2013 – Page 19 – William M. Briggs

Belloc On The Limited Intelligence Of Scientists

From Hilaire Belloc's Richelieu, J.B. Lippincott Company, Philadelphia & Londen, 1929, p. 23, in the context of disproving the social theory of historical events, i.e. the one which claims individuals…

Book review Philosophy

Our Brains Are Not Us: Review of Brainwashed

My nomination for Worst Use of Inference in a Scientific Paper (2009) is "The neural correlates of religious and nonreligious belief" by brain scientist cum philosopher Sam Harris and colleagues.…

Statistics

The Epidemiologist Fallacy Strikes Again. EPA, CARB, And Air Pollution

Here is an email I received from Jim Enstrom of the Scientific Integrity Institute (modified to embed the links; incidentally, CARB is the California Air Resources Board, a source of…

Culture

What’s Happening Between Russia And The Church?

No, really. I'm asking. I don't know but would like to. Something's brewing, or perhaps has already brewed. Consider these points: Item Patriarch Kirill "warned Western governments on Sunday against…

Statistics

Rise In Violence Linked To Poor Statistics. Or Climate Change

Welcome Der Spiegel readers. See also this post. The computer revolution has been as bloody, wrenching, and disruptive as any other conflict. But unlike in territorial wars where there are…

Philosophy

We Can Remember It For You Wholesale, Researchers

Blockbuster science headline of last week was "Neuroscientists plant false memories in the brain." The whetted some intellects---if intellects can be whetted---and caused others to tizzy. Philip Dick turned out…

Fun

Young Writer (Not Me) Seeks Employment

Ladies and Gentlemen---and you, too, Fran---may I introduce William J. Briggs, my number one son. Note the "J": he's named after my father, not myself. I call him James, but…

Culture

XKeyscore: Too Early For I Told You So?

Those who would give up Essential Liberty to purchase a little Temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety, unless they're scared of terrorists, and then it's okay---Benjamin Franklin So the…

Briggs on How Can You Tell If You Have ESP?June 30, 2025
Spetzer, All good points. I go into many of them later in the chapter.
spetzer86 on How Can You Tell If You Have ESP?June 30, 2025
If the receiver and sender independently wrote down the guess / card with no verbal communication, it might be better.…
JH on Class 56: The Best Model!June 29, 2025
How can you make predictions in the big data era without using a model? Trust your gut.
Jonas P. Kay on Which God Are You Rejecting? David Bentley Hart’s The Experience of God, Part IJune 28, 2025
I answer all by saying you cannot get something from nothing. There is beauty in its simplicity and it is…
Johnno on England’s Mandatory Suicide & WomenJune 27, 2025
So what's the betting pool on the odds about when and in which country will be the first to perform…