This event is in honor of Jeff Medkeff, the Blue Collar Scientist, astronomer, skeptic and friend to many of us. Jeff succumbed to liver cancer in 2008. All proceeds will go toward the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society in Jeff’s name.

Get all the details you need and buy tickets here! Can’t make it but still want to donate? Contribute at my fundraising page directly!

A little about the man:

Tim Minchin is an Australian, musician, actor, comedian and writer. He has been performing his unique brand of musical comedy in front of appropriately excitable and ever growing audiences since starting out in South Melbourne’s Butterfly Club in 2005. He won the Director’s Award at the Melbourne International Comedy Festival for his break-out show Darkside, and followed this later the same year with one of the most successful debut acts ever at the Edinburgh Fringe – winning the Perrier Award for Best Newcomer. Without wanting to go on and on about it, he’s done some pretty successful live shows since then, often in Australia or the UK, but also on the North American continent (yes that includes you too Canada). But not you Guatemala. Maybe one day.

His current songs span topics such as environmentalism, rationalism, prejudice(ism) and his amour de boobs(ism). In fact it would hardly be over the top to say that his love of boobs would be up there in the back of Plato’s cave in the bit that’s carved out for the most perfect and complete example of the love of boobs. But not in a weird way. During his shows he plays the piano, always nicely and oftentimes wildly and excitingly, whilst looking wonderfully athletic, in a pair of delightfully uncomfortable skinny jeans.

You can get an idea of his act here:

I recently asked Maria to post a poll on the Meetup group asking which area of the metro area people would be most interested in for a Skeptics in the Park event. The two top choices by a wide margin were inside the perimeter and north of the perimeter, which is pretty much the only areas we’ve had SitPark thus far, so I’ll just continue the trend.

Unfortunately, I have not had a chance to scout out new in-town parks, but I also want to have our first event before it gets too hot. So, on May 7th, we will be going back to our old standby, Grant Park.

We’ll start around Noon. Food and drinks will be provided (typical grilling fare), but feel free to bring your own food if you like.

For those who have joined us before, we’ll (hopefully) be at the same pavilion we usually use. If you have never been to a SitPark in Grant Park, directions follow after the break.

Take I-20 to the Boulevard exit, turn south, go half a mile to the second light after the interstate. You will see the parking lot on your right:

After parking, walk to any of the three entrances to the park. They all merge into one path.

You will walk halfway around the curved path and then look to your left, and you’ll see the pavilion. In the picture above, the red circle is our first choice pavilion and the blue circle is our backup option. So far, we have not had to worry about the backup. The picture below is zoomed in on the park path and pavilion. If you get to the Cyclorama or the zoo, you’ve gone too far.

I’ve always been a fan of TV and movies, but I had never gone to a film festival until last year when my girlfriend took me to the Wisconsin Film Festival in Madison, Wisconsin.  She’s attended it for several years with a long-time friend who lives there.  We had a great time last year, and returned for the 2011 event just this past weekend.

Each year at Wisconsin Film Fest I find there are one or two films (of the over 200 screened) that touch on skeptical topics.  So far, I haven’t seen any appear that pushed a non-evidence-based viewpoint (e.g. “Loose Change” or “What The Bleep Do We Know“). I don’t know if we owe that mainly to the Wisconsin festival’s selection process, or the lack of promotional acumen of the producers of those films, or both.

In any case, here are a few films that I’ve seen and enjoyed at film festivals that skeptics might find interesting, and several more that are coming up soon. Several are available on DVD, and two of them you can watch online for free. I’ll provide the links. Read on…

Smile ‘Til It Hurts (Wisconsin Film Festival 2010)

The documentary Smile ‘Til It Hurts was a pleasant surprise for me at the 2010 Wisconsin festival on several levels.  This was the filmmaker’s first film and the topic didn’t strike me as overtly skeptical in nature at first. And yet the film is stunningly good for a first effort and it has many lessons for skeptics.

It is about the 1960s era musical group “Up With People“, which I vaguely remembered from TV variety show appearances during my childhood.  As this documentary explains, the organization grew out of a right-wing Christian evangelist’s earlier efforts called Moral Re-Armament.  Many aspects behind the scenes of the singing group remind one of a cult (and several people in the film use that term).  Award-winning actress Glenn Close was once a member of the original group, and refers to it as a cult herself in interviews. The film a great deal of archival footage and interviews many former members, and tells the story in a fascinating way.

It is most unfortunate that this film is not yet available on DVD. You can sign up to get an email when it does on the film’s official website.

Children of Invention (Wisconsin Film Festival 2010)

The drama Children of Invention features some absolutely fantastic performances by two child actors. The story concerns a single mother who is trying to make ends meet for her family, but gets entangled in various multi-level marketing programs.  These exploitative business models (which often verge on illegal pyramid schemes) take a horrible toll on the family, leaving the kids to fend for themselves at one point.  It’s a really engaging story.

It happens that this film is currently available for free viewing online via Hulu, I highly recommend it, catch it while it is available for a limited time.  You can also buy Children of Invention on DVD.

STORM (Encounters 2010)

Skeptics are well acquainted at this point with the work of Tim Minchin.  One of his many songs that resonates with skeptics is “Storm”, which relates (in the form of a beat poem) an encounter between a skeptic and a believer at a dinner party.  Minchin has performed it at several skeptic events.

Several UK skeptics, led by D.C. Turner and Tracy King, spearheaded an effort to turn Storm into an animated short film.  The entire process was chronicled on an official website and the film made it’s debut at TAM London last October.  It had it’s film festival premiere at Encounters in Bristol last November.

Today the film was released to the public via YouTube. It’s only 10 minutes and it’s great fun for any skeptic.

Loving Lampposts (Wisconsin Film Festival 2011)

The skeptic highlight in Wisconsin this year was the new autism documentary Loving Lampposts. Directed by the father of an autistic child, Todd Drezner, the title comes from his son’s obsession with lampposts in the local park. The film avoids the usual attitude of “autism as a horrible affliction” and even “autism as an epidemic” and instead focuses on the neurodiversity movement and how both children and adults are successfully living with autism. It doesn’t linger too long on debunking the anti-vaccine forces, but it definitely portrays them as being incorrect. It’s a touching documentary, obviously lovingly made.

This film is already widely available. You can watch it online for $3.99 via Amazon Video and you can already buy the DVD. I heartily recommend it.

Troll Hunter (Wisconsin Film Festival & Atlanta Film Festival 2011)

Now how is a monster movie about trolls in Norway the least bit skeptical? I’ll get to that. But trust me, Troll Hunter is a fun movie.

It has the same basic structural premise of The Blair Witch Project – a group of college age kids go out on an adventure, discover some surprising things, and then go missing. Their raw footage is discovered by someone and made into the film. Unlike Blair Witch, which never really delivers the titular monster and thus disappoints, Troll Hunter provides plenty of its bad guys via modern computer graphics techniques. Troll Hunter also corrects what I thought was another error of Blair Witch (the tone), by moderating the scares with humor sprinkled throughout. It also features some stunningly beautiful Norwegian scenery.

Atlantans will get a chance to see Troll Hunter at the Atlanta Film Festival on May 2.  The film will be available via various on-demand services later that month, but will return to Atlanta for a theatrical run beginning July 1.

Oh, and the skeptical angle? Well I saw at least three skeptical take-aways from this film. First, the fact that it is about trolls and is from Norway says volumes about how cryptids and monsters are culturally based. If this film were remade in America, it would almost certainly become “Bigfoot Hunter”.

Second, I don’t want to post any spoilers, but there is a plot element involving trolls’ supposed ability to smell the blood of a Christian man. As you can see in the trailer for the film on YouTube, this leads to some interesting discussions about the religious beliefs of the team.

Finally, according to the Internet Movie Database the entire budget for this film was $3 million US. There are a large number of very convincing digital shots of realistic looking trolls in this movie, apparently shot with hand-held cameras in the field. If all of that can be accomplished for only $3 million, why do the single-shot films of Bigfoot we get lately look as bad as this? Honestly.

Upcoming: Scientology: The Truth About a Lie (Filmfest DC)

This weekend the American premiere of a French film about the Church of Scientology is taking place in Washington, DC at Filmfest DC.  The cult-like religion has suffered several notable setbacks in France in recent years, including a notable court case where the church was charged with crimes.  I have not seen this documentary, but it sounds like it will be very interesting.  It plays three times Saturday and Sunday this weekend.

Upcoming: Gawd Bless America

Blake Freeman’s upcoming documentary Gawd Bless America looks like a promising skeptical road-trip film. In it he takes a believer in UFOs, psychics and ghosts on a road trip across America to convince him they aren’t real. (He even apparently shot some footage at The Amazing Meeting in Las Vegas). The trailer on YouTube makes it look like great fun.

I wish I could tell you exactly when and where you could see this film. Originally it was scheduled to be released in March, and the release date has been pushed back several times. The IMDB currently lists the release date as May 25, 2011 but other sources say June. We’ll be sure to post exact details when they become available.

This event is in honor of Jeff Medkeff, the Blue Collar Scientist, astronomer, skeptic and friend to many of us. Jeff succumbed to liver cancer in 2008. All proceeds will go toward the Light the Night Fund: The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society in Jeff’s name.

Food, drinks and conversations with astronomers. What more could you ask for? Oh yeah, star gazing!

We have a bit more space than we did last year but tickets will sell out. Get them while you can!

To be continued after the break:

It was a hot humid day, which was an upgrade I think from the cold rainy park outing of last October. I’m hoping on the third go round we’ll end up with a nice temperate day that is neither too hot nor too cold. We had a pretty good turn out.

I don’t know exact numbers, but I’m confident there were at least about 20 people that showed up:

The grilling started a little late, but it wasn’t the ordeal that the last outing was:

We were close to the playground so the kids that came along had something to keep themselves occupied and there were also some toys and games to be had:

All in all it was a successful event. In the end I don’t think we raised enough money to cover the cost of the pavillion or food, but I think renting a space instead of just hoping one would be available was the best choice. I’m not sure exactly when the next Skeptics in the Park will take place, but don’t look for it until the weather starts cooling down again, most likely after Dragon*Con.

If you attended Skeptics in the Park, please give any feedback below.

The Atlanta Skeptics will once again emerge from the pub and wander outside on Saturday, June 12th from 11AM-3PM at Jones Bridge Park.

Details after the break:

What: Skeptics in the Park

When: June 12, 2010

Time: 11AM-3PM

Where: Jones Bridge Park – Pavilion #2 (the small one next to the playground)

How Much: $5 per person

RSVP

This time around we have rented a pavilion, so there is a small charge per person. The money will go to off-set the pavilion rental and food. We will provide meat (and grilling services), chips, soda, mustard/ketchup, and plates/napkins/cups/forks/knives. Please feel free to bring along anything that goes well with burgers/hotdogs, or anything else to sling on the grill. Please note that alcohol is not permitted on park grounds.

Also, Christian will be bringing a frisbee and possibly some other outdoorsy game stuff. There is a playground next to the pavilion, and feel free to bring whatever you like.

I hope you can join us in the park. All you have to do is click the RSVP link above and we’ll see you there!

Update Friday June 4: Details on Banachek tickets updated! See below.

Full details on times and tickets after the jump…

Christopher Hitchens – Hitch-22 – June 18

Christopher Hitchens is well known political commentator who is a contributing editor of Vanity Fair magazine and has appeared on Real Time with Bill Maher and many other programs. He has spoken at The Amazing Meeting in Las Vegas. He is considered (along with Richard Dawkins, Sam Harris and others) one of the leaders of the “new atheist” movement.

Hitchens’ latest book is called Hitch-22: A Memoir. It is the “story of his life, lived large” and has received many positive reviews.

Hitchens is currently touring to promote the book in the United States. On Friday June 18th the tour reaches Atlanta at the Barnes and Noble Bookstore in Buckhead (2900 Peachtree Rd, 404-261-7747). According to the event page at the bookstore website, he will appear at 7:00 PM. Those wishing to guarantee a spot and/or get a book signed should obtain a (free) ticket at the store starting at 5:00 PM on the day of the signing.

Banachek – Academy Theatre – June 30

Banachek is a world leading mentalist who managed to convince scientists that he had actual psychic abilities in the famous “Project Alpha” hoax orchestrated by James Randi. He has performed at The Amazing Meeting and hundreds of other venues. He is also a magic consultant who has helped performers such as Criss Angel and Penn & Teller perfect their illusions.

Banachek will be performing at the Academy Theatre in Avondale Estates on Wednesday, June 30th at 8:00 PM. If you haven’t seen him perform before at TAM or elsewhere, it really is a tremendous show.

Update June 4th on tickets:
There’s not just one mentalism show at Academy Theatre this month! In fact, mentalist Nick Compise is performing his show “Wonders of the Mind” tomorrow night, Saturday June 5th at 8:00 PM. Tickets are only $14 and can be purchased online.

Because Nick was instrumental in getting Banachek to come to the Academy Theatre later in the month, those who attend Nick’s show on Saturday will get first crack at tickets to Banachek. Those tickets go on sale on Saturday at the theater and online, and will be $25.

Atlanta Skepticamp 2010

For me, the presentations that stood out came from LaVerne Knight-West and Dr. Ginger Campbell (host of Brain Science Podcast and Books and Ideas). Each shared their personal journeys and experiences with the skeptical community, and warm, fuzzy feelings ensued.

Dr. Ginger Campbell at Atlanta Skepticamp 2010

Certainly the most unique presenter at Skepticamp was martial arts expert, John Clements. In addition to the fact that he brought SWORDS, he himself was highly entertaining. One of the more quotable Skepticamp moments: During a demonstration with SWORDS, John matter-of-factly states, “People with weapons KILL people without weapons, that’s why we have so many of them.”  I was afforded the opportunity to challenge him in duel. I could have killed him, but the 2nd rule of Skepticamp is “Be Awesome. And Don’t Kill Anyone.”

Presenter John Clements is no match for Taylor Proctor's sword fighting skills.

I was personally excited to see the presentations from Brian, Laura, Veronica, Sean and Bob, who participated in our SkeptiBOOTcamp workshops over the weeks leading up to Skepticamp. The whole thing was a bit of an experiment, and I hope to develop the idea further before next year’s Skepticamp. I do encourage other organizers to consider doing something like this before Skepticamps. I think each participant’s presentation benefited in some way from the support and assistance gained through the different workshops.

Presenter Laura Ross at Atlanta Skepticamp 2010

Another notable aspect of Atlanta’s Skepticamp was our theme, “Critical Thinking For Everyone.” I felt the message successfully resounded throughout the weekend. Each presenter shared their own unique perspective on skepticism, and the panel on “Skepticism for Everyone through Social Media,” yielded a lot of discussion and sharing from the audience. I felt an overall sense of humility from participants throughout the weekend, a sentiment that can seem sometimes lacking in the skeptical community.  I want to give extra thanks to Swoopy from Skepticality, for helping me out with my idea for a theme and really running with it.

Maria Walters and Tim Farley during panel discussion at Atlanta Skepticamp 2010

I definitely learned a lot more from organizing this year’s Skepticamp than I did during the planning of Atlanta’s first camp last year. The discussions and events of last weekend’s event, raised interesting questions in my mind to consider as I think about how we can move forward for next year’s Skepticamp. Namely, What is primary goal of having community events like Skepticamp? Is it to promote skepticism and critical thinking, or is it to nurture the skeptic?

There was marked shift in the nature of presentations from last year to this year. Last year, a majority of presentations were informative overviews of topics like logical fallacies, neuroscience, evolution, detox myths, etc. This year, more presentations addressed a skeptic’s humble lesson learned. Presenter Russ discussed how our fears, often fueled further by media sensationalism, can lead to the presumption of a crisis and unnecessary hysteria; Christian gave us an account his pleasant and relaxing visit to an acupuncturist, (despite leaving with an unhealed knee injury); Brian shared an anecdotal example of how even the most rational of skeptical critical thinkers are not immune to irrational thought. I’m excited and very interested to see the direction in which presentations might go for next year.

Thanks to all who volunteered, gave a talk, and attended Atlanta Skepticamp 2010!

I personally want to give extra-special thank yous to:

Maria Walters – for taking charge of planning when I was stressed and over-committed.

Mark Ditsler of Abrupt Media – for all things A/V club; equipment, recording, streaming, time-keeping. His contribution was priceless, as always

Derek Colanduno- for offering up our venue (even if it was quite toasty)

David Rodriguez – for designing our Skepticamp logo and shirts.

Derek (again) and Swoopy of Skepticality – for being our badass MCs.

Brian Thompson of Amateur Scientist Podcast- for coming all the way to Atlanta to record a live podcast at our Skepticamp Fundraiser in March.

Kylie Sturgess, George Hrab, A Kovacs and Surly Amy – for their recorded messages to Atlanta Skepticampers.

Shayna Glick – for making my Skepticamp dreams come true! All I wanted for Skepticamp was a pony!

SkeptiPony, official mascot of Atlanta Skepticamp 2010

Thanks to all our sponsors!

JREF

Skeptic Magazine

Fund For Thought

Skeptical Inquirer

Skepticality

Amateur Scientist Podcast

Thinking Man Tavern

Skepchick

Surly Ramics

Tree Lobsters

Abrupt Media

Bluefox Graphic

Skepticamp, created in Denver, perfected in Atlanta!

]]> http://www.atlantaskeptics.com/2010/05/22/atlanta-skepticamp-2010-wrap-u/feed/ 0 http://www.atlantaskeptics.com/2010/05/12/helping-out-fellow-skeptics/ http://www.atlantaskeptics.com/2010/05/12/helping-out-fellow-skeptics/#comments Wed, 12 May 2010 17:01:02 +0000 JoeAnderson http://www.atlantaskeptics.com/?p=543 One of the greatest things about being in the Skeptical community is how quickly we rally around a cause. It seems that no matter what the subject, we have at least one person who’s a domain expert in the field; We have a belly-dancing astronomer for Pete’s sake!

I got a message on Google Talk today from my good friend @MasalaSkeptic, asking if I knew anyone who was hiring. It seems that a member of the Atlanta Skeptics had just been laid off and was looking for a job. Since the Atlanta Skepticamp is in a few days, I mentioned that we should make an effort to help that person and others out. Bringing together smart, critical thinking job-seekers and employers that value those same skills really is a no-brainer.

That’s probably why it occurred to me.

If people show interest and some good comes from this, who knows, maybe there will be a website in the near future. For now, I’m starting small. It would be great if a few people actually get some help out of this, but what I don’t want (and refuse) to do is detract from why we hold Skepticamp in the first place – to encourage participation in open discussion about science and skepticism. I want to prevent headhunters and commercial job sites from being involved; just friends in the community connecting with others. To borrow from Google’s alleged motto and “not be mean” is the goal.

Job seekers: If you’re attending the Atlanta Skepticamp and are looking for a job, please send your resume and a cover letter to skeptijob at gmail dot com. I will NOT give your information out to anyone except those people who attend Skepticamp without your consent.

Employers (or people who know about a job): If you are attending Atlanta Skepticamp and are looking to fill a position, please send a job description and the pertinent info to skeptijob at gmail dot com.

Thanks!

@JoeAnderson