Latest Announcements – Centre for Inquiry Canada

December 2021 Critical Links

NEWS & EVENTS Conference: Mind, Brain, and Thought Update from Omer CFIC Asks You to Fund the Facts! December Dates of Interest SCIENCE Own the Science Progress for Select Parties – Regression for General Society SECULARISM & HUMAN RIGHTS Less Complex Claims Petition Back on the Table CRITICAL THINKING Keith’s Conundrums

November 28, 2021 / Critical Links / Announcement

I have worked for decades with scientists, engineers, and other technical experts across all levels of government and post-secondary institutions. I’ve always been struck by the vast amount of fascinating research projects, scientific and technological advancements, and other incredible work being done by untold numbers of experts working in the public sector in every part of Canada.

The people of Canada own that work. It has a profound impact on every Canadian’s day-to-day life. Yet a lot of people do not know that it even exists. Being in the communications business, I have assembled a team and am launching a podcast to tell the story of public sector science in Canada and the impact it has on all of us. Each episode will look at the history of a Canadian innovation that people use every day. The first episode explores how artificial intelligence is changing Canadian agriculture.

Future episodes will explore the melting of Canada’s permafrost and how critical thinking can help people navigate the world. The podcast is called Own the Science and is available on most podcast apps. The website also offers more information and a place to propose subjects for future episodes.

November 28, 2021 / Critical Links / Announcement

November 2021 Dates of Interest

November is Diabetes Awareness Month. This year marks the 100^th anniversary of the discovery of insulin by Canadians Frederick Banting and Charles Best.

November 2 is Kermit the Frog’s 66^th birthday.

November 7 is the 154^th anniversary of the birth of Marie Curie, who discovered radium, and the 143^rd anniversary of the birth of Lise Meitner, who discovered protactinium.

November 18 to 24 is World Antimicrobial Awareness Week, which aims to increase awareness of global antimicrobial resistance and to encourage best practices among the general public, health workers, and policy makers to avoid the further emergence and spread of drug-resistant infections.

On November 27, 1895, Alfred Nobel — the inventor of dynamite — established the Nobel Prizes.

October 30, 2021 / Critical Links / announcement, Announcement, Current Events, date, Pride

Science Resources: Blogs, Websites, and Podcasts

Seanna Watson

Have you heard about the infodemic? Coined in 2003, the word is not (yet) recognized officially by most authorities. It is a portmanteau, blending “information” and “epidemic,” referring to a rapid and far-reaching spread of information, both accurate and inaccurate. As facts, rumours, and fears mix and disperse, it becomes difficult to learn essential information about an issue. Most of us have seen increasing examples of this since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Historians have suggested that sometime around the 1600s, it became impossible for a person to know everything. Speculations about the last person to do this include Francis Bacon, Thomas Young , and even Leonardo da Vinci. These days, though no individual can hope to know everything, many of us are privileged to have a wealth of information at our fingertips, just a few clicks or taps away. The process of acquiring information from the Internet has been likened to trying to get a drink of water from a firehose, with the added danger that some of the liquid we consume might not be particularly thirst-quenching, and some might even be toxic!

At CFIC, one of our goals is to help people find rational, science-based, and evidence-based answers to their questions. To that end, following are just a few sources we have filtered out of the stream from the firehose, and found to be accurate, informative, and also often entertaining.

Websites/blogs