News and announcements
Massimo Pigliucci's New Book Is Out
Nonsense on Stilts: How to Tell Science from Bunk is Prof. Pigliucci's new book. Recent polls suggest that fewer than 40 percent of Americans believe in Darwin’s theory of evolution, despite it being one of science’s best-established findings. More and more parents are refusing to vaccinate their children for fear it causes autism, though this link can been consistently disproved. And about 40 percent of Americans believe that the threat of global warming is exaggerated, despite near consensus in the scientific community that man-made climate change is real.
Why do people believe bunk? And what causes them to embrace such pseudoscientific beliefs and practices? Noted skeptic Massimo Pigliucci sets out to separate the fact from the fantasy in this entertaining exploration of the nature of science, the borderlands of fringe science, and—borrowing a famous phrase from philosopher Jeremy Bentham—the nonsense on stilts. Presenting case studies on a number of controversial topics, Pigliucci cuts through the ambiguity surrounding science to look more closely at how science is conducted, how it is disseminated, how it is interpreted, and what it means to our society. The result is in many ways a “taxonomy of bunk” that explores the intersection of science and culture at large. Read a review of the book in New Scientist and another one in the Times of London, or listen to Prof. Pigliucci being interviewed by WNYC's Brian Leher.
Prof. Mendelsohn wins NEH award
Professor Richard Mendelsohn, who teaches at Lehman and the CUNY Graduate Center, was one of 108 recipients nationwide (and one of three CUNY professors) to win a 2010-11 research award from the National Endowment for the Humanities, for his project in the philosophy of language, "Propositions, Scope, and Reference.
Last modified: Oct 25, 2011
