The reproducibility crisis in health and medical research
During the October's Gold Coast Skeptics in the Pub, Professor Adrian Barnett from School of Public Health and Social Work at QUT talks about how rewarding publication with "sexy" (read statistically significant) results over good science and the truth is costing the public both money and harm. It's clear from this talk that rewarding positive results and "new" and "innovative" findings only has lead to high levels of wastage in research. This is not to say that new and innov
Inside human evolution fossil remains
During the September's Gold Coast Skeptics in the Pub, Dr Renaud Joannes-Boyau (GARG, Southern Cross University) takes is on a fascinating 2 million year journey inside human evolution fossil remains. From the first evolutionary biologists, to deciphering stress lines on ancient humanoid teeth, we hear an overview of what we know so far about our humanoid ancestors and the signals they've left behind. Listen to Renaud's talk: click here; Q&A: click here Slides: click here Abo
Navigating colds, flus and other bugs: a guide for evidence based parents.
During the August's Gold Coast Skeptics in the Pub, Dr Amanda McCullough talks about the evidence behind the benefits (or lack there of) and harms of jumping straight to antibiotics for a quick cold or flu remedy. Of course there are circumstances where antibiotics should be taken, like when there is something serious going on like meningitis or pneumonia; however, in most cases of colds and flus the best remedy is waiting it out and rest. Before taking an antibiotic, Amanda
Deliberate Clinical Inertia in the Emergency Department – how ‘doing nothing’ can be the best option
Usually when we go to the doctor with a problem, we expect to get treatment - whether it be tests, a treatment, procedure, something - right? These expectations are only heightened when we go to the emergency room and we think, well we're here so we definitely need something - right?!! But what if the something (tests, medications, procedures, etc.) have higher risk of harm than benefit? What if the best thing is to do nothing? Dr Gerben Keijzers discusses deliberate clinical
Human origins in Sunda and Sahul.
During the May GC Skeptics in the Pub, Dr Michael Westaway gives a fascinating talk on human evolution in Australia and south east Asia and some of the latest discoveries that are changing the shape of our past, such as fossil evidence showing the emergence of modern humans to be far earlier that previously recorded and the importance of a strong relationship between researches and indigenous communities so they can continue to unearth and study these amazing fossils. Listen
Holistic Dentistry - poppycock or panacea?
During April's GC Skeptics in the Pub, Michael Foley take us on a journey through the not-so-wonderful world of woo that has infiltrated dentistry. From rectal ozone gas, to tooth meridians, homeopathy and the healing power of light, Michael discusses the evidence (or lack there of) behind these holistic dentistry practices. Listen to Michael's talk: click here Slides: click here About the speaker Dr Michael Foley (Senior Lecturer, Public health dentistry, The University of Q
The Obesity Paradox: Survival benefit or statistical fallacy?
During our March Gold Coast Skeptics in the Pub, the Diet Skeptic Mandy-Lee Noble explores the evidence behind the obesity paradox and why using crude measures such as weight and BMI are not necessarily the best predictors of health. She discusses why focusing on weight and BMI alone can not only cause significant stress but may not be evidence based. Instead, Mandy argues that we should be focusing on promoting healthy habits such as not smoking, regular exercise, healthy di
Darwin Day Celebration
On the 11th Feb we celebrated Darwin Day with the Brisbane Skeptical Society at the Moorooka Community Center. The mission of International Darwin Day is to inspire people throughout the globe to reflect and act on the principles of intellectual bravery, perpetual curiosity, scientific thinking, and hunger for truth as embodied in Charles Darwin The event was a great success with approximately 50 attendees coming to enjoy the free pizza and three fantastic speakers. We were a
Over-medicated? Why most pills are less useful than we assume.
Date: 27th Nov 2017
Speaker:Dr Justin Coleman (Brisbane GP, producer of GP Sceptics podcast, editor of Diabetes Management Journal, medical writer, senior lecturer Griffith University) Slides: N/A We as consumers need to be skeptical of the reported evidence for medicines and should be provided with information regarding treatment benefits, effectiveness and potential harms. Summary: During November's GC Skeptics in the Pub, we heard Dr Coleman's views on why the effectivenes
Sustainability and climate change - why is the science sidelined?
Speaker: Associate Professor Michael Howes (Griffith University) Title: Sustainability and climate change - why is the science sidelined? Slides: click here **This blog post has been inspired by A/Prof Howes presentation rather than a summary** There have been recent debates in parliament over Australia’s new climate policy. Carbon tax, energy target, blah blah – no matter what you call it, Australia has been lagging behind a number of other countries in tackling the global