"What are dreams?"

What are dreams and why do we have them? NOVA joins leading dream researchers as they embark on a variety of neurological and psychological experiments to investigate the world of sleep and dreams. Delving deep into the thoughts and brains of a variety of dreamers, scientists are asking important questions about the purpose of this mysterious realm we escape to at night.

"Extreme Ice"

The program charts the progress of Balog's Extreme Ice Survey (EIS). The effort involves deploying 26 time-lapse cameras in alpine and arctic locations across the Northern Hemisphere and programming them to shoot a frame every daylight hour for three years.

As the program shows, the resulting time-lapse movies give breathtaking evidence of geology in action. Ominously, the proverbial glacial pace of large masses of ice is no longer as slow as it once was, due to the warming of the planet that is accelerating the break-up of these titanic structures. Scientists are overwhelmingly convinced that the temperature increase is tied to the rise in greenhouse-gas emissions caused by burning fossil fuels.

NOVA airs each Tuesday at 8pm on PBS.  

A discussion will follow the screenings.

Pay What You Can, FREE for members.

Visual metaphors have been used to convey evolutionary ideas since Darwin's time. Some of the earliest kinds of images are still in use, even though they may do more to distort than to illustrate actual evolutionary processes. This seminar will explore two major evolutionary icons, the "Tree of Life" and "evolutionary line-ups", as they have been used in the past and how they must be interpreted today. Dr. T. Ryan Gregory completed his B.Sc. (Hons) at McMaster University in 1997 and earned his Ph.D. in evolutionary biology and zoology from the University of Guelph in 2002.

$5, $4 for students, FREE for members

Stay after the Forum discussion and join us for a pot-luck lunch

The CFI Fundraising and Development Committee will oversee a variety of approaches for revenue generation, including:

- private donations through web, email and snail mail campaigns,
including legacy campaigns and capital drives when appropriate
- public government grants
- corporate and philanthropic grants
- CFI third party rental, in which we will rent access to our spaces

The Committee will also incorporate a Membership subcommittee, which will be dedicated to increasing the number of CFI members and contacting expired members for renewal.

For more info please email Pam Walls at pwalls@cficanada.ca

Want to practice your English? Come join us for FREE ESL classes with experienced and qualified teachers every Tuesday evening from 5:30 PM to 7:00 PM.

Every second and fourth Tuesday of every month will be a conversational environment with several ESL teachers where we start as a large group and then break into smaller groups. The conversations will focus on building the students' critical thinking skills.

All ages and levels of proficiency are welcome! Have fun and learn in a relaxed atmosphere.

We are located downtown, close to the U of T campus and the Queen's Park Subway station.

FULL INFORMATION ON SOSGT IS AVAILABLE UNDER "LOCAL RESOURCES" FROM THE MAIN MENU

Please Note:  CFI will be closed to non participants during this time.

Secular Organizations for Sobriety Group of Toronto (SOSGT) is:
1. Secular: SOSGT credits the individual for achieving and
maintaining his or her own sobriety and is ideal for those
uncomfortable with the spiritual content of 12-step programs.
The group is secular and religiously neutral.
2. Sobriety focused: Sobriety, defined as the priority of abstaining
from alcohol and other mind-altering drugs, is the number-one
priority. A recovering alcoholic must abstain from all drugs or
alcohol. SOSGT is focused on the “Sobriety priority”, maintaining
that sobriety is a separate issue from all else.
3. Inquiry-minded: SOSGT is free from dogma or the towing of
any party line. SOSGT is not in competition with other groups and
respects recovery in any form, regardless of the path by which it is
achieved. SOSGT supports healthy skepticism and encourages the
use of the scientific method to understand alcoholism.
4. All-welcoming: All those who sincerely seek sobriety are
welcome as members of SOSGT.
5. Support-group based: Although sobriety is an individual
responsibility, life does not have to be faced alone. The support of
other alcoholics and addicts is vital to recovery. In SOSGT, members
share experiences, insights, information, strength and
encouragement in friendly, honest, anonymous and
supportive group meetings
6. Autonomous: SOSGT has no hidden agenda and is concerned
with achieving and maintaining sobriety. SOSGT has no opinion on
outside matters and does not wish to become entangled in outside
controversy.
7. Communications-based: Honest, clear, and direct
communication of feelings, thoughts, and knowledge aids in
recovery and in choosing nondestructive, nondelusional, and
rational approaches to living sober and rewarding lives.
8. Voluntary-based: SOSGT is run by a democratically elected
steering committee of volunteers and all members are welcome to
take part in its governance and direction.
9. Confidential: As knowledge of addiction might cause a person
harm or embarrassment in the outside world, SOS guards the
anonymity of its membership and the contents of its discussions
from those not within the group
10. Effective: SOSGT is effective because it encourages the
scientific study of all aspects of alcoholism and addiction, rather
than limiting its outlook to one area of knowledge or theory of
alcoholism and addiction.

Group and Meeting Structure
SOSGT is a nonprofit, autonomous, nonprofessional self-help group.
The typical meeting is held weekly for 1.5 hours, with a 10-15 minute break in
the middle. Family or friends requiring support, and those with other addiction
problems (ex: gambling, drug addiction, etc) are welcome
The typical meeting agenda is as follows:
1) Welcome and introductions from meeting leader
2) Announcements and policies
3) Anniversaries
4) Reading from the SOS guidebooks
5) Introductions from newcomers
6) Readings from literature on freethought, critical
thinking and rational inquiry
7) Open discussion, often topical
8) Closing

The first atheist themed TV/internet show.

Meetings are held every 2nd and 4th Wednesday at 5:30 pm.

New volunteers welcome, please email jtrottier@cficanada.ca for more info.

The general volunteers' meeting is for all Chairs of Committees, Committee Members, Project Leaders and other Volunteers.

Meetings are held every 2nd and 4th Wednesday at 7 pm.

The Elegant Universe

by Brian Greene (p. 448)

7 pm, Thursday March 25

*23 copies in Toronto libraries

"As they are currently formulated, general relativity and quantum mechanics cannot both be right." Each is exceedingly accurate in its field: general relativity explains the behavior of the universe at large scales, while quantum mechanics describes the behavior of subatomic particles. Yet the theories collide horribly under extreme conditions such as black holes or times close to the big bang. Brian Greene, a specialist in quantum field theory, believes that the two pillars of physics can be reconciled in superstring theory, a theory of everything.

$4 Suggested Donation, FREE for members

Anyone can read the book and join in the discussion! Feel free to join our Meet Up group at: http://bookclub.meetup.com/1053

Cafe Skeptique is a discussion group that focuses on a range of topics within the realm of skepticism such as pseudo-science, alternative medicine, conspiracy theories, etc.

This month's Cafe Skeptique will focus on what is 'skepticism', misplaced skepticism and the history of skepticism.

We will be trying a new location this time at Victory Cafe, 581 Markham Street.

Cafe Skeptique is hosted by the Committee for the Advancement of Scientific Skepticism (CASS), a subset of CFI.
The Committee for the Advancement of Scientific Skepticism (CASS) is a national, fast response team which critically examines scientific, technological and medical claims in public discourse. Working with our expert advisers we address factual inaccuracies and misinformation in public debates by promoting evidence-based science. To achieve these ends CASS will work within the infrastructure of CFI to co-ordinate campaigns with them and other interested parties.

Meetings are held every first and third Monday of each month at CFI Ontario headquarters.

If you would like to get involved with CASS please email Michael Kruse (Co-Chair) at mkruse50@gmail.com.