tomatoe. \n\nBut yes it's a pen, not a cage. I now see what the habub was about haha 1333950780 I take everything with massive skepticism when it comes to anything considered paranormal. 1345778813 Ghmm. I thought that it was about making a clever bot that understands superstitions by traders and uses them for predicting, and I thought, no way that is going to work beause when you're trading you don't have the attention to keep track of all the superstitions you should apply. 1344284203 to quote the great and wise philosopher Carlin "You know who I pray to? Joe Pesci. Joe Pesci. Two reasons; first of all, I think he's a good actor. Ok. To me, that counts. Second; he looks like a guy who can get things done. Joe Pesci doesn't fuck around. Doesn't fuck around. In fact, Joe Pesci came through on a couple of things that god was having trouble with. For years I asked god to do something about my noisy neighbor with the barking dog. Joe Pesci straightened that cock-sucker out with one visit."\n\nedit: also frisbeetarianism. but honestly if I had to choose; Rao, because if superman prays to him I don't wanna be dead ya dig. 1312246672 This is a good sighting: multiple valid witnesses and fairly good video. Very weird. 1227415440 >All of a sudden, he's shilling for miracle weight loss pills. "And you don't even have to change your diet or lifestyle!!".\n\nAnd at the same time he had Tony Horton (from P90X) on his show who advocates the complete opposite: change your diet and your lifestyle! Talk about mixed massages. 1354426109 I thought the HuffPo was a credible website. I stand corrected. 1265275790 > A few people with unlimited budgetary resources funded international agents (muslim and others)\n\nHow many is "a few"? Because even with your estimate, it's still at least the people who hijacked the planes, plus a demolition team to somehow plant charges which remained unnoticed not only in the hours leading up to the plane crash but in the collapse itself, plus whoever was digging through the rubble -- they didn't find enough of the kind of residue expected to suggest anything overly suspicious...\n\nPlus the intelligence we had that Al-Qaeda was planning just such an event? Plus whoever authorized the "unlimited funding"?\n\nAnd not *one* of these people involved in this conspiracy ever had a crisis of conscience and came forward, or even dumped evidence of it onto Wikileaks?\n\nEven if it's as small as you're playing, this seems similar to Feynman's response to UFOs -- that they are much more likely the product of known properties of terrestrial intelligence than of unknown properties of extraterrestrial intelligence. It seems clear that 9/11 is much more likely the product of the known hatred and determination of extremist Islamic terrorism than some unknown element of domestic government-sponsored terrorism.\n\nThis is still giving more credit than is due to the "controlled demolition" idea. I'm assuming it's 50% as likely. As it is, there's no credible evidence to suggest this is the case.\n\n> The rest is just covering it up, and marginalizing any evidence that was brought forward.\n\nWhich, again, is something they can't manage for supposedly private communications between *heads of state,* but they can somehow pull off for this? 1332530749 You'd probably have more success asking simple questions like "So, how many people do you know that have polio? Did Susie get over the whooping cough yet?" etc. 1297284934 Why downvote this?\n\nI don't like it, but he's right. 1334239717 Photoshop 1265571147 Whoosh! 1334308171 Whoosh! 1351633730 Whoosh! 1353177134 Associating with idiots was your first mistake. Sucks that even awesome people are idiots :/ 1339998728 Can't local state governments do things about it though? It is a problem that needs to be taken seriously now so that things aren't terrible in the future... Then again, long term goals of politicians.. Hmmm. 1354945122 Do you have any evidence verifying your claim? 1337642095 It's most likely that there's simply a naturally occurring high level of fluoride in the local water supply.\n\nThe thing that bakes my noodle about this is that people are saying that fluroide shouldn't be put in water supplies becuase of this study, but the levels of exposure in this were up to 450% higher than the MAXIMUM recommended safe levels.\n\nIt's basically people running around yelling FLUORIDE ISN'T SAFE AT ANY LEVEL CAUSE IF YOU HAVE TOO MUCH OF IT IT KILLS YOU... Like you know, regular water. Or Oxygen. 1344859463 I remember watching that and suspecting that the whole thing was staged with an actor, but I never followed it up with any investigation ... it was very well done, Derren himself is a good actor when he seems so earnest and giving explanations which are all bluff 1292804360 I do not have a problem with him being a magician, I have a problem with him double misleading people. Non of his explanations are true, at least non that I have seen. Please do not tell me that people expect him to lie in his explanations.\n\nPS: I am sorry for misspelling his name. Is there any way to fix it? 1298910002 "Existence unfolds into a symphony of possibilities" ~Deepak Chopra 1344268174 Weight loss is just a numbers game. Barring a medical problem, like a thyroid condition, it's simple math. Calories in vs Calories out. Eat less than normal and you'll lose weight.\n\nPlateaus suck, but are relatively easy to break through. These methods should do the trick to prevent your body trying to even out the process (called homeostasis).\n\nUltimately, it doesn't matter what you do as long as you create a caloric deficit. 1331023282 Orthopedic surgeons evaluate people with scoliosis. If it is a child, the surgeon may recommend bracing and potentially surgery based on severity, type, and remaining growth. If it is adult degenerative scoliosis, then surgery can be considered for pain relief as a last resort. If there are progressive neurological deficits, you will likely need surgery. \n\nSo, there are different types and severities of scoliosis.\n\nPrimary care providers screen kids for scoliosis. For adults who want to treat their back pain and try to avoid surgery, they can go to their primary care physician, pain specialists (usually anesthesiologists with specialized training), physiatrists ( also called physical medicine and rehabilitation), and physical therapists. If they want to explore the world of alternative medicine, they can see chiropractors, acupuncturists, etc. \n\nThere is danger in allowing a chiropractor to treat pediatric scoliosis instead of an orthopedist. The child may miss the opportunity for effective treatment (including operative and non-operative) while the growth plates are open. I suspect that the most reasonable chiropractors will refer these kids to their local pediatric orthopedic surgeon. \n\nI'm not so bothered if a chiropractor treats adult scoliosis. And I don't have any citations for you, I don't care if you take your adult back to a chiropractor. I don't doubt that you might even find some benefit. But do not compromise the health of children by advocating for chiropractic and other alternative treatments to the exclusion of evidence based medicine. \n\n 1337669371 And did you ace it? 1330097449 That's exactly what I thought ... 1334868467 **Cryptids:**\n\n> In cryptozoology and sometimes in cryptobotany, a cryptid (from the Greek "κρύπτω" (krypto) meaning "hide") is a creature or plant whose existence has been suggested but is unrecognized by scientific consensus and often regarded as highly unlikely.[1] Famous examples include the **Yeti** in the Himalayas and the **Loch Ness Monster** in Scotland. 1345932585 Huh? Monster?\n 1326349747 "Thanks, but how about the bar instead?"\n\nThat seems like a less defensive answer, which in itself, would prompt the next level of "motive" from the OMG SEXIST MALE.\n\nFeel vulnerable all you want, lady, but don't hit all of us with the broad brush pls. \n\nKTHX OMG U'R HOTTTTEH!\n\n(edit in case it didn't come across that i'm agreeing with you, Mr. Johnson. I am agreeing with you! :)) 1351127142 We really are going to have to continue this IRL, cause I'm giving up the internet for awhile starting tomorrow, but first a few rebuttals:\n\nMy argument isn't "morphing"; I am pointing out that YOUR frequent statement that acupuncture doesn't work beyond placebo is both factually untrue and **by your own admission** based on assumptions you have made, mostly because a bunch of authorities have said so.\n\nBut you think I'm the unscientific one?\n\nI don't have much interest in reading a few hundred Cochrane Reviews because; as I have said to you many times, I do not think that acupuncture can be adequately 'placebo'd' for testing. I don't think the Reviews have much to say about actual practice. \n\nAcupuncture isn't a pill that could be dispensed by anyone. It's more akin to massage or even surgery; the skill of the practitioner matters. I suspect a lot of acupuncture trials are essentially testing crappy acupuncture against other crappy acupuncture - not very informative. \n\n[This](http://www.naturalnews.com/025057_acupuncture_placebo_brain.html) is a story about a study (that I can't find a direct link to at the moment) that used fMRI to show changes in the brains of patients receiving 'verum' acupuncture. It had a positive result but I point it out for the mention in the second paragraph that the test subjects were all "naive to acupuncture". Think about that for a moment. What would you think of a pharmaceutical study that used a placebo that only worked as a placebo if the subjects had never taken pills before? \n\n>The underlying basis for acupuncture (qi flowing through meridians in the body) is completely unsupported by available evidence. I assume this is the "magic and gibberish" basis for TCM referenced in the original article. This means acupuncture has poor prior plausibility; before ever testing a thing, there is little reason to think acupuncture should work.\n\nAnd here's the crux of the issue. You assume that all studies confirm your bias here. You have a very poor understanding of TCM in general and Qi specifically and from this you conclude that there is little reason to think it might work. I suspect your assumptions are shared by many of the folks conducting research into acupuncture; how do you think that might effect the studies they perform, and the peer reviews to which those studies are subjected?\n\nQi is not a magical property. It is a concept that is very difficult to translate adequately, because it means different things in different contexts. This vagueness is common in Chinese languages I'm told, but very uncomfortable for English speakers to wrap our heads around. Qi originally means 'breath'. In other cases in would best be translated as nutrition. Are those magical concepts? Or do you agree that they are tangible, measurable, requirements for human health? In the case of acupuncture I think 'de qi' is best translated as [introception](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Interoception). Does that help?\n\nAs for the assuming it shouldn't work; who would believe that moldy bread could cure infections? On the face of it that's absurd too. \n\n>TCM practitioners may not just prescribe untested treatments; they continue to prescribe treatments that HAVE been tested and found to be ineffective or harmful.\n\nAgain you provide NO citations. \n\nI don't argue that TCM herbal formulae aren't potentially dangerous; I know they are. Just as pharmaceuticals can be dangerous. They have to be appropriately prescribed by well trained practitioners. \n\nAgain I think you are making huge assumptions based on your biases. Chinese herbal medicine has been tested and continues to be tested (often in languages you and I do not speak, so it's hard to point to studies). \n\n>I assume this is the "magic and gibberish" basis for TCM referenced in the original article.\n\nHere is an example. The original article (I suggest you read it) was essentially a response to a tragic story of a mama bear killing her cub and herself; they were being held in horrific conditions so that their bile could be harvested. Of course I do not condone this practice , neither does any other TCM practitioner I know. But **nothing** in the article was scientific evidence that Xiong Dan (bear bile) doesn't work to relieve febrile seizures. That's what it's claimed to do. I don't think we'll ever see a study, nor should we, too unethical. But dismissing all of TCM as superstitious nonsense because of this abhorrent practice isn't science or scepticism. (Not to mention that here in North America we subject animals to equally horrific conditions so that we can have cheap bacon.)\n\nPlease don't respond here - I won't get to see it - come for a coffee and we'll continue the conversation. 1314797903 I never mentioned aliens or the ETH. Keep your stupid non sequitor memes away from my serious discussions. Thanks. 1331865335 There was an object like that [seen in Denmark](http://www.caelestia.be/viborg.html) in 1975. 1308159625 Another fine example from the deniers:\n\nhttp://www.biocab.org/Total_Emisivity_CO2.html\n\n(this one is 'peer-reviewed' by the employees/students of the 'university' founded/owned by the author). 1279517790 A few years ago one of my best friends in the world (Canadian) was in Thailand working on his PHD shortly before he left his mother died. While there he had to take a cab to go to the airport, on the way the driver suggested they stop at a historical area (I'm not certain where) my friend agreed and spent some time(free of taxi charges) walking through these botanical gardens. Eventually he made it back to the cab only to be asked by the cabbie who the woman was that was walking with him? Confused, my friend asked what woman was he talking about? The cabbie then in amazing detail described his recently deceased mother. The thing that freaks me out most about this story is my friend is a hardcore atheist, but even he was taken aback by the way the cabbie just thought he was walking through the gardens with another western person. Creepy but very soothing at the same time 1337825368 >The only possible savings are if they can reduce the number of plants required,\n\nThis is what I'm talking about. Running more generators than necessary in order to meet minimum demand is a waste. 1342020049 Do you know why things have color? Because the atoms and molecules absorb certain photons and reflect others.\n\nReally, are we defining "see" as the ability for current humans to view something with the naked eye? Cause then discussing "conciousness" just seems really really silly. (Set containing all possible things) - (set containing things that the human brain can make out as objects from photons hitting the retina) = (a very very very large set of things) 1348704355 You didn't respond to my stronger point, which is that the "friendly" AI would need to be able to evaluate the risks posed by other AIs to humanity and act to stop them. 1355055319 Interesting and nice to hear. I've enjoyed listening to Dara on "Just a Minute." 1272393794 Glitch in the phone system. Phone rang at someone else's house and your house. 1342250189 Ribbed?\n\nYou must be tall and skinny like me. 1329986531 The thing is that it wasn't simply my mind, it also involved another witness. Read my reply to TehGimp666 for details. 1331227329 I'm going to have a quick look through the "positive" radio papers and weed out any obvious BS.\n\n>Sirav B et al, (2009) Radio frequency radiation (RFR) from TV and radio transmitters at a pilot region in Turkey,\n\nShows no effects, just that the radiation level is high. We're already being lied to.\n\n>Viel JF et al, (August 2009) Radiofrequency exposure in the French general population: band, time, location and activity variability, \n\nAgain, talks about exposure level.\n\n>Hallberg O, Johansson O, (July 2004) Malignant melanoma of the skin - not a sunshine story!\n\nWut. Who names a paper that? Anyway, it doesn't seem to account for better melanoma diagnosis techniques, rather saying it can't be explained by increased UV exposure. \n\n> Hocking B, Gordon I, (September 2003) Decreased survival for childhood leukemia in proximity to television towers,\n\nDamn, pay-walled. I wanted to see if they accounted for social factors.\n\nWell there's quite a few, so I'm giving up for tonight. It would be nice if someone else had a quick look and point out any obvious problems with any of the papers, I'm not an expert on medicine or power lines.\n 1346235194 I respect your optimism. I just want to share sightings that I think are interesting. Currently, this subreddit is more afraid of having a bad post show up than letting people share their findings. Reddit built something for that already; it's called downvoting. I don't think there should be a filter for posting things. If the mods want to put in that much effort, they can take down the egregious ones instead. 1316232274 Well,\n\nMost of the activity was when we had a cat.. our neighbor has 3 cats and they hear her more than we do.. We did hear through other neighbors through the past that there was a lady that had a ton of cats.. and somebody had died. We figured it was the same person. \n\n\nShe walked right past me the other night when I was getting a glass of water. It was enough to startle me and get my attention, and take me from sorta being awake to wide awake. \n\nNever thought about looking up old phone books for our address.. \n\nWe are the most senior tenants in our apartment, been there for 6 years. 1323727214 I get kind of a "fake" vibe from this one 1332392609 Arianna Huffington is too busy being a cartoon bear to care about the quality of her blog network.\n 1335804968 Please enlighten me on WTC 7. I have not seen a single legitimate "de-bunk" explaining what happened, when in contrast there is personal testimony on 9/11 (people involved with WTC 7) that dictates something else happened that day.\n\nEDIT: I will take first-hand, personal testimony from someone on the day of that heard explosions, than a "Popular Mechanics" article recycling the same "...I'm an expert, trust my technical expose on WTC 7 structural integrity as to why it fell like a controlled demolition." 1342242619 >tiger gaul bladder\n\nTigers have bladders filled with barbarians?! This makes them much more terrifying! 1350189109 ....why? 1331056090 Yes, of course it's popular because it's cheap. But as far as I know most aid organizations call this dumping and warn against it, because it undermines local industry. It's not that these organizations don't want people to have affordable clothing, but they recognize the importance of a viable industry to lift the whole country out of poverty. \n\nI guess it's kind of like Walmart: very popular among the locals because it's cheap (we can't afford to not buy there), but when all the small local businesses go bankrupt, then the locals still suffer.\n\nI have no idea for what to do with this problem, though. We rich people buy and throw away such gigantic amounts of clothes every year, so some sort of reusing/recycling must be done with them. And it's a shame to not let people who need clothes get perfectly fine clothes that we throw away.\n\nI guess I would prefer to give away clothes to poor people in the rich countries (we don't have any clothing industry that needs support anyway), then sell clothes in used clothing stores here, and then perhaps do as Salvation. Army and make blankets out of the worst and give them to kids on the streets of cold countries (that's what I've heard they do at least)\n\nHere in Norway the Tvind clothing business goes under the name UFF (Umana Folk til Folk) or Humana People to People. I had never heard of their schools until one of their recruiters stopped me on the street and gave me some paper about it. I was quite shocked to find out about their shady business as they have a lot of shops here, and many parts of Norway have an equal deal with them and Salvation Army for putting up those donation boxes (they get 50% of the available space for those boxes each). 1344330902 I didn't say anything about common metals. I said the people who describe them describe them as metallic, which they demonstrably do. Then i posed the question; does it not seem strange that a race capable of unimaginable feats of transportation use a material as primitive as metal when they would undoubtable have access to far superior composite materials.\n\nIt was at this point that people run around in circles not knowing whether to argue that they would use metal or that they have used a composite material, just one that exactly resembles metal. basically they had a hard time forming anything but a contrived rationalisation that gave them an excuse not to think about it. It was the kind of response we would expect from the religious, not a group intent on forming rational conclusions. 1334169460 IME a lot of people at parties like to talk about star signs without actually believing in them. \n\n"Hey, you're a Taurus, and I'm a Virgo, and you know what that means... We should bang."\n\nIt's like a big joke that everyone's in on. Maybe a hipster thing? 1315833086 So far, everyone capable of making an assessment have agreed that the files and emails are legit.\n\nThey haven't been proven doctored yet. It is always possible to find a nugget of fiction in there, I suppose. 1258885836 You said: \n>Dr. Drew: No such thing as Medical Marijuana\n\nThat clearly indicates you are claiming Dr. Drew said that, or made that claim. The transcript you just copied shows that he never said that. A guest on his show said it. Granted he was complimentary towards that guest, but that isn't endorsement of everything that guest says. It's possible this is Drew's position, but the 'evidence' you're offering doesn't show it to be the case. \n\nSomething he said did strike me: he mentioned how hard it is to have a rational conversation about the subject. The tone of many comments on this thread show how true this is, the theme of many is that Drew and folks like Gitlow can't be legitimate doctors who draw different conclusions from evidence, they have to be corrupt quacks since they divert from pro-cannabis orthodoxy. 1344979929 That study only applies to binge drinking. You need to drink really heavily for it to cause any brain damage at all. 1328480041 What the f\n\nI have to say if I was in that car I'd probably open the door and roll out. \nMoving or not. 1340071940 When I was in middle school (I'm a high school senior), we had to do a huge science project (30+ pages) each year. We were allowed to use Wikipedia (with citations), but we were also required to get an equal amount of information from physical books and encyclopedias. I don't know how other schools operated, but you can rest assured that kids are still being forced to get information the old-fashioned way. 1298529917 Made by David Serita. He has a few really great movies on UFOs and stuff. Though he's not the best filmmaker and he tends to be a bit of a scatterbrain, cramming all his ideas in at once.\n\nThat said. He does propose a lot of really fascinating ideas. 1231332844 That seems a little backward. If you're against university as a gateway to gaining credentials surely you'd keep the learning skills parts and get rid of the test. Dropping the formal education and keeping the test seems the worst of all possible worlds. 1345162599 I've been doing research lately, and from what I've collected is when they communicate with you, it comes as an idea that you 'thought' of yourself. I haven't looked into the aircraft concept you're talking about, sorry if what I say is irrelevant. :(\n\nBut something I'll put out there is they have (if it's all real) been helping us slowly reach awareness, each one of us. Over the course of the past year, they have been sending energies to this planet to make people ask questions they never have before; they provide the answers in time, but it comes from within you, through your own ideas from the energy they are sending. \n\nUFOs have been more frequent because they are raising awareness about their existence while providing energies to guide. Usually it is over more populated areas because they can reach more people at once. \n\nOkie dokie- I am only saying this because if it were real, it would resonate within people that are 'awake'. My brain tells me it is fake, but something else is telling me it's real so I am very conflicted, idk how I feel about it. I have had many strange unexplainable things happen to me lately and it has lead me to where I am now. Before the beginning of this year I never thought about ETs as much as I have now. I hope I don't chicken out and take this down. 1352847455 >The main cause of a hangover is De-hydration.\n\nSee, now I would swear that the main *cause* of a hangover was getting drunk on alcoholic beverages.\n\nJust being "dehydrated" doesn't seem to be the same thing. 1353017196 It's just an idea I've always kind of subscribed to. It explains why we're not "contacted" why we and our animals would be dissected or abducted (for study), and lots of other things really when you think about it.\n\nWe're destined to leave earth. It has to happen. So I would think in the future, after we've left, that studying this period of time up close would have invaluable data that we couldn't possibly understand right now. Genetics alone over these periods in space boggles the mind. 1301548680 >even in the constitution the 2nd amendment says "well regulated militia"\n\nhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SCXtfR0_roE 1355856861 http://www.bmj.com/content/337/bmj.a1938.short\n\n 1326037401 I'd also recommend listening to [Skeptoid Episode 134](http://skeptoid.com/audio/skeptoid-4134.mp3), *Who Is Closed Minded, the Skeptic or the Believer?* 1323817668 so...how much for the bag of cat bones? 1337186551 I think the idea of parallel universes is exponentially more stupid than any religion. the church of the flying spaghetti monster has more proof and makes more sense. Even Mormonism... 1340879271 The #1 criteria in nearly every case for a diagnosis of some form of mental disorder is that it causes a detrimental effect on their life, impairing them in some way.\n\nYou may very well fit parts of classifications for mental disorders, but unless they're stopping you from living a normal life, then why would you even be getting diagnosed in the first place? 1355489539 oh and to clarify, most people believe if you die in a dream you can die in real life. most dreams actually stop before your actual death in the dream but if it doesnt you can actually be harmed. people have been injured in a dream and woken up with the same injury or one less severe but in a similar place. 1341051374 1) Floating and moving items.\n\n2) A banister being whole removed and warped beyond ability to put back into place. The medium I worked closely with, yelled at it to fix the issue b/c he had to go. When he returned home all was in order. Additionally a grandfather clock weighing hundreds of pounds appearing on the opposite side of the room as if it'd always been there.\n\n3) Paranormal investigation is relatively limited and strikes me more as something people do for kicks. Its valuable in so much as driving interest and pushing forward evidence but is limited long term for individual development or actual understanding of the meta reasoning behind what is being experienced. Read some books by Dion Fortune, Dolores Ashcroft Norwiki, and those that are associated with them. 1351281018 Guilt by association is bogus. 1328851028 In NYC, the holy water fountains are one of the dirtiest things ever and if you touch it it will give you a rash...\n\nI know it gave me one 1303244717 Not technically it isn't. It is considered a medical condition and a risk factor in other diseases, but not actually a disease 1311219386 I don't think cautious excitement is at all un-skeptical, since whether it actually ends up being true or not, it's a *really cool idea!* \n\nJust my personal philosophy about it, though. I realize there are probably a bunch of people that disagree. 1291223296 5%? How about starting with a 10-15% cut, and then finding a few hundred government agencies to shut down entirely. 1276555075 Why debate anyone on 2012 theory of galactic alignment? 1355423985 The Penn & Tellar episode linked earlier doesn't make this mistake. It notes Disposal cost of $50 per ton vs recycling at $150 dollars per ton. \n\n\nEDIT:\n\nContrary to Penn & Teller's claims the Wikipedia\n page on Recycling claims that \nglass and paper recycling does result in savings both in terms of using less energy and producing less air \npollution. 1352082306 > My reading of the literature [...]\n\nUnless you are a trained professional in this specific speciality within the sub-genre then it is unlikely that your opinion should hold weight even with yourself. 1338419763 Dammit. My alma mater is really well known for their sciences (Plant Sciences and Entomology departments are world class), but it's a shame to promote the silliness. I'm sure they need the money though. 1344188012 > 16 folks (as I write this) gave this news a down vote\n\nNah they haven't. "84% like it" is about as high as you ever see a reddit post once it's got this many votes, and it's perfectly possible that not a single person's downvoted it. See [jedberg on reddit's vote fuzzing](http://www.reddit.com/r/WTF/comments/eaqnf/pardon_me_but_5000_downvotes_wtf_is_worldnews_for/c16omup) 1336603530 Peer review:\n\n"Hey Bob! C'mere an takalookathis! Tell me whatchathink." 1275589063 It was an interesting thing to listen to in the background whilst I did other things. The longer I listened the more ridiculous she sounded because of her dodging of questions asked by the interviewer and her *constant* giggling and laughter. Why should she be on the verge of hilarity endlessly? She seems intelligent in her ability to speak, she talks for six hours in a coherent fashion. I cannot verify or corroborate anything she says. She does not strike me as psychotic, nor any more delusional than some Star Wars & RPG fans that I've known. She seems to have focused all of her time and energy on this subject in the same way some people focus all their life on anime, Star Wars, collecting turtle figurines, etc. Much of her terminology is "Akashic", so she is not inventing all the terms, descriptions and illustrations all on her own. You can find websites about that stuff readily. The related sites are mostly HTML 2.0 new age nightmares. 1323767048 Came here to see if anyone else pointed noticed that. That alone should have discredited them. 1350255048 This was already proven fake. 1329016696 I use that same curve when predicting my expected stock returns. Works great hypothetically. 1342452319 I don't remember putting HCl in my air popper... I guess I should pour Draino into it. 1339616277 I think just the honest attempt should be deemed a crime. In my country trying to incite violence through speech is forbidden (if I remember correctly in the US it isn't). 1316908147 I'm actually disappointed that I *wasn't* Rick Rolled. 1269111409 not sure if sarcasm .... well, in any [event](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Extinction_event) (including an ELE event) 1348932908 Sure the flashing orb isn't an indicator from the car going down the road turning the corner? 1348692480 > can you imagine where we'd be today if the scientific approach was permitted to flourish in the past?\n\nDo you really think there was some sort of anti-scientific conspiracy operating inthe Western world up to the recent past? What do you think Hippocrates, Galen, Averroes, Avicenna, Bacon to name a few did if not science? Would there be a modern science if not for them? 1343948317 >just a guess and borderline just a joke\n\nWell... the guess is wrong. The minerals necessary for remineralization aren't freely available in butter (which is mostly fats). Your saliva, on the other hand, is chock full of these minerals (mostly calcium and phosphates). The butter would block these, as butter is hydrophobic, and may even cause an increased rate of cavity growth.\n\nThough, if enough butter got into the cavity, likely the pain would decrease, because the dentin wouldn't be exposed to air. Wouldn't mean that the cavity is gone, just that it's... not painful anymore. Not painful, and probably growing at an increased rate. 1351480535 "dum de dum just videotaping the ground... what the- holy shit!" 1328504570 I'm sorry that people mistreated you, but bicycles don't fucking belong on roads with speed limits above 20 mph. They are just fucking annoying. Everyone has to slow down and work to avoid hitting the guy who decided to be quirky or save the earth. The fact that the laws still allow this is a joke. There's no way a bicycle should be allowed on a road like the one in my home town, where people drive 40 mph. People are mad, because you should realize that and not force them to deal with it, even if it is legal.\n\nedit: Cue downvotes from butthurt cyclists. 1348759594 Almost right. They don't have to accept any applicant that is an arbitrary claim. They don't have the right to arbitrarily reject an applicant. \n\nI think a case could be made for the placebo effect, both that it fits as a 'mental or psychic ability' and that it is scientifically verifiable if not scientifically explainable.\n\nIt's an idea I've played with, both privately and in forums discussing Randi, in the past. So far, the reactions break down into knee-jerk denials, denials based on false associations (see the homeopathic blind alley in this thread as an example), denials based on tail-swallowing rhetoric (see the argument that holds that because the placebo effect is a known phenomenon, though unexplained, it therefore can't be considered because, well, it's known, also in this thread) and very, very little skeptical (from the point of view of actually possibly meeting the challenge) consideration. 1304189875 I can only imagine how happy her husband was when she asked for him to build a cage and leave her alone inside it. 1315959597 I mean, we're making an educated guess here. If Source A is right 99% of the time, and has been for 20 years, then an article picked at random is 99% likely to be accurate. On the other hand, if Source B has been historically accurate just 30% of the time, then we would expect an article picked at random be be inaccurate with a 70% likelihood. Not all sources are equal. 1310623408 >and a skeptic is not necessarily an atheist\n\nHow much of a skeptic can you be if you believe in magic/miracles? Can worshipers of Ra be skeptics? What about people that believe in unicorns? 1324360854 What do I think, personally? Well, I'm a libertarian that agrees with public choice theory, but I'm trying to cover all angles and keep the discussion less centered around my personal views and more centered around evidence, since this is /r/skeptic and not /r/politics or /r/libertarian. 1339723216 But was the 'Ancient Aliens' proposition ever really 'bunked' to begin with? 1351503578 Not necessarily bullshit. Even truth can be profitable. 1339514321 Yeah, Drudge isn't dishonest in his choice of sources, generally (aside from being a fan of a few sites like Breitbart); he's dishonest in his *juxtaposition* of headlines. He'll put a story about record snowfalls right next to an article about global warming, as if there's some type of connection. I wouldn't necessary assume malice, but... have you ever listened to his show? That guy is a squawky, derisive, smarmy douche. 1342720145 He was hacking classified data. Hacking is illegal. 1305260904 come on man, they can fake the return number & caller id stuff easily. some states have passed laws to stop that behavior but many companies, especially foreign telescammers, do not oblige. 1335248094 If you google 'mars dust devil' you'll get similar, more high res photos that have the same whitish-wispy color to it. 1337441698 1: arsenic a metal which is insoluble in water\n\n2: even given a soluble arsenic compound there is a nonzero chance of several atoms of arsenic remaining in the material especially if a new bottle is not used for each dilution 1328290155 I checked out the site. Just tried to do the tutorial but got totally confused when it asked me to navigate to my account page to make a rebuttal. 1339182934 Slow down, Dolan. 1343605831 The numbers are astonishing... there was an article about it somewhere. I was considering factoring image quality (in pixels) into the equation to make the situation even worse for UFO aficionados. I don't remember the stats, but it's something like... there were more photos taken in 2012 than from 1800 - 1990. And the photos were of higher quality, in many instances they were hundreds of times more detailed. The common thread to almost all UFO photos is that the object in question is just beyond the limits of resolution. 1356834207 Well, there's the crazy paranormal and then the more normal paranormal explanation. Humans used to be alot crazier in the older days and people would do weird things just like animals in a natural disaster or bad happening in general. Each person is different. Those who feel fatigue when a friend or relative is dying is feeling empathatic. You though, in my unprofessional but studied opinion used your survival senses and saved your ass as well as your grandmother's. Your spidey senses tingled and you took action....sorta....you can trace these weird phenomena throughout our history. We've lost alot of our ability to be replaced by what we use today mentally. We aremt hunters or figjters anymore but have retained a sense of our badassery. 1351180963 Actually I did read the article from Mises. And I tried to find the specific arguments addressed, but apparently you were better at finding them than I was. I found one that sort of addressed clouds, but it didn't go over any of the specific datapoints brought up in the article. I'm reading your links now. 1334941349 I wouldn't say it's a about being devout. There's no skeptic God to appease. It's that you hear a lot of anti-vax bullshit, and some of us are very severe about fighting it.\n\nI think the root of the problem is that it seems like your protests are too great to be just skeptical, and you're approaching a fanaticism about it. Yes, the CDC thinks vaccines are good, but could do without mercury. I don't think anyone would complain about having less heavy metals in shit we inject into children. However, they've been used for a long, long time and their efficacy is proven. Harm isn't proven, and it doesn't seem to be indicated. At least, not any more than harm than a rash.\n\nNobody was saying that vaccines shouldn't be researched more, but just that if you think they're dangerous you need some citations for it other than a bit of redness and a non-binding desire of the CDC to see mercury no longer used. 1311014443 What happens if I am already the best me that there is and all of my quantum jumping allows me to borrow from rapist me, drug addict me, unsuccessful used car salesman me, neo-nazi me, and another me who believes that John Edwards speaks to the dead? What happens then Mr. Goldman? 1350502433 It's certainly better than the average diet of those in the western world, but, I can't agree with the premises that it is built upon. There was no single diet humans lived by in the hunter gatherer period of our history, we spread all over the world and lived on a wide variety of of different foods. And generally, we starved most of the time and overate when we had the chance.\n\nThe whole fad diet thing in general is kinda silly, we know how to lose weight already. Exercise more, eat less, eat better. None of these to an extreme.\nWorks for people who don't have health issues, at any rate. 1297050493 Which part do you find unlikely? 1351285011 No true skeptic believes in ANY deity. 1329843164 I don't have the link ATM (at work on my phone), however, there was a article about this sound from ctv where it was heard by a large number of people in a small town in Saskatchewan. Not sure why someone would go to lengths to fake the sound in a small prairie town.\n\nI don't have any answers to this, but it is interesting. 1327618359 I understand that the genetic variance within any one group of humans is going to be larger than the genetic variations between groups. But there will be genetic differences which are common to say a Han Chinese person and a Caucasian person, and it's not just skin and hair colour, most Chinese people (from my own observation) have a lower nose bridge than most Europeans do, so there is also tiny skeletal differences there.\n\nThe thing that got me started thinking about this was this [BBC article](http://news.bbc.co.uk/earth/hi/earth_news/newsid_9369000/9369238.stm) about a new subspecies of leopard. The specific details are pretty sparse, but it got me wondering if the genetic differences between that leopard and the other one on the mainland were actually any larger than the differences between what is often called race when talking about human differences. 1298535334 I love the positive comments. I was dreading seeing anti waterbirth comments. 1288830444 Good thing he didn't think his face could stop a machete. 1353605173 It wasn't a personal anecdote. Considering that 99% of people speaking out against it suffer no consequence, I have to assume the .01% that get in a car accident etc are just due to chance. If you have any facts to the contrary I would love to hear them. 1322363277 I might wake up with wood... 1328043411 Hmmm... Acupuncture perhaps? At least there are semi-plausible mechanisms of action. I find it highly unlikely that it would ever be used in evidence-based practice, but I suppose it's semi-plausible. 1278954883 What I'm trying to say is no. 1335631301 > In 1991 **Anthony was selected and trained (at Trinity Theological College) as a priest in the Church of England**, but was not ordained. Anthony and Christina belong to a local Anglican Church, where Anthony continues as a Lay Reader. In 1997 they rebuilt the old 17th century farm buildings of Moat House Farm and prepared to open Noah's Ark, as a themed animal park, for adventure, education and to remind visitors of the ancient tradition of God's relationship with mankind; and of the contemporary science that points to Creation plus evolution of species\n\nGod squad. 1282981627 I think they're doing more then just those 2 subjects, but both were excellent 1272501816 It is easy to kill cancer cells in mice as well. Never say something treats cancer until it has been shown in humans. 1348008768 Also shouldn't it be - (minus) 81 years as it was 81 years ago? 1250791247 I don't think I'll be in one place long enough to get involved in any communities, anyway. \n\nI'll definitely be going through Asheville. If you could let me know about some places I could see, that would be great. Even better if I can get inside somewhere, though I will not be breaking in and risking jail time in the deep south, haha. 1337228324 I guess you need to define what you are looking to legitimize,...aliens craft? black budget craft? natural unknown aerial phenomenon?,...and what your standards are, as obviously there is ZERO legitimate physical evidence that everyone in the world says-Yes thats scientifically proven alien intervention/artifact/footage,...thats what defines them as Unidentified,...\n\n\nI find the most compelling evidence multiple witness testimony with secondary tracking(vid/photo/radar). This sort of triangulates the evidence of the sighting and really makes a sighting hard if not impossible to dismiss, although perhaps not conclusive (ergo the unidentified/unknown still).\n\n\nI also lament the numerous BS youtube links of lanterns LED kites, etc. that get thrown into the mix- as it seems to be occurring more and more on this sub, and maybe its just a result of more and more BS being thrown on YT from cellphones and CGI software suites,...either way I usually just skip over them in favor of blogs or **real** info.\n\n\ndopp3lganger gave you some great cases to dig into but if you really want to get deeper into the subject try some books or interviews from some researchers as they have already committed the time(hopefully) to vett their sources and do the legwork of investigation. \n\nLeslie Keen, Richard Dolan, Jaques Vallee, never disappoint,...\n\n\n[Documentaries](http://documentaryheaven.com/?s=ufo&x=0&y=0)\n\n\n[BinallOfAmerica](http://binnallofamerica.com/audio5.html) and the [Paracast](http://www.theparacast.com/) are two of my fav podcasts,...\n\n\nI think you want a smoking gun that probably doesnt exist, but imo the number of still legit unknowns and continued govt resistance on the secrecy they maintain around the subject is proof enough that something(and probably many various somethings) are frequenting the skies of our little blue marble,... 1304446866 Oh good, I usually only down 8-9 thousand packets. 1294251861 I hope you enjoy making fun of other people's life-threatening health conditions on the internet. You must feel real great about yourself. 1327126884 Balloons are scary shit, man! Why else did they spam them in It? 1341149778 Like most things, we just don't know yet. It is a pretty radical claim and will need far more evidence to support it, but as the article you linked points out, there are signficant flaws already appearing. 1354635657 voice of reason you say?\n\nmore likely you just happen to agree with most of what he says.... 1307023052 Really, that's fascinating. Do you have a blog? 1348455054 I am encouraged by the comments here on Homeopathy I always have been real skeptical of the practice. I have always considered it medicine for people who are not very sick. It never had any effect on me whatsoever. 1343372534 Obviously. How else could the astrology reading be wrong? 1341687155 I read at first that you witnessing a genuine pokemon 1335365345 Yes they are real. No there are no sure way thats safe to experiment except dont at all. 1323931351 I'm with iFartSunshine, only for the fact that I wanted to say "I'm with iFartSunshine". 1295213866 'Using electron microscopes the proved that homeopathy is based on nanotechnology!' How can you even make a parody of something that ridiculous. 1326675164 I have nothing to say besides I'm from Edmonton and I LOL'd when you called Rexall "Edmonton, Albertas famed Rexall Place Stadium".\n\nThat place is such a dump, no wonder you get lost - the concourses are so tight that they get plugged with people and it makes it really difficult to find someone.\n\n\nTrippy story though.\n\nOh by the way, just curious but where is the smallest walmart in NA located anyways? 1338515749 Because that means they would have to see their own beliefs subjected to skeptical review, and that's no fun! 1356210605 came here to say this. I see the 4 am thing everywhere now 1335057702 It's kind of tempting to try to get them to agree to something even more insane..... Horse Piss Therapy! 1307181361 I see one in the upper left corner of my screen 1343329335 Who within the skeptic community are you most skeptic towards?\n You may want the refrase that, I'm not a native speaker. Harder sentence to construct than I thought o_O 1300201468 I think they just blue themselves. 1332117725 Let me just say this. I'm *still* wearing my pajamas. 1296880143 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ziB35K9shuI&feature=related this was it actually found it!! 1313033072 * Highly upvoted post that denies the existence of male privilege.\n* Top voted comment attacking the idea of a safe space for minorities.\n* Reinforcing logic11's shitsmearing by upvoting the drama on a subreddit that he is using to complain about it on. \n* The same shit gets posted to the subreddit every week. \n\nYeah, I think I'm done with this subreddit. 1347377322 Typically an engineering student has very little logic or philosophy. 1305935552 I'm not sure if you already answered this - maybe you did and I didn't see it. Do they eventually pass on? Have you seen this? Or do you eventually just not see them anymore? What's the longest you've seen someone hang around after they have died? 1333905979 to me it was more like, 'im a human, errm therefore im like super important', just validating the authors' importance 1286394432 if you dont believe in alternate realities/universes why suscribe in the first place?\n 1354897337 Ever see Misfits? Reminds me of Curtis. 1326455373 I can sort of relate to what you're saying. I've smoked salvia numerous times and the feeling of being stuck in like a loop of a specific moment was something I noticed happened quite often. Salvia really changes your entire perception of reality while you're under the influence of it so I wouldn't be surprised if you just didn't have a clear mental memory of what exactly happened during your trip. 1333864765 Actually this is a common misconception. Diabetics (both types) are unable to process sugar properly but eating excess sugar is not the cause of diabetes in itself. \n\nType II diabetes is caused by obesity - so you can increase your risk of type II diabetes by eating more _anything_. (Type I diabetes is actually a completely different disease: it's partially genetic and partially an unknown trigger but there's quite a bit of debate about what the environmental factors are). You could technically become obese and trigger diabetes without eating any extra sugar.\n\nThe fact that type II diabetics tend to be obese people who tend to enjoy eating a lot of sugar is just because eating a lot of sugar is correlated with being obese but it's not the primary cause of diabetes. 1305141453 She said that Evan was 'recovering' [a](http://www.okmagazine.com/2010/02/jenny-mccarthy-says-she-helped-fix-her-sons-autism/) [few](http://www.pr.com/article/1076) \n[times] (http://www.cnn.com/2008/US/04/02/mccarthy.autsimtreatment/index.html). \n\nFortunately, even in the autism world, many fewer people are paying attention to her, which is a pretty big relief, as a parent of multiple autistic kids. No one's even heard about her supposed [new show for Oprah](http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/blogs/dailydish/detail?entry_id=65742) for a while, fortunately. I'm not saying that she's still not batshit crazy, but even on the crazy mailing lists, a lot fewer people are paying any attention to her at all. \n\n\n\n 1282656734 I wonder if there are UFO's in contact with some of the governments on this planet 1315264213 As other posters have mentioned, stars low on the horizon often [scintillate](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scintillation_%28astronomy%29) between reds and blues due to atmospheric refraction. This time of year, a star bright enough to appear red and blue on the (western?) horizon is almost certainly [Arcturus](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arcturus).\n\nIf you're ever curious about exactly what you might be looking at, take a look at [Stellarium](http://www.stellarium.org/). It's a free piece of software that can help you find your way around the sky.\n\nAnd finally, if you do have an interest in astronomy, I'd encourage you to join your local [astronomy club](http://nightsky.jpl.nasa.gov/club-map.cfm)! The universe is bloody amazing, and not near enough people take the time to go exploring... 1349471991 Realize that both you and the religious person have the same goal; you both want to help one another. Then realize your opponent isn't necessarily just being obstinate for no reason.\n\nAlso, remember that religion is a natural thing for any sentient creature to go through. Pigeons do it, we do it, aliens almost certainly will too.\n\n 1325871304 No, some of them really do. 1296094398 swing... and 108 misses! 1325973061 I liked the reference. 1336275622 Is this what good ol' LL is up to now? Done running for president? When I was in college, he was into being an apologist for China and demonizing the UK. 1248273463 ah yes, comments happen quickly, edited. 1332359510 Anecdotal, but my father had this experience when his mother/my grandmother committed suicide. He was going to prom and he just had a horrible, sad feeling and somehow knew that his mother had died. 1335181852 We never disagree. 1321166870 I was working in a hospice a few years ago and we had the same problem. Everyone there were really relaxed about death and potential ghosts, so it was no big deal. Just went there to shut it off, and after a couple of weeks, the room was occupied again and the mysterious ringing stopped. True story. 1333632374 I don't know... it seems a bit out of place. I mean what does religion have to do with patriotism or nationalism?\n\nInstead, why not focus on a quote by a founding father on freedom from religion or something of that nature? Sounds more relevant to me. If we're celebrating the birth of our country, let's spark conversations on what the founding fathers wanted for our future. 1341372517 I really like Chip. Have you seen any stuff with Chris Fleming? He is really good. 1348516839 Ground zero is better. Less bullshit and when you get done sifting through it, more interesting. 1354182886 I thought I was on /r/cringe for a second. 1351028313 "I almost wish that there would be like a simultaneous telecast," Huckabee said at a conference last year, "and all Americans will be forced, forced — at gunpoint, no less — to listen to every David Barton message. And I think our country will be better for it."\n\nIs nobody else concerned with this part? 1344543062 I posted a video from youtube where Paul said he was not a believer in evolutionary theory. The only mistake I can see that I made was tying him to creationism because of his disbief. Knowing he was a Christian and opposed to pro-choice, I assumed he was a creationist. That was my mistake. I still presented evidence though. I never said "nu-uh". At best, the data coming in on his belief was inconsistent to say one way or the other. \n\nmeme pics: we're all guilty, even you. \n\npopular opinion yourself: Not sure what you mean by this. \n\nWhat do I do at reddit? I take the specifications from the customers and take them down to the software engineers. I have people skills! 1307468896 Anytime, maxxspeed... 1349298759 I went to a spine specialist when I broke it. He said I could either have it casted and not sit for 2-3 months, or just not get a cast. I chose the latter. It was probably a mistake in the long run.\n 1335474139 He's apparently into panspermia. However, Breslow was probably only trying to give his article an entertaining, memorable ending and went a little too far.\n\nThe [CSMontior](http://www.csmonitor.com/Science/2012/0412/Intelligent-space-dinosaurs-How-worried-should-we-be) had a great take on it: \n\n>we have nothing to worry about, at least not until the dark matter space wombats get here. 1334297270 The graphic is real but the text is made up. Max-Min has been replaced with organic-conventional. Look here: http://njaes.rutgers.edu/pubs/bearreport/misquotes.asp 1345388133 Those aren't studies. They're quotes mined from studies and various other documents.\n\n[This](http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0140673674906953) is a study. You can tell who the authors are. You can tell what they studied, and the results they got. It has citations. It was peer reviewed. 1316362123 NOT ME 1331507152 Dr. Oz may be cashing in now, but he developed his ideas about alternative medicine for 20 years while practicing as a heart surgeon. He's treated thousands of patients with life-threatening heart illnesses and found that the approaches he supports were effective. Try looking him up on Medline. He's an accomplished clinician and researcher.\n\nRandi is certainly qualified to evaluate phony psychics, faith healers and the like. But here, he's the one maximizing his profit with the Pigasus Awards.\n\nOkay. Let's say instead that Randi has no formal education in the sciences, has never conducted research, has never been employed in any scientific field. \n\nYour definition is too short. It's skepticism in the context of research and experimentation. A guy in saloon can be a skeptic, but it doesn't make him a scientist. 1304989329 Less condescending hyperbole and framing might help. In fact, I am very much reminded of Mooney's replies to Myers et all when reading your post.\n\nMany, many people in the medical and skeptical blogosphere would completely disagree with your assertion that the current confrontational approach isn't working. The past year has seen increasingly skeptical and factually accurate coverage of the anti-vaccine lunatics in the mainstream media - and in many cases this has directly lead on from the "strident" bloggers who are leading the fight. The anti-vaccine movement, like the creationists and the other anti-intellectuals, have highly emotive and superficially convincing arguments at their disposal, and they aren't affraid to blatantly lie and deceive to achieve their ends. We are fighting over the middle ground of concerned parents that genuinely want the right information. Unfortunately, stories are obviously more convincing than facts - and a conciliatory approach just won't work for everyone.\n\nNo one is arguing that a plurality of responses is required - different messages will reach different people. The problem with Mooney is that he thinks everyone that disagrees with him should shut up. 1265520583 Ya this is why I would think the US wouldn't want their reality disclosed. Who knows what sort of super secret dealie bobs the shadow government has been making up, heh. I want to believe!!! 1244704345 The question I think is if we're talking politically specifically or in general. I would agree it's probably true that a conservative gambler would have a "larger fear center" (also a little too ambiguous for my tastes), as the reason they would be content with walking away with only a small profit is because they're afraid to lose it all.\n\nBut when you talk about a "conservative" and a "liberal" in political terms the lines are so blurred that any such generalization is moot. 1294044087 Paranormal Investigator here, sounds like your team member experienced a case of sleep paralysis, especially since he had his head half off the bed upside down, which could help with hallucinations.\n\nhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sleep_paralysis 1351491530 >First of all, vaccines don't cause autism. This has been firmly established.\n\nIn this world where we're told things like Marijuana are bad for you, I'd like to see some hard facts. I mean my gut feeling is that vaccines don't cause autism, but where's the scientific evidence? 1333488910 yaiknowrite? 1344012557 Indeed, there is no glamor in being published to the "Journal of Studies that Failed to Reject the Null Hypothesis"\n\nThis is quite interesting and I look forward to seeing psychology restored to a standard of scientific rigor.\n\nSociology next? 1335850405 If she's functional and seems all right other than "seeing" spirits, she's probably not schizophrenic. My advice to her would be that she should see a neurologist before she jumps to conclusions, "just to be safe." She could have a form of epilepsy (especially since she hallucinated and then blacked out, if I understood that correctly). Seizures sometimes can trigger the feeling of a 'presence', and can also trigger visuals. 1311131620 To save others from the intense pain of actually watching this guy, the 5 conspiracies are:\n\n* \n**Operation Snow White** - Church of Scientology destroy government records that criticize them: [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Snow_White](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Snow_White)\n\n* \n**MK Ultra** - Government gave LSD to people to without their knowledge: [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Project_MKULTRA#Experiments](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Project_MKULTRA#Experiments)\n\n* \n**Tuskegee Experiments** - Government gave syphilis to black men: [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tuskegee_syphilis_experiment](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tuskegee_syphilis_experiment)\n\n* \n**Gunpowder Plot** - Foiled plot to blow up UK parliament: \n [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gunpowder_Plot](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gunpowder_Plot)\n\n* \n**The Business Plot** - Wealthy US capitalists plotted to overthrow FDR and install fascist government: [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Business_Plot](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Business_Plot)\n\n\nDon't watch the video, seriously. You will want to punch your monitor in; and the view count will only encourage him to make more of them.\n 1295104092 Sorry, I made a typo. But in my defense, they do put the 8 and 9 kinda close together on the keyboard... 1337384440 This story is more hype than science. Considering that this area of the Baltic was covered by ice in the previous ice ages, I'm wondering if this is glacial related effects. (rounded boulders/cobbles, scrape marks in the bedrock, etc.) From what I've seen, this is very poor methodology - they are going after a TV show score, not a research project. \n\nhttp://doubtfulnews.com/2012/06/explorers-reveal-bit-of-baltic-sea-floor-mystery-lots-of-hype-little-substance/ 1339852953 Then demonstrate it in controlled conditions and change people's minds! This would be amazing! 1287417816 So one insect crosses your lips and you're forever an omnivore, huh? Then there's no such thing as a vegetarian. 1334988521 We still don't have a black president. We have a mixed-race president.\n\nHe's as white as he is black. 1352312989 Ohhhh I've been wondering what TAM stood for... heh I like it 1310671668 So can we arrest him for I don't know murder,public endangerment , vandalism and attacking a foreign country. 1270624086 Get [one of these](http://www.placebobandstore.com/store/) instead. They're only $4, come in a variety of colours, and are just as effective as the 'real' bands. Maybe even more so since they can be used for [educational purposes](http://skepticbros.com/placebo-bands/). 1329581624 You're gonna need a bigger boat. 1320897915 The problem with trying to prove a "cover up" with an academic paper is that the academic culture, with very few exceptions, sees this as something journalists should be doing - not academics.\n\n[Have a look at this paper.](http://ptx.sagepub.com/content/36/4/607.full.pdf) Not only is it a legitimate scholarly journal article about UFOs, it offers a genuinely insightful, and workable, explanation for why UFOs are not taken as seriously as they should be - including by academics. 1350412791 A bit of hyperbole here and there:\n\n"Most damaging though, were the civil lawsuits by former patients that came rushing in one by one."\n\n...but hey, it's an election year.\n\n 1351871078 Can they help in cases of, say, whiplash or pain from other acute causes? 1291192397 Apparently Dan Akroyd bought it...no joke. Guess hes a bit of an enthusiast 1355862294 Please elaborate. 1344758039 "Your comment is awaiting moderation." Fail 1314460305 huzzah! a victory for humanity! 1310189896 Your eyes can deceive you , dont trust them. 1316859233 If you haven't seen the series "Wonders of the solar system" this clip is from, I strongly recommend watching it. It's fantastic.\n\n(Prof. Brian Cox has a lot of other good material too, worth watching) 1270691276 I can confirm that this is true as experimentally tested in the laboratory that is my life. 1331774722 Bill's peanut allergy has haunted him since grade-school. He thought things would change once he got to NASA. He was mistaken. 1344255836 How about the bouncing bombs used by 617 Squadron in WW2?\nIt's not outwith the realms of possibility for us to be testing one that works on land as well as water. 1346211848 That last line, slow clap. By the way George is great IMO, just not 100% behind his theories but I love to listen to them, "therefore... Aliens!" brilliant. 1341659042 So did my kids as well actually (I'm too old to be vaccinated so I had, or so I'm told, 30+ years ago) but apparently that's very unusual. If you do get it, it can also reduce severity which apparently didn't work so well on mine either. They didn't have the second round though (as they'd by then had chicken pox). 1320714467 Explain why anarchists are more likely socialists? Im not refuting I just don't understand why. Id expect Anarchists to be far from them (as I am). 1304804850 I have had a very similar experience. Freaks me out to even think about it. I'll edit this tomorrow \nEdit: just read part one... No sightings of orbs in my story. I have had that dream though 1332995717 To the TED crowd, going into detail about why insane beliefs are insane is probably insulting. What could he do but give an overview of his work? 1271890086 > But whatever. Downvote me.\n\nDone. Because they haven't cured heart disease, they are quacks? 1309625551 That's why science is so powerful. Even when it is wrong, the net movement of knowledge is still a gain for humanity at large; an experiment that doesn't support its hypothesis isn't a bad experiment, it's a jumping off point for the next guy to come along and try a different variable. 1354385855 If the spacecraft creates a "gravity bubble" around it by using advanced technology to warp the space around it (essentially "pulling" the ship forward, instead of pushing it) it may need to change shape to remain stable when encountering different levels of gravity. Traveling at high speeds in interstellar space (where there is no gravity) would be very different from hovering motionless above the surface of a planet such as Earth, and a ship may need to compensate for fluctuations in gravity in order to remain stable at low speeds. This might be accomplished by changing it's shape (and the shape of the bubble). I wondered about this as a kid, after watching the transformation of the ship in "Flight of the Navigator". I know it's just a movie... but it made me think about it. :D 1307861437 because we all know praying will do wonders 1326337700 Okay, so what would it take to convince you? 1349312262 Miracle = "something pretty nice". 1291763473 These are MacDougall's lab notes from one of the sessions of the experiment:\n "The patient . . . lost weight slowly at the rate of one ounce per hour due to evaporation of moisture in respiration and evaporation of sweat. During all three hours and forty minutes I kept the beam end slightly above balance near the upper limiting bar in order to make the test more decisive if it should come. At the end of three hours and forty minutes he expired and suddenly, coincident with death, the beam end dropped with an audible stroke hitting against the lower limiting bar and remaining there with no rebound. The loss was ascertained to be three-fourths of an ounce."\n\nApparently MacDougall took these measurements after accounting for weight loss attributed to moisture & air leaving the body. After averaging the amounts in the drop of weight in 5 other dead patients (besides the one described above) he discovered an uncounted loss of 21 grams, which he equated with the weight of the soul.\n\nThe dog experiment that he did was to test whether or not animals experienced this drop in weight, & would thereby have a soul. He weighed 15 dogs & discovered no weight loss, thus confirming his religious convictions that only humans have souls. \n\nThese experiments where discredited however in 1907, after his results were published in The New York Times, by the physician Augustus P. Clarke. Clarke noted that at the time of death there was a sudden rise in body temperature which was due to the fact that the lungs had stopped working & thus stopped cooling the blood. The subsequent rise in sweating easily accounted for MacDougall's weight of the soul. This also explains why the weight loss wasn't found in the 15 dogs, considering canines only have sweat glands on their tongues. \nHence the lack of scientific credulity. 1355328514 I ask you for a scientific study *to prove an assertion you made*, then I doubted you were even what you claimed to be. 1305345098 If I'm alive to do so I will. 1354483331 To me too, so maybe industrialization was the cause. 1290784884 I also am reminded of his [segment regarding a charlatan](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4fg269kzIiE) who was popularized by Oprah in the US. 1328659200 You know, I was going to mention the non-biogenic theories, but I didn't feel like defending the plausibility of a theory I'm just not all that invested in. 1289792490 Then post the link here without leaving the comment. Do you think that accomplished anything but harden her stance and beliefs? You made it more difficult for the people who are trying to give her useful information. 1292545269 Can you copy and paste where I've stood up for the validity of any one speaker? You have completely dismissed my entire point, because you were only interested in what you had to say. You only care about being right. 1333248707 Not that the article mentions it, but it would be nice if people focused more on the dangers of distracted driving than phone-related cancers. 1319182215 Keep up the good work.\n\nPerhaps we can join forces?\n\n<spammy>\n\nI've created a facebook page called [Critical Mass](https://www.facebook.com/pages/Critical-Mass/178673948871317?sk=info)\n\nFor anyone reading on facebook.\n\nI'm trying to campaign to get these principles in schools.\n\n**Here's the description:**\n\nThe plan is to have a class covering these topics.\n\nPreferable compulsory.\n\nAnd at an optimal age.\n\nWhy we do science (The Philosophy of Science)\n\nWhy the idea of science is never wrong, but only our methodology might be.\n\nHow science relates to technology.\n\nWhere science breaks down but becomes unimportant at this point.\n\nHow to discuss topics.\n\nLogical fallacies.\n\nWhat open-mindedness actually is, and why it's an essential part of skepticism.\n\nAnd why all these things are related\n\n</spammy> 1314237896 Then you would have a hexagon or maybe even an octagon. I think the square works. 1274197341 > You wouldn't want to be at the skeptic end of the spectrum anyway. "To be totally 'unmagical' is very unhealthy," says Peter Brugger, head of neuropsychology at University Hospital Zurich. He has data, for example, strongly linking lack of magical ideation to anhedonia, the inability to experience pleasure. "Students who are 'not magical' don't typically enjoy going to parties and so on,"\n\nWhy is the inability to experience pleasure assumed to be unhealthy? 1242499600 If I were recording a ufo, I'd probably be a bit more excited. I'd also follow it with the camera, instead of letting it lazily drift out of focus. 1334210346 ...Fushigi ball? 1353893301 With difficulty in some cases. Generally, a double blind study. Take acupunctre, test the "proper" thing against placing the needles at random. If both work equally well, you can dismiss most of the claim about acupuncture right there leaving only the "stabbing people with thin needles helps pain somehow". Next up, you can try to demonstrate a physiological phenomenon, that is test to see if there is a direct physical effect from the needles on some objective measure. Harder, but doable. If there is no physical phenomenon then it's a psychological one.\n\nAs far as acupuncture goes, the first has been done ad nauseum. Result; no difference between "masters" doing it properly and random people doing it randomly. The second is much harder, but it seems like there is little to no demonstrable physical effect with acupuncture. 1345640758 never a straight answer, eh? 1253507021 Very good post. Couldn't have said it better myself. 1342362509 This was just what my friend sent me. It could be a shadow from another object outside of the picture 1356721592 > “What exactly is an ion?” I asked, abashedly.\n> I will never forget your baffling, measured reply.\n> “Science.”\n\nLost it. 1311965921 >It's not the placebo effect, it's confirmation bias.\n\nIt can be, but of course animals (and presumably babies) do experience the placebo effect through classical conditioning, and not just apparent benefits recorded by unblinded observers.\n\nFor example, we know that substances with no active component (i.e. placebos) can suppress the immune function of rats, as discussed in the article I linked to above:\n\n>One of the most dramatic demonstrations of a placebo effect in\nnonhuman animals involved conditioned immunosuppression in\nrats. Ader and Cohen (1975) paired a novel saccharine-flavored\nliquid with the immunosuppressant cyclophosphamide. After a\nnumber of pairings, the saccharine solution administered alone\nbrought about a decreased immune response in the rats (Ader &\nCohen, 1975). The saccharin solution had become a CS (placebo),\ncapable of eliciting immunosuppression (the placebo effect).\nAder’s groundbreaking experiments caused a stir, for it was generally held at the time that conditioning procedures could not\ninfluence the immune system (see Harrington, 1997). Many of\nAder’s results mesh well with the regularities uncovered in classical conditioning research. First, as would be predicted from the\ngeneral finding that a stronger US produces a stronger CR, rats\ngiven two doses of cyclophosphamide during the conditioning\nstage later exhibited greater conditioned immunosuppression than\nthose given only one dose. Second, the extent of immunosuppression depended on the schedule of reinforcement. Third, in the\nabsence of CS–US pairings, the conditioned immunosuppression\ntypically extinguished (Ader, 1985). The finding that immunosuppression can be conditioned has been well replicated (Ader &\nCohen, 1982, 1991; Ghanta, Hiramoto, Solvason, & Spector, 1987;\nKrank & MacQueen, 1988; McCoy, Roszman, Miller, Keely, &\nTitus, 1986).\n\nThe 'expectation' (i.e. conditioning) of an animal can result in effects which are entirely unrelated to the inactive substance they are given. \n\nBut I agree that confirmation bias does play a role in a lot of the "studies" on this topic, particularly by homeopaths and co who try to demonstrate that their product must work because the placebo effect "does not occur in animals". So, as you point out, the owners of the animal who are expecting to see an improvement, will see one because of their confirmation bias. 1324003483 Purely a placebo effect on subjective symptoms.\n\nThere are ample studies showing that sticking needles in you provokes physiological responses but that is irrelevant to the claims made. 1335108887 I'll only buy it if it's organic. 1290928221 Nailed it! That's why I love /r/skeptic! 1291999323 http://www.reddit.com/r/skeptic/duplicates/suzdj/were_underestimating_the_risk_of_human_extinction/ 1335531577 Yea, this is actually pretty awesome stuff. I had totally ignored this sort of chemistry in undergrad, going to be looking into this stuff more now. \n\nhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KIRMMac8hU4&feature=related \nThis video is pretty awesome too, seems to show blue ink being removed from the water after the introduction of the nanobubbles. I don't speak Japanese, so it is impossible to tell what is actually being said.\n\nhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l02YxY9KGrk&feature=related\nThis other one shows the nanobubbles exploding and causing plaque to be removed. \n\nOxygen carpet cleaners are just H2O2. The oxygen breaks away from the H2O2 into a free radical O-, which is then what actually removes stains that are positively charged. I guess it is possible that the oxygen bubbling into the water may cause the creation of some H2O2, but this would be a different mechanism than the one proposed in the literature. 1342559281 So how do you now if that's true? How do you know that the Tao exists?\n 1345652592 are you gay, black, and jewish too? 1299463120 Sounds interesting. There is room for one more! 1346220105 I thought we were talking about how many deaths there are due to homeopathy's inefficacy. 1319410969 As an Aries, feelbadman 1324672095 Yep, it's pretty much a lost cause. I'm amazed that there's often so many "The * channel sucks now. It was better before the network decay." At least when the channel has been crappy for so many years. Unless you're lucky enough to be a neilson family, cable's pretty much pointless. Your views aren't counting as either votes for or against, and you can get the same stuff online anyway. And when you watch it online, at least there's a slight chance your viewership might actually get counted. 1294119056 Fucking luddites. 1305477293 Not really, this is /r/skeptic so we are mindful that all evidence is imperfect and we have to be careful not to stretch data further than it will let us. Dismissing stuff because it was on TV isn't right. It's more complicated than that. 1356943922 You and I seem to have a different understanding of the occult. Occult simply means hidden, not evil. Let me ask you this... have you ever read Liber Null by Peter Caroll? 1331742418 Here's another question before I can make an assessment.\n\n1) Was anything else out of the ordinary? It could have been something as simple as an unsubstantiated feeling of fear, dread, or just overall creepiness. 1323763112 As someone who's worked with audio processing, I could tell immediately this "sound" was synthesized. The "echoing" effect does not match the environment the video was shot in (it sounds a like a metal table being dragged across a concrete floor put through a "big warehouse" or "large hall" reverb preset you find in virtually any audio editor.)\nAlso the frequency range of the video's audio was of a lower quality than the "sound." I.E., the "sound" sounds like it was recorded using a better mic/higher bit-rate than the video's audio.\nOh, and did you notice the kids voices in the background didn't change from playing to OMG WTF WAS THAT? They just kept on playing. 1315730375 I thought that the rise in autism was mostly caused by increasing numbers of diagnoses going from "weird" to "mildly autistic", not from "mentally retarded (general)" to "autistic". This is interesting data, I'd like to see more studies focusing on this sort of thing. 1296415702 Laughter. Social rejection is an appropriate response to lunacy. 1323799863 The title is for telling people what the link or thread is about. Your personal reaction or opinion belongs in the comments. 1327655780 Well, that'll shake a dude out of skepticism. 1329691281 If you're refering to what I think you're referring to, That is just a delivery system for the same chemicals that would be included in a tablet. Patches such as this are a common way of providing opiate based products such as morphine. 1326106090 >Faith and healing, on the other hand, most assuredly are not. Take two patients. Each has cancer. Each has the same doctor. Each has the same treatment.\n\nYou know, I really hadn't though of it like this. I've seen these studies for cancer, but I can't find many studies looking at diabetes. (I'm not sure if it could be different or not.) The closest I've found are a few pilot studies which looked promising, so it could actually work.\n\nHave an orangered and a tip of my hat, good sir. Fingers crossed that this book does more good than harm. 1287868759 That does not rule out sleep paralysis. 1354710690 All these comments are just hilarious. 1356407286 Oh perspective, how I love thee. 1343925558 Not super interested in the 'eerie things', but that is one beautiful cat. 1305318187 Good call dopp. It seems like many of the publishers of these ufo events claim to have corroborating video from different angles. Yet rarely do these videos surface. And many times if they do surface, as in the case of the Jerusalem hoax, they prove nothing but tomfoolery. 1331948141 Oh come on, that's way worse. Ones a comedian and the other researched and wrote geopolitical books...no excuse. Hitchens cozied up to a few neocon, hawkish talking points in his time. 1337350259 Have you personally made one of these? What is your experience? 1353309786 This is a very interesting phenomenon, whatever its identity. I'm fully in agreement with those who state that the brain does remarkable things with sensory input on a constant basis, but I also believe that there is more to the universe than what we are able to sense directly through the "five senses." \n\nI am curious as to how the Khai'min communicated their name to your friend; was it spoken, or written down for him/her, in the dream, or was it simply, inherently "known" by your friend upon awakening?\n\nI find it interesting that people tend to ascribe "shadow people" to being whatever most suits their paranormal curiosities; I've heard them referred to as being ghosts, demons, guardian angels, and aliens. Historically, throughout history and in a variety of cultures, creatures such as vampires and ancestral spirits were said to visit their descendants (or victims, in some cases) as "shadowy figures." Many, many people have clearly had the same experience and, just as clearly, have interpreted it in accordance with their pre-existing beliefs and fascinations.\n\nMe, I find everything fascinating, and I've no idea what they are, though I do enjoy theorizing about it. \n\nI've never heard stories of shadow-people accompanied by any sort of vocalization, before, although I have heard stories about their being accompanied by other sensory phenomena: for example, one friend of mine has stated that, whenever she sees one of these shadows out of the corner of her eye, the wall or other surface on which it appears is red-tinted (her belief: demons, or whatever lies at the root of the origin of demon-belief, rather). A student I spoke with stated that he sometimes feels a chill in the air when he encounters shadow-people, and added that he usually runs into them in a particular portion of an old house that belongs to his family. Sometimes, he gets the feeling that there is 'something' that is somehow 'behind' the chill in the air, for want of a better description. He seems to believe that he is having an encounter with ghosts or spirits of some kind. 1339646500 I believe I read an article about the subliminal messages your own body sends when using the board and how your hand is subliminally pushing the marker over certain letters. To prove this, you apparently just need to blindfold yourself and turn the board.\n\nHas anyone tried this before? 1352006661 I think about doing this, but I have tried debating similar things in the past and found that I am not good at it in real time.\n\neg. "Hydrofloric acid is incredibly toxic. A friend of mine works at a LSI chip plant, and there was an accident where some HF acid spilled on a bench. They cleaned it up and sanded it, but someone sat on it a couple of weeks later wearing short pants and died from HF acid exposure." \n\nIt's hard to *not* scream at them for their trollish stupidity, but I was calm and told them that it was not remotely possible, but I wound up losing the argument because they were there and "saw it happen".\n\nDOH! 1296105318 #YOLO #SWAG #CRAYCRAY 1351801235 Certain areas of ethics have determined answers, others haven't.\n\nI don't think there's any area of feminism still under question. 1356119802 >Did people actually think an organic vegetable has more vitamins than a non-organic vegetable? I didn’t know anyone thought that.\n\nIIRC, this is almost verbatim a decently upvoted reddit comment on one of the earlier posts about the study. lol 1347289641 Maybe he just wanted to be your friend... 1337288307 Except for the part where we burn an effigy of the fucker on the bonfire and cheer. 1352155706 Mob hit. 1352922306 Go right ahead! 1332043343 Let me try this again:\n\nOne case study = one data point ≠ concrete evidence\n\nThe only way to disprove the null hypothesis (which in this case would be: accupuncture has no therapeutic effect above the level of placebo) is to have blinded sets of test and control subjects in a number sufficient to give a good predictive power to the outcome. Then, if final data shows a significant (95% confidence) difference between control and test subjects, that is taken as evidence for efficacy of the treatment. Anything short of that can be ascribed to various reasons such as chance occurrence, technical/statistical/experimenter error or placebo effect. \n\nReport of a single case is interesting. It may provoke more inquiry into the validity of a modality, but is not sufficient to validate the treatment by itself.\n\nThis is how the scientific method works. This is why it takes us years to publish a study and to finally put it to use in the clinic. Anything that does not undergo such rigorous vetting process cannot be relied upon. 1335207365 Well, that is kinda awesome. 1343931692 All species are transitional species unless they die out. 1299633519 [As a former resident] No: homeopathic beer is legally too strong to sell in Oklahoma. 1330367276 the thing is, with neighboring star systems *billions* of years older, its not only a statistical probability that life exists elsewhere but it's a statistical probability that life evolved elsewhere *billions* of years ago and had an inordinate amount of time to propagate throughout the universe... they're here and they've always been here, why do you think religion spontaneously evolved nearly universally on this planet? That's my take at least :) 1241786191 Wow..I want-to believe! 1323011775 >None of the story makes a lick of sense.\n\nHaha, and you told it so well!\n 1324514107 Let's ignore for the moment that the site doesn't give links to the study, and point out how you misinterpreted what it say.\n\nFirst, it says that surface water has gotten .59°C hotter. The multi-depth average was .33°C, which is where I assume you got your number.\n\nThis is definitely not a measure of overall global temperature, as water, especially water below the surface, takes much more energy to heat than the air. You global warming "skeptics" are largely all the same, misinterpreting information and claiming you're skeptical even though you just lack reading comprehension. That's not skepticism, there is verified, tested scientific data that shows that it's real.\n\nEdit: Noticed I incorrectly stated it was .59°C at 366 meters, this was due to rewriting my initial response and forgetting to change things around. It's .39°C at 366 meters depth. 1333468696 OK, apart from some of the links you gave that if read undermine you\n\nhttp://www.nasa.gov/topics/earth/features/icesat-20090707.html\n\nhttp://www2.canada.com/nanaimodailynews/news/story.html?id=1894560\n\nhttp://www.laboratoryequipment.com/News-Arctic-ice-worse-than-expected-113009.aspx\n\nThis may explain your deception\n\nhttp://www.youtube.com/user/greenman3610#p/u/2/Y3dYhC_AlYw\n\nbuilding on this\n\nhttp://www.youtube.com/user/greenman3610#p/u/10/MozcU7woNNQ\n\nand this\n\nhttp://www.youtube.com/user/greenman3610#p/u/23/2nruCRcbnY0\n\nHave fun.\n\nKiss kiss. 1259647338 TL;DR Fiction 1336743825 Doctors are damned expensive to train an employ. I'd rather our doctors stayed treating patients efficiently and left talk therapists to wishy-washy pretend doctors. 1297982407 Ok. Well, same impasse as before. \n\nIronically, willingness to believe in aliens affects the perception of UFO's transparently enough in this sub. You'll find that people unwilling to believe in aliens say that most UFO's are chinese lanterns, photoshop, flares, etc. And people who already believe in aliens believe a much larger percentage of UFO's are intelligently piloted. \n\nBut willingness to believe in a God that *does* exist is not seen as a precursor to the perception of that God. Or a prerequisite, if you will.\n\nFichte, et. al. rebelled against organized religion in much the same way as in the modern era. But they declined to close their minds in any way. They wanted to be without bias. And they came to a perception of reality that included God as a philosophical entity.\n\nTL;DR: Willingness is everything, in UFO's, aliens ... everything. People see what they want to believe. 1350660303 YOU SHALL NOT PASS!!! 1300494468 Eggzactly what I was thinking. 1340392651 It's fascinating *fiction.* And it does the field of UFOlogy a disservice by pretending to be legitimate. 1350852629 I work in the dairy food industry (not milk but ice cream, yogurt and so on) and we test for antibiotics to the parts-per-billion level. Antibiotic detection would lead to rejection of the delivery, or product recall if it somehow found its way into final product. Having said that, on-farm programs are stringent for screening out antibiotics - farmers lose their right to deliver if they have more than one detection. This is in Australia so YMMV.\n\nIn 25 years in the industry I'm not aware of a confirmed antibiotic detection in any milk coming from farms to our factories. We've had several near-misses where minute amounts of sanitiser has been found in raw milk, which (back in the old days) used to trigger on our antibiotic test but follow-up testing differentiated between the sanitiser and antibiotic. Obviously we still rejected the deliveries. Nowadays the test we use is specific to antibiotics. 1346827240 Huh? I don't see it. Looks normal to me. 1260161752 Like burning ants with a magnifying glass. Hmmmm? 1330317091 [Not with regard to iron at least.](http://www.bestthinking.com/articles/science/chemistry/biochemistry/the-spinach-popeye-iron-decimal-error-myth-is-finally-busted?tab=article) 1321778045 I had a beam of light come in through a window (from behind a solid wooden fence) that behaved unlike anything I'd ever seen before. It lit up my bed which in turn lit up the room. I could see it in a large mirror across the room. I must have been in that state where dreams colide with wakefulness. I had the strangest most frightening dreams when I sometimes slept with my eyes open and would dream of my surroundings, believing briefly that it was real. This was the first of a few and the most perplexing until I realised it was recurring with vastly different results when I slept in different rooms. Every time one would occur, it was a total mind fuck until i could clear my head. 1334472311 >I think this discussion has gone far enough.\n\nTrue dat. I don't see this discussion going anywhere fast, I think you have too much faith in the infallibility of the scientific community and an economic system that thrives on inefficiency. Later, dude. 1337207669 This reminds me a bit of the show with [James Rhandi](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QlfMsZwr8rc) exposing people claiming to have paranormal powers. \n\nAt the end you can see the man think of millions of ways to talk his way out of it. 1355936226 Reports of UFO's have been around since LONG before Chris Carter (creator of X-Files) was even born. And even before we had planes. I don't know why exactly the UFO's are interested in the US, you are right, there are more REPORTED sightings here. There are woodcuts from Nuremberg, Germany depicting battles in the sky between flying things from 1561. Also, I would say that more people probably believe in ET's and UFO's in this day because of the sheer improvement in knowledge. We know that we're made of stardust, we know that the universe is incredibly old, we know that the building blocks of life are scattered throughout the universe. We know now about Panspermia. The chances of us being alone are nil. It's either us or there is a lot of life universally. So, if you start there, universe being old and filled with building blocks of life. Then you add in that we humans are barely a Type 1 civilization, and if you can imagine there may be Type 2 or even 3 civilizations, then it becomes harder to conceive that they wouldn't have technology to bend/fold/manipulate time and space.\n\nSo much to think about. But truthfully, the best thing I can tell you to do is look up. If you have access to GOOD Night Vision Binoculars, that will help too, as many of these crafts are only visible outside of our visual spectrum. Which could mean they are inter-dimensional or from another universe(maybe). It's just, honestly, super unlikely that we are alone. I think, you should start there. Contemplate: Could it just be us? Could this vast universe filled with the building blocks of life only have harbored life on Earth? I think if you consider it in those terms you will find that the odds are quite small we could be alone. Of course, if you are looking for a dead body and DNA, I am unable to produce that. \n\nAlso, I don't know if the government is maliciously hiding information on this subject. I mean, I don't have special insider knowledge. BUT, I will say this: Our government HAS reported UFO's over nuke sites, these craft seemingly disabled (individually and remotely) their equipment. Also, you should look into the Rendlesham Forest Incident. Lots of military personnel reported seeing something strange over a few nights there, too. You can view the documents thru the FOIA. These are well-documented cases, too. The Mexican military also has RELEASED information and video concerning unknown flying objects over their skies as well. You can see this as easily as going to Youtube. 1345395934 If you hate that, then you hate humanity; at least 80% of humans believe in the supernatural, so *you* are the weirdo :) 1325876259 whenever i see martial artists performing "moves" on students i often think that they anticipate his moves he knows whats committing and the students are not going in with force or intent. 1353604242 Here's my simple argument for science. \n\nBible - treated as fact with no actual evidence or real peer review all based on faith\n\nScience - treated as a series of hypothetical/theoretical questions that we rechallenge everyday by a worldwide network the smartest people on the planet.\n\nScience also admits that is is wrong all the time when new evidence is discovered.\n\nThe bible is a collection of stories that was written basically 2000years ago by a few people with a possible agenda. (Look at leviticus, its just a list of rules) It was also written in a now dead language which was translated incorrectly in several parts. Then several books were interchanged/dropped/added throughout the bible by King James. Yet this shell of its former self is still taken as fact.\n\nScience documents go through years of study and peer review by a collection (there are a lot of scientists) of (arguably) the highest educated people across the globe. These scientist come from everywhere and therefore have different religions, cultures, beliefs. Yet they ALL want to kill YOUR god. - guess that explains all the christian scientists\n\nTL:DR science>bible because it has peer review and changes its stance as new evidence emerges 1347294102 so nothing changed and you're still interested? 1320150738 >Bee is not a doctor so she cannot advise you about medical diagnosis or medications....\n\nShe is also not a scientist so knows fuck all about what she is talking about. 1329347044 This particular teaching is GREAT though. I'm an atheist and fully support helping people in need when you're able. \n\nIt's not a christian story. It's a humanist story 1307564066 "That is one of the most interesting conclusions to come out of the seventh International Climate Change Conference sponsored by the Heartland Institute, held last week in Chicago. I attended, and served as one of the speakers, talking about The Economic Implications of High Cost Energy"\n\nSo a climate denier group, [the Heartland institute](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Heartland_Institute), asks one of their own analysts, a climate change denier, to speak at their conference. And you _learned_ that multiple decades of real scientific research is invalid. ffs help us all. 1340381869 I'm on about the older generation, the ones who've made swedish sweden's official language for first time in long long while. But lots is probably an exaggeration, yeah. 1346602257 I've followed the "debate" and studied the subject at great length for years now. It's extremely important to separate idealism from reality when wanting to do something positive towards disclosure.\n\nTo think that telling Obama to disclose such information will be in any way effective is to completely disregard the fact that **he is not privvy to such information**. The group that oversees such policy is extragovernmental and international, and has been in place for over 50 years now.\n\nIf you want to argue for something effective towards disclosure, try arguing that anyone involved in keeping this institutionalized secret deserves full immunity from prosecution. That is what this is really about: people covering their asses. 1232061432 I've followed the "debate" and studied the subject at great length for years now. It's extremely important to separate idealism from reality when wanting to do something positive towards disclosure.\n\nTo think that telling Obama to disclose such information will be in any way effective is to completely disregard the fact that **he is not privvy to such information**. The group that oversees such policy is extragovernmental and international, and has been in place for over 50 years now.\n\nIf you want to argue for something effective towards disclosure, try arguing that anyone involved in keeping this institutionalized secret deserves full immunity from prosecution. That is what this is really about: people covering their asses. 1232061535 Did you make this? Sorry, I know Poe's Law and shit, but seriously, did you make this? This looks intentionally shitty. 1346437165 I don't think there's any motive the US could have had, in 2001, to kill it's citizens; but in any case that's not the point of asking the question.\n\nI think we can agree that if the gov did kill its own citizens, it would need a *hell* of a good reason; thus the burden of proof for the gov's motive is *much stronger* than the burden of proof that 9/11 was an inside job. But this isn't how truthers think. Rather they see evidence that the 9/11 official report was false, and start looking for reasons the US might have perpetrated the incident. A skeptic (i.e. a rational arguer) would insist that such a motive be present before considering the possibility that 9/11 was an inside job; there are, after all, many ways we could explain the dubiousness of the official 9/11 report. \n\nThis is why you ask this question to someone who has only recently stumbled across 9/11 truthism. If they attempt to come up with a motive on the spot, rather than having thought about it in some detail, it tells you they are less likely to accept logical arguments against their belief. (It doesn't necessarily tell you whether the US gov could have had a motive for 9/11 - that requires an argument one way or the other.)\n\nEDIT: I should add that the same reasoning applies to the question of "Do you really think the gov could organize itself to cover it up?" Again, the answer to this requires stronger proof than that the official report was false. 1315763635 Boobs are that-away---------> 1311272508 Right. Norma, the uploader of the EVP explains a few things in the comments for this recording on ghostsstory. Feel free to read up on those. Also no problem! :) 1312415578 Why can't I find anything on the man from a country that doesn't exist? I'm calling bullshit on this. 1354175449 If ghosts existed, the military would be on that, ghosts would make great spies. Credit card companies don't hire anti-psychics to protect their data. If I saw something personally, the first thing I should think is to get myself checked for hallucinations, or think of a way I could measure it or show others. If anything paranormal did exist it would be painfully obvious, unless one wants to invoke a conspiracy theory that the government is keeping it all secret so the lack of evidence is all the evidence he needs. 1322172800 Merry Christmas, Gary. 1355509802 Merry Christmas, Gary. 1355527153 therapeutic effect.... it's well documented and proven science. 1349124210 I do believe Voyager 1 is close to leaving our solar system. However I'm sure you're talking about human life. But I would like to think that society has matured enough that we could deal with the existence of other intelligent life, and I truly think that without accepting alien life we will never coalesce together. IMO I think the gov should declassify some of their UFO info. 1345175864 I find it interesting. Do your other videos of it show anything more / different? 1354884771 I pmed Dancingwiththestars with this (I left /r/athiesm and stopped following the subreddits a while back for the same bs but was never banned):\n\nhttp://i.imgur.com/tE5IB.jpg This is why I left /r/athiesm and stopped reading /r/athiesmplus.\n\nHe/she in no way was pushing a male agenda, nor denying a feminist opinion or attacking such. He/she was engaging in a logical path of not blaming an entire group for the actions of an individual. Your modding is leading others to have a bad image of your group, but as for myself, rather than doing that I will only hold that you cannot moderate without having your own agenda inserted into it. Re-read what logic11 says, as it was in no way grounds for any sort of warning/ban. I am in no way associated with him, and I have no intention of returning to /r/athiesm or any subreddit of such because for a group for athiests, logic and non-emotional arguments do not exist there.\n\nThe following comments ensued, thus reinforcing he/she refuses to have an actual discussion in the forum he/she mods, and rather seeks only friendly opinions:\n\n>If you want to talk about it take it to modmail.\n\nI'd rather take it here, as you were in the wrong.\n\n>Then nope. Learn a little something about the concept of a safe space:\nhttp://geekfeminism.wikia.com/wiki/Safe_space\nand male privilege: http://finallyfeminism101.wordpress.com/2007/03/11/faq-what-is-male-privilege/\nThe world doesn't owe anything to these Redditors. They're not entitled to come into our space and violate the integrity of our safe space.\nI'm not responding to you again.\n\nAthiesm plus doesn't really constitute a safe space. also if you actually read and comprehended what he wrote you'd understand he in no way questioned the readers intentions. If you've ever been part of a support group you would understand that blaming a group for the actions of an individual goes against the principles of the wiki's you cite. Obviously you are against anyone having an opinion different than yours, and only cite from sources that are biased to your point rather than neutral and would allow those who seek a "safe space" progress, rather than reinforcement of what they perceive. I seriously hope you seek out actual training before you provide further guidance to those in need. 1347378395 Hey jerr instead of telling you its bs id ask what claim are they making specifically and try to find the specific sources of said claims. Also seek out scientists actually working with gmo or check out senseaboutscience website. Try also reading carl sagan's the demon haunted world as and introduction to skepticism and critical thinking. It will gi e you the tools you need for your own baloney detection kit. \n\nInstead of asking for a debunking try just asking what the scientific evidence is for said claim. Check out rebutr its a google tool that helps you find counter arguments to claims. Skepticism can be fun you get to do bit of research, interact with scientists some times, and learn amazing new things!\n 1341026805 http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gray_Barker 1337827569 This should be the proper response to grammar nazis on reddit. 1301256107 well actually......\n 1354576709 Other follow up studies have done that. 1274752623 Honestly, I feel kind of bad now. If he honestly believe that all of these accounts are from one person, then that means he has some mental issues going on.\n\nEdit: Oops, wrong account. 1326618875 Cheers, thanks for the clarification. 1323482902 Bill Cooper's*\n\nIt's Cooper's since you are implying that Bill Cooper has stuff, so that's Bill Cooper's stuff. 1351722959 It looks like that is a meta study of studies. It found a lot of articles and looked only at the scholarly ones that were double blinded and such.\n\nThey report, in the discussion section:\n\n>Our findings show that no compelling evidence exists to suggest that any conventional or complementary intervention is effective for preventing or treating alcohol hangover.\n\nHowever, years of reading scholarly articles has taught me that the discussion section means jack shit. It's also known as the "let me frame my findings so you agree with what I'm looking for." By definition, it's not blind, so you should take what you find there with a grain of salt.\n\nIf you look at the results section, you get this:\n\n>Four randomised controlled trials tested dietary supplements: Borago officinalis (borage), Cynara scolymus (artichoke), Opuntia ficus-indica (prickly pear), and a yeast based preparation. **Two trials reported intergroup differences for** an overall symptom score and for the individual symptoms **restlessness, discomfort, and impatience**.25 28 In the first of these trials the effectiveness of **γ linolenic acid from B officinaliswas** tested in people who attended a private party.25 The results indicated a **significant reduction in the overall severity of hangover** and in the individual symptoms of headache, laziness, and tiredness compared with placebo (P < 0.01). Another trial tested a combination preparation containing **250 mg dried yeast, 0.5 mg thiamine nitrate, 0.5 mg pyridoxine hydrochloride, and 0.5 mg riboflavin** per tablet in participants who consumed vodka (40% volume alcohol) amounting to a total of 100 g absolute alcohol.28 The **difference in the change for the symptoms discomfort, restlessness, and impatience was statistically significant in favour of the yeast preparation.** Two other trials that tested extracts of **C scolymus and O ficus-indica reported no intergroup differences** for their main outcome measures.26 27\n\nThat seems to say that some of the non-conventional remedies work.\n\nIt continues:\n\n>Four trials tested conventional agents: tropisetron, propranolol, tolfenamic acid, and fructose or glucose (table). **One trial reported intergroup differences for an overall symptom score** (P < 0.01).31 This trial tested the **prophylactic effectiveness of tolfenamic acid**, an inhibitor of prostaglandin biosynthesis. Each participant consumed alcohol in small groups and drank at his own pace. The amount of alcohol and food ingested was not measured. The overall symptom score and the individual symptoms headache, nausea, vomiting, thirst, dry mouth, tremor, and irritation were significantly reduced compared with placebo. **Three other trials, which tested propranolol, tropisetron, and fructose or glucose, reported no beneficial intergroup differences.**\n\nSo... 3/8 remedies studies showed statistically significant ways to reduce the effect of a hangover.\n\nHow did we get the conclusion:\n\n>Our findings show that no compelling evidence exists to suggest that any complementary or conventional intervention is effective for treating or preventing the alcohol hangover.\n\nThe answer is that the authors are scoundrels. Even cherry picking studies, they couldn't get the conclusion they wanted, so they just *made it up*. 1323188337 This information should be covered in all college science curriculums. 1313421245 Maybe she turned around to do something and then came back and you just didn't see the stuff in between? 1335519184 Yes they do (AFAIK), but it's not the radiation itself (i.e.-light) it's the high frequency that they cycle on/off. 1282160723 Actually I've read about that report before. I didn't just accept that the commenter wasn't making it up. 1350018452 I'm not sure you got the "joke" then... 1315415408 >Define "really really fast." UAV's can get to pretty good velocities.\n\nThey crossed over 90 degrees of the sky in about 9 seconds. They appeared to be about 2 miles away, at an altitude around 3000 feet and about 30 degrees above the horizon from my viewpoint. I don't know what velocity that would be, but it's much faster than civil aviation - maybe jets can go that fast. I'm pretty definite about the shapes, these were actual triangles, not arrowhead shape as Taranis appears. 1289397518 The ufo community is not in the habit of critically evaluating its heroes. 1343885577 Well, gee. He sure uses the word "science" a lot. It makes him sound so...sciencey and legitimate. 1299694582 Oh wow what a coincidence.\n\n\n/sarcasm 1249614277 Yeah, obviously it's "pseudoskepticism", because your steadfast belief in UFOs is at odds with the facts.\n\nI can't believe this crap showed up in r/all. 1298697699 interesting, thanks for the tidbit, I'd been taught throughout journalism school and AP english and all my various English courses it was judgment, suck it ACADEMIA ! 1305130607 I brought her name up because she is a very vocal person on the subject that is blowing it out of proportion. tf00t brought her up in his response and how she isn't treating the problem properly. \n\nYou however, tried to twist it into something it's not. 1341597900 Plenty of those can be easily explained, like the [rainbow](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Descartes_Rainbow.png) or the cloud's shadow, but a lot of them left me still wondering WTF. 1325657167 secrets? yeah right... more like stories are being told of flying things in the air by witnesses with a few hours of military service. i'll eat a bag of dicks if anything that could be considered 'new' actually comes out of that event. 1346599604 Of these I've had the opportunity to watch 1, 2 and 4. Pure gold.\n\nI rewatch Connections at least twice a year. After watching Connections, look for "The Day the Universe Changed", from the same guy. Also mind blowing.\n\nEdit: Also look for Terry Jones's "Crusades".\n 1321326095 Yes, that is exactly what I said, again you've done a great job of interpreting the comments of others accurately and pointing out their expectations. 1335808708 Perhaps truly great minds tend towards more humility. \n>"The more you learn the more you realise how little you know." \nor something to that effect. 1287504841 This reminds me of reading Dawkins saying something like "finding a single fossil mammal in the Cambrian layer would *explode* the theory of evolution" - it hasn't happened and no one expects it to, but certainly one would need to analyze the evidence very carefully before the baby went out with that bathwater. \n 1301847847 How bad was your vision before the surgery? In any case it sounds like your surgeon was kind of a scumbag; when my dad got LASIK the surgeon guaranteed it for (I think) a year, but said that it was normal for it to go below 20/20 after a while. 1328551812 link to its own post? 1354617016 Very cool... I really wish they would just put it all on one page though. 1328200042 >About half the people I know who believe in Astrology as a science attribute its invention to either aliens or an advanced civilization \n\nMy anecdotal evidence is just as good as yours, but I've never heard anyone say something like this.\n 1324791107 I wonder what haplogroup the mtdna was. Ketchum says that, upon preliminary analysis, it looks like Bigfoot's female contribution is human. I'm curious as to what human population Bigfoot dipped into: Siberians from before crossing the Landbridge? Native Americans from after the crossing? Modern Western European, from possibly kidnapped missing Americans?\n\nAlthough more likely: it's just contamination of the samples by the scientists handling the DNA. (I'm looking at you, Dr. Ketchum!) 1353891442 "Fucktards" Conspiracy Theories... WTF! There is so much wrong here... 1291925071 That is a little scary. He has one schizophrenic sibling at least. He just recently turned 20, which I understand is about when behaviors start to show. I think it is more of his strict Catholic up bringing though. Still and interesting point. 1309277699 Don't you mean Satan? 1309228459 Very interesting. I'd like to hear about what has happened (if anything) to the person who bought it.\n\n*edit The Dybbuk box will be a featured story for the SciFi show Paranormal Witness, episode to air Aug 29. [source](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1874066/episodes). That is a definite watch for me! 1344818703 *expect (that)* 1342024564 Original Post that this resulted from. Reposted here because I did about 5 filters to the original audio file and I think there's a definitive voice now. Interested if people had thoughts on what it was saying or... You know, what the hell happened.\n\nhttp://www.reddit.com/r/creepy/comments/xph5o/my_phone_started_emitting_a_static_noise_i/ 1346250145 To be fair, it's Fox8 Cleveland, not fox news. 1291632653 I think the point is, world leaders should not gather in secret. For example, there are laws in the US that prevent these sort of meetings, alliances, ect. If you have a motorcade protecting you, there are likely laws protecting your citizens; these laws usually outlaw secret memberships and alliances for the leaders. These people are bound to put their nation first, yet generally they seem to work for this one world government that that undermines their own government.\n\nThat should sum up the problem people see with Builderburg. 1302664249 Sounds like a basketball game. 1334238734 I wouldnt say I am a lot smarter that you...I dont know you. Hell, even a smart person can have a shitty day and make an ass of himself or herself online with angry rants and misspelled words, so even if I see someone who lacks reading comprehension and a basic grasp of spelling I dont assume they are stupid. That wasnt a snide jab at you, by the way...you can clearly spell and read. \n\nAnyway, you are assuming: \n\n1. That the people in the article really do have a paranormal beliefs and no mental illness. The two can show up together, but having a mental illness means that person is not in the correct frame of mind for basic understanding of logic, science or social interactions. A good example is that there are people who really are presidents and people with mental illnesses who think they are the president. They do not belong to the same group. \n\n2. You are assuming that I believe in exorcisms, demons, etc.. \n\nI would also say that you are assuming that belief in the paranormal is the same as being in a cult, but that isnt as much of an assumption as it is a misunderstanding of the definition of "cult". Unless you are thinking aboit it differently or have a different understanding or are not referring to interest/belief in the paranormal but something different...in which case, my mistake and I will ask you to elaborate. \n\nSorry if I sound like a dick, but when I am trying not to offend anyone I tend to speak more...formally(?)...and that is often misconstrued as me being condescending, so I just want to assure you that isnt the case. I am open to hearing what you have to say because I believe in discussions, especially with people who think differently. I cant stand when someone only is polite or gives the benefit of the doubt to only those with like-minded thoughts. \n\n\n\nEDIT: I am seeing some spelling errors...whoops. I am typing on my phone as I am walking so I am not entirely accurate right now. 1346566054 50's vitamin water was the best. 1323737064 No, they allowed it to access higher Life and Intelligence. Says so right there. 1330238886 yeah, and [this one](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cF_WfscC7go) is nice too imo.\n\nnothing groudbreaking but i like how he talks 1320673294 I don't think Sickle Cell should be considered "damage", mutation yes, damage no. The mutation provides substantial resistance to Malaria so in areas subject to Malaria it's undoubtedly being selected for, not against, because of the benefits it provides. It does have some nasty side-effects, but that's more a sign of incomplete evolution to Malaria immunity than anything else. 1341304907 But when does that general trend begin? There is plenty of reason to believe that monogamy is a societal issue, not an evolutionary trend. If we were predisposed to monogamy as a species, why would we seek new relationships out or take risks that could break our relationships?\n\nThere are plenty of monogamous animals in nature. They don't cheat on their partners. We do.\n 1338293709 It's hardly yet a fact. A lot of diseases heal naturally. So unless someone does the proper tests, it's not a scientific fact.\n\nThe problem is that some people claim herbs to be able to heal *everything*, so where do we start throwing our money? 1322409179 There was a thing called [COMETA](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/COMETA) here's a snippet: \n\nThe group was responsible for the 'COMETA Report' (1999) on UFOs and their possible implications for defence in France. The report concluded that about 5% of the UFO cases they studied were utterly inexplicable and the best hypothesis to explain them was the extraterrestrial hypothesis (ETH). The authors also accused the United States government of engaging in a massive cover-up of the evidence.\n\n\nI think the whole French government have lost their f-cking minds! What a bunch of hapless idiots!\n\nNo but seriously you're just being a douche because the US government refuses to admit what they know. This is yet more evidence of disclosure... get ready. 1288870620 [Look at the photos](http://www.bibliotecapleyades.net/imagenes_circultivos/circuloscultivos12_11.jpg), the field had already been harvested. 1351873371 Could be many things.\n\nThose that claim it is a ghost have the burden of evidence on their own shoulders though. 1297668806 Oh ok, cool. Cause I was under the impression that facts are concepts who's truths can be proven as well. Glad we're on the same page, oh great crusader of verifiable information. 1297312832 This image invokes Godwin's Law in the very first fucking frame. Why are we discussing this again? 1294592995 Nothing wrong with meditation. Relaxation methods are not woo. 1347920255 >“It makes me wonder just how malleable our minds can be. It all seemed so real, like it made so much sense, but it wasn’t right,” he wrote. “It leaves a lot to think about.”\n\nThe essence of skepticism: an awareness that your own, thoughts, senses and perceptions can, and often are, very very flawed.\n\nDon't be so quick to ridicule these people. They're just like us. We're all prone to failures of critical thinking, just in different ways.\n\nThe Christians have this thing they like to say: "He who is without sin cast the first stone." I think their messiah said it. I'm not a believer, but I like this particular quote. Here's a skeptics version of it: He who is without woo, cast the first stone.\n\nAm I making any sense? 1337879761 How can you say telling someone to not seek medical attention was not intent to cause harm.\n\nShe knew she was not equipped to handle the matter but went ahead anyways. 1333665335 Saying that this story is unreliable because of past actions is fallacious.\n\n[Replied to another user here](http://www.reddit.com/r/skeptic/comments/lixb3/sybil_was_a_lie_bestselling_child_abuse_and_split/c2t6mm3)\n\nYou didnt posit a counter argument, you just attacked the person (or paper). The paper put forth an argument, mostly based on a book, and in order to discredit it you must have a counter argument. I didnt see one.\n\nLearn your fallacies. 1319165755 > I believe A&W buys its A&W from A&W\n\nBwahaha, ok. 1349824260 Last night was Penn's "Rock&Roll bacon and Donut Party" which STARTED at 11pm and continued till 3pm.\n\nThe conference started again at 7:30am...\n\n 1310867289 I doubt it, but we all have our dreams. 1348576444 Can you elaborate on this? \n\nEDIT: Never mind just saw your other comment. 1344303025 there are water droplets on the lens is what it looks like. there's some on the left of the screen too :/\n\n 1356232532 just some idiots making fake videos of flashing lights in the sky and posting them all over and trying to make people think there's an worldwide alien invasion today. 1356006737 Making things undigestable, full of shit - I see what you did there. 1339468041 It is exactly as I said. No Muslim will profess that this finding is "the evidence" of God's existence. We believe that the evidence for his existence is life and everything around us. 1330116393 Gullible people who don't go under that reasoning define cheaper as the thing costing less money at one sale. Don't take it up with me, I'm playing devil's advocate. 1329158560 their conclusions don't even follow from their erroneous premise. 1306700059 I guess when you die you get a universal translator 1335999555 You should take some time to learn how we test medical treatments for their efficacy.\n\nDouble blinding is one very important part of testing any medicine or medical treatment.\n\nFalling asleep quickly like that, does not seem to me to be outside the range of placebo.\n\nhttp://www.experiment-resources.com/double-blind-experiment.html 1316562538 >But say anything like this and you get downvoted to oblivion. Gotta love the Reddit circlejerk.\n\nThat kind of comment annoys me, but anyway...\n\nI would hope that here in /r/skeptic that if you can provide the reasons for your beliefs you would not be downvoted, and if you can provide *good* reasons for those beliefs that you would be upvoted.\n\nIt'd be interesting to read those studies mentioned in the press release, which I hope to do if I get the time. 1355991446 I once had to sit through an entire dinner with my girlfriend at the time and listen to her whole family discuss homeopathy, runes, tarot, zodiac alignment and Feng fucking Shui. \n\nSince this was the first time I had met them, I just feigned general interest, asked questions and made them explain things to me like a child so I understood and they felt intellectually rich in "opening my eyes to the spiritual world".\n\nIn regards to scary stuff, relax and just enjoy the atmosphere, you'll probably be made to jump a few times, they might do a table raising trick, might have spooky knocks and things going on in dark corners etc, just act scared so it increases the experience for your girlfriend or hell even try and scare her more! 1349952862 Maybe its a bit old and senile now and its memory just quite is not what it used to be. 1327435108 No, it was in street in another city. But still eerie. 1326479496 Hey Jay!\n\nLove the show, though I only rarely find time to listen these days. No questions from me, but a general statement for the people commenting on the thread -- I didn't know this AMA was going to happen, so if you notice your comment isn't showing up, give me a hollar. I've noticed several comments getting caught in Ol' Spammy. 1346205005 It's more likely that he thinks he is rational. 1294810974 The people being duped aren't bad people, they're mostly desperate people with some affliction and are looking for some help. However misguided they are, they don't deserve to be "weeded out". 1340730246 I would recommend following your dentist's instructions for managing your fluorosis and preventing fluorosis in your child's developing teeth. Children are more sensitive to fluoride. You should determine the amount of fluoride in your drinking water, and if the amount is higher than what your dentist recommends, then you should limit your child's consumption of that water. There are filters that you can purchase that would lower the level of fluoride in your water.\n\nFluorosis should no longer be a problem for you, as it affects developing teeth, not erupted teeth.\n\nSkeletal fluorosis should not be a problem for the average person in the US. If the fluoride level in your water is at a normal level, you shouldn't worry about it. It usually affects people living in areas with very high levels of fluoride in the water (such as China), or industrial workers who are exposed to abnormally high levels of fluoride.\n\nAdverse effects from fluoride are uncommon unless you are receiving abnormally high amounts of fluoride. There are many known adverse effects from fluoride, but the amount of fluoride in drinking water is controlled in order to avoid them. There are no known adverse effects in populations receiving the current safe level of fluoridated water (the 0.5-1.5 mg/L range).\n\nAgain, talk to your dentist. If he says avoid fluoridated water, then by all means avoid it. But it's not like fluoride is this new, unknown substance with unknown long-term effects. It's been studied for more than 70 years. 1344783675 1) Take a picture.\n\n2) Look around your house for a Marlboro pack. This is a stretch, but do you ever lose chunks of time and can't account for them? I don't want to freak you out, but it could be explained by Dissociative Identity Disorder. Check the kitchen cabinets, the porch, those sort of places. \n\n3) Videotape the ashtray over a 24h period? 1326993764 Hence the quotations 1330125720 Mind, blown. Still looks freaky deeky to me, makes it easier to say it could be junk. 1316451089 Do you think there could be a correlation between the similarity of the objects described, and the fact that the same researcher conducted the testing on different subjects? Food for thought... 1305156862 No no, to protect yourself from wifi radiation, all you need to do is send me £29.95 and I will send you my wifi radiation protection device! 1290936125 does anyone have this poster in bigger resolution for printing? 1336462914 "what if they're as stoned as we are" haha. 1356308665 This wasn't meant to be anti-religion, but does show a commonly known logical inconsistency within the bible. This is something to be skeptical about. Sorry if it came away sounding otherwise. 1299112257 Bombers also weren't as large as 747s, and didn't have jet fuel. 1332503617 Could be a Long March rocket breaking up. It does look like an ICBM. 1279247498 Hired by who? 1304096320 I still hold my breath while passing graveyards. Never believed in the superstition, just enjoy the challenge XD 1332171341 I think, more than his prediction not coming true, the most devastating thing to this nutjob would be his insanity being completely ignored.\n\nSo, let's do that. 1318908811 That was the impression I got. I'm a wuss, so after that I got pretty afraid and stopped investigating.\n\nMy mom and my live-in male cousin, who was about 14 at the time. He was the one who was made aware of the activity first. It harassed him for a while and we didn't believe him to start with. Eventually all three of us had had quite a few experiences.\n\nMy dad also experienced it, but he *really* didn't want to believe, so he went to great lengths to explain it away. 1339776286 Looks kinda chilly. 1354765051 This is a serious device designed for a serious purpose. For some unknown reason, certain individuals are often targeted by alien beings on a repeated basis. Once you have been abducted, your chances for re-abduction increase significantly. Most of my clients are repeat abductees. One of my clients, who is only 33 years old, has been abducted 7 times in the past 4 years. They are crippled by their anxiety, wondering when the next attack will be, wondering when they aliens may decide to keep their unwilling subject for good. 1330469396 I have something rather similar, it was picture I took at a parking lot little before going into work. The object looks a lot smaller than in davidvader's picture but upon zooming on it with my phone it looked very interesting! 1341325482 I'm in CT, and there are tons of places. New England being the longest settled and very populated area breeds a lot of ghost legends. Whether or not they are "really" haunted is debatable. My brother wrote the book "Old Ghosts of New England" which is a travel guide to haunted areas (many in CT). \n\nI recommend contacting a local paranormal society or a group with some amount of legitimacy and ask to accompany them. Otherwise if you turn up to many haunted locations you'll have the cops called on you. \n\nA lot of people in CT go to Dudleytown. I've had some creepy experiences there, but I'm fairly sure a lot of it was a case of group think or in my head. Again, this is a location that is potentially dangerous (when I went, there were some fairly steep drops that come out of nowhere), and if spotted the police will be called.\n\nWhen I started going to haunted areas, I went to this site : http://www.theshadowlands.net/places/massachusetts.htm\n\nThat's the MA link. That site doesn't look like its been changed in ten years, so I'm not sure how up to date it is.\n\nGood luck! 1347282358 you might want to point him to a video of a real building demolition so that he can see that it takes months of stripping the building and drilling holes and cutting the structural elements. not to mention the 3 miles of wire that would have to be run through peoples offices. Then show him this video. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qR0f8n10DR4 and explain to him that the pentagon is a fortified military installation not some apartment building. 1331233447 Our plant is so fucked, right now there is a massive smog cloud over asia that is preventing the effects global warming, so the second we figure out how to stop air pollution in China world temperatures will skyrocket as the smog cloud clears. 1328225007 >Still, he should have enough sense remaining to keep those thoughts internalized and not go around giving public interviews spouting such nonsense and reopening old wounds by implying that those people were meant to die.\n\nI agree, he's being a twat in that sense. 1298902698 Calcium Fluoride is indeed accumulated in the bones and teeth. However, that does not make Fluoride an _essential_ nutrient, such as Potassium or Magnesium, that facilitate vital functions in the body. Lead and cadmium are also found in the teeth and bones.\n\nHighly concentrated [Fluouride tabs or drops](http://www.drugs.com/mtm/fluoride.html) are technically are a prescription drug. There's also been a [petition](http://www.fda.gov/ohrms/dockets/dockets/07p0070/07p0070.htm) for the FDA to classify fluoride as a drug for use in tooth application, tooth paste and bottled water.\n\nEdit: the FDA does not recognize fluoride as a nutrient, thus does not require a Daily Value (DV) for it be listed. Please see http://www.fda.gov/Food/LabelingNutrition/FoodLabelingGuidanceRegulatoryInformation/RegulationsFederalRegisterDocuments/ucm073531.htm (page 62151). 1347256871 After hearing these brilliant technical explanations I feel a bit guilty about all the shortcuts I take - usually I just get straight to drinking a glass of water. I know it's lazy of me, but if it's got the same effect so I feel it's justified. 1289602324 Some of them view it as an attack by satan. No, seriously. Then you can get even more fringe (though still a surprising amount of people) who believe the push to deny creationism (and therefore god) is actually apart of "End Times Prophecy". \n\nIn my opinion the biggest hurdle that you'll face when it comes to having someone accept that creationism is false, is what that will mean to their very view of their god. Most accept that Jesus was necessary because of what happened in the Garden of Eden. If the Garden of Eden didn't exist, then the fall didn't happen, and then Jesus's sacrifice was unnecessary or....didn't happen at all. It's a slippery slope that I don't think many in the creationist movement want to face. 1350587516 I don't see anything about children having to follow that, but: they're not metastasising, unlike the other Christians. 1334247500 I had to google fan death. What the fuck.\n\nBest of luck. 1279404714 I don't think I understand your problem. Correct me if I'm wrong. Here's what comes to mind:\n\n* Exaggeration is one of the instruments of satire.\n* Satire isn't slander.\n* Since satire *is* a fake representation of reality, and we all know this (or should), emphasizing the "fakeness" as if it were fake for it's own sake is disingenuous. 1332752925 Why is Mabus threatening the police? 1313025450 Words are words. Most people when saying "agnosticism" mean what you mean when you say "atheism". It is a silly semantic argument. Uncertainty is the only honest approach to the divine. 1343017459 I don't really know if such entities exists, I thought one was in my room too, but I think it was just my imagination :) But what I heard of is that they have problems with electromagnetic Things, so turn on TV and light and so on. Next thing try to don't have fear but anger on them and it should disappear :) (real or not real) A really interesting but very freaky video to this subject is the Djinn Post in the paranormal subbreddit:\nhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JZHCG1yagKQ&feature=share 1333551127 Contact. 1336968339 Costco is going to start selling them: 5060 Watt for [$17,999.99](http://www.reddit.com/r/energy/comments/gnp3q/costco_will_soon_offer_four_different/) (includes a roof mounting kit). 1304298589 Already did buddy :) I was the first to post a comment! 1345189322 Then the answer must be to create the most beautiful and famous scientists the world has ever seen! 1294768651 You have spoons in your blood? 1280779479 and the wands are being sold in for three easy payments of $75.49, have a c-list celebrity backing them but no real wizards use them. 1310614272 it is a very emotionally charged email that was fwd'd to me from my very illogical aunt (she's an AMAZING actor/singer/dancer, but not so big on the logic department), so i thought i'd get some perspective on it. 1350679563 To me if someone says "I'm not religious, but I'm spiritual", I take that as "I've reject mainstream monotheistic religions in favour of a hodge podge of hokum that panders to notions of ancient wisdom, natural is better and that there's more to life than this"\n\nAll people are emotional, saying that people who aren't Spiritual are emotionless robots is a bit damning don't you think? 1310106623 I live in southern Finland and there is this one place, Erkylän kartano (Erkylä's mansion) which is said to be haunted.\n\nThe story tells about a butcher and his family, and they lived near the mansion, presumably working for the lord who owned the mansion. The father of the family, the butcher, drank really heavily and some night he lost his mind over something that I don't know and slaughtered his wife and children.\n\nNow it's said that when you pass the old abattoir in midnight you can hear children crying and see lights flickering.\n\nI apologize if the grammar is bad. English isn't my first language after all. 1345272544 This is awesome! 1287600947 This is awesome! 1312897026 At the beginning of the video the skydiving team was free falling together with flares attached, they broke away from each other and pulled their chutes and started floating. Teams like this do events all the time and obviously they have to practice... 1340515928 This is a new magnitude of stupid. Following astrology in general isn't exactly the epitome of intelligence, but to actually believe that the first sentence is factually correct requires some serious lack of thinking. 1324653729 >we see a lot more smart-asses with some basic science education but which vastly overestimate their knowledge and strongly believe that they are smarter and know better than the actual climate scientists!\n\nYep, this is pretty much how the [Dunning-Kruger](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dunning%E2%80%93Kruger_effect) effect works.\n 1321505565 why be skeptical? try it.\n\nI marinade pork for 1 hour in beer and italian dressing, tastes great. OIvernight is better, but the difference is actually quite subtle. 1334076359 love the sad trombone! 1305779659 So then what you mean is not that you're looking for someone or a party which follows the tenets of the constitution, but rather, someone or a party which conforms to the tenets that you happen to agree with, and disagrees with the tenets that you happen to disagree with, yes?\n\nWhich is good, and what I was trying to get at. The constitution is not the holy writ of the Flying Spaghetti Monster. It's a flawed document written by flawed men who decided to redraft the constitution after the first flawed US constitution failed. And this all occurred in the 18th century, a time so removed from today that a moderate position then would be seen as an absurdly reactionary position today. 1285161865 If by "full body apparition" they mean "two people filmed walking in the dark" then yes, this is genuine. 1325640373 In slow mo, their legs clearly hit some solid resistance, which is frickin' impossible. \n\nI call bullshit or they MUST produce an underwater video showing this. Not going to happen. 1273684263 It would be great to show her Derren Brown's material after the books. 1356379475 The way I've always seen it is that the US is a libertarian like system and it was great up to a certain point. \n\n\nIn an anarchy i'm a republican.\n\nIn a failing republic i'm a democrat.\n\nIn a failing democracy i'm a libertarian.\n\nIn a failed utopia i'm a anarchist. 1313597446 If only it were that easy. 1347238819 I thought that is what makes it funny, that people actually believe this crap? 1353961404 Now you're just being obtuse. Of course it's a red herring. 1322703643 I get a similar feeling once in a blue moon. It feels like something drastic has happened and I know things are never going to be the same again or feel the same again. Nothing life altering has happened or happens before or after the feeling, I have no sudden revelations- I just feel it, out of no where. I always forget about the feeling until it happens again. Or until I read something like this. 1354771813 I have to say, I'm happy with their plugging of the new show. For one thing, I'd completely forgotten about it. Aside from that, they blatantly plugged at the beginning and end because, yes, they *are* going for publicity here, and otherwise just answered their questions honestly and only mentioned the new show when it was truly relevant to the question. It's way more annoying when people continually try to awkwardly work whatever they're publicizing into every comment.\n\n(I know you were kidding, I just wanted to comment on their method.) 1317850871 I think Bob Lazar pretty much summed it up in his statements. He felt that he wasn't the most qualified guy for the project he was on (and could name a list of better candidates) and he didn't think their psychotic security procedures were at all productive. I agree with him, but it's easy to agree with a smart guy like Lazar.\n\nI don't think the governments of the world are going to have a choice much longer. We have the internet now. UFO sightings are increasing dramatically worldwide. Clearly they're going to make themselves known. Apparently it's not us who ultimately get to decide when contact is made. We have nuclear power. We've already left the planet multiple times. We have computers. We may not yet qualify to join the United Federation of Planets (or whatever intergalactic UN is) but we're definitely a good candidate for contact now.\n\nSecrecy is only an aid to advancement when there are people who try to stop your advancement because they're threatened by it in some way. (See also stem cell research, atomic bomb, cloning, free energy, current Iran crisis, North Korea, water cars, electric cars, etc.)\n\nIf they don't know you're building the Iron Man armor, they can't stop you.\n\nNote that another issue here has been that multiple government agencies and branches of the military have competed for resources, control, and access to captured extraterrestrial technology and life forms. There is no "government" even with the alleged influence of MAJ. There is only individuals and factions all trying to get resources and control secretly. If one of them gives the game away, they lose.\n\nYou really want an end to UFO secrecy? Put 8 billion dollars into lobbying for it. That should do it.\n\nThen we'll all have droids and land speeders and holograms, and we can join the federation or become jedi or whatever.\n 1331961091 >Critics such as sociologist Claude Fischer argue that (a) Putnam concentrates on organizational forms of social capital, and pays much less attention to networks of interpersonal social capital; (b) neglects the emergence of new forms of supportive organizations on and off the Internet; and (c) the 1960s are a misleading baseline because the era had an unusually high number of traditional organizations.\n\n\nhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_D._Putnam#.22Bowling_Alone.22 1356745073 Spotting a fallacy doesn't disprove the argument in question. It merely demonstrates a flaw in the line of reasoning used to come to a specific conclusion. If you want to make a strong argument, it may require you better educate yourself in the respected field (climatology, automotives, etc), and then use scientific data to demonstrate your point. 1283224452 Ugh. Wired was flirting with a lot of good ideas but didn't explain ANY of them well enough to implement. \n\nWhile reading this list I asked myself "would following this advice allow me to detect fraud or crappy research in areas that skeptics know are BS?" No, probably not. The conflict of interest point is one people can probably understand, but none of the other descriptions of things to look for would enable someone to properly analyze a paper. 1350362035 Sorry about the slow reply.\n\nI've just woken up, I might try to find the original research later for you, I really should check it myself.\n\nIn the meantime, there's this.\n\nhttp://scienceprogressaction.org/intersection/2012/01/conspiracy-theorists-more-likely-to-believe-factual-contradictions/\n\nIf you get the original paper though could you link to it here? Thanks. 1352327915 Not ... really? You come up with a plan, everyone agrees to it, and everyone does the tasks they have agreed to. Just because one or a few people come up with the plan, if they are the skilled ones in this example, doesn't imply anyone is "in charge" of anyone else. They might just be good at making plans everyone agrees to. 1306222474 If that was what you were in fact trying to put across, I would agree with it. However....\n\n'"Legit" chiropractic is unlicensed physical therapy' - 'unlicensed' here implies 'not legitimate'\n\n'osteopaths are not MD's, they are a form of alternative medicine'\n\n'"total body wellness".... is a red flag for alt-med'\n\nReferring to "Big Pharma" makes you a conspiracy theorist\n\nIts just...a bit black-and-white, tasuret, and smacks of insufficient skepticism about any pronouncement made by mainstream Western medicine. I learned the bloody hard way to be skeptical of those too, and check them thoroughly before just going ahead and doing as told. One should no more treat an MD as the font of all wisdom than allow the local witchdoctor to 'find out who was responsible for your curse and curse them in return'. (Don't laugh, I've seen it. It was both preposterous and ugly.) In all fairness, it is unreasonable to expect an MD to know every detail about every human illness, thus refusing to take any responsibility for your own problems. Generally they will just look it up in the standard treatments manual, write you a script, ten minutes, job done. \n\nIn my case, the standard treatment for my autoimmune disease when I was 2 was later discontinued because it caused stomach ulcers, amongst other things. More than one of my later GPs were somewhat horrified; said they would never give any such treatment to anyone under the age of 12. Unfortunately my parents weren't told about the ulcer risk (if the GP was even aware of it) - but too bad, the damage was done. I also went to what was considered the pre-eminent specialist hospital in the Southern hemisphere for the same autoimmune condition. I double-checked their suggestions with various medical students and post-grads of my acquaintance; they brought my attention to several horrendous side-effects that hadn't been mentioned and were generally of the opinion that someone as young as I was should find another way. \n\nI did so. The things that worked were...non-standard, but worth trying to me because investigation revealed that, at worst, there was no harm in them. As it happens, I was lucky enough to eventually find non-orthodox treatment that worked, and the only side-effects were good ones, i.e. other issues that I had incorrectly been viewing as wholly unrelated were also corrected. It is interesting to me that I am starting to see aspects of this treatment pop up in research about the immune system.\n 1318921671 There is no fallacy involved in arguing that an assertion made by an authority is true. 1274028736 That's an oversimplification.\n\nThey were saying, if you question the people who lost relatives directly, calling them liars or conspirators when they obviously lost family members, you're a dick. Some of them talked to loved ones on the phone minutes before they died, and unless they were riding on a missile at the time, most of the 9/11 conspiracy arguments don't account for that.\n\nIt's unreasonable to make wild accusations about 9/11 suggesting things like massive demolition projects with no real evidence, or assert baseless physics that have been ripped apart by respected physicists and engineers in reputable publications, when it's pretty fucking obvious what happened.\n\nActing like it's unreasonable that religious extremist terrorists could be convinced to fly planes into buildings isn't ignorant, it's stupid.\n\nCould Bush and Cheney have planned and funded the entire thing? Yes, of course. But when people start constructing these ridiculous fantasies involving remote control planes and missiles and demolitions teams disguised as construction workers, you start to ignore evidence that doesn't suit the fantasy you've constructed in your mind. \n\nWhen a lot of so-called truthers get confronted with evidence, they fall back on "we're just asking questions." Or else they try to argue their feelings and opinions as facts "Building 7 looked like a controlled demolition." And in the case of Building 7, even going as far as accusing a first responder of being part of this conspiracy to kill thousands of his fellow citizens.\n\nIt's not a coincidence that Wolfowitz and Cheney were writing about trying to find a way to start a war with Iraq before 9/11, and it's not a coincidence the USAPATRIOT act was already written up and ready to go after 9/11, but when you start trying to turn it into a Tom Clancy novel with nothing but your feelings and self-proclaimed experts (who are always selling something), you enter into the realm of accusing the victims of wrong doing. 1325078125 Sorry for being such a dick then. 1341892284 Haha it sounds like your bro got a usb mic and edited his voice. Since the background noise is only missing when the "spirit" is talking, he probably recorded the two sounds separately and edited them together. 1332752580 It doesn't take much... 1340719494 Sorry for the late reply, have just woken up.\n\nIf the footage is undeniably that of a non earth craft, then every media outlet from around the world, would undoubtably pay very big dollars for it. 1297196863 It is not that uncommmon, a case of this happened in CA recently: [msnbc](http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/47388611/ns/health-food_safety/t/raw-milk-recalled-calif-after-campylobacter-found/#.UBDXubRWa2U) 1343281147 See, now that makes way more sense. 1322321705 The fact of the matter is that none of the models created with CO2 as the main driver of warming come even close to actual observations. The Alarmists jump up and down for joy and yell about how that means that the problem is far worse than they anticipated. Never does it enter their minds that the reason the models don't reflect reality is that the models fail utterly to account for other factors that are more powerful then CO2. 1355501096 LSD 1346801640 I think it makes a great deal of difference whether you personally recommend the items. In any event, you have a nice income stream that allows you a good life. I suggest that you keep getting better and better at what you do and be prepared for the day to come when you will be able to use your skills marketing more agreeable items. 1308086076 Start off with the basics if you're looking for evidence and documentation - pickup some digital recorders for EVP and cameras for pictures. You can use control objects in certain places....like setting a key or coins in a certain place to see if they are moved.\nYou can try just verbal communication and ask them what they want. If you really don't want them there, then be stern and tell them it's your house and you ask that they respect your wishes and leave. Please follow up with any new events. 1348238288 Have you seen Fire in the Sky? I met Travis Walton at a conference, he wants to make a new film with represents what actually happened a lot better than it was depicted in this film. Still a decent film. 1323590807 Leonardo da Vinici was a real person and an artist, scientist, inventor, painter, sculptor, architect, engineer, mathematician, physicist, philosopher, humanist, alchemist, biologist, naturalist, anatomist, geologist, technologist, astronomer, cartographer, botanist, cryptographer, geometer, draftsman, designer, scenographer, stylist, musician, writer, author and poet.\n\nOk, he couldn't kick the crap out of people (that we know) but you can pick up a lot if you are a bit above average and just refuse to stop learning. You might be right and Batman might be 'meta' but I certainly wouldn't want my virginity back so I won't argue. 1331927898 Thousands of people have also seen God, Jesus, the Holy Spirit, the Virgin Mary, Satan, ghosts and demons. Just saying.\n\nAlso, by your statement about "that girl", you seem to be more concerned about appearances and the semblance of "having an open mind" rather than the essence of it. 1332242606 >/r/atheism has a longstanding and well earned record\n\nWhat "record"? You mean the completely unwarranted bias against atheists and atheism everywhere? The "Everyone knows it's true" record, also known as the "hallmark of unsubstantiated bullshit" record? Or the "Well, this one time someone said they're an atheist and said they don't like /r/atheism, so they must be really bad!" record?\n\nThe exact same arguments used against /r/atheism on Reddit are used against all atheists and atheism everywhere else on the internet. And it's all utter bullshit, perpetuated by people who want to feel vindicated in their personal bias. What is worse, you're *actually* buying in to the bullshit, probably out of peer pressure. Or maybe just to fulfill some bizarre need to feel superior.\n\nThere are actual problems with the content on /r/atheism, but it is nothing you can blame on the people there. Every single large, unmoderated subreddit is afflicted by the same problem: Banal, shallow, lowest common denominator content outnumbers insightful discussion a hundred to one -- and the reddit algorithm favors shallow content. The only reason /r/atheism attracts more attention is because of above mentioned bias against atheists and contrast in subject. Good quality content in /r/aww isn't that different from bad quality content in /r/aww, while as the spectrum from good to bad has much more depth when it comes to discussion about philosophy, theology and their effect on society.\n\nTL;DR: You are being misled by a bias in society, and laying the blame for a perceived lack of quality on /r/atheism itself demonstrates a fundamental lack of understanding of Reddit and how it works. 1341588943 I think that would be anti^2 -antivaccine if you factored it out. 1342168824 If it lasted for "several minutes" as the article says, why didn't he get a better picture? 1328886342 No idea -- they said it looked like one bit "thing" but the weird thing (weirder I guess) was the secondary single "thing" darting in and out\n 1342024837 That's religion in a nutshell. 1300480957 If you think THIS is worth buying, then I have an overpass to sell you! 1247281305 Uhp, yeah. Your first sentence. Ah, I'm a moron.\n\nRight, reading now. 1326291889 All we need now is a starry background.\n\nhttp://www.reddit.com/r/spaceporn\n\nMaybe even a darker theme.\n\nEDIT: Example,\n\nhttp://www.reddit.com/r/spaceporn/stylesheet.css\n\nYou can grab the stylesheet from any other reddit and copy it. 1306391588 Right. That's a loaded question. Begging the question would be something like: \n\n"Obama should be re-elected because he's the best president we've ever had"\n\nYour conclusion, "Obama should be re-elected" is actually less controversial of a claim than the premise ("Obama is the best president") in support of the conclusion. 1328567433 Wow... that just blew my mind... I don't even...\n\nApparently, it's okay to call men pigs but not okay to call women cunts, because hey, the former doesn't uphold an oppression so it's okay!\n\nAnd then they go on about how devastating words can be. I mean, if all is well, someone's words shouldn't hold any weight to a conversation, right? And discrimination on any grounds is always bad. What a bundle of cunts. 1326633071 that makes no sense. If one embarks to create an artificial intelligence, one will recreate consciousness, memory, and mood, and thought, it'll be just as real as the consciousness in you[that is, not strictly real at all. *Virtual*]. 1299726427 Not always. A lot of studies use convenience samples. The important thing is then listing it as a potential confounding variable and assessing whether it potentially affected the results. \n\nFor example, I just wrote a lab report on a false recognition phenomenon. A convenience sample (our tutorial classes) were used to replicate previous studies. There's no evidence that the phenomenon is related to IQ and it's unlikely the fact that we were all university students affects the results. It doesn't make the study invalid it's just important to note it. 1303975444 >Liberal and yet defending anarchism and libertarianism. How odd.\n\nLiberal and yet pointing out bad arguments where I see them? Not odd at all. \n\n>Liberal yet trying to argue that Somalia is now all better thankfully because of no more guvvvaaament.\n\nLiberal and yet not desperately clinging to the fantasy that government is a cure-all. Governments can and very often do get in the way of social and economic progress. That doesn't mean that government is bad - but that government must be handled very carefully, and the fact of the matter is that Somalia is better off in free market anarchy than it was under its terrible corrupt government. 1313609340 They weren't forced out of business. They just had to stop making unsubstantiated health claims. The regulator allowed them to continue selling bits of plastic, but only if they changed the packaging etc to remove the unsubstantiated claims. 1306210476 If anyone cares, I've found access to an email list management account used to solicit and send PR to a number of people... [ninja deleted things here].\n\nAnyone know what T&P or LO mean? I can't find definitions... \n\nP.S. - Find it yourself. And if you do, please don't actually fuck with anything.\n\nDrunk-Realization-Edit: WTF am I thinking. I have not accessed any accounts that I do not own.... I swear. Just saying, this is an interesting collection of public documents. 1339647267 You really seem like you have something to prove. Don't do that, if you were actually being skeptical about this you would not sound like you were desperately trying to argue otherwise.\n\nYou are really clearly projecting yourself into this. Your experience, entirely based on your perception of your own intelligence, is a very bad way to attempt to prove something. In fact, you shouldn't be trying to prove anything.\n\nAlso, you have absolutely no right to go ahead and try to diagnose people who are actively in a study with personality disorders. You are resorting to, as we people of learning call it (sarcasm), making shit up (not sarcasm). \n\nI don't give a damn about the results of this study, though it might be an interesting read. People should be able to smoke pot in my book as long as they know what the effects are, good or bad. So keep out your own misrepresentations of possible misrepresentations of data, because there is already enough pseudoscientific crap to sort through without a bunch of people trying to validate a substance habit. 1346497509 Maybe they already have and we are not listening. 1337987336 I just say something to the effect "And what makes you think the homeopathy people are honest? Surely there can be two, or three, or 500, lying cheats running around at the same time, right?"\n 1329766848 §Exactly! The testimonies of the witnesses were so compelling and clearly pointed to extra terrestrial intelligence! The evidence was so strong that it took the pentagon nearly 50 years to cook up this cover story. And the cover story doesn't even attempt to address 60 (!) subsequent sightings! The scientific establishment has gotten really lazy!§ 1331656969 There are people who homebrew Chinese lanterns; I was witness to two red lanterns on New Years Eve 2009/2010. That January a local free publication ran an interview with a man who claimed he had launched three red lanterns connected with wires; the lights were seen all over the county. I am assuming that by the time they had floated over my area, one of the lanterns burned out, which would explain why they were losing altitude. I didn't see them crash because I went back into the house to get a pair of binoculars, but when I came back less than a minute later, they were gone.\n\nThese blobs of light that "eazyeyall" photographed were far too far apart to be Chinese lanterns in some sort of wire formation, notice that there is a light hanging below the other two....I think it would be hard to launch a vertical Chinese lantern triangle without lighting the top lanterns first, so the bottom light should not have burnt out first.\n\nSo yes, I'm not convinced these lights were Chinese lanterns, but I have seen lanterns in the past and was not fooled by them. 1326507734 How does this get so many upvotes? It's only on the surface that this comment sounds insightful. \n\nThis planet would be ultra-frozen all the time. Mars is pretty nearly always frozen, and it's only the 4th planet. This would certainly be.\n\nIt would also likely be a gaseous planet, since hydrogen compounds freeze past the "frost line," which is between Mars and Jupiter, and which explains why the subsequent planets are all gaseous. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frost_line_(astrophysics)\n\nIf life was created in a specific set of conditions that, out of the planets in our solar system, only Earth has---chances are that there's a very good reason for this. There are molecular, REAL properties that dictate why life needs water, for example.\n\nThis sort of comment reminds me when people say, "maybe aliens have three legs for all we know!" Well, maybe they do, but probably not. Two legs and four legs are the most efficient systems and even numbered, which is why animals evolved them. 1344634417 I figured it had something to do with the acute and obtuse but I'm still not getting it haha. 1336551467 >I would contend that this is not actually faith, but a conclusion based on the observation that most people tend to be decent people most of the time. \n\nThat doesn't sound very scientific. Because it isn't. Some things aren't realistic to do double blind studies of. Society doesn't work without faith (or trust). Just because most people seem alright does not mean everyone is. We have a lot of assumptions (faith or lack of evidence) about our daily lives and even the worldin general. (How many scientific theories or discoveries do you test for yourself?)\n\nIn the religious sense it should still be respected, or more accurately its power. 1285526940 Awesome information!! Thank you! :) 1332977083 "Plleeeaaase take me seriously! Look, I even went to *Harvard*... PLEASE!" 1335542946 For us, it's not about the ratings or contracts. It's about bringing solid proof and evidence to the general public. We are passionate about what we do, and who doesn't want to make a living doing what they love? We would be perfectly content with a web series or something of the like, but speaking honestly and realistically, that will not pay the bills, so we would not be able to devote as much time to our investigations as we would like to. If we can practice our passion without having to balance all of our day jobs, we can put our full energy and focus towards finding the best possible proof of the paranormal that we can. We feel as a group that TV is the ideal media for sharing our findings with a broad audience. Our hope is to make believers out of skeptics by using real evidence rather than gimmicks. I'm sorry if you feel this reflects poorly upon us as a group. I sincerely hope one day you will be able to view our work, and maybe we can change your mind about it. 1344963044 Yeah I stopped watching History channel when it became the Aliens and/or Nazi channel many years ago, long before Reddit's favorite nut started to get featured on one of the shows. \nI dumped cable ages ago, and don't miss it at all. Nowadays Netflix via the Wii is the only thing that graces my TV screen. \n 1321302005 Has nobody here read William Cooper? USO - Unidentified SUBMERGED Object. 1327593029 Unsurprisingly that's the demographic they're not targeting shows to. At this rate cable won't be something anyone with a shred of intelligence and self dignity subscribes to. 1353642704 I'm curious as to what happens when you sleep. It seems as though you have to let it take over, if not what's stopping it from going out the door as you sleep. Also I would imagine it makes alcohol scary. 1343578164 I used to be you...Then I lived in a house that no longer allowed me to scoff.\n\nDo I think most of the Ghost Hunter TV shows are Bullshit?\n\nOf course, it's TV.\nI don't believe any of the "reality" shows are anything but bullshit.\n\nThat doesn't mean everything related to the paranormal is bullshit, as I used to believe prior to the late 90's. 1310918235 Sort of, but the propeller/extensions are extending from the back on either side kind of like fork tongs.\n\n[Alot like this from mythbusters](http://dsc.discovery.com/fansites/mythbusters/gallery/spring-2011-100.jpg) But entirely silver. 1343081214 Well if it was a meteor that it had amazing timing. 1346546745 This is unreadable. 1264428037 Are they bloody serious?!?!? oh humanity... you have lost the thread and the race... 1345128285 The emphasis in the grandparent comment is on the word "people". The emphasis in the article (and study) is on the word "men." if you read the title and abstract of the paper you will see it is NOT about "people" and how they all behave the same. It is about how men behave differently than women.\n\nIf you read the grandparent's follow-up, you'll see no complaint about the use of the word stupid. He/she is just concerned about gender versus race versus class. You have projected your concern into someone else's comment.\n\nThe use of the word "stupid" is allowable by creative license. It is obviously not a technical term. But cognitive impairment is one valid definition for the word stupid. 1331791183 Nor do rabbits chew their cud. 1330043307 As a former nutbag Fundamentalist, and autism mom, watching the Northern Lights, volcanoes, or MRIs of brain structure are **more** incredible when you have science as a backdrop. \n\nWith all due respect to Arthur C. Clarke, he was wrong when he said that 'Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic'. There's a big difference between 'I don't want to believe' and \n'this is what science shows, and our knowledge is still not comprehensive'. Science can show me why the Aurora Borealis occurs in certain places, and not in others. Brain scans can show me tumours, deficiencies in brain structure and connections, and often, why people act like they do. We still have no idea (really) how the brain works, and that is isn't a horrible thing. It's very frustrating, at times, but science is not magic. I might prefer to have Gandalf patrolling my kids' neurons and saying "You shall not pass" to every aggressive and self-injurious impulse, but science actually saved one daughter's life when she had cancer, and it would likely give my other kids a better life, except that we haven't quite cracked that particular (autism) code yet. \n\nScience still can't explain when 'life' begins, or when it ends. That's not a failure of science, that's a sign that we still have more to learn. What we have learned so far is incredible. \n\nScience isn't magic. It doesn't have all of the answers. The answers that it does have (what creates DNA, how is a person or animal created and why does it die, what the fuck is up with an opossum?) are already incredible. Religion has been trying to answer questions for a good number of millenia, and (with all due respect to religious people), they still don't seem to have answers. I've seen more 'magic' and wonder in science than I'm likely to ever see in any other place. \n\n 1301088001 So [this guy](http://www.sdh-fact.com/CL02_1/41_S3.pdf) is who you hang your hat on? A one trick Japanese denier/historian? 1321100788 Well, thanks for reading it. It's fairly long in comparison to some posts!\n\nAlthough Crichton was an author, he was also an MD and spent some time as a post-doc fellow, so, he is not without scientific education. After reading some of his material, watching some of his lectures, and seeing some of the interviews he did (i sought them out after reading this), i have to say, personally, I can't find any fault with what he says in any of them, or this piece in particular. He does analyze the language used, but IMHO, the language he is commenting on, are examples where scientists stepped over the mark. In my opinion, a scientist has a responsibility to use language *very* carefully/cautiously. So he calls a few well known individuals out? I'm not against that, I think it's healthy!\n\nI believe Crichton makes a fantastic case, that caution has somewhat been thrown to the wind, when it comes to some science, and that the line between science and policy has become very blurred indeed, and in 2003, he was *warning* us not to believe everything we read, and not to accept things on the basis of "consensus" opinion.\n\nJust before I go any further, I don't particularly like the term "denier", it makes anyone who wants to ask legitimate questions or check facts until they are convinced either way (which is the core of science), sound like Nazi's. Fair enough if you want to use it, but i just don't buy it and it has no place in debate as far as i personally am concerned. It's tarring everyone with the same brush.\n\nI'm not sure where you think he is wrong though, or where you think his logic is flawed, or how he came down on the wrong side? Crichton has on several occasions said that he didn't claim that some kind of climate event wasn't happening. He was just questioning a lot of the science behind it. He was opening a debate on some areas which had an aura on infallibility. Again in my opinion, he was correct to question "models", especially the "faith" that is put in them. So, Crichton wouldn't actually fall into the whole "denier" category. He was just engaging in scientific debate. He was being skeptical. He was talking about the over-use of extrapolation, in areas where sometimes science doesn't have all the answers, where it is not infallible.\n\nI'm not going to comment on your first link, simply because i think that issue is far too emotive, and I could only make a comment after looking at hard data. Which I don't have access to. Also I'd like to add, that this Crichton's lecture is from 2003, so in fairness, there wasn't as much debate back then (or the same level of visceral mud slinging), at least not from what i remember. \n\n>He clearly thinks the researchers are biased, so I wonder what he'd say about the recent study funded by deniers.\n\nWell, i'm a scientist, and i am biased. We all are. It's one of the hardest elements to deal with in the scientific process. Crichton, was just stating this reality, and suggesting that bias in certain fields can have a massive effect, perhaps not always on results, but certainly the interpretation of results. (the latter i think is what a lot of the mud-slinging is about these days, at least between scientists, not really the results themselves). Any scientist who claims to be wholly without bias, isn't a very good scientist, again in my opinion.\n\nYour second link by the way, I'm sorry, I can't see hard data, so again, I'm not going to comment. I see what you are saying, but I also see its a privately sponsored study, so, it's doesn't matter what side of the argument it came down on, I wouldn't personally comment on it unless i saw the hard data, and had the time to analyse it myself. For all i know, Mr. Koch has bought a controlling interest in a wind turbine manufacturer. The study may be absolutely flawless in it's accuracy and interpretation. I simply just don't know either way. I'm a skeptic :)\n\n>I also find it funny that he discussed cases where it took a long time for the truth to be taken seriously and ignores the fact that global warming has been discussed and largely ignored for decades.\n\nYour link for this is to an Issac Asimov video. What a great writer! I loved his foundation series when i was in college. He is talking about the green-house effect though. *That's not the same* as "global warming", and certainly is not the same as the more contemporaneously used term "climate change". It's just not the same thing. The former describes an effect, which is in turn a reported factor in the second, which has itself become confused with the third, of which it is but one possibility. Again, Crichton never confirms nor denies Global warming, it was ancillary to his main points, which address how some of the ideas have come about, how debate was stifled, and how the lines between popular policy and good science have become blurred. Again, i have seen Crichton state for the record on many occasions that he believed that some kind of climate change was occurring (but i don't want to quote him as i can't remember his exact words!).\n\nHe sums up towards the end in saying this:\n\n>If we were to address the land temperature records with such\nrigor, we would be well on our way to an understanding of exactly how much faith we can place in global warming, and therefore with what seriousness we must address this.\n\nSo all he is really saying on that particular issue is, (in my opinion), is I'm not overly impressed by what i've seen so far, this needs to be more rigorously looked at, not in terms of popular public policy, but in terms of the hard science. Then, and only then, should we decide what action to take.\nIMHO, there is nothing wrong with that. If you aren't happy with something, you need to investigate more, measure twice, cut once!\n\nAnyway, I'm glad you found it interesting. As i did.\n 1352595930 Do you have any placebo controlled double-blind peer-reviewed super-scientific studies indicating that in 1958 conspiracy theorists warned of the use of Diethylstilbestrol as an act of poisoning of the masses? No? THEN ITS NOT TRUE, SCIENCE-HATER !!! 1282469740 yea yea, be specific next time or don't bother. 1355878227 Nope, they can't sue him without either disproving the existence of the supernatural, or proving that he's unable to lift a curse (hence defrauding his customers by pretending to have lifted said curse). \n\nFunny enough but the burden of proof is on them in order to formulate some semblance of an accusation. \n\nNot a lawyer either, but how a case like this exists is beyond me. 1354230618 Sex? I didn't have time to rewatch the video (saw it the other day), but what's this about sex? 1314908631 >*"Who cares about the average person?"*\n\nNow I personally believe government and democracy is a bunch of bullshit. However isn't "caring about the average person" supposed to be the premise of democracies and western governments?\n\nDon't get me wrong, I'm not so naive as to accept the public premise of what government claims to be. Since you do not care about the average person, perhaps you can then answer honestly: what is the actual motivation behind what you advocate?\n 1328751931 Yes, it is. \n\nI'm just asking what the possibilities are. We shouldn't talk like we know unless we actually know. Large corporations are likely to work with governments to suppress information. I don't think the possibility is out of the question. 1343850222 I heard about this a while back, got linked this video from someone. I watched it because I'm nice, but I never bought into it (some pretty huge holes in there, hahaha). \n\nAnyway, I was on youtube a few years later, watching an unrelated video, and I saw in the sidebar a video titled ["Expanding earth my ass."](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=epwg6Od49e8) Immediately I was interested in hearing someone ridicule this theory and so I stumbled upon [potholer54 and his fun series of videos](https://www.youtube.com/user/potholer54/videos?sort=da&flow=grid&view=0). 1346288656 I can allow for a limited amount of this, but for the most part it is batshit crazy stuff. 1322350788 > actually picked this one up, thinking: "Wow, at twice the price it must have a bunch of special shit in it..." \n\nYou just made a million marketing majors cream their pants.\n 1315329899 Some skeptic. 1319419623 My Christmas tree shape shifts too. 1251675425 i find it hard to believe that this is a reflection off the window, it seems like a pretty solid video with no editing or screwing around done to it, hence why i linked it here. this sighting caused quite a controversy because the airport was shut down twice for the same reason 1339001349 Why would your god allow little boys and girls to wander aimlessly through the ether being earthbound and lost, potentially being tortured and hounded by even more negative spirits? \n\nBecause it's their 'choice'? Since when can children ever make educated choices? Your god can suck a fat one quite frankly. 1351397416 No particular flavor, just really smooth vodka 1309123619 Impossible for an organization to proclaim something and then fake the results of a test that they performed so that they could state the results that they were after? Well, then I have Osama's blood too, and I just performed a test too and it turns out that he was actually Tupac all along. Its cool though, I didn't fake it. I pinky swear! 1304415363 Is it just me, or are most of these sugar substitutes just downright nasty? 1329051890 Drivel, unless they are drooling or playing basketball. Huffpo might be drooling on themselves because they are too stupid to figure out how to shut their mouths. 1319733812 I appreciate the input but..sounds like a bad idea... Paranormal activity anyone? I know its just a movie but I think this would just aggravate the spirit. Also considering that my girlfriend cant see it im not sure what attempting to catch it on tape would accomplish. 1349206922 I saw a post that said Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was Jewish, crazy! 1320944501 Maybe it was a huge cloud and they didn't notice it. Anyways stories are stories. They belong in the past. Predictions is what science needs atm. 1350923681 Point is there are people skeptical of stuff that has already been scrutinized and accepted. I was skeptical of climate change at first, but it was then scrutinized and accepted by the scientific community. 1319212989 I think I can honestly say that I've never seen anyone outside the US who thought that climate change was a lie made up by their own government. Am I alone in noticing that only Americans think in such ways...? :D But I'm happy not to tar you all with the same brush: at the back of my mind I think I might have seen an Italian making the same claim... 1296555005 I love the fact that it spends so much energy going nowhere. 1335456539 My friend who goes to Franklin Pierce says his trumpet teacher had a photo from the night and that's not the craziest thing he claims. 1340074442 Sleep paralysis 1354402240 This is the same line of argument that I would have to read up on fairies before I dismiss them. You obviously misunderstand the nature of evidence or we wouldn't be having this argument. Why dont you just elaborate on what way my rationalization is different from what you actually believe if you want to make a case. 1332245645 Eerie story... 1297877732 I call that show 'Bro Adventures'. 1348550165 As the sweet surprise commercial says, it's safe in moderation. The problem is she says this while pouring her kid a glass of mostly corn syrup and just enough water to make it drinkable.\n\nIt's not the corn syrup itself, it's the sheer volume that's shoehorned into a ridiculous amount of foods. 1340417598 He is an anime fan. 1319035367 Why do you feel that way about the countries as a whole rather than just those ideals you admire?\n\nOn a separate note do you believe the US is better than those other countries you listed and what is that preference (if any) based on? 1337777143 Hold on, I don't quite agree with this. To be sure, you're probably right on with the psychology behind this mantra, but if you are going to discredit claims at a very low level (such as the premise) than you better know what exactly is the premise. Anything else is just an accidental strawman and not useful to you, the person making the claim and posterity. 1351255652 None of this sound good. Loosely put it sound's like you got some unnatural attention, much like a stalker IRL. This is similar to the experiences of the dark and moody friend in my story. Concerned about the hoof prints as this states something with definition and possibly personality.\n\nEDIT: I'd like to point out though the difference in modern terminology between a poltergeist and an possibly demonic entity. A poltergeist usually seems to be a dark entity, but with exploration of the malevolent phenomena the "entity" will lack any sense of definable features such as personality or an independent sense of intelligence. This is because a poltergeist is thought to be a projection of psychokinetic energy usually from the victims of the haunting experience. Think of it functioning similar to a robot operated by you're thoughts and negative emotions that you have a very minimal level of control of (if you are in fact the person who is generating the poltergeist phenomena.)\n\nWhat is called a demonoid, or demonic entity is usually very similar to this, except for one key difference. This perceived entity the victims have no control over it, it operates with it's own sense of intelligence, it gives the impression of a usually unlikable personality, tricks you, etc. So the end result is all the negative experiences of a poltergeist, but is seems to be a being, and not a mere manifestation of energies.\n\n 1323806865 but as stated in the (current) top comment, the figures presented are not even true. 1326300122 Let us know if you find anything. 1321395766 "....on the coast farting around also."\n\nI meant people launching weather balloons for the hell of it. In the 1970s-80s it was a thing to take party balloons right after a party and tie a 3x5 card to the string and launch them. On the card would be your address and a message asking about the finder. It was a weird way to do pen pals. I mostly heard girls doing it. 1328181132 Let me say it another way then - there's absolutely no other noise. Not a shuffle, not a footstep, not a breath, nothing. Look up any UFO video - and there are plenty taken in the middle of summer, with crickets, and you'll still hear at least a little other noise.\n\nI'm from the MW, I know what you're saying - but my point is that the mic would still pick up other ambient noise.\n\n 1340471200 His speech was quite good. 1332801269 An episode of Penn & Teller's Bullshit. It's a skeptic show about, well... things that are bullshit.\n\nThe episode I linked to is about bullshit medicine. Chiropractic bullshit is mentioned and exposed as the bullshit it is. I highly recommend the show. 1306972803 The part about the US troops securing Libyan oil is because Gaddafi ordered his own army to target these facilities. They needed to be secured because they were a danger.\n\nhttp://dailyreckoning.com/gaddafi-threatens-to-torch-libyas-oil/\n\n"Colonel Gaddafi's forces today blasted an oil terminal to smithereens as Libya's bloody civil war entered its blackest day."\n\nhttp://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1364469/Gaddafi-blows-Libyas-oil-pipes-tanks-turned-civilians.html\n 1331853219 I think the issue with HFCS isn't that it acts differently, just that it's **much** easier to sneak into everything, and put in large doses. 1340603999 Here's a link to Stanford Uni.'s study on sleep paralysis\n[linky](http://www.stanford.edu/~dement/paralysis.html) 1344941154 Wow. I think that's pretty much his primary thesis, isn't it? 1339911631 Jeepers. Sorry your single story has brought the hall of /r/skeptic down among us. Sorry you think your single story is so mysterious that it proves that modern medical science is wrong about Chiropractic. Guess that's why you're going apeshit on us. 1327973438 > Tell your friend he isn't in a scheme to make money, he's involved in a financial terrorist scheme, which will probably fail since any canny investors involved will sell off their silver before the JP Morgan payback moment, bursting the bubble and causing the crash early.\n\nThe backwardation, i.e. not enough silver (and gold as well) to cover the paper sold against it is getting worse and can only end one way. The Indians, Chinese, Iranians, Saudi/middle east oil producers and many other countries with huge $US reserves have been and are getting into metals to hedge against the dollar collapse.\n\nThe fundamentals (not enough metal for buyers) are plain as day, so it won't fail and JP Morgan and the Fed will die. However, I do agree it's not about making money, it's about preserving wealth in a something that has history as a currency on its side. \n\nFiat currencies are on a race to the bottom because what's happening now is exactly the same as every other fiat currency in history; greedy bankers and their rich friends printing paper currency at an alarming rate until it's worthless. No fiat currency has lasted longer than 100 years, but 'we' keep letting banksters run the show until they fuck it up, *again*.\n\nI didn't learn that at school, did you? Wonder why... 1302651905 I consider this a wholly despicable idea, for two reasons really. \n\nFirst, if the scientists don't educate, than who will? Let's say I'm an average Joe, and I don't believe in man-made climate change. Is some scientist who refuses to explain the evidence ridiculing me (or whoever I got my information from) really going to convince me I'm wrong? \n\nSecondly, and this is a big one, I'm a physicist and while I know that these haven't become quite as political, but there are many people who don't believe in quantum mechanics or relativity. I do not mock these people. As a community, I do not feel that physicists mock these people. We do have spokesmen (like Stephen Hawking, for instance) who explain these concepts really well to the common man. I would gladly explain the evidence for any of these theories. And most importantly, every physicist I know understands the weaknesses in quantum theory (which all theories have, even climate change) and do not say things like "the debate is over." 1332858404 I almost upvoted this comment because I thought it was a satire, but then I saw that you frequent SRS.\n\nNothing is more barbaric than using force to make other people conform to your vision of the world. 1340470513 Robert Lanza writes bullshit all over the place. He's a pompous woo-woo peddler who looks like a magician. 1322423250 Or "hippie". I thought my friends were being satirical and acting like Cartman, but no they actually label groups like that without even trying to understand them, and instantly don't care what happens to them anymore. 1324688914 Laughing ostensibly out loud 1301262385 the part at the end with the aliens was the best part. 1320203214 5/10 -- I don't know what this is at all, but the US has so many weapons that this is probably one of them (haha, but seriously).\n\n2/10 -- looks like industrial leftovers that happened to have floated by\n\nstillwatching/10\n\n\nThe ratings are how convincing I consider the video out of 10, you all have your own views. 1345880601 If this is not a photoshop, all I could gather from this video is that this is clearly not a reflection from inside the cabin. They definately are not lights from a possible aircraft as it is too bright out. I guess we're looking at the actual bodies of the crafts or stuff that are travelling very fast. 1325450249 Totally agree with you here. I am guessing UFOs will only be referenced by diplomats pointing out the bizarre beliefs of various world leaders, including their preoccupation with aliens, etc. I doubt we're going to see much more than that. 1292277549 Seeing how well you handled that, I went to the video link hoping to subscribe. My internal monologue went like this:\n\n"And subscribe! Wait, what? Looks like I've already been subbed a while... Hey! It's the Carl Sagan Tribute dude! Awesome."\n\nSeriously man, you make some great videos. I love that series. 1310754136 Well, I'm mildly OCD so I have a lot of ritualized actions or unecessary requirements when I do things, but I don't think that really counts.\n\nAs for superstitions:\n\nI have tons of superstitions when I'm doing something competitive (poker, sports, etc ...) and I'm sure everyone has heard of them, they're common ones. Uncommonly, I don't believe in ghosts or spirits at all ... except when in Hawai`i.\n\nI'm hawaiian and there's a long history of beliefs in spiritual stuff, including night-marchers. Nigh marchers come down from the mountains at night, beating drums, and they walk set paths. If you find yourself in their path and you're a non-native they will kill you, if you are a native you have to follow certain procedures or they kill you.\n\nRelated to that, it's bad luck to live in a house that has the front and back doors aligned, to whistle at night, or to live in a building along one of the supposed paths. \n\nIt is, of course, nonsense ... but that doesn't stop me from believing in it. :) 1256129205 I guess you should tell that to all the rocky slopes I saw on my last road trip with herds of cows grazing on them. 1289355689 clearly is a flying rock 1353000714 I enjoy the Bryan Callen episodes for this reason. He isn't afraid to challenge Joe and he's obviously a pretty smart guy. 1337303753 This looks great, I'll install it on Chrome once I get home! 1338218495 wow you guys are real harsh on the rednecks.\nThey saw a UFO,videod it and took the time to post it on youtube.\nThanks reds! 1326563550 I don't know any skeptics who seriously doubt that consciousness exists. They are simply skeptical of claims that it is, say, fundamentally immaterial or separate from the material world.\n\nEDIT: Phrasing 1264320504 True, but statistically speaking this fetus is likely to have problems if they are feet first instead of head first so late in term. Whoever drew the picture thought it would be more disturbing if they tore it apart from the feet up, but a breech presentation like that is actually uncommon close to term, often a sign of some other abnormality, and potentially a danger to mom's life. 1328707987 Guess what slick the Earth has been warming up for the last 35000 years and will continue do do so for about 25000 more years. Go take a look at the glacier boulders in George where to North Poler Ice cap used to be.\nStop getting your facts from TV News Hypers and do a little real research. In a real book. 1343494094 > the government wouldn't lie about vaccines; it's too important to public health \n \nThat wasn't my point at all. As I said in the first reply, it's about who can be targeted to be exploited. I'm not surprised that a town in Pakistan would be targeted to find Osama Bin Laden, but that's different from experimenting on the American Public. It's ethically just as wrong, but the scope, political blowback, and potential motives are completely different. And don't put words in my mouth, I don't condone these actions by the CIA. 1356549950 It can be like that. Consider the differences between doing drills, sparring and an actual bout in boxing (just picked that art as an example). In the first both parties know what's going on, in the second it may or may not be part scripted for training purposes, in the third...no real clue is to be had.\n\nUnfortunately some people do think the actual training forms **are** the art, not just practise/conditioning. To stick with boxing, it would mean thinking that hitting a semi-stationary pad someone is holding conveniently our for you **is** boxing.\n\nAnd, of course, some (a lot? I've not done a survey) of it is genuine, 100%, unadulterated bollocks. 1353606833 > Many other cluster headache suffers have reported the same thing.\n\nCite one respectable source that backs this claim\n 1294304986 Yes but the statement you quoted doesn't say doctors are sinister and purposely keep you sick to make more money. \n\nA company working for profits won't have incentive to really cure a disease to the point that we would see it eradicated, where the company would not make money off of a cure. It's not that the people in the company are evil or trying to keep people sick, and they probably wish they could research a true 'cure' but they would also say 'well unfortunately we can't throw money away on research that won't give us a return on our investment.'\n\nWhat I worry about is that 'skeptics', in a knee jerk reaction against homeopathy and people who think doctors are out to get us, will ignore the real problems that seem to exist in the medical industry in a for profit system. "No no, the medical industry is GREAT!"\n\nIt's like what FA Hayek said in the Road to Serfdom. He said laissez-faire capitalism would not work, and that people in his social circles knew it... but they had fought against socialism (real socialism) so long, that they eventually got more and more extreme in their view, ultimately telling people that full blown laissez-faire capitalism was the answer to everyone's problems. 1335522221 Only humans [(that i know of)](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=He7Ge7Sogrk) have the need & ability to describe reality; ergo any method of doing so was developed by humans.\n\nHumans are imperfect and thus anything humans come up with, no matter how excellent it may be, must not be assumed to be flawless.\n\nOf course, even our idea of 'perfection' is subject to this and thus we lack a model with which to make a comparison.\n\nGranted, we have to do the best we can with what we have. No one can expect more. \nBut it is arrogant to believe otherwise, and arrogance has long been our undoing.\n\n 1272244430 What part of the brain was damaged? Can't seem to find it in the article\n 1334673849 >how much we dislike what a good argument might say about us personally.\n\nI think it says a hell of a lot about Myers personally.\n\nI wouldn't be surprised to see a public apology from him, but perhaps clique opinion is too strong. I'm very familiar with the crowd he runs with. They're so far to the left they make Che Guevara look like Mussolini. 1341602394 this sort of entertainment should be banned. we've got enough hocus pocus in works of fiction, let's just keep it there. 1336003215 Nice pic of a [lenticular cloud.](http://images.google.com/images?hl=en&as_epq=&as_oq=&as_eq=&num=100&lr=&as_filetype=&as_sitesearch=&as_qdr=all&as_rights=&as_occt=any&cr=&as_nlo=&as_nhi=&safe=images&q=lenticular+clouds&um=1&ie=UTF-8&ei=bfj_Sd7gGpaktAPZyMHzBQ&sa=X&oi=image_result_group&resnum=1&ct=title) 1241512096 If you follow East Coast anthropological history, these type of reports are out there in the historical record, so it's good to have someone talking about it, why ignore it? \n\nWhat we do need is actual scientists with expertise in these fields at least providing some sort of counterpoint. \n\nIn instances like this I think one of the problems you run up against is actual archaeologists and anthropologists are reluctant to compromise their own reputations on what's perceived as fringe science. In that vacuum, this is what we get. 1353671770 I think this is a bad idea. What could an expert on the topic possibly have to say? 1335399431 I would like to see the details- methods applied, number of tests performed in this case, details of a control (can't call it a scientific experiment without a control, can we?), reviews etc. Without any of these, this is NOT science and can't be claimed to be a fact. I'd classify it hearsay or anecdote. Lastly, this seems to be a case where data was sought to corroborate a conclusion. Not looking good... 1324966803 So... the real problem here is that for damn near 100 years, various and sundry agencies have been *trying* to use scopolamine as a truth serum. It's actually pretty useful for [motion sickness](http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/druginfo/meds/a682509.html) and as a palliative sedative for end of life care. However, in 1914 a doctor in Texas [discovered that it lowers inhibitions.](http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,755351,00.html) Big whoop. So does valium. So does alcohol. So do lots of things.\n\nThing is, if you're trying to find things that lower inhibitions *at all costs* it's one of the drugs you try. Like the OSS did. Like the CIA did. It's worth noting that they certainly didn't limit their experiments to scopolamine - [they tried weed, acid, MDMA, you name it.](http://www.erowid.org/psychoactives/war/mkultra/mkultra_timeline.php)\n\nHOWEVER\n\nIf you look up "weed" or "acid" or "LSD" or "MDMA" or any of the other drugs that are actually *fun* to do, you find all sorts of information about how much FUN they are. If, on the other hand, you look up scopolamine, you discover that it's\n\na) [useful in treating motion sickness](http://boingboing.net/2007/09/27/scopolamine-zombie-d.html) and\n\nb) [crazy-ass tinfoil hat territory.](http://scopolamineisland.com/Background.html)\n\nThere have been and always will be mysterious rumors about drugs that people haven't encountered in the wild that cause you to do all sorts of terrible crazy things ("bath salts" anyone?). They add to the allure of narcotics and to the dire warnings of the DARE crowd. Thing is, if there were such a drug out there that completely "zombied" you out, how many different segments of society can you think of that would find a way to use that to their advantage post-haste?\n\n[There is science here](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Truth_drug) but c'mon - if anything worked as well as the paranoiacs claimed, war would have ended about the time sodium pentothal was invented. 1347503437 You are not alone.\n\nhttp://www.reddit.com/r/Glitch_in_the_Matrix/comments/13udqr/put_two_socks_in_the_dryerthree_came_out/\n\nThis is only one of many sock related glitches recounted in this subreddit. I myself am convinced that socks have a special quantum quality, evidenced by the long accepted fact that even though complete sets of socks go into the washer/dryer, many times only singles come out.\n\nWherever all the lost and vanished things go when they take their leave of this plane, I bet that place is chock the fuck full of socks. At least I know that if I end up there someday, my feet will be warm. 1355953284 Re #5:\n\n> And then there was the whole syntax thing -- both languages use the verb as the last word of a sentence, a feature only 45 percent of languages share.\n\nHoly shit, **only** almost half of all languages are subject object verb, which just happens to be the most common word order of all languages on earth according to the link provided by cracked.com itself, with subject verb object coming in a close second! This is roughly the same as saying, "we flipped a coin twice, and it came up heads both times!" What are the odds? (roughly 1 in 5)\n\nAlso, the map you linked is way more interesting than anything in the article. 1334956168 Please link to the TIL thread. 1331948744 well-more than 1 in 400 have this ability according to the test? That doesn't seem that amazing to me. 1291310833 Obviously have everyone drinking the "Kool Aid". 1354070338 More like Federation of Fail. 1224013794 So lets say that the UFOs aren't alien craft....does that automatically negate studying them?\n\nNobody can doubt that there is strange shit going on in the sky. 1307165897 Wikileaks has, already, established a name for itself. Almost everyone is aware of the Wikileaks situation and it would be easier to get the information out, and be most believeable. If Wikileaks wasn't a trusting site, then the US wouldn't be at his throat for releasing all that disgusting information. 1292177473 As someone who has experienced this, I can confirm this is most likely the culprit. 1356462325 This. Is. Awesome. 1343695691 Says Ben Stein is not a quack. My trust of this site approaches zero. 1320729366 Why do you believe the people have the freedom to do whatever they want as long as they don't do it in government. Holding government accountable is the people's job. Educate the people about government and then keep the government honest. Corporations do not have the same public good responsibility that the government has. 1345187282 Thanks for posting this followup/alternative perspective. Lots to think about.\n\n(Also: reverence levels!) 1280619822 Placebo effects form a surprisingly large part of the effect of some medicines. Maybe it's time to become more rigorous for all medicines, to identify all the other placebo pills too. The difference between quackery and working medicine will become more apparent then, even to the layman. 1258028293 >Nobody is willing to go through economic hardship now to save future generations from being fucked.\n\nHere is where the real discussion is, but I wouldn't say "most" of the world lives in denial in the way you put it. It's not so black and white. I would say that those keen to embrace *every* Global Warming policy designed to slow its spread are in denial about the costs. I would say those that hesitate to embrace *any* sort of policy designed to subdue Global Warming are in denial about the dangers. I would say those that simply refuse to admit the existence of Global Warming are in denial about the facts.\n\nAs per the reasons why the fight against global warming has slowed in recent years, I think there are many world leaders who think something should be done, but are also realistic in face of the largest economic depression the world has seen since the great depression. I believe Obama falls into this category, though he'd never admit it to his constituents. 1354647997 Yea, maybe they have data that backs up those claims, but it's sure not presented in the article. 1340562174 Only.... orbison? That's what I get for posting on my phone. 1331830118 I had to give up after four or five "points". There was a high risk of severe facepalming in the future and I didn't want to take my glasses off atm. 1330685719 >Further, even if it were the cause, it's not necessarily an indictment of chiropractic, any more than the existence of malpractice is an indictment of conventional medicine.\n\nTrue, but it is a problem when we consider that chiropractic has no benefits or effectiveness for treating any condition. This means that the presence of any negative consequence (whether it's a stroke or just an increased risk of getting a rash) makes the practice unethical and is an indictment of chiropractic. \n\nThis is why comparing risks and deaths to actual medicine is always fallacious because it ignores the cost:benefit ratio. So whilst it's true that actual medicine carries more dangers than ear candling, to treat the dangers of actual medicine to the dangers of ear candling as equivalent, without reference to the corresponding benefits of each treatment, is misleading. 1349400520 Haha I know what you mean! 1328911386 I really liked that second video. Too bad that even if it's the freaking smoking gun, people wouldn't have it in that format.\n\nI wonder what the hypothetical treaty was about. Maybe the whole 1% NWO thing started right there, by them acquiring tools. But then why don't the other races step in. 1329429181 It depends on the women; fear is not something easily controlled from outside. \n\nDownvote me all you want, but that doesn't change the fact the only thing that could would satisfy the insecurity of very fearful women would require a complexity of social control rivaling the fascism you can see in Saudi Arabia and other similar places: no woman goes anywhere outside without a male chaperon/guardian that is a relative and she is not allowed to talk to strangers. That guarantees a lot of security. Free societies, however, demand "thick skinned" individuals or the bravery to go out and be vulnerable, and this is both for women and men.\n\nTo put my point simply: **currently, you can't have a society that holds individual freedom high while also having very deep and efficient mechanisms of control for ugly speech and other bad behaviors.** \n\nSo,\n\n>Are you really trying to argue, that it is impossible to have a convention without women being afraid of sexual assault? Seriously?\n\nYes, unless it's a small convention where people know each other better and the situation is easier to control. Don't forget, I'm speaking of the fear, not of actual assaults. 1351168235 Well, in a sense it is my choice to make. What we are arguing about here, as far as I can tell, is tacit acceptance. You are proposing tacit acceptance for any treatment that works as well as placebo. My choice, as a skeptic, is whether to endorse or oppose that proposal.\n\nI'd like to make a counter-proposal: any placebo that we even *consider* treating as an acceptable option should be shown to do no more harm than pouring water on somebody's shirt.\n\nHere we have a woman who is actively claiming the existence of unreal entities who speak to you, who are unseen by others, and who give you good advice. This is incredibly dangerous for any of the sixty million people in this world who have schizophrenia. It is the mental equivalent of telling peanut allergy sufferers that the swelling sensation they feel after eating nuts is the body purging itself of toxins.\n\nThere are hundreds of cases of mentally ill individuals taking the advice of unseen forces and killing or maiming others. So offhand, I'd say this *particular* placebo has to be acknowledged as potentially harmful and I will be withholding my tacit acceptance.\n\nYou're free to offer your tacit acceptance, but I would suggest that *assuming* a marginal psychosomatic benefit is more important than potential harm is hardly skeptical. It's an act of faith, particularly when those same placebo benefits can be obtained without resorting to loony fictions and outright fraud. 1300492862 Dorm ghost stories always grab my attention the best. 1318551747 Thank you for this post. It did not come off as rude at all, and I do thank you as I would like to explore every possibility. I've not experienced anything that would induce PTSD. Dissociative Identity disorder doesn't fit either. Also, thank you for your comment on hypnotherapy. \n\nI would have been 24-25 years old when this occurred. My memory of the event has improved with time. My friend did not remember the event at all until I mentioned it about a year and a half ago. The last time we spoke about it, he never mentioned any of the details, but as we were speaking, he was staring at the ground/off in space, and saying something to the extent of "oh my god, you're right". I've not followed up with him in a while.\n\nThanks again for this comment. 1333518218 thank you! i was just about to post something similar. i hate that they do that 1336092188 dude maybe its aliens 1343665462 Doesn't the entire Muslim world have fasting as a staple of their diet? 1310272148 That concept has nothing to do with military operations, only to criminal trials. 1304552097 Seems like you did fine all by yourself. It's unlikely to convince someone who is heavily invested in a conspiracy theory, I hope you didn't waste your time typing all that. I did this with a Nostadamus nut a couple weeks ago and it felt like it was impossible to get through to him. 1284695523 No, that would be farming. 1313713338 You've got to BELIEVE. 1328712008 Except he wasn't replying directly to Watson, he was replying to Phil Plait's "potential rapist" article which Myers linked to. \n\nYou could interpret it as telling her to "shut up" but that's not what he was doing. He was saying it was a non issue regarding "women's rights". That Watson felt creeped out is a subjective, individual feeling. It does not follow that she gets to appropriate the entire feminist movement with one fell swoop to educate the rest of us on elevator etiquette. Dawkins was perfectly within the bounds of civility when he pointed out that the rank hysteria blowing up over a "potential rape" is a non issue when compared to absolute real issues of women being tortured, beaten, raped, killed and mutilated all over the world. \n\nWhat Watson experienced was a first world issue. A guy asked you up to his room for coffee while in an elevator. Watson declines. Guy sheepishly goes his own way. \n\nHer initial reaction on Youtube (though presumptuous and self serving) was quite benign. It was certainly nothing to get rilled up about. People have opinions all the time that are contrary to others. This has never been about the initial incident. This has always been about the blow up after the incident, which started with Watson's incredibly bad behavior by calling out McGraw in public. \n\nThat was always the issue people had with her. They pointed out that bad behavior, Phil Plait and PZ Myers piled on with their "Always name names" and "Potential rapists" posts and then Dawkins got his shot in.\n\n\n\n 1321238884 So a rebellious, independent, mostly isolated, organized infrastructure, which favors strong individualism, is a better ground for libertarianism to flower than a despotic, enslaved, fundamentalist, corrupt, unorganized, self-immolated, substandard, heavily dependent infrastructure?\n\nYeah, I agree, which is why I say America is a better country to test libertarianism than Somalia. Glad you agree with me. 1356134303 Intentional fallacy. 1309669325 I think lots of conservative sources agree, that climate change is happening, but not man made.\n\nIt's a natural cycle or it's from another unknown source; are the common explanations. 1336494153 Allow me to jump in here and say fuck off, you cynical arshole. 1323968980 Which is equally ridiculous.\n\nIf it were somehow possible for humanity to spew as much crap into the air and water with no ill effects, there would be evidence. It's absolutely ludicrous to believe that in a world as full of waste and destruction as our own, that a staggering 99.83% of the scientific community dedicated to climate research would unwaveringly commit to a global conspiracy designed to perpetuate a patently false myth about humanity's impact on the world in order to get us to subscribe to a green philosophy and fund green projects.\n\nKeeping in mind that the alternative would be to say "good news, all is well", in which case your task becomes much easier. You don't have to convince anyone to fund your green revolution, you can just dedicate yourself to research into more cost effective coal mining, or building a more powerful SUV, in which case you're likely to find people competing to fund your research that they may reap the rewards of your findings, rather than fighting tooth and nail for every dollar of funding for your algae power plant or your plan to increase solar panel efficiency by 5%. 1353779125 Perhaps I doubt humans but some seem to complex to do "overnight"\n\nhttp://www.cropcircleanswers.com/Fig6.jpg\nhttp://img410.imageshack.us/img410/5104/cropcircle4nn7.jpg\nhttp://www.hufos.net/images/doomsday_crop_cirlce.jpg\n\nIm all for the human explination, as I have 0 evidence for aliens creating them.\nI have watched the disclosure project however which I have yet to be seen debunked plus its fairly credible people, sure it does not proove crop circles, but it does proove (to me at this time but who knows i am open to debunking attempts) that either aliens do come to earth or the governments ships are far more advanced that we know. 1257788580 No, the world went to shit before that, when Snooki "wrote" a *book*. 1329433225 Some bullshit meme created by /x/ on 4chan.com that isn't scary and is just a troll. 1328754818 > It's the astrologists, it's the radiologists.\n\nMagic - Science\n\nAstrology was and is treated as a science, and possibly developed into the science of astronomy. \n\nYou moved from the normal 'physical' world you are used to into an unfamiliar realm of 'magic' which confused you... but as your grandfather told you, it's just science that you don't understand.\n\nIt's your brain, so you know better than us anyhow. ;)\n\n 1354230337 I'll have to point out that homeopathy douse in fact interact with other meds in that it dilutes them if taken at the same time like drinking another glass of water with your aspirins. 1297456017 Sounds a lot like this:\n\nhttp://www.traileraddict.com/trailer/hollow-2011/feature-trailer 1347034943 Man just let people believe what they want to believe. 1303085616 First off thanks. No seriously, Thank You. Second: yeah I don't care if you use it to treat stress or pain or eczema, but if someone is using it for cancer or some other such disease, that really worries me, And when one of these ladies did the three finger pulse read to gauge my chi my eyes rolled so far back I could see my brain. 1331704188 It's as fine of an excuse as anything, if you agree that there is no free will, which I think is the author's point. 1341275462 Spammer. 1322902584 He should have made availability bias the first in the song. 1292706042 Connecticut too... \n\nThe movie "A Haunting in CT" takes place here. \n\nkshultz06082429 1332342976 Is that girls name really P'La?! 1347639121 For some reason this reminds me of something i've heard before... 1328897204 I had nightmares for the longest time as well never making the connection until I was on wiki and saw that "vivid dreams" was one if the side effects. Being aware of this in my dreams has allowed me to control my reaction and is no longer an issue for the most part. 1342360810 Sounds like the current storyline of Supernatural... 1338010905 Redhead here and I don't need any more than the average...my ex, a brunette male had to have at least two times the average to be effective. 1290044376 Why are you so upset about people asking questions and exploring possibilities? Why is that asinine to you?\n\nIf everything is so pedestrian and boring, why are you so worked up? The truth is that we only know of a fraction of the technological capabilities of the military. We know that 25% of their budget each year is eaten up by Black ops, which by definition means you have no idea what that represents.\n\nWhy are you so sure about what you know, and what do you not know? That is what I am asking here. As I said, i'm sure you have perfectly good explanations for all sorts of things you've heard from the government. I'm saying there might be more to the story. The OP seemed to be coming from this at the 'local' level, which to myself is interesting as well. There is always some little truth to every legend, imo. I have also never claimed this idea is absolutely or even most likely true.\n\nI didn't mean to call you or infer you are closed-minded. I do not think that. That being said, all of us can always try to open our minds up even more than we have previously, myself included. Sorry for the offense. 1339609907 So? 1336057134 So? 1249873433 So? 1306288680 So? 1307719388 So? 1323740832 So? 1331245787 So? 1334906224 no, they aren't unwell or even dumb. it's a combination of a need for community and a need to have your ideas reassured. the easiest way to get trapped into these things is to assume you never will. 1334472201 That makes sense, I just heard 'Generation X' so very often growing up (born in '83) I assumed it was me. I thought Generation Y was 90-00. 1338911173 See also his other great channel, [Potholer54](http://www.youtube.com/user/potholer54). 1275075602 Absolutely.. you've handled this post extremely well, and I really admire your thoroughness and respect throughout the discussion! I like it that you've had a really well researched and open mind, but still stand strongly by your own opinion - and force all the 'believers' to think hard and carefully about their views! I am still firm of the opinion that we are not alone in this universe, simply because of the size of the playing field - but I agree that there needs to be a lot better evidence presented before we can say for sure that they have interacted with us in the past. The most convincing arguments seem to come from ex-military/astronaut/other public figures, however obviously anyone can claim whatever they like, and who knows what their agenda is...\n\nHaving said that, let me quickly go a little off topic. To me, there seem to be just too many occurances of paranormal things (Astral Projections, Spontaneous Healing, Philadelphia Experiment, Laylines/earth's energy grid, Synchronicities, Collective Consciousness, the Nature of Personal Reality, etc etc) to be completely discounted, that lead me to believe at least SOME of them are true and that there is a significant area of biology/physics/neuroscience that we haven't even begun to fully understand. From my knowledge of QM I am aware of the significance conscious observation has on outcome, and the fact is that we still can't really explain what mediates non-local quantum effects (ie entanglement). Throw in the idea of time having three dimensions to allow for 'parallel' universes and the fact that there is most probably something that unifies gravity with the rest of the picture, I'd say its fairly likely that we develop some form of timetravel in the near to distant future, (providing we don't blow ourselves up first). It will probably involve black holes, and would be limited to consciousness only... who knows.\n\nMy point is this: perhaps we need to BELIEVE in aliens, so we imagine and attempt to explain/understand their technology - and simultaneously improve and enrich our lives. I find it facinating that a number of high level academics have on occasion claimed to have been contacted by ETs (Robert Anton Wilson writes a lot about this and lists Tesla, Buckminster Fuller, and a whole bunch of others I forgot). Perhaps our strong belief of aliens throughout history is as persistent as it is irrational, and it is simply 'thought energy' being projected through time by our future kind in order to assist ourselves by hinting at their supposed existence... So that we may better realise the malleability of reality.\n\nI don't know, im just kinda making this up as I go along, and I feel like I'm trying to explain something I have absolutely no idea about... I feel like I have 5 or maybe 6 pieces of a 1000 piece puzzle and am trying to guess what the final image looks like. But I feel like the end result is indeed extremely beautiful, and its still fun to speculate. 1343861432 They have a near-impossible job sometimes. Most science is counterintuitive or otherwise difficult to comprehend. 1329640662 One night I was going back and forth on whether or not to email my ex to see how he was and maybe get back together. The tv was on behind me on some show I had never seen and as I was going into my email I turned around because I knew the whole scene that was happening behind me. I know I had never seen a commercial for the show and it was a brand new episode. Whatever it was I decided not to email my ex but try online dating and I met my husband because of this decision. 1322025047 Yes. That is the reason I didn't go.\n\nAnd I am a little tired of listening to bloggers/hacks filling up the space with their activism/whining.\n\nSo far the reports are that it was a good decision... [ I wouldn't want to be called a rape apologist for wearing the wrong t-shirt](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pZo_l521ZwA&feature=g-all-f).\n\n\n\n 1342671972 > As the years go by, the effects of the substance impairs judgment and rational thinking, decreases memory and disrupts emotional stability. In other words: It makes you dumber.\n\nThat explains the article then. 1284365924 Autocorrect 1336589408 100 lightyears is an infinitesimal bit of the universe. 80 or so stars.\n\nI think we can assume it's an uncommon occurrence, at the very least. If it was common, we'd have lots of evidence.\n\nIt being uncommon makes it unlikely that --in the relatively short time we've been recording and/or looking-- we've been visited. 1341202540 Him there a quite a few stories coming out of africa about modern day witch hunts. None of them seem to include charismatic preachers asking for evidence. Rather they seem to involve said preachers making shit up.\n\nAnd then getting community sentiments to such a pitch that the very life of the accused witch is in danger. Is this happening to Psychic Sally?\n\nI thought not. 1328482131 Evidence that doesn't require belief. 1322108056 It's not my intention to insult anyone. I don't "disagree" with a party the same way i don't "agree" with a party. I personally think subjects should be discussed independent of party representation. The post title is a quote from the article that gets to the heart of the ideas presented, not my opinion.\n\nYou've focused on the political aspects more than the skeptic-related points.\n\nRegardless of party, certain politicians may soon hold the most powerful political position in the United States. Regardless of party, US citizens with a potential to vote for said politicians have misinformation about scientific issues. Regardless of party, said politicians would rather knowingly refute scientific evidence to appease a likely voting base than stick to truth and reason (tenets of skepticism).\n\nWhile it's pretty evident that Prothero is biased in his writing, for me the main message of this post is that representative among roughly half of the voting population in the US is a popular idea (AGW skepticism/denial) that goes completely against the consensus of experts on the subject. Even worse, authority figures (potential future US presidents) would rather appease a misinformed mass than lead the way of science.\n\nSorry if the political aspects offended you, but such ideas are perfectly in line with this subreddit. It examines a social, scientific, and pseudoscientific controversy. It issues a resistance to the spread of pseudoscience and irrational beliefs. The link is from a blog which the founder of the Skeptics Society, Michael Shermer, contributes to.\n\nUntil your desire for not wanting politically related skeptical posts becomes consensus here, you should expect to see some politically related skeptical posts.\n\nIn my opinion you would do better to ignore the post based off its title, downvote it, or contribute intelligent counterpoints rather than blanketly provide faulty generalizations and insulting my post as "petty" and "bullshit." 1318329083 she was in her office when she heard giggling, thats why she turned around and took the picture, they had been seeing sighting of the ghost girl around the house, i guess. 1355168543 Yes, part of the reason it isn't more popular is because I used too many colors, I thought the contrast would help in reading it, turns out it just makes it look ugly.\n\nA lot of people here tend to want to point to exceptions to the rule, that not every Muslim is protesting, to claim that Islam has nothing to do with this. And they point to an unknown cause X, which they call "other factors" or "other variables", that they cannot explain. 1347833863 Sorcha is an Irish girls name. Pronounced Sur-ka, Sur-a-ka, Sur-ha or Sur-a-ha, depending on where you learned your Irish.\n\nIt's sort of funny to find out this Sorcha is a man. 1350635722 If anyone, really anyone at all in /r/skeptic would like to look at an actual *medical* study based on actual science (which apparently no one has) they would find that Steve beat the odds quite handily. This place is amazing that everyone here is taking the word of financial magazines concerning a medical diagnosis. These studies are readily available for anyone to look at just like I did yesterday but none of you have bothered to do so, you just keep following the lemming in front of you. \n\n(pirmvalEcho this isn't directed at you, it's directed at the populous of /r/skeptic because they are sheep in every sense on this one) 1318008427 Surely then cell phones cure cancer. 1310743280 short answer: no\n\nlong answer: no 1323246456 I take issue with the statement that Freud created "the only unified" theory "recognized by everyone". \n\nHe founded psychoanalysis, which was revolutionary in its time because it said man wasn't so much unlike animals, because man was also driven by lust, emotion and the subconcious. This gave a whole new view on mankind which opened up a lot of doors. He partly paved the path towards psychology. Someone like Ebbinghaus or Cattel (the first one, James McKeen) deserve much greater recognition when it comes to psychology.\n\nPsychoanalysis is also a bunch of horse manure. 1329146780 A good digital voice recorder with a USB port on the side.\nhttp://shopping.yahoo.com/recorders-transcribers-tapes/;_ylt=Amg7OLTE79worBwftaL312v1BMYu?p=digital+voice+recorder&pf=40&pt=55 1355030378 Think about this. There were tens of thousands of people watching the Olympics in person. Millions of people watching the Olympics at home. It would be impossible to cover up a UFO flying over a stadium.\n\nEven if the government forced Goodyear to cover it up, the UFO would still have been visible by thousands of people. No one who was there saw a UFO but a lot of people saw a blimp. Are all these people lying on government's behalf as well?\n\nI swear, you people see conspiracies everywhere. 1343859920 Absence of evidence may not be evidence of absence, but absence of anything beyond "this exists because we believe it does" stemming from thousands of years ago when pretty much everything else with any predictive potential/factual claims attached to their 'grand theory', as it were, are provably incorrect, then I feel comfortable in hedging my bet in this uncertainty to a position of some kind of a functional certainty. \n\nWhen any claims an institution/authority makes that can be disproved are disproved and the rest are only considered credible because they are concepts or claims that can either never be disproved or proved or are formulated in a way that allows these goalposts to be moved indefinitely... well, you might not be able to disprove them, but neither do they carry any particular credibility. 1305569002 Lol, his stuff is so bad other crazies are correcting him with more craziness.\n\nhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H49RWfaiRMg 1351528971 Very interesting documentary, worth checking out! 1335465802 Their information seems to focus on succinic acid (traditionally known as "spirit of amber", as it was originally extracted from ground amber) and its supposed benefits. It is typically used as a sweetener or flavoring agent in food production. I can't find any information on clinical studies, or any indication that simply wearing amber will allow it to enter your bloodstream (highly unlikely). There are a couple of in-vitro studies that show it might have some beneficial effects as an anti-oxidant, but in-vitro studies don't show how it actually acts in a human body.\n\nSuccinate is part of the Krebs cycle (cellular metabolism), but as far as I can see, your body gets all it needs naturally through the food you eat. Otherwise, we'd all be dead from not getting enough.\n\nBottom line, I think if their claims were true, you would have to keep buying more amber all the time because it would slowly break down and be absorbed by your skin. Furthermore, as a parent of two young children, my experience is that knowing whether your child is upset due to teething pain is hit and miss at best.\n\nNot surprisingly, you can buy succinic acid as a dietary supplement. It's probably a lot cheaper than buying an amber necklace. But it's a fat-soluble nutrient, so I would be aware of the fact that any excess that your body doesn't use tends to build up in your liver and can lead to toxicity. The FDA has no established safe dosage levels.\n\nI AM NOT A DOCTOR. The extent of my qualifications on this matter include 2 years studying biochemistry in the mid-90s and 20 minutes on Google. 1316120134 I think guided meditation can possibly help you to think more clearly about some things in your life or in the world, and that's more than just relaxation and could have more long-term impact, but I've never practiced it myself. 1325972833 Health Canada letting people "vote with their feet" on the issue of homeopathy is ridiculous. All the DINs should be revoked. 1337873759 Cartesian Dualism is the idea that the mind and body are separate. There is the physical world and a separate plane for the soul or mind. \n\nThere are a lot of kinks in this. At least in his original formulation. 1354080805 the opposite of the eternal september? 1341434284 The problem here is not home birth. It's *unassisted* home birth.\n\nStudies that want to show that home birth is more dangerous than hospital birth simply include unassisted home birth in with all home births.\n\n(Source: Obstetric Myths and Research Realities, chapter 17) 1262740031 I started listening to the audiobook last week and did a double-take when I heard that line. I had to pause and check when the book came out. Strange to see it here. 1313650756 i can take a nail and lift another nail with it as if it is magnetized. i donno if it is actual science or i am doing it. however if i think negativity it drops 1318832578 At first I Thought it was creepy, but after reading your comment and looking again, the shadow on the wall almost clearly shows someone standing with their legs apart and their arms somewhere around the front pockets of their jacket. 1353108526 Thanks nogood. I like you too. :) 1311905065 >I find debunking articles filled with just as much propaganda and disinformation as the documentaries and articles they critique.\n\nYou should provide examples of this. Are you getting your information from a reliable source? What do you consider to be propaganda and disinformation? You need to provide a direct link to a specific documentary or article that you have an issue with. With that, it will be much easier to figure out if you just misunderstand the kind of skeptic this subreddit is for, if you have trouble understanding scientific evidence/reasoning, or if you're getting your "debunking" information from unreliable sources. 1342245965 My mom does ha 1349963942 The issue you have there is the likelihood that the plaintiff doesn't have the financial where-with-all to come up with the money, even if he were required to pay for the defense of the school district. Once the school gets a judgment (and before they execute a lien), the guy files for bankruptcy protection, and the debt likely gets discharged. This is because of the preferential order of creditor recovery in bankruptcy - taxes first, then secured creditors, then unsecured creditors. Since most people in the US in this day and age really have no assets other than their house (which goes to the bank if the bank accelerates the note), there is no recovery for the school. 1340656412 Yes. That's besides the point. My point is that you can do the same thing with any number of millions of jews, invalidating your idea that '6 million jews' is somehow significant. 1356392248 >Evidence Based Homeopath\n\nWat 1317867447 I think what he's saying is that the subjective description of the problem changes after the delivery of the placebo. For example, let's say you have some pain, and you describe it as "6 out of 10". Then you take a placebo, and say "4 out of 10", but only because you *think* you should be getting better, not because of any ACTUAL decrease in pain. 1311276654 The difference is that homeopathy is pretty harmless. 90% of the people who buy are people with a touch of the nerves, or more money than sense.\n\nPeople will buy these products, the market exists. Wegman's position on these products is perfectly reasonable; sell this harmless product if you don't like it you don't have to buy it.\n\nIf you really don't like their policy on this then don't shop there at all. 1326327211 Yeah that is a huge problem. However, if it's a big enough problem, I imagine other school districts could all band together and do the same. Instead of meddling with Texas, why don't we encourage collaboration/cooperation between all of the school districts in the NE and the west coast? 1343683188 I'm surprised that a neurologist writing about low carb diets didn't once bring up the ketogenic diet. Anyone know of any written by him on the subject? 1273565402 I sometimes like to get my tarot read when I go to a local renaissance fair for funsies. The first time I had gotten my tarot read, the guy didn't tell me anything about myself that I already didn't know. I was skeptical about most of what he said because it fit most people. There was one thing he said that did give me the chills. He told me I had a deep separation from two people from my immediate family and he told me that I emotionally cut them out of my life. \n\nMy grandmother was completely gone from Alzheimer's and my uncle suffered a stroke that deteriorated his brain as well. I've always harbored a lot of guilt for not being able to talk to them more often. 1331562633 Are you a giraffe? :P 1321550016 lols were had. 1315520440 The worst part about this thing is that as you can see by the pushing demonstrations that the people practicing it are fully aware its a con... The people who advocate homeopathy I'll give them the benefit of the doubt that they are just really ignorant about science and actually think they are doing good... But the people who do this stuff are 100% aware that they are pushing in a different way to make their product seem like its doing something... 1273720888 This could easily be something called Orthostatic Hypotension. It's a sudden drop in blood pressure in your head that causes dizziness, vision to go out, a sense of disorientation, and numbness. We all experience it to some degree every day. Getting up too fast after laying down can cause it, or it can just happen at random. I get it very bad sometimes and I almost "lose" myself for a few moments. That could very easily be what it is. 1353870410 Seriously. Just use your boomstick, Bruce, it'll save the district thousands. 1340540762 Unless it's for all the evil shit they actually do. 1295971585 ... plenty of CONCRETE evidence? Where? 1329428971 Have you ever used any dissociatives or research chemicals? Is the visual snow a result of HPPD? 1354414365 I get a strange feeling that the general public is not going to get the truth about what this anomaly is. 1338320250 Your situation of misdiagnosis is tragic and certainly happens way too often. Over prescription of medicine is ludicrous, and may even happen with alarming frequency, as you insinuate.\n\nBut there are those of us who have been properly diagnosed and are happy with our medication. My Wellbutrin is great, and I don't notice any side-effects. So the situation is obviously complex. 1348270396 Please read the article. It covers a lot of this 1314401393 I agree. EVP's that are clearly spoken sentences or music or laughing can be some pretty convincing evidence. I have never had a paranormal experience, and frankly I am pretty thankful for that. In some ways I envy those that have had experiences, but most of the time I feel like they are just embellishing a story or suffering from the effects of the brain trying to make sense of activity viewed in darkness with a heightened sense of dread and fear. In may ways I feel like paranormal activity is actually created by the witness by a lack of access to complete information. \n\nOf course, I have never put myself in a "haunted" situation, so my words lack the confidence brought about by experience. If ghosts do actually exist, I dont want one following me home. I dont want to open a door that I cant shut. Thats why I asked the question in my original post. I would like the experience of visiting a haunted location without actually doing it. 1339905287 The problem with freezing a body is that the water in the cells expands and crystallizes, causing the cells to burst or become otherwise damaged. Freezing a body at a normal rate causes death. 1340694052 She said it was tall and thin and covered with what looked like moss and bark, like it was a cross between an tree and a person but not a human. Her boyfriend said he saw it too but he only saw a moving outline, presumably because he is colorblind. Both times it was crossing the road near our parent's house who live in a wooded area on a small mountain. Because of unrelated events I no longer believe any story she tells because I think she is a pathological liar. Reading this post just reminded me of her story. 1347934437 Millions of people use Google and the NSA has a tax payer base of millions of people. 1354607446 I haven't lol'd at a comment that loud in a long time. I was strangely aroused as well 1305570006 First, I feel we have to admit that Penn & Teller could really just decide that they like the magician and want him to come over. It doesn't have to be because they didn't figure out the trick. \n\nSo, that said, we can assume that just because they looked at the envelope he used doesn't mean it wasn't a trick envelope. They could merely have enjoyed his work and wanted him on the show. Like wise, there's another magician who spells out a card with his deck -- that seems pretty straight forward (trick deck, specific cuts are used to spell words), but they seemingly get it wrong and are "fooled". I feel it's more likely that they knew how he did it but were so impressed by his use of the box that they decided they really wanted him to succeed and/or come to Vegas.\n\nHOWEVER, that said, iirc they ask if he slides anything into the envelopes. He very specifically says that he doesn't slide anything "into" the envelope. This leads me to believe that *every* envelope has both 100 pounds and a fake note and he uses his jokes to misdirect and stall while he slides the 100 pounds "out" of any chosen envelope. I am not an expert but that's how I would do it. 1309887139 What scientific method was used here? The investigation is laudable, sure, but it's hardly a canonical example of scientific method. 1292984104 It says Basil, it says my last name. 1323818524 I think I'm safe to call it coincidence when it comes to the supernatural. 1323198941 They hiss, freak out, or run away when they see spirits. Some say the reasin behind this is because they're between life and death. Cats have powers. Thats why reddit loves them so. 1338941089 Alright. How about the [Tehran Dogfight Incident](http://www.iiaf.net/stories/warstories/s8.html). This is only one of thousands, but it meets my criteria of a solid case. Multiple Radar readings and eyewitnesses from both the air and ground. 1253841601 the trippy faces made the video 1308970559 Keep fighting the good fight. 1354076989 There is a homoeopathic version of hemp oil:\nBuy some bud, get a glass of water, throw the hemp out the window, and drink the water. Voila, you're cured! 1345251716 the random button brought me here fallout brought us together. through the wastes my brother 1330845834 I've rarely come across an atheist that was spiritual or in love. But if I did I expect they wouldn't expect love to be a common aspect of being alive in such a way as to be pedestrian.\n\nFurther I argue if your only knowledge of spirituality is through others declaring theirs you are using a poor model with which to define the word. 1310393213 Even if he didn't post a huge number of predictions, there is still quite a high statistical chance that someone will predict an earthquake spot on at some point by random chance when you consider that he is just one of many cranks. The sheer number of predictions thrown out by all cranks, particularly about such an unstable part of the world as Japan, increases the likelihood of one of these guesses being correct dramatically. The analogy I would draw is to the lottery where it is suprising for the individual who wins, but not suprising that an individual won. Coombea is one of a huge number of cranks who throw out these predictions all the time, therefore it is not necessarily strange that one prediction, even one that seems so specific, was correct. 1344983918 In Michigan? 1349286276 How so? That movie came out months ago??? 1321559640 What happened to Tonya? Could have easily found records on her I'm sure... 1333893896 Yeah, the title's full of crap. 1351788663 Does absolutely nothing for our cause. You can have these eminent retired people make as many statements as they want, but it is going to amount to exactly zero! Unless someone says 'I worked on UFOs during my time with the military and I have solid proof', all these statements have as much effect on UFOlogy as my fart does on the weather. 1338866828 No dude....aliens. 1332281117 I'm planning on running some tests this weekend. I'll film them and post it. Check back on this post later. I'll provide a link 1329508823 wifi you say? have this already been hacked? 1300298345 Hilarious. Everything's a conspiracy.\n\nThough I really like the idea of taking some thin cardboard and a thumb tack when camping or whatever, in case you break or lose your glasses... 1246912412 I would've gone with going to KFC in the hopes that the guy behind the counter will help you learn more about the Vegan lifestyle. 1335560841 you can call it crazy if you like, the alternate view is that your mom was faced with impossible to understand contradictions. society has a dim view of these and as such she packed up those memories into a "crazy zone" and adopted the more common beliefs of this society. \n\nI don't really see any issues with the things your mom has described. I have also met a lot of people that claim they "don't belong" here. Everyone does the best they can. :) 1341258223 I think we can handle "some swearing". 1243524511 As a heuristic (certainly not a hard rule), if something contains Deepak Chopra there's a high probability of communiqués from the quantum bullshitverse...\n\nAnyway, this guy has a blog devoted just to debunking this movie:\n\nhttp://thrivedebunked.wordpress.com/ 1340662405 Isn't this the same rag that reported that a real "battleship" scenario was taking place a while back? 1353467647 Thanks for the info. However, I can't help but think of how misleading this can be for people who don't know about lens/film artefacts. The people in the OP video, alone, show the conviction and false logic of, \n"I saw something on my camera-> therefore, it really existed and was flying." 1324737925 I love how almost all responses speculate that this is just a self-help program like any other, with several speculating that it probably relies on real cognitive behavioral research. Very skeptical, guys.\n\nOverpriced vitamins, hand-wavy interpretations of graduate student psychology papers, made-up brain types and unnecessary SPECT-scans are the epitome of pseudoscientific snake oil.\n\n This is exactly the kind of thing r/skeptic should be debunking. Instead we have "it's probably helpful and doesn't seem to cost too much" and "I heard something like this once!" 1312132084 TTT 1346212876 There's also the whole moon thing. 1294649309 Sorry, but what the sweet fuck is this shit? 1319942235 Yikes, I've heard of some rough diets, but that must be hard. Good luck to you. 1296078921 stop peeking in my window! 1345430812 I never thought of Randi's efforts as an attempt to enlighten the quacks; he always gave me a 'preaching to the choir' vibe, which isn't as useless as the expression suggests. 1298152219 >If you aren't able to identify it, yes, that's the exact definition of an Unidentified Flying Object. \n\nBut you are talking about the correct form of U.F.O's, NatGeo is not. So when Jamotron said that there were no sighting of U.F.O's before the movies he was referring to the alien kind, just like in the article. \n\nYou on the other hand are referring to the correct term, thus you are both right in your own sense, but you are not talking in the same context as the article.\n\n>Who said that? Wait, let me quote myself:\n\nyou wrote that comment after I had left mine, sorry for not being up to date on your comment history. \n\nHave a nice weekend! 1341067823 What they should say is "dress warmly or you may weaken your immune system leaving you more susceptible to getting sick". 1327433300 This one needs posting in r/squashedbugs 1314881082 I'd wager that based on the fundamental geometry of looking at an object in the sky at an angle from a curved surface, and the OP's mistaken belief that s/he could estimate the speed of the object because "there was a plane not far from it," it wasn't a 90 degree turn. 1352472828 Yeah - I had acupuncture on a doctor's recommendation - and at no time did I ever believe in any of it.\n\nHowever it was startlingly effective at relaxing me (which was the aim, I was very stressed). I was absolutely tripping and floating afterwards. That said, I think it's the whole process of "treatment": one-on-one attention, a quiet, darkened room to lie down in for an hour, soothing music, that contributes a lot to the process.\n\nIn the last session I also had some special heat lamp thing, and I have to say it was like a skin-orgasm for half an hour. There may be some science in that, apparently it sends some kind of special waves of heat, I don't know, but I've longed to get one ever since. Apparently they cost thousands though. 1287470844 I live in San Diego, 15 miles or so from TJ and I did not hear about anything.\n\nHowever the San Diego newspaper website is talking about this which will happen tonight. Possibly relevant?\n\nhttp://www.signonsandiego.com/news/2011/dec/26/watch-da-vinci-glow-moon-sunset/?sciquest 1324941938 Me, I don't do drugs. I have had most of the mystical experiences, but none of the reality shifting experiences. They happen at random times.\n\nDrugs are fine for learning what is possible, but you should learn to do the same without them. It is a matter of taking your mind to the same state... 1341713495 I get'cha.\n\nI'm just a bit pissed because I have a neighbor that keeps their dog in a cage in their living room all day except when they want to take him out to shit on the road.\n\nBreaks my heart.\n\nMy bird sleeps in his cage too, but during the day he has full reign of the house, so - sorry about gettin' on your case about it, when it's my neighbors I should bitch at. 1334014623 Nutrient information i would put in the prevention of obesity and promotion of health . \n\nAgain My question to you is If there is no scientific basis for difference between GMO and non GMO why should there be a mandate label it and not other more scientifically relevant to label? \n\neither you believe there is a scientific reason for labeling GMO above the other things that could potentially be labled, or you should be for labelling of every single thing someone could think up\n\n\n\n 1352413820 > If some couple decide to have a child after a war, how would the probability of it being a boy be related to the war?\n\nSince the male determines the sex of the child, and since sperm motility and function can be affected by the male's hormonal state, it isn't unreasonable to conclude that extreme stress (and the high cortisol levels that follow) may have some effect on sex ratio by directly impact the male's sperm. \n\nThat's what I would guess if it were true. 1356943956 Can we create a r/reasonableUFOdiscourse channel or something? 1343250213 Quick note: 6/1000 is 0.6 %, not 0.006%.\n\nAlso, the non-vax people I know will argue that vaccines do not prevent these diseases. 1322765258 It makes me really angry seeing stories like this, why can't they leave these beautiful buildings alone? 1327703612 This is what I was looking for. And yes, I agree about the ethical implications. **Thank you!** 1324374229 Well, looks like you disproved the study linked, since if emotional symptoms are worsened, they must exist. Only again, your credentials are somewhat lacking in relation. 1351053297 Wasn't there only one timeline in Primer? And that's why they had to hide in hotels from themselves? 1354716632 >Funny, it wasn't until recently that I learned many people are anti-organic.\n\nI am pro-sustainability. \n\nOrganic to me is nothing but premium brand food. It trades large scale mechanization for smaller scale high labor practices. This is as unsustainable as conventional agriculture, simply in different ways. 1349301451 Sorry to the spelling particular, it is actually: goji berries. 1291776073 They won't. If there is some groundbreaking news in the realm of UFOs we will know about it, the information age and all.... Just remember. We are not alone. 1288233484 Again, the idea that pain can generally sort of release endorphins that may curb further pain is not evidence in favour of acupuncture. I am thinking more of a double blind clinical test, nothing short of that is good enough to approve of any medicine. "Traditional medicine" is a ridiculous term. So called "traditional medicine" underwgoes an enormous number of tests and proves itself countless times to be effective. 1331702954 It depends on the practitioner. I'm actually seeing a chiropractor regularly right now, and am finding some relief to my chronic neck pain and poor posture. I made sure he didn't go for the quackery; instead of prescribing dubious natural remedies, he prescribes lots of cardio, ab crunches, and stretching. :) 1307544767 I don't think we should completely discount all of these people's experiences. The reason it's called a glitch in the matrix is because we can't explain it away with our current understanding of the world. 1326706800 I've had similar things happen with landscape details, but never with a manmade object. Neat! Keep looking and see if it comes back! Take a picture! 1347645784 "Hey Bob, that video was dumb and I think you should stop gobbling the crazy pills." 1340282204 You are comparing the risks of chickenpox with the risks of the Gardasil vaccine. That's totally invalid. You cannot compare the risks of X with the risks of Y unless there is a relationship between X and Y. That's the same fallacy as you are now doing comparing the risks with car accidents.\n\nThe one and only comparison which is valid is comparing the risks of chickenpox with the chickenpox vaccine. And anyone choosing to expose their children to vaccine is irresponsible and dangerous, regardless of the size of that risk compared to other risks. 1327942638 You're pretty cool. 1326476482 New theory... a neighborhood teen, not yet old enough to smoke, sneaks into your backyard so that he won't get caught doing it.\n\nI used to do a lot more than hop fences to sneak stuff before it was legal for me to do so. 1327067076 The words "Steven Greer" and "truth" should not be used in the same sentence. 1344570484 So, let me make this fanciful argument:\n\nA bunch of people believe that WiFi is harmful, which is bullshit. That's essentially the nocebo effect. You can't convince them otherwise. So then you just give them the opposite of nocebo - a nifty placebo USB dongle. Placebo neutralizes nocebo, they are happy, you make some money, it's a win-win situation. Right? 1340736223 As a matter of fact,...[ufos and nukes](http://www.ufohastings.com/articles),...is the aforementioned Hastings website with quite a few good articles on it.\n\nAnd ya- Im not sure why he uses ufochronicles when he has his own site,...that looks 50times better, less retarded ads and not bright text on a black backgroound,... but whatevs,...more traffic & exposure perhaps. \n\nUgly site=flame for internet moths or somethin,...? 1326236622 She's a Christian, not a skeptic. She may apply some skepticism in her work, but she doesn't extend it to her religious worldview. 1323586105 If you've never been to Kentucky, then this may seem out of the ordinary. 1340031654 THIS IS SO GOOD! 1275449651 Oh, Decoder Ring Theatre looks cool.\n\nHere's one called [You Look Nice Today](http://youlooknicetoday.com/). I don't know what it's about, and I think I've heard them all. Funny.\n\nEDIT: I know it's not really anything like what you listed, but I like everything you listed and YLNT. So it may be worth your time. 1299820280 That's the "gnu atheist" symbol. But you're right, it does sort of look like that. I'm going to see it every time now. 1336747864 Doesn't look much like a missile to me. I might be wrong though. 1339182127 I'm not bitter at all or looking for anyone to justify stuff. I thought this information might be valuable to some people. Sometimes stuff doesn't work out, that is the case for me here. 1335394737 Seen the black triangle 3 times with other witnesses I shit you not. I was on magic mushrooms 1334171271 As you saw, r/worldnews can be a cesspool of idiocy. The first comment explicitly presupposing (in spite of no direct evidence) ET is the de facto "most likely" explanation should have served as a red flag. I'm surprised you stayed in it as long as you did! 1303695603 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Compatibilism 1305846454 the image is clean \nhttp://fotoforensics.com/analysis.php?id=a253281fa3ab6b1566d26ceef2eafd65683eb8c9.1081084 1342415951 You are correct in many ways. Everything does happen for a reason. Every-single-tiny-thing...it's mind-boggling. I have noticed an increase in sightings. We can't trust any video, audio, or photo any longer due to CGI and our human effect technology. I agree that some of my stories are concerned with interactions i have had with beings and what I call God or Gods. I just don't want to nor try to extrapolate that I know any answers. If I can remain neutral in this aspect I should be okay, because I'm not a know-it-all you know? so we'll see how far I can get. I have some 40 insane experiences at least.\n\nI will start here with something \n\nWhile at a Chiropractic office I drove and parked normally kind of off to the side facing the beginning width of a strip mall structure. As I was walking from my car to the office I could plainly see the rear of the one-story building, the first office of the strip mall. I plainly observed my Doctor at the time facing away from me in the action of turning his body toward me smoking a cigarette. Now then, a smear of sorts appeared from behind him morphed into a very large black wolf (black dog of hell?) immediately began trotting away from him. The "wolf" from the very beginning of my eye-witness (makes me think of "what the bleep do we know" cartoon of that eye experiment where matter reacts to whether it is being observed or not..anyway more on that subject later). This wolf had made eye contact with me immediately from the time I saw this odd morph. The "Black Wolf" trotted diagonally away from and in between the both of us for app 15 full dog step cycles around a very short concrete wall separating the strip mall from residential and vanished directly within our eyesight (Dr. was now facing me and the wolf.) I continued walking to the front and waited to be called. Upon asking him, " what was that huge dog all about?" he quickly answered, "what dog?"..."The giant black dog, he was all frizzy, i saw you look at him". He just shrugged. I was confounded as to why he wouldn't admit that he could see this giant black wolf-dog right in front of him. What was this guy into?\n\nBy the way Every single story I have I have pondered all the possibilities so I will come out and give other explanations because I am a realist and have very high perspective. Yes the dog just could have been a real dog and lied down right behind that short fence. But, wow it just really freaked me out. Did i just see a Black Dog of Hell?\n\nanother sighting story later. 1314167785 Can we please stop calling it EMF? It is the most annoyingly vague and stupid acronym possible in this situation.\n\nLet's instead call it "electromagnetic radiation that is less powerful than a microwave", and have done with it. 1311947023 I'm not sure if you even read my previous reply to you given \n\n>If we don't know what it is, cannot tell how fast it is moving or how far away, then how can we relate similar comparisons?\n\nWas already explained. Do you know a better method to undertake the examination of intangible things other than compare and contrast to similar phenomena? \n\nAlso, you seem to have ignored (or been unaware of) the mass quantity of radar, photographic, and video evidence. From the photographs or videos we take the minority that has perspective to cast shadow, or disturbs the environment in such a way as to be relevant. \n\n>It seems to me that you are less interested in identifying these things - thus realizing they are a plane or bird or whatever - and more interested in categorizing blurry lights in the sky.\n\nThis is a thinly veiled ad hominem, and you come off as quite arrogant to belittle me without addressing the arguments, and instead making assumptions on my character. \n\nI am quite interested in identifying these things, you seem to be confused as to the nature and prevalence of the evidence that purports this is a real phenomena.\n\n>"Here we have the 'slow blue' blurry light category: we see a lot of these mostly on tuesdays. Ah! Now, here we have the fast moving white lights! These are very interesting! We don't know what they are, but we DO know that we are able to categorize them with other similar blurry lights"\n\nAn attempt to derail or [ridicule](http://www.nizkor.org/features/fallacies/appeal-to-ridicule.html) the topic does not do the community, or you justice. Be careful not to fall into the pit of confirming your own bias. Claims of aliens and such have no evidence whatsoever, but [that does not imply](http://www.nizkor.org/features/fallacies/biased-sample.html) you can ignore on those grounds a phenomena that has been repeatedly proven to be anything but non-existent and explained away as Chinese candles. \n\nI expect more of this subreddit, both in that this should be a place of discussion based on the rules of logic, and that you should behave with respect towards something you might not have studied, when it is presented respectfully. Have you looked into the issue in depth by the way? Or are you simply appealing to authority in the way that you assume what the commonly held belief is? 1281870650 Well, I (for one) know it's a balloon because I've seen friggin' balloons and I know what a balloon looks and acts like.\n\nYou may as well look at a campfire and think it looks like a chair if you want to believe this is a giant luminescent flying polliwog sperm creature from outer space.\n\nGet a grip on reality for a change. We have balloons and pretty girls here. You might enjoy it.\n\n(not directly related to your post, I know you're trying to be sane - but for others here who are wildly hallucinating sky fairies) 1308426956 Loves it! :-) 1355151830 Christian Science isn't Christian either. At least has about as much in common with Christianity as Mormonism does. That is to say, it's a legitimacy grab and nothing more.\n\nMost of Christian Science's beliefs are based around the writings of Mary Baker Eddy. She argued evil was a fiction created by our minds. 1344028314 Even the dead have to respect a man of taste and panache. 1319436521 How do see something out of the corner of your eye, get up change a channel and sit down. At some point you have to look directly at it right? 1352744528 I'd just like to say that the diet of the human is hugely varied from country to country, and the USA's idea of a diet is not the healthiest option. So what is "wrong" and what is "right" does not seem so black and white as you are putting it. Additionally, just because our bodies have worked in one particular way for tens of thousands of years does not make it the most efficient or correct way, nor does it mean that the natural desires it creates are the best for it. Our metabolism, (in my opinion) does not function optimally for the average lifestyle in this country these days. Many of us no longer need (or want) the degree of fat store that our bodies provide because we're not going to go days or weeks without being able to kill an animal to eat. 1310156406 So because one stupid court ruled in favor it's suddenly proven? People are such idiots. What court says has no bearing on whether or not the claims have any merit. \n\nAnd I really wish they'd start printing CORRELATION DOES NOT EQUAL CAUSATION in gigantic letters on every schoolbook.\n\nFor a laugh, look at their sources. Dailymail...GOOGLE (how vague can you fucking get), some *blogs* \n\nEven when they spout nonsense they can't even come up with a source that at least looks kind of legit. 1340417187 Enter/return twice. 1355600741 It isn't ignorance. It is being wrong. You can be ignorant of the law, or you can think the law says X but really says Y. (perhaps it did at one point and switched).\n\nIgnorance means to be "uninformed" which is a bit different than being misinformed. 1338384414 Any details about this? Time, place, etc? 1354192393 Where can you buy 'Placebo' stickers? 1290934453 > I'm considering paying to have an external lab test for any active ingredient.\n\nWhy? They already admit that on the packaging.\n\n> This should essentially prove that they are selling 'water'.\n\nAren't they sugar pills? (That have been sprinkled with the magic water.)\n\n> If I attack one of the big chains I can them bring their reputation into question in that if they are willing to sell this crap what OTHER crap are they selling.\n\nI've mulled this approach over. Honestly, I don't see it having that big of an impact on a Whole Foods in San Francisco.\n\nCVS which is actually a pharmacy sounds like a more ripe target as people are actually looking for medicine. Not only that but CVS makes their own store brand of that along with the label "recommended by CVS pharmacists". I think we could do some significant PR damage by exposing how untrustworthy CVS pharmacists are based on the packaging of their own products. 1333984376 A persons tenancy to attribute something to the paranormal, seems directly linked to how strong that persons belief in the paranormal/spiritual happens to be.\n\nEdit: I'm liking this thread - it seems to have encouraged lots of reasonable, rational people to reveal themselves! 1352896287 That guy is awesome, need to go back and check his videos. Watched a few a long time ago. 1320931168 Any video clips out there? 1345862216 The first one I can think of was when I woke up, but I could still hear my dream. I don't remember the dream very much since it happened when I was about 6, but it involved the evil Krusty doll from The Simpsons. I remember waking up and it was morning, I suddenly heard, clear as day, the famous evil Krusty doll laugh and "I'm going to kill you" I screamed and ran into my parents room.\n\nThe next one is creepy because I didn't know it could happen, and trust me, I'm definitely not bullshitting. I was walking into the kitchen one day and overheard my older brother (he's four and a half years older than me) talking to my mum about a dream he had, and it seemed all too familiar.. I cut him off by saying "And it started unravelling the bandages from its face?" my brother stared at me slightly unnerved and went on to say "Then I saw its alien face.. It had fangs" I cut him off again just as unnerved "And it lunged for you and woke up?" Turns out me and my brother had the exact same dream on the same night.\n\nAt first I put my first and only (so far) sleep paralysis experience down as paranormal, but the more I thought about it, it made sense that it was sleep paralysis. I remember turning my laptop off at about 4am and I laid in bed. I was laying there awake (well, what I thought I was doing) and I suddenly envisioned 2 hands with leather gloves rap around my neck and squeezed. I was instantly paralysed (minus my head since I was able to turn it) and felt the air drain from me. I tried so hard to scream out but nothing would come out. After what seemed like forever, the grip disappeared from my neck, I quickly got my breath back and went to scream out to my mum, only to have the sensation back on my neck, muting my cries. Again what seemed like ages of fighting to move and breath, I managed to splurt out "stop" and with that, it went away.. It felt as if it never happened. 1350764100 [facts](http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/fact) aren't [subjective](http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/subjective). \n\nI'm pretty sure that with you claiming facts as subjective, I have nothing more to say to you. 1313775156 What a load of shit of an idea this is. Don't link to a page that lists the chemicals inside of vaccines? It doesn't say anything wackjobby, it is a good resource.\n\nIt's an almost nazi like approach to information that I find very disturbing. 1298311862 I really doubt most alien abduction stories, even as I'm increasingly convinced that contact has been made. Too many sensational, attention-whory stories over the decades.\n\nAlso, this topic made me think of the opening of the X-Files episode *Jose Chung's 'From Outer Space'* where a couple of Air Force pilots in-costume as grays are interrupted mid-faked-abduction by a third alien ("Lord Kinbote") 1316292744 This is how the public exercises such control, by calling out these fucktard celebritantes when we get the rare opportunity to do so. 1306957523 That's not being skeptic that's just being a straight up nuisance 1305185923 At 4am after following her from a bar where he almost certainly heard her say that she was extremely tired and was going to sleep. 1310624733 I only believe studies published by Dr. Strangelove. 1295560575 I like how the two words Conspiracy Theory combined now mean the same thing as "It has to be bullshit". You would think a skeptics site would get that right. 1313536502 I just unsubscribed from /r/timetolegalize over this kind of bullshit. I'm all for pot legalization, but if you think it's good for you and there is nothing bad ever at all about burning a plant and inhaling the smoke and fumes, you've really got to be kidding me. 1344218806 > My issue with the mid-air collision between two airplanes is where is your other missing plane and pilot? I've never read that they were looking for another missing plane in that area. Do you have any candidates?\n\nIf the other plane was not flying under a registered flight plan, they wouldn't know to be looking for another plane, they would have no idea that the plane existed. They wouldn't be looking anywhere else since the two planes would likely crash near each other in the water. They wouldn't need to be looking for any specific plane, just any sign of any plane. No flight plan, transponder turned off (which means it doesn't show up on radar), this is the modus operandi of a smuggler, of which there were many flying in and out of asia in to australia in the 70's. We didn't find one plane, you shouldn't be surprised they didn't find the other.\n\nIf you are looking for the other plane, then read the transcription, he mentions it many times. He just can't figure out what the hell he's looking at because he has no experience with such things, and has no qualms about trying to get closer to get a better look (because he's an idiot). 1327332587 Michael Shermer's *[Why People Believe Weird Things](http://www.michaelshermer.com/weird-things/)*. As a skeptic, I'm often frustrated by how easily people believe things that seem bizarre to me, and this book helped explain why this is.\n\nThe TL;DR is that people believe woo mostly because they *want* to, but the book goes into the psychological and sociological reasons behind this. 1292138810 The government doesn't know doodly shit. Petitioning the WH or whoever won't do anything, 'cos those people aren't in on it. \n\nWithout evidence to back up the movement, it just looks like crazies railing at the sky again, like the Obama birth certificate loons, they petitioned the WH too. \n\nFucking get some evidence, then we move. Be strategic. This is a chess game. 1347728171 My favourite comment on the article:\n\n""...more work needs to be done to bring those anomalies into the accepted paradigm."\n\nThis statement shows willingness to learn more, however it also indicates that it's author is willing to learn more only if what is learned can be brought into "the accepted paradigm." This sort of mentality is the bane of scientific progress. I imagine this is the sort of mentality Gallileo had to contend with before producing one of the greatest paradigm shifts of all time.\n\nI suggest that a less biased author would have left room for the possibility of a paradigm shift, given, of course, the supporting evidence.\n\nI am not a "UFO" proponent by any means, but I am a proponent of adjusting our paradigms based on evidence, and not vice versa." 1315064759 This has been my point all along... there are plenty of completely legitimate reasons not to want these things installed, but the only thing the local news has covered is EM sensitivity nonsense. 1300338529 God most certainly does have most everything to do with religion since religion is just the translate, however abhorrent, of old text. Had this omniscient being anh sense, he'd have not made it so god damned obscure and in languages that die out. \n\nThis, of course, is granting that there is such a being and ignores the fact that religion is man made. 1324513520 As a former 2M0X1A at Malmstrom AFB it is strongly discouraged on even mentioning that you have seen anything UFO related on a dispatch to your superiors. This was just an unspoken rule if you didn't want to be stripped of your PRP status and sent to an Airforce shrink. 1354237790 This is kinda hard to wrap my mind around - if only 1 single person takes this test, does it mean it will be 99% accurate in that one case? 1311971909 I love this one:\n\n>I agree, those foods do help if they are indeed organic and not poisoned with agricultural chemicals (sprays, pesticides, herbicides, etc.). Last week I bought some expensive frozen berries from a respected grocery chain. Soon after having my berry smoothies, I got headaches. Finally figured out that the berries were linked to my headaches. Most likely due to a reaction to the toxins the berries were sprayed with. I do hope the study used truly organic food.\n\nCan't tell if it's meant as a joke or if it's a severe case of brain freeze. 1353111359 space.com\n\nJust to make you read that tripe! 1337035484 It's going to be interesting to see some analysis of this.\n\nIf it is true then great, we've learnt something very fascinating about reality.\n\nI do think though that we're going to find some rather serious flaws, or the results are not going to be repeatable and this is going to be an embarrassing moment for Cornell University. 1288921290 The suspense is killing me. 1339104818 Yup, I generally leave it at a single reply and let the thread die. Perhaps one would call it a "Dripping water hollows out stone, not through force but through persistence" approach. He clearly has more energy to argue than I do, so there is no sense in it. But if he actually follows a link and reads it every once in a while, super. Maybe he'll change his mind.\n\nI really wonder what the inner thought life of a guy like this is. What must his inner dialogue be like each time he submits the same link over and over again? It is so foreign to me. 1263422547 ...or a Catholic Saint 1351098174 > Monsanto on the other hand is in the business of patented seeds. It's illegal to save their seeds for replanting. You cannot adapt their seeds to your corner of the world. If they are not suited to your fields, Monsanto will sell you pesticides and fertilizers instead of letting you adapt the seeds yourself. This goes against the basic premise of growing food and does not help the world, only helps Monsanto.\n\nIllegal in what sense, though? Illegal in the sense that it's a breach of the contract you signed with Monsanto? If that's the case then that is perfectly acceptable.\nIllegal in the sense that it's a criminal act? Then lobby your government, that's unacceptable and should not be a crime at all. 1326362928 I think the biggest problem is that this article considers Anderson Cooper and Michelle Obama as credible people. I mean yeah, people listen to what they say, but that doesn't make them any more reasonable or less susceptible to bullshit than the average American. 1354174509 My parents, siblings and I moved into my grandparents old house. My first experience was my grandmother telling me that she didn't like what i do in her house, which could be many thigs. 1349016417 yeah, I saw that........ oh well. 1349692951 That picture is totally disgusting. 1321750075 >The fact that you have "proven" that the fire was really really cold and really really hot demonstrates the nonsensical illogical nature of your position.\n\nDo you really have that much trouble with reading comprehension?\n\nThe fires were cool, as most of the fule burned away within seconds. Something other than the jet fuel is required for the observed heat after the collapse.\n\nThat is, before the collapse, the fires were cooling very quickly. After the collapse, there is lava, pulverized concrete, etc.\n\n>You get so caught up in trying to "disprove" the molten aluminium that you end up "disproving" your alternative of molten steel!\n\nThis is bizarre psychobabble. 1315326636 I'd like to play a sleight Devil's Advocate here. I'm not going to go so far as saying they work, but perhaps the gentleman at the kiosk genuinely thought that they do? Furthermore, what are the truth-in-advertising laws about something like this? 1333927754 Hey, those activator things are great props to add some extra placebo effect to your massage. 1291178046 Ilan Linddiga May 15, 1976. \n\nTwo questions: 1) When will make a career transition ? 2) What is my life purpose?\n\n 1354478917 As a straight man in his 20s, I honestly think James Randi could finagle a kiss or two out of me. 1334547762 >You know, I've made a stunning realization...\n\n>You're a total dick! Wow!\n\nOK\n\n>But in all seriousness, you derailed initially with your "perpetual motion device" comment.\n\nNot really. Essentially, the laws of thermodynamics need to be broken to "cure" aging.\n\n>But hey, take solace in the fact that, not only am I using a tu quoque fallacy,\n\n...Not at all?\n\n> I've directly insulted your character! \n\nOk\n\n>Even though I didn't conclude that you were wrong for being a dick, I'll accept the ad hominem label, too. \n\nBut that would be incorrect, as you apparently know unlike most.\n\n>Because I'm such a nice guy. ;)\n\n...I doubt you're any more agreeable than I am.\n\n>Oh, but please, don't let these stand in the way of your claims of victory.\n\nOk\n\n>I aim to please!\n\nAre you a prostitute? 1354078150 Let's think about this, why that much of a close up showing that much of a background for no reason? There are a ton of apps for this and it seems like a picture from a phone. So, I do not believe it is real what-so-ever. 1344106394 Chinese lanterns \n\nhttp://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B001S818QS/ref=redir_mdp_mobile/188-1802753-7906008\n 1340516261 Tell them you feel that your personality or behavior is not affected by the positions of the starts and the planets, but instead, the position of the starts and planets are influenced by your personality and behavior! It seems just as likely. 1309587000 google "low level laser therapy" -no idea if this is what they mean, but LLLT is not woo. 1355153912 This looks a lot like a skinned monkey or some other such animal. 1303241485 >researchers\n\nThey're just divers salvaging wreckage in the Baltic. Nothing to see here. 1338443792 ... is it wrong that this seems like sort of an awesome relationship to me? 1334528733 I think many of these alternative methods have at least something that works for them. So of course, if some of the Ayurvedic treatments have merit, adopt them, discard the rest. Doesn't mean Ayurveda as a whole should be taken seriously. It's still quackery which by chance came up with something useful.\n\nA theory, that has been proven wrong should be discarded, no matter if there are small parts that actually work. 1287316258 Congrats on the new job. I hope you can keep your sanity. 1296411728 apparently eating a Chinese doctor's penis can cure impotence in tigers 1297011683 I have been there twice, went to the graveyard at night (Got throw out 20 minutes later) and went to the Wade House both times, creepy shit. 1331170296 we need a copypasta handbook; maybe a chrome extension with some checkboxes that lead to an appropriate copypasta suggestion 1354054082 Don't tell the homeopaths this, they'll run with it as proof of their entire field of "Medicine." 1302126029 It will, in fact, result in not having that condition. 1316436293 I agree with you, I feel like once these things have been revealed to me, I can never forget and I have been learning to do it on my own, sometimes consciously but more often by accident. Sometimes I feel like I'm the luckiest person in existence. 1341714240 That footage is fucking shithouse 1339901536 My sincerest thanks, then.. Sorry, edited the post out of frustration because absolutely nothing happens here 1347474223 Also, the vaccine has to be boosted every several years. 1327887997 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Confirmation_bias 1346189686 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Confirmation_bias 1307603371 Read *Project Identification* by Dr. Harley Rutledge. He was a physics professor and former chair of the Missori Academy of Sciences who conducted field investigations for years during a wave of reports. \n\nRead up on Project Hessdalen and their recent research. Here's just one paper on their use of spectral analysis to study the elemental makeup of the \n\n*[Optical spectrum analysis of the Hessdalen phenomenon Preliminary report June 2007](http://www.itacomm.net/ph/2007_HAUGE.pdf) Bjørn Gitle Hauge\nAssistant Professor Østfold University College, 1757 Halden, Norway E-mail: bjorn.g.hauge@hiof.no 1348518813 I upvoted you cause that guy was way too uptight. 1314727280 Osteopathic physicians probably shouldn't be on the list, at least if they are from the United States or any other country that trains and regulates them similar to medical doctors. [In the 21st century, the training of osteopathic physicians in the United States is very similar to that of their MD counterparts. Osteopathic physicians attend 4 years of medical school followed by at least 3 years of residency. They use all conventional methods of diagnosis and treatment. Though still trained in Osteopathic Manipulative Medicine (OMM), the modern derivative of Still's techniques, a minority of osteopathic physicians use it in actual practice.](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Osteopathic_medicine_in_the_United_States) 1326124916 No he appears on Doritos, which is pretty much the same as saying that something UNIDENTIFIED on a radar is an alien spacecraft. 1332245713 Absolutely! They all have the same kind of creepy music too. Seriously... just show us the footage, don't try to dramatize it. 1315408228 Care to provide studies that do now show a link between human activity and climate change? 1342577999 Did you read the original paper before holding forth with this opinion? It has nothing to do with emails being "badly written".\n\nThe paper asks the question, "Why do scammers claim they are from Nigeria when virtually everyone knows that Nigerian financial propositions are scams?"\n\nThe answer is to garner responses only from the most gullible.\n\nHere's [the paper](http://research.microsoft.com/pubs/167719/WhyFromNigeria.pdf). Here are a couple of paragraphs:\n\n> An examination of a web-site that catalogs scam emails\n>shows that 51% mention Nigeria as the source of funds\n>[1], with a further 34% mentioning Cˆote d’Ivoire, Burkina Faso, Ghana, Senegal or some other West African\n>country (see Figure 7). This finding is certainly supported by an analysis of the mail of this genre received\n>by the author.\n>\n>Why so little imagination? Why don’t Nigerian scammers claim to be from Turkey, or Portugal or Switzerland or New Jersey? Stupidity is an unsatisfactory answer: the scam requires skill in manipulation, considerable inventiveness and mastery of a language that is\n>non-native for a majority of Nigerians. It would seem\n>odd that after lying about his gender, stolen millions,\n>corrupt officials, wicked in-laws, near-death escapes and\n>secret safety deposit boxes that it would fail to occur\n>to the scammer to lie also about his location. That the\n>collection point for the money is constrained to be in\n>Nigeria doesn’t seem a plausible reason either. If the\n>scam goes well, and the user is willing to send money, a\n>collection point outside of Nigeria is surely not a problem if the amount is large enough.\n>\n 1340337861 Your head absorbs rf meaning less radiates, less into head equals higher signal strength radiated from the phone body system. 1342317671 We've only recently found out how truly effective placebo is with extensive double blind studies and they are certainly working to understand it even better so we can use it. For example, they have studies out that prove if the doctor wears a white coat vs jeans, the efficacy of placebo is improved. And its only useful for certain things. Pain being the biggest maybe. (sorry for no citations, but I read about most of this in http://www.trickortreatment.com/) 1290099404 At around 35 seconds you can see something come into view below it. I'm willing to guess he's standing in front of a window, and it's the reflection of something behind the camera. 1303364164 For reference purposes, the other Redditor who deleted his posts was [RowdyFattyPiper](http://www.reddit.com/user/RowdyFattyPiper). 1296450616 This needs to be at the top. While the political/corporate influence that leads to the massive use of HFCS is important, I think this more directly addresses the question posed. 1340463211 As dsgnr already noticed, the lead patient in this episode is an actor. \n\nThe Curiosity facebook page already is filling up with comments of people complaining about this. \n\nOne comment there reads: "Faking scientific results makes it even harder to convince the public that real scientific results are, well, real. Many people deny the science of evolution and climate change every day, to our detriment, but with this kind of nonsense out there, is it any wonder?"\n\nFuck the Discovery Channel. 1351620432 >\n\nSome people are allergic to the vaccines, or have other health reasons for not being able to be properly immunized. \n\nBut more specifically. infants and toddlers are not fully vaccinated until around 2yo (and don't typically get their first round of shots until 2 months old). This is the group that gains the most from "herd immunity". 1345903818 WHO is the WHO? HAAA!\n\n(Warning: exposure to this joke may cause rectal cancer) 1291923421 Ahh the Waverly Hills episode of Ghost hunters is crazy!!! Check out the video i posted below of Crownsville Hospital (md) which is very near to where I live. It's a lot like Waverly I think 1347233695 If you don't mind me being cold and analytical about it, I'd say there are moderate number of teenage girls that write journals filled with depressed poetry, etc. I'd just mark it up to coincidence that one happened to die in the large timeframe ("This will be my last year, Lord. I have gotten what I can. Thank you.") she set for herself.\n\nI don't think there is any evidence of this, but it may also be possible that if she thought it was her purpose to die young, and she sees someone with a gun in front of her, she may have put herself into harm's way.\n\nBut like I said, that's hypothetical. 1317264276 I haven't seen it in a long time, but i've seen it since that house. 1345215958 > It didn't start with the same architecture\n\nMust have been pretty extensive patches. 1287691487 Any. At all. 1331298474 Does potash exist in the human body to cause that, or would it react with something else in the gastro-intestinal tract? 1310873178 You are mistaking stupidity for ignorance. 1327358170 Right. And I would have further proved my skills by allowing the hoax to continue as long as possible.\n\nIf this were sex for instance, I wouldn't want someone pulling out prematurely and then announcing their sexual prowess. 1332978616 So you make around $200K-300K? Well, first of all, that's good. Good for you. Cool (no sarcasm).\n\nSecondly, however, I'll say that 1) having money isn't the only way to make the world a better place. Matter of fact, it seems money is actually one of the THE main reasons that the world has turned into the shit hole that it is. Therefore....\n\nWait a minute . . . I just re-read what you wrote, and realized how *extremely* ambiguous I'm finding it . . . There are various different ways to take it.\n\nOne way seems to have to involve a vote of support for the Thrive documentary. The guy is obviously definitely rich. However, it DOES seem (at least to some people) that he's trying to use his money to make the world a better place . . . So that's a good thing, right? Right.\n\nOf course your second sentence can be what is payed more attention to and the Thrive guy can be interpreted as being one of the rich that are trying to "keep it all to themselves", if you will.\n\nNot quite sure how to take what you wrote, therefore.\n\nEither way, I still stand behind what I said. This doc seems to bring up some valid points, and I thought it was a decent film.\n\nPersonally, however, I REALLY like the docs made on [Jacque Fresco and The Venus Project](http://www.thevenusproject.com/). That cat right there seems to have a good idea about how to do things.\n\nOf course his ideas will likely *never* come to pass on this planet - currently the human race is far, far too remedial and primitive - but they are great, forward-thinking ideas he has. I think Foster Gamble and Jacque Fresco's ideas could coexists decently. 1338572776 > DoctorYuyi possibly trying to cover up the fact that he faked the letter, and the SeceretSanta moderators possibly trying to cover up the fact that they acted with too much haste on a possibly fake letter without questioning the accused person.\n\nOccam's razor would indicate that this explanation is less likely than a more simple explanation, unless there is some evidence to back it up. As of right now, there is no such evidence, but rather only speculation. The simplest explanation is the same which the evidence currently indicates, namely that Yuyi did indeed receive the hateful missive, and as such is the most reasonable opinion to hold on this subject.\n\nA conspiracy such as this is also somewhat questionable by examining the character of the Moderators. At a cost of much time and effort, and perhaps monetary investment as well (for what ostensibly appears an altruistic purpose), it is doubtful that the Moderators would then choose to 'cover up' an error of theirs instead of taking full responsibility and taking steps to correct a mistake. 1323026194 And I will clarify: relying only on Google results, no matter their number, is not enough to count as genuine research. A methodical survey of the scientific literature available is in my opinion the only way to form a sufficiently informed opinion, and I don't think this can be accomplished through Google searches. 1346017830 Fire cleanses all. 1342946853 You do want to make sure it heals properly, other wise the flexibility of the arm is affected. 1300626580 I have only had dreams a few times, not a lot, mostly just feelings. I don't have to touch someone, or even see them, I can feel what is up even if they are behind me. I think that's why my house felt haunted when I was little, I could feel their energy and didn't know what to think of it. Every place is haunted. That was especially bad, but I learned to trust my feelings. I have some serious intuition, like leaving an area right before something bad happens there or deciding last second not to go based on a feeling and later see something bad happened there. I lost my mother, too, and she felt things like I do. The night before she died, we laid awake all night, she in her bed and I in mine, talking through our hallway about what she wanted for me and my brother if anything happened to her. It was like we both knew, but nobody said it, we just talked as if we knew we wouldn't get to talk again. There is a lot more than this as well, getting late here, but pm me and we will chat more tomorrow. I am sorry to hear about your mother, it is for the best that you weren't there, you may have been hurt yourself if you had been. 1317707932 The problem is, that this is about as much "science" as curing migrane headaches with trepanning. Sure, you may have fewer headaches afterwards, but the cause was an inflamed nerve that the healing process from the act of **cutting a hole in your skull** relieved. 1310863569 No problem. I've added you to my friendslist - feel free to add me.\n\nShe's better at horror movies than I am but I will pass it along, lol. 1329517722 If you have a blacklight, turn off the lights and check yourself for anything weird that glows.\n\nSometimes abductees get UV reactive marks on their bodies 1347550455 So I guess this is what all that nasty New Vegas business was about. Seems pretty lame to have a war over, I mean it's only $25. 1323636844 >One can only hope a better less contested meta-analysis is produced on this.\n\nIndeed. As I understand it, anybody who got their hands on the data from the Wax paper could not reproduce its findings with regard to that neonatal death rate.\n\n>I would say that the best way to deal with this would be to make hospitals friendlier and less medical-frenzied... You can have the best of both world by implementing sensible midwife-assisted procedures in state-of-the-art hospitals. Imagine a birthing house next to an ICU. That's where I'd want to go.\n\nNow THAT, my friend, is a reasonable conclusion based on scientific evidence that appeases both "sides" of this debate to the highest degree possible. Good work.\n 1352302200 Well, I'd expect the Watchtower to respond favorably to [Bob Dylan Covers. ](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/All_Along_the_Watchtower) 1328010393 She forgot the link. Since you came here once to look at it, might as well send you an orangered to let you know you can give it a look with the actual image linked to. 1296987723 But they wouldn't care about that, because they are funded by TV licence fees, not adverts. \n\nI guess we'll never *truly* know. [X-files theme music starts paying] 1321404514 more like math... 1302331193 So... what subreddit are we in again? Maybe she could go to the witchdoctor, too, provided it is not too expensive. 1326035926 I don't need data to back up anecdotal evidence that was strong enough to keep me from having any desire to take a drug that has been tested for less than a year. That and I already caught H1N1 and recovered. 1256170369 I listen religiously (ha). Thanks for this link, I haven't seen that one yet. 1273730611 Oh yeah that's true on the recorder I didn't even think of that. But like I had said I bought the Zoom to record my music, I just noticed that you don't get much white noise with that. But I will looking into that Olympus for sure. What kind of video camera, if at all, do you use? Cause I know that I may need a night vision type and I don't think the Flip has that. Thanks for the response! 1340027254 Wait, OortCloud claims that Velikovski was right? Some evidence of that would be great, because wow.... That would be really stupid. 1354968943 I think what "burnoutelite" is saying so eloquently is that you had sleep paralysis or maybe more directly a dream. When you were able to move the "apparition" went away (or perhaps you were more awake and thus the dreaming stopped.\n\nMost people don't hallucinate from just one late night but that's not to say you can't especially if you're under emotional stress and you're trying to sleep. 1324897966 The fundamental problem is climate change theory is that there isn't "enough" data to compare to. Though we have solid sunlight evidence going back to the early Soviet era (we're blocking out the sun over the last 100 years), that's still nowhere near far back enough. 30 years of climate change data doesn't even amount to a blip of relevant data.\n\nThis is especially true with green house gases. We thought the ozone hole in the polar regions would swallow the earth whole, but instead shrank back down completely contradicting the greenhouse gas hypothesis. This has been the story of virtually all attempts to predict climate change.\n\nThat's the real inconvenient truth. It's much like UFOlogy, the data is there, but not the verification of the hypothesis. So **even if it's real**, we just don't have the smoking gun.\n\nFurther complicating matters, there are very rich companies that spend a lot of real money spewing nonsense for political clout. So when people read that shit, they overreact. It's very strange that a person like Plait doesn't acknowledge that possibility. 1354578363 People can get into an uproar over the silliest things sometimes. Whatever. Who gives a fuck. I'm off to watch Syfy. 1343391781 hate to break it to you, but they're ALL "woo words". 1300564968 Yeah fuck, I've heard some crazy shit but this is the best by far. \n\nI'm going to form a whole new religion on this bullshit and bleed stupid people dry. 1333978442 You mean witnessing the KNOWN laws of physics being broken. Right? 1337540873 Doesn't seem any crazier than the madness currently going on in the world while I eat my lamb dinner. 1325315850 Thanks, this seems like the best approach. I've certainly decided against the long and winding email I've written about the article she sent (it's 0730 here and I already have another two from her!).\n\nI'm, like you suggest, going to try and bring it up in more relaxed and subtle ways to hopefully plant that seed of doubt in her mind that makes her stop and think before handing over her hard-earned to some idiot in a robe (I assume they wear robes? Most woo do. What's with that?!) 1295508490 except for the distance that its moving and his distance from the tree he would have to be swaying meters side to side on a dolly. 1337235662 I also got Jill Stein and in general my views coincide with the Green Party much more than the Democratic party, but voting for a Green in the national presidential election will have no effect, it will "throw your vote away".\n\nThe right solution is to elect Green party members locally: for mayor, state rep, state senate, or U.S. congress. That's the way to build a third party, and give them the resources to run and win a national campaign.\n\nThere are dozens of Green party members in office throughout the country now, and hundreds more running for office in November. Check them out!\n 1345494736 Who said it requires belief to work? People didn't believe in electricity until someone proved it by using it to make sparks until then people thought it was the wrath of some pissy deity, people did not perceive the advent or radio or radar until it was proven but there were theories, and people did not have to believe in space flight thinking it only a flight of fancy until we shot monkeys and cosmonauts into space. 1353502048 Nobody here is advocating accepting Kurzweil's speculations as gospel truth. This is /r/skeptic after all. But dreamers like him are extremely useful in pushing us all to imagine what *could be* in the near (or distant) future, and inspire people to work towards a better world. Futurists and speculative thinkers like Kurzweil, Dyson, etc., almost over-promise by necessity, since most of the world tends to under-promise and under-inspire. They are a useful counterweight to cultural inertia. 1353096292 8 million dollars is not necessarily enough to entice one militia to go to war against another. How much do you think has already been spent trying to get this guy\n\nAlso: they actually do not want to be responsible for a bloodbath caused by a war between two militias. I don't think you have thought this through.\n\nIf you gave me 8 million dollars to teach American youth about Uganda, I probably could not do better than this. 1331300582 I like your style. 1321254997 I like your style. 1322707301 This shit kills me, why are you mentioning Bristol Palin in your argument. When are people going to understand that statements like that detract from their argument and do not help the issue. People like this write to the people on their side, thinking it will get them a figurative 'amen' but preaching to the choir is a circle jerk. Write to the people you're trying to convince of your argument. Huge pet peeve for me. 1309999672 Did he also talk about how after he dies his followers will search the world for an infant to take from its parents and worship as a god? 1337101963 I am sorry, but I cannot consider ANYBODY intelligent (at least in the area of critical thinking) who isn't instantly able to see that homeopathy is complete and utter horse shit, by it's claims alone. where do they think the water that homeopathic garbage is made with comes from, magic? anyone who can't instantly think to themselves "well, that water has been coming into contact with pretty much everything on this planet for over 4 billion years" is not a person I would call intelligent 1286574644 1. Obviously, Ramtha likes Botox. "Energy" is not meant for such profane tasks as preventing wrinkles on the face of an ageing bullshit peddler.\n2. How can you claim copyright on the creative output of someone else (albeit a channeled being in this case)? 1281443104 It's funny though, how the only argument they gave for not being able to describe something about a person they couldn't see was because they couldn't see them. 1351956557 that it behaves differently when observed. Huh? ponderous, simply ponderous. It simpler terms; the smartest motherfuckers on the planet have no clue, what makes you so sure? 1319661162 I liked the whole article and then I got to this:\n\n>I have enough rum to get through the rest of my life, but the rest of you would do well to heed my warning: if you do not rein in your social scientists, your civilization is doomed.\n\nC'mon.\n\nOh and also this:\n\n>There may be aliens in the universe, but it is false to say, today, "in effect, evidence is supporting the notion that aliens can and do live in the universe."\n\nThat said, still a good article. I'm reading The Psychopath Test right now so I'm currently interested in the subject. Thanks for sharing.\n\n 1312843284 Besides the obvious issue of the drug's effects on cognition, there's also a situational similarity. They're promoting/using a "natural" substance that they feel has been unfairly persecuted by "the Man". It's not a great leap for them to assume that other natural and "spiritual" remedies have been similarly mistreated by the medical/science establishment. Plus both are very popular with hippies (neo- or otherwise), so there's a demographic correlation there. 1322853618 "Immortal" just means that the government does not have a predictable or inevitable end, unlike living things. Even if the US government ended, the next government would still find it difficult not to live up to the previous government's responsibilities. It certainly **could** default on everything, and might, but there would be a nasty penalty to pay.\n\nIt's a bit like credit card companies offering unqualified college student way too much credit, because they know that most of them will get bailed out by their credit-worthy parents. A bit like that, but not really. 1326310029 I recently read that we might be up to 400 years off, that an entire chunk of the middle ages actually doesn't exist at all. \n\nWHAT NOW, MAYANS? 1295039122 coast to coast is awesome awesomeness!!! True, its much better when there are serious scientists and experts on as guests for the actual information and a nice dose of reality. But the other shows with crazy bastards ranting about doomsday, lizard people, nazis on the moon, ghosts hauntings and other wacky topics is just good ol' fun... & there's the slim possibility that these conspiracy theories are somewhat true, Which is horrifying. 1330681680 Deepak v2.0? 1333629558 Do it! 1319432010 So therefore it's just better to be even more conditioned and lied to ? Is that your idea of a better future? Just be passive and let the government fuck you in the ass daily? 1342055408 The Avro Car was a Canadian project. Avro was a Canadian company most famous for the Avro Arrow.. which the USA made them destroy because it was better than their planes. There is even an old Canadian flag clearly visible at 8:28. This flag: http://newmnflag.files.wordpress.com/2007/10/canadian_red_ensign_5.jpg\n\nಠ_ಠ\n 1339300569 Take it back. It's a defective product. 1294139447 I actually got the idea after listening to a lot of Alan Watts. I heard Bill Hicks later and was like, "woooah." 1335062544 Ahh, yes. I neglected to account for [succussion](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Succussion#Preparation), the ten hard shakes required to activate the vital essences of the preparations. Which causes me to wonder if succussion was added to the homeopathic process simply to overcome this very analysis. 1294338960 It's funny because this actually did happen. I read through this thread after I posted; I know a lot of them are fake. Mine happened, it's up to you whether you want to believe it or not. I obviously have no proof to give you. 1352259716 norway still has an income gap, albeit smaller than other countries, it still operates by capitalist motives; profit over sustainability, ethics, employment and so on. the government attempts to hold the negatives in check by various institutions and regulation, but this is really just treating the symptoms. \n\nyou are stuck in your capitalist/monetary paradigm, where you need to make money to survive, and all "ideal" structures like research, higher education and so on are funded through taxation. you really need to read up on _alternative_ economic systems, and not expect explanations of how another system would function, using mechanisms and patterns from the current system.\n\ni would read up on syndicalism, participatory economics or even the gift economy if you really are interested. 1287563971 Like I say so many times; Them aliens man..... 1331578011 Maybe an other worldly being needed a lid 1330033019 >They seem to mind control people of influence\n\nI'm curious to this. Are these men people of influence or are you talking about another/other cases? Or are you saying they influence people far in advance?\n\nMost of the things i've read (and i'll admit I don't go very deep) only seem to be regarding people who don't really matter at all (in the grand scheme of things). 1351572302 ""I'm not sure what goes on there at Health Canada, but they should be paying attention to these studies because they must know they exist," he said. "Maybe they're tied to the industry too close"\n\nARE YOU FUCKING SERIOUS? HEALTH CANADA IS IN A CONSPIRACY WITH DLINK AND LINKSYS!?!??!\n\nthis is making me rage so fucking hard 1287511305 >...it's not even that big of a deal\n\n\nCan you provide *any* scientific proof of your claim that this is not that big a deal? Is it more or less of a \ndeal than, say, Franklin D. Roosevelt's 'New Deal'? If you cannot back up your claims with even the slightest scientific proof, save them for elsewhere. Mindless speculation does nothing to advance the discussion about my right to eat a heaping bowl of salt. 1317144099 Way ahead of you! Always kinda funny when they chop those up and 'repost' them on TAL. 1288055060 Yeah, I wasn't going to bite, but I'm bored this afternoon. It's not about ignoring people, it's abour exploring all possible causes. Evidence doesn't back up the hypothesis that EM radiation or frequencies are causing these symptoms. Much better, surely, to help people by researching elsewhere? 1315913431 Homepathy is real, you just need to give it a chance. [](/troll) 1305424330 I have this theory that the U.s. media can be used to interpret events. Take, back when Bush was doing his shit, 24 came out, Jack Bower, the man who had to torture to save America, go to any extremes, and teach us terrorists are scary. Recently, V came out, so if you have ever seen it you'll probably get it when I say I think the government is either trying to soften us up to the idea we are not alone, or to get us defensive about aliens. So far the aliens in V are pricks of the highest degree, so make your own judgment.\n\n\\rant 1261191231 I don't think anyone's suggesting that some normal, stable guy saw this graphic and immediately jumped to the conclusion that "oh I should go kill some people." It's more about the use of violent political rhetoric that's pushed some people (who were probably unstable already) to go and do some crazy and dangerous things. 1294589678 >I'm not a moon hoax proponent, just a pain-in-the-ass playing Devil's Advocate. 1284745015 the alliesofhumanity.org material is very impressive in its overview of the ET phenomena 1342889938 Simon who? 1349351341 Isn't depression really hard to measure? More so in mild cases, I would think. The research your directing us to is done on severe cases of depression, the effect may be different for mild cases as OP states. \n\nedit: [Here is some research that says it works.](http://www.bmj.com/content/330/7490/503.abstract) (from the fancy snake oil graphic thing.) 1310030160 Very well balanced documentary, great watch.\n\nI'm surprised to see Brian Cox at the end, how did they convince him to be on a nut-job conspiracy theory documentary? 1338664358 I don't think I ever said anyone made a "Beeline" to earth. Also I understand that you are using your "Unlikely" and "Impossible" to hedge your bet. Its like being pregnant they exist or they don't.\n\n If they exist there is more then 1 race of aliens. If there is more then one alien race then the chance of discovery of this planet is more and more "likely" by one of them.\n\n Also I think at this point I should point back to one of your original points. "I find it far more likely that we're seeing misidentified terrestrial craft, weather phenomena, products of imagination and top-secret military craft." This is a line that ET critics have parroted over and over. Here is what most of them "fail to grasp". Us "ET enthusiasts" will admit that 95% or so of all ufo sightings are military or terrestrial crafts or some explainable phenomenon. Its that 5% that even project Blue Book could not explain away that intrigue me. Out of those 5% it only takes 1 to be real for us not to be alone.\n\n The nice part about this is in my lifetime (most likely by 2017) we will know the truth one way or the other. 1240773444 > A lot of comments with very clear antisemite agendas are getting loads of upvotes.\n\nOK. I thought you had inferred that the original claim was antisemitic. My point still stands. Claims of "antisemitism" is over used to try and discredit facts.\n\nCan you point out the specific comments that are anti-Semitic and are also getting loads of upvotes?\n\n> Please don't imply I'm a zionist who'll claim 'antisemitism' at the slightest criticism of the Israeli government.\n\nI didn't say that. Please do not try to knock down strawman arguments that I have not made. That is putting words in my mouth. 1301867282 maybe it's because most don't actually have lights and thus we can't see them.\n\nmaybe it's because most, if not all, UFOs are of human origin. 1347357398 he is a [fundamentalist christian who is a bible literalist.](http://doubtfulnews.com/2012/10/ancient-aliens-debunked-by-biblical-literalist/).. thats not to discount the good skeptical parts of the video. But we could probably cut off the biblical part.\n\nThis kinda stuff is actually dangerous, it is mixing meds with m&ms. I love the good parts, but this could easily harm someone learning to be a skeptic. They see the good parts and start to develop a reverence for the speaker and feel he is proving religion is true. 1352647295 It's most likely the bloody high pitch noise of the CRT causing your symptoms. 1315956215 That's amazing. I can't think of an explanation for that one. 1279763049 If I am to believe everything I've heard about food, nothing is safe to eat and we're all best off dying of starvation. 1329669172 I saw one of those as a kid where the output (in that case a pipe coming from a box) was supported by four thin wires (as well as the pipe, superstitiously) which I thought was even cooler. I had to eventually ask (after about an hour of thinking about it). I've seen several, but the ones with the whole device floating seem wrong to me - there's an instant hint that something is totally amiss here (giant blue faucets do not hang in the air like that). It looks cooler if the device looks stable, but mysteriously produces infinite water. 1356797336 You think fractures are all like the one you shown above? The vast majority of breaks show no displacement, and can only be identified by small dark lines where the break is. However, as with a lot of x-rays, there are dark lines in a number of places for a number of reasons, so incorrect diagnosis of fractures (either false positives or false negatives) happen fairly regularly. Sometimes the x-ray is inconclusive, and the person will be sent home to see how the injury progresses, and if symptoms persist they do the x-ray again to see if it's any clearer.\n\n 1348285722 I'm not trying to be rude either but what do you expect? 1353459856 I saw that, I've been trying to go through it. Let's not get caught up with the confirmation and validation of it all, if your reasoning overlaps, that's great, I'm glad we had that convo either way. 1353420266 > If we have an observation that contradicts a theory, we can safely invalidate the theory without having a new one.\n\nWhen data seems to invalidate old theories, there are multiple possible explanations, including a wide variety of problems with the data. That is why people are *more* skeptical of studies which violate our current understanding of science than those which agree with our current understanding; the odds of an error which creates disagreement are, in general, much higher than the odds of an error creating consilience. Which was the original point of the comment thread.\n\nHowever, even if it is confirmed that the aberrant data is correct, that doesn't mean we just throw out the old theory. We look for modifications which would incorporate the new information, and even if we don't have those, we continue to use the old theory in many cases until we have something better. We might do so with the caveat that we know of at least one problem with the current theory, but it was the current theory because it was a highly successful explanatory framework. Science doesn't just stop and wait until someone comes up with a replacement (although you can be damn sure people will be working furiously on such replacements). 1346945636 I have never personally demonstrated that gravity on earth is roughly 9.8 m/s^2 as I assume you also have not. I have also never observed the cracking of an atom, that doesn't mean they can't be cracked. I assume you believe many things you have not personally verified, but with evidence it is right for you to have accepted them.\n\nSkepticism is about not accepting a story *without evidence*. Denying anything you haven't personally experienced regardless of gathered evidence is not skepticism it is denialism. 1343462705 Wow. That's not considered alt med. It's a hormonal supplement that may be presenting endocrine issues and is currently bring studied. Circadian entrainment is complicated and your comments suggest that you are grossly uninformed about biological processes. 1319741243 Thanks. Nice to know someone on here has a sense of humor. 1322623311 >Everyone knows the earth is the center of the universe. 99% of the scientists agreed on it.\n\nYou're aware you linked to the wki page for Heliocentrism, which states that the Earth revolves around the sun, right? 1325295074 They're bending cheap flatware with their hands... is there some kind of mystery about this? 1311972571 But it's ultimately impossible to eradicate because it mutates rapidly to better spread and fight resistance, meaning the same population will be repeatedly infected with many strain of the same problem, probably forever? 1307558375 That article was nothing but BS and quackery; pretty standard near death type experience you hear repeated all the time including this one. IDK how anyone could take it seriously. 1350072964 How would they react?\n\nWell, they wouldn't see much after the military organisations of the world launch a few hundred thousand missiles into the sky. 1318201104 Maybe, I've never thought of myself as a troll. Can you define what a troll is?\n\nI've always thought I was someone who was interested in UFO's and extraterrestrials. If those things are out there, I want to know about it. but If I see something that is quite obviously identified, something that is decidedly not a UFO, should I just keep my mouth shut?\n\nSo you don't want people pointing out the truth? That would seem strange for a community that is constantly claiming to want to get at the truth. 1326429431 I'm not sure exactly what responses you were looking for, but I would just like to say that it has been long-established that vegetarian diets are *at least* just as healthy as omnivorous ones, and when compared to *regular* meat-eaters, usually more healthy. He linked to a couple studies, but a simple google search will yield plenty of others. \n\nI guess my real question is, what actually led you to *your* belief? His post was full of links, but yours was basically nothing more than the naturalistic fallacy. I mean seriously, what about "we have fists, therefore we need to punch people"? The existence of an ability *in no way* implies the existence of a necessity.\n\nTo date, I haven't really seen any studies which conclude that a properly-balanced vegetarian diet is unhealthy, so do you have any that you were basing your previous stance on? 1294006521 Since he swings between extremes, I'd call him unreliable. 1329325477 Ever watched Ghost in the shell? 1336069383 I dunno. On one hand he brings interest in science, but on the other hand he does this by carving science to fill the mysticism shaped hole. 1345111938 Buddhism isn't inherently good either. 1311262769 I love that quote. 1341982346 You already posted the link I would have given you.\n\nhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Responsibility_for_the_September_11_attacks#Osama_bin_Laden_statements_after_9.2F11\n\nThere is only one video of (allegedly) him admitting guilt. There are multiple denials, sourced in that wiki article. Of course all of this is in the realm of allegation and the "fog of war". I don't know for sure, but things are obviously awry with Cheney and pal's narrative.\n\nJust curious, did you study Arabic in/for the military by any chance? 1320902454 Short answer, no this is not proof of Extra-Terrestrials. Its only proof of strange things in the sky. I'm not a skeptic, but the level of proof is clear, the level of proof the planet Earth will need will be an encounter of the 3rd kind we all witness. \n 1352407889 Yeah. When I see these things, even I say "OMG ALIENS" for a sec - because that would be fucking awesome - but then I have to stop myself and think a little more conservatively.\n\nThere's a buttload of reasons for these pictures. One is that they're hoaxes. Another one: aliens. It's possible, but not definite. 1331741575 To break your metaphor: it's just not wheat from chaff, it's wheat, poison and chaff. Unlike Homeopathy, herbal medicine can be effective for sure. But that also means it can be dangerous. \n\nSo I wouldn't drink that stuff for it's herbal properities. I don't feel the need to be a test subject. But I mean if she likes the tea, whatever, it's probably just as fine as anything else. 1354156355 Never heard of this guy, thanks for pointing him out. I particularly enjoyed:\n\n"Just because science doesn't know everything doesn't mean you can fill in the gaps with whatever fairy tale most appeals to you." 1312684212 >Though it seems to be a problem mainly with the 30+ year olds. Younger people don't seem to believe in stuff like that\n\nhere in canada all the young folk believe in, well, whatever the media tells them. so when the media latches on to the next quack science BS, they learn it as fact. not all of us mind you (im in late 20s)\n\nif i had a dime for everytime someone recommended yoga, tai-chi, qi-gong or acupuncture, id be rich. i even had a chiropractor, who my friend brought to a party, try and convince me chiropracty(?) could cure cancer. 1290889166 Because things people don't understand are automatically ascribed to a higher power. The most noteworthy example is [Chariots of the Gods.](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chariots_of_the_Gods%3F) 1284170705 People really want to believe in a cosmic referee. 1329944526 Seems full of woo (of the Jenny McCarthy variety) to me too. "double blinded' how? I'm pretty sure the diet stuff has been dismissed by scientists. Here is a post from Orac addressing some of the gluten stuff [link](http://scienceblogs.com/insolence/2009/05/jenny_mccarthy_shows_off_her_knowledge_o.php) 1314289649 Is there a cute girl that is also involved that he knows, once she fades out his interest may too? 1288712299 Looks like he's going to report all the "harassing" we have done on the FB page to the cyberpolice. Oh no. 1345153958 >No, that's not what it implies at all. It implies that they have a recent human female ancestor who apparently didn't contribute much to nuclear DNA. Something that shared a common ancestor with humans in the distant past would not produce these results.\n\nThis is nonsense. Any ancestor to humans would certainly result in some portion of "human" DNA if tested as they would have much the same genome. Anything primate that shared a recent common ancestor or was a recent ancestor would result with some "human" DNA. There's no reason why it wouldn't.\n\nI don't think you understand what we're testing for, we ARE testing for "humans", the results *should be* "human"; there is no confusion here. They're just a different kind of "human" with slightly different DNA than homo sapiens, which should entirely explains the overall differences in the DNA, because they are different, but not damn very. 1354414317 >Noone is claiming it's a huge problem, but Dawkins is arguing that this problem and all problems like it aren't allowed to be annoying or frustrating.\n\nThis is being cited as an example of sexism and misogyny in the skeptic movement by Watson herself, and her most vocal supporters.\n\n>I expect more than a backpedaling from Dawkins after he used a fallacy he himself has bashed opponents for.\n\nWhat he said is only a logical fallacy if you're using it as the backbone of an argument and not as a blown-up example to illustrate your point. There is a colossal difference between saying "They have it worse than you, thus in conclusion your concerns are irrelevant" and using the example of muslim women being mutilated as a contrast to an awkward elevator ride. \n\nDawkins then responded to criticism by agreeing that his example was misleading and that what he wanted to get across was that an awkward elevator ride was not even an issue to begin with, and that people had misinterpreted the focus of his post.\n\n>Since the situation is different for men, a man shouldn't get the same sympathy.\n\nHow come? Can a man not feel uncomfortable in this situation? Is a man's discomfort not worth the same sympathy? Rebecca is trying to make this into an issue of sexism but it just does not apply in this case.\n\n>The sexism in the skeptic movement is clearly shown by the rape threats Rebecca receives and how people want to decide how she should feel and what boundaries she should have.\n\nThen why isn't the focus on rape threats? I can clearly and wholeheartedly get behind fighting that.\n\nWith regard to the latter part of your ending statement, how are people trying to decide how she should feel and what boundaries she should have? Who exactly is trying to set boundaries for her? As part of a free society she can do whatever the hell she wants but if she says something stupid she'll get called on it just like everyone else, including Dawkins for not chilling out a bit before writing his response.\n\n\n-----\n\nIf we talk about what happened, what was it that was so bad? What happened that was even objectionable?\n\nBy her own description, events occured as follows: She's leaving the conference late at night and upon reaching the elevator a guy that had exited the conference at the same time strikes up a conversation with her. His first line is "Hey, don't take this the wrong way but I think you're very interesting" and he then asks her if she wants to have coffee at his place. She says no. Rebecca then exits the elevator at her floor.\n\nAssuming there isn't an unstated plot twist including a chainsaw, is this really something worth complaining about? It would be nice to avoid an awkward elevator ride, but what exactly do you hope to accomplish by making an issue out of it? Would it be better if he had run to catch up with her in the corridor and asked there? Should he have asked while she was on stage? Should he sit down, realise that she is better than him and at the very least work on his abs before he tries to proposition a woman again?\n\nThe last part is obviously in exaggeration, but really, what should he do? What if you're a guy that genuinely likes a woman and this is the only chance you've got without actually being creepy and stalking her. He took the chance and asked her out and got rejected. That's that. Remember that there is zero opposition to a woman doing the same thing, which is the only part of this that has a connection to sexism.\n\nIt's also worth noting that had she found him attractive they would have gone up, maybe had sex, and we would never have never have heard about it. 1310065905 Well, the question is "how much money do you have"?\n\nThe pro Nikons and Canons are excellent at low light. The D3s and D4 are fantastic, but you're talking about five to 6 thousand dollars.\nI'll be picking up a D4 soon so, I'll let you know how it works.\n\nIf you want to add night vision to a working DSLR or video camera, you're talking 6 - 7 thousand dollars alone for a gen 3 extension tube.\nFrom what I remember, there are two models, one with adjustable gain and one without and adaptors for many pro cameras.\n\nhttp://www.nightvisioncameras.com/nv-products.html\n\nhttp://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/399153-REG/AstroScope_9350_NIKS_3PRO_Night_Vision_Adapter_9350_NIKS_3PRO.html\nhttp://www.adorama.com/SOF914658.html\n\nKeep in mind that you'll also need great lenses. I use a Nikon 200 - 400 mm VR I, which cost 6200 dollars. The new models are close to 7000 bucks after taxes.\n\nhttp://www.adorama.com/NK2004002U.html\n\nOn a pro DSLR or video camera, a 400 mm lens is equal to 8x zoom. Using a teleconverter is not ideal.\n\nWhile a fixed (prime) lens is best with regards to quality and price, being able to zoom is very useful unless you want to set up a two camera system with different lenses.\n\nOther options are to adapt the video camera/DSLR to a spotting scope or a telescope like the Celestron C-6.\n\nhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pVB67azxBZg\n\nThis one sold for about 950 bucks.\n\nhttp://www.astromart.com/classifieds/details.asp?classified_id=598525\n\nThey normally go for a bit more.\n\nhttp://www.celestron.com/astronomy/specials/cpc-telescope-sale.html\n\nOf course if you subscribe to http://reddit.com/r/DIY and have more time and talent than money, you can make your own telescope, which I think bears investigation.\n\nOf course, you'll need a solid tripod when zoomed in as any small motion (like your pulse) is strongly magnified when zoomed in 8x.\nFor my DSLRs, I use a Gitzo carbon fiber tripod, model 3531.\n\nhttp://www.amazon.com/Gitzo-GT3531LSV-Series-Section-Systematic/dp/B0019R1HYG\n\nFor a camera mount on top of the tripod, a ball head just lets the camera flop over and is a bad idea.\n\nI use a Wimberley head (gimbal head) instead, which allows the camera to pivot easily while staying balanced.\n\nhttp://www.tripodhead.com/products/wimberley-main.cfm\n\nhttp://www.adorama.com/WIWH200.html\n\nItems like Calumet's version of the Wimberley head are cost effective, as a Wimberley will cost up to 700 bucks with a mounting plate for the lens.\n\nhttp://www.calumetphoto.com/eng/product/calumet_large_lens_gimbal_head/ck7075\n\nOther options are to use a spotting scope with a DSLR. That is called Digiscoping.\n\nhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2cnm7Eghri8\n\nhttp://www.betterviewdesired.com/Nikon-Fieldscope-III-ED.php\n\nhttp://www.optics4birding.com/nikon-fieldscope-82ed-scope-review.aspx\n\nBut the pro "fieldscope" ultra telephoto lenses are not cheap and offer crazy zooms that may be too much. Prices go from 5500.00 on down. When you are zoomed in that much if you are shooting video, vibration reduction is a must.\n\nhttp://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/search?Ns=p_PRICE_2%7c1&ci=1032&N=4083534116&srtclk=sort\n\nhttp://www.dpreview.com/news/2012/11/23/nikon-announces-digiscoping-adapters-for-1-system\n\nhttp://www.amazon.com/Nikon-Fieldscope-20-60x60mm-Straight-Spotting/dp/B000QRZUZC\n\nhttp://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/610414-REG/Nikon_8290_Fieldscope_65mm_EDG_2_6_65mm.html\n\nhttp://www.nikon.com/products/sportoptics/lineup/scopes/index.htm\n\nFYI, here is a shot taken of the moon from my backyard in Texas using the following equipment:\n\n Nikon D3x (screw that, the D800 is much better a camera and 1/2 the price now)\n Nikon 200 - 400 VR I lens\n Nikon 2.0 Gen II Teleconverter (adds to the fuzzyness of the image, reduces sharpness)\n Gitzo 3531 carbon fiber tripod\n Wimberley gimbal head WH-200 Wimberley Head Version II \n Remote shutter cable\n\nhttp://i.imgur.com/MRcxO.jpg\n\nThis image was taken from a 6000 x 4000 original, scaled and sharpened.\n\nMost of the gear I have detailed (minus the tripod and head) is in the image below:\n\nhttp://i.imgur.com/gs5lZ.jpg\n\n 1356649238 Maybe she was in the next car over. 1333001824 Like I said, I'm trying to stay out of it, because I know I can't really discuss it in a tactful way without coming across as an asshole, that's sort of the main reason why (besides my natural lack of tact) :-). 1308251195 I did the "Lights Out" tour last year. It was incredible! You are given a souvenir flashlight at the beginning of the tour, and it is pitch black in a lot of the rooms. The only downside was when you were in rooms that had walls that faced outside, you could hear all of the noise from the local radio station that was there, the other guests milling around waiting for their tour, and the ambient screams and spooky noises coming from the haunted maze out in the gardens.\n\nWe took the typical tour, but we were given a bit of freedom in poking around while the tour guide was doing her spiel. Mrs. Winchester's bedroom was creepy, but not in a paranormal way, just spooky in the dark. I walked into a cold spot in the ballroom, enough to give me goosebumps on my arm. My friend, a skeptic, noticed them, but then they were gone. That's the only thing that I considered odd.\n\nI would definitely suggest to do the "Lights Out" tour if you are ever in San Jose in October. Definitely worth it! 1349578003 In that case I'd be cool with it, like "it's about damn time!" 1317986043 You don't think that making grandiose claims with no evidence to support them is bullshit? /r/skeptic must not be a lot of fun for you. 1344219982 i like what you did there 1325581141 Not any real ones 1354105509 Absolutely 100% positive it's an RC with LED.\n\nThis is vid of one filmed which was confirmed to be an RC at a local shopping mall to reference.\n\nhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0FlOnXzeEfo\n 1356485975 Sarcasm doesn't always have a place I suppose, but none of these are that hard to disprove and are brought up elsewhere. The ones that are correct (such as "bacon isn't that good for you" or "fast food isn't healthy") are true for different reasons than stated.\n\nSlightly off topic:\n> [8] Amanitas mushroom several reports describing pleasant taste\n\nseems highly surprising. They taste somewhat bitter, mostly like most poisonous mushrooms. I could, of course, be slightly biased as my mom picks mushrooms a lot and would show me how to chew and spit a small amount of hard to tell cases to see if it's an eatable one or one I need to make sure I don't eat, thus making me associate a taste something like this with "this is poisonous" when I later ate appropriate amounts recreationally. But really, I have a hard time seeing very many people taking a bite of it and not going "eww..".\n\nSome other tastes are pure bugs, something like lead salts or ethylene glycol shouldn't taste sweet but it randomly does. Some that aren't toxic are exploited as artificial sweeteners - you're body is misjudging it as containing simple carbs even though it really does not (or at least not any you can digest). Some others are a matter of a change in conditions - bacon or a big mac tastes good because they are packed with easy to digest nutrition but in the industrialized world the main problem isn't snarfing down enough calories as much as avoiding snarfing down too much. 1326742797 I got used to this. One thing I noticed is that if you die in the dream or if someone tells you that you will die, the dream is false. 1340795222 I'm completely fascinated by this guy. Not in a "I will give him some of my money." way, rather a "How does he walk around with those massive balls and total lack of shame?" way. 1316392379 This article makes me so, so angry at anti-vaxxers. And I was already pretty angry at them. Now I think my skin is starting to turn green. 1348803867 This is easily the most ridiculous news article I've ever seen. Why interview somebody that has casually made amateur CGI videos for two years? Surely there are more impressive interview candidates at any film school, anywhere.\n\nHow is this any different than a paid advertisement column at the back of a magazine? 1277265086 Laughing out loud in the middle of the night when you have a thin wall between you and you neighbor is a bad idea. 1261554966 > It goes against all of the horror stories of those who have had pretty violent and nightmarish abduction scenarios.\n\nYeah, but with pretty much all UFO/ET encounters/evidence most if not all of it is unprovable, so for all we know those "nightmarish" stories of alien abductions are also "snake oil salesmen". 1321430530 This language changing is an attempt to circumvent previous court rulings against it.\n\nCreationism ruled not-science/religion-based? \nChange slightly - call it intelligent design.\n\nIntelligent design ruled not-science/religion-based? \nChange slightly - call it non-evolution.\n\nThis is going to keep on keeping on. 1300872500 Hey thanks for sharing that was pretty sweet. 1330236279 There was a mith of the LHC destroying the world, so I guess this counts as debunking. Maybe it's just a little late since all the fear-mongers finally shut up about it when it was turned on and the world was still there. 1337439092 No, silly. Everyone will get *acid* burns. 1314107188 This guy is also a /r/whiterights poster. Is this another one of your invasions? 1356370415 I'm sorry I didn't make that clear. Thank you for the correction. 1356788864 You didn't ask me for ethical criteria. Not sure what fiber and calorie counting has to do with anything. Our bodies require protein, fat, and carbohydrates - the three macronutrients. I simply eat the foods that provide these nutrients most effectively, the first two are covered quite well with meat and animal products. 1299470612 That quote comes from a 1978 study. More recent results have indicated that calorie restriction reduces blood glucose, not a keto diet. [This article](http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com.ezproxyhost.library.tmc.edu/doi/10.1111/j.1528-1157.2000.tb00275.x/abstract) has a good discussion on it, which I've pasted below if you can't access the pdf. Other than that, I was only parroting what I'd heard in medical school, so I'd be happy for you to show me where I'm wrong.\n\n>Because the KD-induced elevation of ketone bodies mimics the effects of starvation, it has been proposed that the KD could also influence glucose metabolism as occurs in starvation (7,41). However, the results from several studies have not been consistent. For cxamplc,\nDeVivo et al. (36) reported a reduction of blood glucose levels in rats, whereas Al-Mudallal et al. (42) found no effects of the KD on the blood glucose levels in rats. Furthermore, only small or no changes in blood glucose levels have been reported for humans on the KD (37,43,44). To address this issue Curther, we measured the plasma glucose levels in EL mice treated with the KD. As in the Al-Mudallal et al. (42) studies, we found that Lhe KD does not reduce the blood glucose levels in EL mice despite the lack of carbohydrates in the diet. Normal glucose levels, however, do not exclude changes in brain energy metabolism caused by ketosis. For example, increased levels of @-OHB reduce glucose oxidation, whereas increased glucose enhances ketone body oxidation in the rat brain (26). Glucose also has a pcrmissive\neffect on lipid biosynthesis from ketone bodies in the brain (26). These studies suggest that a normal level of glucose is necessary for ketone body utilization in the brain. 1334330489 You said that you didn't give a full name when making the appointment: doesn't matter. If the lady had caller I'd a simple reverse-look-up can get your name. This freaked me out at a pizza place the other day; I can't imagine how much more useful it'd be to a "psychic". 1308486603 > Maybe I'm just being a pessimist.\n\nNot enough to even consider an inside job possible, even after reading their words saying that that is *exactly* what they wished and hoped for in their neoconservative warmonger "think-tank".\n\nEverything you're lamenting here is a product of or has been exacerbated by 9/11. I sympathize that it's not immediately pressing to many individuals, but try telling that to the people being murdered by our military continuously because of Cheney's lies. \n\nJust please don't be closed minded into questioning the true motivations behind the attack. 1315812314 This ranks up there with the crap from [What the bleep do we know?](http://publius-ovidius.livejournal.com/66124.html). 1336121242 Just because Stroud knows how to survive in scarce areas doesn't confer any immunity upon him from being gullible to the appeals of pseudo-science and so called water-witchery. 1353768102 Makes me so happy... *sheds a tear in happiness* 1324002908 >Outcrossing. This is "the movement of genes from GM plants into conventional crops," and this really can happen - they're the same species, so they can interbreed. But it's only a concern if GM plants are harmful, which they're not.\n\nIt's an actual, real concern if a farmer gets sued by Monsanto for growing their patented strain of corn after it started growing in his crop due to cross-pollination with a nearby field.\n\nThe author hasn't exactly presented a comprehensive argument that GM crops aren't harmful, either. I haven't ever seen any evidence that they actually *are* harmful, but he's still using his assumptions as evidence. 1292209477 I think the popular (that is... unpaid) position against human-caused global climate change is that: \n1) The government uses climate change panic, like fear of terrorism, to pass oppressive regulations. \n2) Just like critics of the war on terror poke holes in claims of fearmongers, critics of climate change feel that they are breaking down an overblown (or completely fabricated) threat in order to subvert oppression based on that threat.\n\nThe part I don't understand is how environmental protection regulation constitutes "oppression" or "big government". 1332266352 Drapela made a poor case for his beliefs. 1339533038 I wonder if the press release will have [pictures from Spider-Man 2](http://imgur.com/tpKyU)... 1273691797 Calm down man. You came here knowing people had different opinions then get offended when people post them. Be open 1305938366 >To receive and transmit the cosmic rays, streams of high-frequency energy now arriving from the heart of our galctic center.\n\nReverse polarity in the muon matrix! The anti-telharsic neutrino stream is close to rupturing the hyperflector field! 1282737603 It even points this out in the text of the website, if you read it:\n\n"Is Jenny McCarthy directly responsible for every vaccine preventable illness and every vaccine preventable death listed here? No. However, as the unofficial spokesperson for the United States anti-vaccination movement she may be indirectly responsible for at least some of these illnesses and deaths and even one vaccine preventable illness or vaccine preventable death is too many." 1354889909 Because _FUCK_ Freedom of Speech, that's why! 1338987753 > The study linked was for 30 mg/kg/d.\n\nBut that doesn't mean that there were no such effects at lower doses.\n\nAlso, seven out of thirty didn't complete the trial because of adverse effects, so I'm not sure what impact that had on the results.\n\n> Unless they weigh less than 5 kilograms, the study is irrelevant.\n\nNot true.\n\nThe experiment is not conclusive, but I wouldn't say it's irrelevant, because it provides strong evidence that Aspartame causes headaches in susceptible individuals.\n 1313496668 What do you believe happened to Building 7, the topic of this video? What did the 9/11 Commission Report say about it? 1316781238 You sound like a terrible friend. 1278320593 When I was younger my friend and I got really into the paranormal and decided to make our own paper ouiji boards. Just with a paper pen and bottle cap. It worked. So it isn't just the board game . Needless to say, many ghosts still remain in her and my house. Don't fuck around with them unless you're really ready to know they'll be things sticking around 1343538449 I certainly understand the frustration and the irritation and can empathize with it. Not having one's work taking seriously or being marginalized isn't a female only issue though. \n\nKarsh 1325712172 Quick question:\n\n>just called me saying that she just had a really strange dream...\n\nBut...\n\n>woke her up and she has no recollection of what happened...\n\nDid she remember the dream or not? I mean, I talk in my sleep all the time and it never makes sense. Dream brain doesn't verbalize the same way as awake brain. 1340191113 I just read an article by Paul Theroux's brother. He visited the coldest city in the world, in Siberia, and the inhabitants say that without doubt the town is not as cold as it used to be and is getting warmer year by year. There is just no doubt about global warming. 1321444394 That is class, Need to make more of this stuff. 1352942618 I only ask because I am curious and quite ignorant to the subject of skepticism (I am spiritualist, slightly verging on buddhism)\n\nIf you are to take something as fact, does it need to be explained scientifically, in numbers, on paper? \n 1339262239 Thirding curiousity. 1290155236 Working out till they drop and taking a shit ton of stuff to get even stronger? Pro athletes push their bodies to the limit, you don't need to do that to not be a fat tub of lard, all you should to is exercise a bit and eat well 1344089701 You're avoiding providing actual proof though and I am in a position to speak on the matter. So before you go on a bout how you were banned for this thing or that thing it would really be best if you were 1) being honest and 2) forthcoming about the specifics of it.\n\nThere have been no people banned at all for the reason you gave. None. 1326832819 my dear all i can suggest is get as far away from him as possible and sever contact because from what ive read this is going to end badly. im going through a similar thing and its slowly killing me from the inside, out. but in the few years when me and him lost contact my life became more structured and clearer, my heart hurt yes but it started to get better and then it all started again when we got back in contact so please dont make my mistake. get out while you still can. feel free to not take this advice. 1341054988 nothing convences me it is real from the video. however, nothing convences me it is fake either. until something could be brought forth saying that it was a hoax ( like the creator of the video saying it is fake) i am going to complain about people that are going to say it is fake without adding anything to the discussion. might as well start posting FIRST in threads and calling people faggots if that is all you are going to do on a subreddit devoted to UFO and similar phenomenon. 1326508382 i find it so quaint that people think aliens want to "invade" us... that's as silly as fish in a fishbowl being afraid of the humans invading their bowl..they are a here and they seemingly have no intention of acting out our ridiculous Hollywood scenarios..the only reason people think we will be "invaded" is the conditioning Hollywood has placed on us, which couldn't be further from the truth. 1340972808 Born in 1990s, I am 1.4*10^-5 million years old. 1353557421 his B.S. is in molecular bio and bioinformatics. 1335552228 I didn't edit it, I deleted it, because another commenter said he downvoted me for "disregarding what he said." I didn't feel the need to continue my discourse with him/her, so I deleted ALL of my comment replies to them, not just those. That doesn't imply anything. I routinely delete comments on many topics. I don't see what that implies.\n\n It is a legitimate question. You don't know what a logical fallacy is. If you did, you'd not commit the fallacy of poisoning the wells, which attempts to discredit any and all arguments due to the source, such as you did here. I didn't commit any.\n\n>If you weren't a skeptic who was allergic to bullshit, you wouldn't have edited everything to cover it up your complete lack of neutrality.\n\nI think I got what you meant, although, if you knew how to write, you'd have said "If you WERE a skeptic..." instead of agreeing with me.\n\nI believe he is fake. It is my opinion, to which I am entitled. It doesn't say that in the post topic though. It just asks a question that many accredited sources, such as Huffington Post and many others, have proposed. Your bias is showing. Are you a Buddhist?\n\n>that's mostly likely spread by the Chinese government because they hate anyone tied to religion and cleverly edit anything to indicate your logical fallacies/total lack of neutrality on a topic when confronted about it. That's pretty fucking low.\n\nTo this point... You don't even know from whence it came. That's most likely spread by...? You are reaching. 1353924105 I cant show you any clips of what I've seen. I wish i could, believe me. I can understand how anybody would be skeptical about this without seeing it up close and personal i guess. But my cell phone is all i've got and its a 4 year old Samsung that can barely get a clear shot of something 5 feet away during the daytime let alone at night. I see how you could think its just a harrier using VTOL, but even a harrier makes noise when its right above the trees next to you. If i could find a video on youtube of someone whose seen these things as close up as i have i also would, but so far, these are the best i've found. The lights on some of these "planes" dim completely except for occasional pulses of different colors of light. So many things they do defy conventional aerodynamics as well as FAA regulations. Hopefully more evidence presents itself. I'll keep looking for more as time goes on. 1328654465 You're making the assumption that the craft itself needs to be durable, which is only an assumption. \n\nDon't take my word for this but this is the official explanation:\n \nAluminum is designed only to keep the soda inside in a limited environment. The can itself is amazingly flimsy, but the individual aluminum pieces are virtually indestructible and seems to be over-engineered just to keep soda inside. Airforce engineered a lot of advanced metals unseen to that point, thus, an *advanced* weather balloon. Seems reasonable enough. 1344299844 She is not. 1318551250 > Clinical practice guideline from the American College of Physicians\n\nThis entry goes on to include acupuncture, and describes these alternatives as weak recommendations with moderate quality evidence.\n\nspinal manipulation; for chronic or subacute low back pain, intensive interdisciplinary rehabilitation, exercise therapy, **acupuncture**, massage therapy, spinal manipulation, yoga, cognitive-behavioral therapy, or progressive relaxation (weak recommendation, moderate-quality evidence).\n\n> " but is superior to sham therapy. In other words, SM is as effective as any other therapy, but no more so.\n\nI love your selective edit here. It actually reads "spinal manipulative therapy was superior **only** to sham therapy".\n\n> In other words, SM is as effective as any other therapy, but no more so.\n\nIn other words you are being intentionally dishonest.\n\n> There is plenty of evidence that specific techniques used in chiropractic and physiotherapy are effective for specific ailments.\n\nWell if there is plenty of evidence these three would not seem to count among them.\n\n> But an evidence-based approach does not support a conclusion that all chiro is bullshit.\n\nYes it does. A few very small scale studies concluding Chiro might only be marginally better than a sham is hardly positive evidence of chiro effectiveness.\n\n\n\n 1309980203 You say you don't remember anything about the incident, but then eidetically recall exactly what happens based on 37 year-old memories from relatives? Good story skills, but I don't believe a word of it.\n\nEdit: The naivety in this thread astounds me... 1340980576 Whatever that shit is thats hanging from the top right bar, it could be deflecting light in a funny way or off the table and that could be what the camera got. \n\nRun EVP sessions maybe and see whats up. 1334080736 Serbian Boy is Sticky! 1298579499 If I can get back up to the cottage, I definitely will! I'm so eager for explanations. 1347434716 Hope this doesn't come off as preachy, but I had HORRIBLE back problems. My father has struggled with them too. The only thing that worked for me was getting rid of my spare tire, getting my core into shape and making a conscious effort to improve my posture.\n\nSince becoming active and dropping about 30lbs, my back doesn't bother me anymore at all. Plus, I look and feel better, which is the icing on the cake. 1318719913 Chiropractors are potentially capable of treating back issues like this, however, but she would be better off seeing a physical therapist. They will have better training.\n\nI'm not sure it's worth the argument though.\n\nOne thing to be aware of, however, is the possibility that a chiropractor's incompetence might [severely injure](http://www.quackwatch.org/01QuackeryRelatedTopics/chirostroke.html) her. 1273646265 It doesn't make much sense to me either, but the skydivers admitted it was them, so what are you going to do? 1287545762 Fantastic story. I've had a similar experience where I fell asleep while driving and got into an accident, then woke and realized I was just beginning to drift off the road. 1327525494 I pretty much agree, I stopped surfing r/atheism because it's really just r/x-christiansblasphemy and I wanted something smarter to discuss. \n\nlets not turn r/skeptic into meme and facebook screencap central. 1327951857 WELCOME TO EARF 1343362522 Four different words:\n\nProposed\n\nConspire\n\nPlanned\n\nCarried out\n\nAll four mean totally different things. You used *carried out*,*planned*, and *conspire*. None of this happened. It was *proposed* by a general of the joint chiefs who was subsequently fired.\n\nEdit: Added a word. 1325817746 ....figures. 1233536063 I can confirm. There are a few high quality Photoshop animations doing the rounds on YouTube, have been for a while (like since last decade). Hollywood movie level effects but completely fake. 1355595790 Not really. If we talk about it, make a little noise, blog, and generally give the History Channel a public black eye for their credulity and idiotic programming, they may change. 1294023681 >See, by saying these things you are also saying that you believe that children are not the responsibility of their parents, but are instead wards of the state.\n\nIt's a bit more nuanced than that. I believe they are the responsibility of their parents until their parents become irresponsible toward them, at which point the state should step in.\n\n>when saying that vaccination should not be a choice.\n\nWho has said that? Vaccination should be a choice. But choices have consequences. People get confused about this aspect of rights - Having the right to do something does not absolve you from all consequences of doing it. People have the right to march down the street screaming that they hate black people, but they do not have the right to be free from the consequences of that. They do not get to say "No one is allowed to judge me because I have the right to freedom of speech," and if a business owner or a private homeowner wishes to bar them from their property as a result of their hate speech, they do not get to say "But I have the right to say it, and therefore you have to let me in."\n\nSimilarly, people do have the right to choose not to vaccinate their kids, but they do not have the right to be free from the consequences thereof. One of those consequences is that the kid does not get to go to public school and put the other children at risk.\n\nAnother thing people are foggy about regarding rights is that my rights do not trump your rights. I do not get to trespass on your property and violate your right to exercise control over your property merely because I am carrying a political sign. My right to free speech does not trump your right to property.\n\nAgain, this is not about rights, and it is not about whether or not the anti-vaxxer's kid gets sick - it is about whether or not the anti-vaxxer has the right to get OTHER peoples' kids sick because he refuses to take basic precautionary measures - or, the anti-vaxxer's right to refuse to immunize his kid does not trump my right to send my kid to school without worrying about him getting rubella or mumps. \n\nActions have consequences, and nothing in the Constitution says anything about our rights being immune from them.\n\n 1349753974 One more article:\nhttp://gizmodo.com/5723577/powerbalance-admits-their-wristbands-are-a-scam\n\nI find these bracelets incredibly useful for one thing, that is people willingly mark themselves a gullible. 1325441726 Ask future you if future me still loves tacos...don't worry, we hang out in the future because of this post and surely eat lots of tacos. 1349139383 I don't deny that there are plenty of aerial phenomena that we have not studied, and even more that we do not fully understand. I don't even think we've really worked out how lightening comes about. There could be several rare forms of lightening that work in ways that have not been fully documented. Still, seeing unusual lights in the sky is no more evidence for extra terrestrial beings are visiting earth than is finding an undocumented type of flora. 1253768177 This isn't a Hollywood thing; Hollywood is just capitalizing on it with that movie. This is a conspiracy nut thing. 1255623036 Because shorthand writing determins how educated you are? Using my phone. couldn't be arsed typin the whole word.. \n\nWhen you hear about pilots chasing UFO's, police officers being abducted and not even knowing about it till regression therapy, top army officals coming out and saying they have saw things. Its not just 'super natural' sightings... 1340042945 It's not a one-ahead. A one-ahead works with a bunch of envelopes, opening one in secret (or having a plant writing something you agreed on).\n 1317671924 Nice wall of text. Good read 1353279877 > Plant safety is based on actual calculations \n\nNo, it is not possible to evaluate cross relations between components, the failures of the components, or even a non-negligible fraction of possible scenarios. That is simply not doable. The issue has been discussed to great length by Richard Feynman, in relation to the Space Shuttle; the analysis applies to the methodology in general. http://science.ksc.nasa.gov/shuttle/missions/51-l/docs/rogers-commission/Appendix-F.txt\n\nFurthermore, externally it is much more effective not to look at the process itself but to check whenever the decisions - with all the alleged checks - are even sane. Consider sintered aluminium-boron plates under water, http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/doc-collections/nuregs/staff/sr0933/sec3/196.html . Water seeps in, hydrogen is produced by reaction between water and aluminium, plates bloat up, the boron inside redistributes, etc etc. A very, very predictable consequence of usage of a highly reactive metal in a porous form under water. Has it been caught by the 'calculations' and the 'review process'? No. You need smart people to act in good faith to stop insane ideas of this kind. Same goes for Fukushima and placement of the generators and switchgear in the basement. This did also meet the original safety requirements even though it was less safe than the alternatives.\n\nWith regards to the contents of spent fuel pool, the racks have been modified for denser placement of the spent fuel rods, the increase in density raises the specific heat output, and the ultimate temperature reached by the fuel in the event of loss of water (which can happen due to external factors that are not part of PRA). It is rather annoying that I have to describe in the detail the issues on which you claim broad and supreme expertise.\n\nUltimately, the problem is not technological. The problem is with human factor. The problem is with overconfidence. The problem is with management that does not understand the limits of the methods or even what's conceivably doable, as to believe in things like "We PROVE that our systems, structures, and components, meet their design criteria", or to overstate it's relation to actual safety. Yes, the Fukushima plant was "proven" (for sufficiently small values of "proof") to meet it's design criteria. The design criteria were grossly inadequate. 1355563686 why is a clear picture by a PhD astronomy student any more valuable than a clear picture by any other human being?\n\nif anything the astronomy student is MORE suspect, as it really WOULD be such a big deal for them. 1304468431 I almost went to Teen Challenge. I have heard that it was a scam. I am glad I didn't go. It's voluntary, but still there's a potential for abuse. 1326140759 Sounds like the only thing she's skeptical about is whether anything mainstream can fuel her confirmation bias. 1309274466 I keep saying this, but only so that people will start to consider it, but Quantum Suicide dude. You died, but you can't observe your death if you're not here, so you survived, by jumping into a reality where the crash never happened. Enjoy it! 1346225478 Unlike crop circles, livestock mutilations seem to be spread all over the globe. What's it been, 40, 50 years since the first mutilation investigations and the general consensus is still "nobody has any f'in idea". 1270539622 I wish I still had the energy. I've been interested in the subject since 2002 or so, and I've researched it as much as is humanly possibly. I find that most people have absolutely no idea about the facts of that day, no grasp of basic physics, no knowledge of the ways in which the military industrial complex operates, and no concept of just how badly the investigation (if you can even call it that) was botched. The Popular Mechanics article is 11 pages long. It's pretty much a fluff piece, and it was utterly decimated by David Ray Griffin's 392 page book which actually has sources and facts in it. I even tried to read the later Popular Mechanics book on the same subject, but compared to Griffin's book it reads like a fairy tale geared toward 4th graders. It's a pathetic little tome in a big typeface. It's full of the worst sort of logical errors. I'm shocked that a subreddit called r/skepicism has so little skepticism about the official story of 9/11. I tend to think that one can only believe the official story when one considers a very limited range of evidence. When you take all the evidence available into account, the official story looks like a pretty messy turd. A couple of decades ago the neo-cons decided they had enough power to start manufacturing reality. It turns out they were right! We'll forget about all the evidence to the contrary eventually. 1304537664 I bet they would say the same thing in 2005. 1341097461 I wouldn't say that they are all beneficent. In the realm of spirits there is balance; good to evil, and in reality there is always contention by one to disrupt balance and reaction by the other to restore it. If good exists on their plane so does evil, and it's likely that the evil ones would attempt to hijack and dis-inform anyone who would be a recipient to their influence. Be wary and approach it all with skepticism and file it into the box of "maybe, could be, who knows, eventually." 1343810371 Any relation to Stephen Hawkings? 1272313764 Well as you say, if you're going to be pedantic then use whom... But "whom" is on the way out, and is only used by pedantic people. I myself can't even remember when to use whom, so I just stick with who which is considered fine in modern English.\n\nSpeaking of applying rules that don't exist in the English language, that stupid rule that pseudo-intellectuals spout about not ending a sentence with a preposition is actually a rule of grammar taken from the Latin language, it has nothing to do with English at all, and was if I remember correctly something which upper class people did in an attempt to differentiate who they spoke from the lower classes. 1290840964 Well he certainly seems to get things done. 1345963929 Zak Bagans is the frat boy of ghost hunting. The show is interesting, but there are moments where he flips over railings or starts yelling that makes me laugh. It breaks the fear, so I kind of appreciate it. 1341184065 An image of Michael Jackson.\n 1351922638 Sorry, but can anyone modify the pic to point out where exactly I'm supposed to be looking? I'm having a lot of difficulty finding anything! 1348864470 Gotta love trick questions.\n\nIt was stated in a vague way. If you do not remove atoms, then you still have the same number regardless of how dilute it is.\n\nP1a: (L * (43/74.9)/100) = 3.4x10^21\n\nP1b: 3.4x10^21\n\nP1c: poorly stated and ambiguous. Adding water to dilute without removing any solution yields 3.4x10^21 1328252902 **TL;DR1: It's dangerous and the implications of it being true are far more disturbing than it being false or misleading (to the point of equivocation). I'd be happy to discuss that if you like.**\n\nI don't doubt her experience or her struggle. \n\nOne thing I don't doubt, but it seems important to make a note of: \n\nHer description of her doctor was one of long-standing relationship and frequent enough contact for recognition, yet her cancer was believed to be 6 years progressed. To have any kind of serious cancer progress that far without symptoms is a claim worth investigating unto itself. \n\nMargarita Murphy MD documented member of ASCRS -- http://www.fascrs.org/files/ASCRSNewsFall06.pdf\n\nCV - http://www.colonsurgeonsofcharleston.com/uploads/MMurphyCV1-8-2012_doc.pdf associated with [this picture](http://www.colonsurgeonsofcharleston.com/uploads/_mg_10033.jpg) on [this site](http://www.colonsurgeonsofcharleston.com/staff.php)\n\nThat's usually a lot more I can find on most people, so at least it's not a misrepresentation thing. \n\nhttp://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2780171/ - Refers to FASCRS as a good resource. Papers and conventions are long standing and referenced across other reputable sites.\n\n---\n\nI find the part what Dr. Murphy accounts her reasoning for urging her to go to seacost deeply troubling.\n\nObviously, Dr. Murphy is not not the primary care. So... who was the radiologist who reported the tumor?\n\nDr. Murphy's closing thoughts don't seem consistent with her emotions. That's a pretty good indicator that someone is not looking at a situation by checking what it means for their worldview but instead taking their worldview as a fixed point and allowing bits and pieces of an external idea to fit into it. I hate to keep using this word but it's deeply disturbing to me. If she truly believes in a God that can **and does** behave as an arbiter then how could she continue her path as a doctor. She spends her whole life affecting her medical judgement when what people really need is to *deserve* healing the way this woman must have. \n\nOther thoughts: Seacoast is using a very post-modern, post-information era evangelism technique. Even a superficial review of how they pop up on the internet demonstrates it. I think this casts a shadow of suspicion over the whole story, because it's a conflict of interest. Seacost is directly implicated in this story, and they are the source, and from *within the context of their evangelism,* it is in their communities best interest for this information to be presented in a way that points towards God. \n\nLet's break down the heuristic that leads to that kind of suspicion: \n\n1. We have not just one, but several extraordinary claims. We would like good standards of evidence and we would like that evidence to be robust because anything less disregards the circumstances. \n\n2. We don't have a source outside of this church.\n\n3. This church has a conflict of interest.\n\n4. One or more of the church's conflicts coincides with altruism (http://hbswk.hbs.edu/item/7097.html)\n\n5. The Doctor's entological/epistemological shrewdness is almost certainly compromised, so could very-well mean we would wrong to assume she took any personal interest in the medical investigation. \n\n6. No investigation was mentioned. \n\n7. It's unclear to me if the radiologist was a third party\n\n8. No effort was made to present the confirmation of the diagnosis. \n\n9. In deference to cliche -- *if it seems too good to be true it probably is.* God's will is obscured, but clearly all players involved believe that the seacost pastor (?) is implicated in this miracle. Is that not a natural claim that can be analyzed? \n\n**TL;DR2:**\n\n**I've got a decent reason to accept the belief these people have in the story, their personal experiences, the credentials of the people involved, or their conviction. But I have no reason not to doubt the circumstances of the disease and the judgement of the people involved. This is a problem given that to accept this claim is to accept that God likes that woman more than countless others in similar situations. I hope her life offered the universe an amazing return on God's investment... otherwise, why did my best friend's step Dad die? -- Pretty sure he and his wife asked for some help.** 1355291415 > They appear to make sense out of a world that is otherwise confusing.\n\nThe world is confusing only to those who expect all world events to be the result of a master plan or a grand narrative. So, of course, if that's what you expect, that's what you'll find. 1316440507 I'm a she :P 1294499737 I have absolutely no problem with the responsible use of recreational drugs but I find marijuana advocates to be by and large an extremely obnoxious and irrational group of people to deal with. \n\nAs far as drugs go it's not a [terribly](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nnNPm5cG85c&feature=plcp&context=C40efbd4VDvjVQa1PpcFNfYAeDiOvV1KHWT1UkVmOpM3bFtzDl1Eo%3D) harmful [substance](http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=marijuana-memory-astrocytes), but there seem to be a lot of people promoting the idea that it's positively *good for you*.\n\nShould it be legal? Absolutely. Is it some sort of miracle drug? *Definitely* not. 1332778975 Jesus was a pretty thrifty carpenter, and probably fairly strong. a couple handles, maybe some wheels at the back, and he could haul that sonuvvabitch around all day. 1351312883 My dad got cancer after major reconstructive surgery and radiation he was told it came back the drs gave him a very short time to live. He gathered his children togeather and told us if he could be with us or help in anyway way he would. He died in march of 99. I has a few dreams of him telling me to take care of my babies and such. Then in dec he came to me in a dream and told me he was mow going to be wirh my sister. I woke ip looked at the clock and went back to sleep. The next morning i got a call that his first great grandbaby was born. They told me the lbs and how it went then they told me the time. It was exactly the time i looked at the clock. I knew without a doubt it was my dad making good on his promise. 1348893002 Guess someone doesn't know about the Deathly Hallows 1310649844 I think it's obvious. It's dinosaurs. FROM SPAAAAAAAAAAAACE!\n\nhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V595oWP5tSE 1336667050 me too. 1327975051 Obama will still be president on December 31, thats how. 1341982056 I'm not quite sure what attitude you're advocating here. I read the SciAm articles when they came out, I have a subscription. I read one of them again to see if I was missing something though..\n\nLet's try and clear this up.\n\nHere's what I think is the wrong attitude to anecdotes. An extreme example.\n- I got a headache after drinking diet coke. Aspartame causes headaches. Ban aspartame!\n\nHere's what I think is the right attitude. What we need to take out of the articles you linked to.\n- Some people have reported headaches after ingesting aspartame. Let's investigate. Is the connection plausible? Well, maybe the body anticipates a blood suger spike when you ingest something sweet and adjusts it metabolism, and that this mismatch causes some kind of stress. Great, we have a hypothesis. Let's test it. But wait, maybe somebody already have. Let's dive into Pubmed or Google Scholar and look for studies (and let's not ignore those opposing our preconception). Oh and lets get some qualified people to comment on it, it's easy for laymen to misunderstand scientific articles. Or they may be published in bad publications. \n\nThe wrong attitude is to call for conclusions and action based on anecdotes. While calling for discussion and investigation is *never* wrong if you ask me.\n\nHere's the attitude I'm reading out of your comments. Correct me if I'm wrong, I probably am.\n- Some people have reported headaches after ingesting aspartame. They're probably seeing faces in clouds. Let's not talk about it.\n\nSo when people were thinking smoking might contribute to lung cancer, were they seeing faces in clouds? Sure, aspartame causing headaches is perhaps not as plausible as that, but it's way above magic water with memory.\n\nThrough all this bickering about anecdotes we haven't yet actually looked at what studies say about aspartame and headaches. I took a quick look now, but it seems the literature is conflicted. Here's a quote from the abstract of a recent article: "The conflicting results of two recent placebo-control studies of aspartame and headache are discussed. We conclude that aspartame may be an important dietary trigger of headache in some people."\nhttp://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1526-4610.1989.hed2902090.x/abstract\n\nI don't have access to the full text though, even through my university.\n\nBut I might not be qualified to analyze these articles anyway. *Which is why I wanted someone more informed to comment on this issue.* What is wrong with that? What am I missing here? 1313534512 That makes a lot more sense. 1315938986 person's* face\n\n 1349823236 What is so wrong with that? The simple fact that subsisting on "meals" from these places can send your body into shock is proof that they are not actually a meal at all. I'm guessing this sub hates Super Size Me because you're all so painfully smart that it hurt you to watch a movie about things you already knew, but the message is sound and apparently more Americans need to hear it. It is not the answer to our health woes and never claimed to be, but it's a step in the right direction and that should be encouraged. 1326728187 Those observations provide evidence of its nature. The fact that something remains unidentified does not mean our observations of it cannot narrow down possible identifications. 1295121389 If you're going to do this I'd word it a little less harshly. Jim Carrey suffers from clinical depression. 1306955335 According to some people, we have. 1351530630 This is perfect. 1326436818 I'd agree, but then i don't think the NASA representative would say "We cannot see an object"? They seem to be blatantly ignoring it. 1305736715 I am a little concerned over the inclusion of element 74. We all have karma, and it is a provable fact of life. Just look in the upper right corner of your monitor! 1305401156 I like it. I appreciate how you take the completely uninformed person's point of view in your article. I think it makes the article much more approachable and persuasive than it would otherwise be. 1330032398 What's the problem with entertainment? 1343067310 Sorry for being so vague, by the way. Sometimes, the cards are really specific, other times, they're lolwut. I don't like to interpret too much, because Tarot is half metaphysics and half self analysis on the part of the person being read, so...yeah. 1353399413 I wanted a photo with Dick Smith :( 1291094264 And light reflecting off Venus! 1235573738 Yep, your pineal gland releases DMT during deep REM sleep and near death. \n\nEDIT: Or maybe not, this is apparently just a theory. 1350141764 >Hour Long Alien Creepy Documentary (2012)\n\nGreat title. 1354570992 Awesome, good to know more fans are still out there. :) \n 1345015744 Here it is in English: http://wp.me/p1P7lJ-7B 1326324343 You're very welcome. I thought you made a great point about the impracticality of trying to convince people with certain belief structures... Then the first reply seemed to build you up as some straw man who claims to know the unknowable, is closed minded and angry with anyone who holds false beliefs, none of which I could find in your post. Had to say something and so did a whole lot of other people =) 1325953910 I was under the same misapprehension, and I can only imagine that it's the first three letters of the name + sedative. But yeah, it works, just like willow bark does. Hell, all medicines come from "nature" to some extent. Take lithium for example. Just some salt shit they found in the water which seemed to calm down maniacs. Digitalis, for angina, etc, etc. 1321836955 Great, now I want some McDonalds. 1281845212 I just watched an episode of Bill Nye the Science Guy. It's been like... 10 years? More? Thanks man. 1344411937 I doubt there's anything involving physical equipment. Probably just meditation where you concentrate *really hard* on rewriting your DNA. 1305031597 Did I ever imply that it was? \n\nA web address on a sticker is still far more informative than stating "This product is not medicine." A web address can be written down with pen (on paper, or one's skin, etc.), or a picture can be taken with a phone or a camera and referenced later when in front of an www-capable device. Or, the person could even pull out their data enabled phone right there and type in the URL.\n\nA URL is far more informative than an accusatory statement.\n\nAll this sticker does is tell me that the vandal that put it there has a point of view that he's trying to push on to others. A URL gives me something to look up that can provide me with *information*. 1331076354 My boyfriend moved and has like two channels right now. We watched two episodes of Two and a Half Men back to back. *How is this show so popular*?? I am baffled. BAFFLED. And Jon Cryer just makes me sad. So sad. \n\n 1321305179 Or I'll fucking call the cunt a cunt. WTF? 1301890426 Dunning was on the [Skeptic Zone](http://www.skepticzone.tv/) recently and explicitly said that he's going to initially re-hash old content simply to introduce it a new YouTube audience. I think that's a good strategy for now, though I hope he does new content eventually. 1264968163 Even if she was a very small woman, if she pushes down with all of her weight she is essentially asking you to do a [front raise](http://www.exrx.net/WeightExercises/DeltoidAnterior/DBFrontRaise.html) with more than 100 lbs on your arm.\n\nFront raises are a very difficult exercise. Even very strong people use light weights on them because of the leverages involved: the relatively small anterior shoulder muscles working against your entire arm as a lever.\n\nMy hypothesis: nobody in the class is strong enough to resist when she (or pretty much anyone) actually pushes her hardest.\n\nThe test: find some people who did not see the original experiment, preferably people of different sizes and strengths. Bring them into the class and repeat the whole thing, but with no "energy slicing". Just tell them "This guy is going to hold his arm up. Try to push it down, and he will resist you. If you push it down, you get a snickers".\n\nA simpler test: go to the gym and try to hold some dumbbells straight out in front of you. Find the heaviest weight you can hold for a few seconds. My guess is that it's light enough that any adult could push down that hard without seeming like they are straining too much. You could even use the cable machine to approximate the motion of pushing someone's arm down, and see how much force you can apply there. 1322662336 There is no gene for "ignorance." In that same vein, there is no gene for "smarts." A child of two ignorant parents could be raised in a nurturing environment and grow up smart. Likewise, the child of two geniuses won't learn much if abandoned in a jungle. 1327357514 Seems unlikely that a UFO would be using aerofoil principle for flight meaning it would need to bank. Also seems unusual to see so many at an angle considering that's what would happen if you were to throw a disc in the air and photo it 1330370913 Kudos to these doctors! \n\nActions speak louder than peer-reviewed journal articles. Maybe this will be a wake up call to these irresponsible parents. 1329338102 So it was a sausage fest back then too. 1326490769 That is insanity... 1352153886 GA would be good if Zak Bagans would shut the ever living fuck up and stop making connections where there aren't any. But I liked TAPS because they debunked a bunch of stuff instead of *everything* being ghosts. At least in the beginning. I haven't seen any recent stuff. 1336143687 How could this article possibly be found uninteresting by someone with an interest in UFOs? 1345643773 Almost all scientists are open to the idea of microbial life in outer space...but that's not the kind we're talking about here. SETI deals with ETI, the stuff we actually do care about. Even then, both institutions are actually quite non-controversial. If microbial life exists, well that's awesome, but it doesn't really mean anything to the average joe. If ETI exists and sends an EM signal, that would be pretty big news, but it would just confirm our assumptions that interstellar space travel or FTL is impossible. The kind of alien life we talk about on this sub-reddit is *very* controversial, that is, the kind that has the ability to travel to Earth from several light years away. It's controversial because it violates general relativity (which we have the utmost confidence in, mind you) which postulates that nothing can travel faster than light. And it seems pretty obvious to me, at least, that if ET is visiting Earth constantly, then it is pretty easy for them to do so (implying that they're using some sort of FTL, and not generation ships or what have you). It will take a heck of an event or unmistakable proof to convince scientists that ET is visiting Earth. 1299658519 Alien abduction seems like a fresh coat of paint on one of humanity's oldest myths; aliens have just taken the place of demons these days. What do you think of that idea? 1331784448 I think that gravity stopping tomorrow would be going a bit to far to say that we cannot 'know' that that won't happen. We can be as sure that gravity will continue to work tomorrow as we can about anything behaving according to our current understanding of the laws of physics. That's not to say that we haven't missed something that would allow for gravity to suddenly 'switch off', but that it's unlikely enough to ignore the possibility - until we are given some evidence that would lead us to such conclusions.\n\nI'm not suggesting that we know everything about the world that there is to know, and the scientific community offers that we know very little about the universe as a whole. There are lots of strange things going on out there that we have a very difficult time observing from here. Our lack of knowledge does not give us the excuse to claim into existence a super being capable of creating our universe. 1325954659 There are myriad other mental illnesses besides stereotypical cuckoo. 1356112416 Have the physics professor shut him the fuck down. ;) 1354739530 Some, yes, absolutely... But I think the majority really, honestly believe in the power, especially for things like Tarot cards and astrology (where it's really, really easy to have "provable" results because of vague nature of interpretation and the power of selection bias). 1309749062 Look for yourself. Same exact video stolen from UFOTV. Hate when people do that on Youtube. 1342599335 For me the problem is that she describes skepticism as a "culture". It's like describing atheism as a religion:\n\n>It is possible that our two warring cultures will never build a bridge across the deep rift that divides us. I know that in my own case, the transition from my culture to yours was long, arduous, and deeply painful.\n\nShe still appears to cling to the fallacy of the golden mean, when there is no half way point between idiocy and reason. Of course they'll never bridge the gap. It's like expecting Dawkins to concede that some dinosaurs lived among humans, and maybe humans don't all share a common ancestor with other primates.\n\n 1281402072 Yes it does. I honor your opinions. All I ask in return is that you honor mine. 1350658501 \nThe second 'nighttime laser' footage is not real, was done for a contest a few years back and made the rounds in the usual UFO and Tinfoil hat sites.:\n\n"This is a fake UFO. (created by Jeff Wilson of Morristown, Tennessee) This was done to give researchers an information on how to spot hoaxes. see http://ufocontest.com/\nand http://speakingofstrange.com/ for full details.\nThe craft was a large black triangle that was lifted in the air with a 14ft diameter advertising helium balloon.\nit weighed about 10 pounds and as saw in the video it included 3 bright red leds light pods on each corner, a 200mw stage laser, 3 blue led's inside light defusing glass on the rear, and a 4 stage round Electroluminescent (also known as EL)light in the center.\nIt was about 400 feet in the air at night in the mountains outside Asheville, NC. There was stars out but they DID not show up on the video. " 1297692978 Wait! Wait! I have an idea of where this stems from (no pun intended.) It has been shown that taking potassium iodide can block the uptake of radioactive iodine to the thyroid gland. *However* it is difficult to measure the amount of potassium iodide in foods, as the amount seems to vary greatly. Solution? Potassium iodide tablets! Garlic, however, is just simply delicious and should consumed frequently anyway. 1350784172 At least he takes into consideration new evidence. 1330018844 Thranil posted both of them. This is literally a [fixed] version that doesn't just go to Google Maps. 1334710225 It's actually quite funny! Through the use of hex vectors, a basic binary code was translated into Actionscript VARs, which is what the filename is. The binary was originally alpha ascii text that read out a hilarious knock knock joke. I kid you not. This truly is odd and funny. 1341034827 I am aware of this, thanks tho. 1344265488 I got the same reaction, it's the first timers I worry for haha\n\nWe have a negra in the living room that's taller than most toddlers, that gets the most attention! 1327753842 >I think that if you want to argue that the history of the United States makes it particularly violent and our comparatively lax gun laws, in comparison to Denmark, Japan, and Switzerland, have nothing to do with that, then I'd invite you to do the research yourself and make that argument.\n\nI never said this. I said that I believed the simply discussing relationship between number of guns and rate of gun-related violence isn't nuanced enough.\n\n>Regarding your point about the baggage of slavery, all three of our example nations other than the US had a relationship to slavery or similar extreme oppression of ethnic groups. Slavery was abolished in the Danish colonies in 1848, only 17 years before the 13th amendment was ratified.[1] 1848 is also the same year Switzerland became a federal state[2] after a frankly confusing history of being a loose confederation, or annexed by napoleon, or whatnot. Only existing as the modern state when slavery was already on the way out did not stop Switzerland from profiting from and aiding the slave trade, however.[3]\n\nAt least in the United States, abolishing slavery only ended institutionalized slavery. (It was actually interesting to learn that Denmark suffered similar issues after abolishing slavery as did the U.S., which is that many simply became indentured servants by continuing to work for their previous captor, only now they were an employer and had no obligation to feed or shelter them. That's not an argument against the abolition of slavery, I just found it interesting.) How diverse are the populations in our example countries compared to the U.S.? \n\nOnly 6% of Switzerland's population is non-European. \n99% of Japan is Japanese\n97% of Denmark is Danish\n\nAnd that's not at all mean to suggest either of these countries lacks diversity at all. But none of them have significant populations of former slaves. My mom and dad went to school when black Americans were not allowed to drink from the same water fountains as whites. I'm not that old. I'm 27. That absolutely still effects this country today. 1355800796 Personally I tend to view them as more humourous than depressing. I went through a stage where they depressed me back at university, but at some point I realised in the absence of major selective stressors on our genes, the pressure now comes from Dawkins' extended phenotype. The pursuit of Woo over actual empirically established practises is a very elegant demonstration that, to paraphrase Ian Malcolm from *Jurassic Park*, "Darwin finds a way." 1322418522 There seems to be a huge increase in shadow people sightings lately. No one Ive talked to at least is sure why. 1348680159 I like how he mentioned how close he was to Wright Patterson AFB but curiously omitted the fact that Erlanger is where the Greater Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky Airport (CVG) is located. I realize that an airplane would not be there for an hour in the same spot but seemed odd that he left that part out... 1244870537 Again, I'm not really convinced that a new born is learning to latch. That would also seem to require that they're able to reposition their head, with a newborn human child it's up to the mother to position the child's head and her breast to make it easy for the baby to suck. 1335107759 The related variant is, "Science hasn't yet fully figured out how <x> works, therefore <horseshit>." 1295117099 Hmmm...there's the [Nazis](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JEle_DLDg9Y), [Jeebus teaching](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rywVlfTtlMY), [Moneypenny from her friends point of view](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gIfSQW499Xc) and especially relevant for Reddit, the [Grammar Nazi](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c3y0CD2CoCs)\n\nThere's a Dawkins one, but it's pretty naff to be honest.\n\n 1315377179 Their "story" wasn't a particularly complicated one. It consisted of them seeing an object and that aliens came out of it. What's to get wrong? When it came to details, like what the aliens and craft looked like, they were incredibly inconsistent. Not to mention the fact that the interviewer leads them in every single question he asks.\n\nWhen asked what they looked like they only really describe the eyes, like they would if they had been coached to "tell them their eyes were black and pointy" and given no other details about their appearance.\n\nI honestly don't understand why people find this account so compelling. There are some compelling accounts of alien encounters and visitations, but this isn't one of them. 1342204639 Princess: "Am I pretty?"\n\nBoy: "Yes"\n\nPrincess: "Has anyone decided to go as far to want to look more like [me]?"\n\nBoy: "Huh."\n\nContext is actually important. She was asking if anyone was so determined that people would want to have her prettiness. It's a yes/no question. 1288477060 [Rebuttal here.](http://scienceblogs.com/insolence/2012/09/12/can-we-finally-just-say-that-acupuncture-is-nothing-more-than-an-elaborate-placebo-can-we-2012-edition/)\n\nAs you mention, the analysis does not sufficiently address remaining bias, which means that even the small observed effect may be spurious, consistent with acupuncture being an elaborate placebo.\n\nIn other words, the headline (and the abstract and the conclusion) **massively oversell the findings.**\n\n(I'm reluctant to mention it, because it will be spun into an *ad hom*, but on top of that, at least three of the authors, Lewith, Witt and Linde, are notorious woo-defenders.) 1347975538 agreed, I am so surprised about the emotion and energy that my fellow able bodied, healthy young friends put behind legalization of cannabis for medical purposes. They post stuff about it daily, and talk ad nauseum about the supposed health benefits of cannabis. Oh, and just **purely** by coincidence, they smoke it recreationally. I don't smoke it myself, but I'm in favor of legalization and would vote *yes* if it ever came up for referendum. Of course, there are certainly more pressing matters in today politics. 1332802902 The problem is that they're quite definitive in their claims, yet they're not actually accurate enough to be so. 1320633850 70 years ago was 1941. Which was 12 years after the Valentines Day Massacre, 7 years after Al Capone was sent to Alcatraz, and 21 years after Big Jim Colosimo was killed as the first big murder of the prohibition era. 1315526319 Did seem very organic/fluid - flock of birds seems about right. 1315307855 Meh. If you're dumb enough to disregard your oncologist in favor of something to saw on Facebook, there's not a whole lot getting one profile shut down is going to accomplish. People with that little sense are going to find a way to be stupid. 1342642959 >I wonder if human civilizations were used/exploited by the "gods" in an effort to mine the planet of its gold\n\nI am of the opinion that if a civilization has the technology and power to travel the universe then there is nothing we have that they would want. \n\nEven to assume for a moment that they did need gold there most certainly are planets that are closer and easier to obtain it from than here.\n\n>Is the thought that an advanced civilization would be interested in studying the human species a narcissistic fantasy \n\nMost certainly it is.\n\n>What if we're no more interesting to aliens than lemur colonies are to a logging company?\n\nI definitely think there are a few scenarios here that could exist. Intelligent life could be so common that it is no longer worth studying for them. Conversely intelligent life could be so rare that we are indeed being studied and perhaps even "protected" from ourselves. Personally I think the most likely scenario lies somewhere in the middle where they have a primary objective and studying us could be a secondary or, probably, a tertiary objective.\n\nUltimately the problem is that we don't have nearly enough knowledge of what goes on outside of our planet to make an educated guess either way. 1305919574 I have toolboxes filled with gear that I've purchased over the past 2+ decades, but the only things I carry every single time are high quality digital cameras, video cameras with night shot and high quality voice recorders. Anything else is just fluff. I may occasionally take a laser grid or a motion activated camera, if the reports are of apparitions. 1344514865 [What would Neptune look like if it orbited Earth?](http://i.imgur.com/C3dnz.png)\n\nEDIT: Also, high five for "massive ... mass", whether it was intentional or not. 1298101079 Exactly, I dont see why when citing this study people dont ever think to mention that maybe the men who had surgery in hopes of reducing the risk of infection might have also had safer sex.\n\nIt's basically the same fundamental problem as the people who enter diet studies pretty much all want to lose weight and diet. 1346109587 >Harabeck we were having an actual discussion here\n\nNot really dude. I gave you a good starting point for a discussion, but you're just following up with empty rhetoric.\n\n>My point was not that I'm right and you're wrong, my point was that you haven't considered the other side of the argument because you've given in to ridicule and propaganda, that your opinion is skewed and you don't know it, therefore you aren't being truly skeptical.\n\nAgain, that's a lot of mind reading going on there. How do you know that's what I did? How do you know that I'm just not considering the side of the argument you agree with? How do you know I haven't spent hours and hours considering the evidence objectively? You don't. But you assume that because I don't agree with you, and that's why we aren't having a discussion. You are trying to tell me what's wrong with me, but you haven't bothered to find out anything about my position further than I disagree with you. And yet, you claim to be the voice of reason here. That's why the discussion has stalled. I'm telling you that you're being a jackass and just repeating the same bare assertion that I'm wrong with absolutely no support, and you just respond with more of the same. A discussion is a two way dialogue, not you telling me what I think.\n\n>And then you make a little snide comment about how I wrote a lot? \n\nWhat? I'm saying you aren't writing enough. Or at least, nothing of substance.\n\nIf you want a discussion, then fine, let's have one. Go back to what I said here:\n\n>I have seen no convincing evidence of such a conspiracy. Badly misinterpreted quotes, coincidences, and completely retarded interpretations of video do not make an actual conspiracy. Unless you have some new bombshell I haven't seen before...?\n\nAnd this time answer it. Tell me why my position is unreasonable and could only be a product of bias. What evidence has you so convinced? 1331221261 Excellent, I am occasionally struck by this when listening to the *Skeptics Guide to the Universe*. The most recent was the complete dismissal of tidal forces having any possible effect on seismic activity.\n\nThey were ridiculing some charlatan who claimed to be able to predict earthquakes, but that doesn't mean something that they acknowledged creates a 1-foot bulge in the lithosphere couldn't also affect the movement of plates in relation to each other. In fact it seems like it is even a likely 'straw that broke the camels back'. In other words the earthquakes in NZ and Japan wouldn't have occurred with the tidal forces alone, but they might have occurred when they did, rather than a year from now, because of the specific tidal forces that the plates were experiencing at the time of the quakes. 1300696985 It's not good hyperbole if you can only infer that it's hyperbole after you watch the video. 1353609126 Sure there should be research done into the new crops before they are approved, like what was done with Bt (which we've been using in spray form since the 30s), but just because we've evolved with pesticides doesn't mean they have no effect on us, we've evolved along with poison ivy over millions of years and it is dangerous. 1325618618 nah, it would not have been a physical cloaking device, but more of a psychological one, something that misdirects the eyes when looking at it, sort of like a blind spot. a lot of the stories of aliens and so forth appear to include psychological effects 1335111818 i think i did 1346987811 The problem is Occam's razor cannot be used to determine which of two hypotheses is more probable or valid.\n\nIt just says it's better in a scientific context to pick the one that makes less assumptions. It has nothing to do with validity, probability or anything, it's about respecting the scientific method as much as possible. 1349290047 "I have no idea what that is." Anybody who has seen a ufo sure can relate to that! 1347933584 Well put. Misogyny is inherent in society, elevators are irrelevant. But I would certainly prefer a more studious, informed scientist to take her place on SGU. 1310156216 ...it's complicated.\n\nGo google "healing crisis." I'll wait.\n\nBack?\n\nI'll bet you saw a lot of woo that you didn't quite understand so lemme break it down for you: in the land of pseudoscience, a "healing crisis" is what your body does as you "detox" from whatever it is that ails you. It manifests as your symptoms getting radically worse as you treat them with whatever unscientific method you choose to throw at it. This is hailed as a "good sign" because it means you're getting better - you just have to get worse first. \n\nSo someone who sees an iridologist, gets treated by magnets or whatever, and then gets markedly worse is *not*, in fact, "getting worse." They are suffering a "healing crisis" and are on the road to recovery, presuming they have the power to stick it out.\n\nAs I've mentioned in here, my wife has a doctorate in naturopathic medicine. Her first year at school they tried to treat her eczema with homeopathy. She was game, because hey - if you're taking the degree, you ought to expose yourself to all the modalities you're learning. So she got her prescription magic sugar pills and was told to discontinue all the lotions and cortisone creams she was using and lo and behold, her hands started looking *terrible.* Which was a problem, as she was delivering babies, and her hands looked like something out of a Romero film - red, cracked, inflamed, terrible. She'd cry at night from the pain.\n\nThe homeopaths, though, were THRILLED. She was having a "healing crisis." It was working! Soon she'd be all better! Yay!\n\nThe problem is that the worse you get, the more complete your recovery. Right? *Right?* So the longer you suffer, the better you'll be in the end. Right?\n\nThat was our "come to jesus" moment with alternative medicine - I pointed out that she couldn't function the way she was and there was no reason to believe that the homeopathy was doing anything. She knew, logically, it couldn't do anything. I knew, logically, it couldn't do anything. So she went to the dermatologist, got some wicked steroid cream, and cured the fuck out of her hands.\n\n...which worked out nicely with the naturopathic treatment recommended - change her diet to avoid the allergens that were irritating her skin (wheat and dairy). So clear of wheat and dairy, and with her hands on the mend via steroid cream, she had creamy-smooth skin with no blemishes inside of a month. But there was a very real crisis of faith in the middle there, and the homeopathy department never forgave her.\n\nThis iridologist may well have *believed* in the "healing crisis" and thereby, convinced the woman not to discontinue treatment. That's how things like [parents letting eczema kill their child](http://www.smh.com.au/national/parents-guilty-of-manslaughter-over-daughters-eczema-death-20090605-bxvx.html) happens. Now, granted- you have to be in total denial of all the evidence against your trade in order to believe this. You need to have willfully walled off part of your mind against logic. But once you've done that, you can *believe* that a woman's skull eroding is a *good thing.* Then, later during the inquest, someone says \n\n*"c'mon, woman. You saw her brain eating through her skull. You knew this was seriously terrible yet you did nothing. Admit that this was beyond your expertise.*"\n\nAt that point, you get a *mea culpa* as the practitioner, who has suffered a total crisis of faith, collapses. Because at some point, you have to acknowledge that your medicine killed someone, and it's all your fault. 1346690928 These are birds. 1340278546 Then why are you here? Is this this helicopter formation flying blog? What makes you think that would be a good idea to do while dark for no good reason at all? If there was a good reason, then it wouldn't have been reported in the local media and spread across the internet.\n\nIf anyone's being a bitch, its you for not being able to say you don't know what it is and claiming something nonsensical instead. It just makes zero sense that these would be helicopters; far too many bad ideas going on if it were. Helicopters are not just toys; they have people who own them and care for them. 1321885833 About a week ago, I posted a few UFO videos taken by 'alienphotog'. I started to look at his other videos that referenced his contact with extraterrestrials. Intrigued, I forwarded an invitation for him to present his story. The following is his introduction along with a series of videos. The plan is to post installments where 'alienphotog' will go into more detail of experiences. 1264545212 Bike helmets are pretty flimsy structures. I can see them only making a marginal difference in a marginal number of accidents.\n\nRiders who obey the rules of the road are less likely to have accidetns, more likely to be careful and experienced riders and more likely to wear helmets.\n\nIf we really care about cyclist's safety we would do better to license cyclists just as we do cars. Make them pass a test after doing a riding course. Have them carry a license plate front and back. Have the police ticket them just as they would cars for any infringement of the rules of the road. That would have a far greater effect on reducing cycling deaths and injuries than mandatory helmet wearing. And I say this as an avide cyclist who does not own a car and rides probably 200 K a week in city traffic. For every motorist doing something dangerous and stupid to cyclists I see at least 10 cyclists doing it to themselves. 1311879073 You say that they're trained in critical thinking. I'm just wondering how you know this? Have they done philosophy courses in critical thinking for example? 1335093924 Soylent Green... is... Jihad? 1304444817 Hey I bet that'll be a real thing someday, once the nanotech is there. 1354843979 I looked at the photos here: Magazine 47/V (Color) Frames 6869-7021 http://www.hq.nasa.gov/alsj/a12/images12.html but there are only a few photos from lunar orbit.\nAren't capsule's windows covered during launch to prevent capsule damage, in this case dirt on windows? 1327092801 wait wait wait... that's a Jew. We're talking about is the opposite of old. 1293206843 Balance is a subjective word. I think we are in balance, are you so arrogant to believe that a little species like ourselves can have any real impact on a a natural balance? Sure as the pendulum swings it reaches a max hieght, but it always returns to the middle before it swings the opposite direction. We already see thousands of applications of sine waves in nature, who's to say that humanity and technology do not also follow suit? Nature is larger than us, we are a part of it, anything we do is "natural". There is no larger plan for us, no higher existence. We are what we are. And at the end of the day we will see if we are a species capable of changing its fate. 1352825790 Well fuck man finish the story!! 1318189133 exactly, the flashes of light are also quite clearly done in after effects so its a no-brainer. the best one imo is probably the phoenix lights 1329015497 Given it's the internet, this very well could be a "child" 1342469263 Space junk, probably a spring or tubing similar to a slinky. 1356931591 >...which basically translates as "As far as we know, it does not cause harm.\n\nUm, that's an odd interpretation. If that's what they meant, they would have said that; this is a respected veterinary journal. What that sentence means is exactly what it says: there is currently no compelling reason to currently recommend ***or reject*** acupuncture, but "some encouraging data do exist that warrant further investigation in independent rigorous trials." These scientists, and the scientists who write the independent Cochrane reviews (which are [independent, highly respected research reviews](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Systematic_review#Cochrane_Collaboration) designed to help practitioners keep up on research, especially in areas of clinical practice that are unsettled) reviewed all extant data on humans and domestic animals and both reached the same conclusion: at present, there's no compelling reason to accept or reject acupuncture, and some of the data looks promising. I don't have any stake in the acupuncture game, but I also don't like to pretend I know better than the scientists who have read and critiqued all of the available literature in this area. 1326210877 Yeah, it keeps the ignorant, science hating masses occupied. 1300935631 You can't deal with their ideas. They didn't come at them by reason, so you can't reason them out of it.\n\nYou can parody; did you know the Starbucks across the street was built by aliens?! You can use their obstinacy and loose standards of evidence to show how any dumb idea has the same support, and you should compound their dumb ideas with more dumbness. MMR vaccines really get the body humors out of balance, and (insert 17th century medical voodoo here) and that's why it causes autism. Oh, and vaccine needles are accupuncture, and they're doing it wrong, and that causes autism. (Contradictory? So what. Revel in it.) 1340284202 Penn & Teller had an excellent episode on PETA.\n\nhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l9ijLulwUTY 1271513651 Wow, thank you for the awesome info! While I may not have the cash on hand to start-up, I will eventually, and I'll totally give it a shot. I'll also check out /r/homebrewing for more info, and will probably ask some questions of you concerning the process in the future. 1286951742 True, but this particular bigot is [a *notorious* troll.](http://www.reddit.com/r/TheAgora/comments/ej3g3/on_the_ethics_of_trollkilling/) He and [his little clique](http://www.reddit.com/r/NolibsWatch/comments/lp7sl/members_of_the_nolibs_modding_crew_possibly/) are not dissimilar in style and methods to the Westboro Baptist Church. The fundamentalist beliefs they respectively espouse are solidified by hatred, intolerance and a delusional sense of [divinely righteous](http://www.reddit.com/r/NolibsWatch/comments/153ope/jesus_muhammad_and_many_of_the_others_mentioned/) purpose. Christian Zionist extremism. Scary.\n\nCheck out the [reddit legacy of u/jcm267](http://www.reddit.com/search?q=*jcm267+-author%3Ajcm267). 1356552117 Could have done without the gregorian chant.... 1277762068 I think he meant in the aspartme article. 1305163192 A [gift](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9OtbHoZOAao), for you, from the internet people. 1294116276 Yes, those private fire brigades in the late 1800s were just wonderful. If you didn't pay them, they let your house burn to the ground, dog, baby, and all. \n\nProfit as a motive for some things just doesn't work. If private fire brigades existed today instead of the public ones we have, they would be lobbying against fire safety measures. 1312482663 BEHOLD! THERE'S A POTENTIAL FRAUD IN GREECE GOING ON!! http://imgur.com/EGAVf 1306853955 If a rift opened up, would it appear stationary on earth, or would it seem to zoom by us because the earth is moving so fast in space? 1331352713 It's definitely true that futurist predictions should be taken with a grain of salt, but what about the central empirical claims that a) we can create AI of "equal intelligence" to our own, and b) AI of "equal intelligence" to our own could design further AIs that were "more intelligent" (where "intelligence" here is a pretty vague term but has to do with the various cognitive capacities relevant to reasoning about the world and manipulating it for the agent's own purposes). Those claims seem pretty reasonable to me, and not at all like religious claims. I know the Singularity stuff carries with it particular baggage (such as when AIs-designing-smarter-AIs will occur, how fast the process will be, and the social consequences of that process) but it doesn't seem to me that the main two points I mentioned above are (pseudo-)religious claims. 1335062712 Please stop with the Illuminati 1340724562 I've often thought about how we Earthlings would act to other inhabitants of alien worlds if/when we space travel. Would we assist their "evolution" or just sit back and watch them go through their times? I wonder. Oh, and good point! 1336961013 Woah there, I'm not saying they are the same thing, I am saying "I bet I could give a patient cheaper and equal treatment by massaging their back." Who's jumping to conclusions now?\n\nAlso, let's not muddy the issue by bringing osteopathy into this. 1314025520 For those of us who don't know, could someone briefly explain the relationship between TED and TEDx? I enjoy watching the TED talks on Netflix, but I don't really know what this TEDx thing is. 1354936999 They spend too much money on travel for this to not be a serious effort. 1322401590 Sense when? 1317892134 OK one thing is they refer to a Lancet article, *but do not include a link!* Well after looking around, they probably mean [this study](http://www.foodbase.org.uk//admintools/reportdocuments/137-1-233_additivesbehaviourfinrep.pdf) (PDF) commissioned by the UK Food Standards Agency.\n\nAs with most of these studies they found a statistical link (perhaps someone can look into the statistics I do not have the time), but a statistical link in 1 single study with only 130 participants does not mean very much yet. Problem is also, that they found some hyperactivity, but strangely 3 year olds became hyperactive from mixture A (Mix A for 3-year-old children included 20 mg of artificial food colourings (5 mg sunset yellow [E110], 2·5 mg carmoisine [E122], 7·5 mg tartrazine [E102], and 5 mg ponceau 4R [E124) and 45 mg of sodium benzoate). \n\nWhereas 8 year olds became hyperactive from Mix B ( Active Mix B \nincluded 30 mg of artificial food colourings (7·5 mg sunset yellow, 7·5 mg carmoisine, 7·5 mg quinoline yellow [E104], and 7·5 mg allura red AC [E129]) and 45 mg of sodium benzoate. )\n\nSo this link is tenuous at least.\n\nThe rest are all bunk. 1321915330 looks like classic vegan propaganda 1346423050 re: what jaxxil_ said:\n\n> First of all, it claims to cure cancer. Red flag in itself. All types, too, apparently! \n\nCancer is not a single disease. Even breast cancer is not, in its, a single disease. See this paper, (among many others):\n\n> **Modelling breast cancer: one size does not fit all**\n\n> by Tracy Vargo-Gogola1 & Jeffrey M. Rosen\n\n> Breast cancer is not a single disease, but is instead a collection of diseases that have distinct histopathological features, genetic and genomic variability, and diverse prognostic outcomes. Thus, no individual model would be expected to completely recapitulate this complex disease. Here, the models commonly used to investigate breast cancer including cell lines, xenografts and genetically engineered mice, are discussed to help address the question: what is the most powerful way to investigate this heterogeneous disease?\n\n[http://www.nature.com/nrc/journal/v7/n9/abs/nrc2193.html](http://www.nature.com/nrc/journal/v7/n9/abs/nrc2193.html)\n\nFor that reason, there will never be a single cancer cure. 1348682079 >Belief in the paranormal\n\nAs distinct from interest in the subject.\n\nI have never believed in the paranormal, whatever that means. But I've been interested in the subject since 1962.\n\nParanormal is somewhat of a misnomer. If something occurs in reality, regardless of how frequent or infrequent, strange or mundane, it is what I would call "normal". At least as compared to the general public perception of paranormal.\n\nWebster's online dictionary lists a definition of paranormal as, "not scientifically explainable". This too is not exactly correct. More accurate would be, "not *currently* scientifically explainable".\n\n[Sometimes belief that a thing is so might be paranormal for a time, then, frequently suddenly, be quite normal/scientifically explainable.](http://www.dinofish.com/)\n\nAnother example:\n\nThe giant squid, possibly formerly known as the kraken.\n\n>On at least three occasions in the 1930's they reportedly attacked a ship.\n\n [Many times in past centuries these attacks were said to have transpired. These stories, until recently were generally considered ignorant "tales" particularly among the scientific community. There is every reason to believe that ignorance is not restricted to ancient times.](http://unmuseum.mus.pa.us/kraken.htm)\n\n[Kevin Smith says he does not believe in UFOs.](http://kevinsmith.mypodcast.com/) 1227003154 I didn't confuse you whit the troll at all. 1347415213 I wonder if we'll get to see the hair guy.. 1313624590 He actually told me that he first thought it was some kind of toy but that it made no noise and the light it emitted made him think otherwise. \n 1336617775 Awww...\n\nBut it was fun typing in random stuff and seeing what would come up.\n\nI remember people actually selling their souls on there. Those were fun to read. 1345193569 Is this a MN glitch? 1337534846 It depends on the area of the world. Ki is Japanese, Chi (Qi) is Chinese. [source](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Qi) 1326480342 Regarding phosphoric acid, I thought there was a mechanism directly on tooth enamel. I don't have any sources other than a memory of my (admittedly fallible) dentist from many years ago telling me this. Do you have any information about that? 1332295339 If it *were*. Sorry, pet peeve.\n\n---\n\nI know that St. Johns Wort is an OTC compound in many places that many people use daily without any prescription. I won't deny the possibility that it has side effects, of course, but methinks that if there were, we would know of them by now, *beyond* reasonable doubt. 1345560087 Well, considering the front page story about Rick Astley getting zilch in royalties for all the views on Youtube, I've really got to say that the current incarnation of copyright and how it's used, especially in the **silencing** of culture unless you're willing to pay for it, has jumped the shark. 1284784432 Why is this here? 1287048094 Sure you can be. It is not this *or* that, it is this *and* that.\n\nIf you find the concept interesting you can take a look at any of the jane robers/seth material books. If you find the concept bullshit, that is a valid way to experience the world also. 1329233343 As mentioned above, there are indeed viewers that are not sufficiently critical regarding possible conventional explanations to certain aerial phenomena. However (and regarding the "balloon blowing in the wind" example alone that you gave), I myself have also *very* often seen individuals who seem to have a knee jerk reaction calling almost any small, round, floating, luminous object in the sky a "balloon blowing in the wind" when, the fact of the matter is that a balloon blowing in the wind exhibits characteristics of instability that many of these aerial objects actually do *not* exhibit. Under these types of circumstances, the individual claiming a more conventional explanation is, in fact, little more than an uncritical naysayer and is just as detrimental to valid observation as the individual who is too quick to call the object a UFO.\n\nA third party observer (presumably you, for example) looking from the outside in at the different manners which phenomena are describe should themselves be very critical of *how* things are described and the validity with which observers on *either* side of the phenomenon analyze things - realizing that there are both critical and uncritical observations made on both sides. Ultimately, what one should do is simply discard all UFO and ET phenomena and observations that are uncritical and invalid. There will be a very big pile - as there is a lot of disinformation, etc out there. After you're done discarding the mountain of incorrect data, you'll find - if you yourself are critical and astute enough - that there will *still* be a certain percentage that will be valid and not explainable by any conventional, terrestrial means.\n\nAt the of the day, even if .5% of the thousands upon untold thousands of sightings are valid - heck, if even one in many *millions* is valid - then that alone is still proof that the phenomenon is real, and ETs exist. 1338668429 Oh yes you will. :D 1345641681 Agree, I will use this as an intro to many things now. 1339696844 The others might be referring to some of the work by [Temple Grandin](http://www.grandin.com/inc/squeeze.html), also [wikipedia overview](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hug_machine). 1329727804 Exactly. You can't pick and choose what to be skeptical of. 1319209237 Apparently the official Roswell Alien footage was released just the other day, chicky check it out-http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sMjw5ukKx1Y&feature=player_embedded Could this be a fake or CG in any way? 1304533341 I though that they had already concluded that fake acupuncture had exactly the same effect as true acupuncture. 1318286167 I'm vegan and if I were taken in by that gluten thing, I'd probably hang myself. There'd not be much left to eat with a good consistency except falafel, and even I'd tire of that after a while. 1294346551 Not to act like a conspiracy theorist or anything but if our government lied to us I don't think they would be the first establishment to do so. So with that in mind, they are a pretty powerful group making a hefty claim and I think it is appropriate to question thing that are presented and in this case. The main missing link here is the body that no one single person has apparently circulated a picture of. This is entirely contradictory to a lot of previous executions of leaders, Che Guevara and Saddam to list a couple. Am I raving that there has to be foul play afoot, certainly not. But i don't see the evidence they have presented leading only to the result that they are claiming. 1304417032 Someone who I thought was intelligent linked to this today with no qualification other than that the EPA had confirmed this link. (Uh, no.)\n\nFrom the page:\n> That virus-laden DNA of aborted babies could be wreaking havoc on the DNA of healthy children is completely plausible\n\nWTF are they talking about? Has anyone heard of this before? Are fetal cells used in culturing vaccines? This sounds to me like an all-new brand of anti-vaccine crazy.\n\nThe Sound Choice Pharmaceutical Institute doesn't exactly sound like an unbiased research source, either. Why are they presenting at the International Society for Autism Research meeting? (ISAR is by all appearances a reputable organization, if you can judge by the research they're publishing in their journal, which appears to be mostly from public research universities). 1271958136 >Still, the Prines said it should be their choice whether to vaccinate, not their doctor's.\n\n\nFine, and it's the doctor's choice to see your kid or not. 1299048190 we can just hope 1278130941 I had the exact same experience where your bad dream is concerned. I looked around the room with my eyes but couldn't move. I heard someone behind me laughing loudly. I tried as hard as I old to get up but couldn't. I finally managed to shake myself so hard I rolled onto the floor and jumped up fist cocked ready to beat he piss out of who ever was in my apt. No one was there.\nI asked my mother about It (being 19 at the time) she reconised it right away and said its called an old hag. 1344919422 If God was all powerful, and all good, there's no reason why he would willfully inflict pain upon us for logistical reasons. If he is restricted by anything, logistics or otherwise, then he is no longer all powerful. 1308694967 Absolutely the only show/movie/depiction I've seen that gets the southern, hillbilly redneck spot on. 1284678909 Yea she doesn't my tits in too. Her segments on SGU are just boring. 1309967548 I did a good read on this after my brother got into it. I did find I good well written and referenced set of short [papers](http://www.beyondveg.com/cat/paleodiet/index.shtml) on the various topics discussed and follwed a good few of the primary papers up. The stuff about grains being toxic seems to hold true and it does seem to have a fairly scientific basis. You should check it out once your finals are over.\n\nIt just needs some good clinical trials to be carried out to prove some of its claims. But there's certainly no evidence for it being bad for you as far as I read.\n\nIf anything encouraging people to eat a lot more veg and think about the quality of their food and cut down on processed foods is certainly good. If it was me though I'd sooner cut back on things like grain rather than remove them completely. I love bacon butties too much. 1303772980 I like LunaCognitas videos and love the frame stacking technique. However, I agree that it seems to just be something on the window and the movement over the surface is caused by the lunar module moving. 1327002898 >When did I ever claim that he was wrong? You stated that it first free fell at this speed.\n\nI'm not only claiming it, I actually *showed* you **video evidence**. You, however, are hung up on how the penthouse itself collapsed seconds before and are again confusing the total duration of collapse of other elements that may or may not have affected the actual *building* collapse.\n\n>NIST even reports free fall after the initial collapse.\n\n*sigh* NIST left out entire sections of evidence (again, as pointed out by the SE in the previous video linked.) They're a joke.\n\n>Never said it. But even so, evidence against concept A isn't evidence for concept B. Please take a logic class once in your life. Spare me having to continuously discuss the finer points with you.\n\nSo, what the fuck are you defending, then? Either it collapsed per the mainstream theory (heat/fires) - **or** it collapsed due to explosions. That's it. Inside or Outside Job. (or even a combination of the two.)\n\n>And I say, Then HE SHOULD PROVE IT!\n\n...*facepalm*.... a **high school** teacher proved it. Did. You. Watch the video? You never *once* explicitly stated what was *wrong* w/ his science other than denying it.\n\n>So your claim is that it was a controlled demolition? So how did the 7 hour fires not set off or damage the devices before hand? <emotionally knee-jerked, loaded questions that have no relevance to the actual topic at hand>.... how do you explain that?\n\nYou don't understand. For a supposed skeptic, you're asking all these questions like, "how come people didn't notice, how could all these people be involved, etc. etc.". I **already** addressed all of that. To speak to the motivations or the level of people involved is nothing but pure conjecture and no amount of science can prove anything. It's all conjecture. But, regardless, you're allowing your **pre-conceived** human **emotions** get the best of you and b/c of this you're simply shutting down any possibility of anything outside of the bubble of how you **think** the world should operate.\n\nI mean, it would be like someone living in a small town whose wife was brutally raped and murdered. All the evidence pointed at the beloved/highly respected local Sheriff. I mean, this guy was loved by *everyone* - but, in spite of his semen on her dress, and his finger prints on her car door, and her blood in his office you'd sit back and say "no!! that just couldn't happen!! Imagine how many people would have had to been in on the conspiracy. And, I just can't believe that anyway - it's just not possible. He's a good guy!!" Well, sorry - the evidence says otherwise. Suck it up, the man is a rapist and murderer.\n\n>LITERALLY no evidence\n\nI can't even laugh anymore. I mean, it's thoughtless statements like this that make me think you're just a troll or a shill. No, see, there's no evidence **that you like**. There's no evidence **that you're comfortable with.** You're so, so horribly biased and have allowed your emotions to take over, that, you're fighting *any* kind of dissenting voice (w/ hatred, no less). I sincerely feel sorry for you.\n\nNo, see, there's LITERALLY no evidence that Elvis Presley is living on a moon base now. There is a copious amount of evidence that explosives brought down Bldg. 7. \n\nRegardless, it's interesting - you are fighting this w/ so much vitriol and determination, yet, you haven't provided what you think is the best theory for collapse. Seriously, you say you don't buy the mainstream theory, and you clearly don't buy the implosion theory - let's hear yours.\n\n 1350476674 "Just because you're paranoid, does not mean they're not after you!" - Nirvana 1313236283 Well, I think a lot of good doctors would be tempted to say "no" if offered that much TV time. Oz may have said "yes" since he accepts such a broad definition of medicine that he feels he's got plenty of material. 1295751028 I am from India and in some places we get cows milked at our doorsteps. The rule is, always boil the milk (rolling boil) for 10 minutes and simmer for another 10 minutes before drinking. If the milk comes in packets (already pasteurized) then just boil it once. 1328315045 Cool! If I ever have children, I don't want them to be put at risk of catching something from the vaccinated ones... 1329359663 Enlighten us? 1330969625 Enlighten us? 1317701585 I get what you're saying too. I honestly think the culture was different back then. We didn't take photos of stuff if it wasn't on vacation or at a big party and post them on Facebook? I don't know really. I was a freshmen in high school when this happened and I had a lot of pictures of me and my friends. Perhaps it isn't an excuse.\n\nI just trying to come up with an answer for your question. It really is kind of baffling. Maybe there *are* photos out there but the people just never came forward with them after seeing the governor mock the incident and stuff? Maybe people took them and they didn't turn out? 1310946600 *whew* then I love it and its perfect, thank you :) I asked because I also happen to be an absurdist\n\nEdit for bad autocorrecting 1345180956 Indeed. I think the main point being, we need to be skeptical about every anomalous claim without being completely closed to the idea that *any* evidence must, of necessity, be physical evidence of the "nuts and bolts" variety. Anecdotal data can be every bit as compelling (and telling) as physical data. It's how it is used and referenced that makes all the difference in the world. 1332279285 Non-flavoured? So it's just flower water? No thank you. 1298256763 Although if we want to get meta on this, this *is* actually a human made comic strip intended to be understood by humans in human terms. The author probably intended that these aliens have a life span similar to that of us humans. 1343685486 I'd say it's simple to explain the 2 hour thing - you actually fell asleep, you just didn't realise it 1351797051 China's literacy rate is only 93.6 percent. That is high historically, but every genuinely developed country is at 99 percent or more.\n\nChina has at least 60 million illiterate citizens. What does that say about the number who might use computers?\n\nEnglish is the language of computing. The future is being built by Chinese speakers' hands but English speakers' voices and Roman letters.\n\nUsers of Roman alphabets outnumber users of Chinese pictographic systems.\n\nMandarin is very important now, but it won't be able to eclipse English the way English eclipsed French. It can't become lingua Franca without a definitive victory because an English document in front of a Spanish speaker looks like foreign words, but a Mandarin document looks like a drawing of bugs dancing.\n\nI wouldn't be surprised if the various Germanic and Scandinavian languages merged. I wouldn't be surprised if French and Italian merged or were subsumed by Spanish. I wouldn't be surprised if all the EU member countries gradually became so permeated with English speakers that their original languages started to dwindle. I just cannot see the alphabet switch happening anytime soon. It's a tremendously difficult adjustment. 1299780386 Folks from all sides will use misinformation when it suits 1330037243 There is no truth in that. It has no place in a debate. It's patent nonsense. It's vaccine hysteria all over again. 1345001140 Well if you want to frame conservative as defending the status quo, then I guess Cato isn't all that conservative.\n\nIt's definitely right wing, pro-markets and libertarian though. The latter can clash quite severely with conservatives though. 1283582005 I liked when this guy took out the "tl;dr stfu" and replaced it with "why is it any of your concern that someone is without a smartphone or camera? why be a dick about it" i wasn't being a dick but your original reply was very dickish ;) 1330152644 It's based on a combination of science and logical reasoning.\n\nLogical reasoning: Evolution is a valid thing. Organisms evolve acting a certain way in a certain environment. Bodies are optimized to work in that way in that environment. For optimal health, mimic those activity patterns and diet.\n\nScientifically: The general diet and activity prescriptions are well backed. Be active with a wide range of intensity. Avoid high carbohydrate intake. Avoid non-ancestral foods (many, though not all, of which see widespread intolerances and the like: wheat gluten and lactose, for two large examples) and certain macronutrient profiles (avoid foodstuffs with a large amount of carbohydrate and fat, as these are shown to promote the most weight gain). Largely, the prescriptions of a paleo methodology match up with peer reviewed scientific data. Not all aspects are scientifically supported, but none that I know of are conclusively opposed. 1347595803 You're not being rude. Thank you for your concern. 1326576560 I would have said thanks, it's my new Axe body spray. 1308108282 holy shit, amazing find! thank you! 1351717202 I remember reading about Global Warming in a kid's magazine (ranger Rick, IIRC) about global warming in the early to mid ninties. My (arch-conservative) grandmother immediatly put a copy of some other magazine, which had a single sentance that said "Scientists have come to agree there is no such thing as global warming". (paraphrasing, obviously. I want to say the magazine was some conservative rag - the New American, I think, but i have no way to prove it.)\n\nThe takaway is that the anti-science slant has been around for a long time, probably longer then we currently think. 1333463432 Is that research into imaging technology I wonder? What else could that mean? 1312126506 sooo fake 1300374507 Aliens need to send the design plans for their telescope thing displayed at the bottom of the message. 1351835283 Just my own experience. Like everyone, I haven't seen any doc that has proven anything. \n\nI grew up watching all the supposed reality supernatural stories on UPN (old network), checked out The Amityville Horror Story from my school library, and really just tried to keep my mind open. I was convinced the eyes in my posters would follow me around my roon. As I grew older though, my faith started to fade and any tales of the supernatural were just that. George and Kathy Lutz had sold their house to get out of their mortgage. \n\nYou can imagine my shock and disbelief when it happened to me. Actually, I take that back. Unless you've shared something similar yourself, you will probably just consider me a crazy person.\n I sometimes do. I tend to over think everything naturally.\n\nIt was a few years ago and it happened in the house I live in now. I remember watching movies as a kid and thinking "I would just move if something like that happened to me". But here I am in my early 30's, house of my own, a decent amount of money to my name and still it's just not that easy. If the Lutz's had tried to cheat their mortgage company it's easy to see why.\n\nBack to the point. It was late at night and I was sitting at my computer desk. I was browsing the net (probably Reddit) when I thought I felt my phone go off in my pocket. Although, it was sitting right in front of me. On the base to my monitor. I scooted back in my chair and looked down to see my right pant pocket rolling around wildly as if someone was **Digging Through It!**. \n\nI remember being shocked. Looking from my pocket to my phone, my phone to my pocket. I couldn't believe what was going on. It didn't make sense. I patted my pocket flat as if it had caught fire naively thinking it would stop. When it didn't, I froze. I don't remember how long it was until I gained enough courage to stand up but I remember my pocket still moving continuously until I did. Unfortunately, even when I was standing I could still feel the fingernails brushing against my thigh. Finally, I was freaked the F out. \n\nI threw my chair back and left for the living room where my brother and his gf at the time were watching tv. Right away they knew something was wrong. I only asked if I could watch tv with them for a while. I never sat down. I felt so much safer being in the room with them that I just stood there. Speechless. It wasn't that I couldn't talk. It was that I didn't know how to explain or what to explain. Nothing I would've said would have made them take me seriously. Finally about 20 min later I filled them in. I remember for months after that, late at night staring at the lights of my ceiling fan. Too scared to close my eyes.\n\nA few more occurrences happened and I was starting to feel targeted. Again though, I felt like I had no one to talk to or share with. My family is very loving and loyal but we are all sensible. I ended up getting pretty emotional about it. My view on reality had been broken. I tried to make sense of it. Maybe I was tired and I was seeing things- I felt it first and that is what drew my attention.\n\nI am still in the same house but now stay in a different bedroom. I really don't expect anyone to read all of that it just was nice to get it out of my system. I will leave you with a \n\n**TL:DR**\n\n**I was a complete skeptic til a ghost played pocket pool with me and taunted me til I switched rooms.** \n\nedit: Typed the word if instead of it.\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n 1340866375 When you search HPUS, you find it stands for "Homœopathic Pharmacopoeia of the United States", not a unit. The dilution they used is the "6X" part, which is explained [here](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Homeopathic_dilutions). 6X translates to 10^(−6), or one part in a million. 1355961089 If you go out in the remote desert at night and look up, maybe you will understand why all the ancients were obsessed with the sky. No, it's not a "coincidence" - it's a natural wonder, a grand mystery looming above. It wasn't until we got our own distracting lights that people got bored with it. 1332272345 Nope. Only 12 because one escaped. 1328335230 Yeah I noticed that. The UFOs we saw didn't give off any light though. 1278523025 TV and films certainly appear to give the impression that things are possible when they aren't, and I think a lot of people take what they see on the screen as a reflection of reality.\n\nThat said, even if it weren't for TV and film, I think people might still have a false impression of what's possible, just through lack of knowledge. So I while they don't help, I don't think it really makes much difference. 1317859712 That guy is retarded. 1312241209 Sup pharmacy, I can haz sales on meh homopathic drugz? kk cool, here taek dis hueg wad of moneyz 4 u. ttylomgpropets! 1329870850 NEWSFLASH 1305564787 Care to explain this one to someone who knows he isn't good at statistics and probabilities?\n\nIt seems to me that both are arbitrary sequences of rolls that could be replaced by any other sequence.\n\nEdit: forget it. I originally missed that you were rolling six dies. 1327964826 Err no, where does he say anything about the US? 1355938803 Yes, I'm familiar with the four noble truths. They're metaphysical concepts, not testable hypotheses.\n\n> These are not supernatural elements, they're a finger pointing at the moon. The terminology is meaningless outside of its context, but within its context it produces results.\n\nThe idea of "the finger pointing at the moon" is that you can't explain a concept, you can only point at it with words. Instead it requires subjective interpretation and understanding. But a hypothesis must be objective and measurable for it to be falsifiable.\n\n> Check out these studies on mindfulness meditation.\n\nSure, meditation has various specific effects. But you don't need Zen to meditate. 1337102138 I'm also not 100% sure, but I think it's the mayor of Dushanbe talking to some American emissary or something.\n\n***NOTE: Use www.hidemyass.com or some other web proxy if you get a 403/404 error, your connection may be censored*** 1315049970 I've been listening to all the bullshit about FC for years. Two easy tests could confirm the efficacy or lack thereof in an hour. \n1. Hire a Facilitated Communicator who does not speak the language of the subject.\n2. Give the subject a piece of trivial information when the facilitator isn't in the room. Have the Facilitator retrieve it.\nEasy repeatable test that have never, to the best of my knoledge been done. 1266279316 Finally! I hope Australian bookstore smarten up as well because I find it so annoying to see this type of books under non-fiction. 1313800933 > I know for a fact that there are spirits (and other things)\n\nStory? 1336120261 Not even read the link, this isn't r/Atheism.\n\nHonestly, the people who spend all of their time debating creationists are just as bad as the preachers. 1322768940 >or raising body temperature by a large amount, those are both emperically testable and would have dramatic results.\n\n>This isn't a ridiculous request, this is precisely what is required for normal scientific progress or experimentation. \n\n**In that case I think it's simply that you are not paying attention.**\n\n--------------------------------------------------------------------\n\n**Just watch. ADHD TLDR TLDW Can be overcome I assure you:**\n\n.\n\n**Just watch. ADHD TLDR TLDW Can be overcome I assure you:**\n\n.\n\n**Just watch. ADHD TLDR TLDW Can be overcome I assure you:**\n\n.\n\n**Just watch. ADHD TLDR TLDW Can be overcome I assure you:**\n\n.\n\n**Just watch. ADHD TLDR TLDW Can be overcome I assure you:**\n\n.\n\n**Just watch. ADHD TLDR TLDW Can be overcome I assure you:**\n\n.\n\n**Just watch. ADHD TLDR TLDW Can be overcome I assure you:**\n\n.\n\n**Just watch. ADHD TLDR TLDW Can be overcome I assure you:**\n\n.\n\n**Just watch. ADHD TLDR TLDW Can be overcome I assure you:**\n\n.\n\n**Just watch. ADHD TLDR TLDW Can be overcome I assure you:**\n\n.\n\nhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WajTafbG7II (Dr. Herbert Benson of Harvard Medical)\n\nhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=36IX7fjfTVM\n\nhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=madoDvtKEes (from discovery channel)\n\nhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Arr4C52grQ&t=5m53s (Guinness world records)\n\n\n.\n\n\n.\n\n\n--------------------------------------------------------------------\n\n\nhttp://news.harvard.edu/gazette/2002/04.18/09-tummo.html\n\n.\n\n[Meditation changes temperatures: Mind controls body in extreme experiments](http://news.harvard.edu/gazette/2002/04.18/09-tummo.html)\n\n.\n\nDuring visits to remote monasteries in the 1980s, Benson and his team studied monks living in the Himalayan Mountains who could, **by g Tum-mo meditation, raise the temperatures of their fingers and toes by as much as 17 degrees.** It has yet to be determined how the monks are able to generate such heat.\n\nThe researchers also made measurements on practitioners of other forms of advanced meditation in Sikkim, India. They were astonished to find that **these monks could lower their metabolism by 64 percent.**\n\n.\n\nTo put that decrease in perspective, metabolism, or **oxygen consumption, drops only 10-15 percent in sleep and about 17 percent during simple meditation.**\n\nIn 1985, the meditation team **[made a video of monks drying cold, wet sheets with body heat.](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WajTafbG7II)** They also documented monks spending a winter night on a rocky ledge 15,000 feet high in the Himalayas. The sleep-out took place in February on the night of the winter full moon when temperatures reached zero degrees F. Wearing only woolen or cotton shawls, the monks promptly fell asleep on the rocky ledge, They did not huddle together and the video shows no evidence of shivering. They slept until dawn then walked back to their monastery.\n\n**[Original study published in journal Nature](http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v295/n5846/pdf/295234a0.pdf)**\n\nhttp://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v295/n5846/pdf/295234a0.pdf\n\n--------------------------------------------------------------------\n\n[Case Study on Tummo Master Wim Hof's Cold Endurance Abilities](http://www.innerfire.nl/files/can-meditation-influence-ans-hopman.pdf)\n\n.\n\n\n\n[Translated Version From Radboud University Nijmegen Medical Centre](http://translate.googleusercontent.com/translate_c?depth=1&hl=en&rurl=translate.google.com&sl=auto&tl=en&u=http://www.umcn.nl/OverUMCstRadboud/NieuwsEnMedia/archief/2010/mei2010/Pages/RadboudwetenschappersonderzoekenIceman.aspx&usg=ALkJrhgAw-pYPgb7GjnNbF386eswXF0rsA)\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n.\n\n\n\n\n\n**Can meditation influence the autonomic nervous system? A case report of a man** \n\n **immersed in crushed ice for 80 minutes.** \n\n\n.\n\n \nJan T Groothuis, Thijs M Eijsvogels , Ralph R Scholten, Dick HJ Thijssen, Maria TE Hopman \n\n**Departments of Physiology and Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Radboud University Nijmegen** \n\n**Medical Centre** and **Department of Rehabilitation, St Maartenskliniek; Nijmegen, The Netherlands**; \n\nand **Research Institute for Sports and Exercise Sciences, Liverpool John Moores University,** \n\n **Liverpool, United Kingdom.**\n\n\n\n\n.\n\n\n**Background:** \n\nThe autonomic nervous system responds independently, autonomously and automatically \n\nto changes in the homeostasis of the cardiovascular system and thermoregulation. **However, the world** \n\n**record holder of full-body ice immersion claims he can influence his autonomic nervous system** \n\n**through the Asian Tummo meditation technique, which is associated with descriptions of intense** \n\n**sensations of body heat. We, therefore, assessed the cardiovascular and thermoregulatory responses to** \n\n **full-body ice immersion in this individual.**\n\n.\n\n**Methods:**\n \n.\n\n**A 51 year old male was fully immersed in crushed ice for 80 minutes whilst performing** \n\n**Asian Tummo meditation.** Blood pressure and heart rate were measured continuously using an \n\nautomatic blood pressure device. Core body and skin temperature were measured continuously using \n\nan ingestible telemetric temperature pill and wireless sensors, respectively. Oxygen consumption was \n\nmeasured using pulmonary gas exchange every 30 minutes. \n\n.\n\n\n**Results:** \n\n\nCore body temperature during the 80-minute ice immersion period decreased gradually from \n\n37.7 to 37.1°C. Skin temperature decreased at the upper limbs from 28 to 5°C and at the lower limbs \n\nfrom 28 to 18°C. No immediate blood pressure or heart rate response at the beginning of full-body ice \n\nimmersion was observed. Over the full 80-minute ice immersion period, blood pressure gradually \n\nincreased from 128/84 to 163/97 mmHg and heart rate from 70 to 90 bpm. Oxygen consumption \n\ndoubled from 5.7 at baseline to 11.0 ml/min/kg during immersion and remained stable. \n\n.\n\n\n**Conclusions:** \n\n\nNo immediate blood pressure and heart rate responses were observed, as typically \n\nobserved when (partially) submerged into ice(water). Despite 80 minutes of full-body ice immersion \n\nand significant heat loss through the skin, **core body temperature was maintained probably by an** \n\n**increased energy expenditure (and therefore heat production).** This individual may have influenced the \n\nautonomic nervous system, thereby actively regulating the cardiovascular system and \n\nthermoregulation. \n\n\n--------------------------------------------------------------------\n\n**(this is about Wim Hof and Tummo (inner fire) meditation)**\n\nhttp://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22685240\n\nThe influence of concentration/meditation on autonomic nervous system activity and the innate immune response: a case study.\n\n\nKox M, Stoffels M, Smeekens SP, van Alfen N, Gomes M, Eijsvogels TM, Hopman MT, van der Hoeven JG, Netea MG, Pickkers P.\nSource\n\nDepartment of Intensive Care Medicine, Radboud University Nijmegen Medical Centre, Nijmegen, The Netherlands. m.kox@ic.umcn.nl\nAbstract\n\n\n**OBJECTIVE:**\n\nIn this case study, we describe the effects of a particular individual's concentration/meditation technique on autonomic nervous system activity and the innate immune response. The study participant holds several world records with regard to tolerating extreme cold and claims that he can influence his autonomic nervous system and thereby his innate immune response.\n\n\n**METHODS:**\n\nThe individual's ex vivo cytokine response (stimulation of peripheral blood mononuclear cells with lipopolysaccharide [LPS]) was determined before and after an 80-minute full-body ice immersion during which the individual practiced his concentration/meditation technique. Furthermore, the individual's in vivo innate immune response was studied while practicing his concentration/mediation technique during human endotoxemia (intravenous administration of 2 ng/kg LPS). The results from the endotoxemia experiment were compared with a historical cohort of 112 individuals who participated in endotoxemia experiments in our institution.\n\n**RESULTS:**\n\nThe ex vivo proinflammatory and anti-inflammatory cytokine response was greatly attenuated by concentration/meditation during ice immersion, accompanied by high levels of cortisol. In the endotoxemia experiment, concentration/meditation resulted in increased circulating concentrations of catecholamines, and plasma cortisol concentrations were higher than in any of the previously studied participants. The individual's in vivo cytokine response and clinical symptoms after LPS administration were remarkably low compared with previously studied participants.\n\n\n**CONCLUSIONS:**\n\n**The concentration/meditation technique used by this particular individual seems to evoke a controlled stress response. This response is characterized by sympathetic nervous system activation and subsequent catecholamine/cortisol release, which seems to attenuate the innate immune response.**\n\n 1349076208 Apparently, with the right audio frequency through headphones, you can observe marked differences in behavior. These differences are argued to influence increased brain activation at a particular frequency. A friend does some memory research on theta wave, but as I have not read to far into her line of research, I can't really provide specifics. I know other people in our department think it's bogus, but we're all scientists, so it's scientific skepticism from the get-go. \n\nSuffice-to-say, these brain wave definitions are involved in real scientific experiments, usually with an EEG machine hooked up to some poor guy/gal's noggin. Jury is still out on the results, though. 1339658876 Can't argue with your chemistry breakdown, definitely thorough. I do understand where your hypothesis of the low absorption rate comes from, however, as we designed this supplement we found its overall effects to be faster and more potent with the Magnetite ingredient than compared to other sources of iron. You can looked at this through the lens of how the Magnetite interacts with the body as an isolated ingredient, but more importantly we measured the results of the supplement as a whole, and how all of the ingredients work together.\n\nI really do appreciate your detailed breakdown of the chemistry process, will run it buy our chemist who aided in the R&D of designing the supplement to get this thoughts. Thanks again chemicalgeekery 1349979868 Why did they put a picture of it on a circuit breaker.. 1350418627 They couldn't even get the etymology right, not that it being correct would itself be proper evidence for this practice 1334516853 Hail Satin! 1351703428 http://fotoforensics.com/analysis.php?id=2c21ea976a39f8004c5419d3df73e10112afaded.88440\n\nphoto seems to have been resaved,multiple times. there does not seem to be a modification on the face area.\n\nmodification would look like this:\nhttp://fotoforensics.com/analysis.php?id=7fe8f18646eed0a83d31254c6ac89582ca001ce7.170573 1356966492 http://fotoforensics.com/analysis.php?id=2c21ea976a39f8004c5419d3df73e10112afaded.88440\n\nphoto seems to have been resaved,multiple times. there does not seem to be a modification on the face area.\n\nmodification would look like this:\nhttp://fotoforensics.com/analysis.php?id=7fe8f18646eed0a83d31254c6ac89582ca001ce7.170573 1356966499 I thought the same thing when Clinton said "I did not have sexual relations with that woman." 1304382145 This, and also fuck Gizmodo\n\n 1339812807 Is English not your first language? This would explain a lot. \n\n>I thought you said the science is clear?\n\nRight, I did say that.\n\n>Now you're saying the findings of scientists isn't credible? Which is it?\n\nNo, Im not saying that at all. I said "This is one of the things that people remember and prevents them from lending any credibility...."\n\nPeople. Many people. You know, the ones that we always point to in these threads such as this very thread.\n\nSo again, I have said and continue to say that the science is clear while there are many people who do not agree. \n\nAcid rain was not a hoax because it continues to be an issue today however small. It was however blown way out of proportion and when you have numerous liberal outlets killing off the issue and burying it you can be certain of this. Not to mention the facts show it to have been exaggerated. \n 1354405288 It looks photoshop. Some one put a picture on top of said picture and decrease the transparency where it's barely visible; thus making a apparition show up in a picture. Most ghost photos that I've seen, the apparition are extremely blurry except for obvious shapes. This ghost is too clean and clear. Your cousin is fooling you. 1349829390 Lunchtime doubly so. 1322422657 Compared to your thumb, was it pin head sized or M&M sized? And are you sure it wasn't a satellite? Those also sometimes disappear mid-air. 1348320342 Yeah. He was pretty cool like that. Actually, I think he would have more accurately stated that both he and the ancients were doing nothing but tapping into knowledge that doesn't belong to either of them, but that is universally available for absolutely everyone to freely use and benefit from.\n\nThat's why we killed him. We humans like doing that to those in our society who provide truth. 1336030770 This is a good example of why I don't pay much attention to Youtube UFO videos. Without the details: who/what/where/when and context, there are more questions than answers. Without those answers I have to assume it's a hoax. What's the story behind this sighting? Why did the person stop recording at 40 seconds when the objects were still there? 1341753779 To counteract your "Fake as Fuck" comment, I don't see how a 200 lb man could be thrown, and then pulled backward while on the ground, by air.\n\nI guessed on his weight future downvoters. 1333522171 Actually, they mostly refuse because of the massive fossil record and other evidence pointing towards evolution.\n\nSometimes I really do tire of the gullible attitude people take in this sub. 1342627575 Yeah, I too am not too pleased with the skeptic subreddit, it didn't quite meet my expectations. It's extremely one-sided skepticism. 1287768274 Spirits communicate best through dreams, as does your own subconscious mind; and the dreams are vivid according to the strength of the emotions driving them. There are clean and unclean spirits, but dream interaction with demons and angels is exceptional. Clean spirits very often convey useful information, and the unclean an opportunity to help them pass over (though their dreams can be quite disturbing); interaction with a discarnate celestial/extra-dimensional being is always unmistakable; listen to your heart, and not your superstitious, bullying friend. 1328726289 It's one of those things that if it is true (and I do have my doubts) it will almost certainly only be one of a number of contributing factors. \n\nI would bet money diet and sedentary lifestyles will be far more important.\n\nAs someone who is well versed in losing a bunch of weight (through diet and exercise) alarm bells always go off whenever you hear someone like the scientist mentioned who says they cannot lose weight whatever they do. 99.9% of the time they are simply eating too much and dont realise it. \n\nas exemplified by (this from a BBC doc)[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5nWvQ0Q-VEA] which is tracks the calories of an overweight actress, who 'eats right', is active etc etc. She has to do a video diary at the end of the day for part, a written diary for another part and a they also use a technique with some chemical that allows them to acurately track calorie intake.\n\nTurns out she put on average 1100 cal a day in her end of day diary, she was eating on average over 3000 cal per day. the written diary under-reported by 43% and the national average is about 50%. 1327444627 The burden of proof is on the positive claimant. Skeptics don't have to prove shit. 1346842965 Was talking to another believer about this stuff about a week or so ago. Apparently the best evidence for NDEs being evidence of consciousness existing separate from the brain is the story of Pam Reynolds... Certainly didn't convince me.\n\nThe idea of spirits has been popular with humans for thousands of years. We're finally starting to unravel how the brain works without resorting to non-answers such as spirits. Since Alan Turing's seminal paper on computable numbers was published, we have had a frame work in which to understand the brain, and it is proving to be very fruitful in helping us understand the brain/mind. 1324784167 I guess I just meant that it has been way, way over-used.\n 1309008301 Top 12 paid apps that let you read gawker sites more easily on your iPad! 1340251836 wat\n\n...Sidenote: that movie was pretty much the first movie I ever saw in theaters. 1307342876 If she knows she's dead, what's her incentive for staying here? I'd think moving on would be the obvious choice. 1343776123 They were both from xieish. 1296271133 Kinda, yeah. It was framed as changing the "vibration" of the atoms, which is almost correct in the sense that all atoms are moving and in solids they don't move much, in liquids the move a bot more and in gasses they move a lot. I know that this is a bullshit claim, but I am having trouble finding evidence to back up reality. 1293291404 if you are talking about the pictures online yes you can always find one way to say its possible to be faked. I am talking about real life experiences. Myself and many of my family have talked to my late grandfather, after he passed, during the day, with multiple people (including a neighbor) seeing it at the same time. Not one believed in anything of the sort until then. You have no choice. I have no idea how or why, but I cant deny what myself and at least the people in my personal life have seen. I cannot vouch for others although. 1355188330 If you're offended by being called a cheat then quite simply don't become one. But I will call you one over and over and over again if you pursue this nonsense. Though we probably won't communicate past this exchange. But, in my mind, I’ll curse you. \n \nIf you truly want to help people then become a Physical Therapist. Hell, you could even go into Sports Medicine. \n \nIf you really do have integrity then you should research every aspect of this pseudoscientific snake-oil business you’re about to get into. \n \nhttp://www.quackwatch.com/01QuackeryRelatedTopics/chirostroke.html\n\n \n\n 1342755147 Because there are a lot of douche bags on the internet. 1347633797 I know why he does it. He has experienced it firsthand. 1287506859 I thought schools require certain vaccinations. Unless they are getting home schooled, don't they have to comply with the schools? 1329595114 I picture her like the retard in "Rainman,"\n\n>Definitely have to dance on my date. Have to learn how to dance. Definitely\n\n>Of course I don't have my underwear. I'm definitely not wearing my underwear. \n\n>We're definitely locked in this box with no TV\n\n\n 1321131366 personally don't buy into the idea, but a lot of people claim Limestone deposits and quartz deposits both INCREASE hauntings and paranormal activity\n\nlike I said, I don't buy into it...so links to some people who do\n\n[1](http://liparanormalinvestigators.com/rocks.shtml)\n\n[2](http://www.paranormalunderground.net/forum/topic/1035-the-limestone-theory/)\n\n[3](http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/10/28/ghost-hunters-water-limestone-railroad-tracks_n_1064457.html)\n\n 1326833082 > I am amazed at how much philosophy becomes impractical at the very low-level of "something exists other than the 'I am'".\n\nYes, I find it a bit bizarre that it's so foundational, and yet, somehow, so irrelevant at the same time. 1320087788 Let them be. It's one way to thin out the fb hordes. 1336989954 I'm not sure. I think there are a *lot* of checks and balances in the system already. But I don't really know in any level of detail, so I am only guessing. The problem here is that we are getting in to political bureaucracy vs private company interests. It is complicated. Way too complicated. Almost as complicated as the science which it is all about.\n\nThis seems to me to be the real issue here. We have miultiple layers of complexity, and when random yokels think they can see the truth from their outside perspective of ignorance...that is just absurd. ..just... sigh... because the theoretical science, the research based science, the commercialisation of that science, the balance and checking of the safety of the implementation, the financial underpinning of it, and ultimately the final distribution and marketing of those products.... It's FUCKING COMPLICATED.\n\n 1337716334 Nope. American culture doesn't. To my knowledge, neither do northern European cultures. 1331586285 Well, the dickish undercurrent I'm talking about has more to do with a kind of sneering contempt for people who believe in certain things. For example, one time I was talking about a certain woo promoter, and I got the response "What a stupid, stupid woman!".\n\nWell, no, she's not stupid... she's mistaken for sure, but I don't think it serves any purpose to call her stupid.\n\nIt's the kind of thing that I notice happening a bit, and I would call that a little dickish.\n\nI certainly wouldn't consider an atheist just asserting himself to be a dick in any way. 1283654830 What is that? 1347726203 What is that? 1355210280 If the government could control the weather, we wouldn't need a military. 1331051338 In order for a nuclear explosion to occur, their must be a critical mass of radioactive substance. Fuel pellets are only 3% uranium and the rest is thorium in most cases. In order for material to create a nuclear explosion to occur the concentration would need to be much higher. So high in fact that it would have needed to be enriched. As far as heat and thermal damage, The graphite used as the medium of cooling was already on fire, and even that didn't cause an explosion. What did cause the explosion was a meltdown, and the resulting expansion of steam, to almost a thousand times the volume when it was under pressure. 1337373930 I'm pretty sure that's crap about Darth Vader being inspired by the vedas. Vader is Dutch for "father", and *darth* is a nice merging of dark and death. 1317877158 hmm generally you start with an observation, yes? in real life that is. 1337465796 > - To debunk, they took one of the five, a small nervous student nurse, and gave her flying lessons. After thirty minutes she was doing just fine and even managed to land successfully.\n\n\nBullshit. Just weak minded bullshit.\n\n * American flight 11 and United flight 175 were [Boeing 767s](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boeing_767).\n * The 911 attackers trained on a [Cessna 172](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cessna_172)\n * The attacker trainees were bad pilots. They even abandoned their plane on the run way before take off once.\n\n\nThere's no way failed Cessna 172 pilot trainees are going to take over a Boeing 767, and fly it directly into a building.\n\n\nThe rest of the debunking sessions were just about as well thought out. The entire exercise was a waste of everyone's time. 1336932473 >I can't help but notice how long it takes you to respond each time. Is it because you're out of arguments, and are desperately trying to find one, or rather because you have a hard time typing when you're enraged?\n\nMaybe he has other things to do instead of anxiously waiting for your next reply.\n\nPersonally, I am watching Netflix right now and only check Reddit at the end of each episode. 1338268805 Um . . . I'll hop right into my time machine, go back 8 years, and . . . wait a minute, I didn't HAVE any pets 8 years ago! 1310162263 also too small in size 1300442101 I believe you even though I can't see anything in the photo. My dog is also still haunting our house. We'll be sitting on the couch and have our 2 living pugs on the couch with us, and all the sudden we'll hear the dog door slap closed and a dog collar jingle. We know its Gabriel. Sometimes we even hear a dog collar collide with the metal water dish on occasions and toenails on the pergo floor. \nThe reason he wont rest is because my boyfriend refuses to let him go. We keep his ashes in an urn in the den, along with his collar and baby blanket he was given to us in by the breeder when we bought him. 1329256400 "David Icke, King of Bullshit." -Righteous Indignation 1320740447 I was about 12 or 13 spending the night at a friend's house, goofing around with the Ouija board with him & his sister and we were getting all sorts of gibberish plus words spelled out, just kind of scaring ourselves for fun not taking it very seriously when we got the message "I can see you through the window" and then "I can see you through his eyes" or something like that...there was just a small window in the basement room where we were, and just the back yard and woods past the driveway visible through that window...we asked it more questions and it said "I'm under the car" so we somehow got up the nerve to go out with a flashlight and peer under the car, where we saw a huge black stray cat which was hissing. We ran inside freaking out and at that exact moment the power failed and all the lights in the house went out. We just about actually shit ourselves. Few minutes later the power came back and we sat up til dawn that night scared and never played with the board again. 1331517834 Its an entertaining video but any body that follows UFO forums on a regular basis has seen all those individual cases and most of those cases are hoaxes or have some plausible explanation. \n\nAs far as E.T.'s go Roswell is probably the best evidence out there. The Roswell case is credible and reportedly bodies were retrieved.\n\nWhen it comes to our man made or back engineered craft there are two cases I like one is Kecksburg and the Nazi Bell the other is the Cash-Landrum incident http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cash-Landrum_incident.\n\nAlso the Belgian Wave is pretty interesting. There are all sorts of interesting cases but there are also weak or hoax cases on a weekly basis.\n 1336353305 AKA Ass-Burgers 1329621421 "convincing" anyone of anything implies you need to get a program. 1322664324 I've had issues with duct tape occlusion myself. Perhaps it's only effective for plantar warts? 1301003682 I felt quantum of solace was utter shit... 1342900340 I think that first photo is from the 'monolith' on Mars' moon *Phobos*. The one [Buzz has talked about](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bDIXvpjnRws). 1316141570 I dont always have UFO sightings, but when I do, I prefer XX. 1351207405 Yes, but you also have to appreciate that the lives of children are at risk, so it calls for taking action that is most prudent, not the one that most ideologically sound. The desire to upend the cultural institutions that allow for ignorant celebrities to have more sway in public opinion on scientific matters than Nobel laureates is a noble one, but it is a generations long project (assuming it is possible at all).\n\nIn the meantime, it's unfortunately necessary to take on anti-vaxxers on their own turf in the war for parent's minds. 1294792610 The signs of them being evil is the pointer moving in a figure eight. A sign that its going to come out could be moving through all the numbers 1-12. Once it gets to twelve it will come out. When u use one u are summoning a spirit to u. The spirit is using he bored to communicate with ur energy. If it comes out u have a haunting or poltergeist. I'm not an expert so I don't know all the rules but that's my understanding. Oh and if u see any of the warning signs close the session immediately by bringing the pointer to goodbye. 1337729680 I've heard it said that since I'm a skeptic, I must not believe in anything. 1350507703 Read "Good Calories, Bad Calories", and you may change your mind. It's quite a slog to get through, but it is interesting reading. 1300076665 Change his first name to Kahn and go on a rampage 1241901526 The tint helps prevent headache for me. 1333431778 Most of the science literature I ve read or watched say (and I think it represents the most of the science community) that they dont believe we are alone.And stand by the acronym of the UFO.. Psi,I wont go into that matter as I have not invested much attention to that field I dont think I can debate regarding that subject. Only PSI I know is\nhttp://www.psi.ch/ 1349461780 It doesn't seem much like "overwhelming scientific evidence" if it's impossible to replicate. 1309407578 [Ionizing](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ionizing_radiation) vs [non-ionizing radiation](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Non-ionizing_radiation). I wish people would please learn the difference and stop perpetrating that they have a remotely similar effect when it comes to cancer... especially once radiation frequency gets so far down on the scale to be microwave or radio (like cell phone signals). 1354097799 Indeed. That's why I said this case was more complicated. 1354228181 Same thing happened to me, turns out i threw up on my phone and despite cleaning it, there was liquid puke that had gotten between the phone and its rubber case that had dried out. 1339983082 After reading the story it sounds to me that some small Texas towns are a lot like small cities here in China, where the authorities help protect criminals and try to suppress those trying to expose things. 1307416926 I think something lied and manipulated him into going out there, and then enjoyed his suffering as he died from exposure, never trust something like that a 100%, always think logically and rationally about stuff like that, and remember the old saying "If it sounds too good to be true".\n\nIf he was manipulated into killing him self or getting killed, what was the reason, and what could have done that? 1350231051 That's the problem: well conducted experiments on marijuana usage couldn't accurately measure personal conscious impairment (we don't even know what consciousness _is_), and all studies show minimal harm caused by smoking it, but there are other methods of consumption. \n\nThe majority of science on the matter is blockaded by the Schedule I status allotted by the US government, for political motives, the same motives that determine the "official" stance to be that it is as dangerous as heroin, which it is not.\n\nI'm not saying Marijuana is some magical cure-all, or any of that hogwash, but it's usage shouldn't be outright condemned by somebody who is completely in the dark on the topic. 1346251267 Yeah that was a bizzaro world wtf moment - when a *Republican* was arguing against Bill Maher on behalf of science. 1255399244 honestly with my son the way he was looking around its kinda creepy cause it really did look like he was seeing things. 1322261723 >charging people money to become his guinea pigs.\n\nHow is he supposed to fund it? No major pharmaceutical will touch him. Also, from what I gather the treatment has no side effects so to call them guinea pigs seems a bit over the top. If the treatment works for them (and it has, if the interviews with living, breathing cancer survivors are evidence enough), what is the problem?\n\nYou come on. 1322792982 I upvoted for humor. 1341180337 I don't know, but you made me think something bad happened to James Randi. [insert "no me gusta" face here] 1315719758 It would all come down to whether they knew the source of the leak. If they did then it was clearly fraud to promote it as a miracle, if not then I can see why people would be upset. Trouble is religious people react this way to any questioning of their faith. \n\nWhat's wrong with all your miracles going away? What's wrong with abandoning dogma. Why can't we find wonder in our existence with out ascribing it to a higher power. The fact they we are all derived from dying stars and have evolved to be able to think, reason and observe our surroundings is astounding in itself. We are the universe experiencing it self. That is miracle enough for me, I don't need a higher power for that. (note: some of the above is paraphrasing [deGrasse Tyson](http://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/12855.Neil_deGrasse_Tyson).) 1334245434 I'm sorry about your jimmies there. But have you never lost anything? Someone else finding it doesn't make you remember losing it there. \n\nAnyway, all I'm saying is that there are WAY too many details here that you expect us to care about and follow. This story could be summarized: "My brother(?) took his shirt off at the park and no body we came across remembers taking it inside, but it was folded on the couch later." 1340170448 [Your source is from 2009, mine, 2011.](http://www.propublica.org/article/who-are-americas-top-10-gas-drillers)\n\nAnd fuck you for calling me a liar. FUCK YOU. 1347056902 >This type of attack was absolutely unprecedented, and basically, impossible to prevent.\n\n>Manila Airlines Plot. In January 1995, the Philippine police uncovered the plot to blow up 12 airplanes bound for the United States. Two of the perpetrators had also discussed the possibility of flying a small plane into the headquarters of the CIA. The FBI, working with the Philippine government, was able to determine that Ramzi Yousef was involved in this attack, as was Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the eventual mastermind of the September 11, 2001 attacks.\n\n[source PDF Warning](http://www.9-11commission.gov/staff_statements/staff_statement_9.pdf) 1268943442 I could see the lasers warning the tissue....which would feel nice......but a hot tub does that too.... 1327559913 I used to do that, then my FWD-offender just responded with articles claiming that snopes.com has a terrible left wing bias.\n\nNow I just filter them out and let them all wallow in their ignorance. 1297869958 A good read! Have an upvote. 1330024949 Ask: Why don't psychics win lotteries all the time and donate the money to charity? 1350275653 the universe has a personality. 1326587337 > Being uncomfortable with a stranger who is trying to get a date with you is not socially unacceptable and not is it wrong.\n\nActually it is as seen by the backlash to Watson's reaction. \n\nIf the guy is being a creep or pervy, then it's OK but if its some dude who is nonchalant which according to her, he was; then no the problem is hers. \n\n> Don’t take this the wrong way, but I find you very interesting. Would you like to come back to my hotel room for coffee?\n\nThere is nothing creepy or pervy about that, all she had to do was say No and leave it at that. \n\nIf you get uncomfortable with that then you need to grow a backbone. It's along the same lines as women who agree to a date out of possible embarrassment from declining, so they initially agree then cancel at the last minute. \n\n> I think the best solution here would be to accept that it was a bit creepy and work to create an environment where women dont have to feel uncomfortable like that.\n\nThat is the most sexist thing ever. So the entire world has to cater to the whims of any and every women ever for fear of one being made uncomfortable to entirely normal action? 1351194081 "Should we also devour our young?"\n\nNo, you don't have the right perspective at all. \n\nI should say to you.\n\n"Should we really raise children in this jungle?" \n\nMulticulturalism is degenerative socially and economically. 1356629868 I thought exactly the same thing. I can't remember which claimant said it, (maybe the medium who was trying to pick the envelope with dead person in it) but one of them said something to the effect of "Well it didn't work in this kind of test" - I actually yelled at the TV - "But you helped work out the testing conditions!!!" 1314291610 Well, I would think that death would be a pretty sobering experience, but now that you mention it....what if it isn't? 1329882586 Hoax probably:\n\nhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=\n\nI thought the "light flash and super fast ascent was a little "too good to be true".\n\nThe plot thickens:\nhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PPrBlbz_-1o 1296614019 [As seen here](http://www.sitchiniswrong.com/sitchinerrors.htm)\n\n>*the ancient Mesopotamian scribes created dictionaries. Lists of words are a common feature among the thousands of Sumerian and Akkadian cuneiform tablets which have been discovered by archaeologists. Many are just groupings of common words, while others represent an inventory of the word meanings of the languages used in Mesopotamia.*\n\n>*These "lexical lists", as scholars call them, were indispensable to the 19th century scholars who deciphered the Sumerian and Akkadian texts, for they were used to compile modern dictionaries of these languages. Today all major lexical texts have been published in the multi-volume set, **[Materials for the Sumerian Lexicon](http://www.sumerian.org/sumerlex.htm)**, begun by Benno Landsberger in the 1930s.*\n\n[NOTE, free pdf download at link]\n\n>*It is indeed a rare instance where ancient dictionaries of a dead language form the core of the modern dictionaries used by scholars of today. Such is the case for the ancient languages of Sumer and Akkad.*\n\n>*Sadly, Mr. Sitchin neglects these resources.* 1277344416 There are no taxes... taxes are manditory... this system is 100% voluntary. If you think a public pool for education that everyone can take money from is a good idea, you put into that pool. If you don't want to contribute to such a pool, you don't put money into it. As for how the money in these pools gets spent, that's entirely up to democratic vote by those who put money in.... which means that I could set up a pool specifically to cover education costs of people in my geographic region who want to take software development courses and have a highschool average of 90% ... and everyone who puts into that pool can then vote on which students should get the money, and what the stipulations will be for them to continue getting funded. \n\nThis is just the tip of the iceberg in regards to what we can do with technology if we put our minds to the task. \n\nBut yes, I can see which information I forgot to add now... I forgot to imply that everything in this system is 100% voluntary ;) 1313157743 I suppose this explains it (from the "journal"'s description):\n"Rapid publication: accepted papers are immediately published online."\n\nhttp://www.mdpi.com/journal/life 1327739837 Science doesn't explain the supernatural because there is no evidence for it... if it could be measured then it would pursue it. Supernatural claims should bear the same burden of evidence.\n\nI feel like you will probably agree but your statement was a little ambiguous.\n\nGive irrationality no quarter. 1354654360 Not that I saw. Any of the studies they're using to support that are based on research wholly funded by the manufacturer, and not done scientifically (no double-blind, not placebo controlled, etc.). So, haven't seen anything to dispel it, either, but that's a rather extraordinary claim that I'd count as bullshit until they support it thoroughly. 1343688691 Wow, that's beyond eerie. Fake or not, that looks like a shadow person I saw.\n\nDidn't have red eyes like this one, though. 1340447007 Yeah, until last night, I too thought the lantern explanation was a likely possibility... 1254582594 So use a text to speech program. 1356332222 I fail to see the connection. Some people like to gamble for fun. What does that have to do with skepticism? 1346345111 Exactly,...so to me, by deduction:\n\n\n (UAP filmed)+(hey buddy-look over there-an underground ET base!)=\n\n\na)real man-made UAP filmed, OR \n\nb)real non-man-made UAP filmed,...\n\n\nSo either way,...proof that govt covers up real UAP filmed,...poor bastid. 1337524473 I haven't actually encountered any crazy claims from the SETI folks though. If they were constantly claiming they'd found evidence for alien life due to some blip in a radio signal or something, sure, but I don't see anything wrong with analyzing signals on the off chance we might find something. 1306525845 Yes, Travis did say they took certain liberties with the movie as filmmaker do. The funny thing is, no one saw him enter a craft. He woke up somewhere strange. He was unconscious when they left him beside the road. So, who knows where the hell he really was, you know? For all we know, he could of been underground in a facility. 1350171745 The amount of sense you are making is stabilizing, not increasing - doesn't that scare you?\n\nFor future reference; when replying to someone, make an effort to make your reply have *some* connection to what was said. Otherwise, your comment is better off as a stand-alone. \nIn this instance, I point out that you ask a question that cannot be answered and that I don't think you should believe in anything. That is my connection to your post.\n\nYou reply that you *will not* believe this shit. The connection to my post just isn't there. You are talking about science, when you are unable to have a conversation. I'm almost laughing here. \n\nAlmost... Oh damn, now I'm crying... ^the ^humanity 1355932887 Hey look it has skepticism in the title. Must be bunk, eh? Seriously, why is this posted here? 1347229181 A good point. I suppose surgery isn't bad, because in a surgery, there are modifications performed on the body which aren't simply traumatic, like linking blood vessels together, placing bones back in place and such. Mere beatings do not have that property. 1344098404 FUCK THE WIKIPEDIA BLACKOUT!!! 1326874233 Oh man. I didn't know that. That's almost as hilarious as EBM. 1344880761 The lack of evidence is proof of a cover-up. 1290841751 he may be slightly nuts but your an idiot who doesnt know what hes talking about, time would exist with or without us its what drives transformation and change in the universe. Time is not based on the orbit of the sun it just shapes our perception of it and that naive statement just shows the caliber of thinking power you possess. 1344959632 If I were to take a guess, I think it sounds a lot like "Old Hag Syndrome". http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sleep_paralysis It happens to a lot of people, and if you don't know what is happening it can be quite scary! One of my friends thought he was being attacked by a demon (He wasn't paralyzed, he usually felt like something was either sitting on his chest, or just holding him down) and always saw this scary inhuman entity staring malevolently at him. After he read the link above he said it reminded him a lot of his situation. If your gf is having sleep issues already, it doesn't seem a stretch that this condition accompanied it.\n\nI'm obviously only guessing based on the evidence and my personal experience; a sleep study would help a lot to figure out what is going on. There are a lot of things that could be causing sleep walking, another of my friends had apnea, and this condition caused him to stop breathing repeatedly throughout the night, constantly leaving REM before he could get any real sleep and caused HIS sleep walking episodes. This condition is very dangerous because he STOPPED BREATHING REPEATEDLY THROUGHOUT THE NIGHT. I haven't a clue what could be causing your girlfriend's sleep walking- there are MANY possibilities, she just might be extra stressed or any number of reasons. I only mention his case because in some cases it can point to a more dangerous health condition, though I hope not. Best to the both of you! 1335309463 >It's a reference to my original post, along with your suggestion that the Nazca lines are evidence of aerial craft.\n\nNone the less the point I made with regard to this still stands.\n\n> No. You made claims to truth and referenced Sitchin and Däniken as supporting evidence, who are authors. I'm not talking about you. I'm talking about your references.\n\nYes. I get this. I get that you're not talking about me. Again, however, the point I made still stands that I or ANYBODY who has valid information and then gets that valid information undermined by virtue of their not having some sort of scholastic, academic credentials, absolutely misses the forest for the trees. If the information is valid - from me or *anyone* - then it doesn't matter what the individual's credentials are.\n\n> It's akin to taking cancer treatment advice from a car mechanic instead of a doctor.\n\nlol. That's actually really a funny statement. Look up Edgar Cayce.\n\n> It is not an appeal to authority to consider claims with supporting evidence more valid than claims without supporting evidence.\n\nBut I was then and am now referring to the latter, not the former - so I don't know why you felt the need to make mention of "claims without supporting evidence". 1343768796 money money money 1332777119 "Experiential truth heals quantum choices" ~Deepak Chopra 1344192412 > The solution is simple: get rid of your idiotic and insane employer-provided-healthcare system, and let individuals keep their own money and control how it is spent on whatever kind of treatment they want.\n\nAnd if you haven't got a half-penny, then just f'n die, yeah? 1246624086 Seriously,...? That **possible explanation** has been shown to be hearsay numerous times by numerous people since the late 90s.\n\n\nLook at the frikin source FFS,..**.the memo repeats a single newspaper story which was repeated to Guy Hottel by an Air Force investigator who read the story,...That news story draws from the account of a Rudy Fick, a local used car dealer. Fick got the story from a two men, I. J. Van Horn and Jack Murphy, they got the story from,... a radio station advertising manager named George Koehler. Koehler got the story from Silas Newton,...and his accomplice, Leo A. Gebauer. Newton and Gebauer were peddling “doodlebugs” – devices that could supposedly find oil, gas, gold, or anything else that the target of the con was interested in finding**.\n\n\nNow why would that tale ever strike anyone as dubious,...?\n\n\nI find it very telling that Linda Moulton Howe was the last person to take this BS memo and run with it back in 98,...and she still doesnt understand to this day why its important to vett a source before running with it,...\n\nand even TODAY I see this frikin story still making the rounds on MSM(CNN) with the news casters none the wiser,...Purposeful propagation of disinformation,....for shame MSM,...and shame on anyone who needs verification that this memo adds up to anything other than hearsay,... 1302629423 Also, read the short story "The Jaunt" by Stephen King! 1345032932 Innovation comes from the collaborative efforts of think-tanks, or talented individuals. What capitalism does an excellent job of, is dangling carrots in-front of the hungry. Claiming ownership of the results, and IP enforcement. I hate to get in a software discussion, but GNUStep stagnates because it's simpler to choose a different API. 1287615407 Yeah, I hate this too. Also, whenever they're on two-way radio about to conduct a test, they say something dumb like "initiate Bigfoot run!" which just makes me facepalm. 1335832133 I find it strange that it's considered a completely normal and acceptable thing to tell children lies. 1351715657 I don't have powers. We simply had a door opened to allow us to see what is always going on under the surface.\n 1344918520 You have 46 submissions from quasi-mundo.com in the last three months alone. Bullshit, indeed. 1340209385 Perhaps you're right, but from my limited experience in psychology, I'd say a confrontation with the delusion may not be a horrible thing at this age/phase in his life. It may empower him to get the help he needs. I am by no means a psychologist, nor do I contend to be. Please take my advice with a grain of salt. It's just my common sense approach to the situation. 1351121367 Nope. Though it depends on the bleach, of course. Good ol' [Clorox is basic...very basic](http://www.thecloroxcompany.com/downloads/msds/bleach/cloroxregularbleach0809_.pdf). pH of roughly 12. 1338137319 I think that homeopathic remedies against wifi allergy will prove to be the most effective. As soon as homeopaths figure out how to dilute a photon. 1344833639 If you value her friendship, don't respond. 1329839399 >When you say physiotherapist are you meaning physical therapist (which is a bachelors degree) or physiatrist (which is a medical doctor fellowship level training with accompanying certification)?\n\nPhysiotherapist and physical therapist are interchangeable (the latter is American, I think). \n\n>To be clear chiropractors have doctoral level degrees.\n\nNot quite - they have a "Doctor of chiropractic", but their degree is in magic and the "doctoral level" of chiropractic is obviously nowhere near comparable to the level of education that students receive at doctoral level in other fields. \n\nIt's like getting your doctorate from a non-accredited correspondence course, and that's why chiropractors aren't allowed to refer to themselves as "Dr.", as it's misleading to customers (who might be mistaken in believing they have medical training). 1339990004 Are you trying to claim that hygiene and nutrition have *nothing at all* to do with our immune systems?\n\nYOUR claim is as absurd as theirs. 1328874241 I'm pretty sure they're just unicorns in disguise. 1331905788 it won't help with an EVP all she wants is her friend back so she takes her anger out on another to get him to come back so the thing that needs to be done is that he goes home to his basement and say a prober goodbye to her in hope that she'll leave his littlebrother alone 1351606675 That's amazing! 1349016801 ...Dammit. Didn't they reply to that and say they were wrong? 1346964763 [Evidence](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jon_Sudb%C3%B8#Scandal). My most humble apologies. I heard it from my lecturer who specialises in autism and believed it to be true. I did a quick google search and couldn't find anything to prove me wrong so I posted it. Have my upvote. 1317968136 I agree. I actually think the best solution would be to remove barriers to entry on green technology like solar - right now in the US you need several permits to start a solar company and at least one permit at the federal level (possibly more depending on state) to install a panel on your house. 1343600191 Awesome! Now the Brits can't make fun of America for being full of stupid climate change deniers. 1321370950 he answered my question, your stomach chemicals do not know the difference between GMO tomatoes and heritage tomatoes. 1330974514 No problem. I wish people wouldn't have downvoted you...even if we disagree, you managed to present your case in a civil manner, which unfortunately isn't always the case when people discuss this topic. 1354826612 Thank you, reading through this I was thinking exactly the same. 1346099057 > In this case, I am an average person who didn't read it as 49 being prime, so your assumption is incorrect (again).\n\nSorry dude, calling yourself "an average person" doesn't mean your own experiences apply to all "average people". You are not representative of the group as a whole. All you're doing is applying bad logic in an attempt to insult me. Sorry, it didn't work. 1302406221 > Where are you finding the metadata here? \n\nThe fotoforensics site posted above has a button to display metadata. \n\n> Do you have access to an original file?\n\nIt looks like the metadata is still in tact from the original photo since it lists the camera model and settings originally used. However, it doesn't mean that at some point somebody else didn't modify the image (cropping, resizing, etc) along the line.\n\n> Thanks! :)\n\nAny time 1349110573 Wish there was an extra upvote button for this post. Non-locality may be spooky, but it's not magic. 1341682888 I have no idea. For something to be able to actually affect you physically though is pretty hard I think, whatever is causing this has to be pretty powerful. 1351109345 Mine have been rustled. 1344802696 disinfo agent 1346175592 Thanks! Great stuff. In return I give you [seance photographs](http://imgur.com/a/Ibb15) of Sven türck. 1324410877 there are some interesting illustrations in this thread showing examples of UFO's:\n\nhttp://www.abovetopsecret.com/forum/thread460705/pg1\n 1328391702 Sounds like dysmenorrhea, if it's that severe. Assuming you've seen a doctor, you've probably been prescribed a combined oral contraceptive, ya?\n\nIf so, does it help? There's some information in the literature I have access to that says it should, but I've not had the opportunity to ask any patients directly.\n\nIf not, consider seeing a doctor. There's some evidence that suggests that birth control will help control that pain with minimal side effects (unless... you know, you're predisposed for a clotting disorder). If not that, there's some other courses that they can prescribe, like a COX-2 inhibitor, that will dull the pain. 1329979896 Completely sane and entirely defensible. 1326468369 I'll subscribe, hopefully there will be some interesting discussion. 1355253564 Yea, that's basically it. [Here's](http://www.reddit.com/r/skeptic/comments/laxhg/rdebunked_because_a_load_of_things_have_been/c2r74ke) the discussion, and that was the general sentiment. Well, that and calling Randi a liar without providing anything more than a video of someone else calling Randi a liar. 1318615579 the pumapunku mainstream theory can be debunked by a 5 year old. Theory goes they used logs to transport 25 high foot stones, problem is, PumaPunku is elevated above the tree line and they're were no trees available. These are facts the mainstream pretends we are too stupid to figure out. 1332264686 Well if 'UFO Today' gave the original YouTube poster their damn credit, I might be able to do some digging and prove it. I guess they didn't get the rehosting memo. \n\nSecondly, I just watched it again, and if you really **listen to the audio**, there is *no way* they reacted that way to something like that. I wouldn't exactly use the phrase "it's gorgeous" to describe a giant UFO shitting out baby orbs. It'd be more like OHFUCKOHFUCKOHFUCKOHFUCK.\n\nJust. Sayin'. 1281056179 I'd assume to get some insight as to whether it makes sense or not. 1334755645 I don't know if there is much truth to it but I once heard that african males physically mature earlier than europeans and therefore gain the earlier opportunities in sport.\nStill ACTN3 isn't helping africans much in swimming is it. So I'm inclined to believe that circumstance is what is important.\n 1345078010 Thanks. This is what bothered me too. I was hoping I hadn't just missed something. 1329339573 No, the edge goes to encyclopaedia Britannica.\n[Here is Nature's news bulletin with the results](http://blogs.nature.com/nascent/2005/12/comparing_wikipedia_and_britan_1.html) \n\n**tl;dr: Scientific experts were asked to identify errors in each article, but they did not know where the articles came from. The total numbers of errors are 123 in Britannica and 162 in Wikipedia for 42 articles.**\n\n\n[Here is a follow-up news bulletin to Encycopaedia Britannica's criticisms](http://blogs.nature.com/nascent/2006/03/wikipedia_vs_britannica_part_d_1.html) 1342227745 That's like making a terrorism joke at an airport. Not on! :p 1274397381 Sorry if that seemed like a silly question. Half the people in my family, including myself, go by our middle names, so I never assume someone's first name is the name they go by.\n\n All names are fair game to me, which can be confusing these days, as I am receiving a rash of birth announcements, you know, "Asher Sebastian [Surname]" and [Isabella Marie [Surname]" and "Neelima Pooja Saraswati [Surname]" and am never confident to say "And how is little baby [whatever]?" until I hear or see someone else refer to it by name first. Though 9 times out of 10 it's the first name.\n\nOf course sometimes the flow doesn't go right so you have to position the name you want to actually use secondary to the other name, like in my case, "Mary Meghan". "Meghan Mary" is just unnatural. So I've lived my life answering to multiple names. \n\nIt's somewhat of an interesting saga, since we're talking names: \n\n* I'm "Mary" at doctor's offices (which i'm at all the time) and the first time I meet anyone on official business\n\n* I was "Meghan" till I got to college\n\n* then, because there were 3 Meg(h)ans in my college at Rice, I shortened it to "Meg"\n\n* THEN, and about the same time, my toddler cousins dubbed me "Noonie", which is what I've been called by my family for the last 15 years\n\n* then I got married and didn't want to give up my maiden name completely, but couldn't drop my middle name, so my maiden name was added to my middle name, so now my legal first and last names are names I've never before gone by, while my middle name is the first and last name I grew up with:\n\n "Mary - Meghan [Maiden] - [Married Surname]\n\n* I'm conventionally "Mary [Married Surname]" with the middle name "Meghan [Maiden Surname]". \n\n* But I go by "Meg [Married Surname]".\n\n* Little tip: It's super easy to legally change your middle and last names, but for some reason, you have to go before a judge to get your *first* name changed. I don't see the reasoning *at all* but something to consider when naming your child. \n\n* Bonus Fun Fact: I was this close to being named after my father, but they decided they didn't want two people with the same name causing confusion. His name is Stobie. NOBODY IS NAMED STOBIE. \n\n* My husband won't let me name any our potential children Stobie, despite my heart being set on it. 1349835400 My wife got me that, we're now divorced.\n\nSure, there was more to the divorce than that, but it's a true statement. 1279855823 Ah, found this.\n\nhttp://www.skepticalraptor.com/skepticalraptorblog.php/silly-internet-meme-bananas-tumor-necrosis-factor/ 1346538688 **He didn't!...** Reddit is a portal to the other side!\n\ntrust me, I'm a sceptic 1308532430 I don't know if pulling that quote out on someone religious would have any traction. The religious person could equally say that they gain their moral teaching from the bible (however misguided this might be). So if they trust this moral teaching, then their faith may allow them to trust further the other assertions the bible makes. And just as that quote says 'I trust the consensus of scientists', the believer could say 'I trust the consensus of church members.' 1295978077 At first I thought the dog was exactly the same, but that didn't seem to be the case.\n\nAlthough it could be explained with photoshop. These two photographs together are very compelling. A full body apperition on photograph is very rare, to have two after each other is a ghosthunters wet dream. \n\nFirst time I see this kind of translucency though, it's not... normal (for lack of a better word).\n\nedit: Btw, this is 100% not a fluke. That's certain. 1329215221 It does imply association, but only if there's a reasonable underlying hypothesis.\n\nFor example, if I find a strong correlation between the dose of a drug and the effect of a drug, that makes sense.\n\nIn my case, my chart is bunk because I don't have any reasonable hypothesis to explain my results. All I did was data mine until I found an interesting pattern. My chart is extremely misleading, but that's the point: pseudo-scientists do this all the time. 1355340139 Why not? Are we protecting someone's right to victimize themselves with a treatment they think will work, but doesn't? At the best, it's a scam. At worst, it's putting them in serious danger. Both should be preventable by law. 1277823150 not sayign its real or fake, im saying there is no evidence for either. my main point is that people jump to conclusions way too quickly. But children that most of you are, again jump to the conclusion that im saying its real. 1309193053 If silver and garlic cured bacterial infections, every drug company on Earth would be spending millions marketing newfangled silver tinctures and garlic drops. But, are they? No. They're spending that money on antibiotics... 1351752230 **caution : SPECULATION**\n\ni think the 2 subjects are quite unrelated.\n\nit's not because creatures from other planets/galaxies can fly about like we do on earth that they have to be considered divine.\n\nsome interpret the whole religion-thing as spiritual (do good and u'll ascend to a higher plane, do bad and u'll descend (heaven-hell / re-incarnate better/worse).\n\nif you ask me it's entirely possible that these spirituality rules apply to the whole spectrum of lifeforms.\n\nwho knows, maybe your soul could re-incarnate as a superior creature if you lead a good life\n\njust a final note on your false prophets : Catholicism always puts this into an anti-christ context. I have however encountered sources who, if you put th