Saturday, November 14

1177 BC and After:

Revisiting the Late Bronze Age Collapse Ten Years Later

Professor Eric Cline

Professor of Classical and Ancient Near Eastern Studies and of Anthropology
Director of the GWU Capitol Archaeological Institute

An early version of this lecture was presented at the National Capital Area Skeptics meeting in October 2016, soon after the publication of 1177 BC in paperback. The video of that lecture, posted on YouTube, has now been viewed more than 8.7 million times, with more than 12,000 comments left by viewers. 

Since that presentation, much new relevant data has become available, resulting in a revised version of the original book being published in 2021 and a sequel, entitled After 1177 BC, appearing in 2024. This illustrated talk will update the original lecture, presenting a streamlined version of what we now know, or think we know, about the Late Bronze Age Collapse, its aftermath, and its potential relevance to our world today.

Professor Cline’s primary fields of study are biblical archaeology, the military history of the Mediterranean world from antiquity to present, and the international connections between Greece, Egypt, and the Near East during the Late Bronze Age (1700-1100 BCE). He is an experienced and active field archaeologist, with more than 30 seasons of excavation and survey to his credit since 1980 in Israel, Egypt, Jordan, Cyprus, Greece, Crete, and the United States.  An award-winning teacher and author of the best-selling 1177 BC: The Year Civilization Collapsed (Princeton 2014; revised edition 2021), he is a National Geographic Explorer, a two-time Fulbright scholar, an NEH Public Scholar, and a Getty Scholar.

November 14, 2026, 1:30 to 3:00PM
B-CC Regional Services Center
4805 Edgemoor Lane, 2nd Floor (West Room)
Bethesda, MD

Directions: https://tinyurl.com/visitbcccenter
Parking: (Garage 49, $1.50/hr) https://tinyurl.com/BethesdaGarages

FREE admission – Everyone welcome, members and non-members
In person and livestreamed: https://www.youtube.com/live/KFlJh5fY4Ao

Centennial of Houdini's Death?

Harry Houdini is perhaps the most famous magician–and skeptic–of all time. Escape artist, stage magician, silent movie star, and skeptical investigator of seance mediums and other phonies. This Halloween marks the 100th anniversary of his death.

As the story goes, Houdini, born Erik Weisz in Budapest, bragged about his fitness to take any punch. While in Montreal in October 1926, a college student unexpectedly took that challenge. Houdini died nine days later of a ruptured appendix. 

Or is that right? This interesting piece in the New York Times looks at the accepted story with a skeptical eye. 

https://www.nytimes.com/2026/10/20/arts/houdini-death-mystery.html 
(no paywall, but you need to create a free account)

The article not only offers an alternative narrative but also suggests that he actually died on October 30, not Halloween.

Houdini has many connections to the national capital area: 

• D.C. City Jail / Murderers' Row (January 6, 1906): Stripped, searched, and locked inside Cell No. 2 in the south wing, Houdini escaped in 2 minutes, then unlocked all 17 cells, swapped the positions of the inmates, dressed, and walked out to the warden's office in 21 minutes.

• Tenth Precinct Station House (January 1906): Houdini successfully broke out of a locked cell in the Parkview neighborhood station after being searched and locked in.

• Suspended Straitjacket Stunt (April 19, 1916): Houdini hung suspended upside down in a straitjacket near the Washington Post/Munsey building at Pennsylvania and E Streets NW, drawing massive crowds.

• B.F. Keith's Theater Straitjacket Escape (January 12, 1922): Houdini performed his iconic upside-down straitjacket escape high above the Riggs Building at G and 15th Streets NW (right across from the U.S. Treasury Building – now the location of Old Ebbitt Grill), watched by thousands of spectators. (photo above)

Whatever the circumstances of his death, we know that he bequeathed his personal collection of magic and memorabilia to the Library of Congress. The collection of nearly 4000 books includes a 1651 edition of Reginald Scot’s Discoverie of Witchcraft, perhaps the first book in English to debunk witches and the supernatural in general as sleight-of-hand trickery rather than occult forces.

Penn & Teller, longtime friends of NCAS, made a short video of their visit to the Houdini collection at the Library of Congress. It isn’t exactly historically accurate, but it is fun 3.5 minutes.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R_PkSfIjlTE

--Chip Denman

Special Events Coming October 13 and 22

October 13 is International Skeptics Day!

NCAS will be participating in the Global Skeptics in the Pub, live on Zoom. Pour your favorite beverage and join everyone online.

October 22

Fact-Checking in a World of Misinformation

A Conversation with Glenn Kessler, Formerly The Washington Post's "Fact Checker"

For more than 15 years, Glenn Kessler led "The Fact Checker" team at The Washington Post, examining politicians' claims and researching the facts behind those claims. By providing detailed findings and ratings ("Pinocchios") of the truthfulness of claims, "The Fact Checker" freed its readers from the traditional journalistic approach of simply publishing dueling quotes of rival politicians. However, as of 2025, "The Fact Checker" column has ended.  What happened, and what are the prospects for journalists to carry on this work?

Mr. Kessler will be interviewed by Joel Achenbach, former staff writer/science journalist at The Washington Post. The National Capital Area Skeptics will be honoring Mr. Kessler with the 2026 Philip J. Klass Award for outstanding promotion of critical thinking and scientific understanding. The Klass Award was also presented to Mr. Achenbach in 2011.

Thursday, October 22, 2026
7:30 p.m. ​to 9:30 pm
Media and Public Affairs Building, 5th Floor Studio
805 21st Street NW, Washington DC 20052

Reception to follow.

All are welcome, but advance registration is required.
Pre-registration does not guarantee a seat. Entry is first-come, first-served until the venue reaches its capacity. 

Reserve here: https://tinyurl.com/Kessler2026

---

Before the public program, we are offering a special opportunity: one of just six supporter seats at a private dinner with Glenn and Joel.

All seats at the dinner have been claimed. There are still a few seats available for the free event above.

The dinner will be held from 5:00–7:00 p.m. in the private State Room at RIS in Washington, D.C., a short walk from the George Washington University event venue. With only ten people at the table—including Glenn, Joel, and their guests—this will be a genuinely intimate gathering and a rare opportunity for extended, informal conversation with two journalists who have spent decades covering science, politics, public policy, and the sometimes difficult business of separating fact from fiction.

We are asking each of the six supporters to make a $500 contribution to NCAS. NCAS will host the dinner, and proceeds remaining after expenses will support the Klass Award and future NCAS programming. Your contribution will also give you a one-year NCAS membership or extend yours if you are already a member. So this is more than an unusual evening: your support will help us bring compelling speakers and programs to Washington, reach new audiences, and build a stronger future for NCAS.

You may request a seat for a guest as well; just note that the $500 contribution applies to each seat.  

If you’d like to join us, email us at rsvp@ncas.org, and we’ll send you the contribution details and instructions for reserving your seat(s). With only six supporter seats available, we encourage you to respond soon.

After the dinner, the Klass Award program itself begins at 7:30 p.m. at George Washington University’s Media and Public Affairs Building. This part of the evening is free and open to the public, but reservations are required. The Eventbrite link for RSVP for the public session is https://tinyurl.com/kessler2026.

We hope you’ll join us for what should be a memorable evening—and help make many more NCAS programs possible.

Skeptical Eye: News from NCAS July 2026

CSICon 2026

May 1st of this year marked the 50th anniversary of the modern skeptical movement, born near Buffalo, New York, on the second day of the American Humanist Association’s 35th annual conference.  The theme for that day’s talks was, “The New Irrationalisms: Antiscience and Pseudoscience.”  (Read more about this in James Alcock’s Skeptical Inquirer article, “Fifty Years of the Modern Skeptical Movement.”)

To commemorate this auspicious milestone, the Committee for Skeptical Inquiry held its annual conference (CSICon) in Buffalo this June.  For those who were unable to attend, there are brief video recordings already available.  (Based on previous CSICons’ talks eventually showing up online, there may be more to come later.)  For example, on Friday morning, Kenny Biddle strolled through the venue, including the auditorium where Stuart Vyse was presenting “Welcome to the Burned-Over District!”  Susan Gerbic’s snippet of Thursday morning’s “CFI History & Mystery Tour” features Kenny, and she also posted video of Sunday morning’s CSICon Singers with Anthony Trecek-King.

In lieu of more videos becoming available, NCAS presents the following descriptions and commentary from several of its members who attended CSICon 2026.  (Please note that the opinions expressed in this article are the authors’ own and do not necessarily reflect the view of the National Capital Area Skeptics organization.)

Skeptical Eye: Frontline Reports from CSICon 2026

Note: With this, we are reviving our Skeptical Eye as the vehicle for news and other non-event announcements.

--Scott Snell

Rorschach Theatre: American Apparitions

Rorschach Theatre is a spunky, local theater company whose works for 25 years have often featured themes that are spooky and fantastical. They have mounted stage productions ranging from Toxic Avenger: The Musical to a delightful twist on Beauty & the Beast. Naturally, I’m a fan.

During the COVID lockdown, they conceived a brilliant idea to stay alive: Psychogeographies. If you can’t go to the theater, well, let the theater take you on adventures around town. Each month, subscribers receive a package and a map that lets them go to a location -- at a time of their choosing -- where examining the rest of the package unfolds a bit of a multi-chapter story.  After a few months, a whole new world has been opened. It was such a success that they have continued with new stories and are now in the 6th season. Grace and I have been on board for them all.

Two seasons ago, the story involved cryptids and a possible abduction. They even wove the National Capital Area Skeptics into the storyline! Other seasons involved time travel and even warping between worlds in a multiverse.

We just completed the first chapter of this season called American Apparitions. It is all about ghost hunting around DC. Our initial package included an investigator’s handbook from the “Red Room Society,” complete with suggestions for free ghost hunting apps to download. The map took us to the MLK Jr Library, Chinatown, and even down an alley behind Ford’s Theatre where we tried to record ghostly images and voices. It was a hoot!

It struck us that other skeptics might enjoy this as much as we do. Although chapters 2 and 3 are about to be released, it’s actually easy to join in late since the whole thing is done on your own schedule. They even provide online videos for those who want to “remote view” rather than venture out in person.

Saturday afternoon, July 11, is a special live Ghost Party event. It’s billed as a fundraiser for the company, with drinks, a paranormal scavenger hunt, and dessert. It is a stand-alone event, but thematically tied to American Apparitions. Subscribers get a free ticket. Grace and I share one subscription and just bought a single guest ticket with a subscriber discount for the party.

We would love to meet up with NCAS members for the party or any of the monthly adventures. I hope you will join us.

--Chip Denman

https://rorschachtheatre.com/american-apparitions/

https://rorschachtheatre.com/ghost-party/

2026 Candidates for Election

ROB EVON

Rob Evon is an NCAS Life Member and a lifelong supporter of national skeptical and science organizations, including the Center for Inquiry and the Skeptics Society. He has been a frequent attendee of CFI’s CSICon and The Amazing Meeting (TAM), as well as a direct supporter of CFI initiatives such as Teacher Institute for Evolutionary Science (TIES).

He currently serves as Treasurer and a member of the Board of Directors, and previously as Vice President, of one of the nation’s largest branch-level Friends of the Library nonprofit organizations. He brings more than 30 years of senior leadership experience in strategic planning, business development, and governance across both the corporate and nonprofit sectors. His strong commitment to evidence-based analysis, public education, and organizational strategy would help advance NCAS’s mission of promoting critical thinking and scientific understanding.

BRIAN GREGORY

I’m a senior software engineer, currently working for NVIDIA on their supercomputer scheduling software.  A while back, I ran a skeptical video-chat discussion group called “Virtual Drinking Skeptically,” used to host a weekly podcast called “The Virtual Skeptics,” and have somehow managed to (with a lot of help) organize three SkeptiCamp DC (https://skepticampdc.org) events, and continue to work toward organizing the Baltimore Skeptics.

MARY PASTEL

I have been a member of NCAS for over twenty years. I am interested in many pertinent topics but especially in why people choose to believe things that are demonstrably not true. My background is in science and engineering. I have been a researcher, lab director, regulator. By the time I retired I headed up the radiological health part of FDA.

MELISSA POLLAK

Melissa Pollak retired from the National Science Foundation in 2010 after spending nearly three decades at the agency.  During her tenure at NSF, she was responsible for seven chapters of the National Science Board biennial report Science & Engineering Indicators, including the 2000, 2002, 2004, and 2006 chapters on public attitudes toward and understanding of science.  When she began that assignment, she discovered how little attention the science community was giving the public’s belief in pseudoscience.  She was astounded by her colleagues’ unfamiliarity with the problem and lack of concern.  As a result, she made it a goal to give the subject as much coverage as possible in Indicators, as well as in NSF’s increasingly dwindling survey work on public understanding of science.  In October 2005, Ms. Pollak went on a Long Term Professional Development detail at the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS).  After returning to NSF, she was involuntarily re-assigned different duties.  So, to stay involved, she decided to do whatever she could to see that NSF continued to have a role in the work of skeptical organizations.  To that end, NCAS was able to hold some of its monthly public lectures at NSF.  However, with the agency's move to Alexandria in 2017, that arrangement ended.  From 2010 to 2015, Ms. Pollak served as a volunteer at the Science and Entertainment Exchange, a program of the National Academy of Sciences whose main mission is to connect scientists with producers of movies and TV shows to ensure that the science seen on both the small and big screen is as accurate as possible.  She holds a B.S. degree in political science and economics from American University and an M.A. in economics from George Washington University.  Incidentally, it’s now been more than two decades since NSF last undertook any survey work on the public’s belief in pseudoscience.

 

WALTER ROWE

Dr. Walter Rowe is currently a member of the Board of NCAS.  He is a founding member of NCAS and has served on its board since the organization was founded.  He has published several skeptical articles in Skeptical Inquirer and has presented several talks to NCAS on such diverse topics as the Salem Witchcraft Trials, alchemy and forensic science.  Dr. Rowe recently retired as professor of forensic sciences at The George Washington University and has been named professor of forensic sciences emeritus.  He has published over fifty peer-reviewed articles in scholarly journals. Dr. Rowe has AM and PhD degrees in chemistry from Harvard University and a BS degree with highest honors in chemistry from Emory University.  He was awarded a National Science Foundation Fellowship for graduate study. Dr. Rowe is also an honor graduate of the US Army Military Police School’s criminal investigator course and was a credentialed US Army CID investigator.  He served in the US Army Crime Laboratory system as a forensic drug analyst and a forensic serologist. During his military service Dr. Rowe testified as an expert witness at Army courts-martial and processed crime scenes on several US Army posts. Dr. Rowe has also testified as an expert witness in both criminal and civil trials in state and federal jurisdictions across the United States.

SCOTT SNELL

I’m a charter member of NCAS, a past vice president, the current president, and I hope to continue to serve on the NCAS board of directors.  The capabilities that NCAS events producer J. D. Mack has delivered to skeptics, both locally and worldwide online, is a unique gift that I support to the maximum possible extent.  We skeptics are inquirers, and NCAS, perhaps more than any other organization in the world (other skeptics groups, Smithsonian, news media, etc), offers unparalleled opportunities for any event participant to share fully visible moderated comments and questions with other participants and have them conveyed to the speaker.  As moderator/host of our events, I strive for the greatest possible opportunity to share information and questions, both to and from our speakers.  Now, more than ever, we can consult with experts around the world, pose questions to them that they may not have considered before, and see what comes of it. By this, we can also lead by example.  My hope is that more and more people will incorporate skeptical principles in their roles as citizens, students, employees, and even as relatives and friends.  What’s true, and how can we know?  What decisions can we make, despite inevitable uncertainties?  If we skeptics can ask the best questions, we might even pick up some of the slack that much of our news media has sadly dropped in its duty to inform the public.

Coming April 20 and April 25

Cryptocurrency.
Are you skeptical because you know too little? Or because you know too much? Either way...

EVERYONE IS LYING TO YOU FOR MONEY is a documentary that asks a sobering question: Who benefits from the chaos, and who is left to clean up the damage?

NCAS exclusive interview with filmmaker Ben McKenzie:
https://youtu.be/J9cW5gylKpE?si=dJAVXaPdtVcHet-K
For more information on the film, or for showings in other cities, please see www.everyoneislying.com.

Join NCAS members at the AFI Silver in downtown Silver Spring, Maryland, for special screenings on April 20 at 6:45 and April 25 at 6:15, both with Q&A with Ben McKenzie. Tickets are available in advance: https://silver.afi.com/movies/detail/0100005537/

Anchored by the stunningly restored 1938 Silver Theatre, the three-screen AFI Silver Theatre is a state-of-the-art film and digital media exhibition venue, which serves as a national model for preserving and honoring our shared film and filmgoing heritage. 

8633 Colesville Road

Silver Spring, MD 20910

Optionally, meet for a 5:00 PM pre-show dinner and good company:

Monday, April 20, Copper Canyon Grill

Saturday, April 25, J. Hollinger's Waterman's Chophouse

Please sign up here if you will be joining us so we can make a dinner reservation. Note: This is for dinner only; you are responsible for getting your own show tickets.

Skeptical Eye: News from NCAS April 2026

Thoughts on the way to the Moon

Artemis II commander Reid Wiseman (proud son of Baltimore, Maryland) took this photo of Earth after the crew put their ship on course for the Moon.

Except for a slight sliver of sunlight at upper left, the only illumination of Earth is from the full Moon behind the photographer.

Venus is at upper left.

[Artemis II pilot Victor Glover]
"... I think these observances are important, and as we are so far from Earth and looking back at, you know, the beauty of Creation.  I think, for me, one of the really important personal perspectives that I have up here is, I can really see Earth as one thing.  And you know, when I read the Bible, and I look at all of the amazing things that were done for us, who were created, it’s…you, you have this amazing place…this spaceship.  You guys are talking to us because we’re in a spaceship really far from Earth.  But you’re on a spaceship called Earth that was created to give us a place to live in the universe, in the cosmos.  Maybe the distance we are from you makes you think what we’re doing is special.  But we’re the same distance from you, and I’m trying to tell you, just trust me, you are special.  In all of this emptiness, this is a whole bunch of nothing; this thing we call the universe, you have this oasis, this beautiful place that we get to exist together.  I think as we go into Easter Sunday thinking about, you know, all the cultures all around the world, whether you celebrate it or not, whether you believe in God or not, um, this is an opportunity to remember where we are, who we are, and that we are the same thing in that we’ve got to get through this together."

Coming Thursday, April 9

A Duality in Mission Regarding UAPs:
the All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office (AARO)

Dr. Sean Kirkpatrick

AARO was a Congressionally mandated organization with two missions: 1. organize, streamline, collate, and investigate current reports of military and government sightings of unidentified anomalous phenomena (UAP), and 2. Investigate the US Government's historical works and associated whistleblower accounts regarding UAP/UFO. This presentation will discuss the establishment of the office, the investigations into the allegations, and the associated findings and conclusions.

Dr. Sean Kirkpatrick is an American laser and materials physicist who served as the first director of the United States Department of Defense's All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office. Kirkpatrick is also an adjunct assistant professor of physics at the University of Georgia.

Thursday, April 9, 2026
7:00 -- 9:00PM
Center for Naval Analyses
3003 Washington Boulevard, Arlington, Virginia 22201
Room 214 MPR

Near Clarendon Metro
There is also paid parking under the building.

IMPORTANT:
The presentation is free, but all attendees must register by April 6.

Please use the form below to register:

Coming Saturday, March 21

Industrial Scale Renewable Energy:
A Skeptic’s Scrutiny From The Hinterlands

Mark Haynes

Mark’s talk will be an examination of and a skeptic’s perspective of many of the claims about renewable energy from the rural, environmental, power grid, and “big picture” perspectives.  
Mark retired in 2021 as President of Concordia Power, a small consulting firm focused on strategic services in the areas of advanced fission and fusion energy development.  Previously in his professional career, he was a Vice President of General Atomics and a Professional Staff Member of the United States Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works.  He has a Master's degree in Environmental Science from Miami University in Ohio and a BS in Environmental Science from Morehead State University in Kentucky.  Mark and his wife Caroline have a home in Arlington, but spend much of their time working on their forested land in West Virginia, where they have an off-grid solar cabin.  As a volunteer, Mark is highly involved in energy development and land conservation issues.

March 21, 2026, 1:30 to 3:00PM
B-CC Regional Services Center
4805 Edgemoor Lane 2nd Floor (West Room)
Bethesda, MD

Directions: https://tinyurl.com/visitbcccenter

Parking: (Garage 49, $1.50/hr) https://tinyurl.com/BethesdaGarages

FREE admission – Everyone welcome, members and non-members

In person and livestreamed: https://www.youtube.com/live/Ckb0r_NiG9Q

Coming February 21, 2026

No Blueprint for the Moon:
Navigating the Unknowns of Extraterrestrial Construction

Dr. Caitlin Ahrens

This presentation examines lunar architecture not as science fiction, but as an applied problem in risk management, engineering under uncertainty, and evidence-based design. We will explore what it would actually mean to plan and build structures on the Moon, where our geotechnical data are sparse, environmental hazards are extreme, and many Earth-based design assumptions simply do not hold. We will delve into strategies for site planning in an extreme, unfamiliar environment, where Earth-based assumptions must be rethought. Key challenges discussed include working with limited data, potential hazards from the environment, and the need for adaptable, resilient design solutions in lunar conditions.

Dr. Caitlin Ahrens is an assistant research scientist at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, and the University of Maryland. She is a member of the Diviner Science Team with the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter. In collaboration with Artemis, she serves as a technical support scientist to assist in risk assessments of astronaut, rover, and lander activity at the lunar surface. Dr. Ahrens is Principal Investigator on a recent lunar sustainability work funded by the (former) NASA Office of Technology, Policy and Strategy. She also is a member of the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) working on how lunar architectures should be monitored for hazards, including construction, at the lunar surface. 

February 21, 2026, 1:30 PM
B-CC Regional Services Center
4805 Edgemoor Lane 2nd Floor (West Room)
Bethesda, MD

Directions: https://tinyurl.com/visitbcccenter

Parking: (Garage 49, $1.50/hr) https://tinyurl.com/BethesdaGarages

FREE admission – Everyone welcome, members and non-members
Livestreamed: https://youtube.com/live/9jkezKUmI0Y