AIG Busted shared this video – the last in a long series, apparently, addressing the ways in which antiscientific creationists approach the evidence and why it is so problematic. The very ending will make it worth having watched the whole thing through. If this isn’t your cup of tea, you could always try the video shared by Friendly Atheist with monkeys discussing religion. It isn’t inherently atheistic, but illustrates that we speak about God and religion not only from a... Read more

I would have made the quotation below, attributed to Albert Einstein, a “quote of the day”, but I have yet to find the original source from which it derives. If you know where it comes from, do let me know! “If I were not a physicist, I would probably be a musician. I often think in music. I live my daydreams in music. I see my life in terms of music. … I get most joy in life out of... Read more

Several other bloggers posted the “film rating” for their blog, and I’ve been meaning to do so as well. Having finally gotten around to it, here is the result: Perhaps having a plan for a rational dialogue and interaction is what helps keep things civil here. Although I doubt any of us gives the forethought to our commenting that is required by the Air Force: I do love a good flow chart, though, no matter what the occasion… Read more

Michael Barton and John Pieret address some myths about Darwin. Matt addresses some creationist “arguments” that have been refuted over and over again, and yet continue to be used. PZ Myers plays ping-pong with a poorly-informed science teacher. If you don’t want your children to grow up to spout nonsense on the subject of evolution, these resources may help. Creationism makes its mark at Religion Dispatches. Tripp Fuller discusses Whitehead’s notion of religion as world-loyalty. And while Lee Strobel has... Read more

The name “God” stands for all those qualities in the world and in ourselves which our religious tradition labels as divine, that is, as comprising full human spiritual development, fashioning Man into what he is at his best and most fully realized. If Truth, Justice, Mercy, Generosity, Love are among the things we need to be genuine human beings, to be, in the Biblical phrase, men “in God’s image”, then the name “God” stands for the existence of these qualities... Read more

The latest Dharma Special Access video has been posted, this one introducing the writers of LOST. Apart from the Twilight Zone pinball machine, the most interesting detail is when Christian Shepherd, Eko’s brother and the horse are classified as “undead”, in contrast to characters who are currently living or have left the show. Read more

I was struck yesterday to discover that a composer whose music I enjoy, George Dyson, was the father of physicist Freeman Dyson, whose writings on science and religion I value. I can’t speak for the Dysons, but for me personally, music is a better vaccine against reductionism than anything else I know of. (If you’re interested in how the Dyson family legacy continues, by the way, FreemanDyson’s son George is a historian of technology). Read more

Today in Sunday School we arrived at the last of our classes on the ways Jesus is presented in the canonical Gospels, focusing on the Gospel of John with its unique features such as the notion of Jesus as the Word-become-flesh and the pre-existence of the Son of Man. I gave a brief overview of my book (3 years of research in 15 minutes!) and my suggestion that the developments in the Gospel of John result from an attempt to... Read more

Nature has made available a helpful resource about 15 gems of evolution. Meanwhile Ken Miller (HT AIG Busted, see also John Pieret) takes on disinformation about ID and the Dover trial. Sandwalk picks his top 10 articles on evolution from New Scientist. Michael Dowd has a list of evolutionary resources. Mike Beidler blogs about a creationist attempt at DIY peer review. Steve Matheson discusses evolution’s speed limit. The Austringer blogs on an IDC vs. FSM smackdown. Jeffrey Shallit tests your... Read more

For those who noticed a lull in my blogging activity, my family and I had a nice brief getaway in Chicago. We got to enjoy the bitterly cold wind off Lake Michigan, as well as swimming, visiting some relatives and doing some shopping for those Eastern European products that are that little bit harder to find in Indianapolis. I was delighted to see that discussions which had begun before I left are continuing. While I was away, NT Wrong posted... Read more