July 30, 2009

evoofmanEvolution Should Be Part of Every Child’s Education
Michael Reiss: There is a substantial minority—perhaps about 15 percent of people in the UK—who are creationists. The views of such people can be respected without us failing to teach evolution in schools. We do not want to go down the path followed by many schools in the U.S., where evolution doesn’t get a look in. (guardian.co.uk)

Doctor Posts Secrets of Rorschach Test on Wikipedia
Psychologists administer the test, among others, to give them insight into patients’ personalities, moods, fears, and coping strategies. The most recent surveys on the issue show that as many as 80 percent of clinical psychologists still use the test. Some experts worry that Dr. James Heilman’s decision to publish the Rorschach images and the most common responses could erode that. (Patrick White, The Globe and Mail)

Dump Assumptions About “Authentic” Buddhism
Westerners continue to want to save Buddhism from backward, superstition-ridden Buddhists, who (they believe) have contaminated the Buddha’s authentic philosophy with rituals, altars, bowing, incense, and other clutter of religion. (Barbara O’Brien, guardian.co.uk)

Why Science Fiction Franchises Are Like Religion
If you don’t worship Star Trek, then you must worship the Force. But maybe you’re a vampire adept, or a member of the Batman congregation? Fans’ faith in their franchises gets as intense and bloody as zealots’ faith in religion. (Annalee Newitz, io9)

China Bans Online Games That Glamorize Gangs and Organized Crime
Such games, the Ministry of Culture said, “embody antisocial behavior like killing, beating, looting and raping,” and their availability “gravely threatens and distorts the social order and moral standards, easily putting young people under harmful influence.” (Andrew Jacobs, The New York Times)

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