Galileo annoyed the Pope by claiming certainty for his hypothesis.
Category: Latest News
Welcome to our archive of news stories relevant to the project of fighting fashionable nonsense. The stories are drawn from the electronic pages of the world’s media. On this page, you’ll find links to those stories that have been featured on Butterflies and Wheels during the current year. At the bottom of the page, you’ll find links to separate archives of stories from previous years.
We’re always pleased to hear about news stories that you think should be featured on Butterflies and Wheels. Just send an email here, if you want to point one out to us.
A note about links
Inevitably links go out of date. We suggest, therefore, that you make hard-copies of the stories that particularly interest you.
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Ibn Warraq and Why He Is Not a Muslim
His book ‘cuts against the ecumenical, feel-good vision of Islam as a “religion of peace”‘.
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‘Other’ or ‘other’?
Christopher Hitchens has some reservations about Edward Said’s Orientalism.
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Fired for Refusing to Inflate Grades
Brooklyn College English professor removed from classroom for…attitude?
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Intersection of Discovery and Sales
Confusion of health and fashion concerns in study of obesity research.
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Peer Review Before Press Release
‘If the MMR and autism paper had been looked at by serious statisticians, it would never have been published.’
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Literary Reputation and its Discontents
Why is everyone so eager to rubbish Martin Amis?
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Clash of Cutlery
Knives, hatchets – it’s the Guardian on the Booker prize long list.
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Politics Was Rough in the 1790s, Too
And politicians were occasionally greedy and ambitious then.
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Breakthrough for ‘Trans-national’ Legal Perspective
US Supreme Court is considering entities like the European Court of Human Rights in its decisions.
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Students Opt For Easier Subjects
We need math, science and language students, but we’re getting television students.
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Congratulation or Denigration?
Do higher A-level pass rates mean better students or dumbed-down exams?
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Science and Islam
‘a minimum amount of freedom is necessary for the advancement of science, for the advancement of thought.’
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Un-Victorian Uppityness
Mill’s ‘On Liberty’ has more to do with unchained minds than unfettered possessions.
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Martin Amis Unlikely to be Nominated
So also (not surprisingly) unlikely to win.
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Freedom of Inquiry
Accusations that ideology is shaping research require evidence.
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Publishing by Press Conference
‘Stories that get into the media that haven’t been properly reviewed can do enormous damage.’
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Dispute Over GM Contamination
Doubts about evidence, peer review, disagreement – nobody said science was easy.
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‘Platonic Physics’ Not a Good Idea
Theories must be tested by experiment or else they are just fashion.
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Cultural Relativism of Human Rights
‘What is usually defined as the culture of a people is in reality the interpretation and discourse put forth by the ruling class…’