So I am trying to find possible groups interested in science meeting up in NJ and my friend suggests this site called meetup.com. So I type in my zip code and ask the site to find people or groups interested in "science" within 25 miles. Among the twenty or so hits are included "The NY/NJ group for parents with science careers" (11 members) and "Red Bank Life Science Discussion Group" (4 members). Good for them, but almost everything else includes things like
The Monroe Township Law of Attraction Meetup Group (28 members)
Princeton NJ ~Tantra Awakening ~The Art Of Conscious Loving (42 members)
Princeton Holistic Clinic (98 members)
The Central New Jersey Astrology Meetup Group (6 members)
The Healers' Guild (37 'adepts')
Both the predominance of these groups and their member counts indicate that the 5+ years that I spent learning and doing science in graduate school were futile after all. But at least it does seem that we are catching up with astrology.
Those 5+ years weren't futile. You just need to figure out how to parlay that into some fantastic pseudoscience (heavy on the 'pseudo') group or religion that caters to the lost and ignorant. If you ignore ethics you could even make some money.
ReplyDeleteYour in Jersey now. If this is the wierdest thing you encounter, you are doing pretty good.
ReplyDeleteI have to say, for all the stuff I hate about Jersey, the bagles and porkroll is pretty good.
Correct, now I get a PhD. education in the much neglected "pseudo" part. Still have to sample the porkroll though.
ReplyDeleteIt is my strong belief that misinformation grows faster than education. Great tools as the internet can work both ways, but the brain of most people may not. I think we are spiraling back into some sort of "dark ages" (if you may) in which most people will become even more superstitious than they are now. The day of the baby boomers are gone; kids today don't dream of becoming astronauts; arguments aren't ended with the words 'it was scientifically proved that..' The problem becomes even bigger when science blends in this kind of (at least to me)bogus thinking (see my post joaquinbarroso.wordpress.com/2009/05/18/christchem/)
ReplyDeleteAlthough teaching is not my thing (at all) I believe what we need in this world is education, education, education.
PS Good luck in Princeton
I agree. Scientific reasoning or even logical, fact-based reasoning is increasingly not thought of as "cool". People like Deepak Chopra continue to prevail.
ReplyDelete