Language is a tool for imparting ideas and desires to one another. A living language like English has so many twists and turns in with many words not only being polysemous but also being used in a metaphorically descriptive way rather than relating to any normative use. If you were to tell me the traffic…
Introduction Recently I encountered Daniel Goldman a couple of times on Twitter. The first time was during a discussion about the use of the words atheism, theism, agnosticism, etc. The conversation was pleasant enough, especially when we consider how many of those kinds of discussions go! The second encounter was a discussion about belief, and…
The null hypothesis is used in science, and we atheists tend to have a lot of respect for science, the scientific method, scientific and empirical evidence. We think of ourselves as logical and rational people. We feel we know a lot about the topics we discuss, especially when it comes to science. In conversations with…
Read More “Misunderstanding The Null Hypothesis and Knowledge.” »
‘Hypothesis’ is a scientific term that, whilst it may have some colloquial application, is defined as: a supposition or proposed explanation made on the basis of limited evidence as a starting point for further investigation. Oxford Languages Or an idea that proposes a tentative explanation about a phenomenon or a narrow set of phenomena observed…
I have spent a lot of time thinking about free will and determinism, and a fair bit reading others thoughts on it too. I’ve been trying to sift through my own thoughts on the matter because I am still mostly agnostic towards the whole thing though I do lean towards a form of compatibilism that…
I’ve spoken about our tribal nature before, often about specific groups like antivaxxers, flat earthers, fundamentalists, fanboys etc but I have also turned that inwards to take a look at atheists and what the ‘new atheist’ movement has become. Let’s first briefly go over the basics so we are sure we are on the same…
The United States Pandemic Response In this paper I will take a short overview of all the epidemics and pandemics save a few in the history of the United States. Examination of the past outbreaks and the US government’s response is of vital importance to understanding how to properly implement plans to eliminate a health…
I’ve written a few articles about vaccinations from the scientific point of view but felt it was time to turn my attention to the morality of the topic; both from the angle of if it is a moral obligation to be vaccinated, and the morality of forcing vaccinations on people. What do we mean by…
Read More “The Morality of Forced/Rejecting Vaccinations.” »
Continuing our miniseries of Bad Atheist Arguments on our quest for self-improvement I bring you a number of contradictory claims and statements I have seen many of my fellow atheists making, and indeed have possibly made myself in the past. Contents Words are Defined by Usage and ContextFaith, Atheism, Belief ONLY mean… Morality Is SubjectiveExcept…
Read More “Bad Atheist Arguments – Vol:4 – Contradictory Claims and Statements” »
Hello, and welcome to Fresh AiR! – I’m Joe… Words you will have heard a few times if you have already started listening to season one. What is Fresh AiR? ‘Fresh AiR’ is a podcast, hosted by Joe, Martijn and Dave. It is part of Answers in Reason but hopes to bring a fresh perspective…
I’ve come across a lot of bias on the internet. I have even spoken at length in previous articles about Confirmation Bias, and how I have made mistakes through a cognitive bias to people I trust. I’ve noticed in conversations with people I felt I had a mutual respect with, they are often less inclined…
Alan has already debunked “The mathematical Impossibility of evolution” but I thought I would explain a little bit about statistics. Or rather than explain; I thought providing examples of statistics in order to help you increase your understanding. The Statistical Chance of You The statistical chance of you existing is such an astronomical calculation that…
Read More “Statistics – The Statistical Improbability of You” »
In today’s society of theists you tend to find you have those who are rather liberal in their attitude to their holy book. They take it as a metaphor, understand it is dated, written by humans, imperfect, and lean on the good examples it provides. The other is the fundamentalists, the literalist, the inerrantist. These…
Read More “Common Creationist Misconceptions – Humans, Science and Faith” »
“The Bible is inerrant!” is something quite commonly said in debate. It’s part of the circular reasoning: “The Bible is the word of God, because it tells us so, God is perfect, therefore the Bible is infallible.” We have a number of articles that address things like: Common Theistic Fallacies (e.g. Circular Reasoning) Confirmation Bias…
Read More “The Bible is Inerrant! – Biblical Errors – Volume 1: Genesis & Creation” »
Note: We are republishing this article with the kind permission of Dr. Ben Davis. We highly recommend checking out Dr. Ben’s Fb page Please click here for Dr. Ben’s Facebook page. The Problem with Pseudoscience So, I try not to rip on my students in general. I especially try to avoid poking fun at them…
Abortion is a very sensitive topic with a lot of high charged emotions flying about. If you remove the emotional element it is easy to see either sides point, but there are a few things that should be cleared up from either perspective. Pro-Choice does not mean Pro-Abortion There seems to be an attitude that…
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