In her talk 'I'm a ghost hunter, get me out of here!' Hayley will introduce you to the often confused & somewhat scary world of modern paranormal research where things really do go bump in the night...

Described as 'one of the sharpest and best sceptical commentators out there', Hayley Stevens has addressed international audiences about researching the paranormal as a non-believer. She is one of Britain’s most vocal skeptical paranormal researchers and has been actively investigating ghosts and monsters since her teens.

Hayley is a host for the Be Reasonable podcast alongside Michael Marshall, the two used to host the popular ‘Righteous Indignation Podcast’ together with Trystan Swale from 2009 until 2012. Hayley is also a founding writer for ‘The Heresy Club’, has written for the ASSAP Quarterly Newsletters, The Paranormal Magazine, Bladud Magazine, Skeptical Inquirer and The Skeptic Magazine among other books and websites, and is the creator of Project Barnum, a resource helping educate people about psychic trickery, and the Talk About Strange paranormal resource site.

Hayley also has her won personal blog, whic can be found here: http://hayleyisaghost.co.uk/

What has geology ever done for us? Where do you live, do you have a smartphone, can you afford to top up the petrol in your car, where does your energy come from? Geology plays a large part in all our lives. But how much do you know about what goes on under our feet? Most people have some experience of geology (usually from collecting crystals or fossils or being interested in dinosaurs as a child), but that doesn’t always help us to manage the big geological problems that we face daily. In fact, a little knowledge can often lead to some very....interesting ideas!

The debate over the safety of fracking is the best recent example of this problem. To frack or not to frack? What are the big issues here? Does your understanding of geology help you to ask the right questions?

Hazel started work in Australia as an engineering geologist, then spent some time as a ranger at Mount St Helen's in Washington State. Back in London she worked at the Natural History Museum as a Science Educator, talking to school groups and museum visitors about geology and earth sciences. She then worked as the Identification and Advisory Service Officer for Earth Sciences handling all the public enquiries; the 'dinosaur' discoveries, meteor-wrongs and all the amazing things that people discover. She is now working on a PhD in the public understanding of geology at Plymouth.

Nick Cohen speaks on freedom of speech, censorship and the need to offend.

From the fall of the Berlin Wall to the advert of the Web, everywhere you turn you are told that we live in age of unparalleled freedom. From the revolution in Iran that wasn't, to the Great Firewall of China and the imposition of super-injunctions from the filthy rich protecting their privacy, the traditional opponents of freedom of speech - religious fanaticism, plutocratic power and dictatorial states - are thriving, and in many respects finding the world a more comfortable place in the early 21st century than they did in the late 20th. We still live in a time where you can write a book and end up destroyed or dead.

Nick Cohen is a columnist for the Observer, and also writes Time, the Spectator, Standpoint and many other publications. He is the author of What's Left and Waiting for the Etonians.

His latest book is You Can't Read This Book: Censorship in an age of freedom examines the threats to free speech in the 21st century.

We will have copies available to buy on the night. Nick will be happy to sign copies.

Over the last 15 years anti-vaccinationism has become a familiar and destructive force within the U.K. and overseas. In 1998 a small, dubious, and ultimately discredited study alleging a link between the MMR vaccine and autism ignited media debate and public anxiety. Vaccine uptake fell, and outbreaks of previously rare diseases ensued. The science is clear: no such link exists. Yet anti-vaccinationism persists, fueled by conspiracy theories and personal fears. 

The fact that these claims have survived despite continual empirical refutation is hardly surprising given the long history of anti-vaccinationism; anti-vaccination movements sprang to life alongside the very first smallpox vaccine and have dogged the medical profession ever since. This talk will present a brief history of anti-vaccinationism, from the 18th Century to the present day.

Rob Brotherton is a doctoral candidate at Goldsmiths, University of London, where he was awarded an ESRC scholarship to carry out a PhD examining the psychology of conspiracy theories. Rob is Assistant Editor of The Skeptic (www.skeptic.org.uk) and blogs at www.ConspiracyPsych.com

Welcome to the world of sexed-up medicine, where patients have been turned into customers, and clinics and waiting rooms are jammed with healthy people, lured in to have their blood pressure taken and cholesterol, smear test, bowel or breast screening done.

In the world of sexed-up medicine pharmaceutical companies gloss over research they don’t like and charities often use dubious science and dodgy PR to ‘raise awareness’ of their disease, leaving a legacy of misinformation in their wake. Our obsession with screening swallows up the time of NHS staff and the money of healthy people who pay thousands to private companies for tests they don’t need. Meanwhile, the truly sick are left to wrestle with disjointed services and confusing options.

Explaining the truth behind the screening statistics and investigating the evidence behind the hype, Margaret McCartney, an award-winning writer and a GP in Glasgow. Her interests are risk,
screening, evidence, medical professionalism and ethics. She broadcasts for
Radio 4, writes for the BMJ and the lay press, blogs and tweets, bakes good cakes and is also a mother of 3.

We will have copies of The Patient Paradox for sale on the night at a discounted price from the publisher.

http://www.margaretmccartney.com/blog/

Join us for a  (minor) celebrity written Christmas pub quiz  - with rounds written by the QI ELves - with a cash prize for 1st place and spot prizes over the course of the evening. 

We will also have mince pies for everyone and your hosts will be wearing silly festive hats. 

Neil Denny is the producer and presenter of the Little Atoms Radio Show and podcast. Neil was the recipient of a Travelling Fellowship from the Winston Churchill Memorial Trust, and in May 2012 he embarked upon a month long, 6614 mile road trip across America. The aim of the trip was to produce a series of podcasts which present a wide-ranging overview of science and skepticism from an American perspective. While Many in Europe consider America to be the home of conspiracy theories, creationism and climate scepticism, the USA is also a scientific powerhouse.

However many of those involved in science in the US are also fighting encroaching irrationality. To be an atheist in America is still considered to be a brave and transgressive act. Creationists continue to push for the teaching of "intelligent design" alongside evolution in science classes. Campaigners are fighting to protect the right to legal and safe abortion, for the use of stem cells in medical research, and are fighting against the growing anti-vaccination movement.

Driving from San Francisco to Boston and calling in at Phoenix, Santa Fe, Chicago, Philadelphia and New York along the way, Neil recorded 39 interviews with scientists and science writers including Ann Druyan, Leonard Susskind, Kip Thorne, Priya Natarajan, Paul Davies, George Church, Neil Degrasse Tyson, Mary Roach, Edward Stone and Sara Seager. He recorded interviews at some major sites of scientific interest, including NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, The Los Alamos National Laboratory, and The American Museum of Natural History. He also spent a less scientific day visiting Kentucky’s Creation Museum. The podcasts from Neil’s trip can be found at the following website: http://feeds.feedburner.com/littleatomsroadtrip. Find out more about Little Atoms here: www.littleatoms.com, and follow Neil on Twitter @littleatoms.

 When Rhys Morgan was 15 years old and diagnosed with the painful condition Crohn's Disease, he logged on to a support forum - where he discovered that a very dangerous "miracle" cure was being peddled.

After doing some research, he discovered that forum members were being actively encouraged to drink "Miracle Mineral Solution" which turned out to be a solution of bleach, and to continue with this treatment even when they suffered resulting symptoms such as burning. Upon challenging its promoters, Rhys was banned from the forum.

You can read how that went here at "Bleachgate", and take a look at this list of links to see the results of Rhys's determination to get more knowledge out there. It went as far as to be banned in Kenya, and Rhys got on the BBC (twice), Wales Online, and won the James Randi 2010 award for "Grassroots Activism".

Since then, he has also written about the Burzynski Clinic in the US, which claims to treat cancer with "antineoplaston therapy". This resulted in a representative issuing libel threats and, upon learning that Rhys was a teenager, threatening to inform his school and sending him an image of his house. Similar threats were made to other UK bloggers (highlighting the need for libel reform in the UK), but none have yet been followed through. Rhys asks here in the Guardian why the Burzynski Clinic is unwilling to simply publish its methodology and results, rather than threatening its critics.

Rhys, now 17 (though he'll be 18 when he does the talk), plans to continue his campaigns against unproven and dangerous "miracle cures", and will be talking to us about both these episodes as well as a history of the "miracle cure". You can also catch up with him on his blog and follow him on Twitter at @rhysmorgan.

Wacky belief systems abound. Members of the Heavens Gate suicide cult believed they were taking a ride to heaven on board a UFO. Muslim suicide bombers expect to be greeted after death by 72 virgins. And many fundamentalist Christians insist the entire universe is just 6,000 years old. Of course its not only cults and religions that promote bizarre beliefs significant numbers of people believe that aliens built the pyramids. How do such preposterous views succeed in entrenching themselves in the minds of sane, intelligent, educated people and turn them into the willing slaves of claptrap?

Stephen Law is Senior Lecturer in Philosophy at Heythrop College, University of London. He has written several well-known introductions to philosophy, including the prize-winning The Philosophy Gym, and edits the Royal Institute of Philosophy journal THINK: Philosophy For Everyone. Stephen is Provost (or Head) of the new Centre For Inquiry in the U.K. [see www.cfiuk.org] - and puts on regular events. He was also commissioned by Oxford University Press to write their Very Short Introduction to Humanism.

His latest book is Believing Bullshit: How Not To Get Sucked Into An Intellectual Black Hole.

http://stephenlaw.blogspot.co.uk/

Conway Hall, Little Atoms and Skeptics in the Pub (out of the pub) Presents...

The World's Most Improbable Event

Expect a plethora of scientists, researchers, journalists and communicators explaining research on; why books on ethics are more likely to get stolen, what time of month generates higher tips for Las Vegas lap dancers, stories of how mice were outfitted with parachutes to find a better way to murder tree snakes in Guam, and Other WTF Research.

Confirmed speakers include:

Nick Doody: @NickDoody Stand up Comedian and The Atheist's Guide to Chrismas contributor, Michael Brooks:@DrMichaelBrooks Science Writer and Author of Free Radicals, Helen Arney:@HelenArney Science Songtress, Chloe Kembery: @chkchk Natural Historian, Timandra Harkness:@TimandraHarknesMathematician and science communicator,Gemma Arrowsmith:@Mmarrow actor and writer; Dr Helen Scales:@HelenScales Marine Biologist; Mo Costandi: @mocost Writer of Neurophilosophy for the Guardian, Alom Shaha:@alomshaha Physics teacher and author of The Young Atheist's Handbook, Simon Ings:@simonings Novelist and science author, Neil Denny: @littleatomsradio show producer and Winston Churchill Memorial Travelling Fellow, Alice Bell:@alicebell Science lecturer and communicator extraordinaire, Steve Colgan:@stevyncolgan QI contributor and Ex-Met Police 'Ninja',  Dr Stuart Clark: @DrStuClarkScience writer and novelist, Iszi Lawrence:@iszi_lawrence Comedian and writer, Dan Schreiber: @Schreiberland Ex-QI Elf and Producer of  BBC R4 The Museum of Curiosity, Helen Zaltzman:@helenzaltzmanWriter, speaker, autodidact, Aarathi Prasad:@AarathiPrasad Scientist and author, Helen Keen: @helen_keen Radio presenter and astro-tainer, and more who will probably turn up on the day.

Marc Abrahams is the editor of the parody magazine Annals of Improbable Research and the founder of the Ig Nobel Prizes, which honour bizarre, questionable, and downright funny scientific research and are presented at an annual ceremony at Harvard University. He has written for the Guardian, the New York Times, New Scientist, Scientific American, and newspapers and TV programmes internationally. 

14.00; £10, £7 concs and members

Tickets  can be purchased here: http://thisisimprobable.eventbrite.co.uk

WHAT?! To celebrate our programme's third birthday on September 15th - we're hosting a big event in central London - and we'd love it if you could join us!

We'll have an evening of interesting things featuring...

• Kate Russell from BBC Click
• Young Atheist Handbook Author Alom Shaha - not talking about his book, but performing some MAGIC.
• Guardian Blogger Martin Robbins on Why The Daily Mail Is Evil!
• Pod Delusion regular Drew Rae offering us some Risk Assessment for the Apocalypse!
• 'Skeptic' Magazine editor Deborah Hyde on the Psychology of the Supernatural!
• and fire scientist Claire Benson- who hopefully won't be burning down Conway Hall!
• ...with MORE to be announced!

WHERE?! The lovely folks at the, er, spiritual home of British secularism, Conway Hall are letting us put on the show in their massive hall. (Nearest Tube: Holborn (Central Line)

WHEN?! Starting at 7:30pm on the evening of Saturday September 15th - don't worry, we're planning this to not clash with the Secular Europe March if you're going on that. Doors from 7.

HOW?! Tickets are £5! http://poddelusion.eventbrite.co.uk/

How can children brought up in religious families reconcile the different 'truths' they are told about the world? And to what extent should we discuss these issues in schools: what exactly should science teachers say when asked about the 'truth' of science by religious students.

In this talk, Alom Shaha will describe his personal experiences growing up in a Bangladeshi Muslim community in London, what role his science education played in his journey towards atheism and how, as a Physics teacher, he responds to the apparent conflict between science and religion in the classroom.

Alom Shaha is a physics teacher, writer and science communicator. He is the author of The Young Atheist's Handbook.

http://alomshaha.com