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Fossil suggests sloth hasn't evolved even after 'millions' of years.
SUMMARY: A nearly complete "5-million-year-old" fossil of a sloth (sloth picture from Wikimedia Commons) has been found beneath the cement floor of a house in an Andean region of Peru. Similar sloth fossils which previously have been discovered in the Americas were dated at only about 1 million years and were merely partial skeletons. Near this discovery parts of a giant armadillo, likewise dated at 5 million years, were also found.
The 10-foot-long sloth was an herbivore. Paleontologist Rodolfo Salas said the skeleton was important because it is the first "5-million-year-old" complete skeleton of its kind ever found in the Americas. Salas said the sloth was relatively small compared to similar animals but would help researchers better understand the evolution of mammals in the Andes.
The fossil was found at 13,000 feet above sea level. Peru's dry climate has helped preserve thousands of fossils, making it a favorite of fossil hunters.
To read the entire article click on this USA TODAY link.
COMMENT: Creationists often point to the fossils of numerous organisms which are said to be millions of years old and yet look very much like their modern counterparts. This would seem to the unbiased observer to be a weakness of the evolutionary theory. Evolutionists believe a single-celled organism by means of mutations and natural selection eventually evolved into a human being so that evolution given enough time seemingly can create just about anything. So why is it that hundreds of examples of fossils of organisms exist which show little if any change over millions of years?
What the theory of evolution could use is for scientists to find a series of fossils showing a gradual change from one kind of creature to a completely different kind. Of course, such a series will never be found. What we see in nature are organisms that reproduce after their kind, just as the Bible says. To believe otherwise is a matter of faith, not observation or science.
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QUESTION OF THE DAY
What is the highest waterfall in the United States?
Yosemite Falls in California is 2,425 feet (739 meters).
Source: www.livescience.com
Some 18,000 same-sex marriages that already have taken place remain legal.
SUMMARY: The California Supreme Court has upheld Proposition 8, a ban on same-sex marriage, but also decided that some 18,000 homosexual "marriages" that took place before the law went into effect were legal. The 6-1 decision rejected the argument that the California constitution's equal protection clause required the Legislature's approval of such a ban.
Demonstrators outside the San Francisco courthouse who opposed the ban protested the decision, but Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger who did not support Proposition 8 called for peaceful demonstrations. The governor said the Court made the right decision in view of Proposition 8's passage. The initiative approved in November by 52% of the voters amended the state constitution to say, "Only a marriage between a man and a woman is valid or recognized in California."
An opponent of the ban said, "Today's ruling is a huge blow to Americans everywhere who care about equality." However, a supporter said, "This is a great victory for the people of California and the millions of supporters around the country for traditional marriage." A spokesman for the Liberty Counsel wondered though how the Supreme Court in view of this decision could allow the existing gay marriages to remain legal.
A USA TODAY/Gallup Poll earlier this month found 48% of Americans believed same-sex marriage would be bad for the country, 13% said good for society, and 36% said it would have no effect.
To read the entire article click on this USA TODAY link.
COMMENT: It is important to note that Proposition 8 passed by California's voters was a constitutional amendment. It seems to me that it would have been difficult for the Supreme Court there to have said in effect that a constitutional amendment was unconstitutional.
With the clout that "political correctness" currently has on our society, I don't relish the task of writing on the subject of homosexuality, but it must be commented on. As for same-sex marriage, the practice receives little support from either the Bible or from science. The book of Genesis tells us that the original marriage was one man/one woman. The Bible in passages such as 1 Corinthians 6:10 and Leviticus 18:22 is empathic in its prohibition of homosexual relationships which would include same-sex marriages. How could God say it any more clearly than He did in those passages and in others?
From the standpoint of science, we can clearly see that humans are designed for heterosexual relationships which have reproduction as the main purpose. Even looking at the subject through evolution-tinted glasses raises questions. Evolutionists like to talk about how natural selection chooses an adaptation for a species that will give it a competitive advantage in the fight for survival. Exactly, why would humankind evolve an adaptation, homosexuality, that would prevent the propagation of the species, because if everyone would become gay, the human race would go extinct?
The arguments about fairness or equal rights are not valid in this case. There are many other types of relationships that our society as a whole could never consider valid marriages such as those involving children, animals or unwilling participants.
As Christians we should remember that in the eyes of the Lord, homosexuality is neither a greater sin nor a lesser sin than any other because all sins equally condemn us before God. We also remember that Jesus gave up His life for every sinner (which means everyone) and desires every sinner to repent of his sins, strive to live a more God-pleasing life, and accept the forgiveness God freely offers to all humans without exception.
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QUESTION OF THE DAY
What are the five best American small cities for families?
Taking into consideration job prospects, safety, education, housing affordability and leisure opportunities, Money magazine selected the top five small family-friendly cities (50,000 to 300,000 population) as Plymouth, MN, Fort Collins, CO, Naperville, IL, Irvine, CA, and Franklin Township, NJ.
Source: BottomLine Personal (March 15, 2009)
Paleontologist Mary Schweitzer finds protein collagen in a hadrosaur bone.
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MEMORIAL DAY - 2009
Remembering Our Heroes.
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SUMMARY: The scientific world was astounded some years ago when paleontologist and evolutionist Dr. Mary Schweitzer said she had found red blood cells in a piece of a T. rex bone. But that wasn't all. In 2005 she made another sensational discovery in a different T. rex bone. This one contained what looked like actual tissue, still soft and stretchy, with the appearance of transparent branching blood vessels.
Further tests established the presence of protein collagen in the bone. Schweitzer's team even sequenced stretches of it showing it was 58% similar to chicken collagen and 51% similar to collagen in a frog. Even if hermetically sealed, complex molecules like proteins should fall apart by themselves in well under 65 million years, the time at which evolutionists believe dinosaurs went extinct.
In 2008 evolutionists tried to counter these amazing discoveries by claiming the transparent dinosaur blood vessels resulted from a recent bacterial formation of biofilms that took the shape of the original blood vessels. Schweitzer provided some substantial reasons why this claim could not be true.
According to Science magazine, Schweitzer has now announced another fascinating discovery. She has found evidence of "the same fibrous matrix, transparent, flexible vessels, and preserved microstructures she had seen in the T. rex sample" in a fossil from a different family of dinosaur-a hadrosaur or duckbilled dinosaur. (picture from Wikimedia Commons)
Anticipating criticism, her team worked extremely carefully. They protected against contamination, used newer equipment, and sent the samples to two other labs for confirmation. They found not only collagen but evidence of two additional proteins-elastin and laminin. Hints of hemoglobin were also present. Although some scientists are still skeptical, one former critic, Dr Pavel Pevzne of the U. of California, admits her new study was conducted correctly.
To read the entire article click on this CREATION MINISTRIES INTERNATIONAL link.
COMMENT: When I notice the resistance of many mainstream scientists to the idea that a dinosaur bone could still have red blood cells and soft tissue, I think of the Egyptian pharaoh at the time of the Exodus. When he hardened his heart even after the miraculous and devastating plagues, he was going beyond being bullheaded. So are today's evolutionist scientists who stubbornly cling to the theory that dinosaurs died out some 65 million years ago even after evidence like this has been presented by one of their own scientists.
I thought modern scientists took pride in being open-minded, willing to change their theories in the face of new evidence. It is obvious that their firm belief in the doctrines and time lines of Darwinism is keeping them from the obvious conclusion that soft tissue in a bone means it can't be millions of years old. This new evidence along with discoveries of cave drawings of dinosaur-like creatures, ancient artifacts depicting dinosaur-like animals, and legends of "dragons" that come from all over the world should be enough to convince most open-minded people that dinosaurs have lived in relatively recent times alongside of humans.
May God open the hearts of these scientists (as He has already done with many former evolutionist scientists) to start questioning their evolutionary beliefs and start looking at the only infallible source of information on how we and the world have gotten here-God's Word, the Holy Bible. They will find an account there that coincides much better, perfectly in fact, with what they can see with their own eyes. And they will also find something much more important than historical and scientific accuracy there. They will find the good news that salvation and eternal life in heaven can be theirs by confessing their sins and accepting the forgiveness won for them by Jesus Christ.
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QUESTION OF THE DAY
Why are golf cart injuries soaring?
Golf cart injuries have more than doubled between 1990 and 2006. The reasons: they are faster today than they used to be and they are being utilized in far more places today than just on golf courses, places such as sporting events, hospitals, airports, parks, and even public roadways. Advice: passengers should be at least six, operators at least 16, and the carts driven at reasonable speeds and braked slowly.
Source: BottomLine Personal (May 15, 2009)
The lemur-like fossil, Ida, is benefiting from a public relations campaign for a movie.
SUMMARY: A fossil named Ida described by one news source as giving support to "the evolution of early primates, and ultimately, modern human beings" has been getting a lot of media hype as of late. British naturalist David Attenborough was quoted as saying, “Now people can say, ‘Okay, you say we’re primates . . . show us the link.’ The link, they would have said until now, is missing. Well, it is no longer missing." But many other scientists are downplaying the significance of the discovery.
Called Darwinius masillae (in honor of Charles Darwin), the well-preserved fossil resembles the skeleton of a lemur (picture from Wikimedia Commons) and is about the size of a raccoon. It was found by amateur fossil hunters in 1983 before eventually making its way to researchers. Ida has opposable thumbs and nails like all primates but differs from lemurs in some respects.
According to the Wall Street Journal, anthropologists believe humans evolved from ancient ape-like ancestors that could have come from one of two groups, a tarsidae group which was a precursor of the tarsier or an adapidae group which was a precursor of the lemur. The theory favoring the adapidae position was bolstered by this finding.
The hype surrounding this discovery may be due to a massive public relations effort designed to promote a new book titled The Link and an upcoming documentary (to be seen on the History Channel in the U.S. on May 24 at 9 p.m. ET/PT). The filmmaker has even launched a Web site to create interest in the documentary.
Many scientists now appear to be downplaying the significance of the discovery. One of the researchers involved, paleontologist Philip Gingerich, complained about being pushed by the TV company to finish the project, apparently before he felt he was done with his research. "The evidence is less than convincing," said one scientist. "The PR campaign on this fossil is I think more of a story than the fossil itself," said another.
To read the entire article, view a picture of the fossil, and read other skeptical comments about the discovery, click on this ANSWERS IN GENESIS link.
COMMENT: The Answers in Genesis article lists several reasons why creationists need have no worries over this fossil: it doesn't look anything like an ape much less a human; a single fossil can't show evolution (a series of fossils showing gradual changes from lemur to human would be more convincing); similarities never show evolution (rather they are proof of a common Designer); the fossil's remarkable preservation suggests rapid burial, perhaps by a catastrophic flood.
There would be no debate over evolution if we today could see examples of something which is more than simply variation within a kind. Where are the fish growing legs in order to become land animals or the reptiles growing wings on their way to becoming birds? What we do see in the modern world are creatures reproducing according to their kinds, just as the book of Genesis says they will do.
The only real example of "evolution" (if you want to call it that) awaits all true believers in Jesus as Savior. Thanks be to God, we will undergo a major change from a "sinful kind" to a "holy kind" when we enter heaven's gates. We have God's Word on that.
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QUESTION OF THE DAY
According to a February report, which diet is best for losing weight?
A diet that involves counting and cutting calories. The New England Journal of Medicine reported that research testing various diets (those focusing on carbohydrates, fat, or protein) discovered it didn't matter which diet the participants were on as long as they cut calories. Advice: the best diet for you for losing weight is the one that works best at helping you to cut those calories.
Source: Consumer Reports OnHealth (June, 2009)
British study suggests delaying retirement is one way to postpone the onset of dementia.
SUMMARY: Researchers at King's College in London who analyzed data from 1,320 dementia patients, including 382 men, discovered that the men were able to delay the onset of dementia by continuing to work late in life. An estimated 700,000 British citizens currently have dementia, and the number is expected to grow to around 1.7 million by 2051.
Dementia, which is caused by a massive loss of cells in the brain, could possibly be prevented, experts believe, by building as many connections between cells as possible by being mentally active throughout one's lifetime. This is known as the "cognitive reserve."
A good education as well as delaying retirement and working later in life may keep people intellectually stimulated. "The intellectual stimulation that older people gain from the workplace may prevent a decline in mental abilities, thus keeping people above the threshold for dementia for longer," according to researcher Professor Simon Lovestone. Each additional year of work was linked to a six week delay in the onset of the disease.
The researchers also have pointed out that for some people retirement can now be as intellectually stimulating as work. Researcher Dr John Powell added: "The possibility that a person's cognitive reserve could still be modified later in life adds weight to the 'use it or lose it' concept where keeping active later in life has important health benefits, including reducing dementia risk." (picture from Wikimedia Commons)
To read the entire article click on this BBC NEWS link.
COMMENT: This recent British study adds to other studies that have come to the same conclusion: it is just as important to keep mentally active as it is to remain physically active. The LSI Blog has commented on this subject before, but it is well worth talking about again. (See the November 12 and January 21 posts.)
It isn't hard to remain mentally active. Some of many suggestions I have heard include reading more (and watching less TV), doing crossword puzzles, studying a foreign language, and, if I may pat myself on the back, maintaining a blog. Remaining physically active, being socially active, and trying to reduce stress all seem to help also.
For the Christian, the best possible suggestion is to study and meditate on the Word of God as well as to read other good Christian literature. At a time when the Bible is under attack by so many including a goodly number of people who call themselves Christians, it is profitable and interesting to see how the arguments of the Bible doubters can be deflated by good biblical research. This is especially true in the creation-evolution debate. And why wouldn't we want to study a book that has such a happy ending-everlasting happiness in heaven for all who have confessed their sins and accepted the forgiveness which Jesus won on the cross and which he freely offers to all people?
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QUESTION OF THE DAY
Can kissing your dog make you sick?
Dogs can carry harmful bacteria including salmonella, Lyme disease and the antibiotic-resistant staph infection known as MRSA. Remember they don't always have the most sanitary of habits. However, the average person is more likely to pick up harmful germs from other people because most of the bacteria in the mouths of dogs prefer canines to humans. To be on the safe side though, wash your hands and face if you and your dog do have a smooching session.
Source: Spry (May, 2009)
Some 51% call themselves pro-life, 42% pro-choice.
SUMMARY: For the first time in the 15 years the Gallup Poll has asked about the subject, a majority of Americans, 51% to 42%, now call themselves pro-life as opposed to pro-choice. The survey, conducted May 7-10 and based on 1,015 phone interviews, showed a significant change from just one year ago when 50% of Americans said they were pro-choice and 44% pro-life.
Recently a survey conducted by the Pew Research Center also reported a sharp decline in the pro-choice position. The percent of those saying abortion should be legal in all or most cases fell from 54% to 46% since August.
In the Gallup survey, 23% said abortion should be illegal in all circumstances, 22% legal under any circumstance, and 53% said legal only under certain circumstances. Men were pro-life by 54% to 39% while women chose the pro-life label 49% to 44%. Gallup said the pro-life position increased across Christian religious affiliations. Republicans showed a jump of 10% in the pro-life position while there was no noticeable change among Democrats.
Pro-life activists have been elated by the results of the two polls, especially after the election of President Obama who is considered strongly pro-choice. "Ironically, Obama's radical abortion polices and nominees may have helped make America more pro-life," said Wendy Wright, president of Concerned Women for America. The Gallup analysis seemed to agree with this point, saying Obama's policies may have pushed America's understanding of what pro-choice means to the left or farther from the mainstream.
However, Nancy Keenan of NARAL Pro-Choice America noted that voters have recently tended to support pro-choice candidates. "It would be a mistake for anti-choice groups to interpret this one poll as a signal that Americans want even more interference from politicians in their personal, private decisions, including a woman's right to choose safe, legal abortion," she said. (picture from Wikimedia Commons)
To read the entire article click on this MILWAUKEE JOURNAL AP link.
COMMENT: This is good news for sure, but how good? I note that according to the Gallup poll 53% of the respondents said abortion should be legal under certain circumstances. What circumstances? Most conservative Christians I believe would allow an abortion in bona-fide cases where the mother's life is in danger. In this tragic circumstance the decision is usually pretty obvious when a doctor must choose between the life of the unborn baby and that of the mother, who has an identity and most likely people who love and depend upon her. In this case, a person can be pro-life and still believe abortion should be legal. However, I can think of no other circumstance which would outweigh the right of the baby to live once he/she is conceived.
It is interesting to see how the pro-choice people continue to play with language. They call themselves pro-choice, but the individuals who have the most at stake in the abortion controversy, the unborn children, have no choice. The pro-choice people say they don't want politicians interfering with women's private decisions, but they do want politicians interfering with the right of unborn children to be born. Anyway, people's "private decisions" are not always outside of the law as we know, ever since slavery was abolished, and laws against murder and prostitution, just two of many examples, are still on the books.
Christian creationists also should have a voice in this matter. Every once in a while there's a story about a women undergoing an abortion who implies that she doesn't consider the aborted embryo or fetus to be human. Most likely she has read or heard about the outmoded theory that the developing human embryo goes through various stages of evolution, from protozoan to human. Called the recapitulation theory, this idea was discarded decades ago, but I've heard it still shows up in some textbooks. We should remind women that what we now know about DNA means human babies are 100% human from the moment of conception.
Jesus Christ remains the best solution to the abortion controversy. Living our lives for the Creator of all life, out of appreciation for all He has done for us, should encourage us, males and females alike, to stay out of situations where unwanted children are conceived in the first place. If we have found ourselves in this situation though, he has promised to be with us to help us get through it in the most God-pleasing way. For those who have been involved in the sin of abortion, there is full and free forgiveness available. We need to confess our sin (which means we will try not to repeat it) and accept the forgiveness Jesus offers. As faithful and dedicated believers, we can look forward to heaven where no life will ever end for any reason, nor would we want any life to end in this, our wonderful future home.
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QUESTION OF THE DAY
Does grape juice have the same health benefits as red wine?
Both grape juice and red wine are high in flavonoids, which may help the heart by inhibiting blood clots and increasing the amount of the good HDL cholesterol. However, the alcohol in wine may provide an additional anti-clotting benefit. Caution: too much alcohol has obvious health risks and both types of beverages are high in calories.
Source: Consumer Reports OnHealth (June, 2009)
Why aren't new species evolving to take their places?
SUMMARY: As many as 1,227 bird species around the world are threatened with extinction, an increase of 24 over a year ago. according to the IUCN's (International Union for Conservation of Nature) Red List index of endangered wildlife.
Two species, the Gorgeted Puffleg hummingbird and the Sidamo Lark have been added to the category of highest threat, a group that now numbers 192 species. The loss of habitat acreage to farming is considered the main reason for the threat to survival of these two species.
"It is extremely worrying that the number of Critically Endangered birds on the IUCN Red List continues to increase," Simon Stuart, chair of IUCN's survival commission said. Not only worried about the threatened birds, the ICUN also is concerned that "common birds are becoming less common." For instance, North America's chimney swift (picture, from Wikipedia) has been moved from the Least Concerned category to the Near Threatened group.
The IUCN is a worldwide environmental network of over 1,000 governments and non-governmental organizations.
To read the entire article click on this YAHOO NEWS AND AFP link.
COMMENT: The interesting thing about news reports concerning animal species possibly going extinct is that they seem to be far more common than stories about new species being discovered. I feel that this situation reflects poorly on the theory of evolution.
If natural selection and mutations are so powerful they could have given us the vast variety of birds, land animals, water creatures, and insects we know exist today or which have existed in the past, why aren't they now at least replacing the species going extinct with new species that are evolving? This certainly doesn't appear to be the case. And the new species that have been discovered in recent years have been in out-of-the-way places where they just weren't observed previously; it's not proof of new species evolving.
As a general rule we Christians, as stewards of God's creation, would not be out of line for supporting efforts to stem the wave of extinctions that is affecting all types of creatures. But we do protest the idea that any new "kind" of animal has ever evolved since Creation week, first because it contradicts the Bible, and secondly because we don't see any evidence of that happening today or in the past.
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QUESTION OF THE DAY
What is meant by the treatment known as "forest therapy" which is being advocated in Japan?
Japanese scientists have discovered that walking in the forest, looking at the flora and smelling the woodsy scents can help people de-stress, perhaps more effectively than spa treatments and beach vacations.
Source: Spry (May, 2009)
Group in Massachusetts says idea may not even be feasible.
SUMMARY: Anybody who combines human and animal cells to create a "human-animal hybrid" in Louisiana could get 10 years in prison according to legislation approved Tuesday by a state Senate panel. The bill, approved without objection, would criminalize various ways of combining human eggs or sperm with animal sperm or eggs as well as forbidding the use of human brain tissue to try to develop a human brain in an animal.
Some researchers elsewhere have tried to create human embryonic stem cells, which they say could be used to develop treatment for a variety of human ailments, by placing human DNA into animal cells. That practice has been the cause of much controversy because the creation of human embryonic stem cells destroys human embryos, and some people also worry this practice could lead to genetically modified babies.
The bill would not stop common medical practices such as the use of pig valves in human heart surgery. It would also not prohibit the growth of a few thousand human brain cells in mouse brains, a procedure that would fall short of creating a "human brain or a brain derived wholly or predominantly from human neural tissues" which the legislation forbids.
Researchers with Advanced Cell Technology in Massachusetts earlier this year cast doubt on the feasibility of using human DNA in animal eggs to make hybrid cloned embryos because the animal eggs don't reprogram human DNA in the right way to generate stem cells.
To read the entire article click on this U.S. NEWS & WORLD REPORT link.
COMMENT: It seems to me that God is drawing a line on how far researchers can go in this practice of mixing human and animal cells. The use of animal tissue for human health purposes would, in my opinion, not be much different from the consumption of meat for food. These actions are permissible because humans have been given dominion over God's animal creatures.
As the researchers in Massachusetts have been finding, making human-animal embryos is a different matter. If such a practice would be successful, it would raise some serious ethical and religious questions. If a mostly human hybrid embryo would be created and grow into a living being, would it have an eternal soul? Would it need to hear the Gospel in order to escape eternal death? This would cause the same kind of dilemma we would face if intelligent beings from outer space were ever discovered. May God spare us from having to face either question, which He certainly seems to be doing.
In the meantime we can rest assured that nothing will happen without the Lord's permission. We can pray that He will grant those researchers success who are using animals in a humane way to benefit humankind. At the same time, we can petition the Creator to continue to frustrate those scientists who are doing unethical things with human and animal cells as well as those who are destroying unborn human lives in their foolish experiments with embryonic stem cells.
The day is coming when we will no longer have to face questions such as the ones raised here. Are we ready for that day? We are if we have confessed our sins and accepted the gifts of forgiveness and eternal life which are ours through faith in Jesus Christ.
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QUESTION OF THE DAY
Why did German biologist August Friedrich Leopold Weismann cut off the tails of mice?
Weismaan (1834-1914) disproved the Lamarckian notion of "inheritance of acquired characteristics" as in the example of giraffes evolving their long necks over the years by having to stretch their necks to reach high branches. In his experiment Weismann cut off the tails of 19 successive generations of mice. The last generation of mice was born with tails just as long as the first generation, showing evolution can't happen that way.
Source: http://evolution-facts.org/
Birds of the corvid group appear to be as intelligent as primates.
SUMMARY: Scientists are discovering birds, particularly corvids, are far more clever than people have been assuming. The corvid family includes crows, ravens, rooks, jackdaws, jays and magpies (magpie picture from Wikimedia Commons).
These birds have astonished scientists with extraordinary feats of memory, an aptitude for complex social reasoning, and a gift for crafting and using tools. Scientist Christopher Bird (his real name) from the zoology department at Cambridge University says, "I would rate corvids as being as intelligent as primates in many ways."
Like many corvids, western scrub jays will hide food for later consumption, but they take this practice one step further. When in the presence of other birds, Mr. Bird says, they will move the hidden food around and, if being watched, might even do some "fake hides" as well, pretending to put their beaks in the ground to place food but not really doing so.
Corvids have also proven to be aware of themselves and to recognize themselves in mirrors. Using the Gallup mark test, in which a mark is put on part of an animal's body where it can't see it except in a mirror, scientists have discovered the ability for self-recognition in corvids. Last year a German team found that magpies, marked with colored stickers under their beaks, tried to remove the stickers when presented with a mirror. Previously only primates and possibly elephants and dolphins had been thought to have this ability.
Perhaps most interesting about these birds is their ability to use tools. an ability which might even surpass that of primates such as chimpanzees. Scientists have discovered the New Caledonia crow can take a whole branch from a tree, chop off the side branches, and hone away at the end to make a hook which it then uses to get grubs. One captive bird named Betty can take a wire, bend it with her beak to make a hook and then use the hook to pull up a bucket of food. Experiments with Betty provided the first demonstration of any animal being able to make a new tool for a specific task without a period of trial-an-error learning.
Scientists are mystified by how New Caledonia crows, a species from one little island in the Pacific, could have developed their abilities, which are inheritable. Mr. Bird observes how these birds can match the intelligence of primates despite having far different brains. The research is also causing scientists to ask fundamental questions about intelligence, as to what it is and whether amazing feats such as corvids display is really intelligence. There is still much to learn about the wisdom of corvids.
To read the entire article click and see several videos click on this BBC NEWS link.
COMMENT: Well, I guess we can't try to insult anyone anymore by calling him a "bird brain", can we? Seriously, the abilities God has given to these birds has to awe and inspire us. With the psalmist we declare, "How many are your works, O LORD! In wisdom you made them all; the earth is full of your creatures." Psalm 104:24 (NIV)
These discoveries, in my opinion, might be hard to explain from an evolutionist viewpoint. It would seem to be nearly impossible to describe how chimpanzees could have evolved their intelligence (to say nothing of human wisdom). But now the theory of evolution is faced with the task of explaining how a similar intelligence could have evolved a second time, this time in corvids on an entirely different branch of the tree of evolution.
The reasonable person ought to conclude that a Master Designer has given to birds, to apes, and to humans their separate intelligences, just what they need to survive. It is a failure of human intelligence to believe examples of intelligence in the natural world are just happy accidents. Should not we humans use our superior gift of wisdom to recognize and acclaim our wonderful Creator and to accept His gift of eternal salvation which Jesus Christ won for us on the cross of Calvary? That is the wisest, most intelligent thing we can do.
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QUESTION OF THE DAY
How many injuries to people are caused each year by accidents they have with their pets?
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimate about 86,600 injuries a year, about 88 percent involving dogs but many falls also involving cats. Women are twice as likely to be injured as men, and people over 75 have the highest rates. Advice: know where you pets are at all times and train your dogs to not congregate around your feet.
Source: Consumer Reports OnHealth (June, 2009)
Abstinence is the only 100% effective and foolproof way to prevent pregnancy, she says.
SUMMARY: Eighteen-year-old Bristol Palin, daughter of Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, has been selected by the Candie's Foundation to help create awareness of the negatives of teen pregnancy. On Wednesday, along with "Heroes" actress Hayden Panettiere and Tampa Bay Rays pitcher Matt Garza, who had once been a teen father himself, she spoke to a group of 150 teens at a town meeting at the Times Center with reaction to her comments mixed.
Palin gave birth last December to a baby, Tripp, who is only a few months younger than her youngest brother, Trig. Her pregnancy was announced during her mother Sarah Palin's campaign as the Republican vice-presidential candidate. Tripp's father, Levi Johnson, had been engaged to Bristol but has since broken off the engagement.
In an interview on ABC's "Good Morning America," Bristol Palin said abstinence was the only 100% effective and foolproof way to prevent pregnancy. She said comments she had previously made that appeared to downplay the role of abstinence education were taken out of context (see previous story). To the students Palin stressed how having a baby caused her to cancel her plans of going to college outside of Alaska and how it had put her "life on the fast track."
Some of the students who heard Palin speak accused her of hypocrisy since she is a teen mother now speaking out against teen pregnancy. Others said her message about abstinence was unrealistic for today’s teen-agers. One student was quoted as supporting Palin’s efforts.
The Candie’s Foundation’s aim is to educate teens about the consequences of teen pregnancy, and that was evident in posters it placed on the stage which suggested problems the teens may be having with parents and school were minor compared to the inconveniences of having to take care of a baby. According to the Foundation, the United States has the highest rate of teen pregnancies in the industrialized world. Each year, some 750,000 American teens get pregnant, and, like Palin, 8 out of 10 do not marry the father.
To read the entire article click on this ABC NEWS link.
COMMENT: Leave it to the ABC News to make the negative comments by the students as much a part of this story as the scope of the problem of teen pregnancy this nation is facing and the efforts of Bristol Palin and the Candie’s Foundation to counteract it. To its credit though, this ABC article did not mention abortion as a solution to teen pregnancy.
Although I am not a big viewer of television, it is my impression the entertainment divisions of the networks along with Hollywood are causing viewers to overindulge in the notion of “free sex.” It’s bad enough to advocate such a notion but even worse to fail to mention any of the possible consequences. Is it any wonder then that students and others question the effectiveness of an abstinence campaign when people are being bombarded on all sides by the “if it feels good, do it” message?
Here in Wisconsin we are getting closer to a statewide ban on smoking, even in taverns and virtually all workplaces. Lawmakers are recognizing the dangers of even second-hand smoke on the health of our citizens. Yet, whenever someone suggests placing limits on the content of television shows, the cries of “censorship” and “free speech” are invariably raised. The figure of three-quarters of a million teens getting pregnant every years suggests that many people could be getting hurt by watching the indecent shows just as many people are being hurt by tobacco smoke.
By the way, I don’t think the students who accused Bristol Palin of hypocrisy are on target. It seems to me that hypocrisy means to give advice without making any serious effort to follow that advice. I don’t believe that one can call what this young lady is doing hypocrisy--offering advice after she had experienced a failure. I pray that Bristol Palin will be given the strength to resist all future temptations.
The good news, of course, is that all sins are forgivable and forgiven. Our efforts to live according to God’s wishes are because of our love for the Savior and our thankfulness over the forgiveness for all our sins which He won for us on the cross. Our love for Jesus should take precedence over our love for any other person because His love for us and for His Father’s will took precedence over any other factor.
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QUESTION OF THE DAY
What infamous work was Soviet scientist Ilya Ivanov (1870-1932) known for in the mid 1920s?
Funded by the Soviet government, Ivanov (picture from Wikipedia) tried to hybridize humans and apes by artificial insemination. After three failed attempts to produce hybrids from human males and chimpanzee females, he continued the experiment using ape males and human females. His work ended after at least five of the women died.
Source: Acts & Facts (May, 2000)
Has it reverted back to the way cats were when originally created?
SUMMARY: Becky Page was in for a surprise when she rescued an abandoned kitten she found in an alley. She took him home and offered him a bowl of chicken and a plate of fish, both of which the cat ignored, but when he spotted some leftover vegetables, he began licking his lips. The cat "wolfed" them down and ever since has stuck to a strictly vegetarian diet. Named Dante, and possibly the world's first vegetarian cat, the feline loves Brussels sprouts, rhubarb, melon, asparagus, and even bananas.
Experts are baffled by Dante's diet because cats are natural carnivores which indeed can obtain certain nutrients in sufficient quantities only from meat. Humans and even dogs can survive well without meat, but cats need a source of taurine, an amino acid essential for eye health, and arachidonic acid, a fatty acid that helps its wounds heal. Taurine and arachiodonic acid apparently can be found in sufficient amounts only in meat. Yet, Dante appears as fit as any feline.
Although Page has tried to secretly feed the cat scraps of meat mixed in with his vegetables, he ignores the meat, she says. She has never seen him hunting any birds or small animals when he goes outside. Dante also is not tempted by the chickens, rabbit, two guinea pigs, rat, hamster and fish Page keeps in her home.
A veterinarian said she had never before heard of a cat that would not eat meat, and she advises a complete cat food that provides all the necessary nutrients in the right balance. Some vegetarian cat foods are available which include synthesized forms of the nutrients that cats would normally get from meat.
To read the entire article click on this DAILY MAIL link.
COMMENT: This interesting mystery has two elements: how a cat can be born with a dislike for meat, and how a cat can obtain required nutrients entirely from vegetables when it is not supposed to be able to.
One creationist take on this story involves mutations. Carl Wieland of Creation Ministries International admits it is just speculation, but he has a theory that cats since originally created have experienced a "loss mutation" in which they lost the ability to synthesize some of the ingredients they once were able to get from vegetables. Perhaps then Dante could be an example of a "reverse mutation" in which this lost ability has been restored and the taste for meat has vanished. If so, he could be like the cats God originally created during the short time when humans and all animals were strict vegetarians.
I am assuming that any reverse mutation like this one would result from a rearrangement of information in the cat's genetic code rather than the addition of information. Scientists do not know of any example where information has been added to the genetic code of any creature, which would have been necessary multiple times for single-celled organisms to have evolved into humans.
At the least, Dante the cat is a reminder of the way things once were and the way they will once again become. Death for a short time on earth did not rule, and when we get to heaven, we will find it again to have been rendered powerless. Christ abolished eternal death when He died for our sins and rose again to proclaim His victory over sin. It sometimes is hard to wait for the new "Eden." isn't it?
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QUESTION OF THE DAY
What is the tallest mountain in the United States?
Mount McKinley, which is located in Alaska, reaches 6,194 meters or 20,320 feet in height. It was named after President William McKinley. This mountain was first ascended in 1913 by an expedition led by Hudson Stuc.
Source: www.usefultrivia.com
AiG's Ken Ham and CMI's Carl Wieland settle out of court.
SUMMARY: A four-year-long legal case between creationists that began in Australia in 2005 has now been settled out of court and ratified by a Court of Appeals in Cincinnati. The dispute was between Ken Ham, leader of the Answers in Genesis organization, and Carl Wieland, head of Creation Ministries International, which is based in Queensland, Australia.
Details of the case are being kept confidential but reportedly there were charges of breached copyright and stolen mailing lists.
Prior to Ham's departure to the United States in 1987 he and Wieland were close friends involved in building Australia's creationist movement, but they started drifting apart soon after. In the U.S. Ham began a "rival" creationist magazine and has built a highly successful $27 million Creationist Museum which now has attracted some 700,000 visitors. He is also heard on over 1000 radio stations and has expanded his program into Canada and Britain.
A joint statement indicated the two parties are going their separate ways. Ham said he hoped eventually the two groups could work more closely together.
To read the entire article click on this THE AUSTRALIAN link.
COMMENT: It is always very disappointing to hear of close friends whose marriage is breaking up or respected co-workers who can't get along or perhaps even co-pastors of a church who are having trouble working together. That was the feeling I had when I first heard of some problems Ken Ham was having with his former creationist colleagues in Australia.
It was good then to hear that Answers in Genesis and Creation Ministries International now have apparently settled their differences and hopefully can herewith direct all their energies to fighting the satanic evolutionist theory. Perhaps, as is often the case, time will heal any lingering wounds and permit the two groups to work more closely with each other and with other creationist groups in spreading the message that Darwinism is clearly anti-biblical and unscientific.
This spat has not gone unnoticed by the evolutionist community. The anti-creationist National Center for Science Education made a brief mention of the settlement on its Web site with only a relatively mild hint of gloating. Of course, Darwinists would be hypocritical if they make too much of this case because of the quarrels they themselves frequently have with each other, for instance, over how to interpret newly-found fossils or the debate involving the big bang vs. steady state camps. Possibly one of their biggest fights may have involved the late well-know paleontologist, Dr. Stephen Jay Gould, who along with a colleague admitted the fossil record doesn't support the idea of a gradual evolution of species. Instead these two men proposed a theory of "punctuated equilibrium" or evolution in spurts. I have read some really hateful comments directed at Gould from his fellow evolutionists over this confession, which agrees with what creationists have been saying for decades.
Can we do anything that might help in at least a little way to speed the healing process between AiG and CMI? I subscribe to both of the impressive, glossy quarterly publications that the two groups offer, and I would encourage you to consider doing the same. Of course, we can't forget about other important players in the field either such as the Institute for Creation Research, which provides a free and colorful monthly magazine, and the Creation Research Society.
Meanwhile, we should keep it mind that because of sin good people can have their quarrels. Even St. Paul and his co-worker, Barnabas, had a "sharp disagreement" (Acts 15: 36-41) which didn't stop them from continuing their work of spreading the Gospel, albeit with different partners. Each of us needs to look inwardly from time to time to see, as the Lord's Prayer suggests, that we really are ready to forgive others who may have wronged us, just as we pray that the Lord forgive us our many wrongs against Him.
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QUESTION OF THE DAY
What are the dangers of tooth loss?
The Academy of General Dentistry says the average man has lost five teeth by age 72, and studies have indicated that losing teeth increases the risk of dementia, heart disease and stroke.
Source: Spry (April, 2009); Picture: from Wikimedia Commons
Swiss group declares it's wrong to harm plants unnecessarily.
SUMMARY: The Swiss Federal Ethics Committee on Biotechnology has released a twenty-four page report arguing that plants may be deserving of nearly the same reverence as do humans. The panel though had some difficulty in deciding exactly where plants stand on the moral spectrum.
Some members argued that giving plants the same ethical status as animals would make life very inconvenient, while others claimed plants shouldn't be harmed without "justification" because they "strive for something" (e.g. to develop, to reproduce) and are a lot like us on the molecular level. Everyone on the panel eventually agreed that vegetation should not be arbitrarily harmed because plants and plant communities have inherent worth.
The panel majority concluded plants either may be aware of their surroundings or that knowing this was not possible. The committee said that because they are living organisms, we shouldn't treat plants as we please.
Ironically, the famous author, G. K. Chesterton already a century ago predicted this day would come, and he connected the idea of plant rights to evolution. As we are growing more and more humane, he observed, we are giving rights to one group after another: citizens, slaves, children, women, animals, and, in time, plants. However, he said that evolution theory could drive people to be insanely humane to everything because we are related to everything, or insanely cruel to everything. He found it somewhat humorous that a man could become a vegetarian because of objection to killing animals but then reject vegetarianism when he comes to regard plants as "silent animals." That person might then live on nothing but salt until having to face the question: "Why should salt suffer?"
To read the entire article click on this CREATION MINISTRIES link.
COMMENT: The author of this article does a pretty good job of showing the absurdity of any plant rights movement. She reminds us that instead of the biocentric view (if it's alive, it has rights), we Christians accept the theocentric view (we have value because of our relationship to God.) She further reminds us that the world including Europe has a ways to go yet before full "human rights" have been achieved; so it is foolish to be spending time talking about rights for vegetation. I would add that it is insane we should be talking about rights for plants while in much of the world unborn humans don't even have full rights and protection.
Because animals can feel fear and pain and God has made us stewards of His creation, we cannot subject animals to unnecessary suffering. However, ever since the Fall of Man, God has given people the right to eat meat. Even Jesus served fish to His disciples and to thousands of other people. As far as plants are concerned, humans have consumed them from the beginning of the world, and, in fact, their nutritional benefits are absolutely needed by us human beings for survival. The Bible says nothing about treating plants humanely, as if that were possible.
Wouldn't it be wonderful if in talking about rights, everyone's first concern was the right of every man, woman, and child (the only creatures who have eternal souls) to hear the saving Gospel of Jesus Christ? Once our spiritual houses are in order, the "rights" of God's other creatures will take care of themselves.
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QUESTION OF THE DAY
What kind of corn is best for popping?
Popcorn kernels must have soft, moist centers covered by a very hard shell. When heated to about 400 degrees F, the moisture inside the kernels turns to steam, pressure builds, and the kernels explode with the soft material actually turning itself inside out. Kernels of corn do not pop if they are too dry or have soft spots on top.
Source: Exploring the World of Biology by John Hudson Tiner
SUMMARY: A nearly complete "5-million-year-old" fossil of a sloth (sloth picture from Wikimedia Commons) has been found beneath the cement floor of a house in an Andean region of Peru. Similar sloth fossils which previously have been discovered in the Americas were dated at only about 1 million years and were merely partial skeletons. Near this discovery parts of a giant armadillo, likewise dated at 5 million years, were also found.
Yosemite Falls in California is 2,425 feet (739 meters).
