Defending the cry for Open Access

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Graham Taylor, a director of academic, educational and professional publishing at the UK Publishers Association, writes an article in the UK’s Guardian today. Being a publisher, it should come as no surprise to learn that he is very much against those who are attacking the current model. His article is entitled, “Attacking publishers will not make open … Read more

NI inquiry needs legal teeth to investigate child abuse

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Amnesty International has issued a warning that a Northern Ireland government-led investigation into clerical child abuse may fail. Why? The problem is that within its annual global report on human rights, Amnesty has highlighted problems with the terms of the inquiry’s reference. “In September, the Northern Ireland executive announced proposals for the establishment of an … Read more

Daft Claim of the week: “God is just like air”!!

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The daft theist claim I have for you this week comes to you from a letter in Frederickburg.com … it reads … Atheists: Open your minds, ask questions I am writing in response to the letter from Dan Dormer [“What is an atheist?” May 15]. He said he doesn’t believe in God because he has … Read more

Alternative medicines can’t escape the long arm of the law

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Edzard Ernst is an impressive chap, not only is he a prize-winning physician, but he is also the founder of two medical journals. And if that is not enough, he was also the first chair in complementary medicine at the University of Exeter and is also the co-author of “Trick or Treatment? Alternative Medicine on … Read more

Coffee – lowers your risk of death

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Now here is some great news (for me), older adults who drank coffee — caffeinated or decaffeinated — had a lower risk of death overall than others who did not drink coffee. This all comes from a study by researchers from the National Cancer Institute (NCI), and that it turn is part of the National Institutes of … Read more

Richard Dawkins wants you to read the bible

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Richard Dawkins would like all children to read the bible … no really, he seriously does, and has an article in the UK’s Guardian today all about it. OK, so what is the story here? The context is that the UK’s Education Secretary, Michael Gove, cooked up a plan last year to send one copy of the King James … Read more