THE OHIO VALLEY SKEPTICS NEWS ENCOURAGING CRITICAL THINKING IN ALL WALKS OF LIFE Vol. 1, No. 2 October 22, 1991 The Ohio Valley Skeptics is a new organization committed to encouraging critical thinking in all walks of life. OVS encourages the critical investigation of paranormal and fringe-science claims from a responsible, scientific viewpoint and the distribution of the results of such investigations to the public. You are cordially invited to become a charter member of OVS. Membership information is on the back page. November Meeting: Nineteenth Century Paranormal Beliefs in Cincinnati The Ohio Valley Skeptics will meet at the Cincinnati Museum of Natural History, 1720 Gilbert Ave. on Saturday, November 9, at 10:00 AM. The meeting is open to the public. After a business meeting to consider by-laws and other organizational issues, OVS President Joe Gastright will give a presentation on OThe First New Age: Paranormal Beliefs in Cincinnati, 1840-1880.O Dr. Gastright, an educator with a strong interest in science, holds an M. Ed. in chemistry from Xavier University and an Ed. D. in educational research and measurement from the University of Cincinnati, He is also past-president of the Kenton County, Kentucky, Historical Society. He will describe how Cincinnati participated in the rise in occult and paranormal activities that occurred in the United States during the nineteenth century, and how that resurgence of magical thinking is paralleled by todayOs New Age activities. The meeting will be followed by an informal lunch at a nearby restaurant for those who are interested. October Meeting: Things That Go Bump in the Night The October 12th meeting at the Blue Ash Holiday Inn began with a business meeting at which committees were formed to write by-laws and recruit experts to act as resource people for journalists. The business meeting was followed by a videotape of a program from Arthur C. Clarke's World of Strange Powers series, OThings That Go Bump in the Night.O The program reports on and offers non-supernatural explanations for a wide variety of incidents often attributed to poltergeists, a kind of ghost alleged to be adept at secretly throwing rocks, moving furniture and breaking china. Most of these effects are believed to be the activities of disturbed adolescents, one of whom was taped in the act of breaking china and then hopping hastily back into bed and calling her mother to come witness the damage done by the Opoltergeist.O The meeting was followed by an informal lunch. Officers Elected Officers elected at the first meeting of the OVS, Sept. 20, 1991, to serve until the first annual meeting in April are: President: Joseph P. Gastright; Secretary, Mary Pacinda; Treasurer, Richard G. Shepherd; and Newsletter Editor, Virginia Jergens. Publicity Chair Porter Henry and Media Resources Chair Richard Boznian were elected at the October meeting. Members of the Media Resources Committee are Chuck Rodway and Carl Bunde. A By -Laws Committee was also formed. Members are Dick Shepherd, Mary Pacinda, Chuck Rodway, and Holly Norton. The by-laws committee hopes to present a draft to the membership for discussion at the November meeting. Calendar October 23, 7:00 PM. Executive Committee Meeting, Virginia Jergens and Richard Shepherd's house, 1032 Grandin Ridge Drive, Cincinnati (871-4876). November 1, 4:30 PM. By-Laws Committee Meeting, Golden Lamb, Lebanon. November 9, 10:00 AM. Regular Monthly Meeting. Cincinnati Museum of Natural History, 1720 Gilbert Ave. Business meeting followed by Joe Gastright on "The First New Age: Paranormal Beliefs in Cincinnati, 1840-1880." Informal lunch at nearby restaurant afterwards for anyone who wants to come. Address Changes and Corrections Please send address corrections and changes to V. H. Jergens, Ed., 1032 Grandin Ridge, Cincinnati, Ohio 45208 Charter Members, October 22, 1991 R.C. Bozian, M. D. Robert Hartmann Jim Magus R. D. Bozian, M. D. Porter Henry Dan Nagle Carl A. Bunde, M. D., Ph.D. Robert Paul Howard Helen E. Norton Richard A. Davis Carolyn R. Hunt Mary Pacinda Oran B.Dent Hermon R. Isaacs Howard E. Rissover, M. D. Kenneth DeWeese Virginia H. Jergens, Ph.D. Charles P. Rodway John E. Fischer John S. Kennedy Claudia Sawyer Joseph F. Gastright, Ed. D. William Kennedy Richard G. Shepherd William H. Giles Richard H. McGrath Nicholas A. Forte Ken Matthews Richard Hildebrand Share Your Stuff! Bring your favorite skeptical clipping, cartoon, book, or whatever to the next meeting and share it with your fellow skeptics. Pres. Joe Gastright got skeptical sharing going in a big way by bringing a whole carton of books to the October meeting. Among them was a skeptic's treasure, Ivan Stang's High Wierdness by Mail: A Directory of the Fringe: Mad Prophets, Crackpots, Kooks, and True Visionaries. This compilation will allow you to keep up with the competition by filling your mailbox to overflowing with free information from every kind of pseudoscientific organization. It's available in paperback from Simon and Schuster for $9.95. Order through your local bookstore. Comments, Suggestions, Complaints? Please send your comments, suggestions, complaints, and contributions to the newsletter editor, V. H. Jergens, 1032 Grandin Ridge Drive, Cincinnati, Ohio How to Get to the Cincinnati Museum of Natural History The museum is at 1720 Gilbert Ave., east of I-71 and north of downtown Cincinnati in Eden Park. If you come from the north on I-71: Drive south on I-71. Take Exit No. 2, Gilbert Ave. and Reading Rd. The exit ramp forks. Take the right fork, marked Reading Rd. In a block or so you will come to two left turn signs, the first to Reading Rd. and the second to Elsinore. Turn left on Elsinore. Go about one block to Gilbert Ave. Turn left on Gilbert. On Gilbert you will see on your right the museum, a large building hung with red banners advertising the Planetarium. Go past the museum to the Planetarium parking lot, which is to the left off Gilbert. Park in the Planetarium lot, and cross the street to the museum. If you come from the south on I-71: Drive north on I-71, Take Exit No. 2, Reading Rd. and Florence Ave. The exit forks. Take the right-hand fork to Florence Ave. At the stoplight, turn right on Eden Park. Drive one block and turn right on Gilbert. After one long block on Gilbert, you will see the Planetarium parking lot on your right. Park there and cross the street to the museum, a large building hung with red banners advertising the Planetarium. Please Help! We have two new members who have paid their dues, but for whom we have no addresses: Jim Magus and William Kennedy. If you can supply and address for either, please send it to V. H. Jergens, Ed., 1032 Grandin Ridge Drive, Cincinnati, Ohio 45208. See Your By-Line and Words of Wisdom Right Here in the Newsletter! Send Your Book Review, Letter to the Editor, Article Cartoon Or Other Contribution To the Editor Today! Be A Charter Member of Ohio Valley Skeptics $10.00 (Full-time students $5.00) makes you a charter member and assures you of receiving the OVS news and meeting notices. Complete this handy coupon and mail it to: V. H. Jergens 1032 Grandin Ridge Drive, Cincinnati, Ohio 45208 Name________________________________________________________ ___________________ Street address ____________________________________________________________ ______ City_____________________________State___________Zip________ ______________________ Phone: Work__________________ Home_______________________________________________________ Areas of interest:___________________________________________________ _______________ Here's the name of a friend who might be interested: Name________________________________________________________ ___________________Street address_____________________________________________________ _____________________ City________________________________State___________Zip_____ ______________________ Ohio Valley Skeptics is an independent, nonprofit, scientific and educational organization. We share the philosophy of the Committee for the Scientific Investigation of Claims of the Paranormal, an international organization which investigates paranormal events, sponsors workshops, and publishes Skeptical Inquirer, a journal of investigations of paranormal claims. OVS meets regularly on the second Saturday of each month and publishes The Ohio Valley Skeptics News. OVS plans to sponsor public lectures, assemble a panel of experts for news media to consult, and investigate local paranormal claims. Annual dues are $10.00 for regular members, $5.00 for full-time students, and include a subscription to The Ohio Valley Skeptics News. The Ohio Valley Skeptics News V. H. Jergens, Ed. 1032 Grandin Ridge Drive Cincinnati, Ohio 45208