The Cosmic Boondocks – Episode #3, May 29, 2011

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“Our time is burdened under the cumulative weight of successive debunkings of our conceits…. We live in The Cosmic Boondocks.”

~Carl Sagan

The Cosmic Boondocks is a podcast promoting science, freethought and humanistic values in India.

Episode #3 (29/5/2011) Shownotes

Stories:

1. 5-year long experiment confirms that dark energy is constant throughout the universe.

http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/galex/galex20110519.html

2. More Americans are praying for health.

http://www.apa.org/pubs/journals/releases/rel-3-2-67.pdf

3. More water on the moon than previously thought.

http://www.physorg.com/news/2011-05-moon-interior-earth-upper-mantle.html

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/05/110526141400.htm

4. Naadi Jyothidam.

Sun TV expose. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-mrup498kbQ

Prof Nayak’s article: http://nirmukta.com/2008/10/30/the-exact-science-of-nadi-jothidam/

Cold reading: http://www.skepdic.com/coldread.html

5. Drug helps reduce stress associated with bad memories by affecting recall of negative memories.

http://psychcentral.com/news/2011/05/27/drug-metyrapone-to-erase-bad-memories/26532.html

Announcements:

1. Prof. Nayak’s talk on rationalism to 100 children at Belthangady near Mangalore.

2. Links to previous visits by professor Nayak, for training programs in rational thinking for faculty of Periyar Maniammai University, Vallam.
http://nirmukta.com/2011/03/06/rationalist-club-of-periyar-maniammai-university-trichy-tamil-nadu-india/

http://nirmukta.com/2011/04/03/second-rationalist-programme-at-periyar-maniammai-university-vallam-trichy-tamil-nadu/

Quiz:

Last week’s question: When was rice first cultivated in India?

Answer, ~ 4000 years ago.

http://www.pnas.org/content/108/20/8351.abstract

This week, fallacy hunting:

Deepak Chopra:

“We think that many times patients feel healed even though they may die from a disease, if they learn to go beyond their personal fear of death, and you can never do that unless you have a patient…have a spiritual experience.”

Discuss here: http://nirmukta.net/Thread-What-fallacy-ies-do-you-think-apply-to-this-sentence-by-Chopra

Music:

Rising legends, by Epic Soul Factory
Warrior of the light, by David Palmero
Cherubs, by Josh Woodward
Tout sera plus comme avant, by OST
Corri, by Talco
8 Noves Fora, by Camerata Brasileira
Jim & Ruth, by  The Wind Whistles

All music is distributed under Creative Commons non-commercial, attribution, sharealike license.