Name Droppings of a Skeptic – TAM 6

Wham Bam Thank you TAM!

The Amaz!ng Meeting is over for another year, and what an amazing Amaz!ng meeting it was!

Keynote speaker Dr. Neil deGrasse Tyson presented a cool and witty talk entitled “Brain-Droppings of a Skeptic”, so now, here are a few select Name Droppings of a Skeptic.

My comprehensive report of TAM 6 will appear in the next edition of the Skeptic magazine, but for now, here are some anecdotes, bits o’ gossip and personal highlights…

* Hanging out with my mate Phil Plait, the Bad Astronomer, who is a genuinely friendly and funny chap. (Don’t believe what Richard Hoagland tells you.) Much respect.

* Richard Wiseman suggested I re-name my upcoming book Bad Language: Myths and Mysteries about Language to the more pithy Fuck You, because he’s always wanted to see that on a book spine…(or maybe it was an imperative…who knows?) At any rate, he claims he’s a teatotaller teetotaller, but he’s forgotten that sangria he had with me in The Haight last September…

* Meeting the Amazing Randi himself, yet again, and having him remember me because, “you tower over me”. I was impressed to meet his intern who is equally vertically challenged, and a sort of Randi mini me.

* Meeting Daniel Loxton of Junior Skeptic fame, who is a bonza bloke. In fact, he’s quite possibly the nicest fellow I’ve ever met. Thanks for the plug for the Australian Skeptics, mate. You can call yourself an Honorary Aussie anytime!

* Meeting scientific investigator of the paranormal and pseudoscientific, Ben Radford, Managing Editor of the illustrious Skeptical Inquirer. Ben is a kind of male me, or I’m a female him, whichever way you wanna see it. He generously called me “one of the most memorable people” he’s met. After a TAMtastic Saturday night bender I was too tired to know if I was embarrassed or aroused by this compliment.

* Finding Brian Dunning, of Skeptoid and Skeptologists fame, to be a decent chap, and not at all the scurrilous and lecherous bastard of his personal correspondence. Much.

* Meeting Derek and Swoopy of the podcast Skepticality. Derek gave me one of the firmest, warmest handshakes I’ve ever had, and Swoopy gave me a lovely cuddle.   

* Watching my close friend and colleague Richard Saunders present at TAM. Better still, he called me up on stage to be his assistant in a water diving test! Even better still, I watched Mooeypoo throw two cream pies at him… for science!

* Finally, it was a delight to be recognised as the Skepbitch, to meet some readers, to meet some TANK viewers, to meet Twitter and Facebook friends who I can now count as friends, to meet some Bay Area skeptics, and to hang out with the Aussie contingent.

And no, I haven’t left anyone out. I promise. Writing a report is in my considerably high-stacked in-tray of things to do. Right after I re-integrate into society…

(n.b. I’ll also add some pics soon, but wordpress is playing silly buggers with me.)