Happy New Year from Skeptic North! I’ve take some time off but our shows have not…so here’s a quick wrap-up of what’s been happening. The quality hasn’t suffered – there have been some excellent topics over the past few weeks.

Radio Freethinker

From Vancouver, it’s Radio Freethinker on CiTR 101.9 FM. This week’s items include a discussion about the Sam Harris book, The Moral Landscape. (See the Skeptic North review, too.) Other items include the murder of Punjab Governor Salmaan Taseer, shot by his own bodyguard, who opposed Taseer’s reform of Pakistan’s blasphemy laws. Also, Neanderthals cooked their vegetables, and mass bird and fish death in Arkansas. Download this week’s episode.

Remember, Radio Freethinker broadcasts live on Tuesdays at 3:30 pm. You can subscribe to the show’s RSS feed here, and follow them on Facebook, too.

Skeptically Speaking

Last week, host Desiree Schell focused on introversion. The show started with cognitive psychologist Barbara Drescher on the fact and fiction of personality tests. (Before the show, I thought my Myers-Briggs Type Indicator was ISTJ. Now I’m not so sure.) Then Desiree spoke with Dr. Marti Laney, family therapist and author of The Introvert Advantage. It’s an excellent episode overall and well worth making an effort to download.

Friday’s show will cover the science of parenting with Dr. John Medina. His book Brain Rules For Baby examines some of the most basic things that science understands about the developing brain, and provides helpful strategies for encouraging your child’s development. What effect does TV really have on the infant mind? And how does a child’s happiness influence her intelligence? And to start off the episode, Geek Dad contributor Jason Cranford Teague will speak about science, technology and parenting.

Skeptically Speaking broadcasts live on Fridays at 6:00 pm Mountain Time. The show will be back live this Friday. If you can’t listen live, the show is available as a podcast, and you can access the show’s RSS feed or subscribe via iTunes.

The Reality Check

Wrapping up the week it’s the Ottawa Skeptics’ The Reality Check. Elan explains a fallacy all defense attorneys should know: The prosecutor’s fallacy. Jon determines why every other line at the grocery checkout seems to move faster than the one you chose. And Darren, Adam, and Jon make bold predictions for what will happen in 2011. Download the show here. Subscribe to The Reality Check on iTunes or via RSS.

That’s this week’s wrap up of skeptical media.