Is the Periodic Table just a theory?

The Discovery Institute is a religious group opposed to science.  They believe in a literal interpretation of the Bible, that the earth is 6000 years old, and that man and dinosaurs co-existed.

If they believe this is true, they should publish a paper on the topic in a scientific journal for peer review, but they won’t because their ‘theories’ aren’t valid and won’t survive peer review.

An update, I found this image should be credited to Dr. Loren Williams, a Georgia Tech professor in the School of Chemistry and Biochemistry-Williams, L. D., "Revised Periodic Table of the Elements", Skeptical Inquirer, 29, 68 (2005)

I’m not attributing because Sarah graduated from Georgia Tech, or that I attended for most of the 70’s (but it would take a lot longer if the source were the University of Georgia…).

Technorati Tags: Science,Evolution,Darwin,Religion

Happy Birthday, Robert Frost

OK, I’m a day late, but its been a busy month.  Robert Frost is one of my favorite poets, and “The Road Not Taken” is one of my favorite poems.

The Road Not Taken

TWO roads diverged in a yellow wood,    
And sorry I could not travel both    
And be one traveler, long I stood    
And looked down one as far as I could    
To where it bent in the undergrowth;

Then took the other, as just as fair,    
And having perhaps the better claim    
Because it was grassy and wanted wear;    
Though as for that, the passing there    
Had worn them really about the same,

And both that morning equally lay    
In leaves no step had trodden black.    
Oh, I marked the first for another day!    
Yet knowing how way leads on to way    
I doubted if I should ever come back.

I shall be telling this with a sigh    
Somewhere ages and ages hence:    
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I,    
I took the one less traveled by,    
And that has made all the difference.   

 

Technorati Tags: poetry,art,religion

Sarah Palin

As is everyone in the United States, and the World, I’m stunned at McCain’s selection of Sarah Palin as his running mate.  To this end, I am tabulating a list of facts that are pertinent to the election as well as some questions that I want to answer as we learn more about her background.

Questions

• Has she ever traveled outside of North America, and does she have a current passport?
  Answer:  Yes, she received a passport in July, 2007 before she visited members of the Alaska National Guard in Kuwait.  She also traveled to Germany on the same trip.
• Censorship (aka book burning) – does she believe government (local, state, or federal) has the right to restrict any book, for any reason, from public libraries?
• Medical – both Sarah Palin and John McCain should release their medical records for public review.  This would address legitimate questions about McCain’s general health (POW, ex-smoker, survivor of multiple cancers) as well as resolve unanswered questions about Palin’s last pregnancy.
• Creationism – does she also believe students should debate issues surrounding Mathematics, Geography, etc? 
  • Does she believe that pi is a transcendental number, or does she round it up to 3?
  • Does she believe Earth is 6000 years old? 

Facts

• Sarah Palin was governor of Alaska for 20 months.
• In 2006, the state of Alaska had a population of 670,053
• In the rest of the country, we call a population of 670K a city, not a state.  I live 15 miles from Philadelphia, and neighbors commute to NYC, and Washington, DC.  
• Sarah Palin was on the city council and mayor of Wasilla, AK.  At this time Obama was an IL state senator, not a community organizer (as stated in her speech on 9/3/2008).  The Republicans appear to just make up things and turn them into ‘facts’.  A full timeline of Obama and Palin’s professional live is below.
• In 2004, the city of Wasilla, AK had a population of under 6000
• In 2005, the enrollment in our regional high school was 7500
• Our local high school had a larger budget and more construction projects than Wasilla, AK.
• Sarah Palin is not related to Michael Palin.
• She promotes teaching creationism in public schools.
• She has a BA in Journalism from the University of Idaho.
• The University of Idaho is considered a third tier college.
• All public Universities in NJ are ranked tier 1.   The only other tier 3/4 school I know is Regent University, where the Bush DoJ staff received law degrees.

Technorati Tags: Palin,politics,science,election

Melinda Gates goes public - Jan. 7, 2008

Melinda Gates goes public - Jan. 7, 2008

This is a very good article about Melinda Gates. It paints a pretty even picture of how they have setup and run the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. I did work for a non-profit they helped fund in the late 1990's and I was impressed with how focused they were and how effective the projects are.

In the past, the US government initiated projects to eliminate polio and some childhood diseases. These projects were highly successful. However, in the current climate, our government sees fit to spend countless dollars the war in Iraq.



It disturbs me that it makes so much sense for someone like Bill and Melinda Gates to step into the gap, identify projects like malaria prevention, and bring appropriate resources to bear. I hope they are successful, and I think they are headed in the right direction

Ken Miller Evolution Lecture at Case Western

Dr. Miller is a professor at Brown University, and his position on evolution is very similar to mine - belief in God and evolution are not mutually exclusive.

Ken Miller's lecture on Intelligent Design at Case Western University. Ken Miller rips Intelligent Design apart in a 2 hour long exposé of the claims of intelligent design and the tactics that creationists employ to get it shoehorned into the American school system.

Dr. Miller is an excellent speaker and I think the YouTube video methodically addresses each issue brought up by the Intelligent Design (creationism) proponents and puts them to rest.  In particular, I was not aware of the fused chromosome discovery which addresses the chromosome count difference between homo sapiens and primates.

From a personal standpoint, I also liked the fact that he discusses Michael Behe, a professor at Lehigh University, and one of the biggest proponents of Intelligent Design.  During the Dover, PA ID trial, which Dr. Miller attended, Behe, under oath, stated that astrology and other pseudo-scientific beliefs should be included in science curriculums. 

I think Lehigh University is a good school, however, the fact that they continue to allow Behe to teach is a disservice to students and the rest of the Lehigh faculty.  After learning that Behe was a member of the Lehigh faculty, I would not allow my daughter to consider Lehigh.  I do not recommend any student of science or technology consider Lehigh until they banish him from the school.

Technorati Tags: evolution,science,religion,creationism

Macs are more expensive

I frequently have this discussion with "Mac People".  I don't argue that Apple has a great design group, but I don't believe they offer the value for money I receive from other vendors.

Dave Winer is a pretty savvy guy, and a big Apple fan, so I was pretty surprised when I read his article detailing his Mac Book repair.  It's just my nature, but I would probably have my hands around the throat of the Mac support person.  At a minimum, I want a new drive in my system and some assurance, in writing, that data on my original drive will be scrubbed, or the drive destroyed.

The other factor that keeps me away from Mac stores is the "Genius Bar".  Let's face it, these guy (and women possibly) aren't geniuses and calling a 20-something college student (or recent grad) working in retail a genius just sets unreasonable expectations from a customer and dilutes the term 'genius'.  None of these folks have an IQ higher than mine and they don't think out of the box because Apple doesn't want someone like that working in retail in the first place.

The last time I was in an Apple store the little freakazoid manager (Marlton, NJ for anyone interested) asked me to stop taking pictures.  Bugger off, Apple Boy!  I have shoes older than you.

Technorati Tags: Apple,Mac,fanboy,hardware

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