For those that regularly come to the site for news and info, you might have noticed it's been rather stagnant for a while. For that, we apologize. To be perfectly honest, we've been too busy with other things to update the site for a while. We have 1 person that does the website, as well as our Meetup.com page, the 2 Facebook pages, the Oklahoma Skeptical Media page, as well as their own podcast and related social media. They also have a full time job, a family to help take care of, other family obligations, finding speakers for the SiTP meetings, and other life issues. That's not to say that we don't value everyone that comes to this site. We do appreciate everyone that visits, but in the course of other things, it becomes a matter of "I can update that later". Also, with as little interaction as we get from people on this site, it does get forgotten even by us. (Hint- you can always leave a comment, contact us, or even leave a blog post on here) We will try harder to keep the site current in the future and to make improvements so that your visit here is more enjoyable. We also realize that it has gotten rather clunky and difficult to navigate, so we are trying to fix that as well. So please bear with us, and in the mean time, feel free to join our Meetup group, or like us on Facebook.
As is fitting for our October Skeptics in the Pub event, our speaker, L.C. Mogle, will be presenting her talk titled "Briefing on Paranormal Investigations and Ghost Hunting" with a Q&A afterwards. As always, children and families are welcome. Please RSVP either by using the Contact Us form on the right, or by emailing [email protected]
Due to circumstances beyond our control, Debbie Lobdell Brooks has been rescheduled for our September SiTP. Her talk is titled "American Gladiators" and will be discussing Tramautic Brain Injuries. Please RSVP if you're interested in attending through our "Contact Us" button. It will be on Sept. 12th, from 7-9 PM at Picasso Cafe in Oklahoma City.
For the August 8th Skeptics in the Pub, OKSS member Debbie Lobdell Brooks, Ed.D, will be presenting her talk entitled "American Gladiators" on the subject of TBI (Tramautic Brain Injury) As always, children and families are welcome. For more information, or to RSVP, you can use the Contact Us form. As usual, it will be held at Picasso Cafe in Oklahoma City from 7-9 PM.
Thank you to everyone that came out to hear Dr. Shufran talk, and meet her little friends. For the month of June, our speaker will be OKSS member Huma Imran. She will be giving a talk titled "Apostasy in Islam". This is a different sort of talk from what we've had in the past, but it promises to be interesting. To RSVP, either use the "Contact Us" form, or email [email protected] As always, children and families are welcome. It will be on June 13th at Picasso Cafe, from 7-9 PM.
For our May Skeptics in the Pub, we will be having Dr. Andrine Shufran, Insect Adventure Coordinator from O.S.U. presenting her talk, "To Bee or not to Bee?". As usual, it will be at Picasso Cafe on Oklahoma City, from 7-9 PM. Please RSVP so we can make sure that there will be space for everyone.
April is going to be an interesting month for OKSS. First, for our SiTP on the 11th, we have Cindy Ruffin of Camp Quest, who will be giving a talk about Camp Quest, and the opportunities and activities it provides for children age 8-17. This will also be a fundraiser for them, so we will also have donation jars out to help raise money for them. Children and families are welcome to attend. As usual, it will be at Picassos Cafe in Oklahoma City, from 7-9 PM (See the Calendar for all the info). We do ask that you RSVP so we can make sure that there is enough room for everyone. For more info, or to RSVP, either use the Contact Us form, or you can email [email protected]
As well, OKSS member Dr. Caleb Lack will be having a book launch party for his newest book, "Critical Thinking, Science, and Pseudoscience. Why we can't Trust our Brains". This will be on April 30th starting at 7 PM (the doors open at 6:30) at the UCO Education Building. Once again for more info, or to RSVP, you can either use the Contact Us form, or email [email protected]
We know it's been a while since we've updated anything on the site, and we are very sorry about that. It's been a bit hectic lately, so we honestly haven't had much free time to devote to the site. But, we are still going strong, and we have speakers lined up for the next few months for our on-going SiTP's at Picasso's Cafe in Oklahoma City. In fact, on November 9th, 2015, for the monthly meeting of the Oklahoma Skeptics Society, we will be featuring a talk from James McGirk titled "A Walk in the Woods: On the North American Wood Ape alleged to Reside in the Ouachita Mountains." James McGirk is an Instructor in English at Northeastern State University and author of A GRAND THEORY OF EVERYTHING. Should be interesting, and a continuation of our recent run on Sasquatch. Please RSVP, and we hope to see everyone there!
Sorry for the lack of updates recently. We really do try and keep the page updated, but due to other constraints, we can't always seem to find the time. If anyone is interested in helping to run this website, be sure to contact us and we'll work out the details. On July 13th, we will be having an SiTP at Picassos Cafe in Oklahoma City. Please RSVP if you are planning on going. There is a possibility that we will be having a speaker at this one, and we do have a speaker (Chris Todaro, Bigfoot researcher) lined up for a second meeting on July 29th at Hillbillies. This one will be very limited in terms of seating, so please go to Meetup.com and join us there to reserve your seat.
On April 13th, 2015, we'll be having a Skeptics in the Pub at Picasso's Cafe in Oklahoma City. This is going to be a casual get together so we can socialize, discuss projects and ideas. Please RSVP either through the Meetup group page or one of the Facebook pages. Hope to see everyone there!
On February 9th, 2015, Damion Reinhardt will be giving a talk entitled "Qualitative Fails" at Picasso Cafe in Oklahoma City. Please RSVP if you plan on attending.
Thank you to Dr. Michael Lewchuk for coming out to talk to us on December 8th. For those that missed it, there is an article on Red Dirt Report you can read. You can click here to find his article, and be sure to let them know what you think of it.
On December 8th, 2014, Dr. Lewchuk will be speaking to the Oklahoma Skeptics Society on the topic of frakking. His talk is titled "Hydrocarbon Exploration and Earthquakes: Frack and Fiction" It will be held at Picasso's Cafe from 7-9. Please RSVP either on the Meetup.com page or send, use the Contact Us form or you can send us an email. Please RSVP by December 6th so we can make sure there is room for everyone.
Thanks to everyone that came out on the 10th to hear Dr. Farha speak. It was a lot of fun, and he seemed impressed by the number of folks that turned out. Next month we have Dr. Lewchuk coming to speak about fraking and earthquakes, so be sure to let us know if you're going to be there.
On November 10th at Picasso's Cafe in OKC, the Oklahoma Skeptics Society will be hosting Dr. Bryan Farha. Dr Farha will be discussing his book "Pseudoscience and Deception: The Smoke and Mirrors of paranormal Claims"
Also, we've gotten the store updated with Jason Walkup's design added. We now have 3 designs on around 200 items ranging from drinkware to baby clothes to pajamas and of course the normal shirts, buttons, etc. Go check it out and let me know if there is anything else we should add. The stores address is http://www.cafepress.com/OklahomaSkepticsSociety. We don't get much per item (it averages out to less than a dollar on most items) but every purchase serves 2 purposes, the first is advertising, and the second is that it will help fund activities in the future.
Thank you to Dr. Steve Price for coming out and talking to the Oklahoma Skeptics Society. It was an interesting talk and the discussion during and afterwards was very fun. For more of Dr. Price, you can read his blog HERE
The topic for the October Skeptics in the Pub will be on GMOs. Dr. Steve Price of O.S.U. will be giving a talk on GMO's titled "The plant genetic engineering controversy: pay attention to the rats” These events are open to the public and children are welcome. We do ask that you R.S.V.P. either through the Meetup.com page, using the contact us page here on the website, or by emailing [email protected] to make sure that there will be enough space.
OKSS finally has a product store! The link is here! Remember, every purchase goes to fund our activities and equipment. Look through the store, and if there are items you'd like to see us offer, or if you find a dead link, let us know.
Due to technical difficulties, we were unable to announce the September SiTP topic and speaker here beforehand.
Thank you to everyone that came to the September Skeptics in the Pub to hear Ellen Pogemiller's talk on vaccinations. If you're interested in volunteering, you can contact her at the Oklahoma County Immunization Coalition to get the details. In the next few months, we've got more interesting speakers lined up, so be sure to register with the site, or join the FaceBook page to stay informed on our upcoming events.
Due to scheduling conflicts, the October meeting will be on Monday, October 20th, at Picasso Cafe from 7-9 pm.
Thank you to everyone that made it out last night for the Skeptics in the Pub. We've got a few announcements to make. The first is that we are going to be changing websites, and as soon as that is finalized, we'll put the appropriate links. Secondly, we are accepting submissions for designs to go onto OKSS merchandise. You can go to the FaceBook page to submit a design. We'll accept them until Monday August 18th. After that, we'll allow everyone to vote on their favorite.
Here is an article written about the June Skeptics in the Pub with Dr. Caleb Lack. Thank you to Kellye Tallent for the write up. We are also looking for future speakers, so if you know of anyone that might be interested, let us know. Finally, we are still looking for volunteers for an all ages Skeptics in the Park event. We need coordinators, workers, photographers, etc.
The next Oklahoma member of the skeptical community that we're featuring in Dr. Bryan Farha. Dr. Farha has written numerous articles for Skeptical Inquirer, Skeptic, The Huffington Post, and various other media sources. To purchase Dr. Farhas books, click HERE. We hope to have more notable or new authors in the coming months.
We are going to begin a new feature on the website where we promote skeptics in Oklahoma that have written blogs, books, papers, or articles. We will put links to their articles or papers so people can find them and see what Oklahoma Skeptics are up to. We will also put links to their books so people can purchase them and help support the various skeptics in Oklahoma. The first one is Dr. Caleb Lack. To purchase Dr. Lacks book, click HERE. He also writes at Skeptic Ink under The Great Plains Skeptic and you can find him HERE.
Thank you to Dr. Caleb Lack for coming and speaking to OKSS at Picasso Cafe on June 9th. It was an excellent talk, which he should have video of it up soon. As well, it was great to meet the UCO Skeptics, as well as members of some of the other critical thinking, secular, and atheist groups.
June 2014 Skeptics in the Pub: Dr. Caleb Lack
On Monday June 9th, OKSS will be having our Skeptics in the Pub event from 7-9 p.m. at Picasso Cafe, 3009 Paseo St. Oklahoma City Ok. Our guest speaker will be Dr Caleb Lack, adviser to the UCO Skeptics, author of the "Great Plains Skeptic" blog at the Skeptic Ink Network, and the author of more than 3 dozen scientific publications concerning the assessment and treatment of various psychological disorders. His talk is titled "Sharpening & Leveling - How good communication leads you away from the truth". Dr. Lack will have copies of his latest books available for purchase. Prices range from $13-$30, depending on which one. He has also agreed to sign anyone's copy of one of his books. If you would like to attend, either contact us using the "Contact Us" form, email to [email protected], and be sure to put June SITP in the heading, or go to the Meetup.com link here to R.S.V.P. so we can be sure that there is enough room for everyone. Hope to see you there!
Thank you to Dr. Bryan Farha for taking the time to come and talk to OKSS. It was an excellent talk, and everyone really enjoyed it. It was also great to meet more people interested in skepticism and skeptical activism.
We are currently planning a trip to one of the O.P.E.R.A. fairs that happen in Oklahoma City. The next one is in July, so if you are interested in going with us, contact us and let us know. We will also be working on the Skeptics in the Park all ages event coming up in a few months. Anyone interested in volunteering, let us know by either using the "contact us" form, or email to [email protected] Just be sure to put skeptics in the park in the subject line.
April 2014 Skeptics in the Pub: Dr. Bryan Farha
On Monday April 14th, 2014, OKSS will be having a Skeptics in the Pub event. It will be from 7-9 PM, as usual, at Picasso Cafe 3009 Paseo St. Oklahoma City Ok. Our guest will be Dr. Bryan Farha, who has written articles for both Skeptic and Skeptical Inquirer magazines, as well as appearing in The Huffington Post. He has also edited 2 books, "Paranormal Claims: A Critical Analysis" and "Pseudoscience and Deception: The Smoke and Mirrors of Paranormal Claims" Dr. Farha's talk is titled "Extraordinary Claims: Simple Testing Methods to Uncover the Truth". I hope everyone can join us for this event. His book can be found here. For more information, or to let us know you'll be attending, either use the "contact us" form or email [email protected] and be sure to put April SITP in the subject line.
March 2014 Skeptics in the Pub: Bigfoot
Thank you to everyone that came out to Picasso Cafe on March 10th to hear Chris Todaro speak about Bigfoot. It looks like everyone had a good time. There were quite a few questions posed and it was an overall good discussion. Thank you again to Chris todaro for taking the time to come and speak to the Oklahoma Skeptics Society. There are a few pictures up in the Photo gallery, and hopefully, we'll have some more soon, as well as video. We should also have information concerning the next speaker soon, so check back often as be sure to look at our calendar of up-coming events.
Skeptics in the Pub for March
The next OKSS Skeptics in the Pub is going to be Monday March 10th from 7-9 p.m. It will be held at Picasso Cafe, 3009 Paseo St. Oklahoma City OK. The guest speaker is going to be Chris Todaro. Chris is a local Bigfoot investigator and he is going to be presenting his evidence for the existence of the creature. After his talk, there is going to be a Q&A period. We expect this to be a very interesting meeting. Everyone is welcome to attend. We recommend listening to the Monster Talk podcast before the meeting, which you can find either at their website or on itunes. Blake Smith and guests do a good job of discussing cryptids and their existence from a very rational approach. They also talk about quite a few that you may not have heard of before. Go check them out, and let them know we sent you! If you plan on attending, please email [email protected] so we can make sure that there is enough room for everyone interested.
Member shirts will soon be available. If you're interested, contact us and we will give you the details.
Happy Darwin Day everyone! Today is the 205th anniversary of his birth. Today is also Lincoln's birthday, the unofficial Right to Marry Day, and the feast days of Martyrs of Abitinae
Damian of Alexandria, and Julian the Hospitaller.
Skeptics in the Pub for Monday January 13th
On Monday January 13th, we had a small Skeptics in the Pub. The topic was on conspiracy theories, what they are, why they exist, and why they persist. We were fortunate to be joined by Lisa DelCol, a reporter from Reddirtreport.com. You can read her article here. The meeting was fun, though the attendance could have been better. Thank you to everyone that joined in on the conversation. The next meeting is going to be in March and the speaker is Chris Todaro, a local bigfooter, who will be presenting his evidence for the existence of sasquatch.