Friendly Atheist Podcast

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Ep. 124 - Brad Levin, Director of FreeBYU Aug 28, 2016

Show notes

Brad Levin is the director of FreeBYU, a group whose mission is to "promote freedom of thought and freedom of religion at Brigham Young University." We spoke about how BYU punishes students who become ex-Mormons, why BYU's law school nearly lost its accreditation, and the progress his group has made in changing the Honor Code at the school.

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Ep. 123 - Rob McWilliams, Founder of South East Texas Atheists Helping the Homeless Aug 21, 2016

Show notes

Rob McWilliams is the founder of South East Texas Atheists Helping the Homeless. (The name is fairly self-explanatory.) We spoke with him about how his group is different from churches, how listeners can help his cause, and the most amazing love story ever.

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Ep. 122 - Ray Comfort, Evangelist and Producer of The Atheist Delusion Aug 14, 2016

Show notes

Ray Comfort is the founder and CEO of Living Waters. He's written dozens of books, co-hosted "The Way of the Master" with Kirk Cameron, and produced several movies including Audacity and Evolution vs. God. He recently released Fat Chance (subtitle: Why Pigs Will Fly Before America has an Atheist President) and the movie The Atheist Delusion. Rather than have a debate about God's existence, Ray and I spoke about whether Christians must accept a literal interpretation of Genesis, what he thinks will happen if atheists are elected to political office, and what might change his mind about Christianity. Also: Crocoducks.

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Ep. 121 - Emma Green, Senior Associate Editor at The Atlantic Aug 07, 2016

Show notes

Emma Green is a senior associate editor at The Atlantic, where she covers politics, policy, and religion. We spoke with her about how Democrats appeared to be the Party of God during their recent convention, what stood out while reporting and editing The Atlantic's recent series on young people choosing their religions, and what she would report on with unlimited time and an unlimited budget.

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Ep. 120 - Tracey Moody's Visit to Ark Encounter Jul 31, 2016

Show notes

Tracey Moody, a frequent contributor to FriendlyAtheist.com and co-moderator of the Friendly Atheist Facebook page, went to Ark Encounter (the Noah's Ark theme park) in Kentucky on opening day to find out what a $100 million attraction looks like. We spoke about the atheist protest outside the Ark, the exhibits inside of it (including one about how they removed all the excrement), and whether it's worth visiting just for the sake of curiosity.

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Ep. 119 - Leighann Lord, Comedian Jul 24, 2016

Show notes

Leighann Lord is a comedian and co-host of the StarTalk podcast with Neil deGrasse Tyson. She has performed stand-up on Comedy Central and HBO, has won several awards for her work, and written books including Dict Jokes and Real Women Do It Standing Up. At the recent American Humanist Association conference in Chicago, I spoke with her about how she went from a corporate job to a comedy stage, why performing at colleges has become tougher for comedians, and why unique outreach to African American atheists is worthwhile.

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Ep. 118 - David Diskin, President of Camp Quest West Jul 17, 2016

Show notes

David Diskin is the President of Camp Quest West. Camp Quest is a summer camp for children that embraces science, natural wonder, and humanist values. David has worked with the group since 2010. He has been a long-time activist in California, co-founding the Stockton Area Atheists and Freethinkers and Sunday Assembly Sacramento. He also serves on the boards of California Freethought Day, the Secular Coalition for California, and the national Reason Rally Coalition. At the recent American Humanist Association conference in Chicago, we spoke with David about whether children of religious parents ever attend the camp, how the camp's curriculum has changed over the years, and what he hopes Camp Quest achieves in the next few years.

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Ep. 117 - John De Lancie, Star Trek's "Q" Jul 10, 2016

Show notes

John de Lancie is an actor best known for his portrayal of Q on Star Trek: The Next Generation, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, and Star Trek: Voyager. He's also appeared on Breaking Bad and The West Wing. In September, he filmed a video for the Openly Secular campaign. So what happens when two people who have never watched Star Trek get a chance to interview him on extremely short notice? We talk about the current golden age of television, what defines a great actor, and whether we need to use labels like "Humanist" at all. We spoke at the recent American Humanist Association conference in Chicago, where he was receiving the Humanist Arts Award.

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Ep. 116 - Dr. Elizabeth Loftus, Cognitive Psychologist and Memory Expert Jul 03, 2016

Show notes

Dr. Elizabeth Loftus is a cognitive psychologist who specializes in the malleability of human memory. She has done groundbreaking research into why our memories are not always reliable and how we might create false memories that we fully accept as real. Since earning her Ph.D. in Psychology from Stanford University, Dr. Loftus has published 23 books, more than 500 scientific articles, and is currently a Distinguished Professor at the University of California, Irvine. At the recent American Humanist Association conference in Chicago, where she was receiving the Isaac Asimov Award, we spoke with her about how faulty memories can form in our minds, whether research into this subject is ethical, and if "believing the victim" is always the way to go.

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Ep. 115 - Jerry Coyne, Author of Faith vs. Fact Jun 26, 2016

Show notes

Dr. Jerry Coyne is a now-retired Professor in the Department of Ecology and Evolution at the University of Chicago. He has written over 115 refereed scientific papers; 130 additional articles, book reviews, and columns; and a scholarly book about his field (Speciation, co-authored with H. Allen Orr). He may be most familiar to listeners for his books Why Evolution is True (which spawned his blog of the same name) and Faith Versus Fact: Why Science and Religion Are Incompatible. At the recent American Humanist Association conference in Chicago, we spoke with Dr. Coyne about why science and religion are incompatible, the problems with the "Regressive Left" on college campuses, and what he discusses with his atheist/scientist friends.

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