Stephen Law

I may well be in the US towards end of July up to mid-August 2011. If anyone has suggestions for events, activities, etc. get in touch. I will definitely be in NYC for a few days. My book A Very Short Introduction to Humanism (Oxford Univ Press) is out Feb and Believing Bullshit (Prometheus) will also be out by then.

I will be playing drums at The Half Moon Pub, St Clements, this Wednesday (24th Nov 2010), with Trish Elphinstone and some other guys. Mainstream jazz. 8.45pm. Will bring new snare obviously... Facebook page for pub here . Pub webpage .

Recently bought a Brady 5.5 x 14 jarrah ply snare. Oh my goodness - it's unbelievable (obviously this won't mean anything to most readers of this blog...) P.S. I used this snare at our first Heavy Dexters (jazz funk) gig at Wheatsheaf in Chinnor on Sat 20th.

I am very interested in being put in contact within anyone who knew George Osborne or did the same classes as Osborne during his first few months at Magdalen, Oxford.

I just recorded an hour-long conversation with Prof Alvin Plantinga, hosted by Justin Brierley, over at Premier Christian Radio. It was on Plantinga's Evolutionary Argument Against Naturalism. It will be broadcast on Saturday and will then be available as a podcast. P.S. Direct link: here . Just for the record, I am quite a fan of Plantinga's even though I disagree with him (obviously) on the God question. Was a very interesting conversation. You can judge for yourselves how it went... The easiest way for most people to listen will be by downloading the podcast from this website when it appears on Saturday afternoon (scroll down to "listen on demand" and find "Unbelievable? 13 Nov). It will be there permanently. One hour long. The discussion will also available on itunes (search podcasts for "unbelievable premier"). The discussion will actually be broadcast on Saturday 13th November, 2.30-4.00pm on Premier Christian Radio: London 1305, 1332, 1413 MW Na...

Chris French tests psychic Shirley Ghostman. Chris is pretty cool. He obviously realizes what's going on about halfway through final bit. Wootton interviewed elsewhere : Qu. What inspired you to create Shirley Ghostman? Wootton: A close friend lost someone dear and I went to see a psychic with them. Shirley came as a result of me witnessing what was going on. When you’re not the focus of the psychic’s attention, it’s very easy to see the truth of what they’re up to and it really got my back up. I became quite angry and couldn’t believe these charlatans go round ripping people off. I went to see a couple of the more famous psychics do their live performances. You have to admire their showmanship but it’s not fair to prey on people. Qu. Why did you call him Shirley? Any boy called Shirley must have been picked on at school and we wanted to give the character an unfortunate backstory because a lot of the celebrity psychics have had pretty depressing upbringings. That’s why they reinv...

Pinko Liberal gene discovered! I wonder if I have it? Ge here . My suspicion is we are actually mutants. Thanks to John Rathbone and Telegraph . Researchers have discovered that the "liberal gene" opens you up to new ideas and alternative lifestyles – and could influence your belief in left wing politics. The findings may mean that liberals are born not made – although it is exacerbated if you an individual is popular during his or her young formative years. The Liberal Gene is a "transmitter" in the brain called DRD4 which is connected to a chemical called dopamine, known as the reward currency of the brain. When those with the gene are socially outgoing they seek out and are "rewarded" by other people's points of view, far more than they might be without the gene. This suggests they are more open minded and tend to form less conventional political viewpoints as adults – especially if they have a socially active adolescence, says the study. The resear...