“Climbing Mt. Everest” Topic of Skeptics Series Kick-Off

This year’s weekly Society of Skeptics series began on September 13 with a presentation, “Climbing Mt. Everest,” by Paul Deegan, award-winning author and fellow of the Royal Geographical Society.. According to his website (www.pauldeegan.com), when he was 17, “Paul proposed and subsequently co-led a 47-strong team which cleaned up three decades of rubbish that had accumulated at the base of Mount Everest. Whilst picking up used medical equipment, discarded plastic containers, and empty tins of caviar, Paul looked up and wondered for the first time what the view was like from the summit. Turning his back on a promising career in refuse collection, Paul went on to climb, trek and explore many of the world’s most popular – and also some of its more esoteric – mountain regions. He also traveled to some decidedly non-mountainous destinations such as the Galapagos, Antarctica, and Mos Espa. Magazines and newspapers have published over 250 of Paul’s stories.”

All Skeptics programs are free and open to the public The weekly series, which has been in continuous existence since 1977, is one of the premier high school lecture series in the country. The program was an outgrowth of the Blair International Society, begun in 1962, and has served as a forum for the discussion and debate of important national and international issues. Over the past 30-plus years, under the tutelage of Dr. Martin Miller, the series has featured a wide variety of speakers who are engaging, accomplished in their respective fields and often controversial.

For a listing of upcoming Skeptics programs, please click here.

Updated 9/14/11

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