Monthly Archives: June 2017
Information theory is bad news for Darwin: Evolutionary informatics takes off
| June 30, 2017 | Posted by News under Evolution, Informatics |
The book Introduction to Evolutionary Informatics continues to make waves. The Lab writes to say: A lot continues to happen surrounding the release of “Introduction to Evolutionary Informatics” by Robert J. Marks, William A. Dembski and Winston Ewert: Here’s a quick summary of media. – AI means the topic is Artificial Intelligence hype – […]
Christian Scientific Society talks on human exceptionalism (2017) now online
| June 30, 2017 | Posted by News under Intelligent Design, Neuroscience |
From David Snoke at the Christian Scientific Society: Jack Collins presented a compelling argument for an “attribute” view of the image of God, that is, a view that the image of God means that we have attributes that are like God in some ways that animals aren’t. … Jeff Schwartz presented a lively and […]
Very cautious review of book on fine tuning vs the multiverse
| June 30, 2017 | Posted by News under Fine tuning, Multiverse |
The book is Geraint F. Lewis and Luke A. Barnes, A Fortunate Universe: Life in a Finely Tuned Cosmos: From reviewer Yann Benetreau-Dupin at physics archiv: There are in fact two ways to read this book. One is to see it as a response to Victor Stenger’s 2011 book The Fallacy of Fine-tuning: Why the […]
Science denial?: What planet are some people living on?
| June 30, 2017 | Posted by News under Culture, Science |
Abstract at ScienceDirect: Science denialism poses a serious threat to human health and the long-term sustainability of human civilization. Although it has recently been rather extensively discussed, this discussion has rarely been connected to the extensive literature on pseudoscience and the science-pseudoscience demarcation. This contribution argues that science denialism should be seen as one of […]
New instruction manual discovered for repairing broken DNA
| June 29, 2017 | Posted by News under Cell biology, Design inference |
From ScienceDaily: Drexel University and Georgia Institute of Technology researchers have discovered how the Rad52 protein is a crucial player in RNA-dependent DNA repair. The results of their study, published in Molecular Cell, reveal a surprising function of the homologous recombination protein Rad52. They also may help to identify new therapeutic targets for cancer treatment. […]
Neanderthal dentistry?
| June 29, 2017 | Posted by News under Human evolution |
From ScienceDaily: A discovery of multiple toothpick grooves on teeth and signs of other manipulations by a Neanderthal of 130,000 years ago are evidence of a kind of prehistoric dentistry, according to a new study led by a University of Kansas researcher. As a package, this fits together as a dental problem that the Neanderthal […]
Evolution is as real as gravity?
| June 29, 2017 | Posted by News under Culture, Darwinism |
From Wim Hordijk at the Evolution Institute: Evolution is still all too often (but wrongly) downplayed as “just a theory” in public discussions. This is partly due to an unfortunate misunderstanding of what a theory means in science, as opposed to its common language meaning. Evolution by natural selection is much more than just a […]
What Thomas Aquinas Can Teach Modern Neuroscientists
| June 29, 2017 | Posted by Barry Arrington under Intelligent Design |
Over at FT, Michael Egnor, professor of neurological surgery at Stony Brook University School of Medicine, discusses the weaknesses of the materialist paradigm. Sterile reductionist accounts bandied about in the 21st century are far less robust than the state of the art in the 13th century: We can do better science—and medicine—when we recognize that human […]
Another non-ID biologist takes aim at Darwinism
| June 29, 2017 | Posted by News under Darwinism, Evolution, Intelligent Design |
From David Klinghoffer at Evolution News & Views: However, a forthcoming book by biologist J. Scott Turner, Purpose & Desire: What Makes Something “Alive” and Why Modern Darwinism Has Failed to Explain It, is a real shot across the bow. Dr. Turner’s last book, from Harvard University Press, was The Tinkerer’s Accomplice: How Design Emerges […]
Study suggesting human life span limit of 115-125 years draws fire
| June 29, 2017 | Posted by News under Peer review |
From RetractionWatch: The five papers in Nature are published as Brief Communications Arising, the journal’s way of flagging an important debate over a paper. The short papers provide new data to challenge a central part of a paper’s conclusions. The study’s authors, however, have responded to all five, defending their methods, especially their controversial decision […]
Design Disquisitions: H. Allen Orr on Darwin’s Failure
| June 28, 2017 | Posted by Joshua G under Biology, Darwinism, Food for thought, Natural selection, speciation |
Did Darwin really explain the origin of species? My quote of the month is now up on my blog. This is an interesting one as it comes from an evolutionary biologist and critic of ID. I also focus on comments of a similar nature that have been made in more recent years. Surprise, […]
Shocka! New Scientist says fine tuning of universe cannot be ignored. But wait…
| June 28, 2017 | Posted by News under Fine tuning, Naturalism |
From Geraint Lewis at New Scientist: A fundamental concept is coming back to the fore – that the universe may be fine-tuned for life. The idea is that physical laws and constants are inexplicably just right to support it; any different and we wouldn’t be around to ponder this. The notion that this might be […]
Can human nature ultimately be described by physics?
| June 28, 2017 | Posted by News under Mind, Naturalism, Neuroscience |
From neuroscientist Raymond Tallis at New Atlantis: The project of understanding time is to try to get a clear and just idea of the nature of the relationship between the universe and the observer in respect of time. By rethinking time in this way, we may elude a form of naturalism that sees us as […]
Is scientific publishing bad for science?
| June 28, 2017 | Posted by News under Intelligent Design, Peer review |
Because it is so profitable? Galileo would sure be amazed. But now this: From the Guardian: The core of Elsevier’s operation is in scientific journals, the weekly or monthly publications in which scientists share their results. Despite the narrow audience, scientific publishing is a remarkably big business. With total global revenues of more than £19bn, […]
Islam and science: Can there be accommodation?
| June 28, 2017 | Posted by News under Intelligent Design, Religion |
From Denis MacEoin at Gatestone: The strictures in the ways of thinking in Islamic fundamentalism affect all sorts of things, from politics to history to interfaith relations to peace negotiations. … We may ask why a wealthy state such as Saudi Arabia still beheads people on charges of witchcraft and sorcery, yet the USA, the […]
Animals shaped early human environment, not drought?
| June 27, 2017 | Posted by News under Human evolution |
From University of Utah at EurekAlert: The shores of Lake Turkana, in Kenya, are dry and inhospitable, with grasses as the dominant plant type. It hasn’t always been that way. Over the last four million years, the Omo-Turkana basin has seen a range of climates and ecosystems, and has also seen significant steps in human […]
At Aeon: Quantum mechanics explains human intuition
| June 27, 2017 | Posted by News under Mind, Neuroscience, Physics |
From Philip Ball at Aeon: It’s a strange idea that measurement needs explaining at all. Usually what we mean by a measurement seems so trivial that we don’t even ask the question. A ball has a position, or a speed, or a mass. I can measure those things, and the things I measure are the […]
Is OOL Part of Darwinian Evolution?
| June 27, 2017 | Posted by Eric Anderson under Chemistry, Darwinism, Darwinist rhetorical tactics, Evolution, Origin Of Life |
Recently I had a lengthy discussion with an acquaintance about evolution and the various concepts and claims that we find under the heading of the word “evolution.” At one point I brought up the origin of life and he promptly insisted: “that’s not part of evolution.” “Perhaps,” I offered, “but consider that the origin of […]
Claim: Human brains evolved to need exercise
| June 27, 2017 | Posted by News under Mind, Neuroscience |
From ScienceDaily: UA anthropologist David Raichlen and UA psychologist Gene Alexander, who together run a research program on exercise and the brain, propose an “adaptive capacity model” for understanding, from an evolutionary neuroscience perspective, how physical activity impacts brain structure and function. Their argument: As humans transitioned from a relatively sedentary apelike existence to a […]
Animals’ social experience modifies genes?
| June 26, 2017 | Posted by News under Epigenetics, Genetics |
So genes don’t rule? From ScienceDaily: Mice have a reputation for timidity. Yet when confronted with an unfamiliar peer, a mouse may respond by rearing, chasing, grappling, and biting — and come away with altered sensitivity toward future potential threats. What changes in the brain of an animal when its behavior is altered by experience? […]
