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News:
November 16, 2003
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Religion in the News
Federal
appeals court says RLUIPA is unconstitutional
The battle over the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act
of 2000 continues, this time with a major setback to the law. Last Friday,
a three-judge panel of the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that
the law is "unconstitutional because it has the primary effect of advancing
religion."
Healing
Salve
United by Faith looks for answers to the problem of race. Reviewed by Cindy
Crosby.
Compassionate
Capitalism
How Christians are using fair trade to help the world's poor, missionaries,
and shoppers. By Rob Moll.
Islam
and the West
Islam in Context shows a religion at a crossroads. Reviewed by Cindy Crosby.
Faith
and Fantasy
The Gospel According to Tolkien reveals a deeply Christian work. Reviewed
by Cindy Crosby.
Todd Komarnicki:
Producer, Director, Writer and Believer
The producer of Elf explains how his Christian faith affects his career
as a Hollywood producer, director, and writer. Interview by Jeffrey Overstreet.
Books
& Culture's Books of the Week: Remember Afghanistan?
Two inside reports. By Albert Louis Zambone.
Mysteries of Faith 2003 is an in-depth chronicle of humanity's encounter with God by US News.
Science in the News
Highlights
from the 2003 Scientific American 50
A microscope that can see objects smaller than an atom. The first field
test of a fleet of electric vehicles powered by fuel cells. A tariff to
limit vehicular traffic in central London. These are but a few of the path-breaking
developments that have taken place in recent months in laboratories, corporate
suites and the halls of government. For the second year, the SCIENTIFIC
AMERICAN 50 recognizes the singular accomplishments of those who have contributed
to the advancement of technology in the realms of science, engineering,
commerce and public policy.
Creation/Evolution
Can science
prove the existence of God?
What is for some the ultimate question — Does God exist? — has
become a matter of how much further the domain of the unknown will continue
to contract, and if it will ultimately evaporate ?(The New York Times).
Is evolution
truly random?
To many scientists, it would seem impossible to re-evolve anything like
life on earth today, given how life has been shaped by accidents large and
small. But 12 flasks of bacteria in East Lansing, Mich., are beginning to
challenge such notions (The New York Times)
How did
life begin?
Researchers are a long way from reconstructing any plausible path for the
origin of life (The New York Times)
Research
Sheds New Light On Process Of Evolution.
For more than a century, scientists have concluded that a species evolves
or adapts by going through an infinite number of small genetic changes over
a long period of time. However, a team of researchers, including a Michigan
State University plant biologist, has provided some new evidence that an
alternate theory is actually at work, one in which the process begins with
several large mutations before settling down into a series of smaller ones.
The research is published in the Nov. 12 issue of the journal Nature.
THE EDUCATIONAL DEBATE
OVER DARWINISM
By: John Angus Campbell. Journal of Interdisciplinary Studies
Kent Hovind announces the first ever Southeast Creation Conference to be held at Marcus Pointe Baptist Church and Dinosaur Adventure Land (DAL) September 17-19, 2004 in Pensacola, Florida. Keynote speakers include Dr. John Morris of ICR, Dr. Dennis Swift, America's foremost expert on the ICA stones and Dr. Carl Baugh of the Creation Evidence Museum as well as others presenting exciting workshops.
Archaeology/Anthropology
Ancient
Maya Stone Altar Recovered In Guatemala; Unparalleled Investigation Leads
To Looters’ Haven And Arrests.
An unprecedented collaboration of archeologists, Maya villagers and Guatemalan
authorities has resulted in the recovery of a magnificent Maya altar stone
that was carved in 796 AD and sheds new light on the collapse of the classic
Maya civilization.
City
of the Hawk
From ancient breweries to the earliest mummies, excavations at Hierakonpolis
are rewriting the origins of Egyptian civilization. by Renée Friedman.
Ancient
Play to Be Shown After Text Found in Mummy. NICOSIA (Reuters)
A ancient play is to be staged for the first time in more than 2,050 years
after fragments of the text were found stuffed in an Egyptian mummy.
Mystery
veils Laos' Stonehenge.
Plain of Jars relics are 2,000-year-old archeological wonder.
Saving
a Fabled Sanctuary
Conservators struggle to restore Justinian's Great Church in Istanbul by
Sengül Aydlngün and Mark Rose.
Astronomy
Mars-Like Atacama
Desert Could Explain Viking No Life Results. Moffett Field - Nov 10,
2003
A team of scientists from NASA, the Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Mexico,
Louisiana State University and several other research organizations has
discovered clues from one of Earth's driest deserts about the limits of
life on Earth, and why past missions to Mars may have failed to detect life.
Delta-Like
Fan On Mars Suggests Ancient Rivers Were Persistent
Newly seen details in a fan-shaped apron of debris on Mars may help settle
a decades-long debate about whether the planet had long-lasting rivers instead
of just brief, intense floods.
Lunar Polar Ice
Not Found With Arecibo Radar. Arecibo - Nov 13, 2003
Despite evidence from two space probes in the 1990s, radar astronomers say
they can find no signs of thick ice at the moon's poles. If there is water
at the lunar poles, the researchers say, it is widely scattered and permanently
frozen inside the dust layers, something akin to terrestrial permafrost.
See also http://www.newscientist.com/news/news.jsp?id=ns99994378
Despite Appearances,
Cosmic Explosions Have Common Origin. Socorro - Nov 11, 2003
A Fourth of July fireworks display features bright explosions that light
the sky with different colors, yet all have the same cause. They just put
their explosive energy into different colors of light. Similarly, astronomers
have discovered, a variety of bright cosmic explosions all have the same
origin and the same amount of total energy.
Integral Produces
Map Of Galactic Mineral Wealth Distribution. Paris - Nov 12, 2003
ESA's gamma-ray observatory Integral is making excellent progress, mapping
the Galaxy at key gamma-ray wavelengths. It is now poised to give astronomers
their truest picture yet of recent changes in the Milky Way's chemical composition.
At the same time, it has confirmed an 'antimatter' mystery at the centre
of the Galaxy.
Biology
Rare
Sponge May Hold Cancer Cure
After almost 20 years of searching, marine biologists have rediscovered
a small, mysterious sponge that may contain a powerful cancer cure.
FDA Declares Cloned Animals Safe to Eat
Do Aches Really Forecast Bad Weather?
Scientists
Find Brain Areas Affected By Lack Of Sleep
Lack of sleep can affect an individual's memory, ability to perform simple
daily tasks, and attention span.
Drugs
in sport: No dope
Don Catlin's lab has struck a major blow against drug abuse in athletics,
by developing a test for a shadowy 'designer steroid'. Jonathan Knight visits
the scientists who are striving to keep sport clean.
Elements
Of Green Tea Prevent HIV From Binding To Human T Cells (November 14,
2003)
The major component of green tea prevents the binding of HIV to human T
cells, the first step in HIV infection, according to a study and an accompanying
editorial published in the November 2003 Journal of Allergy and Clinical
Immunology. Green tea is the nonoxidized, unfermented product of the leaves
from the evergreen plant, Camellia sinensis.
New
Vaccine Tested In Animals May Hold Hope For Alzheimer's Patients.
In new research, scientists show that two dramatically different approaches
may be effective in treating or preventing Alzheimer's disease. One approach
involves development of a vaccine that clears deposits of a sticky substance
called amyloid beta protein from monkey brains.
How
valid is the concept of race from a biological standpoint?
Do physical features reliably say anything informative about a person's
genetic makeup beyond indicating that the individual has genes for blue
eyes or curly hair?
Earth Science
The Suffocating
Age. Seattle - Nov 10, 2003
Recent evidence suggests that oxygen levels were suppressed worldwide 175
million to 275 million years ago and fell to precipitously low levels compared
with today's atmosphere, low enough to make breathing the air at sea level
feel like respiration at high altitude.
Mass Extinctions
May Promote Longevity Of New Species. Cincinnati - Nov 10, 2003
With the economy, we talk about cycles of boom and bust. Make that "bust
and boom" when it comes to the geological record in the post-Paleozoic
world, University of Cincinnati geologist Arnold Miller suggests, after
his analysis of marine fossil genera and what happens after mass extinction
events.
Attack of the Rock-Eating
Microbes! Some bacteria break down minerals, while others make them.
Geologists who examine mineral transformations increasingly see bacteria
at work, leading the scientists to conclude that if microbes aren't driving
the underlying chemical reactions, at least they're taking advantage of
the energy that's released.
Volcanic
Mysteries Unraveled Underwater (November 10, 2003)
Scientists have long been puzzled by the observation that flows, erupted
as white-hot lava at mid-ocean ridges, can be traced for several miles from
their vents despite the fact that they erupt into seawater close to its
freezing point. Now a group of scientists from academia and government believe
they have the answer from lava samples collected using the deep-sea submersible
ALVIN.
200
Years Later, Geologist Completes Lewis And Clark Readings (November
14, 2003)
Virtual explorer Robert Criss, Ph.D., professor of earth and planetary sciences
at Washington University in St. Louis, has teamed up with Lewis and Clark
to provide the oldest determinations of the magnetic declination of America's
interior.
Psychology
Scientists
Uncover Neurobiological Basis For Romantic Love, Trust, And Self (November
11, 2003)
In new studies, scientists are discovering the neurobiological underpinnings
of romantic love, trust, and even of self. New research also shows that
a specific brain area - the amygdala - is involved in the process of understanding
the intentions of others, in particular when lying is involved.
Dyslexia
May Involve Both Vision And Hearing (November 10, 2003)
Dyslexia may stem from how the brain processes sight and sound together
– rather than simply a problem "decoding" the written word
– reported researchers from Wake Forest University Baptist Medical
Center today at the annual Society for Neuroscience meeting in New Orleans.
New
Studies Show Factors Responsible For Enhanced Response To Music (November
13, 2003)
In new studies, scientists are uncovering the factors responsible for an
enhanced brain electrical response to music; the effects on the brain of
growing up in a musical or non-musical environment; and which areas of the
brain process different aspects of music including speaking and singing.