I have just completed my first week of the 2006-2007 school year, and am rather tired. But it was a good week. It is wonderful to see my students again, and great to be in the classroom. Please pray: That the ministry of Bucharest Christian Academy would have a broad and deep impact in the …
Month: August 2006
Eight Planets
Pluto is out! My Very Excellent Mother Just Served Us Nachos! Grace and Peace
Election Day
Today is election day at the general assembly of the International Astronomical Union. It looks like the 12+ planet proposal could be defeated. Right now, we don't know if the day will end with an 8, 9, or 12-planet solar system. I'm rooting for eight planets. International Astronomical Union Yahoo news story I'm pleased to …
eNature — Online Field Guide
A good online field guide—with images and information about 5500 different species—is at eNature.com, which is produced by the National Wildlife Federation. With sections on birds, mammals, reptiles, amphibians, fish, insects, spiders, seashells, wildflowers, and more; eNature is a good site for those of us who don't have a complete shelf of field guides (I …
Smoke Angel
For a description of the physics behind "smoke angels," go to today's Astronomy Picture of the Day. Grace and Peace
Personal Responsibility in a Hurricane
I don't know if anyone who reads this blog lives in hurricane country, but the advice given at World Magazine Blog makes a whole lot of sense. Ed Wilson writes, "For at least 72 hours after a hurricane we, as individuals, are our own first responders," and then he has recommendations for how to be …
Ceres — Planet #5?
Today's Astronomy Picture of the Day is about Ceres, which will become the fifth planet from the sun (between Mars and Jupiter) if the International Astronomical Union goes ahead with its proposed definition of "planet." As you can see from the picture at APOD, we don't know much about Ceres, but that will change when/if …
Planetary Mnemonics
My sister asked me recently about planetary mnemonics. The old memory tools used in elementary schools just won't work any more: My Very Excellent Mother Just Served Us Nine Pizzas Make Very Easy Mash Just Squash Up New Potatoes My Very Easy Method Just Speeds Up Naming Planets It is a challenge knowing what to …
Oceanic Noise Pollution
Living in a large, crowded city, I'm used to a constant background noise of traffic, voices, car alarms, and street dogs. Apparently, the ocean is becoming a much noisier place as well, as the rapid increase in global trade has led to more, larger, and faster ships on the high seas. Unlike sound waves in …
That’s nice, honey
A good article on Michael Brown, the discoverer of "Xena," (or 2003 UB313) and why he favors a solar system with only eight planets: Astronomer upset at new planet proposal. His wife's response when he phoned home to let her know he may have discovered a planet: "That's nice, honey. Can you pick up some …
Teen Sex Beliefs and Practices
Glenn at Be Bold, Be Gentle points to an article on teen sexual activity: "The Des Moines Register featured an article yesterday about teens and sex beliefs. Scary statistics and comments! Dads, we have work to do! Men, our communities need us to stand tall and speak truth and pray for transformed lives." Our responsibility …
Secrets of the Expert Mind (part 3)
Do the concepts of expertise and excellence lead to a narrow focus on one thing, to the exclusion of all else? Does the kind of focus that it takes to become a top computer programmer necessarily mean that person will be the stereotypical "computer nerd?" I think not. Take the late Harvard paleontologist Stephen Jay …
Secrets of the Expert Mind (part 2)
Yesterday's entry was a bit long; here's the Reader's Digest version: According to the August 2006 Scientific American article "The Expert Mind," motivation and effortful study are more important than natural ability for becoming and expert in one's field. It takes ten years of intense work to truly become an expert in an area, but …
Secrets of the Expert Mind
Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men. —Colossians 3:23 (ESV) I don't ordinarily read books or articles on psychology—a "soft" science—but for some reason the cover article in the August issue of Scientific American caught my eye. The article, by Philip E. Ross, is entitled "The Expert Mind," and …
Twelve Planets
Since the discovery of Pluto by American astronomer Clyde Tombaugh in 1930, scientists and textbooks have told us that there are nine planets in the solar system. A debate has been going on for the past decade over the planetary status of Pluto, fueled by the discovery of other Pluto-sized objects in the outer solar …
A Plea For Green
Tod Bolsinger makes a case for Christian interest and involvement in environmental issues on his It Takes a Church blog. The entry is called A Plea for Green. Some quotes: Whether one takes Al Gore's or Michael Crichton's side in the global warming debate is less the issue than whether there is a long term …
Manipulated and Responding Variables
Throughout my years of high school, college, and graduate school, I had a hard time with the terms "independent variable" and "dependent variable." Even now, I have to stop and think: the independent variable is the one I change because I have some independence, and the dependent variable will vary depending on what I do …
The Language of God
Francis Collins was the director for the Human Genome Project, which sequenced all of the base pairs for human DNA. He recently spoke as the keynote speaker at the annual conference of the American Scientific Affiliation, and that speech can be found as a video or mp3 audio file at http://www.asa3.org. The speech is entitled …
Back in Bucharest
After seven months on home assignment (or furlough) in the United States, we are back in Bucharest, Romania, where we serve with the Evangelical Free Church of America International Mission at Bucharest Christian Academy. We had a number of answered prayers as we traveled, and are excited to be back "home." I am also very …
In Christ Alone
For the past seven months, we have been worshiping in English, rather than in Romanian, and have heard a number of songs we hadn't heard before. One new song that stood way out above the rest was "In Christ Alone" by the Newsboys. I love this song—it is focused on Christ and the cross, and …
