Atheists Talk Cable Show - Video

Atheists Talk cable program by Minnesota Atheists. "Mormonism - Part 1" recorded 8/6/2007 Grant Steves interviews Bjorn Watland about Mormonism's practices and beliefs. Minnesota Atheists practices positive, inclusive, active, friendly neighborhood atheism in order to: - Provide a community for atheists - Educate the public about atheism - Promote separation of state and church http://www.mnatheists.org/

Atheists Talk cable program by Minnesota Atheists. "There Are No Ghosts in Your Brain - PZ Myers - Part 2" recorded 7/22/2007 "There Are No Ghosts in Your Brain: Materialist Explanations for the Mind and Religious Belief" P.Z. Myers, biologist at the University of Minnesota Morris, host of the website Pharyngula( http://scienceblogs.com/pharyngula/ ), and indefatigable defender of evolution, shares his expertise and insights on brain function, explaining how research into the brain reveals the evolutionary causes of religious belief. In P.Z. Myers's own words: "We've made great strides in the past century towards understanding the cellular and molecular mechanisms that drive brain function, and I will briefly present an overview of some of the major conclusions of that work. In short, though, what we have are sophisticated molecular regulators and sensors and effectors and modulators that generate patterned impulses in pathways throughout the brain, and the mind is ultimately reducible to highly organized chemistry—there's no room for ghosts, souls, or spirits, and no need for them, either. "Recently, researchers have made progress in identifying the neural substrates of higher level patterns of thought. This work is much more tentative, and we have to be aware of the limitations of our interpretations, which is a consequence of the complexity of the data. I will discuss one narrow aspect of this research, the neural basis of religious belief, and explanations for its evolution. Religious belief is an emergent consequence of much broader genetically determined properties of the brain; I will make the argument that there is no "god gene", no specific hard-coding of religion into human brains, and that religion itself is a kind of conceptual parasite that takes advantage of other desirable and even "virtuous" intrinsic qualities of the brain." P.Z. Myers is a biologist at the University of Minnesota, Morris. He has a BS degree from the University of Washington, where he studied the developing nervous system of the fruit fly and the histology of the mouse brain. His Ph.D. is from the Institute of Neuroscience at the University of Oregon, and his thesis was on the development of motor pathways in the spinal cord of the zebrafish. He has since done research on the assembly of the central nervous system of grasshoppers at the University of Utah, and the effect of birth defect causing agents on the developing brain at Temple University in Philadelphia. He is currently examining how genes and environment interact to shape behavior in fish. (Dr. Myers adds: "Fish, by the way, all seem to be atheists, and insects even more so.") Minnesota Atheists practices positive, inclusive, active, friendly neighborhood atheism in order to: - Provide a community for atheists - Educate the public about atheism - Promote separation of state and church http://www.mnatheists.org/

Atheists Talk cable program by Minnesota Atheists. "There Are No Ghosts in Your Brain - PZ Myers - Part 1" recorded 7/22/2007 "There Are No Ghosts in Your Brain: Materialist Explanations for the Mind and Religious Belief" P.Z. Myers, biologist at the University of Minnesota Morris, host of the website Pharyngula( http://scienceblogs.com/pharyngula/ ), and indefatigable defender of evolution, shares his expertise and insights on brain function, explaining how research into the brain reveals the evolutionary causes of religious belief. In P.Z. Myers's own words: "We've made great strides in the past century towards understanding the cellular and molecular mechanisms that drive brain function, and I will briefly present an overview of some of the major conclusions of that work. In short, though, what we have are sophisticated molecular regulators and sensors and effectors and modulators that generate patterned impulses in pathways throughout the brain, and the mind is ultimately reducible to highly organized chemistry—there's no room for ghosts, souls, or spirits, and no need for them, either. "Recently, researchers have made progress in identifying the neural substrates of higher level patterns of thought. This work is much more tentative, and we have to be aware of the limitations of our interpretations, which is a consequence of the complexity of the data. I will discuss one narrow aspect of this research, the neural basis of religious belief, and explanations for its evolution. Religious belief is an emergent consequence of much broader genetically determined properties of the brain; I will make the argument that there is no "god gene", no specific hard-coding of religion into human brains, and that religion itself is a kind of conceptual parasite that takes advantage of other desirable and even "virtuous" intrinsic qualities of the brain." P.Z. Myers is a biologist at the University of Minnesota, Morris. He has a BS degree from the University of Washington, where he studied the developing nervous system of the fruit fly and the histology of the mouse brain. His Ph.D. is from the Institute of Neuroscience at the University of Oregon, and his thesis was on the development of motor pathways in the spinal cord of the zebrafish. He has since done research on the assembly of the central nervous system of grasshoppers at the University of Utah, and the effect of birth defect causing agents on the developing brain at Temple University in Philadelphia. He is currently examining how genes and environment interact to shape behavior in fish. (Dr. Myers adds: "Fish, by the way, all seem to be atheists, and insects even more so.") Minnesota Atheists practices positive, inclusive, active, friendly neighborhood atheism in order to: - Provide a community for atheists - Educate the public about atheism - Promote separation of state and church http://www.mnatheists.org/

Atheist Talk cable program by Minnesota Atheists. "Abortion: Facts and Myths - Part 2" recorded 7/5/2007 Dr. Grant Steves interviews Tim Stanley on Facts & Myths about Abortion. Tim Stanley is the Senior Director for Government and Public Affairs for Planned Parenthood Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota. Minnesota Atheists practices positive, inclusive, active, friendly neighborhood atheism in order to: - Provide a community for atheists - Educate the public about atheism - Promote separation of state and church http://www.mnatheists.org/

Atheist Talk cable program by Minnesota Atheists. "Abortion: Facts and Myths - Part 1" recorded 7/5/2007 Dr. Grant Steves interviews Tim Stanley on Facts & Myths about Abortion. Tim Stanley is the Senior Director for Government and Public Affairs for Planned Parenthood Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota. Minnesota Atheists practices positive, inclusive, active, friendly neighborhood atheism in order to: - Provide a community for atheists - Educate the public about atheism - Promote separation of state and church http://www.mnatheists.org/

George Kane and Krisko Isackson discuss social implications of evolution.

Atheist Talk cable program by Minnesota Atheists. "Parenting Beyond Belief" recorded 5/20/2007 Dale McGowan and Stu Tanquist discuss the new book Dale edited, "Parenting Beyond Belief" at the May Minnesota Atheists membership meeting in Roseville, MN. Minnesota Atheists practices positive, inclusive, active, friendly neighborhood atheism in order to: - Provide a community for atheists - Educate the public about atheism - Promote separation of state and church http://www.mnatheists.org/

Atheist Talk cable program by Minnesota Atheists. "Day of Reason Cable Show" recorded 5/3/2007 George Kane and Steve Petersen discuss the Day of Reason held at the Minnesota State Capitol. Several of the speeches given at the capitol are reenacted. There is also video and audio of the event at the capitol available seperatly. Minnesota Atheists practices positive, inclusive, active, friendly neighborhood atheism in order to: - Provide a community for atheists - Educate the public about atheism - Promote separation of state and church http://www.mnatheists.org/

Atheist Talk cable program by Minnesota Atheists. "Day of Reason at the Minnesota State Capitol" recorded 5/3/2007 Minnesota Atheists held a Day of Reason at the Minnesota State Capitol on the same day as theists, mainly Christians, held a day of prayer on the front steps of the capitol building. This is a sampling of the speeches and quotes read in the rotunda. A separate podcast has the cable show about the event where several people re-read some of the speeches from earlier in the day. Minnesota Atheists practices positive, inclusive, active, friendly neighborhood atheism in order to: - Provide a community for atheists - Educate the public about atheism - Promote separation of state and church http://www.mnatheists.org/

Atheist Talk cable program by Minnesota Atheists. "Hemant Mehta: I Sold My Soul on eBay - Part 2" recorded 4/15/2007 Hemant Mehta speaks at a Minnesota Atheist meeting about his book "I Sold My Soul on eBay" and website http://www.friendlyatheist.com/ Minnesota Atheists practices positive, inclusive, active, friendly neighborhood atheism in order to: - Provide a community for atheists - Educate the public about atheism - Promote separation of state and church http://www.mnatheists.org/

Atheist Talk cable program by Minnesota Atheists. "Hemant Mehta: I Sold My Soul on eBay - Part 1" recorded 4/15/2007 Hemant Mehta speaks at a Minnesota Atheist meeting about his book "I Sold My Soul on eBay" and website http://www.friendlyatheist.com/ Minnesota Atheists practices positive, inclusive, active, friendly neighborhood atheism in order to: - Provide a community for atheists - Educate the public about atheism - Promote separation of state and church http://www.mnatheists.org/

Atheist Talk cable program by Minnesota Atheists. "Robert M. Price - Pagan Parallels to Christ - Part 2" recorded 3/31/2007 Robert M. Price gives a lecture on pagan parallels to Christ at a Minnesota Atheist Meeting. Minnesota Atheists practices positive, inclusive, active, friendly neighborhood atheism in order to: - Provide a community for atheists - Educate the public about atheism - Promote separation of state and church http://www.mnatheists.org/

Atheist Talk cable program by Minnesota Atheists. "Robert M. Price - Pagan Parallels to Christ - Part 1" recorded 3/31/2007 Robert M. Price gives a lecture on pagan parallels to Christ at a Minnesota Atheist Meeting. Minnesota Atheists practices positive, inclusive, active, friendly neighborhood atheism in order to: - Provide a community for atheists - Educate the public about atheism - Promote separation of state and church http://www.mnatheists.org/

Atheist Talk cable program by Minnesota Atheists. "Lori Lipman Brown" recorded 3/18/2007 Part 1 is the speech, Part 2 is the question/answer session. Lori Lipman Brown, the director and lobbyist for the Secular Coalition for America (SCA) discussed her lobbying for separation of church and state in Washington D.C. on behalf of atheists, humanists, and freethinkers. She also discussed U.S. Rep. Pete Stark, the first openly nontheistic member of the U.S. Congress. The Secular Coalition for America is made up of eight coalition members: American Humanist Association, Atheist Alliance International, Freedom From Religion Foundation, Institute for Humanist Studies, Military Association of Atheists and Freethinkers, Secular Student Alliance, Secular Web / Internet Infidels, and Society for Humanistic Judaism. For more information about Lori Lipman Brown and the Secular Coalition for America: Lori Lipman Brown Director and lobbyist Secular Coalition for America P.O. Box 53330 Washington D.C., 20009-9997 secular.org lori@secular.org (202) 299-1091 Minnesota Atheists practices positive, inclusive, active, friendly neighborhood atheism in order to: - Provide a community for atheists - Educate the public about atheism - Promote separation of state and church http://www.mnatheists.org/

Atheist Talk cable program by Minnesota Atheists. "Lori Lipman Brown" recorded 3/18/2007 Part 1 is the speech, Part 2 is the question/answer session. Lori Lipman Brown, the director and lobbyist for the Secular Coalition for America (SCA) discussed her lobbying for separation of church and state in Washington D.C. on behalf of atheists, humanists, and freethinkers. She also discussed U.S. Rep. Pete Stark, the first openly nontheistic member of the U.S. Congress. The Secular Coalition for America is made up of eight coalition members: American Humanist Association, Atheist Alliance International, Freedom From Religion Foundation, Institute for Humanist Studies, Military Association of Atheists and Freethinkers, Secular Student Alliance, Secular Web / Internet Infidels, and Society for Humanistic Judaism. For more information about Lori Lipman Brown and the Secular Coalition for America: Lori Lipman Brown Director and lobbyist Secular Coalition for America P.O. Box 53330 Washington D.C., 20009-9997 secular.org lori@secular.org (202) 299-1091 Minnesota Atheists practices positive, inclusive, active, friendly neighborhood atheism in order to: - Provide a community for atheists - Educate the public about atheism - Promote separation of state and church http://www.mnatheists.org/