Its on now. Brian Cox and Robin Ince, accompanied by Billy Brag, Shappi Khorsandi, Graham Coxon and Prof. Tony Ryan.

Live from Glastonbury.

Does anyone else listen to this program? I love it.

If you miss it, you probably can listen on BBC iplayer.

They podcast it, too. Good stuff.

rJD wrote:They podcast it, too. Good stuff.

I particularly liked Tony Ryan's rebuttal of Billy Bragg's complaint that dark energy/matter was a faith or belief based idea that scientist were asking us to believe in, same as religion. He calmly pointed out that the discrepency between the theory and the obsevation meant that either we need to find a better theory, which is happening, or we need to find the missing matter, which is happening.

Uberuce wrote:I particularly liked Tony Ryan's rebuttal of Billy Bragg's complaint that dark energy/matter was a faith or belief based idea that scientist were asking us to believe in, same as religion. He calmly pointed out that the discrepency between the theory and the obsevation meant that either we need to find a better theory, which is happening, or we need to find the missing matter, which is happening.

My opinion of Billy Bragg was always pretty neutral, but after listening to his nonsense on this show yesterday I now regard him as a plonker.

Actually, this is a favourite show of mine and having him as a guest on this episode spoilt it for me somewhat. Shappi Khorsandi was nearly as bad with her 12 steps nonsense. In fact both of them pissed me off by saying I was just as bad as the extremist religious fundamentalists.

quisquose wrote:

Uberuce wrote:I particularly liked Tony Ryan's rebuttal of Billy Bragg's complaint that dark energy/matter was a faith or belief based idea that scientist were asking us to believe in, same as religion. He calmly pointed out that the discrepency between the theory and the obsevation meant that either we need to find a better theory, which is happening, or we need to find the missing matter, which is happening.

My opinion of Billy Bragg was always pretty neutral, but after listening to his nonsense on this show yesterday I now regard him as a plonker.

Actually, this is a favourite show of mine and having him as a guest on this episode spoilt it for me somewhat. Shappi Khorsandi was nearly as bad with her 12 steps nonsense. In fact both of them pissed me off by saying I was just as bad as the extremist religious fundamentalists.

Yeah, Billy Boy made a right tit of himself.

Ryan's comment gives rise to such a nice general rebuttal:

Woo/Fundie/Other Person: Science asks us to believe that [counter-intuitive thing] is true, but you can't see it or touch it. It's a belief system.

Science Person: Well, to be fair it also asks you to believe that the theory that made that prediction is untrue, and if you learn just how well that theory has predicted or agreed with a whole bundle of things that your existence depends on, you might have trouble deciding. But the decision is yours, so do try to make it an informed one.

Uberuce wrote:Ryan's comment gives rise to such a nice general rebuttal:

Woo/Fundie/Other Person: Science asks us to believe that [counter-intuitive thing] is true, but you can't see it or touch it. It's a belief system.

Science Person: Well, to be fair it also asks you to believe that the theory that made that prediction is untrue, and if you learn just how well that theory has predicted or agreed with a whole bundle of things that your existence depends on, you might have trouble deciding. But the decision is yours, so do try to make it an informed one.

A chance to show off my fantastic photographic skills. Hurrah!!


(Brian is the slightly sexier bump of light on the left and Robin the slightly funnier looking bump on the right)

Was impressed by the amount of people and atmosphere that made it there on a muddy lunchtime though. Billy Bragg was a cock - gave us a chance to sneak out whilst he was doing his song at the end though. Which was nice.

Precambrian Rabbi wrote:A chance to show off my fantastic photographic skills. Hurrah!!


(Brian is the slightly sexier bump of light on the left and Robin the slightly funnier looking bump on the right)

Was impressed by the amount of people and atmosphere that made it there on a muddy lunchtime though. Billy Bragg was a cock - gave us a chance to sneak out whilst he was doing his song at the end though. Which was nice.

I quite like Billy Bragg, generally, but he came across really badly there - ill informed and belligerent about it, not a good combination.

rJD wrote:I quite like Billy Bragg, generally, but he came across really badly there - ill informed and belligerent about it, not a good combination.

I didn't think Shappi Khorsandi came across much better. This was disappointing because she was always marked down as playing for 'our side'.

12 steps nonsense indeed.

quisquose wrote:

rJD wrote:I quite like Billy Bragg, generally, but he came across really badly there - ill informed and belligerent about it, not a good combination.

I didn't think Shappi Khorsandi came across much better. This was disappointing because she was always marked down as playing for 'our side'.

12 steps nonsense indeed.

Indeed - the only thing that made her contribution less annoying than Bragg's was that she was less aggressive. I wonder if he'd been drinking?

From tomorrow series 5 of The Infinite Monkey Cage, with Brian Cox and Robin Ince, starts at 16:30 GMT. More scientific fun and frolics.