David Almandsmith

SciSchmoozing By Reality, Not By Decree

Submitted by David Almandsmith Mon, 07-04-2025 : 05:45

Hello again science fans,

Lumelang hape barati ba mahlale,
[Sesotho is the language of Basotho who live in Lesotho, “which nobody has ever heard of” and whose imports now have a 50% tariff, the highest of any country.]

SCIENCE

More than a million people participated in over 1400 “Hands Off” protests Saturday. I joined the protesters at the intersection of San Pablo Dam Road and Appian Way in El Sobrant

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Pole to Pole with the SciSchmooze

Submitted by David Almandsmith Mon, 31-03-2025 : 03:01

Hello again, science fans,

Di nuovo ciao a tutti, appassionati di scienza,
[About 85,000 Bay Area residents speak Italian

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Stand Up for the SciSchmooze

Submitted by David Almandsmith Mon, 03-03-2025 : 02:09

Hello again, fans of science,
“nuqneH, QeD parmaq,” (I found no data on how many Klingons are in the Bay Area.)

A “

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SciSchmoozing a Rock of Ages

Submitted by David Almandsmith Mon, 03-02-2025 : 02:15

2 February 2025

The Nucleotide Bases of DNA and RNA found on Bennu - Courtesy earth.com

Hello again science fans!
科学ファンの皆さん、こんにちは！
(The first Japanese immigrants arrived in the Bay Area in 1869. Today about 20,000 Bay Area residents spe

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Walking into the SciSchmooze

Submitted by David Almandsmith Mon, 06-01-2025 : 04:25

Footprints in Oxfordshire. Credit: Emma Nicholls/Oxford University Museum of Natural History

Hello again Science Fans!
Salut encore les amateurs de science ! (Canadian French)
Bonjour à nouveau, fans de science ! (France French)
Bonjou ankò Fanatik Syans! (Haitian Creole)

I guess we coul

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SciSchmoozing 2024

Submitted by David Almandsmith Mon, 30-12-2024 : 21:19

Hello again Science Fans!
ሰላም በድጋሚ የሳይንስ ደጋፊዎች!
(Many of the Bay Area’s 20,000 Ethiopians live in Oakland.)

The weekly SciSchmooze reliably delivers the latest in science, especially for the San Francisco Bay Area. Give friends and fa

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Something Old, Something New, SciSchmooze

Submitted by David Almandsmith Mon, 02-12-2024 : 04:42

Dave Almandsmith
1 December 2024

A small section of Valeriana - 1st Century Mayan City

Hello again fans of science,
Dumelang hape barati ba mahlale, (Lesotho Peace Corps memories)

I trust you had an enjoyable Thanksgiving, avoided coming to bl

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Vote SciSchmooze!

Submitted by David Almandsmith Mon, 04-11-2024 : 05:06

Dave Almandsmith
4 November 2024

Hello again, friends of science,

When the United States Constitution was adopted in 1788, the only women allowed to vote were property owners i

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The Incredible Lightness of SciSchmoozing

Submitted by David Almandsmith Mon, 07-10-2024 : 04:47

October 7, 2024

Dave Almandsmith

Comet C/2023 A3 Tsuchinshan-ATLAS (Photo Jean Cursino, Brazil)

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SciSchmoozing over the Storm

Submitted by David Almandsmith Mon, 30-09-2024 : 00:11

‘Florida’s under there somewhere.’ Helene from the ISS. (Credit NASA)

17 April – Skeptical Inquirer Presents
23 April – Virtual Skeptics in the Pub
3-4 May – We Can Reason Conference
8 May – SkepTalk
13 May – Skeptics in a Real Pub

Skeptical Inquirer Presents

Katherine Stewart

WHAT: Money, Lies, and God: Inside the Movement to Destroy American Democracy
Why have so many Americans turned against democracy? Our current political moment has been shaped by the growth of an authoritarian coalition that includes conspiracy-mongers, extremist churches, and reactionaries driven to tear it all down.

WHO: Katherine Stewart writes about the intersection of faith and politics, policy, education, and the threat to democratic institutions.
The Power Worshippers: Inside the Dangerous Rise of Religious Nationalism
Money Lies and God: Inside the Movement to Destroy American Democracy

Her work appears in The New York Times, New Republic, and others.

Stewart speaks frequently to university and civil liberties audiences, political and pro-democracy institutions, both secular and faith-based organizations, and historical societies.

WHEN: Thursday 17 April 4PM Pacific

HOW: Free. Online. Register HERE

Skeptics in the Pub

WHAT: Virtual Skeptics in the Pub

This is a casual night of socializing with fellow skeptics and with others inhabiting our oblate spherical planet.

Please join us! This is a free event brought to you by Bay Area Skeptics. All are welcome.

WHEN: Wednesday April 23, 7-9pm Pacific (GMT-8)

HOW: Online HERE. Passcode: 1023

Western Canadian Reason Conference

Partial Speaker List

Seth Andrews
The Thinking Atheist

Forrest Valkai
Renegade Science Teacher on YouTube

Dr. Eugenie Scott
Asteroid ‘249540 Eugeniescott’ was named for her

Susan Gerbic
Head of The Gorilla Skeptics

Dr Rodney Schmaltz
Associate Professor and Author

Adrienne Hill – Host and Emcee

WHEN: May 2, 3, & 4

WHERE: Sandman Hotel, Calgary, Alberta

HOW:Tickets available HERE

SkepTalk

Thomas Nelson, PhD

How Intelligent Design Nearly Won

Intelligent Design Theory (ID) is scorned by nearly all professional life scientists. Nevertheless, local and state boards of education throughout the United States have tried to mandate instruction in this “alternative” theory of evolution. Professor Nelson will discuss how ID succeeds politically even as it continues to fail scientifically. The secret to ID’s success draws from its advocates’ “recruitment” of consensus values like freedom and fairness, overshadowing the theory’s scientific shortcomings. Professor Nelson will focus on the communication strategies of ID advocates and opponents and will draw parallels between the ID battle and current controversies over climate change and vaccine resistance.

PRESENTER: Thomas Nelson is Professor of Political Science at The Ohio State University in Columbus, Ohio. He received his PhD in social psychology from the University of Michigan in 1992. He is the head of the political psychology PhD program at Ohio State that examines how theories and research methods from psychology help us understand politics, and how the study of politics broadens psychological theory. He is the author of Political Persuasion: The Use of Values in Communication (Oxford University Press, 2024) that explores how political advocates leverage the power of social values to increase support for their causes. The book includes an extensive case study of the ID movement and its opponents, and Prof. Nelson will draw from this material for his presentation.

WHEN: Thursday 8 May 7:30 PM Pacific (GMT-7)

HOW: Click HERE

Skeptics in a REAL Pub

WHAT: Skeptics in the Pub

This is a casual night of socializing and feasting with fellow Bay Area folk in an Irish Pub on the Peninsula.

Please join us! This is a free event brought to you by Bay Area Skeptics. All are welcome.

WHEN: Tuesday May 13, 7-9 PM

WHERE: Fiddlers Green, 333 El Camino Real, Millbrae. Accessible by Caltrain, BART, Bus, & Bicycle.

HOW: Just show up prepared to pay another participant for drink & delectables (cash, Apple Pay, Venmo, et al.) We will receive a single check from the Head Leprechaun.