Something I Learned On The Internet (SILOTI)

Don’t you just love when you can pronounce abbreviations? Anyways…

So I watch Canada AM every morning while I’m getting ready for work. I love that dang morning show, between Beverly and Seamus fauning over guests, Marci’s awkward attempts at poignant commentary, Richard Crouse’s awesome movie reviews, and Jeff Hutcheson’s all around adorableness, it makes for an entertaining hour.

Recently they started a new segment where Jeff talks about “things I learned on the internet today”, and while I love the fun of seeing a practically antiquated medium trying to bring themselves up to date by incorporating things from around the internet, the segment is basically just an excuse to show viral videos. So I never really learn anything.

I know it’s just a fluff piece, but I learn new things on the internet all the time! Despite what Canada AM portrays, the internet is for more than photoshopping Sad Keanu or watching the best trick play ever. So, I’m going to start sharing the things that I learn (I mean actual learning!) on the internet in a new post series that I’ll call SILOTI (as if that wasn’t already obvious). I hope you learn something too! First post to come shortly 🙂

Enlightning Bolts – 01.28.2010

Dr. Rachael Dunlop of the Skeptic Zone podcast is up for a Shorty Award (a Twitter contest), in the category of health. She’s up against some alternative medicine pushers, so if you have a Twitter account vote!

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If you’re in favour of English Libel Law reform (keeping libel laws out of science), check out this website and sign the petition if you agree:

Freedom to criticise and question, in strong terms and without malice, is the cornerstone of argument and debate, whether in scholarly journals, on websites, in newspapers or elsewhere. Our current libel laws inhibit debate and stifle free expression. They discourage writers from tackling important subjects and thereby deny us the right to read about them.

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Here‘s an account of PZ’s recent visit to Winnipeg by another local blogger who took notes. Smart!

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Canada AM once again provides a platform to a kook: Robert F. Kennedy Jr. spouts nonsense, including the ridiculous idea that “even a molecule of mercury could destroy brain cells and cause deformities in children.” What the what? Fail! It’s a morning show, so I don’t expect any hard-hitting journalism, but he was saying some horrible and blatantly wrong things, and there was almost no voice of skepticism. This piece even seemed to be propping him up as some kind of hero. Awful.

Steve over at Skeptic North has kindly responded to this, check it out here. Thanks Steve!

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And last, but definitely not least, Andrew Wakefield, the researcher who started the whole vaccines cause autism myth, was investigated by the General Medical Council. They found that he “acted ‘dishonestly and irresponsibly’ in his research and with ‘callous disregard’ for the children that were the subject of his research.”

I predicted on Twitter that the anti-vax response to this would be something like: “Wakefield being found guilty will prove that the courts are IN TEH POCKET of Big Pharma!!!111” It turns out I wasn’t even that far off.