Atheism and Science Fiction

An intriguing article by one of the less depressing SF authors I've read lately (Ken MacLeod).

He claims that most SF authors are not atheist, but I would like to see the numbers...

"If science is the theology of nature – with the wilder reaches of physics standing in for its scholastic philosophy – SF is its mythology, its folklore, its peasant superstition. Television, film, anime and computer games supply the statues and holy pictures, which (this time) really do move."

I'm not sure I agree.  SF is fairly low on the radar for most people (besides the occasional Hollywood blockbuster - which barely qualifies as SF).

Ars Against Rationalism

A quick post over at Ars, showing how susceptible the human mind is to being fooled.

"Prior to asking the actual number, Mlodinow had asked a question that subtly primed each group. For one half of the audience, he asked if they thought there were more than 180 countries in Africa; this group ended up with a much higher mean. The second half was asked if there were more than five. Their answers were, on average, too low. Although this was a case of conscious manipulation, it's easy to see how a similar effect could be generated accidentally, simply based on (for example) the order of questions in a survey."

Is Marriage Good for Society?

Digging way back into my queue, I found this from Team Pyro:

"The disappearance of marriage in low-income communities is the predominant cause of child poverty in the U.S. today."

Although it seems the battle is lost, there's lots more good data and Biblical arguments.  It's a must read.