Media Advisory: First Skeptic Track at Canadian Science Fiction Conference “Polaris”
July 14, 2011
Media Advisory - For Immediate ReleaseFIRST SKEPTIC TRACK AT CANADIAN SCIENCE FICTION CONFERENCE "POLARIS"
Toronto, ON (June 17, 2011) – The Committee for the Advancement of Scientific Skepticism (CASS) at the Centre for Inquiry (CFI) announced today that it has organized a series of speakers at the science fiction and fantasy conference Polaris 25, to be held in Toronto on July 15-17, 2011. This is the first of its kind in Canada and is a small mirror of the Skeptrack at DragonCon in Atlanta.
This outreach to the broader community is the first for CASS and is in support of a CFI Canada mandate to promote critical thinking and scientific skepticism in the public forum. The series of four speakers will be featured as professional programming participants at Polaris 25 and will speak on scientific topics that are sure to pique the interest of the sci-fi and fantasy crowd.
The speakers include: University of Toronto Biochemistry Professor Larry Moran, author of the very popular Sandwalk blog, who will speak on “What’s the Difference Between Science and Science Fiction,” University of Waterloo Computer Science Professor Jeffrey Shallit whose expertise in the creation/intelligent design debate will be brought to bear in his talk “"Misinformation Theory: How Creationists Abuse Mathematics," Biologist Chris Hassall, who joins CASS from the Merseyside Skeptics, the creators of the 10-23 campaign, will speak on “The Evolution of Superstition: People, PCs and Pigeons,” and Alex Manafu, a PhD candidate from the University of Western Ontario specialising in the philosophy of science will ask the question “"Could Science Prove the Existence of God? (Or, Must Science Be Naturalistic?)"
“We are very excited to have this opportunity to present these compelling speakers to be ambassadors of science and skepticism to the general public,” said Michael Kruse, a co-chair of CASS, “science and technology are integral to all of our lives, and understanding the basic tenets of scientific discovery is essential if we are to make informed decisions about what is true in our natural world.”
For more information on Polaris 25 please visit http://www.tcon.ca/polaris/modules/tconguests/ .
About the Committee for the Advancement of Scientific Skepticism (CASS) and the Centre for Inquiry Canada (CFI): CASS is a national team which critically engages with scientific, technological and medical claims made in public discourse. We address factual inaccuracies and misinformation in public debates by promoting evidence-based science. CASS is a subset of CFI Canada. CFI is the leading freethought organization in Canada promoting reason, science, secularism and freedom of inquiry.
For More Information Contact:
Michael Kruse, Co-Chair and Spokesperson
Committee for the Advancement of Scientific Skepticism
(416) 737-4960
cass@cficanada.com