Welcome to The GeoChristian. Out of over 1000 posts on my blog, this one on Dr. Dino is visited by more people than any other. The primary objective of The GeoChristian is to increase science literacy among Evangelical Christians, especially in the areas of the Earth and environmental sciences. I aim to discuss controversial topics …
More Martian gas
Yesterday I wrote briefly about the ongoing release of methane from the crust of Mars. This is the topic of today's Astronomy Picture of the Day: Here's the description from APOD: Why is there methane on Mars? No one is sure. An important confirmation that methane exists in the atmosphere of Mars occurred last week, …
Letter from Birmingham Jail
Today is Martin Luther King, Jr. Day here in the United States, a day to honor the slain civil rights leader, to celebrate how far we have come, and to reflect on how far we still have to go as a nation. Here's some suggested reading: "Letter from Birmingham jail." It is a succinct overview …
Martian methane
From LiveScience.com: Mars Methane: Geology or Biology? Plumes of methane gas detected over certain locations on Mars in 2003 could point to active geological processes on the red planet, or perhaps even to methane-burping microbes deep below the Martian surface, a new study reports. There is no firm evidence for life on the red planet, …
Google Earth – improved ocean floor
The ocean floor on Google Earth has always been a little fuzzy, but the good folks at Google have recently improved the resolution: HT: Clastic Detritus Grace and Peace
The Evangelical Ecologist
After a hiatus of a few months, The Evangelical Ecologist (The world isn't ours to mess up - Psalm 24:1) is back into blogging. Here are a couple of recent posts: Protecting your health and the environment at the same time Wolves out of the woods -- what happens when the Endangered Species Act works? …
Day-age time chart
One of the most prominent old-Earth creation organizations is Reasons to Believe, headed by astronomer Hugh Ross. Ross is an advocate of what is known as the day-age interpretation of Genesis 1-2. In the day-age theory, the days of Genesis 1 are not literal 24-hour days, but represent vastly longer periods of time. Ross advocates …
Global warming and solar cycles
If you are a regular reader of The GeoChristian, you know that I lean towards the validity of anthropogenic global warming (AGW), which is the idea that human activities are causing the Earth to become warmer. Much of the debate--on both sides--is driven by ideology more than science, but I have found the scientific arguments …
Beer can astronomy
Today's Astronomy Picture of the Day: A six month long exposure of the sun's path across the sky taken with a pinhole camera that was made from an aluminum beer can! Grace and Peace
Earth Observatory
I've linked to NASA's Earth Observatory a number of times. Today, the Boston Globe's "The Big Picture" has a collection of some of the best EO images, including these: HT: The Map Room Grace and Peace
K-T boundary
From NASA's Earth Observatory: Raven Ridge, Colorado. This ridge, south of Dinosaur, Colorado, apparently has an exposure of the K-T (Cretaceous-Tertiary) boundary, which marks whatever event ended the age of dinosaurs (asteroid? volcanism? the real reason dinosaurs went extinct?). This gives me two places within a day's drive to visit the K-T boundary, the other …
New York tsunami, 300 BC
From National Geographic: Meteorite Triggered Ancient New York Tsunami? A meteorite impact off Long Island 2,300 years ago may have set off a huge tsunami that flooded the New York City region, a new study says.It's not known whether any ancient settlements were in the path of the proposed killer waves, but "any significant tsunami …
Where I’ve been: US counties
A few days ago I had a post with maps showing states and countries I have been in. Here's another map: counties I've been in. I've lived in Billings, MT; Salt Lake City, UT; Bozeman, MT; Pullman, WA; St. Louis, MO; Bucharest, Romania; and now Lakewood, CO. The greater amount of red in the Western …
US gasoline prices by county
From gasbuddy.com: USA Gas Temperature Map -- Red is high, green is low. I saw gasoline here in Denver for $1.299 last week, though it has gone up a bit since then. Grace and Peace
Light pillars
From today's Astronomy Picture of the Day: Unusual light pillars over Latvia. It is not that light pillars formed by ice crystals in the air over bright lights are unusual, it is the curious fanning out of the light at the top of the pillars which is unexplained. Go to APOD for a better view. …
Carbon tax or cap-and-trade?
The carbon cap-and-trade system that many are pushing seems to be somewhat like medieval indulgences. An indulgence (from a Protestant perspective) was a document one could purchase in order to obtain forgiveness for sins. A company, or a country, can reduce its "guilt" for producing carbon dioxide by buying credits from another company/country that doesn't …
Crude oil predictions
A year ago, Geology.com News had pointed to an article predicting that the price of crude oil would decline due to high rates of exploration and lowered demand. The prediction was a decline to as low as $30 a barrel. After last summer's price spike, the price of a barrel of crude is now below …
Mixed marriages and the age of the Earth
I received a letter from a friend with questions about the age of the Earth, and how to raise children in a family where one parent is an old-Earth creationist, and the other is a young-Earth creationist. Here is my response, with the name changed and some of the letter changed as well: Dear Joe, …
“I looked at the Christian community and saw ugliness”
This item was originally posted in January 2008. I have added it to my blog recycling program. Because I have new readers of The GeoChristian, I will occasionally go back and re-use some of my favorite blog entries. I also wrote a longer review of the book Pollution and the Death of Man in January …
Continue reading “I looked at the Christian community and saw ugliness”
Self stem cells
Once again, it is using one's own body's stem cells where medical progress is being made, without the ethical or medical problems associated with using embryonic stem cells: Revolutionary stem cell therapy boosts body's ability to heal itself (from The Guardian). A groundbreaking medical treatment that could dramatically enhance the body's ability to repair itself …
