Alison Campbell • Jan 16, 2019 •
Every so often there’s a new story claiming that a study has overturned our understanding of human evolution. (Or something along those lines.) I’ve just come across another one**, & thought I’d write this post as a warning to year 13 biology students. As Carl Sagan once said, extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence – something that’s lacking in this particular … Read More
Alison Campbell • Jun 27, 2018 •
I met with a local biology teacher today to talk about setting up a Schol Bio preparation day in the Waikato, and we also discussed things like the need for critical thinking skills (in addition to a solid base of knowledge from students’ year 12 & year 13 studies and time spent in reading more widely around the subject). So … Read More
Alison Campbell • Jun 13, 2018 •
I was idly skimming the Herald’s website when I came across an article with the headline “Is plant medicine really that effective?” Since the article appears to be in the nature of an advertorial, the answer is, it depends on who you ask. Unlike man-made chemical drugs that have been developed as novel medicines from the 19th century onwards, plant medicines … Read More
Alison Campbell • Jun 06, 2018 •
I subscribe to the Tertiary Insight newsletter (a great way to keep up with news of what’s happening in the tertiary sector). Yesterday’s edition included a statement (& a link) about the NZQA’s decision to cancel the registration of the Aromaflex Academy. It seems that this Private Training Establishment (PTE) was placed under strict conditions in January 2018, & … Read More
Alison Campbell • Jun 03, 2018 •
I’m starting to gear up for some Schol Bio preparation days in the regions (hi, Hawkes Bay! See you in 4 weeks!) and realised that I haven’t written anything specifically focused on those exams for a while. So I thought that putting something together would be a good way to spend a rather wet Sunday. At these days we usually … Read More
Alison Campbell • May 10, 2018 •
A couple of days ago I had a chat with a journalist that resulted in my being quoted – along with Dr Shaun Holt – in this story about purveyors of Kangen water. If you believe the hype, this stuff cures a wide range of ailments & leaves you bright-eyed & bushy-tailed. IF… but sadly, these days personal anecdote … Read More
Guest Author • Apr 19, 2017 •
By Peter Ellerton, The University of Queensland Which is more important, a fact or an opinion on any given subject? It might be tempting to say the fact. But not so fast… Lately, we find ourselves lamenting the post-truth world, in which facts seem no more important than opinions, and sometimes less so. We also tend … Read More
Ken Perrott • Jan 25, 2017 •
Maybe just a small lesson – but an important one. We should always look at context and not cherry-pick that which confirms our bias. In particular, we shouldn’t simply repeat social media claims without doing a bit of fact-checking for ourselves. It’s an important lesson at the moment because there is a lot of this going on in the social … Read More
Ken Perrott • Jan 09, 2017 •
All this talk about fake news brings to my mind a picture of people in glass houses frantically throwing stones. The fact is that many of those complaining about fake news, especially those dominating our mainstream media, are guilty of promoting fake news – and have done it for years. I can’t help thinking what really upsets them, is that … Read More
Guest Author • Feb 01, 2016 •
Peter Ellerton, The University of Queensland Belief in a flat Earth seems a bit like the attempt to eradicate polio – just when you think it’s gone, a pocket of resistance appears. But the “flat Earthers” have always been with us; it’s just that they usually operate under the radar of public awareness. Now the rapper … Read More