Ryan

We were happy to hear that Logicon was discussed on a recent episode of Rational Alchemy. As the organizers of the event, we’d like to send you a few clarifications. It was mentioned that we in Edmonton chose “LogiCON” because we weren’t comfortable using the word “skeptic,” but there’s a little more to the story.

When we held our Skepticamp, something we noticed was that, to our surprise, we ended up with a fairly general audience. We had a lot of people turn up who weren’t necessarily skeptics, but were nevertheless interested. We don’t know what the typical demographics of a Skepticamp is, but this was something that really got us thinking.

We had a meeting soon after the event in which we broke down what worked, what didn’t, and what we thought we could accomplish next time. One thing that we wanted to build on was getting more “outsiders” to attend, and so increasing the number of newcomers became our primary goal.

With months of planning and a smooth execution on April 9th, the event now barely resembles the Skepticamp that it grew out of—perhaps most significantly, yes, we’re curating speakers. The Telus World of Science agreed to host us, we got Daniel Loxton as the keynote speaker, were fortunate to include among our speakers K.O. Myers and Barbara Drescher, and we had many local experts from the University of Alberta and the Edmonton community. We had workshops for kids and advanced and beginner talks. Attendees did have to pay the admission cost of the Telus World of Science, but were allowed free reign of the facility, and most excitingly for us, we’ll were open to drop-in traffic from the everyday World of Science crowd.

Question 6 on IndieSkeptics’ “Top 7 reasons SkeptiCamp sucks” page asks what the value of an event not focused on outreach is. The answer given is that not all events have to be focused on outreach. While true, it’s our feeling that outreach is something that skepticism is sorely lacking. Here in Edmonton we have a fantastic team, a strong skeptical community, and a wider community that appears quite happy to show up and learn a little something about science. We saw the opportunity to make the outreach event that we wished already existed elsewhere, so we got to work.

Once we knew that we were no longer making a Skepticamp, we had a discussion about the word “skeptic.” Ultimately, we did decide to shy away from it. Whether or not it should, it does have some negative connotations. It also suffers from being routinely used in many different contexts, meaning that we have to explain it to outsiders every time. It’s rampant in philosophy, it’s commonly used in everyday life, then we have things like climate change skeptics, and our skepticism. As much as we may wish we could exclusively own the word, each of these uses is entirely legitimate.

We could argue on this topic all we wanted, but what matters is that this isn’t a battle we need to fight. If this were an event for rallying people already identified as skeptics, then we would of course use the word. But this wasn’t an event made by skeptics, for skeptics (which is not to say that those events aren’t important). They were welcome to attend, of course. Many did, and they enjoyed the talks as much as anyone. We chose topics that we felt were accessible for everyone, and we felt the name should reflect that.

We don’t want to compete with Skepticamp. We remain big fans of the model, and wish anyone wanting to try one the very best of luck. We certainly value what we learned, and we’ve been able to take those skills to try something that we’re really excited about. Now that it’s over, we’ll be doing the same breakdown of the event that we did the first time, but the general feeling so far is that we achieved what we set out to do.

If dropping the word “skeptic” worries anybody, then I suppose all I can say at this point is to look at what we did, and decide if LogiCON, on its own merits, was a worthwhile endeavour. We’re certain that it was, and look forward to making the next one even better.

(RSVP to see Paranormal Investigator Ben Radford here!)

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

Paranormal Investigator Benjamin Radford to Speak In Alberta

9/23/2010: The Center for Inquiry, CFI Calgary and the Greater Edmonton Skeptics are pleased to announce three appearances by writer and scientific paranormal investigator Benjamin Radford. Radford is one of only a few investigators in the world who approaches paranormal claims from a skeptical, scientific perspective.

On Thursday, October 21st, Radford will present “Reflections on a Decade of Paranormal Investigation” at the University of Calgary. Radford will draw from dozens of case studies over a decade of personal investigations as he discusses the nature of “unexplained mysteries” such as ghosts, Bigfoot, crop circles, and psychic powers. What does science say about the evidence for these topics? What is the nature of the “unexplained?” Why is there still debate about these issues?

The presentation will take place at 7:30 pm in room CHC 119 on the University of Calgary campus. Skeptics and believers alike will enjoy this interesting and informative talk, which features plenty of time for audience questions.

Radford will reprise his presentation in Edmonton on Friday, October 22nd, at 7 pm in room CAB 243 on the campus of the University of Alberta. Admission for either session is $7.00 for the public and $4.00 for students. Friends of the Center can attend at no cost.

On Saturday, October 23rd, Radford returns to the University of Calgary for “The Real X-Files: a Scientific Paranormal Investigations Workshop.” In the movies and on television, investigating a haunted house, a Bigfoot sighting, or a crop circle looks easy. How do real-life paranormal investigators go about separating
truth from myth?

In this unique, intensive workshop, Radford will explain the step-by-step process he has employed in over a decade of investigations, including thinking critically, evaluating unusual claims, interviewing eyewitnesses, and conducting field experiments. Rather than attempting to prove or disprove the existence of these phenomena, attendees will learn Radford’s methods for understand and explaining these mysteries using science and evidence.

The workshop will be held at 3:30 pm in room ICT 114 on the University campus. The class size is limited, and you must register to guarantee a space. Admission is $25 for the public, $20 for students, and $10 for Friends of the Center.

Benjamin Radford is the managing editor of Skeptical Inquirer science magazine, columnist for LiveScience.com, and author of five books and hundreds of articles on science literacy, investigation, and the paranormal.

The Center for Inquiry is a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization, recognized as a 501(c)(3) charity in the United States. The mission of the Center for Inquiry is to foster a secular society based on science, reason, freedom of inquiry, and humanist values. Learn more at http://www.centerforinquiry.net/

Contact:
Calgary: Nathan Phelps, Executive Director, CFI Calgary
403-808-5781 or nphelps@cficanada.ca
Edmonton: Desiree Schell, Greater Edmonton Skeptics Press Secretary
780-318-3363 or desiree@skepticallyspeaking.com