Most of the earth's volcanoes are underwater. For the first time, using the submersible remotely operated vehicle Jason II, scientists have observed an actual eruption. They were able to move close to the vent, mainly because the physical conditions are so different than on land: If we were observing this type of eruptive activity on …
Month: May 2006
My Favorite Study Bible
Is it the Ryrie Study Bible? Scofield Study Bible? NIV Study Bible? Reformation Study Bible? No, right now it is the NIV Wide Margin Edition—lots of white space on all four sides of the page for notes. I've had this for about four years, and I estimate that I have about 3000-4000 comments, underlines, color-coded …
Bears in Germany — Found
Bears are common in some parts of Europe—Romania for example—but had not been seen in Germany since 1835. The news article is Bear Reported in Germany, First for 170 Years. BERLIN (AFP) - A bear has been reported in Germany for the first time since 1835, police at Garmisch-Partenkirchen in the Bavarian Alps said, following …
Are You a Global Warming Skeptic? Part III
Back in March, I had a post about Scientific American's blog entries on "Are You a Global Warming Skeptic, parts I and II". Scientific American has updated this with Are You a Global Warming Skeptic? Part III. They posted this on April 24th, but it is still relevant. Rather than bashing opponents of global warming, …
The ID “Debate”
There was a debate/panel discussion over intelligent design at Biola University on May 12th. The ID side was represented by Michael Behe , Paul Nelson, Guillermo Gonzales, Jonathan Wells, and Steve Meyer; all prominent ID-ers. The opposition included a philosopher, journalist, biochemist (the only scientist on this side), and a state university religion professor. I …
Fusion Power?
Breakthrough?: Scientists say they have cleared technical hurdle in fusion research — The headline makes it look like a major breakthrough, but it is just one small step towards commercial fusion power. Unlikely: Fusion Power: Will It Ever Come? (Science, 10 March 2006) — The full article is not available online, but it outlines a …
Bonhoeffer Quotes
Some quotes to ponder, from The Cost of Discipleship by Dietrich Bonhoeffer: Perhaps it would be just as well to ask ourselves whether we do not in fact often act as obstacles to Jesus and his Word. The command of Jesus is hard, unutterably hard, for those who try to resist it. But for those …
Human Moral Ecology
"Although people are rightly worried about preserving natural habitats, too little effort has been made to safeguard the moral conditions for an authentic human ecology." -- Archbishop Celestino Migliore I got this from The Evangelical Ecologist. Grace and Peace
Apes That Plan Ahead — Found
Some apes, birds can think ahead, studies show So why don't we always plan ahead? Grace and peace
Ivory-Billed Woodpeckers — Not Found
Another species on the edge of extinction (or perhaps even extinct): birders and ornithologists were excited last year at reports of ivory-billed woodpeckers being spotted in a swamp in Arkansas. There was even a video tape, but of the same quality level as the bigfoot videos that showed up in the 70s. A thorough search …
American Chestnuts — Found
In 1904, ornamental Chinese chestnut trees were imported and planted at the Bronx Zoo. These non-native trees carried a fungus, to which they had a high level of resistance. At this time, American chestnut trees made up a significant part of the eastern forests from New England and southern Canada down to the southeastern U.S. …
Bush on Science and Technology
A good quote from President Bush's commencement address at Oklahoma State University: These advances in technology will transform lives — and they will present you with profound dilemmas. Science offers the prospect of eventual cures for terrible diseases, and temptations to manipulate life and violate human dignity. With the Internet, you can communicate instantly with …
Birthday gifts #2
I also got a "An Earth Scientist's Periodic Table of the Elements and Their Ions." The "normal" periodic table is useful for chemistry, but not as useful for the earth sciences. In the earth's crust the elements almost always exist in the form of ions: oxygen as O2-, silicon as Si4+, the metals in their …
Birthday gifts #1
Not only was yesterday (May 17th) Norwegian Independence Day, it was my birthday. Shirley bought me a Martin Luther mug. On the other side it says: "The Bible is a remarkable fountain: the more one draws and drinks of it, the more it stimulates thirst." --Martin Luther Thanks, Shirley. Grace and Peace
White Horse Inn
In Bucharest, we attend a Romanian-language church, and often don't get all that much out of the sermons. When we need a dose of solid English-language teaching, we download a John Piper sermon from Desiring God. My favorite radio program is The White Horse Inn, produced by the same people who put together Modern Reformation …
Fellowship in the Sciences
As an undergraduate student, at Montana State University, I knew of no other Christians in the geology department. They may have been there, but I felt very much alone. This was at a time when I was just starting to grow in my faith as a Christian, and I had no one with whom I …
Christian Scientists (????)
Here's a pet peeve among those of us who are "scientists who are also Christians." The natural phrase would be "Christian scientists" but we can't say that; the phrase has been hijacked by a cult. Grace and Peace
The Science of BarryBondsology
Whatever your thoughts are about Barry Bonds being at 713 career home runs, here's an interesting editorial from USA Today called "No Scientific Evidence," giving plenty of reasons beyond steroids for why baseball players today are so much stronger than they were in the past. The reasons include: Better nutrition, from childhood to adulthood Better …
Introducing Myself, Again
Here is an information letter I send to Christian scientists scientists who are Christians who I think might be interested in supporting us in our ministry in Romania. Feel free to pass it on to people who have a passion for "science, science education, and the gospel." intro.pdf Grace and Peace
Yes and No
Here's a quote I read today from Christianity Today: "What good is it if people believe in intelligence? That's no different than atheism in that if it's not the God of the Bible, it's not Jesus Christ, it's not salvation." (Ken Ham, president of the creationist group Answers in Genesis, criticizing Intelligent Design as weakening …
GeoChristian 