A Letter from Karen Strachan, Camp Inquiry director
Dear Camp Inquiry Family and Friends and Families,
I still can’t believe that summer has come and gone and that 2012 is just around the corner! But I can say that Camp Inquiry 2011 is far from out of my mind. What an incredible week and how much we all thought, questioned, and grew!
I began the week with a challenge to our counselors, our campers and their parents, and even to myself: take something that you know to be true, untrue, a given, or just deeply believed and turn it 180 degrees. Turn it upside down. Try to argue against yourself, try to open yourself up to contradiction, to being wrong, to proving the opposite. It was a difficult and sometimes psychologically uncomfortable assignment, but in trying to argue against, sometimes we learn what we are actually arguing for as well as finding and utilizing the tools for reevaluation, examination, and discovery. Imagining, investigating, illuminating.
Camp was not just putting ideas to the test but putting poetry on paper, friendship bracelets on wrists, marshmallows on graham crackers, microphones in hands, senses in nature, and fears and questions uninhibitedly in the open. We embraced differences and found unity in the asking. We formed a community of inquiring minds.
There are so many incredible stories from Camp Inquiry 2011. I can’t wait for Camp Inquiry 2012—it will be even better! I hope you will visit the website often for details as they unfold. Friend us on Facebook to stay up to date with the latest and greatest in Camp Inquiry and share your stories.
All the best,
Karen Strachan
Camp Inquiry Director
kstrachan@centerforinquiry.net
Imagine. Investigate. Illuminate.
Camp Inquiry 2011 has come and gone; another enlightening and inspiring year in the books! Please email us for the latest information about Camp Inquiry 2012 and to be placed on our mailing list!
Kids today navigate through a reality that previous generations could never have imagined. Popular culture, whether in the form of entertainment, chatrooms, or pseudoscience, is a turbulent and unpredictable sea. Too often, what seem to be beacons of light are nothing more than illusions: quick-fixes and easy answers just don’t hold up. What does?
How do we begin to address these questions that seem so unprecedented? Consider first that they are at root as old as time: who am I? Where do I fit in? How can I be a good friend, a good member of my community? How can I live with respect for the natural world?
In short, kids today are asking how to live a good life.
Too much for kids? We don’t think so. In fact, we think kids are uniquely situated to enjoy a new “Age of Discovery.” Where others may see turbulent seas and dangerous impasses, we see opportunities—to create, to forge new paths, to open new communications, to tell new stories. And the best part is, the tools have been around for ages: science, reason, and skepticism remain the best means by which to navigate these unpredictable waters.
Read about Camp Inquiry 2011's co-sponsor, the James Randi Educational Foundation!
Hear about Camp Inquiry 2008 from National Public Radio and read about Camp Inquiry 2010 at The Huffington Post!
Listen to D.J. Grothe's interview with former Camp Director Angie McQuaig on Point of Inquiry.
Also be sure to read about Ben Radford's experience as a special guest at Camp Inquiry 2010!
A sincere thank you to all of our Camp Inquiry 2011 special guests:
Michael Blanford, Director of Educational Programs for the James Randi Educational Foundation, has spent the last 15 years promoting science literacy, science appreciation, and critical thinking. Michael has developed science curricula, programs, and informal content for a number of institutions, including schools, community centers, museums, and camps. Before joining the JREF, he was coordinator for the Saint Louis Science Center’s Life Science Lab. Michael is also the founder and former president of the Skeptical Society of Saint Louis.
Michael Cardus founded Create-Learning, a consulting, training & coaching firm that provides team building, leadership and experiential development to create great experiences for improved performance and lasting memories. Mike’s knowledge spans team building, team development, leadership development, creativity, and organizational process management. He combines a unique mix of experience, theory, creativity and organizational psychology to ensure his presentations are hands on, fully involving and educationally powerful. Mike’s practice focuses on developing accountability and collaboration amongst and within teams, and on leadership development.
Jennifer Michael Hecht writes across the fields of philosophy, history, and poetry. Her books include Doubt: A History; The End of the Soul: Scientific Modernity, Atheism and Anthropology; The Next Ancient World; Funny; and The Happiness Myth. A current resident of Brooklyn, Hecht earned her Ph.D. in the History of Science and European Cultural History from Columbia University in 1995 and now teaches in Columbia University's writing program. Hecht, who gives talks on humanism and atheism all over the United States and the world, was named one of the “25 most influential living atheists" by SuperScholar.org and a 2009 Freethought Heroine by the Freedom from Religion Foundation. Visit Jennifer’s website at http://www.jennifermichaelhecht.com/.
Ronald A. Lindsay is president and CEO of the Center for Inquiry. He received his Ph.D. in philosophy from Georgetown University and his J.D. from the University of Virginia School of Law. He has been described both as a lawyer masquerading as a philosopher and as a philosopher pretending to be a lawyer. Both statements may be true. One undisputed fact: He is the author of Future Bioethics: Overcoming Taboos, Myths, and Dogmas.
Ben Radford has written hundreds of articles on urban legends, the paranormal, critical thinking, film, and media literacy. His books include Hoaxes, Myths, and Manias: Why We Need Critical Thinking; Media Mythmakers: How Journalists, Activists, and Advertisers Mislead Us; Lake Monster Mysteries: Investigating the World's Most Elusive Creatures; Scientific Paranormal Investigation: How to Solve Unexplained Mysteries; and Tracking the Chupacabra: The Vampire Beast in Fact, Fiction, and Folklore. Radford is a columnist for Skeptical Inquirer as well as the Bad Science columnist for LiveScience.com. Visit Ben’s website at http://www.radfordbooks.com/.
James Randi has an international reputation as a magician and escape artist, but today he is best known as the world's most tireless investigator and demystifier of paranormal and pseudoscientific claims. He has received numerous awards and recognitions, including a Fellowship from the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation in 1986. In 1996, the James Randi Education Foundation was established to further Randi's work. Visit the James Randi Education Foundation website at randi.org. JREF is the proud co-sponsor of Camp Inquiry 2011.
Rebecca Watson leads a team of skeptical female activists at Skepchick.org and appears regularly on the Curiosity Aroused podcast, the weekly Skeptics’ Guide to the Universe podcast, and the Little Atoms radio show. She travels around the world delivering entertaining talks on science, atheism, feminism, and skepticism. There is currently an asteroid orbiting the sun with her name on it.
