Month: October 2025

Protect pupils from creationism, NSS urges Welsh committee

Published by Sam Flores

The National Secular Society has urged a Senedd committee to introduce greater protections for pupils from evangelism, including an explicit prohibition on the promotion of creationism. The Children, Young People and Education Committee is reviewing the implementation of two recent acts which reformed education in Wales. Responding to a consultation by the committee, the NSS said the recent case of evangelism at a nonreligious school in Powys demonstrated the need for a specific ban on promoting creationism in schools. Teaching creationism as fact is not legal in schools in England, but no such prohibitions exist in Wales. Last year, the NSS uncovered evidence creationism was being promoted by Llanidloes High School’s headteacher Dan Owen, with large wall displays combining science and geography content with quotes from the Bible. The evangelical ‘Alpha’ course was also promoted by teachers, and bible verses included on student planners. The NSS highlighted how Owen explicitly justified his campaign of evangelism on the basis that schools must hold daily acts of ‘broadly Christian’ worship. The NSS added the case was “one …

Surprisingly Polite Response to Non-Materialist Book on the Mind

Published by Jenni Sidey

Stony Brook University neurosurgeon Michael Egnor and I argue—from modern neuroscience evidence—that the human mind is not merely what the brain does; it is immaterial and immortal… We steadied ourselves for pushback from atheists, whether they were Oxford dons or bloggers. But that’s not what has happened. I was surprised by the polite reception that the book has received from unexpected quarters. For example, when Dr. Egnor discussed our approach with well-known skeptic Michael Shermer and leading neuroscientist Christof Koch on Shermer’s podcast in June, the conversation was notably polite and productive. And when he discussed it—again with Michael Shermer—on Piers Morgan’s show in July, many commenters were pleased at the polite normalcy of the discussion. It was a refreshing change from the all-too-common Punch-and-Judy show; there was no hint of mere ridicule from host or opponent. Twenty years ago, there was not nearly so much openness. As co-author of a book on a similar theme—The Spiritual Brain (Harper One 2007)—I can testify that neuroscientist Mario Beauregard and I did not encounter anything like the same willingness to listen back …

Why so many children in the youth justice system have special educational needs

Published by skeptic

Walk into any custodial youth justice facility in the UK – from young offender’s institutions to secure training centres and children’s homes – and you’ll be met with an unexpected reality: the majority of children in these settings have special educational needs and disabilities. In particular, a very high proportion of children in custody have neurodisabilities. These are long-term conditions affecting the brain and nervous system, and range from autism to brain injuries and foetal alcohol spectrum disorders. These conditions are grouped together because they affect children’s cognition (including memory, attention and concentration, and executive functioning – mental skills necessary for daily life), as well as their emotional regulation, social communication skills and physical development. This is a pattern repeated in youth justice systems across the world. For example, estimates suggest that 50% to 87% of children in custody globally have a brain injury. However, research from Canada suggests that brain injury affects around 20% of children in the general population. Over 60% of children in custody globally have a speech, language and communication impairment, …

‘Hallucinated’ cases are affecting lawyers’ careers – they need to be trained to use AI

Published by skeptic

Generative artificial intelligence, which produces original content by drawing on large existing datasets, has been hailed as a revolutionary tool for lawyers. From drafting contracts to summarising case law, generative AI tools such as ChatGPT and Lexis+ AI promise speed and efficiency. But the English courts are now seeing a darker side of generative AI. This includes fabricated cases, invented quotations, and misleading citations entering court documents. As someone who studies how technology and the law interact, I argue it is vital that lawyers are taught how, and how not, to use generative AI. Lawyers need to be able to avoid the risk of sanctions for breaking the rules, but also the development of a legal system that risks deciding questions of justice based on fabricated case law. On 6 June 2025, the high court handed down a landmark judgment on two separate cases: Frederick Ayinde v The London Borough of Haringey and Hamad Al-Haroun v Qatar National Bank QPSC and QNB Capital LLC. The court reprimanded a pupil barrister (a trainee) and a solicitor …

The Living Sacrifice of Praise – OpentheWord.org

Published by Sam Flores

Mary Washing The Feet Of ChristBy Henry Ossawa Tanner. 1900, Wikipedia, Public Domain By Dr. Steve Phifer An Aroma Pleasing to the Lord Every evening, every morning, throughout the centuries of Old Testament worship, the smoke of sacrifices coiled upward from the Tabernacle and later from the Temple. Every year the man of Israel, the priest of his home, would select from his flock the finest male lamb to offer to the Lord as a sacrifice on the Day of Atonement. Since it was the man’s sins that required atonement, under the guidance of the priest, the man would slay the lamb himself. When the instructions for offering these sacrifices to the Lord are given in Leviticus a strange statement is made repeatedly. “It is a burnt offering, an offering made by fire, an aroma pleasing to the LORD” (Lev 1:9 NIV). Does our God enjoy the smell of burning flesh and hair, of grain and oil? Since God is spirit (John 4:24) the smells of the material world, so unavoidable to us, do not …

Winter Sports Stars Talk Chasing Olympic Dreams for 2026 Games

Published by Sam Flores

IE 11 is not supported. For an optimal experience visit our site on another browser. UP NEXT How Will Lindsey Vonn’s ACL Injury Impact Her Olympic Ambitions? 06:32 Team USA Athletes Talk Opening Ceremony, Olympic Village, Food 04:32 2026 Winter Olympic Figure Skating Begins With Team Event 06:07 2026 Winter Olympics Opening Ceremony: What to Expect 02:09 Check out These Easy DIY Crafts for the Super Bowl and Olympics 04:22 Snoop Dogg Carries 2026 Olympic Torch Through Streets of Milan 00:57 Countdown Begins to Opening Ceremony for 2026 Winter Olympics 02:39 Lindsey Vonn Vows to Compete in Olympics Despite ACL Tear 03:00 Watch: Snoop Dogg Arrives at the 2026 Milan Cortina Olympics 00:49 Laurie Hernandez Reveals She’s Making Her Broadway Debut 04:01 Erin Jackson, Frank Del Duca to Carry Olympic Flag for Team USA 03:59 Save the Date: Pop Culture Events to Look for in February 2026 02:27 Lindsey Vonn on Track to Compete in Olympics After Knee Injury 00:48 Meet the Olympic Stars Going For Gold at the Milan Cortina Games 04:23 Snowboarder Maddy …

Figure Skater Amber Glenn on Her Journey, 2026 Winter Olympics

Published by Sam Flores

Schools invite mosque accused of antisemitic hate to address pupils

Published by Sam Flores

A London mosque accused of promoting “antisemitic hate” days after the October 7 attacks has hosted primary school pupils on a school trip and supplied guest speakers at two other schools, the National Secular Society has learned. Representatives from Greenwich Islamic Centre (GIC) visited two primary schools in Greenwich last March and this April, with Year 5 pupils from another school in Kent visiting the mosque in March 2024. The visits took place despite a sermon delivered at GIC on 20 October 2023 – just 13 days after the 7 October attacks in Israel by Hamas – in which imam Muhammad Abdullah Shakir called on Allah to “protect Al Aqsa [mosque] from the Jews”, to “curse the infidels” and “destroy their land”. Shakir’s remarks were widely reported in the press at the time, with local MP Matthew Pennycook describing them as “anti-Semitic hate” on X. Local councillors also denounced the comments in “the strongest possible terms”. In another sermon at GIC on August 10 2024, less than a week after rioting across the UK following …

CofE marriages and funerals in decline, Church data shows

Published by Sam Flores

The National Secular Society has renewed calls for separation of Church and state, after new figures from the Church of England revealed the Church’s continued decline. The CofE’s 2024 ‘Statistics for Mission’ report, released yesterday, found “by almost every measure, in almost every diocese, Church of England attendance and participation was still significantly lower in 2024 than in 2018”, prior to the Covid-19 pandemic restrictions. The figures demonstrated declines in CofE baptisms, marriages and funerals since last year, which the NSS said reveals the Church’s “rapidly diminishing relevance in British society”. Less than 2% people in England attend church at least once a month The report said the speed of recovery in church attendance and participation since the pandemic has slowed, “with smaller increases in attendance from 2023 to 2024 than in previous years”. Church attendance remained “some way below pre-pandemic levels”, the report said, while some measures of attendance “remained below projected pre-pandemic trends”. Average Sunday attendance at CofE services remains just over 1% of the English population. The CofE estimates its ‘worshipping community’ …

How to lead an evidence centre – Evidence & Policy Blog

Published by skeptic

Steve Martin This blog post is based on the Evidence & Policy article, ‘Leading research–policy engagement: an empirical analysis of the capabilities and characteristics of leaders of evidence intermediary organisations’. In the last ten years, a range of countries have invested in organisations designed to bridge the gap between researchers and policymakers. In the United Kingdom alone, we now have 12 What Works Centres, 30 Health Determinants Research Collaborations, three Local Policy Innovations Partnerships, several regional evidence centres, and dozens of policy engagement teams working in universities, businesses and charities. The leadership of these evidence intermediaries is key to their effectiveness. But we know very little about their leaders – where they come, what they do, and what skills they need for the job. To help fill this gap, I conducted in-depth interviews with leaders of some of the UK’s most high-profile evidence intermediary organisations. Their stories provide fascinating ‘warts and all’ accounts of what it takes to lead an organisation that can overcome the formidable institutional barriers that often stand in the way of …

Skeptic Society Magazine

for honest conversations

Years

Authors

Filter by Month

Filter by Categories

Filter by Tags

Month: October 2025

Protect pupils from creationism, NSS urges Welsh committee

Surprisingly Polite Response to Non-Materialist Book on the Mind

Why so many children in the youth justice system have special educational needs

‘Hallucinated’ cases are affecting lawyers’ careers – they need to be trained to use AI

The Living Sacrifice of Praise – OpentheWord.org

Winter Sports Stars Talk Chasing Olympic Dreams for 2026 Games

Figure Skater Amber Glenn on Her Journey, 2026 Winter Olympics

Schools invite mosque accused of antisemitic hate to address pupils

CofE marriages and funerals in decline, Church data shows

How to lead an evidence centre – Evidence & Policy Blog