Tag: Bath Skeptical Society

The rise of the ‘Skeptics’: A new breed of Armchair Scientists

When I was a child, Johnny Ball used to be my hero. He hosted a UK TV programme, called ‘Johnny Ball Reveals All‘. With the enthusiasm of a five-year-old, he bounced across the TV screen while explaining science questions: ‘Why does a volcano erupt?’, ‘How do my eyes work?’ and ‘What is electricity?’ He was an inspiring and eccentric character, who helped give me a love of science.

We love Johnny Ball!

I’m still excited about science today, and try to share that passion with others. But some people don’t seem to get quite as passionate as me: My wife’s eyes normally glaze over when I start to get animated about quantum physics!

But I’ve stumbled across a new breed of science lovers:  a movement of armchair scientists, on a mission to separate fact from fiction.  They call themselves ‘skeptics’ and are determined not to fall victim to any hoax or scam. They meet together in pubs and cast a questioning eye over anything controversial. In recent months, numbers have been mushrooming and I wanted to know what all the fuss was about. I picked the brains of Hayley Stevens, co-founder of the Bath Skeptic Society to find out more….  Read more