Television

One year in: The Science Bit’s greatest hits

By Brian Hughes on February 17, 2012 • ( 4 )

I am generally nonplussed by birthdays. And I realise that blog posts about blog posts can sometimes be boring. However, as I’m an obsessive hoarder and a data geek, in this case I am going to make an exception. You… Read More ›

“Atheists die first”?

By Brian Hughes on January 13, 2012 • ( 1 )

My post on Dr Wendy Walsh — “Atheists die first”: CNN’s “expert” fights back — has been experiencing a spike in hits over the past day or so. It deals with the research evidence surrounding claims that religious belief (and… Read More ›

Scientific advice for Christmas (Original Soundtrack), Part 2

By Brian Hughes on December 21, 2011 • ( 8 )

Happy Solstice everybody! As James Brown (above) puts it, it’s time to hitch up your reindeer and go straight to the ghetto! This is because it’s time for Part 2 of my… …SCIENCE-OF-CHRISTMAS SPECIAL! Woo-hoo! (Again) Last time out things were,… Read More ›

No, you are NOT worth it

By Brian Hughes on August 18, 2011 • ( 3 )

When it comes to questionable science claims in advertising, you rarely need to look further than the cosmetics industry. Just two weeks ago, two magazine advertisements by French cosmetics giant L’Oréal were banned by Britain’s Advertising Standards Authority following a complaint by… Read More ›

Six odd Irish UFO sightings

By Brian Hughes on July 28, 2011 • ( 21 )

Well, how about this then? Apparently, as well as undergoing simultaneous financial and banking crises on a scale almost never heretofore experienced by anyone, Ireland is experiencing a “UFO epidemic” in its skies. That’s according to the Irish-based franchise of… Read More ›

Stop the spread of the ecological fallacy

By Brian Hughes on June 23, 2011 • ( 11 )

Have a look at this recently launched public health campaign, pithily titled “Stop the Spread“. It aims to address the problem of overweight in the general population. Co-ordinated by Safefood, the statutory body responsible for the promotion of food safety… Read More ›

Wake up and smell the…woahhh!

By Brian Hughes on June 16, 2011 • ( 1 )

Let’s get the controversy out of the way first. In the interests of full disclosure, I need to reveal an interest. I consume coffee. There. I’ve said it. Now you may think there is nothing particularly strange about that. After… Read More ›

Towards a quantum Theory of Everything (including dirty dishes)

By Brian Hughes on April 26, 2011 • ( 1 )

Perhaps few words in contemporary science have been abused as much as “quantum”. Simply put, a quantum is the minimum amount of an entity that can actually do anything. One example is a photon, which is the minimum amount of… Read More ›

Politico.ie covers “The Babel Fish”

By Brian Hughes on April 25, 2011 • ( 0 )

Following up on last week’s Irish Skeptics Society lecture on science communication, journalist John Holden filed a report on the Irish politics and current affairs website, Politico.ie. As part of his analysis, Holden notes that: “In the Irish media there is… Read More ›

The Babel Fish Dilemma: Talking Science with Non-Scientists

By Brian Hughes on April 21, 2011 • ( 2 )

Last night I gave a public lecture in Dublin for the Irish Skeptics Society, entitled “The Babel Fish Dilemma: Talking Science with Non-Scientists“. The Irish Skeptics, under the leadership of psychologists Paul O’Donoghue and Nóirín Buckley, have been organizing a… Read More ›

“Atheists die first”: CNN’s “expert” fights back

By Brian Hughes on April 4, 2011 • ( 8 )

This is psychologist, Dr Wendy Walsh, discussing the merits of religion on CNN. Rather melodramatically, she is focusing on the purported advantage of being religious during catastrophic survival situations. According to Walsh, “Most studies on survivors show that the atheists… Read More ›