Off the back of last year's sell out tour, The Cult of Dave, his TV special, Dave Alnwick: Trickster, and a stellar appearance at the recent QED conference, Dave is back with his new hour long show: MIND WIZARD.

Expect misdirection, mind reading and manipulation. Will you be converted?

After each show there will be a Q&A; where Dave will highlight some of the techniques used in the show.

"“If you saw Dave’s brilliant show at QED, then you’ll know why even skeptics signed up to the Cult of Dave.” - Simon Singh
"They were burning people for this 300 years ago" - Phill Jupitus

Immediately before Dave's show, starting at 7.00pm in the same venue, is PubhD Liverpool's November event, free for all to attend. Doors open at 6.30pm. Check it out, and come along! https://www.facebook.com/events/1792364190986267

Our speaker events have wheelchair access, via a portable ramp which can be installed on-demand. If possible, please let us know you’re coming through contact@merseysideskeptics.org.uk so we can make sure the ramp is ready.

Join us for good times and good conversation at Dr Duncan's in Liverpool City Centre. Don't be shy, come along and say hello!

Celebrate Christmas Skeptically -- by partying with your friends! Merseyside Skeptics are having their annual Christmas Party at Dead Crafty Beer on Dale Street.

There will be a buffet of nibbles so please register your attendance so we have an idea of numbers for the catering.

SECRET SANTA!

Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, following the success of last year's Secret Santa, we've decided to run it again, so the rules are:

1) If you want to get involved bring one wrapped gift, preferably a gag gift such as an old book you no longer want, a present you got last year and don't know what to do with or, if you're really stuck, a tin of sardines. Don't bring something fancy because chances are, you'll get something naff in return.
2) Hand over your lovingly selected and beautifully wrapped gift over to Kat Ford, who will give you a raffle ticket in exchange.
3) Towards the end of the night Kat will call out ticket numbers and hand you a gift. (She has a system to make sure you won't end up with your own gift, it doesn't involve tumble dryers or an infinite number of photocopiers, but it does work. Don't worry about it).
4) Unwrap and enjoy your wonderful gift which you will undoubtedly treasure forever, or five minutes, or not at all. Whatever. It's the thought that counts.

Power, Perversion and Delusion: staying sane in global health research.

Academics, philanthropists and global development specialists have contributed to incredible advances in human health in recent years. However, there are also some staggering examples where the scientific community has delayed publication, over-analysed data or tweaked findings; the resulting body of evidence can mislead policy.

Drawing on 20 years of synthesising research in international development with the Cochrane Collaboration, we will look at malaria, where science has moved productively building on research; and will compare these with other areas, such as policies around deworming children in Africa to help economic development, where the science has been more controversial. The so-called “worm wars”, which reached UK national papers and radio, is the story of a four-year- long argument involving specialists in epidemiology, economics and human parasites over evidence and methods. In this talk we’ll discuss how transparent methods, replication of key analyses, careful synthesis and ensuring results as well as the debates - are put in the public domain are vital to science and policy, and help those challenging the status quo stay sane.

Professor Paul Garner is responsible for the Centre for Evidence Synthesis for Global Health at the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine. He currently co-coordinates the Cochrane Infectious Collaboration leading a network of over 300 people synthesizing research to inform global, regional and national policies in tropical infections and conditions relevant to low- and middle-income countries in guideline development.