The Skeptics Society & Skeptic magazine

In Science Salon # 79 Michael Shermer speaks with former dean of Yale Law School Anthony Kronman about his new book The Assault on American Excellence; PLUS psychologist John Glynn explores one of the most perplexing aspects of human behavior: why does anyone die by suicide?

The former dean of Yale Law School argues that the feverish egalitarianism gripping college campuses today is out of place at institutions whose job is to prepare citizens to live in a vibrant democracy. Where many see only the suppression of free speech, the babying of students, and the drive to bury the imperfect parts of our history, Kronman recognizes in these on-campus clashes a threat to our democracy.

In this riveting review of the campus craziness investigative journalist, writer, and lawyer Heather Mac Donald and Michael Shermer dive deep into the root causes of what has gone wrong on college campuses, in corporations, and in government agencies, over the decades that has led to a crisis in higher education … and beyond.

What will people look like centuries from now? How will they act? What race and gender roles that we take as natural today will be the same or different in the far future? In this insightful look into the future Carol Tavris, one of today’s most prominent social scientists and psychologists, considers how blinded we all are to the influences of the times in which we live.

In this week’s eSkeptic, Susan Carol Losh, Ph.D. responds to an earlier eSkeptic (“Sex, Brains & Hands — Gender Differences in Cognitive Abilities” by Diane Halpern, Tuesday, March 15th, 2005) with a letter titled “Mr. Summers’ Hidden Agenda: Women, Men & the 80-Hour Work Week.”

In this week’s eSkeptic, Dr. Diane Halpern delves into the science of gender differences in her article “Sex, Brains & Hands — Gender Differences in Cognitive Abilities.”