What About God?

Great PBS documentary... very scary what we have to deal with in this country.

Ken Ham - "The Bible says God created the earth, covered with water, the sun moon and stars on day four - well that's very different to the big bang. If the big bang's true, well the bible got it wrong on astronomy. The bible says there was a global flood, but today we have a lot people saying 'No there wasn't.', well if the bible gets it wrong in geology... and the bible says god made distinct kinds of animals and plants to reproduce after their own kind. Well, today evolutionists would say 'No, one kind of animal changed into another over millions of years.', so the bible gets it wrong in biology. Then why should I trust the bible when it talks about morality and salvation?"

I think you answered your own question...

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Daniel Dennett - The Evolution of Purposes

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What Darwin Never Knew

I watched this amazing show last night on PBS, detailing all of the scientific breakthroughs since Darwin published his Origin of Species and changed the way we think about the world. If you don't understand evolution very well or are curious how we actually know what we know, this is a must-see program!


What Darwin Never Knew - PBS

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Evolution is "Only a Theory"

Theory is a word that gets thrown around a lot by many apologists as a way to discredit science or as a means to create doubt, but many don't understand the way the term is used when referencing a scientific area as opposed to something someone just thought up.

A theory, in the parlance of our pop-culture, is regarded more as an idea or a hypothesis, an untested opinion. A theory in the scientific world, such as the theory of evolution or theory of gravity or relativity, is regarded as a principle or a law, one whose idea has been well tested, can be used reliably for predictions and is generally regarded as true until proven otherwise, it is about as close to a fact as anything can ever be. These are vastly different definitions for the same term, so one must be careful to review the evidence and testable predictions to understand when something is a "theory" by terminology only or a theory supported by a preponderance of evidence.

Dictionary.com - Theory

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The Evolution of the Eye

Many religious critics point to the eye, and in particular the human eye, as clear evidence for an omniscient "designer", but it is very easy to see how such a seemingly complex organ can be produced under natural selection as predicted by Darwin.

PBS - Evolution of the Eye

Evolution of the Eye - Wikipedia

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Life on Earth in 60 Seconds

Great video showing a perspective of the timeline of life evolving on earth from the planet's formation 'til now. Complex life shows up pretty late in the game and based on projections of the sun's life, we really only have about 20 more seconds after the end of this clip before the earth is consumed by the red giant.

Cdesign Proponentsists

The amazing trial of Kitzmiller v. Dover Board of Education in 2005 and the Intelligent Design vs. Evolution struggle here in the U.S. A landmark decision by a notoriously conservative judge, appointed by George W. Bush and Rick Santorum declared that "Intelligent Design" was nothing more than "Creationism" rebranded by folks who had no desire to further scientific education, but rather infuse christian doctrines into the science classroom.

The Ruling by Judge John E. Jones III:

The proper application of both the endorsement and Lemon tests to the facts of this case makes it abundantly clear that the Board's ID Policy violates the Establishment Clause. In making this determination, we have addressed the seminal question of whether ID is science. We have concluded that it is not, and moreover that ID cannot uncouple itself from its creationist, and thus religious, antecedents.
Both Defendants and many of the leading proponents of ID make a bedrock assumption which is utterly false. Their presupposition is that evolutionary theory is antithetical to a belief in the existence of a supreme being and to religion in general. Repeatedly in this trial, Plaintiffs' scientific experts testified that the theory of evolution represents good science, is overwhelmingly accepted by the scientific community, and that it in no way conflicts with, nor does it deny, the existence of a divine creator.
To be sure, Darwin's theory of evolution is imperfect. However, the fact that a scientific theory cannot yet render an explanation on every point should not be used as a pretext to thrust an untestable alternative hypothesis grounded in religion into the science classroom or to misrepresent well-established scientific propositions.
The citizens of the Dover area were poorly served by the members of the Board who voted for the ID Policy. It is ironic that several of these individuals, who so staunchly and proudly touted their religious convictions in public, would time and again lie to cover their tracks and disguise the real purpose behind the ID Policy.

NOVA has an incredible special on the whole ordeal and it is well worth watching:

PBS NOVA - Judgement Day: Intelligent Design on Trial

Here another great link with more detailed information about the case and its implications:

Talk Origins Archive - Kitzmiller vs. Dover Area School District

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Charles Darwin - Wikipedia

On The Origin of Species - Charles Darwin 1859

Tim Minchin - Mutated in a Good Way

Tim Minchin: Mocking God in the Heart of Texas - The Guardian 11/6/11

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I've never heard of Tim Minchin before I read this article, but I was moved by his tale, a visit to the U.S. and in particular, bible thumping Texas. He is quite the performer and musician, is a little eccentric but that just adds to his aura, I suppose. He is the kind of person you feel could entertain you for hours with music and comedy and theatre or with a serious discussion on taboo topics such as religion. I highly recommend you check him out. I've embedded a few videos below on some of his religious topics... enjoy


Tim Minchin - Wikipedia

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Why Evolution is True

Great talk by Jerry Coyne...

Jerry Coyne Blog - Why Evolution is True

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Black Death Exposes Human Evolution

Deadly Black Death Bug Hasn't Changed, But We Have - MSNBC 10/12/11

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Exciting new findings that the horrific plague, Black Death which killed nearly 1 in 3 Europeans, hasn't changed much in the last 600 or so years. The real story is in the fact that humans have. This is as clear an example of a form of human evolution as we've ever seen. Tiny differences and variations in our DNA allowed some people to avoid being susceptible to the deadly bacteria and, obviously, those traits have then been passed along to descendants who are now not effected by it. Variation in genetic code from generation to generation allow certain differences to take root. As environmental conditions change around us, these variations can become advantageous to survival. Sometimes species don't have the ability to adapt and go extinct. Others have portions of populations that can adapt and they are the ones who continue life on this planet and take it in a new direction. We don't see it on a daily basis as these changes are so minute, but drastic events like meteors and plagues and ice ages really show how the whole process works with stunning clarity.

I've Been Slimed

Can Answers To Evolution Be Found in Slime? - NY Times 10/3/11

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Fantastic article about slime. Who would have thought that slimes can give us such incredible insight into evolution and the processes by which genes and traits get passed on for a group or species to survive as well as other insights into networking and connections and choice that make a species operate as efficiently as possible with current conditions. Well worth the read!

Family Tree

New Fossils May Redraw Human Ancestry

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The understanding of human evolution just became a little bit clearer with the discovery of a 2 million year old humanoid fossil in a South African Cave. Scientists seem to agree this fossil appears to be the most plausible specimen ancestor of homo sapien and other homo species. With distinct features in the hands and brain and hips, this find may very well be the base of the human branch on the tree of life where we start to differentiate between early humans and more ape-like ancestors. If nothing else, this find helps fill in some gaps in the evolutionary tree as we get a better picture of where we came from.

Tramps Like Us

Born, and Evolved, To Run

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Really interesting article about studying the evolution of the human head and the human foot and how they are actually related in a way. I have heard that the cause of the human brain being so large was the reduction in the force of the jaw bite. They are apparently directly related with all primate species, force of bite vs size of brain. We are seeing newer health issues that never used to plague ancient humans due to our processed food and shoe-wearing. I am also noticing more and more of these low-profile shoes and webbed shoes for running. People are trying to get back to their "roots" as far as running is concerned, that padding isn't necessarily a good thing. The human foot was designed for endurance running without shoes.

When I am on my runs, I sometimes let my mind wander to think about what it might have been like to be an ancient human on a run to wear down a beast for dinner. I usually run without music as well, it helps me feel a little more "one with nature". I pick up the sounds of the birds and the insects, I see the cloud formations up above and feel the breeze and see it in the motions of the leaves on the trees. I sense the rhythm of my breathing and my feet pounding the earth, I feel gravity and the strength of my muscles fighting each other. I feel the warmth of the sun's rays on my skin and the cool droplets of rain that refresh and energize my body. I really almost start to feel like an animal, it feels very communal and ancient. I almost start to feel relaxed as I take in nature and become part of the ecosystem (then, I get tired). It's very liberating to unplug for a while and just be submerged in your physical surroundings, you pick up on so much beauty that normally seems faded into the background of our daily lives. I highly recommend running for that reason alone, plus you will feel better and burn off all those calories :)

But If We Evolved From Monkeys, Why Are There Still Monkeys?

A Lesson of Genealogy: Looks Can Be Deceiving

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Scientists Find Route Across Key Brain Barrier

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Electron Acts Like a Perfect Sphere

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It's really amazing how each little step of scientific discovery or breakthrough advances our foundation of knowledge about the universe. You apply these little steps to the history of mankind and realize just how far we've come in spite of massive resistance and persecution along the way from religious zealots and war and conflict. We're still just ankle-deep in the ocean of knowledge of the cosmos but our depth of understanding has far surpassed that which can be understood from any "holy" book. It is our duty as humans to continue to advance the frontiers of knowledge at all costs. This is what drives economies, this is what makes the human experience that much more rich, this is what will ultimately be the eventual downfall of organized religions in the long run. Sane, sound, scientific, factual explanations for who we are, how we got here and the limits of where we can go... our place in the cosmos.