Events | Adrienne Hill

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Poster

Skepticamp, Friday, February 13, 2026

MacEwan University

Building 5

Room 5-268

Join Us For This Free Event

Join us for our QE II Skepticamp, starting at 3:30 pm on Friday, February 13, 2026. This fast-paced, free event features talks from university students and guest presenters about the Halloween-themed science of strange beliefs.

Scroll down for more details.

Afternoon Sessions

Student Presentations on the Science of Strange Beliefs

Join us for an engaging series of short talks where psychology students explore why people believe weird things and what science can teach us about critical thinking. Each presentation is 15 minutes long and takes on a popular pseudoscientific or paranormal claim.

These presentations come from students enrolled in PSYC 441: Separating Sense from Nonsense: Applying Social Psychology to Promote Scientific Skepticism at MacEwan University. In this class, students take on the role of investigators by examining ghost stories, miracle cures, and viral trends to uncover the real psychology behind them. Each talk combines curiosity, evidence, and critical thinking as students explore big questions: Why do smart people believe strange things? What makes some ideas so resistant to evidence?

Evening Sessions

Guest Speakers from Calgary and Edmonton continue skeptical themes

After a quick break to chat and grab a snack, we continue for longer talks featuring Scott Semenyna, an Assistant Professor at MacEwan University who uses evolutionary and cross-cultural frameworks to study sex and sexual orientation, and the many fascinating ways both influence human behaviour. Adrienne Hill from Calgary, and locals Kat McLeod and Rodney Scmaltz round out the evening. There will be time for Q&A, and we anticipate the talks will conclude at 7:30 pm, allowing time for socializing.