Within Reason

The road is hard, everyone needs a little push every once in a while.

Topic from Robert Sapp this week.

This is my personal account of a story from the bible. Enjoy

It’s the season 2 finale. Jonathan sits down with Andrew Cody, Anna af Hallstrom, and Matt Barbacki to talk about rationality, skepticism, and what’s next for Montreal. We discuss the inaugural edition of Café Hitchens; what we know about how the mind works to become better at what you want to accomplish in life; Andrew’s cynicism vis-à-vis the politically correct Left; the value of entertainment in skepticism; and concrete steps skeptics can take to put rationality into action. The Body of Evidence can be found at http://www.bodyofevidence.ca and on iTunes. And don’t forget to subscribe to http://www.MoutonsNoMore.com. So long, and thanks for all the fish. We may be back. Who knows… who knows…. 

Ghosts, poltergeists, apparitions… if we believe in them, does that make them true? Jonathan sits down with an expert who does sleight-of-hand before every interview: Dr. Joe Nickell! The Mackenzie House in Toronto, London’s Enfield poltergeist, even The Conjuring: none escape the skeptical investigations of Dr. Nickell. Back in the studio, a ghost hunter writes Jonathan an email which local skeptics take apart in between sighs. We talk unsubstantiated claims, David Carradine, and whether or not genetic mutations might predispose you to liking Johnny Walker Black. Only one more original episode before the season ends. http://www.MoutonsNoMore.com 

Is scientific research inefficient or have we grossly oversimplified the situation? We begin with a mad comedic dash through the life of a young scientist to the sound of Italian music and then meet an actual Italian scientist! Dr. Fanelli and Dr. Kimmelman unearth the nuances behind falsification, idealization, animal studies, and reproducibility. As science goes meta, what can we do to be better scientists? If these discussions are too cerebral for you, there’s Christopher Hammock and Kishanda Vyboh to make you laugh. Are they cynical? No…. Sarcastic? Yes! We talk C.S.I., PCR, pedestals, and sharks! By the time you’re done listening to this episode, you will realize that scientists are human beings. The word of the month is P.I. (principal investigator): the lead researcher in a laboratory. Generally does not own a Magnum (for the safety of his students). This is a Moutons No More production: http://www.MoutonsNoMore.com

It's a ho-ho-holiday special, bringing you audio from our November 16 stage show, Funny You Should Think That! Stuck with annoying relatives with no idea how to entertain them? Start playing this show and, soon, you'll be rolling on the floor, clutching your stomachs! (or maybe it'll be because of the bad cranberry sauce) Jonathan hosts a comedy quiz show on stage with comedian panelists David Pryde, Chris Sandiford, and Darren Henwood and fellow Moutons No More producer and funny guy Andrew Cody. Water beds! Chakra Khan! Muted confirmations! Good Macaulay Culkin references! Russell Crowe as Javert! Poor Scottish upbringings! It's all there… and more! To come to our next show, visit http://www.MoutonsNoMore.com and click "follow independently". Happy New Year, listeners!

Would you like a side of magic with your chemo? Disproven folk remedies used to be domain of snake oil salesmen; now, they are being integrated into university health centres. Jonathan speaks to Dr. Christopher Labos, a public science educator and cardiologist, on this worrying trend. Where is the line between feel-goodery and wishful thinking? The recent case of Makayla Sault highlights the harm caused by magic's new veneer of respectability. Back in the studio, Andrew Cody returns to the podcast, flanked by Anna af Hallstrom, to discuss laundry balls, foot detox, and child abuse. Are our panelists hopeful for the future of science-based medicine?  The Jewish General Hospital promo video can be accessed here: http://youtu.be/-CKnbESAHa4 The blog Science-Based Medicine is available here: http://www.sciencebasedmedicine.org And check us out at http://www.MoutonsNoMore.com

It's a tug-of-war between a Romantic yearning for the stars and the sometimes harsh economic reality. As we listen for signs of extraterrestrial intelligence, who pays the phone bill? Jonathan sits down with Dr. Jill Tarter, the outgoing director of the Center for SETI Research, to talk about the long, uncertain road SETI has had to navigate in search of money. The panel this month is made up of Matt Barbacki, Anna af Hallstrom, and Dave Tsang of Astro McGill. Which basic research should be funded and by whom? We talk Ice Bucket Challenges, the Conservative government's War on Science, and alien autopsy videos. The Astro McGill podcast can be found here: http://www.astro.physics.mcgill.ca/podcasts.php The panel discussion was recorded on Carl Sagan Day. Go watch COSMOS! And check us out at http://www.MoutonsNoMore.com

Is a long cardboard chain and anchor really a deep message on immigration? What is the difference between artificial pussy willows and an escalator? Are postmodern artists just having a laugh? Jonathan drags Andrew Cody through last March's Nuit blanche and wonders if his attitude of derision is rational or not. Enter Eric Weichel, instructor in art history at Concordia University, and one of the liveliest conversations on the podcast ensues. Can we evaluate art rationally? Jonathan and Eric talk gnomes, Cormac McCarthy, and four-year-old geniuses. No panel discussion this month, but plenty of links! - Le Corbusier, modernist architect (http://www.greatbuildings.com/architects/Le_Corbusier.html) - Charles Moore, postmodern architect (http://www.greatbuildings.com/buildings/Sea_Ranch_Condominium.html) - Judith Butler (http://www.egs.edu/faculty/judith-butler/biography/) - Kent Monkman, contemporary Aboriginal painter (http://www.mason-studio.com/journal/2012/03/kent-monkman-sexuality-of-miss-chief/) - How to Speak and Write Postmodern by Stephen Katz (http://thepaperthinhymn.com/2010/01/26/how-to-speak-post-modernism/) - Jacques Derrida, deconstructionist philosopher (http://www.iep.utm.edu/derrida/) - The Rothko Chapel (http://www.rothkochapel.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=11&Itemid=14) - A Reader's Manifesto by B.R. Myers - Cormac McCarthy (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cormac_McCarthy) - Gayatri Spivak, postcolonial critic (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gayatri_Chakravorty_Spivak) - The Gormenghast Trilogy by Mervyn Peake (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gormenghast_(series)) - The Fallen by Andy Moss and Jamie Wardley (http://www.mymodernmet.com/profiles/blogs/andy-moss-jamie-wardley-the-fallen) - Docking by Sophie Cardin (http://www.artsouterrain.com/en/sophie-cardin/) 20/20 segment transcript (http://abcnews.go.com/2020/GiveMeABreak/story?id=563146) Postmodern artists Eric Weichel finds inspiring: Kerri Flanagan Takashi Murakami (http://www.theguardian.com/world/gallery/2010/sep/10/takashi-murakami-palace-versailles) Shary Boyle (http://www.sharyboyle.com) Patricia Piccinini (http://www.patriciapiccinini.net) Yayoi Kusama (http://www.yayoi-kusama.jp/e/information/)

We celebrate our return with Mr. Skepticism himself, Dr. Michael Shermer. What was it in humans' evolution that led to us having beliefs and what credence can we ascribe to them? We talk mushers, invisible princesses, bicycles, and sacred cows. Back in the studio, Jonathan is joined by a panel of reasonable folks that is confronted by a thought experiment: if religion went away, would it come back? Before you know it, it's debate time and we go meta. Are the things we perceive in an altered state evidence of a quantum oneness? Do you need to be in an altered state to listen to this podcast? Mr. Horner, could you play some of your music from Avatar, please? The song of praise heard in the intro can be found here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lM6xbDX5iHU And check us out at http://www.MoutonsNoMore.com

Season 2 starts in September. In the meantime, here's a look back at our first season and the reveal of our guest on the season premiere. Skeptics, you might know who he is. Music is "The Flames of Rome" by Kai Engel from the album "Calls and Echoes". Subscribe to Within Reason on iTunes and follow MoutonsNoMore.com to be kept in the loop on all of our productions, including this one.

It's the season 1 finale of Within Reason with bestselling author and public science educator Dr. Joe Schwarcz. We discuss chemophobia, bisphenol A, homeopathy, and the future of college education (hint: it's not blackboard and chalk). Back in the studio, Jonathan and Andrew dare not touch sprouted grain bread but are eager to watch Satanic water crystals. Andrew makes the case for hunting and inadvertently calls Dr. Schwarcz's new book, Is That a Fact, the #1 for #2. Also, FYSTTing on stage on May 25! In the tradition of classic horror films, the clock is coming from inside the podcast!You can find us, Moutons No More, on Facebook and on Meetup.com. Just Google our name!The link to Cognitive Dissonance is http://dissonancepod.com/?p=733Listen to us next in September!

An engineer drops by the podcast to tell Jonathan how to be less wrong. It involves tomato timers, effective altruism, and the historicity of your beliefs. Can a Less Wrong rationalist and a skeptical rationalist get along? Back in the studio, Andrew, our resident hockey Satanist, talks about quitting smoking and why the Boston Bruins rock. And two special guest stars help Jonathan and Andrew stage a live radio play of Harry Potter and the Methods of Rationality. It quickly devolves into anarchy as Sesame Street's Count shows up (for no reason), accompanied by a plague of flaming zebras. Check out Moutons No More on Facebook!

Are you a boy or a girl? We explore gender identity with paediatrician Dr. Shuvo Ghosh. It's an enlightening discussion that should be preceded by an "air quote" warning. Then, Andrew has a conversation with Chase, trans man extraordinaire, and the two bond over hockey. Also, Andrew starts to lose it when his entire glossary has to be thrown out. O New Words, Where Are Ye?. It's a queer-centric episode and we wouldn't have it any other way. Plus: a special announcement that rhymes with "sheep". Sound effects from freesfx.co.uk.

Can you lose weight permanently? Do you deserve an after-run muffin and latte? Should you stretch before your workout? Law professor and author of the book "The Cure for Everything!", Timothy Caulfield, answers these health and fitness questions using the most occult of concepts: science. Back in the studio, we talk about who is John Galt, direct-to-consumer genetic testing, and "cut children". If you attend McGill University, you may want to pay attention to our ultra-secret mystery guest. Do you have a podcast? Start recording it standing up! It's healthier! #StandUp4Podcasting.

Our guest this month is Richard Bernier, a Christian theologian. What happens when two atheists sit down with a Roman Catholic? We talk secularism, secularity, Quebec Charters, public funding of religious schools, and "attack shirts". Andrew shows his love of logical fallacies by pointing them out left and right. Plus: should Andrew become employed by the government, would he lose his shirt? Bills 60 and 398 can be accessed here: http://www.assnat.qc.ca/en/index.html

It's a giant-sized premiere extravaganza for our monthly rational podcast. Anthropology teacher Sarah Bean and National Center for Science Education Executive Director Eugenie Scott join Jonathan and Andrew in a discussion about evolution, creationism, and why denialists will have very dirty fingers by the time they come around (unless they routinely clean their ears). Plus: learn about how you can teach evo with LEGOs and whether or not Tim Minchin is snarky.The book recommendation is EVOLUTION VS. CREATIONISM by Eugenie C. Scott. Don't try to steal Andrew's autographed copy.