Earthquake in England - divine retribution?

The BBC is reporting the damage:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/7267567.stm

According to reports, tremors were felt as far south as Hampshire (where I am), and I was awake at the time (about 1 am) but I don't remember anything unusual.

Nevertheless it was the strongest quake for a quarter of a century, at 5.2 on the Richter scale, though that's hardly a murmur compared with those often experienced elsewhere on the globe.

But how long will it be before some religious 'authority' declares this as God's punishment for the UK's stance on homosexuality, on abortion, or on embryonic stem-cell research?

Fantasy holiday: The End of the World Bus Tour

The BBC's recent run of five TV documentaries in the Wonderland series ended a week ago with this film about about a group of fundamentalist Christians on a tour of Armageddon. For many it was their last chance to see significant locations that will apparently figure in the Rapture, and in the end of the world, as foretold in the Book of Revelation.

Here's a link to the BBC's trailer on YouTube:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qGjvQD0c_4k

It's nice to have a theme for a holiday - it provides focus for sightseeing and other jolly activities. Don't fancy traipsing round a musty museum? Try helping out with menial labour on an Israeli military base. Bored with rubbernecking at old buildings? Then how about viewing the actual site of the nuclear apocalypse? When did that happen, you ask? Not yet, but just you wait - it will, we're told, be bloody. Don't worry, you won't be affected, not if you're a believer. You'll be raptured into Heaven with the other believers, disappearing from Earth in the blink of an eye, while the rest of us are left behind to perish (after which, of course, we have the small matter of an eternity of damnation to endure).

These are, by any rational standards, kooky beliefs, based on ancient texts of dubious authority. But they're beliefs held by a not insignificant minority of US citizens, this sample of whom appeared from this film to be decent (if deluded) people. Mostly they were pensioners. One teenager, however, on the trip with her parents, might have been tagging along simply for the chance to get way from her studies for a while. But no - she appeared to be as fundamentalist as the rest of them.

She said she was studying A-levels (in England, as it happens, quite close to where I live), photography (she was using the trip as part of a photography project), and - get this - critical thinking.

When explaining to the interviewer why she held her particular beliefs, she used Pascal's Wager. Perhaps when she actually gets around to that final part of her studies she'll learn what a false dichotomy is.

UPDATE:

This wasn't actually the last in the present run of Wonderland, but there was a two-week break.

And for those who missed the broadcast, but can use BitTorrent, try here, here or (recommended) here.

Another gem from the broadcast: after seeing Armageddon, contemplating the end of the world, and looking across the landscape towards the 'enemies of God', our little group of devout tourists assembled at the airport for their trip home. Naturally they prayed. For world peace? An end to conflict? Relief for the afflicted?

No, they prayed that their flight would not be delayed.

What is a blog? (repost from other blog)

Not only a succinct explanation of what a blog is, but also what it's for:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NN2I1pWXjXI

Listen up, sceptics! - a list of sceptical podcasts

Here's a collection of podcasts related to rationality, critical thinking, scepticism, atheism, etc. It's not exhaustive; these are the ones I listen to when I have time.


Skepticality - the original sceptical podcast, with Derek and Swoopy, and now the official podcast of Skeptic Magazine

Point of Inquiry - the podcast of the Center for Inquiry, hosted by D. J. Grothe


Skeptoid - Brian Dunning's podcast book is also available at Podiobooks.com (for those who want an easy way to listen from the beginning)


Skeptics' Guide to the Universe - Dr Steven Novella plus a regular panel (associated with JREF - James Randi Educational Foundation)


Freethought Radio - Dan Barker & Annie Laurie Gaylor from FFRF (Freedom From Religion Foundation)


Bad Science - Dr Ben Goldacre (who writes for the Guardian) has an occasional podcast related to his well-known blog


Atheists Talk - Minnesota Atheists' new podcast


Quick Hitts - Dave Hitt is often controversial, but always interesting

If you have any other suggestions for podcast listening in this field, feel free to post them in the comments.

Sir Arthur at 90 (repost from other blog)

I'm occasionally asked why I write science fiction.

The answer is, because of this man:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3qLdeEjdbWE



Happy birthday Sir Arthur!

Covering all bases: trying out Linux - part 1 (repost from other blog)

How can I possibly hold my head up as a certified computer nerd without knowledge of the third most popular computer operating system (and incidentally the one that runs most of the internet)?

I've had goes with Linux before, but each time it was a half-hearted affair, and by no means entirely successful. Nevertheless, I decided it was time to give Linux a fair trial, and by 'fair' I'm referring to the the fact that my previous attempts were on redundant hardware that wasn't up to the job.

In recent years the computer marketplace has changed. It's now possible to buy a basic PC, without monitor or OS, for under £250. But 'basic' is a relative term. This £250 PC has a 64-bit dual-core processor, 2 GB of system RAM and a 250 GB serial ATA hard disk - computing power that would have cost between five and ten times as much a mere five years ago.

So, I bought one. I already had a suitable monitor (a 19" widescreen LCD), and I'd downloaded the operating system in readiness for the 'experiment'.

And the OS? The word is, apparently, 'Ubuntu'. You can go to the website and download a CD image file, which you then use to make a boot CD. There are comprehensive instructions on the site if you don't know how to do this - it's not difficult (and if you use a Mac it is ridiculously easy). You can then use the CD to try out Ubuntu Linux on any PC (or even an Intel Mac, apparently) without messing with your hard drive. Then, if you wish, you can install it. That's when the fun starts.

The process worked well enough. I had to be careful adjusting the display settings (several of my attempts resulted in the disappearance of the mouse cursor), but I found that ignoring the 'test' mode and rebooting worked fine. Next on the list was connecting to the internet. Firefox is pre-installed, but because of the way my home network is set up I had to adjust the network settings to a static IP address and enter DNS addresses to make it work.

I gave up on the printer. I've no doubt that connecting a USB or parallel printer would be a doddle, but I have a print-server on my network that was extremely difficult to set up for my Macs, so I wasn't surprised to find the Linux set-up a little opaque. That's something I'll need to come back to.

Ubuntu Linux also comes with OpenOffice 2.3 pre-installed, though I did notice that it wouldn't read some of my ancient StarWriter documents, despite the fact that my PC version of OpenOffice (version 2.0) has no trouble with them. It's probably a simple matter of installing the correct filters.

One important thing I discovered, pretty much by chance, is that Ubuntu Linux does not, by default, check for updates. There are preferences you have to change to allow it to update itself - once I did this, it downloaded and installed about 40 updates.

One last gem I'll mention in this initial part of the saga - I needed to copy a DVD (home produced - not copy-protected). I put the disc in the drive, and found that if I right-clicked on the desktop icon there was an option to copy the disc. This was a breeze - it made an image, then prompted for a blank disc, and burnt the copy. This will definitely be my preferred method for making DVD copies in the future. No third-party software required - not even any need to launch another app.

So far, I'm impressed.

Heated debate: global warming - does it matter?

Probably no controversial subject involves more vested interest than that of global climate change. I've seen the (subsequently discredited) Channel 4 TV programme "The Great Global Warming Swindle" and I also have in my ever-increasing 'to read' pile the special issue of Skeptical Inquirer on global warming, as well as the issue of New Scientist covering the subject.

Then I read Stephen Fry's blog entry on the subject (impressing me enough to send a link to Josh Timonen at RichardDawkins.net). Stephen Fry's approach is of one who does not have the facts, but nevertheless is prepared to act on probabilities. His reference to Pascal's Wager was particularly neat. And one of the commenters, milkyman, posted a link to a video, which I embed below:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zORv8wwiadQ

There's also a follow-up video (plus related videos on other aspects of the controversy):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mF_anaVcCXg