Mark Armitage has been recently noted here on UD for having possibly been fired from his job for reporting facts that others don’t like. In a recent podcast, PZ Myers takes Armitage’s findings to task:
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BA 77 has found another vid on the Slaughter of the Dissidents that reminds us of what the sort of evo mat promotion stunts we see going on in and around UD can all too often end up as: [youtube T_nh0zDMwJA] A couple of stills can help us understand what Darwinist agit-prop enabling behaviour by spreading false accusations and willful misrepresentations, demanding a ‘right’ to defame as if that is a part of free speech and the like can all too easily end up as; through, creating a toxic and deeply polarised, destructive climate in our civilisation and especially in key institutions: Something to ponder, for those who imagine there is a ‘right’ to directly participate in or enable falsely Read More ›
When the exoplanet expert takes up his recently announced appointment at Ball U in Indiana (despite controversy), it would be interesting to see him tackle this question: The narrow, sharp-edged and slightly off-centre rings of dust that surround some stars may be the result of interactions between gas and dust, rather than the gravitational effects of planets, as previously proposed. The finding, published in this week’s Nature1, could dramatically affect estimates of the number of exoplanets hiding in such stellar systems. Many nearby stars, especially young ones, are surrounded by disks of dust debris, which orbit the stars at distances roughly equivalent to that at which Pluto orbits the Sun. Embedded in some of those disks are dust rings that Read More ›
With due respect to our UK colleagues, appropriate for a day celebrating the signing of the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776, the author of the Declaration, Thomas Jefferson, wrote elsewhere: “I hold (without appeal to revelation) that when we take a view of the Universe, in its parts general or particular, it is impossible for the human mind not to perceive and feel a conviction of design, consummate skill, and indefinite power in every atom of its composition. and the words of the Declaration would probably cause Richard Dawkins to have a fit: When in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and Read More ›
Our old friend PZ Myers holds school boards in utter contempt. In a recent blog post at his widely followed Pharyngula blog site, he takes contemptuous pot shots at the Springboro, OH School Board for having the audacity to even consider a “critical thinking” policy in the curriculum. The Springboro Community City School District is considering a so-called “critical thinking” policy that would require teachers to explore “all sides” of controversial issues. The proposed policy change would direct teachers to discuss creation science or intelligent design when teaching about the theory of evolution. <a href=”http://www.rawstory.com/rs/201…..-proposal/ Full story here. PZ can’t restrain his contempt: Please. There is no controversy here. Evolution happened, teach it. The best argument that one student provided Read More ›
John C. Sanford’s work is part of the Smithsonian National Museum of American History: Bioloistic Particle Gun Gene guns were the brainchild of plant geneticist Dr. John C. Sanford, who spent much of the early 1980s looking for a way to insert foreign DNA into plant cells in order to create transgenic plants. At the time, the most successful process for doing this relied on a species of bacteria. The method, however, only worked for certain plant species and was not successful with important crops like wheat, rice, or corn. Sanford considered a variety of techniques, including piercing cell walls with a laser, but it was not until he teamed up with Dr. Edward Wolf of the Cornell engineering labs, Read More ›
Denyse O’Leary posted an announcement of what looks like an interesting conference proceedings: http://tbsblog.thebestschools.org/how-does-life-incorporate-information According to Denyse, the folks at the Panda’s Thumb tried to bury these proceedings but failed.