Great. thanks for organising the celebration. I'd have like to have heard more about him from the crowd but imagine will stumble across stories at future events.
Excellent presenter with world-class expertise in his field of research. Well-attended meeting. Questions and answers continued till late.
The venue was better than CPIT theatrette (as we could have food/drinks at the same time).
Great night. We kept going until The Hop closed. Then moved on to the Vespa room, until they closed as well. :) Tonights entertainment was provided by #ten23 via a homeopathic remedy made from positronium and the NZ Atheist Bus campaign.
Smaller turnout than expected. Crappy weather and a Sunday night probably didn't help.
The talk was really interesting though. It addressed one thing that is usually not discussed; namely the tax exempt status of religious organisations.
Welcome to the Christchurch Skeptics in the Pub meetup group. This group is part of a larger, socially orientated group of skeptics. Details at http://skepticsinthepub.net.nz/
"A skeptic is one who prefers beliefs and conclusions that are reliable and valid to ones that are comforting or convenient, and therefore rigorously and openly applies the methods of science and reason to all empirical claims, especially their own. A skeptic provisionally proportions acceptance of any claim to valid logic and a fair and thorough assessment of available evidence, and studies the pitfalls of human reason and the mechanisms of deception so as to avoid being deceived by others or themselves. Skepticism values method over any particular conclusion." - Dr. Steven Novella of The New England Skeptics and The Skeptics Guide to the Universe podcast.