The Skeptic Zone #854 - 16.February.2025

0:00:00 Introduction Richard Saunders 00:04:22 What If? What if "Psychics" really were psychic? What if "Diviners" really could find water? What if people could really predict the future? What would the world be like if these strange claims are actually true? Richard Saunders poses a few thought experiments. 0:13:10 Chat GPT - The Play - Penny's Adventures #3 We asked Chat GPT to write part #3 of the misadventures of psychic Penny and the Galactic Federation. Joining Richard Saunders in this segment, playing the parts of a psychic and aliens, are Kat McLeod, Adrienne Hill, Lara Benham and Maynard. 0:19:20 VR Skeptics Lara Benham, Adrienne Hill, Ross Blocher and Richard Saunders enjoy a little virtual reality golf and chat about the upcoming Skeptoid Cruise to the Bermuda Triangle. 0:24:30 Australian Skeptics Newsletter What skeptical news has caught the eye of Tim Mendham this week? Read by Adrienne Hill. http://www.skeptics.com.au 0:35:52 The TROVE Archives A wander through the decades of digitised Australian newspapers on a search for references to Paranormal Politics. 1995.03.22 - The Canberra Times 1940.05.15 - The Manning Times 1993.12.27 - The Canberra Times http://www.trove.nla.gov.au Also Kat McLeod on Why Smart Women https://www.buzzsprout.com/2385970/episodes/16592626-what-happened-to-kat Richard Saunders' talk. Psychic Detectives : False Trails. https://youtu.be/pfAntkVFxcs

Om Podcasten

The Podcast from Australia for Science and Reason. Join Richard Saunders and his team of reporters for your weekly dose of skeptical news and interviews, reports and comments. Past guests have included, James Randi, Stephen Fry, Tim Minchin, Eugenie Scott, Dr Phil Plait, Michael Marshall, Dr Steve Novella, Dr Pamela Gay, Jon Ronson, Dr Ben Goldacre, Simon Singh, Prof. Richard Wiseman, Dick Smith, Banachek, Prof. Chris French, George Hrab, Tim Ferguson, Dr Paul Willis and many, many more. Featuring Australian radio legend Maynard with his Spooky Action, Jo Alabaster from the 'Evidence Please' blog, Eran Segev's Grain of Salt, Dr Rachael Dunlop with 'Dr Rachie Reports' and Heidi Robertson aka 'The Raw Skeptic'.