Audio By Carbonatix
I have mixed feelings about psychologist, science writer, historian, founder of the Skeptics Society and editor of Skeptic magazine Michael Shermer. I respect his work: His numerous books and columns for Scientific American use reason and a touch of humor to refute everything from intelligent design to Holocaust deniers, and he’s a great advocate for free speech. After all, many people who uphold ridiculous claims are their own worst enemies; why not just let them talk their ideas into oblivion?
But I think it’s a little silly that Shermer tackles everything from the position of a skeptic — global warming, for instance, although he did admit in June 2006 that the accumulation of scientific evidence made his skepticism untenable. Call me naive or overly spiritual, but I just don’t think that every single phenomenon in this crazy universe of ours can be explained away using science alone.
Still, Shermer’s latest work, The Mind of the Market: Compassionate Apes, Competitive Humans, and Other Tales of Evolutionary Economics is bound to be just as thoughtful and complete as everything else he’s written — and you’re certain to learn something new when you read it. The author will read and sign the tome at the LoDo Tattered Cover, 1628 16th Street, tonight at 7:30 p.m. Visit www.tatteredcover.com or call 303-436-1070 for information.
Thu., Jan. 17, 2008
