In a Psychology Today interview, sociologist Duncan Watts takes a critical look at common sense and shows how dangerously bad we are at predicting certain outcomes.
Common Sense Atheism is one of my favorite atheist blogs. Here, its author Luke Muehlhauser recounts the blog’s history and most important posts.
An oldie, but goodie: Pure Mormonism contends that the Word of Wisdom was neither intended as a commandment nor as a prohibition against beer.
Conspiracy theories about Obama’s birth and Osama’s death abound in today’s America. Why is the conspiracy meme so resilient in the human psyche? A new study finds that those who are prone to believing conspiracy theories are more willing to participate in a conspiracy.
The 5 unexpected downsides of being intelligent. High IQ scores are correlated with depression, dishonesty, gullibility, among other undesirable things.
In the last link bomb, I shared an article about Pastor Rob Bell’s controversial suggestion that Hell may not exist. Kevin Barney at the LDS blog By Common Consent reminds readers that Mormons don’t believe in Hell—at least not the classical conception.
The top 10 myths about evolution. And if you need yet more ammo to debate creationists, this picture is an effective illustration of how evolution works.
A recent study discovered no difference in the ethical behavior of believers and nonbelievers. (So why do Americans still dislike atheists?) The bigger finding, though, is that those who believe in a compassionate God are more likely to cheat than those who believe in an angry, punitive God.
Quote of the day: “How can you be a militant atheist? It’s like sleeping furiously.” — AC Grayling
The soundtrack for The Book of Mormon (the Broadway musical) will be released in June. A preview of the opening song is already up at the musical’s site. I’m excited for the full CD release. The musical is critically acclaimed and leads with the 14 Tony nominations this year. (Update: The entire soundtrack is now available!)
Americans exaggerate their religiosity and church attendance, a University of Michigan study reports. Our church attendance is actually in line with some secular Western European countries.
Confessions of a ward hopper: A Mormon male writes about his decades-long experience in countless singles wards.
Andrew S. of Irresistible (Dis)Grace discusses the anger among some atheists and ex-Mormons, arguing that much of this anger, while often unwieldy, is reasonable.
The LDS Church struck a moderately progressive tone on the issue of immigration when it threw its support behind HB116, which critics call ‘amnesty’. This puts many conservative Mormons at odds with church leaders for the first time in a long time.
The rate of autism has skyrocketed in the developed world. This, however, is not indicative of an epidemic, but instead better diagnosis.
Cosmologist Sean Carroll presents at TED on space time and evidence that hints at a multiverse.
How internet skeptics make a mockery of the skeptical tradition. We need to be especially vigilant against the credulity within our own ranks.
The latest Irreligiosophy podcast pokes fun at the craziest stories in the Book of Mormon. (A warning: The language may offend.)
A beautiful, albeit slightly disorienting, map of the most influential scientific minds of the last 500 years.
In an experiment that underscores the evolutionary genesis of basic morality, robots have learned self-sacrificing behaviors like sharing. Then again, a previous experiment reported that robots learned to lie for their own gain.
More than 1 in 5 atheist scientists identify as ‘spiritual’, according to an in-depth survey of 275 natural and social scientists from 21 of the nation’s top research universities.
The 12 worst (and most powerful) Christian Right groups.
Evangelical Christian and hobbyist historian David Barton was on The Daily Show a couple of nights ago to defend his view that Christianity’s role in America’s founding has been scrubbed from the history books. In response to Barton, author Chris Rodda has made her book Liars For Jesus: The Religious Right’s Alternate Version of American History available as a free download.
BYU professor William Hamblin reviews Christopher Hitchens’ Good is Not Great. Needless to say, his assessment isn’t favorable (and a number of the criticisms are fair).
The Guttmacher Institute has produced this informative video about abortion and the (surprising) demographics of the women who’ve had them.
British reporter Sanjiv Bhattacharya gained unprecedented access to fundamentalist Mormon communities for his book Secrets and Wives: The Hidden World of Mormon Polygamy. In an interview with Religion Dispatches, he discusses his experience living among and researching polygamist cults. Despite sharing reservations about incest and forced marriages, Bhattacharya nonetheless left this experience convinced that polygamy should be legalized.
Philosopher Peter Singer spoke to the 2010 Global Atheist Convention on whether you can have morality without God. Don’t miss his provocative talk.
Atheists and Christians alike believe in a lot of erroneous urban legends about the Bible. Here are but a few.