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developed by JhackAbout Skeptikai
Skeptikai defends science and exposes pseudoscience. Living in Japan also allows for an interesting opportunity to discuss fascinating stories that go unnoticed elsewhere. Psychological phenomena and intriguing cases from around the globe are also regularly highlighted.
The Psychological Science of StorytellingIt hit me about two years ago, sometime after I started this blog. Somewhere between the…
Islamic Blasphemy and the “Freedom” to Choose your Own ReligionIn the last few weeks, Muslims from Bangladesh have been going crazy trying to fight back…
Inattentional Blindness and the Invisible ViolinistIf a tree falls in the forest and no one's around to hear it, does it make a sound? It…
Hamas-Israel Ceasefire Ends as Gaza Schools Drop Sports for Military TrainingI have been following the news regarding the ceasefire between Israel and Gaza that…
Are Vocal Homophobes Really Just Homosexuals in the Closet?Be who you are and say what you feel, because those who mind don't matter and those who…
Why Haven’t We Found the Missing Link in the Fossil Record? Science Answers!War is peace. Freedom is slavery. Ignorance is strength. -George Orwell If evolution is…
Bollywood Zombies and The Westernization of Indian Pop CultureGo Goa Gone, the first Western-style zombie flick to be made in Bollywood, was just…
Hungary Solves Homelessness by Finding Places for All… in Jail?The brilliant move of Hungary lawmakers to criminalize the act of being a homeless person…
The 2013 Pigasus AwardsEvery year, the James Randi Educational Foundation gives awards to recognize the special…
Did Jesus ‘Want’ to be Nailed to a Cross?I'm pretty sure the answer to the question in the title is "no," but there are many things…
Monthly Archives: February 2012
Toxic Racism Against Japan Since the March 11 Disaster (Part3)
In Part 1, we looked at how America does not seem to be over the Pearl Harbor attacks. In Part 2, we saw that almost 4 out of 10 Americans agree with the disturbing internet troll known as “Tamtampamela,” who said that the earthquake and tsunami in Japan were a result of God’s intervention. That is an alarmingly high number of idiots. But the U.S. does not exactly have a monopoly on bigotry, and there are many good Americans who fight back against discrimination. So now, let’s look at the fair way to consider the filth that has been spewing out of America.
Toxic Racism Against Japan Since the March 11 Disaster (Part2)
I haven’t written as much on any topic as I have on this one; this record of racism against Japan since the Great Eastern Japan Earthquake of last year. But I think it’s important to catalogue many of the things said, because it highlights a number of problems that America has in the way they deal with the past. It also provides an answer to the question “where do they get this reputation from?” In Part 1, we looked at how many Americans don’t seem to be over World War II – namely, the Pearl Harbor attack. Now, we’ll look at the “educated” people, and see how they compare to the public opinion.
Posted in Activism, Culture, Japan, Media, Skepticism
Tagged America, natural disasters, religion
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Toxic Racism Against Japan Since the March 11 Disaster (Part1)
After the March 11 disaster in Japan, the world focused its media attention here like never before; but for all the compassionate and good-hearted people wishing Japan well, there was some horrible joke or malicious epithet being slurred by the scum of the internet, or on live television. This article looks at the carelessness and callousness that plagues the public forum online, and catalogues some of the idiocy that helps perpetuate the myth that Americans are all idiotic racists. Is it ever okay to make fun of something so tragic? Where do we draw the line between humorous and hurtful? And why have anti-Japanese sentiments been kept alive for all this time?
Posted in Activism, Culture, Japan, Media, Skepticism
Tagged America, natural disasters, racism
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Who Needs a Heart Anymore? – The Medical History of the Artificial Heart
We all know that we need a heart to live, but the human heart is quite susceptible to damage and diseases that can only be prevented up to a point. A heart attack occurs when oxygen-rich blood is blocked, and so is not pumped to a part of heart muscle. We can take limited measures to prevent such an occurrence from happening, such as by eating healthy food, but we cannot reduce the possibility of occurrence to 0%. If blood flow isn’t restored early enough, the deprived section of heart muscle will begin to die. When I was a child, I learnt that we humans need two things to live: a heart, and a brain. However, with the current state of our medical technology, do we actually need a heart anymore to be a living human?
The Social Network Wars in Japan – Mixi, Twitter, and Facebook
The popularity of Facebook is growing to such proportions that it has some people worried that it’s “killing local social networks around the world.” Indeed, as you can see from the map above, the number of users is staggering. And this map is over a year old, so it does not take into account the publicity that came after the release of “The Social Network” in 2011. In fact, that film was a big factor in what made the website more popular in Japan. But now that Facebook’s popularity is increasing, the question many people are asking is: What is the future of social networking in Japan?
Posted in Blogging, Culture, Japan, Technology
Tagged facebook, social networking, twitter
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Rich People Don’t Smoke – The Simple Socioeconomics of Tobacco Consumption
Everyone knows that smoking is bad for your health. It blackens your lungs, makes you smell like ashes to non-smokers, and people often depend on them to regulate or mitigate their ever-volatile moods. We know that stress is bad for one’s health, but saying “I need a cigarette, I’m so stressed” is about as helpful as saying “I’m feeling a bit under the weather, pass me that poison.” But this article isn’t about the more obvious medical arguments against smoking. My appeal for smokers to quit is simple: If you stop smoking, you’ll realize that you’re rich.
Posted in Activism, Culture, Medicine & Health, Science
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Blizzards in the North – Japan Simply Can’t Catch a Break
Japan just can’t catch a break. After one of the most powerful earthquakes in history plunged the country into darkness, we were getting scorched by record-level heats. While the East coast was busy (and still is) recovering from the devastating tsunami, the region of Kansai, West of Tokyo, was being flooded by the most powerful typhoon Japan has seen in over thirty years. Yesterday was the holiday known as “Setsubun,” which officially marked the transition from winter to spring, but many prefectures are facing another round of hardships that contrast to the debilitating heat. Blizzards have come to remind Japan that there’s still plenty more to be concerned about.