How many atheists are there in the world? Where do they live? What kind of people are they, and how do they get that way? Are they happy? Are they prosperous? Do they drag their societies down into a cesspool of immortality—as is often alleged—or, is it precisely the opposite? All of these questions are …
Wouldn’t it be nice if there were a way to make American politics just a little more rational, just a little more evidence based? Wouldn’t it be even nicer if there was a website, or an app, that helped that process along? Maybe, just maybe, a promising innovation called TruthMarket can help with the problem. It’s a …
Several times on this show, we’ve discussed the topic of ideological asymmetry. In other words, are people of all political persuasions equally biased, equally prone to reasoning based on their emotions to support prior commitments? A new scientific paper (PDF) has recently come out that reopens this question, so naturally, we had to invite on one of …
According to the USDA, Americans produce and consume more beef, veal, and chicken than any other nation in the world. As a result, the status of animal welfare in the meat production industry should be of some concern to all Americans, regardless of dietary habits. One of the world’s leading experts in livestock handling practices …
Our guest this week is Arie Kruglanski. He’s a Distinguished University Professor of Psychology at the University of Maryland College Park, and has been a pioneer in the study of closed-mindedness-or, the “need for closure”—including how it drives fundamentalist belief systems and violent extremism. Dr. Kruglanski has served on National Academy of Sciences panels related …
This week’s guest is Joe Romm. You may know him as a top blogger on global warming and energy—but that’s not why we’re having him on. In an impressive show of versatility, Romm the scientist has written a book about how to persuade people. It’s entitled Language Intelligence: Lessons on Persuasion from Jesus, Shakespeare, Lincoln, and …
Our guest this week is Peter Montgomery, senior fellow with People for the American Way and author of a new report entitled Twelve Rules for Mixing Religion and Politics, released last week with a new introduction by Bill Moyers. Point of Inquiry invited Montgomery on the show to discuss these very useful rules of the road, …
In an election year, it is especially important that our critical thinking skills be sharply honed. We have to sift through facts, fiction, and hyperbole in order to decide who it is that should lead us for the next four years. To remind us what the right questions to ask are and how to ask …
Kerry Emanuel is a leading atmospheric scientist and a self-described conservative. As a result, lately he’s been at the forefront of trying to convince his ideological brethren that the science behind global warming is real. We invited Emanuel on to talk about whether global warming is indeed influencing the extreme weather that is afflicting the …
Can people who care about secularism take America back from the religious right? Of all the questions that concern us on this show, this is perhaps the most important, the most central, of all. And David Niose has an answer to it. Simply put, he thinks we can. In his new book, Nonbeliever Nation: The …