16 May 2022
I was interested to read an article about the unexpected death of babies. This used to be called Cot Death, but is now referred to as Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS). There's also a broader term Sudden Unexpected Death in Infancy (SUDI) - which encompasses SIDS but also includes sleeping accidents.
13 September 2021
I've written in the past about Sue Grey, the lawyer and past candidate for The Outdoors Party. She's an out and out conspiracy theorist and her Facebook page is a magnet for the most rabid anti-vaxxers.
5 July 2021
Welcome to the NZ Skeptics newsletter.
23 November 2020
The world continues to be gripped by the COVID pandemic. Given that most of us are unable to travel internationally it's difficult to experience first-hand exactly how the rest of the world is operating. Cases continue to rise at an alarming rate. My favourite site for watching the stats is the Worldometers site.
4 November 2018
Asia Bibi, who has been on death row in Pakistan for blasphemy for nearly 10 years, has been acquitted this week. Unsurprisingly, this is far from the end of her troubles.
1 August 2018
I've been following Astro Katie on twitter for a while, as I enjoy it when she replies to people who seem to display a lack of understanding of astrophysics, which allows me to enjoy how amazing she is at describing astrophysics.
21 February 2016
Antonin Scalia, a conservative Supreme Court judge in the US, died this week at age 79. Scalia took some strange legal views in his time, such as this one on evolution:
1 May 2005
The Scottish border city of Carlisle says a stone artwork commissioned to mark the millennium has brought floods, pestilence and sporting humiliation, but an unlikely white knight is riding to their rescue (Dominion Post, 10 March). The Cursing Stone is a 14-tonne granite rock inscribed with an ancient curse against robbers, but since it was put in a city museum in 2001 the region has been plagued by foot and mouth disease, a devastating flood and factory closures. Perhaps worst of all, the Carlisle United soccer team has dropped a division.
1 May 2003
These are nervous times. By an astounding coincidence, as I wrote that line and paused to think of what to put next, I had a call from a friend to tell me there was a Sars case at the Waikato Hospital and to ask whether, in my other role as a subeditor at the Waikato Times, I would want to pass that on.
1 May 2001
Recently returned from a posting in Saudi Arabia and now suffering from a cold and a bleeding nose, John Welch continues his column on medical matters.
1 May 2000
It's a great privilege to have known Eileen, her warmth, her wit and her sharp mind undimmed by her failing health. In the last few years, when she might forget the word for something, she knew what she wanted to say about it.
1 May 2000
Remember the '90s? It was the decade when:
1 August 1997
THE committee notes with sadness the sudden death of George Errington. George and his wife Helen joined NZCSICOP in 1986 and have been active, enthusiastic members. He was a "behind the scenes" worker who shunned the limelight. For that reason, his loss is perhaps particularly keenly felt by the Secretary; he gave his time and creative and engineering skills generously to the increasingly onerous task of preparing this newsletter for distribution. His last contribution to the New Zealand Skeptics was to assist in devising a new system for managing our growing membership and subscription list. He will be greatly missed.
1 November 1993
A jury which in August ordered the Christian Science church to pay $US5.2 million ($NZ9.6 million) in damages in the diabetes death of an 11-year-old boy followed this by adding a further $US9 million in punitive damages.
1 February 1992
Gentlemen attending the most recent Christchurch meeting of NZCSICOP unselfishly agreed to give of their all for their country. They have member Lawrence Livingstone to thank for the suggestion.
1 February 1992
WELLINGTON (PA) — The death of a 5-month-old baby had uncovered an appalling picture of a parent's belief in homeopathic medicine, a coroner said.