Books
Books that I have written.
Media Appearances
Podcasts and Videos in which I have appeared or which I have created.
pyndamics3
Dynamical systems simulation in Python. Includes both continuous and stochastic simulation.
Stats for Everyone
An introductory stats book from a Bayesian perspective, including Python software.
I am a Scientist, Skeptic, and Professor at Bryant University. My goal is to make technical subject matters widely accessible and to use my analytical and computational skills to assist anyone with their science-related problems.
Blog
Do Skeptics Underestimate the Case for the Resurrection? Not so much.
As someone who is skeptical of the resurrection myself, I am not particularly impressed when someone finds it “extremely difficult to deal with as a critic”. It really isn’t all that hard.
#articles
Does Art Lead Math? Not as far as I can see
In all of these comparisons between art and mathematics I am struck with a feeling that the writer is somehow trying to add a layer of legitimacy to the art by connecting it to mathematics or to science. I don't think this does a service to either the art or the mathematics.
#articles
Four Types of Bayesian-Frequentist Comparisons
It is important when discussing different perspectives to keep clear what the vocabulary is. If you expand the problem set to include limited <math xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML"><semantics><mrow><mi>N</mi></mrow><annotation encoding="application/x-tex">N</annotation></semantics></math> problems, with non-Normal distributions (such as Beta and Cauchy), then the differences start to become apparent.
#articles
Twitter, Zombies, and the Fate of the World
Twitter, Zombies, and the Fate of the World is my presentation today at the Analytics without Borders Conference.
Dynamical systems are mathematical constructions containing multiple interacting parts which vary in …
#articles
Mind Reader and Skepticism
From the archives, but I bumped into this on my computer and was reminded how cool of a demo for skepticism it is. Enjoy!
Here is a simple website which …
#articles
Do we really need algebra 2 and calculus?
From time to time I hear proposals to restructure math or science secondary education. Two examples are an article in slate about algebra 2 and a popular ted talk about …
#articles
Are there serious problems with evolution?
In their article, Top 10 problems with biological and chemical evolution, the Discovery Institute outlines their best critiques of evolution (i.e. biological evolution) and abiogenesis (i.e. chemical evolution …
#articles
Philosophy of science and the burden of proof
I was just reminded about the difference between philosophy and science. I've written about this topic before here and here. This particular reminder came in the form of Blake Giunta's …
#articles
Pascal's Wager Again some quick thoughts
I haven't written much on Pascal's Wager, but I had this small thought. Perhaps someday I'll flesh this out a bit more.
Introduction
In the standard Pascal’s Wager, the …
#articles
Climate Change Point and Counterpoint
In this post, I am reacting to a very interesting and well researched post where a liberal argues that the climate science is not as settled as we hear. I …
#articles
Can you guess my sign? Testing Astrology
A friend of mine who is interested in astrology claims that he can determine my astrological sign from some simple questions, and knowing me for years (although not knowing my …
#articles
Even if determinism were true it wouldn't matter
Introduction
There is a great paper Thermal noise and the emergence of the arrow of time: A simple model that illustrates the notion of the role of uncertainty in the …
#articles
Free Will On My Mind
Usually when thinking about free will my thoughts run in circles. However the recent talks by Sean Carroll were some of the clearest exposition on the topic. In summary we …
#articles
Jaynes vs Gelman Bayes for Messy Data
I copied a comment on my old site, and am replying to it here. It is a fantastically interesting question, which I have been enjoying thinking about.
It refers to …
#articles
Probability Does Extend Logic
In the article Probability theory does not extend logic David Chapman, the author, criticizes the claim that probability theory generalizes logic to cases with uncertainty. He is particularly scornful of …
#articles
Mapping Worldview to Probability
I've heard many times (see here and here, for examples) the objection from apologists that certain claims (i.e. supernatural events, miracles, etc…) are ruled either impossible or highly unlikely …
#articles
Is Science a Self-Sealing Process?
In 1969, NASA faked the moon landing - there was a huge conspiracy to cover up the facts that the landing was actually filmed in Hollywood. Well, that's what the conspiracy …
#articles
What Makes an Explanation Bad? When it's easy to vary
In David Deutsch's TED Talk he describes what makes good and bad explanations. In particular he outlines what makes scientific explanations good ones whereas mythological ones bad. Many people claim …
#articles
Laplace and Twins Why Bayes is still right
From this paper,
http://statweb.stanford.edu/~ckirby/brad/other/2013Perspective.pdf
we have the following text:
“Controversial theorem” sounds like an oxymoron, but Bayes’ Rule has played this part …
#articles
Student Course Evaluations What should a professor do?
I’m always interested in the process of evaluation, especially for professors. It is common to have student evaluations performed at the end of the semester, and there are endless …
#articles
Philosophy and Science or why I'm not a philosopher
I was listening to the Dogma Debate episode “Does God Really Love You?” with Blake Giunta, and was really struck by the structure of the discussion. I have dealt with …
#articles
