National Geographic discovery of Mayan ruins wasn’t proof, but it was very interesting

Last updated on: October 20, 2019 at 7:53 pm By Dan Peterson

I originally published this article in the Deseret News back on 8 February 2018. It seems to me appropriate to bring it up again in connection with Steve Houston’s upcoming BYU lecture (on which, see “Monday, 28 October 2019: “Recovering a Lost World: The LiDAR Revolution and Ancient Maya Warfare””): Many members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints are excited about an exclusive National Geographic article that appeared online at news.nationalgeographic.com on Feb. 1, 2018, by... Read more

Monday, 28 October 2019: “Recovering a Lost World: The LiDAR Revolution and Ancient Maya Warfare”

Last updated on: October 20, 2019 at 7:55 pm By Dan Peterson

From Book of Mormon Central, regarding a lecture to be given on the Brigham Young University campus on Monday, 28 October 2019: “Dr. Stephen Houston Speaking on Mayan Warfare at BYU” Although he is not and has never been a Latter-day Saint, Professor Houston taught at BYU from 1994-2004, before joining the faculty at Brown University. I had occasional interactions with him during that time, and I was privileged to look over one or two Mesoamerican... Read more

On repealing the First Amendment, explicitly or implicitly

Last updated on: October 19, 2019 at 2:43 pm By Dan Peterson

Incredibly — to me, anyway — the freedoms guaranteed to Americans under the First Amendment to the Constitution of the United States are coming under attack in certain quarters. People who value those freedoms should be aware of the attack, and on guard against it. Hence, this compilation of relevant links: First off, a stunning video, simultaneously funny and appalling and slightly more than 2.5 minutes long, in which . . . “Yale students sign ‘petition’ to... Read more

“La Traviata,” “like a bird on the wire”

Last updated on: October 19, 2019 at 2:37 pm By Dan Peterson

Driving up to the opera Friday evening after a fairly unpleasant day spent on such absorbing matters as flu vaccinations and the sudden and complete failure of our 4.5-year-old refrigerator, I found myself thinking, as I surprisingly often do, of the oddities of English spelling. I think that it started when I saw a group of hundreds of birds sitting on a wire running parallel to I-15, and I thought of the Leonard Cohen lyric Like a bird on... Read more

Is southern California doomed? and other interesting scientific questions

Last updated on: October 18, 2019 at 4:47 pm By Dan Peterson

I was very excited when I first read about the study referred to below. Planting trees is a wonderful thing in any case, and the idea that doing so might be an excellent way to combat global warming and counteract increased carbon emissions was — and is — an extremely pleasing thought: “Researchers Find Flaws in High-Profile Study on Trees and Climate: Four independent groups say the work overestimates the carbon-absorbing benefits of global forest restoration, but... Read more

“An American Indian Language Family with Middle Eastern Loanwords”

Last updated on: October 18, 2019 at 2:09 pm By Dan Peterson

Today, Professor John S. Robertson published an important response in Interpreter: A Journal of Latter-day Saint Faith and Scholarship to a critical review of an important book: “An American Indian Language Family with Middle Eastern Loanwords: Responding to A Recent Critique” Abstract: In 2015 Brian Stubbs published a landmark book, demonstrating that Uto-Aztecan, an American Indian language family, contains a vast number of Northwest Semitic and Egyptian loanwords spoken in the first millennium bc. Unlike other similar claims — absurd, eccentric, and without... Read more

Syria, the Kurds, and “Mormons to the Rescue?”

Last updated on: October 18, 2019 at 2:33 pm By Dan Peterson

New York Times: “Mormons to the Rescue? The reddest faith in America is also the one most skeptical of Donald Trump.” “Mitt Romney says everybody knows it ‘is wrong’ to ask a foreign government to probe a political rival” *** You may perhaps have missed this Hamblin/Peterson background article in the Deseret News from a few days ago. Perhaps you missed it deliberately: “The Kurds, caught between four modern countries” Now let’s look at... Read more

The Church of Jesus Christ and so-called “conversion therapy”

Last updated on: October 18, 2019 at 2:34 pm By Dan Peterson

Two or three days ago, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints issued an important statement: “Church Issues Statement Opposing Proposed Utah Psychologist Licensing Act Rule: Concerns are expressed about proposed rules on Utah ‘Psychologist Licensing Act’ and ‘Mental Health Professional Practice Act'” You don’t really need to clink on the link above, though, because I’m going to give you what I believe to be the entire official text: The Church hopes that those who... Read more

“Heavenly Parents”

Last updated on: October 18, 2019 at 2:36 pm By Dan Peterson

I subscribe to an e-newsletter written by the always interesting Deseret News reporter Tad Walch (“Churchbeat with Tad”) which gives background for his coverage of President Russell M. Nelson and of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints more generally. You can sign up for his newsletter, or for other Deseret News newsletters — at no charge — here: https://www.deseret.com/pages/newsletters I hope that he won’t mind my quoting an interesting passage (not the only one!) from... Read more

“Extent, depth, and stunning grandeur”

Last updated on: October 18, 2019 at 2:37 pm By Dan Peterson

First, a potpourri of interesting recent science-related links: “Utah’s Capitol Reef National Park is like Zion without the crowds: Zion is so popular that visitors may someday need reservations” “Big dinosaurs kept cool thanks to blood vessel clusters in their heads: The giant animals evolved different strategies for cooling their blood and avoiding heatstroke” “A precision drug for prostate cancer may slow the disease’s spread: Olaparib could be used to treat men with certain genetic mutations” “Nobody... Read more