The internet, while it can be a godsend if you need to find something out (gotta love google maps for directions), can also be a wretched hive of wrongness & misinformation. That misinformation can take many forms, but when it comes to 1080 it’s clear that those opposed to NZ’s use of this chemical firmly […]
Continue readingTag: critical thinking
an open letter to Rethink Fluoride
Dear Rethink Fluoride Since you’ve blocked me from commenting on your page (and on this post, in particular), this seems the best way to respond to you. After all, at least some of you do follow Sciblogs. I have to say that preventing someone from commenting is particularly rich coming from a group who claim […]
Continue readingslick propaganda has no place in science classroom
Except, perhaps, if it’s used to develop critical thinking skills. But I don’t think that’s what happened on the occasion reported under the headline Creationism taught in science class at Villa Education Trust school: [A student who’d studied at] Mt Hobson Middle School said Darwinism was taught as an unproven theory and students were shown […]
Continue readingscience education in the 21st century – what might it look like?
There's a lot of rhetoric these days around educating students 'for the 21st century', and the need for '21st century skills', while (not always but often) disparaging what is currently taught & how it's delivered. Catherine Kelsey has a good op.ed. on this on the Education Central site, in which she comments on two other […]
Continue readingpreparing for scholarship: critical thinking
I met with a local biology teacher today to talk about setting up a Schol Bio preparation day in the Waikato, and we also discussed things like the need for critical thinking skills (in addition to a solid base of knowledge from students’ year 12 & year 13 studies and time spent in reading more […]
Continue reading1080 – ill-informed claims deserve a debunking
Today a science-minded friend posted a screenshot of a post by another individual to the FB group 1080 eyewitness. Because it is a) heavy on the innuendo, b) inaccurate, and c) decidedly unpleasant, I thought it worthy of a bit of additional attention. Let’s look at c) first. The original poster claimed to have written […]
Continue readingappeal to antiquity? appeal to nature? bingo!
I was idly skimming the Herald's website when I came across an article with the headline "Is plant medicine really that effective?" Since the article appears to be in the nature of an advertorial, the answer is, it depends on who you ask. Unlike man-made chemical drugs that have been developed as novel medicines from the 19th […]
Continue readingis there science in reflexology?
I subscribe to the Tertiary Insight newsletter (a great way to keep up with news of what's happening in the tertiary sector). Yesterday's edition included a statement (& a link) about the NZQA's decision to cancel the registration of the Aromaflex Academy. It seems that this Private Training Establishment (PTE) was placed under strict conditions […]
Continue readingmagic water nonsense
A couple of days ago I had a chat with a journalist that resulted in my being quoted – along with Dr Shaun Holt – in this story about purveyors of Kangen water. If you believe the hype, this stuff cures a wide range of ailments & leaves you bright-eyed & bushy-tailed. IF… but sadly, […]
Continue readingthere are horses for courses, but – snails for faces?
I first wrote about the snail facial back in 2015, in response to an article in the Herald on Sunday on that very topic. Today, the fact that there's a story on the very same subject on the Stuff webpage suggests that there is always an appetite for woo (although when I read the story just now, […]
Continue reading