Kenneth Miller provides a brief explanation as to why "intelligent design" is not admissible in a science classroom.Kenneth Miller provides a brief explanation as to why "intelligent design" is not... more
It's been a rather big year for Charles Darwin. 2009 is the bicentennial of the man's birth and the 150th anniversary of the publication of "The Origin of Species," and the explorer and naturalist has been the subject of books (including a graphic novel adaptation of "The Origin of Species"), a movie starring Jennifer Connelly (with its own ensuing controversy), and even a viral video hit starring "Growing Pains" actor Kirk Cameron. Given that evolutionary biology is Richard Dawkins' area of expertise, it's unsurprising that the British scientist, atheist and controversial author of "The God Delusion" has also gotten on the bandwagon -- in rather ambitious fashion.
In "The Greatest Show on Earth," Dawkins has written what is essentially a layperson's primer for the theory of evolution. Dawkins aims to explain to the everyday reader why evolution isn't a "theory" but a fact and that we need only look around us to find evidence of its existence -- from continental drift to the reproductive habits of wasps. Dawkins uses simple language, elaborate metaphors and color photographs to make his point, and the result is a convincing, if occasionally dry, overview of evolutionary biology. It's also clear, from the book's first pages, that Dawkins isn't very tolerant of his creationist opponents (the book includes a memorably confrontational encounter with Wendy Wright, the creationist president of Concerned Women for America).
Salon spoke with Dawkins via Skype about creationism's popularity in America, its connection with religion, and how he feels about his own notoriety. A video excerpt of the conversation is posted below.
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(excerpt)
Q: Do you think that there's any one particular piece of evidence that will change people's minds about creationism, or do you think that it's really just a question of a gradual erosion of people's belief systems?
A: I wouldn't expect their minds to be changed by fossils, really. I think the more convincing evidence is the evidence from comparison of modern animals and plants, because we have so many different species, and by comparing them with each other, particularly comparing the molecular genetics which is nowadays very easily done. All living creatures have the same genetic code, so you have an exact digital count of the similarities between every species and every other species, and if you look at that pattern of similarities it falls perfectly into a hierarchical tree. It's a family tree. And even better than that, everything you look at -- every different gene you look at -- gives you the same family tree. That's remarkably persuasive evidence to anybody who attends to it long enough to understand.It's been a rather big year for Charles Darwin. 2009 is the bicentennial of the man's... more
Should teachers turn to creationism to explain the gaps in evolution? Bill O'Reilly thinks so. Unsurprisingly, prominent atheist Richard Dawkins disagrees. "If a particular scientific theory doesn't work, do some better science," Dawkins said. O'Reilly also said that only teaching evolution in public schools is "fascism"Should teachers turn to creationism to explain the gaps in evolution? Bill O'Reilly... more
But the author of the book frequently described as the greatest history book ever written theorized the world was created Oct. 23, 4004 B.C. – making it 6,012 years old this month.
In the 1650s, an Anglican bishop named James Ussher published his "Annals of the World," subtitled, "The Origin of Time, and Continued to the Beginning of the Emperor Vespasian's Reign and the Total Destruction and Abolition of the Temple and Commonwealth of the Jews." First published in Latin, it consisted of more than 1,600 pages.
The book, now published in English for the first time, is a favorite of homeschoolers and those who take ancient history seriously. It's the history of the world from the Garden of Eden to the fall of Jerusalem in AD 70.
Of course, there will be those who disagree with Ussher's calculations of time – especially evolutionists who need billions of years to explain their theory of how life sprang from non-life and mutated from one-celled animals into human beings.
Ussher's arrival at the date of Oct. 23 was based on the fact that most peoples of antiquity, especially the Jews, started their calendar at harvest time. Ussher concluded there must be good reason for this, so he chose the first Sunday following autumnal equinox.
Although the autumnal equinox is Sept. 21 today, that is only because of historical calendar-juggling to make the years come out right.
If you think this is a startling fact – an actual date for Creation – you haven't seen anything until you've pored through the rest of Ussher's "Annals of the World." It's a classic history book for those who believe in the Bible – and a compelling challenge for those who don't.How old is the world?
Most people would say: "Nobody knows."
But the author of... more
The big news in the journal Science tomorrow is the discovery of the oldest human skeleton -- a small-brained, 110-pound female of the species Ardipithecus ramidus, nicknamed "Ardi." She lived in what is now Ethiopia 4.4 million years ago, which makes her over a million years older than the famous "Lucy" fossil, found in the same region thirty-five years ago.
Maybe this constitutes the missing link in evolution? I wonder that creationists will say about this discovery.The big news in the journal Science tomorrow is the discovery of the oldest human... more
Kirk Cameron is smearing Darwin, and promoting creationism. In what can only be characterized as religion gone dumb, Cameron, failed child star turned wacky Christian, is teaming up with his equally wacky buddy Ray Comfort in a campaign to deny scientific truth and promote the most ignorant of religious superstition.
Just in time for the 150th anniversary of Charles Darwin's Origin of Species, Cameron and Comfort are promoting an edition of the book that features an introduction claiming to discredit the theory of evolution, making the case for intelligent design.Kirk Cameron is smearing Darwin, and promoting creationism. In what can only be... more
On November 21, the 150th anniversery of The Origins of Species, Ray Comfort and Kirk Cameron are going to give out free copies of it. You're probably thinking, "Wait, aren't they part of a creationist organization, why are they giving away copies of the book that completely destroys their belief?" Well, The Banana Man (Ray Comfort) wrote a 50 page introduction. The following is straight from Kirk's mouth:
>The "history" of evolution
>A time line of Darwin's life
>Adolf Hitler's "undeniable" connection of the theory
>Darwin's "racism"
>His "distain" for women
>Darwin's thoughts on the existence of God
>The theory's many hoaxesLet's play a game; you rage, you lose.
On November 21, the 150th anniversery of The... more
“Creation Begins” is a very intriguing 1-min. short film opening with a scene set in a seemingly sterile room full of silently working computer servers, which then cuts to a newly created naked Adam who's laying on the floor. The parable continues as the servers whir to life, sexy Eve is born and then the big scary snake slithers into being. With the scene of the Garden of Eden now set within the technological world of wires and silicon, the players rush headlong toward what appears to be the well-known end: the expulsion of Adam and Eve from paradise. But with Adam given the chance to make the same mistake twice, he decides that it’s the human connection that makes creation great, not the technology that makes it possible.
Includes a number of color photographs, as well as the fascinating 1-min. short film, “Creation Begins.”“Creation Begins” is a very intriguing 1-min. short film opening with a scene set... more
"A Pensacola judge has green lighted the government seizure of Pensacola's Dinosaur Adventure Land, a creationist theme park whose owners, Kent and Jo Hovind, owe $430,400 in federal taxes. The Hovinds' excuse for not paying was that they were employed by God and thus could claim zero income and property."
Perhaps I should use this excuse come tax time. That, or my dog ate my tax forms."A Pensacola judge has green lighted the government seizure of Pensacola's Dinosaur... more
A federal judge O.K.'s the government's seizure of a creationism theme park in Pensacola owned by a couple convicted of tax fraud!
Kent Hovind, who founded the park and a ministry, Creation Science Evangelism, is serving 10 years in federal prison for failing to pay the Internal Revenue Service more than $470,000 in employee taxes.
He was found guilty on 58 counts, including failure to pay employee taxes and making threats against investigators. Saying he was employed by God and his ministers were not subject to payroll taxes.A federal judge O.K.'s the government's seizure of a creationism theme park in... more
Physicist and Nobel laureate Arno Penzias, contemplating our enigmatic universe, observes:
"Astronomy leads us to a unique event, a universe that was created out of nothing and delicately balanced to provide exactly the conditions required to support life. In the absence of an absurdly improbable accident, the observations of modern science seem to suggest an underlying, one might say, supernatural plan."
Albert Einstein was struck by the wondrous orderliness of the world:
"You find it strange that I consider the comprehensibility of the world (to the extent that we are authorized to speak of such a comprehensibility) as a miracle or as an eternal mystery..."
Astronomer Sir Fred Hoyle argued in The Nature of the Universe:
"Such properties seem to run through the fabric of the natural world like a thread of happy coincidences. But there are so many odd coincidences essential to life that some explanation seems required to account for them...The scientific community is prepared to consider the idea that God created the universe a more respectable hypothesis today than at any time in the last 100 years."
Needs Statement for a Habitat Place in the Suitable Universe for Complex, Conscious Life:
An abbreviated, but illustrative, list of additional requirements must be specified for a place of habitation in this universe. First, we need a star that is located in a relatively "quiet" region of the universe (e.g., not too many neighbors that are producing high intensity, sterilizing radiation). This star needs to have its highest intensity of radiation in the range that is suitable to drive the chemical reactions essential to life without destroying the products of these reactions. Furthermore, this star needs to have a very special satellite within its solar system. A partial list of the requirements this satellite must meet include:
-a planet or moon that is terrestrial--or, solid rather than gaseous;
-a temperature range suitable to maintain the universal solvent as a liquid rather than a solid or gas;
-just the right concentration of heavy (radioactive) elements to heat the core of the planet and provide the necessary energy to drive plate tectonics, to build up land mass in what would otherwise be a smooth, round planet completely covered with solvent;
-just the right amount of solvent (carefully coupled to the plate tectonics activity) to provide a planet with similar proportions of its surfaces as oceans and land mass;
-just the right protection from the destructive forces in nature such as radiation and asteroids over a reasonable amount of time; and
-just the right stabilized axis tilt and angular velocity to give moderate, regular, and
-predictable seasons and moderate temperature fluctuations from day to night.
While one is tempted to think that these requirements are easily met, given the large number of stars, it should be noted that ***there are few places in the universe sufficiently free of sterilizing radiation to provide a suitable solar system.*** The number of candidate "neighborhoods" is further reduced by the requirements of a sun with the right amount of mass to give the right electromagnetic radiation spectrum. Furthermore, the occurrence of a suitable satellite in conjunction with such a star is even more problematic.
******Only the earth in our solar system of sixty-two satellites meets the above requirements for a "home" (earth) in safe "neighborhood" like our sun and solar system, which are well placed in a quiet place in a suitable universe as described above.******Physicist and Nobel laureate Arno Penzias, contemplating our enigmatic universe,... more
I know that there are many of you in the Current Community who refuse to acknowledge that there had been a "War on Science" over the last 8 years so here is some evidence.
Another interesting tidbit: ""Most notably, 87% of scientists say that humans and other living things have evolved over time and that evolution is the result of natural processes such as natural selection," Pew writes. "Just 32% of the public accepts this as true.""
"A new Pew Research Poll released Thursday found that a vast majority of scientists -- some 77 percent -- say that claims the Bush Administration suppressed research reports that didn't align with Administration's point of view are true.
The survey polled more than 2,500 scientists in collaboration with the American Association for the Advancement of Science.
"Most scientists had heard at least a little about claims that government scientists were not allowed to report research findings that conflicted with the Bush administration’s point of view," Pew wrote. "And the vast majority (77%) says that these claims are true. By contrast, these claims barely registered with the public – more than half heard nothing at all about this issue. Only about a quarter of the public (28%) said they thought the claims were true."
Strikingly, perhaps as a result of the perceived Bush Administration stance, very few scientists identified as Republicans. Just six percent of those polled said they identified as Republicans, with 32 percent self-identifying as independent and 55 percent saying they consider themselves Democrats.
Only nine percent of scientists identified as conservative."
(Follow the link to complete the article)I know that there are many of you in the Current Community who refuse to acknowledge... more
This video provides an unbiased look at whether Earth's favorable conditions for life prove that a loving God planned it that way all along. (Hint: Like, duh! There's no other explanation!)This video provides an unbiased look at whether Earth's favorable conditions for life... more
ARE YOU A DESCENDANT OF THE APES?
Sometimes it is appropriate to refer to atheists as “descendants of the apes.” I’m sure all of them are highly honored by that title since they are the ones who claim that apes are their noble ancestors.This explains why atheists have devised the animalistic and heathenistic philosophy of atheism. It is because that is the best philosophy the ape’s descendants can come up with. That is as high as they can rise in their thinking. There has never been an ape during the history of apes that achieved the ability to perceive the existence of God and to worship Him. And so, it is not surprising that descendants of the apes are void of that ability as well.This also explains... [why it] must have been a terrible group of apes [these obnoxious Darwinians] descended from, because when you observe [naturally smelly] apes that exist today, all of them do exactly what apes are suppose to do. But [Darwinians infamously] cannot do anything right...
True Christians have a far more noble fountain from whence they descended. We were originally created by the Almighty God – created in His image. We did not have to evolve to a higher state, but from the beginning, were created by God as perfect as humans can be. Even though we fell from our created state of perfection in the first man Adam, our Maker brings us back by His uplifting grace. But atheists, as descendants of the apes, have never and will never reached the level of perfection in which God originally created all mankind.
If atheists were [more than fiercely-proud 98% "cousins" and "brothers" and "sisters" to the relatively unintelligent] apes [that we know would just as soon rip their heads off for any "family ties", then] they might be able to perceive the beauty of the existence of God [even the simple possibility], and [they] might have a chance at receiving God’s grace. But alas, animals don’t have that ability and God has no intention on saving animals.ARE YOU A DESCENDANT OF THE APES?
Sometimes it is appropriate to refer to atheists as... more
In this video, we learn that God created the entire universe for the enjoyment of us humans on Earth. To believe otherwise is arrogant and deluded!In this video, we learn that God created the entire universe for the enjoyment of us... more
New scientific evidence shows that morality does not stem from religion, instead being the natural consequence of living in a cooperative environment. Further proof that man is an animal like any other.
If only humans could also act "morally" without the threat of hell and eternal damnation...
"Scientists studying animal behaviour believe they have growing evidence that species ranging from mice to primates are governed by moral codes of conduct in the same way as humans.
Until recently, humans were thought to be the only species to experience complex emotions and have a sense of morality.
But Prof Marc Bekoff, an ecologist at University of Colorado, Boulder, believes that morals are "hard-wired" into the brains of all mammals and provide the "social glue" that allow often aggressive and competitive animals to live together in groups.
He has compiled evidence from around the world that shows how different species of animals appear to have an innate sense of fairness, display empathy and help other animals that are in distress.
His conclusions will provide ammunition for animal welfare groups pushing to have animals treated more humanely, but some experts are sceptical about the extent to which animals can experience complex emotions and social responsibility.
Prof Bekoff, who presents his case in a new book Wild Justice, said: "The belief that humans have morality and animals don't is a long-standing assumption, but there is a growing amount of evidence that is showing us that this simply cannot be the case.
"Just as in humans, the moral nuances of a particular culture or group will be different from another, but they are certainly there. Moral codes are species specific, so they can be difficult to compare with each other or with humans." "
(Follow link to complete the article)New scientific evidence shows that morality does not stem from religion, instead being... more
The "science" of Creationism takes yet another blow.
But if the proverbial tree falls in the scientific woods and no media source reports it, does it make a sound? Why is it that no mainstream news source covers discoveries as important as this? We are literally talking about the beginning of life on Earth... Which, in my opinion, is a bit more important than the relationship status of Jon and Kate Plus 8
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"Scientists may have figured out the chemistry that sparked the beginning of life on Earth.
The new findings map out a series of simple, efficient chemical reactions that could have formed molecules of RNA, a close cousin of DNA, from the basic materials available more than 3.85 billion years ago, researchers report online May 13 in Nature.
“This is a very impressive piece of work — a really excellent analysis,” comments chemist James Ferris of the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy, N.Y.
The new research lends support to the idea that RNA-based life-forms were the first step toward the evolution of modern life. Called the RNA world hypothesis, the idea was first proposed some 40 years ago. But until now, scientists couldn’t figure out the chemical reactions that created the earliest RNA molecules.
Today, DNA encodes the genetic blueprint for life — excluding some viruses, for those who consider viruses living — and RNA acts as an intermediary in the process, making protein from DNA. But most scientists think it’s unlikely that DNA was the basis of the origin of life, says study coauthor John Sutherland of the University of Manchester in England.
Information-bearing DNA holds the code needed to put proteins together, but at the same time, proteins catalyze the reactions that produce DNA. It’s a chicken-or-egg problem. Scientists don’t think that DNA and proteins could have come about independently — regardless of which came first — and yet still work together in this way.
It’s more plausible that the first life-forms were based on a single molecule that could replicate itself and store genetic information — a molecule such as RNA (SN: 4/7/01, p. 212). RNA world proponents speculate modern DNA and proteins evolved from this RNA-dominated early life, and RNA in cells today is left over from this early time. "
(Follow link to complete the article)The "science" of Creationism takes yet another blow.
But if the proverbial tree... more
People always ask "What is it?" when looking at Jorge's art work. This video tries to show some of the thought process behind creating his most recent line work.
He explains some of the motivations and feelings that go into creating "IT".
He'll be featuring this work in a group art show in Los Angeles on Friday June 12, 2009
at Gallery825.
Checkout their site for more information. http://laaa.org/People always ask "What is it?" when looking at Jorge's art work. This video tries to... more
The Discovery Institute – the Seattle-based headquarters of the intelligent design movement – has just launched a new website, Faith and Evolution, which asks, can one be a Christian and accept evolution? The answer, as far as the Discovery Institute is concerned, is a resounding: No.
The new website appears to be a response to the recent launch of the BioLogos Foundation, the brainchild of geneticist Francis Collins, former head of the Human Genome Project and rumoured Obama appointee-to-be for head of the National Institutes of Health. Along with "a team of scientists who believe in God" and some cash from the Templeton Foundation, Collins, an evangelical Christian who is also a staunch proponent of evolution, is on a crusade to convince believers that faith and science need not be at odds. He is promoting "theistic evolution" – the belief that God (the prayer-listening, proactive, personal God of Christianity) chose to create life by way of evolution.The Discovery Institute – the Seattle-based headquarters of the intelligent design... more
This video asks the important question: Have scientists really found the missing link? Or are Darwinianists just blindly worshipping roadkill again? CHECKMATE, Roadkillists!This video asks the important question: Have scientists really found the missing link?... more
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