You’ve gotta love an astronomer who can reduce the history of the universe to 10 words, who tells us what he would weigh at the surface of the Sun and then feels obligated to add a footnote saying he would weigh more if his wife had just baked cookies.

Phil Plait has done it again. He has filled our plate (pun intended) with education and entertainment in the same inimitable style he perfected in his first book Bad Astronomy.

Every year, hundreds of critical thinkers converge on Las Vegas to attend the annual JREF conference, called The Amaz!ng Meeting (or TAM). In June 2008, almost 1000 people came to the sixth TAM and saw an array of fantastic speakers talking about science, skepticism, and rationality.

Note: There is an error in this article. Please read the note at the bottom.

Reader Greg Rochon took justifiable exception to an item he came upon, one that reminded me of a similar “job opportunity” entry we commented on back in 2000 – see www.randi.org/jr/04-04-2000.html, Category #2. Greg is annoyed at the naivety exhibited by the New York State Consumer Protection Board, who declare their goal thus:

The Consumer Protection Board, established in 1970 by the New York State Legislature, is the State's top consumer watchdog and "think tank." The CPB's core mission is to protect New Yorkers by publicizing unscrupulous and questionable business practices and product recalls; conducting investigations and hearings; enforcing the "Do Not Call Law"; researching issues; developing legislation; creating consumer education programs and materials; responding to individual marketplace complaints by securing voluntary agreements; and, representing the interests of consumers before the Public Service Commission (PSC) and other State and federal agencies.