PACTISS recommends
Where science meets art. The only necessary and sufficient book store in Melbourne.
Hope our friends enjoy the new look and feel – now optimised for mobile devices for access on the go.
PEOPLE
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Coordinator: Peter Ellerton
Web guy: Jason Etheridge RESOURCE COLLECTIONS
NEW RESOURCES
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- A nice Philosophy of Mind summary
- The power of categorical logic
- What exactly is the scientific method and why do so many people get it wrong?
- Paralympic athletes faster than olympic athletes — what does this tell us about difference?
- Logic: if + then = why? How can we understand the power of logic?
- How do we ensure we are exposed to new ideas? A parody with bite.
- A Life of Meaning (Reason Not Required) – What is the nature of our relationship with reason?
- Can you name this cognitive bias?
- By what measures can we value human life?
- Teaching philosophy improves standardised scores
- Are we in control of our own decisions?
- Neuroscience and education: myths and messages
- Free will is not as free as we think – and that’s ok.
- Where’s the Proof in Pseudoscience?
- Science in the lead?
RANDOM POSTS
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- The Moon Landings Were Faked and the Characteristics of a Good Hypothesis
- Squashed Philosophers
- Reasons for Reason
- Can science answer questions about morality?
- Anarchy is a law unto itself
- 15 Answers to Creationist Nonsense (pdf)
- Ethical Egoism
- David Papineau on Scientific Realism
- The Eternal Value of Privacy
- Hooked on Horoscopes (pdf)
USEFUL RSS FEEDS
Philosopher’s Zone
NYTimes – The Stone
Philosophy Now
RSA Animate
- The Green Corridors Initiative
- Governance governing government
- Why print money when we can print wealth?
- Building a resilient health and care system
- We'll always have Paris?
- Experimentation and equity in global cities
- Technology-enabled deliberative democracy
- Healthier placemaking
- Creating a sovereign wealth fund in Wolverhampton
- Economic recovery and climate action
Scientific American – Mind and Brain
- Kindness Can Have Unexpectedly Positive Consequences
- It's the Bass That Makes Us Boogie
- Subliminal Cues, Precisely Timed, Might Help People Forget Bad Experiences
- Severe COVID May Cause Brain Changes Similar to Aging
- Autism Treatment Shifts Away from 'Fixing' the Condition
- Fatherhood Changes Men's Brain, according to Before-and-After MRI Scans
- Many People with Bipolar Disorder Use Cannabis. It May Sometimes Help
- Why Social Media Makes People Unhappy--And Simple Ways to Fix It
- People Shopping for 'Meaning' Buy Cheaper Goods
- Pregnancy Changes the Brain, Possibly Promoting Bonding with a Baby
TED talks
- 5 hiring tips every company (and job seeker) should know | Nithya Vaduganathan
- Can the metaverse bring us closer to wildlife? | Gautam Shah
- The billion-dollar pollution solution humanity needs right now | Stacy Kauk
- Are video calls the best we can do in the age of the metaverse? | Josephine Eyre
- How great leaders take on uncertainty | Anjali Sud and Stephanie Mehta
- How Indigenous guardians protect the planet and humanity | Valérie Courtois
- How to tap into your awareness -- and why meditation is easier than you think | Yongey Mingyur Rinpoche
- Demystifying the wild world of crypto | Laura Shin
- How can we escape soaring energy bills? Stop using fossil fuels | Tessa Khan
- A disability-inclusive future of work | Ryan Gersava
THEMED RESOURCES
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Category Archives: Resources
Happiness, Philosophy and Science
By GARY GUTTING NYTimes ‘The Stone’ http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/author/gary-gutting/ Extract below (useful bit) The new research has both raised hopes and provoked skepticism. Psychologists such as Sonja Lyubomirsky have developed a new genre of self-help books, purporting to replace the intuitions … Continue reading
Universal intelligence: One test to rule them all
It’s time to abandon the idea that we are the gold standard of intelligence. Take a test using a more fundamental scale of smarts http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg21128296.100-universal-intelligence-one-test-to-rule-them-all.html?full=true&print=true Download Universal intelligence (pdf)
The Meaningfulness of Lives
By TODD MAY NYTimes ‘The Stone’ http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/09/11/the-meaningfulness-of-lives/ Who among us has not asked whether his or her life is a meaningful one? Who has not wondered — on a sleepless night, during a long stretch of dull or taxing work, or … Continue reading
Peace of Mind: Near-Death Experiences Now Found to Have Scientific Explanations
Seeing your life pass before you and the light at the end of the tunnel, can be explained by new research on abnormal functioning of dopamine and oxygen flow By Charles Q. Choi Scientific American http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=peace-of-mind-near-death Near-death experiences are often thought of … Continue reading
Homeopathic leak threatens catastrophe
What is the role of humour here…? http://www.newsbiscuit.com/2011/09/09/homeopathic-leak-threatens-catastrophe/ An accidental release of highly dilute homeopathic waste from a research institute in Swindon has led to calls for the centre to be shut down. Plant operators have admitted responsibility for massive … Continue reading
Conditional Happiness
If you can read the fine print….. Discuss.
Posted in Media Articles, Cartoons
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Japanese Linguist Helps Revive an Aboriginal Language
What does it mean for the world to lose a language? http://www.abc.net.au/am/content/2011/s3310650.htm TONY EASTLEY: It’s taken 40 years but from almost the ashes of extinction, an Aboriginal language has been saved and is again being spoken on Palm Island in … Continue reading
A Utilitarian Decision – Sacrifice Lives to Save Lives
Would the lives of the people on board have been worth it…? Discuss. AN F-16 pilot scrambled on 9/11 to prevent another attack on the US capital says she was prepared to ram her plane into a hijacked aircraft, as … Continue reading
20 Awesomely Untranslatable Words from Around the World
There are at least 250,000 words in the English language. English – or any language – could never hold enough expression to convey the entirety of the human experience
Post modernism explained?
Obviously simplistic, but ripe for comment!
Philosophy of Religion website
A wonderfully organised overview of the classic philosophy of religion issues, arguments and problems. http://www.philosophyofreligion.info/
What’s logic got to do with it? – Some of the greatest flashes of scientific inspiration were sparked by utterly illogical thinking.
POPULAR belief has it that science is the preserve of logical Mr Spocks. A great scientific discovery must surely spring from a series of logical steps, each taken coolly and calmly, in the rational order. But take some time to … Continue reading
Top Ten Evolution Myths – and how we know it really happened (pdf)
Often misunderstandings about evolution are really misunderstandings about how science operates. This document deals with both rather nicely. Philosophy of Science. From the Skeptics Society. Top Ten Evolution Myths (pdf)
Hooked on Horoscopes (pdf)
We may not be able to persuade people that astrology and graphology are nonsense, but psychology, with the help of a showman, reveals why they are so popular. The Barnum effect. Psychology and critical thinking. Hooked on horoscopes (pdf)
Posted in Booklets, Handouts and Worksheets, Critical Thinking
Tagged Peter Ellerton
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Consciousness – science tackles the self (pdf)
We know that we are aware of ourselves. But we don’t know how. And we are not even sure why. The answers may lie in the physical processes of consciousness 01 April 1989 by SUSAN BLACKMORE New Scientists Magazine issue … Continue reading