Skeptic Society Magazine

‘The Meg’ Producer Was 82

Kenneth Atchity, “The Meg” producer and literary agent, died on Monday. He was 82. Across his career as a literary manager, producer and writer, Atchity produced more than 30 films; wrote over 20 books; negotiated publishing and entertainment deals; and published hundreds of additional titles through his own imprint, Story Merchant Books. In addition to producing “The Meg” films with his business and producing...

Mother Bats’ Hearts Quicken When They Hear Baby’s Cries

The cries of babies are not just a nuisance. They are calls for help, honed by evolution to spur an immediate, ingrained response. When a human mother hears her baby crying, her brain elicits a “do-or-die” response in neuronal activity in the midbrain’s survival region. A new study published this week in Frontiers in Ethology reported that it’s not just human mothers that react...

What the PHP Bug Shows Us About Humanity and Machines

Advanced AI systems are rapidly transforming the ongoing cat-and-mouse game that cybersecurity specialists have been playing with shadowy opponents for years. The latest skirmish is a dramatic opening scene for a high-stakes thriller coming to your screens, whether you like it or not. This story starts, as it should, with the scary parts. Two days ago, elite computer security experts announced the discovery of...

Back to the Future | Fintan O’Toole

In Arthur Conan Doyle’s “The Story of the Lost Special” (in which Sherlock Holmes gets only a glancing reference), an entire train goes missing shortly after it has passed through Kenyon Junction. The junction was just outside the village of Culcheth in the northwest of England, where the UK’s latest prime minister, Andy Burnham, grew up. It has a claim on global history: in...

Nike’s Wedged-up Shox Sneaker Leans Luxe

Few Nike sneakers fall into the underrated category. Great shoes get a lot of hype. It’s simple sneaker science. Still, Nike’s system of Shox sneakers can always use a bit more hype, especially as the trend cycle brings them back to the forefront via collaborations with some of the coolest designers out right now. Martine Rose, the woman you are. The patent leather Nike...