Sgt Scholar

Sgt Scholar

@sgt-scholar.bsky.social

I'm Dan Walsh, a USMC combat vet w/ a background in science & communication. Aside from bad jokes, I promote critical thinking, STEM, media literacy, and *meaningful* dialogue, which are vital skills for active citizenship Carpe Datum and Semper Sci!

936 Followers 55 Following 251 Posts Joined Jan 2025
4 months ago
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Ike Eisenhower was born #OTD 14 October 1890. Below is one of my favorite quotes. See the link for more insights from other prominent veterans on science, reason, and conservation.

sgtscholar.wordpress.com/2024/11/10/i...

Carpe Datum and Semper Sci!
[Sgt Scholar Actual]

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4 months ago
YouTube
Europa Clipper: Exploring Jupiter’s Ocean Moon (Mission Overview) YouTube video by NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory

One problem, though: that water is beneath several miles of ice. Future missions will depend on what Clipper can learn about this environment. You can learn more in this short video from NASA:

youtu.be/q88fSdGMbys

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4 months ago
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Clipper was launched 1 year ago and will arrive in 2030. One of Jupiter's moons, Europa, likely has vast oceans that *might* have life. 1/2

#NASA #SpaceExploration #Science #STEM

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4 months ago
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5 months ago
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Another ghoul that haunts reasoning is the ad hoc rescue. See the link for more on what this is, is not, and more.

sgtscholar.wordpress.com/2025/08/21/a...

#CriticalThinking #Logic #Halloween

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5 months ago
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OTD in 1884, this badass was born.

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5 months ago
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Beware of frightful fake skepticism—the grim grave of reason.

#CriticalThinking #Logic #Reason #Skepticism #Science #STEM

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5 months ago
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Our frightening fallacy series continues with the guilt by association fallacy. For more on what this fallacy is, is not, examples, and more, see the link.

sgtscholar.wordpress.com/2019/07/20/a...

#Halloween #Logic #CriticalThinking

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5 months ago
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Next on our Hallowen-themed look at fallacies is the ever-frightening fallacy fallacy. Sometimes, a conclusion is correct (or useful, good, viable, etc., depending on whether the argument is one of fact, definition, value, policy, etc.), but not because of that line of reasoning.

#CriticalThinking

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5 months ago
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#OTD The physicist Niels Bohr was born (Oct 7, 1885). He is most famous for developing the Bohr model of atomic structure, for which he earned the Nobel Prize in 1922. So, I guess science didn't find his discoveries "Bohring."

Did the joke fall flat? Well, pobody's nerfect.

#science #STEM

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5 months ago
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Sure, the special pleading fallacy is a killer mistake, but I only used it to avoid the nightmare of losing an argument.

Don’t let fallacies haunt your arguments. Critical thinking can cast them back to hell, where they belong. So, see the link for more.

sgtscholar.wordpress.com/2020/07/08/s...

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5 months ago
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Some people say middle ground fallacies are spooky. Others say they’re spectacular. But they’re obviously spooktacular.

In all seriousness, see the link to learn more about what this fallacy is, what it is not, and more.

sgtscholar.wordpress.com/2023/06/06/m...

#Logic #CriticalThinking #Halloween

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5 months ago
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Dr. Robert H. Goddard, American Rocketry Pioneer - NASA Dr. Robert Hutchings Goddard (1882-1945) is considered the father of modern rocket propulsion. A physicist of great insight, Goddard also had a unique genius

As a bona fide space nerd, I love this quote. May we live up to his vision.

You can read more about him in the link.

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#Space #SpaceExploration #GoodQuotes #Science #STEM

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5 months ago

Sadly, even though he dedicated years of his life to this endeavor, he died before he could see humanity take its first steps into space. Below is a sentiment he shared in a letter to the legendary science fiction writer, H.G. Wells.

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5 months ago

Anyway, Dr. Goddard was a pioneer in the development of liquid-fueled rockets. By figuring out how to launch such contraptions into the heavens without killing himself, he laid the foundation for space exploration. Hell yeah.

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5 months ago
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I almost forgot to post this. #OTD in 1882, the OG rocket scientist, Robert H Goddard, was launched into this Earth and he spent the rest of his life trying to figure out how to get off this planet. (Can't blame him).

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5 months ago
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I'm sure nobody's going to make this fallacy.

*slaps knee*

sgtscholar.wordpress.com/2024/05/24/t...

#Logic #CriticalThinking #Halloween

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5 months ago
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Learning to spot untestable claims pleases the spirit of Carl Sagan. Anyway, see the link for more on this group of fallacies. You're free to refuse, of course. But if you do, a star will blow up at an unspecified time and place.

sgtscholar.wordpress.com/2024/06/04/a...

#Halloween #Logic

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5 months ago
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Correlation & Causation Sure, many correlations are not due to causation, but causation requires some kind of correlation. So the question stands… how do we infer causation? The short answer is, “It’s co…

But a more helpful answer is in the link. Hopefully, reading the article will cause more learning. But then again, a Marine grunt wrote this, so who knows.

sgtscholar.wordpress.com/2024/06/03/c...

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5 months ago
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Spooky for sure. While it's true that correlation ≠ causation, we can't just ignore every correlation... so... 𝘩𝘰𝘸 𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘸𝘦 confidently infer causation?

The short answer is, "It's complicated."

The longer answer? "It's most definitely cooompliiiiiiiiiicaaaaaated."

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5 months ago
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Fair winds, Dr. Goodall.

*Raises glass*

#Biology #Environment #GoodQuotes #Conservation #JaneGoodall

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5 months ago
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See the link for more on this error. Or don't. This is a social media post, not a command from Cthulu. You are free to continue doomscrolling.

sgtscholar.wordpress.com/2024/07/02/b...

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5 months ago
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Don't let fallacies haunt your reasoning. For more on the uses and misuses of anecdotes, see the link. If you dare.

sgtscholar.wordpress.com/2025/01/29/a...

#CriticalThinking #Logic #Halloween

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5 months ago
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You can either learn more in the link or continue doom-scrolling in this haunted timeline.

[Sgt Scholar Actual]

sgtscholar.wordpress.com/2019/07/01/e...

#Logic #CriticalThinking #Halloween

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5 months ago
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What NIJ Research Tells Us About Domestic Terrorism Militant, nationalistic, white supremacist violent extremism has increased in the United States. In fact, the number of far-right attacks continues to outpace all other types of terrorism and domestic...

Finally, don't take my word on any of this. I'm not anyone with special insight. This isn't my field of expertise. I'm just a guy who likes to read. Here is an archived link to the study. Read it to your heart's content.

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5 months ago
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US justice department removes study finding far-right extremists commit ‘far more’ violence Report finding rightwing extremists have killed more Americans than other domestic terrorist groups vanished from DoJ website

Interestingly, the report was removed from the DOJ website after Kirk's death. Why do you think that is? Even if the stats were reversed, I would want to know. I wouldn't want my government to hide it.

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5 months ago

1: Don't believe the lies that political violence is a leftist problem. (*cough* Jan 6 *cough*)

2: Yup, it’s a problem on both extreme ends, but it's substantially lopsided

3: This doesn't mean the average conservative is an extremist

4: This doesn't excuse Kirk's killer

No shit, right?

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5 months ago

Just an FYI, per a 2024 DOJ/NIH report: Since 1990, far-right extremists have committed 227 ideologically motivated attacks that killed 520 people. Far-left extremists committed 42 attacks that killed 78.

There are 4 takeaways that should go without saying, yet we still need to...

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5 months ago
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Reflecting on Ginsburg’s advice in 2025. We recently passed the fifth anniversary of the departure of the iconic Ruth Bader Ginsburg from this Earth. I love this quote from her remarks upon receiving Harvard’s Radcliffe Medal in 201…
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5 months ago
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If my regular puns make you numb, then my math puns will make you number! Welcome to the infamous Zeno's Bar and Grille inside the Hillbert Hotel, where drinks come in Klein bottles made from constantly recycled Theseusian glass.

*slaps knee*

Oh, quit groaning and laugh. That's my "philosophy."

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