Jim Ring

I agree with Vincent Gray (NZ Skeptic 107), it is not possible to determine an average temperature for the Earth. However it is important to note that even the alarmists agree that the Earth is not ... (265 words)

Some claim our society is too materialistic and lacks spiritual values. But what would it be like to live in a society that rejects materialism? Arnhem Land in tropical Australia has a curious ... (1942 words)

While we were in Fiji recently there was a dengue fever alert. This unpleasant virus is carried by mosquitoes and naturally we were careful to use insect repellent. We stayed in a Suva hotel; in the ... (125 words)

A visit to Lake Rotoroa in Nelson Lakes National Park is rewarded with a remarkable sighting. Sea monsters are real enough; I have even caught one. Years ago a friend and I found a live oarfish ... (908 words)

In our last issue, Hugh Young looked at the practice of circumcision. But how did such a bizarre tradition ever get started? Hugh Young's article on circumcision (Skeptic 86) was excellent but it is ... (1091 words)

It's often said that scientists long rejected the idea of meteorites, but the evidence for this assertion is far from convincing. Pseudoscience constantly attempts to discredit science. One method is ... (944 words)

Attacks on Darwinian evolutionary theory have come from within the scientific community as well as from creationists. Much of this is the normal process of scientific scrutiny, but some bear all the ... (1600 words)

Jim Ring finds some material to pass the time on a recent flight. Queensland is the home of young-earth creationism in Australia so it was perhaps not surprising that I found Creation Magazine for ... (686 words)

Jim Ring takes another look at Bishop Ussher's famous date for the creation. Hamilton skeptics chose the date 22nd October for a celebration to "be as close as possible to Bishop Ussher's date for ... (1699 words)

The idea that low self-esteem is the cause of violent behaviour has been current for some time. Many years ago I attended numerous education meetings where I heard that certain (male) individuals ... (836 words)

Increased litigation will do nothing to reduce the rate of medical misadventure In a recent decision the Privy Council has ruled that a New Zealand patient dissatisfied with a diagnosis can take ... (1021 words)

Insecurities about water quality have led to a boom in sales of bottled water. But the health benefits of the phenomenon are probably minimal. We were surprised to hear recently that sales of ... (976 words)

Mass screening programmes have generated considerable controversy in this country. But these programmes have inherent limitations, which need to be better understood In 1996 the Skeptical Inquirer ... (2096 words)

In the second of a two-part series, Jim Ring looks at what evidence means to different people Scientific evidence is often difficult to interpret, in medicine in particular. 'An Unfortunate ... (1322 words)

Skepticism is very much concerned with assessing the quality of evidence in support of a particular claim. But evidence means different things to different people. In the first of a two-part series, ... (487 words)

The marketing of sodium chloride should be taken with a pinch of salt Sodium chloride is a very simple chemical and cannot decay. Excess is harmful though it is an essential part of our diet. These ... (1138 words)

Goethe's Faust is a tale of the supernatural. According to a famous passage, on Walpurgisnacht a witch's sabbat was celebrated on top of the Brocken, a mountain in the Black Forest. Old maps show ... (713 words)

References Bob Metcalfe (Forum NZ Skeptic 54) seems to be calling for a change in editorial policy on footnotes and references. This has been consistent throughout the history of this society and any ... (310 words)

The Swedish chemist Berzelius coined the term "organic" for substances that could only be made by living organisms and not synthesised by humans. His German friend Wöhler synthesised urea in 1828 ... (2659 words)

Did he or didn't he? THROUGH various articles, books, radio and TV programs, most New Zealanders will be familiar with the name Richard Pearse. Many are convinced that Pearse flew before the first ... (884 words)

Around 300BCE there started a school of Greek philosophy called Skepticism. It continued for centuries, but was more like dogmatic doubt than the modern version. Bertrand Russell put their creed as ... (1281 words)

NEW AGE theory holds that practically all cultures had a tradition of using medicines (mostly herbal) and that there is a danger that "Western medicine" will replace these, so losing irreplaceable ... (1167 words)

Jim Ring takes a look at canonisation and finds the lives of the saints less than miraculous. THERE may soon be a New Zealand saint -- so should we be excited? Canonisation is a process making ... (1353 words)

Jim Ring continues his investigations into the Fijian paranormal scene. I HAVE previously examined supernatural claims from Fiji [see NZ Skeptic 26 & 35]. Twenty odd years ago a friend described ... (1090 words)

AROUND 40 years ago, at Hull Fair in England, I saw a man dip his fingers in molten lead. He also poured it into his palm and ran it through his fingers. He seemed to suffer no harm although it was ... (883 words)

It is rare that Nelson interests the world's news media. The "sheep suspended from pine trees" story was sufficiently bizarre to get their attention. For those who missed the story: Some people ... (420 words)

Surprising results from a US study of the effectiveness of counselling on reducing juvenile crime. In the March NZ Skeptic, Dr John Welch's excellent column mentioned an article in the British ... (832 words)

Visitors to Fiji are still being told that village people have the hereditary ability to walk on white-hot stones. This is quite untrue (see Hot Footing it in Fiji,Skeptic 26). A tourist promotion ... (502 words)

Seeing shouldn't always be believing, as a Nelson skeptic discovered thirty years ago. One night nearly thirty years ago, three men were driving back to Nelson from French Pass after a fishing trip. ... (892 words)

Vicki Hyde suggests (Skeptic 30) that we are in for a lot more doomsday predictions as we approach the year 2000. I am afraid she is right, but why should fundamentalists get so excited about a round ... (637 words)

Lights in the sky are not always aliens on the lookout for earthlings to abduct. Sometimes they are mostly a load of hot air. On Wednesday afternoon we saw a UFO. My wife, Fleur, did not say,"Look -- ... (748 words)

New Zealand Skeptics walk happily on red-hot embers, protected by the laws of physics. Fijian firewalkers, however, are said to stroll across white-hot stones. How do they do it? Fijian firewalking ... (1124 words)