- Current events
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- 20 Years Ago
- 20th Greetings
- Robert Park Receives Klass Award
- Skeptic on the Loose!
- Brunch at Jackie’s with James Randi
- James Randi Receives Klass Award
- ESP
- Sir Isaac Newton
- “Expelled”
- From the Copy-right Office: Protecting your Elvis Sighting
National Capital Area Skeptics
Promoting Critical Thinking and Scientific Understanding
20/20 Since 1987
Skeptical Eye, Volume 20-1 2009
How Statistics Are Misunderstood in the Media and Society
Saturday, Jan 10, 1:30 pm Public & FREE
Rebecca Goldin, Ph.D.
Statistical Assessment Service
National Science Foundation, Room 110
4201 Wilson Boulevard, Arlington, VA
Dr. Rebecca Goldin is Director of Research for the Statistical Assessment Service (stats.org), a nonprofit, nonpartisan research organization affiliated with George Mason University. STATS’ mission is to improve the quality of scientific and statistical information in public discourse and to act as a resource for journalists and policy makers on scientific issues and controversies. STATS' work has been featured on NBC Nightly News, the News Hour with Jim Lehrer, and ABC's 20/20 - and in print by the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, US News & World Report, New Scientist, New England Journal of Medicine, and many other publications.
Dr. Goldin is Associate Professor of Mathematical Sciences at George Mason University, and a member of the Science Policy Committee of the American Mathematical Society. She received her undergraduate degree from Harvard, and her PhD from MIT. She taught at University of Maryland as a National Science Foundation postdoctoral fellow before joining George Mason in 2001. In 2007 she was the first recipient of the Ruth I. Michler Memorial Prize, which honors outstanding young women in the field of mathematics.
* NSF is one block south of the Ballston-Marymount University metro stop on the Orange Line. For most drivers the easiest route is to exit Route 66 onto Fairfax Dr. eastbound to N. Stuart Street. Enter the NSF building at the corner of N. Stuart Street and 9th St. N. Parking is available in the Ballston Common mall, in the NSF building, and at other area parking lots and garages. Metered parking is also available on the surrounding streets. (Map)
Understanding Creationism Sat Dec 13 at 1:30 pm
Saturday, Dec 13, 1:30 pm
Public & FREE
Mary McCutcheon, Ph.D., George Mason University (Retired)
National Science Foundation, Room 110
4201 Wilson Boulevard, Arlington, VA *
Why do so many people embrace creationism and reject evolution? What are their arguments? How does creationism promote community and address peoples' concerns about education, the rearing of good children, and the perceived dangerous consequences of evolutionary thinking?
Mary McCutcheon, Ph.D. (University of Arizona) taught in the Anthropology Department at George Mason University from 1988 to 2004. Prior to that she worked at the Smithsonian Institution in the Directorate of International Affairs. Earlier she taught at the University of Guam. She does research on land and marine resource ownership in the Palau Islands of Micronesia. Over the years, while teaching at GMU, and in retirement, she has refined this popular lecture, and related talks, to develop better understanding about the surge of religiosity in our society.
Autism & Vaccines:
How Bad Science Confuses the Press & Harms the Public
Saturday, Nov 8, 1:30 pm
Public & FREE (Flyer)
Steven Salzberg, Ph.D.,University of Maryland
Center for Bioinformatics and Computational Biology
National Science Foundation, Room 110
4201 Wilson Boulevard, Arlington, VA *
Ten years ago, an article appeared in the medical journal The Lancet that suggested a link between autism and the vaccine for measles, mumps, and rubella. The article was widely cited in the popular press in England, and vaccination rates began to fall. Further investigations revealed that the data in the study had been manipulated, and that the principal scientist had a major conflict of interest, with the result that 10 of his 12 co-authors repudiated the study's findings.
Numerous scientific studies since 1998, all done in response to the original Lancet article, have failed to find any link between autism and vaccines. Despite this, a few scientists and doctors continue to push the connection, often accompanying their claims with promises of "alternative" treatments for autism. The press keeps the issue alive by reporting "the controversy," often accompanying their reports with emotional testimonials from parents, including several celebrities. As a consequence of this publicity, vaccination rates are now falling in the United States, leading to alarming new outbreaks of diseases.
Scientists and skeptics need to act to quell the rumors and educate the public, so that vaccines, one of the greatest medical successes in history, remain an effective tool in our fight against disease.
Dr. Steven Salzberg is the Director of the Center for Bioinformatics and Computational Biology and the Horvitz Professor of Computer Science at the University of Maryland, College Park. From 1997 to 2005 he was at The Institute for Genomic Research (TIGR) in Rockville, Maryland, where he had a leading role in projects to sequence the DNA of many pathogens, including the anthrax bacteria used in the 2001 attacks. He contributed computational tools and analysis to the Human Genome Project and to projects decoding the genomes of many other animals and plants. His group's computational tools are used around the world in a wide range of genome sequencing projects today. His current genomics projects include a large-scale study of the influenza virus, the development of new DNA sequencing technology, and studies of the bacteria living inside the human body. Dr. Salzberg received his bachelor's and master's degrees from Yale University and his Ph.D. from Harvard University. (home page)
* NSF is one block south of the Ballston-Marymount University metro stop on the Orange Line. For most drivers the easiest route is to exit Route 66 onto Fairfax Dr. eastbound to N. Stuart Street. Enter the NSF building at the corner of N. Stuart Street and 9th St. N. Parking is available in the Ballston Common mall, in the NSF building, and at other area parking lots and garages. Metered parking is also available on the surrounding streets. (Map)
Nov 12 UMD Bioscience Day Honors Charles Darwin
Celebrating Darwin at 200:
Evolution and 21st Century Science
Wednesday, November 12, 2008
University of Maryland, College Park
Information and Free Registration
Highlights include:
- Keynote lecture at 5:00 PM by Pulitzer Prize winning scientist E.O. Wilson
- Visit from the “ghost” of Charles Darwin
- Professor invention competition
- The "Future" of Evolution
- Colony collapse disorder in honeybees update
- Evolution - New Perspectives from the Physical Sciences
- Opportunities to network with colleagues
- Scientific poster competition
- Bioscience internship and job fair
Bioscience Research & Technology Review Day is a special event that features research talks, presentations, mini-symposia and demonstrations by university scientists. The program provides a unique opportunity for executives and professionals in industry and government to discover the most recent advances in bioscience and biotechnology at the University of Maryland; to promote the potential for academic-industry-government collaboration; to meet University scientists and interact with graduate student researchers; to network with colleagues who share an interest in the promotion of bioscience and the bioscience industry; and to recruit employees and investigate job opportunities.
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