The Final Explosion 

by Phil Plait, Ph.D. 

April 19, 2011, 7:00 PM

Education Building Room 220

University of Colorado, Boulder Campus 

A lot of people think skepticism is about denial, but that's not true at all: it's about doubt. Asking for evidence, examining that evidence critically, and drawing a conclusion. But how can we be certain we're right? No matter how positive we are, do we have to leave *some* room for doubt, no matter how small? In "The Final Epsilon" I talk about certainty versus doubt, and when it's OK to have both.

Phil is an American astronomer and skeptic who authors the Discover blog, Bad Astronomy as well as the older site, BadAstronomy.com. He received his Ph.D. in astronomy from the University of Virginia in 1994 with a thesis on SN 1987A. He first worked with the COBE satellite and then with the STIS on the Hubble Space Telescope for five years. He was President of the James Randi Education Foundation from 2008 to 2010. He is also the author of two superb books, Bad Astronomy and Death From the Skies!, the latter of which the Discovery Channel adopted for a TV series called Phil Plait's Bad Universe. He is a major figure in the skeptical community and spouts skepticism, reason, and measured criticism like it's his job. We [the CU Boulder Secular Students and Skeptics Society] are certainly lucky to have him!