Of course, science is not the enemy of religious faith. Sanity is. (ichbindaswortistich)

Over the ages, all religious pretensions, regardless of the respective faith of which they may have originated, have been disproved beyond any reasonable doubt. The earth is not flat but a sphere. The earth revolves about the sun, not vice versa. The earth is not the centre of the universe but a tiny planet in only one of myriads…

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On Network Norwich and Norfolk there is an article by a certain Mr James Knight in which the author claims to show that ‘there almost certainly is a God’.[1] As becomes evident soon, however, Mr Knight is definitely mistaken. I shall have to make only a few remarks so as to show you why.

First, point (7) of Mr Knight’s article demonstrates his misconception of mathematics. Mathematics is not something found in nature. Instead, it is a tool invented by…

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These are some of the last Sunday School editions of the year! We're going to get to the links in a second but first I wanted to ask for everyone's help if I could. This week we put up a page asking for some small donations with the aim of being able to pay for some improvements to the Think Atheist Radio Show. We've already had some very generous friends offer their support and we greatly appreciate their gift, but we…

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Cross yourself and speak unto Jesus

And hope for the species that the people deceased

Are released from the pain and the suffering

Your faith is decreasing, the pages are creasing

In the only book you've been reading.

The idea is appealing, but somehow revealing

Of the fear that you're breeding.

And you're left needing...

You're only human.

A part of this species that does as it pleases.

If you do what they tell you then you will be…

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Yesterday I had the pleasure of attending the Think Inc conference in Melbourne Australia, the inaugural event, and one that showed much promise with a line-up of speakers which included Professor Tim Flannery, YouTube sensation Christina Rad, activist Ayaan Hirsi Ali (appearing via Skype), poet Shane Koyczan, Professor Neil Degrasse Tyseon, Professor Michael Shermer and political commentator Christopher Hitchens (also intended to appear via Skype).

Unfortunately Christopher Hitchens…

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What are some of the things in your life that make you happy? What are the greatest joys in your life? What gives you the greatest sense of achievement, and what are the moments in your life that you remember as the most important ones? Does religion play a part in any of these moments, feelings or personal possessions? Because according to many religious folk, the greatest thing in their life is their faith in God. This troubles me.



To many, their belief in God, afterlife and… Continue

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I originally posted this at my blog Martin S Pribble, and it was subsequently picked up as an "Article" at RDFRS, which made me quite happy. It has caused quite a discussion at both sites, so I thought it would be good to share with you lot also.

 Religion is running scared from advances in science, particularly brain science such as neurology. Why? Because the brain is the final frontier in uncovering the reasons for belief in superstitions, religion and a higher…

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I'm currently reading "The Mothman Prophesies" by John A. Keel. [I know... you can laugh at me]. I chose to read it because despite my being an atheist who is an extreme skeptic of anything supernatural... I haven't lost my taste for a good spooky tale. Being the thrill-chaser that I am, I enjoy all sorts of things that give a good scare... horror movies, rollar coasters, ghost stories, urban legends... and [as I apparently found out last Monday] scaling the side of a 15-foot [~4.6 m] rocky…

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On a car forum I moderate on, a religion thread was started. It wasn't long before the zealots came out to praise one another and then the resident Atheists chimed in. There was one theist in particular that was heading up their side of the discussion and is the main party I replied to and debated in the thread. There were a few moments that make you go 'huh?', like when someone claimed that Christians were the minority. That was quickly dispatched with a brief providing of actual…

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From Atheist Climber Blog



Is there a sense of determinism in the universe? Does the universe have a purpose?



My personal understanding of the universe is that there is no definite purpose for the universe, merely that the universe is a result of a series of events, which were the series of a previous series of events, which in turn, are the result of a previous series of… Continue

from Atheist Climber blog Atheist Climber Blog is turning One year old on October 10! Yay! And I remember like yesterday thinking "Do I have anything to write about? Will anyone care? Will anyone read it?" I just wish I had taken more baby photos!



Well you have all spoken to me by visiting and commenting on my blog. My measure of… Continue

from Atheist Climber blog



...or "My Mind is Playing Tricks on Me."



There is more information in the world around us at any given moment than we realise. To prove my point, just stop for a moment. Have a look around you. What can you see? What can you hear? What can you smell, feel or taste? Start writing down everything. Yes… Continue

From Atheist Climber Blog

... or "Can Science Have a Positive Effect on Religion and Culture to Help Answer Questions of Morality?"

My previous blog Sam Harris: Science can answer moral… Continue

A story in the NY Times called How Nonsense Sharpens the Intellect outlines a new theory about how the mind can work better after being exposed to nonsense or illogical situations. Near the end of the story is this conclusion: "The urge for order satisfies itself, it seems, regardless of the quality of the evidence."



I immediately thought of religion, where the "quality of the evidence" is extremely… Continue

This blog post stems from another discussion (elsewhere) that segued into the topic of mind versus brain. In order to illustrate that the mind is more than just the brain, I described the following scenario . . .

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What it would be like if you were born completely paralyzed, with a normal brain but without a sensory nervous system to deliver stimuli to your brain from your sensory organs? Would it be possible to think or to have memories? In what ways could you be considered… Continue