Richard Carrier: Bayes’ Theorem and Historical Reasoning: How Historical Methods Can Be Improved and Why They Need to Be.

Posted by Stephen Law on October 7, 2012

This promises be a really interesting talk from one of the world’s leading skeptics. Carrier is the author of a controversial new book on the quest for the historical Jesus.

16th November 2012
Stamford Street Lecture Theatre
7.30pm – 9pm (7.00pm registration)

Drawing from his new book Proving History: Bayes’s Theorem and the Quest for the Historical Jesus (Prometheus, 2012), Dr. Carrier will explain what Bayes’ Theorem is (in terms anyone can understand), how it underlies all valid historical methods even when we don’t realize it, and why knowing this can improve historical reasoning and argument in all fields of history.

£7 – General
£5 – Students / BHA members
Free – “Friends of CFI”(and LAAG)

Book tickets here.

Venue

Stamford Street Lecture Theatre
Franklin Wilkins Building
Waterloo Campus
King’s College London
127 Stamford Street
London
SE1 9NQ

Nearest tube: Waterloo

19.00 for a 19.30 start
About the speaker

Richard Carrier is an American historian and philosopher and author of several books which have received international attention, including The Empty Tomb and Why I am Not a Christian. Richard now specializes in the modern philosophy of naturalism, the origins of Christianity, and the intellectual history of Greece and Rome. Richard also writes for and was Editor in Chief of the Secular Web (Internet Infidels).

http://www.richardcarrier.info

JOURNALISM, CHURNALISM AND MEDIA BIAS – 15th December

Posted by Stephen Law on September 10, 2012

CFI UK and Conway Hall present

JOURNALISM, CHURNALISM AND MEDIA BIAS

Ben Goldacre, Rich Peppiatt, Michael Marshall, Greg Philo

How much journalism is churnalism – the uncritical regurgitation of press releases? To what extent can we trust what we read in the press about medical and other scientific discoveries and breakthroughs? How impartial is mainstream media coverage of key political and economic issues? And just how much of tabloid news is just, well, made up?

Saturday, 15th December 2012

Conway Hall
25 Red Lion Square
London WC1R 4RL

11am-5.15pm (10.30am registration)

£10 (£5 students concessions). Free entry for Friends of CFI UK.

Bookshop and signings.

Tickets on the door and from the BHA website here:http://www.humanism.org.uk/meet-up/events/view/196

Introduced by Stephen Law

Speakers include:

Ben Goldacre (Guardian columnist, doctor and author)

Michael Marshall (expert on press-release-based churnalism)

Rich Peppiatt (a former tabloid journalist, shortly touring a show based on his experiences)

Greg Philo (Research Director of the Glasgow University Media Group. Co-author of Bad News from Israel). Greg will be speaking about the role of the media in the production of public confusion and consent.

Healing Powers of The Mind? ANDY LEWIS, CHRIS FRENCH, SERENA RONEY-DOUGAL, MIKE HEAP – 20th October

Posted by Stephen Law on September 6, 2012

CFI UK and Conway Hall present

Introduced by Stephen Law (Provost of CFI UK)