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The Amazing Meeting (TAM), stylized as The Amaz!ng Meeting, was an annual conference that focused on
science Science is a systematic endeavor that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe. Science may be as old as the human species, and some of the earliest archeological evidence ...
,
skepticism Skepticism, also spelled scepticism, is a questioning attitude or doubt toward knowledge claims that are seen as mere belief or dogma. For example, if a person is skeptical about claims made by their government about an ongoing war then the p ...
, and
critical thinking Critical thinking is the analysis of available facts, evidence, observations, and arguments to form a judgement. The subject is complex; several different definitions exist, which generally include the rational, skeptical, and unbiased ana ...
; it was held for twelve years. The conference started in 2003 and was sponsored by the
James Randi Educational Foundation James Randi Educational Foundation (JREF) is an American grant-making institution founded in 1996 by magician and skeptic James Randi. As a nonprofit organization, the mission of JREF includes educating the public and the media on the dangers of ...
(JREF). Perennial speakers included
Penn & Teller Penn & Teller, Penn Jillette and Teller, are American magicians, entertainers, and scientific skeptics who have performed together since the late 1970s. They are noted for their ongoing act that combines elements of comedy with magic. The duo h ...
,
Phil Plait Philip Cary Plait (born September 30, 1964), also known as The Bad Astronomer, is an American astronomer, skeptic, and popular science blogger. Plait has worked as part of the Hubble Space Telescope team, images and spectra of astronomical objec ...
,
Michael Shermer Michael Brant Shermer (born September 8, 1954) is an American science writer, historian of science, executive director of The Skeptics Society, and founding publisher of ''Skeptic'' magazine, a publication focused on investigating pseudoscientifi ...
and James "The Amazing" Randi. Speakers at the four-day conference were selected from a variety of disciplines including scientific educators, magicians, and community activists. Outside the plenary sessions the conference included workshops, additional panel discussions, music and magic performances and live taping of podcasts including ''
The Skeptics' Guide to the Universe ''The Skeptics' Guide to the Universe'' (''SGU'') is an American weekly skeptical podcast hosted by Steven Novella, MD, along with a panel of contributors. The official podcast of the New England Skeptical Society, it was named to evoke ''Th ...
''. The final Amazing Meeting was held in July 2015.


History and organization

TAM was first held in 2003, attracting around 150 attendees. When the CSICOP conferences entered a seven-year hiatus in 2005, TAM quickly filled the gap and, with more than 1,000 attendees, developed to become the largest U.S. skeptical conference.
The Skeptics Society The Skeptics Society is a nonprofit, member-supported organization devoted to promoting scientific skepticism and resisting the spread of pseudoscience, superstition, and irrational beliefs. The Skeptics Society was co-founded by Michael S ...
and the
Committee for Skeptical Inquiry The Committee for Skeptical Inquiry (CSI), formerly known as the Committee for the Scientific Investigation of Claims of the Paranormal (CSICOP), is a program within the US non-profit organization Center for Inquiry (CFI), which seeks to "pro ...
were co-sponsors of the event, providing both financial and promotional support. People attended the conference for a variety of reasons. ''The Daily Beast'' reported that some saw themselves "as waging a broad, multifront battle to drag American culture, inch by inch, away from the nonscientific and the nonlogical". While the organizer of TAM London, Tracy King, said "People come to TAM because they want to learn and hear from leading speakers on subjects which interest them, but they want to have a good time doing it. Our mix of academics, comedians and writers ensures an incredible event where the public can meet like-minded people without feeling like being into science or geek stuff makes them a minority." Magicians were also given a central role at the conference. The magazine ''The Skeptic'' from the
Australian Skeptics Australian Skeptics is a loose confederation of like-minded organisations across Australia that began in 1980. Australian Skeptics investigate paranormal and pseudoscientific claims using scientific methodologies. This page covers all Australia ...
gave a detailed account of all lectures from the 2010 OZ event. Randi retired from active participation in the JREF in early 2015; a final TAM was organized in his honour in July 2015. After this, the
Committee for Skeptical Inquiry The Committee for Skeptical Inquiry (CSI), formerly known as the Committee for the Scientific Investigation of Claims of the Paranormal (CSICOP), is a program within the US non-profit organization Center for Inquiry (CFI), which seeks to "pro ...
chose Las Vegas as the location for
CSICon CSICon or CSIConference is an annual skeptical conference typically held in the United States. CSICon is hosted by the Committee for Skeptical Inquiry (CSI), which is a program of the Center for Inquiry (CFI). CSI publishes the magazine ''Skepti ...
2016 to fill the void. At The Amazing Meeting in 2011 (TAM 9) the
Independent Investigations Group The Center for Inquiry (CFI) is a US nonprofit organization that works to mitigate belief in pseudoscience and the paranormal, as well as to fight the influence of religion in government. History The Center for Inquiry was established in ...
(IIG) organised a tribute to
James Randi James Randi (born Randall James Hamilton Zwinge; August 7, 1928 – October 20, 2020) was a Canadian-American stage magician, author and scientific skeptic who extensively challenged paranormal and pseudoscientific claims. Rodrigues 2010 ...
. The group gathered together with other attendees, put on fake white beards, and posed for a large group photo with Randi. At the
CSICon CSICon or CSIConference is an annual skeptical conference typically held in the United States. CSICon is hosted by the Committee for Skeptical Inquiry (CSI), which is a program of the Center for Inquiry (CFI). CSI publishes the magazine ''Skepti ...
in 2017, in absence of Randi, the IIG organised another group photo with leftover beards from the 2011 photo. After Randi was sent the photo, he replied, "I’m always very touched by any such expression. This is certainly no exception. You have my sincere gratitude. I suspect, however that a couple of those beards were fake. But I’m in a forgiving mood at the moment. I’m frankly very touched. I’ll see you at the next CSICon. Thank you all."


Paranormal Challenge

Beginning in 2009, the Amazing Meeting also hosted a public test of The
One Million Dollar Paranormal Challenge The One Million Dollar Paranormal Challenge was an offer by the James Randi Educational Foundation (JREF) to pay out one million U.S. dollars to anyone who could demonstrate a supernatural or paranormal ability under agreed-upon scientific testing ...
for the performance of any paranormal, occult or supernatural event, under proper observing conditions. At The Amazing Meeting 7, it was announced that the $1 Million Challenge prize would not expire in 2010 as previously announced. Claimant Connie Sonne in 2009 failed to find target cards in sealed envelopes using a dowsing pendulum. Mentalist
Mark Edward Mark Edward (born Mark Edward Wilson, May 19, 1951) is an American mentalist and author. He has written books on mentalism, séance theory and production, including '' Psychic Blues'' published in 2009, where he discusses working for the Ps ...
was the only person to interview her after her test; he wrote that the room was rapt in close attention, "It was an amazing testament to just how single-minded a conference room full of skeptical non-believers could be. I dare say that even a few of the thousand assembled might have been in some way mentally rooting for Connie to win or score some significant record for her trouble. She didn’t." She stated to Edward that it was not time for her "powers to be revealed" and blamed no-one for her failures, only citing that she was involved in future world-changing events. In 2013 a man from Algeria was the Million Dollar challenger. He claimed to be able to remote view objects that were held in a sealed room. He was unable to see the objects and thus failed the challenge. Applicant Fei Wang appeared before the skeptic audience July 2014 with the claim that he could send energy through his hand using a type of
therapeutic touch Therapeutic touch (commonly shortened to "TT"), known by some as "non-contact therapeutic touch" (NCTT), is a pseudoscientific energy therapy which practitioners claim promotes healing and reduces pain and anxiety. "Therapeutic Touch" is a regi ...
. The organizers set up a double blind test involving a volunteer selected by Wang to place their hand in a box while wearing noise canceling headphones and a blindfold. Wang or the control person (
Jamy Ian Swiss Jamy Ian Swiss (born November 30, 1952, in Brooklyn, New York) is an American  magician, author, speaker, historian of magic, essayist, book reviewer, and scientific skeptic. He is known for sleight-of-hand with playing cards. Magic Swiss is ...
) depending on the roll of a die would insert their hand also in the box (not touching the volunteer) for several seconds. Swiss was selected to be the control because Wang felt that Swiss does not have the ability that is being tested. After either Wang or the Control (Swiss) had placed their hand in the box, the volunteer would state which energy was felt. Wang had to get 8 out of 9 correct in order to pass to the final Million Dollar challenge. After the volunteer was unable to feel the energy that Wang said he was sending through his hand on the first two tries, the test was concluded as it was no longer possible for Wang to win the challenge even if he was chosen correct on the remaining tries. Tech journalist Lee Hutchinson approached the JREF after writing an article for ''Ars Technica'' about directional
Ethernet Ethernet () is a family of wired computer networking technologies commonly used in local area networks (LAN), metropolitan area networks (MAN) and wide area networks (WAN). It was commercially introduced in 1980 and first standardized in 1 ...
cables that claim to "keep your audio signal completely free of electromagnetic interference". The MDC set up a controlled double-blind demonstration with volunteers listening to two identical recordings with a randomly selected Ethernet cable, a normal one or the cable claiming to improve the listening experience. After six volunteers, the demonstration was called off, as they were unable to select the "enhanced" cable over the common cable. The tests included: File:Million Dollar Challenge - Connie Sonne.jpg, Connie Sonne &
Banachek Banachek (born Steven Shaw; 30 November 1960) is an English mentalist, magician, and " thought reader". He first came to public attention as a teenager for his role in James Randi's Project Alpha experiment, which exposed the lack of objecti ...
at TAM 2009 File:Challenge 234.jpg,
Hal Bidlack Harold Wilford Bidlack (born 1958) is a retired United States Air Force officer and national security aide. He ran unsuccessfully for the United States House of Representatives in Colorado's 5th congressional district as the Democratic nominee ...
, Derek Colanduno and others are "viewed" by paranormal applicant for a missing kidney. File:MillionDollarChallenge2012.jpg, Performance-enhancing bracelet at TAM 2012 File:TAM11-3163.jpg, The 3 remote viewing objects from TAM 2013 File:TAM11-3125.jpg, Richard Saunders in remote viewing room at TAM 2013 File:MDC 2014.jpg, Fei Wang is applicant,
Banachek Banachek (born Steven Shaw; 30 November 1960) is an English mentalist, magician, and " thought reader". He first came to public attention as a teenager for his role in James Randi's Project Alpha experiment, which exposed the lack of objecti ...
and Richard Saunders are assisting TAM 2014 File:MDC TAM13.jpg , Demonstration test of
Ethernet Ethernet () is a family of wired computer networking technologies commonly used in local area networks (LAN), metropolitan area networks (MAN) and wide area networks (WAN). It was commercially introduced in 1980 and first standardized in 1 ...
cables TAM13 - Grace Denman and volunteers - 2015


Special awards

The James Randi Education Foundation presented special awards at the Amazing Meeting to people who they label champions of skepticism. Robert S. Lancaster received the 2009 Citizen Skeptic award for his work on the website ''Stop Sylvia'' which critically examines the claims of self-proclaimed psychic
Sylvia Browne Sylvia Celeste Browne (''née'' Shoemaker; October 19, 1936 – November 20, 2013) was an American author who claimed to be a medium with psychic abilities. She appeared regularly on television and radio, including on '' The Montel Willia ...
. At that year's TAM London the award for Outstanding Contribution to Skepticism went to
Simon Singh Simon Lehna Singh, (born 19 September 1964) is a British popular science author, theoretical and particle physicist. His written works include ''Fermat's Last Theorem'' (in the United States titled ''Fermat's Enigma: The Epic Quest to Solve th ...
in recognition for his successful appeal against a libel charge by the British Chiropractic Association. In 2010 at TAM London then 15-year-old Rhys Morgan received a special grassroots skepticism award from Randi. Reed Esau received the James Randi Award for Skepticism in the Public Interest at TAM 2012 for his work inventing
SkeptiCamp SkeptiCamp was founded by Reed Esau in 2007 and is small grassroots conference where scientific skeptics come together and participate and present. Skepticamps are held in varying formats worldwide and are operated in the style of an unconference ...
. At TAM 2013, the award winner was
Susan Gerbic Susan Gerbic (born 1962) is an American studio photographer who became known as a scientific skepticism activist, mostly for exposing people claiming to be mediums. A columnist for ''Skeptical Inquirer'', she is the co-founder of Monterey Cou ...
for her work with crowd-sourced activism, specifically her work as the leader of the Guerrilla Skepticism on Wikipedia (GSoW) project. The award reads: File:Andrus and Randi.jpg, Magician
Jerry Andrus Jerry Andrus (January 28, 1918 – August 26, 2007) was an American magician and writer known internationally for his original close-up, sleight of hand tricks and optical illusions, such as the famous "Linking Pins". Early life Andrus was born ...
and
James Randi James Randi (born Randall James Hamilton Zwinge; August 7, 1928 – October 20, 2020) was a Canadian-American stage magician, author and scientific skeptic who extensively challenged paranormal and pseudoscientific claims. Rodrigues 2010 ...
TAM4 2006 File:Robert Lancaster receives 2009 JREF Citizen Skeptic Award.JPG, Robert S. Lancaster with family and
James Randi James Randi (born Randall James Hamilton Zwinge; August 7, 1928 – October 20, 2020) was a Canadian-American stage magician, author and scientific skeptic who extensively challenged paranormal and pseudoscientific claims. Rodrigues 2010 ...
receiving the Citizen Skeptic Award, July 11, 2009 File:RhysMorgan1.png, Rhys Morgan receiving the James Randi Award for Grassroots Activism TAM London, October 16, 2010 File:Reed Esau with TAM award.jpg, Reed Esau, Founder of
SkeptiCamp SkeptiCamp was founded by Reed Esau in 2007 and is small grassroots conference where scientific skeptics come together and participate and present. Skepticamps are held in varying formats worldwide and are operated in the style of an unconference ...
, receiving James Randi Award for Skepticism in the Public Interest, at TAM 2012 File:JREFGerbicTAMaward.jpg, D.J. Grothe,
Susan Gerbic Susan Gerbic (born 1962) is an American studio photographer who became known as a scientific skepticism activist, mostly for exposing people claiming to be mediums. A columnist for ''Skeptical Inquirer'', she is the co-founder of Monterey Cou ...
, James Randi - Gerbic is presented with the James Randi award for Skepticism in the Public Interest


Locations and dates

In addition to the Las Vegas-based conferences the JREF also sponsored international TAM conferences, with the first TAM London taking place in 2009 and TAM Australia in 2010, co-sponsored by
Australian Skeptics Australian Skeptics is a loose confederation of like-minded organisations across Australia that began in 1980. Australian Skeptics investigate paranormal and pseudoscientific claims using scientific methodologies. This page covers all Australia ...
, in 2010. A related series of events titled ''The Amazing Adventure'' has been held featuring trips to the Bermuda Triangle (2007), an Alaskan cruise (2007), the Galapagos Islands (2008), Mexico (2009), and the Caribbean (2010).


References


External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Amazing Meeting, The Skeptic organizations in the United States Skeptic conferences Recurring events established in 2003