Category Archives: News
Cold fusion at energy conference
Cold fusion was the subject of a presentation at the All-Energy Conference held in Melbourne in October, but with a twist. Ian Bryce, chief investigator for Australian Skeptics, was invited to present on his research into the Italian Andrea Rossi’s development of what he claims is cold fusion technology that can be used from domestic to industrial … Read on »
2012 Bent Spoon Award
On the night of the 1st of December, at a glittering dinner at the Melbourne Arts Centre for the Australian Skeptics National Convention, the annual Skeptics awards were announced. These cover both positive and negative awards for good works and,at the other end of the scale, the Bent Spoon for the most preposterous piece of paranormal or pseudoscientific piffle. And … Read on »
James Gerrand — another Skeptic pioneer dies
James (Gerry) Gerrand, co-founder of the Australian Skeptics, died on October 12, aged 93. Gerrand played a fundamental role in the setting-up and on-going activities of Australia Skeptics. The initial meetings to establish the Skeptics were held in 1980 at his home in Hawthorn, Melbourne, with lawyer Mark Plummer, who became the group’s founding president. (Plummer died … Read on »
Skeptic pioneer Paul Kurtz dead
Professor Paul Kurtz, co-founder of the original Skeptical organisation, the Committee for the Scientific Investigation of Claims of the Paranormal (CSICOP), died on October 20, 2012. He was 86. Kurtz was Professor Emeritus of Philosophy at the State University of New York at Buffalo, and over his long career published over 800 articles or reviews and authored … Read on »
Media Watch blasts AVN – “deceptive”, “baloney” and “bulldust”
ABC-TV’s Media Watch program has described the Australian Vaccination Network (AVN) as “deceptively-named” and an “obsessively anti-vaccination pressure group that’s immunised itself against the effect of scientific evidence”. In a segment of the program titled “False balance leads to confusion”, which went to air on October 1, host Jonathan Holmes also referred to an AVN claim about … Read on »
Conduct
Australian Skeptics Inc. has learnt that one of our Committee Members has received an Application for an Apprehended Personal Violence Order to be made against them. The Applicant is Meryl Dorey from the Australian Vaccination Network. She alleges that threats were made against her online by that person. Unless the allegations are withdrawn or resolved … Read on »
New (old) president for Aust Skeptics Inc
Richard Saunders is the new president of Australian Skeptics Inc. At a committee meeting held on September 11, Eran Segev stood down from the position of president, having spent three years in that role, a period which included the organisation and running of TAM Oz in 2010, and a major revamp of our internal processes and external … Read on »
If you knew Shuzi
Over the past couple of years, the attention of Australian Skeptics has been drawn to a long line of so called “Power Bands”. Yet another contender — the Shuzi ‘nano-vibrational technology’ — has recently been investigated by the Skeptics. Broadly speaking, the promoters of these ‘power bands’ claim the devices can affect your well-being, balance, strength and so forth. Most use … Read on »
Skepticamp a winner
This year’s Skepticamp Sydney — the second year it has been held in the city — was another successful event. Held at the University of Technology on May 26, about 80 people attended a range of talks in two concurrent streams. Skepticamp is based on the concept of an open invitation to anyone who would like to put forward their views … Read on »
Open door to Malaysian alt med practitioners
Australia will “facilitate” links between Australian and Malaysian professional bodies for suppliers of traditional Chinese medicine, ayurveda, homeopathy or Malay traditional massage services as part of the Malaysia-Australia Free Trade Agreement, signed on May 22. Commonwealth Trade and Competitiveness Minister, Craig Emerson, said in ‘side letter’ addressed to Malaysia’s Minister for Trade and Industry, Mustapa Mohamed, that … Read on »
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