Articles » Intermediate

The genius of the English language, many people say, is that it freely borrows from other languages. For example, the term “déjà vu” is French and it means “already seen.” We might more readily say “been there, done that!” Another equivalent expression is “nothing new under the sun.” Indeed some things are just so-o-o-o predictable. Among current events, none seems more aptly connected to the term déjà vu than the resistance of established scientists to criticism, any criticism, of their views. Read the rest of this entry »

John Whitcomb and Henry Morris’ 1961 classic The Genesis Flood was, of course, a wonderful work. Countless people, among them many scientists, have been positively influenced by its message. In the ensuing half century however, a lot of new information and many new arguments against “the flood” have appeared. The time has long since come for an update of the 1961 work. Read the rest of this entry »

We humans are proud of our accomplishments in science, technology, the arts, and music. And, we have a right to be proud: the technological wonders of the last century have radically changed our world and benefited us enormously. While basking in our accomplishments, though, it behooves us to acknowledge the fact that we have used the natural world as a model for many of our achievements. Many scientists spend a lifetime studying and learning from the wisdom expressed everywhere in creation. In the fields of “engineering, chemistry, ballistics, aerodynamics – in fact in almost every area of human endeavor – nature has been there first” and the natural world is “infinitely more economical of resources and generally superior in performance” than our best efforts (Felix Paturi. 1976. Nature, Mother of Invention. Harper & Row p. 1). Read the rest of this entry »

It was in April 1953 that Frances Crick and James Watson published their proposed description of the DNA molecule. As they anticipated, biology was forever changed. Now biologists had a molecule which they could study, which stored hereditary information. The 1960s saw the emergence of the ‘standard model,’ which held that DNA codes for proteins which determine the characteristics of each creature. However on the occasion of the 60th anniversary, one commentator in the journal Nature declared: “We do not know what most of our DNA does, nor how, or to what extent it governs traits.” (496 #7446 p. 419). Read the rest of this entry »

Diatoms are a major group of plants which float in open water, and they are one of the most successful types of microscopic algae known. The estimated over 100,000 known species are found in the oceans, in freshwater, in soils and even on damp surfaces. Most diatoms are unicellular, although some can form colonies in the shape of long filaments or ribbons. As eukaryotes or cells with a nucleus, they have highly complex cells, comparable to other eukaryotes such as mammals and even humans (Philippe, et al., 1994, Journal of Evolutionary Biology 7: 247). Read the rest of this entry »

It’s fun to go to a museum to view the mounted dinosaur skeletons. In the Royal Tyrrell Museum in Drumheller, Alberta, the poses suggest tension. There are running dinosaurs, fighting dinosaurs, carnivorous dinosaurs about to kill herbivore victims, and others caught in the act of raiding dinosaur nests. The displays are actually stories without words. At a glance they communicate current scientific interpretations about dinosaur lifestyles. But these are not the really dramatic displays. It is the dinosaur skeletons still entombed in rock, which should rivet our interest. These artifacts cry out with information. Read the rest of this entry »

The big surprise in April 1953 was not that the structure, and by implication the function, of DNA had been discovered, but rather who had done it. With established scientists like American Linus Pauling of Caltech in Pasadena, and British scientists Maurice Wilkins and Rosalind Franklin at King’s College, University of London, carrying out such research, it was expected that the problem would soon be solved. These scientists all had research funds, experience and appropriate equipment. Read the rest of this entry »

An avid fan of spy stories, I have read many which involve an apparently harmless document (like a friendly letter). But the document actually conveys dangerous information if one is provided with the appropriate convention for decoding it. Read the rest of this entry »

History is full of sad stories. Nobody needs to tell us that. Nevertheless many tragic events have been obscured by the mists of time. It sometimes seems that we scarcely know or care any more about the crusades, European wars or treaties during the Middle Ages or events before or after that time. Eighty years ago however, the assassination of the Romanovs, the Russian czar and his family took place in the Siberian town of Yekaterinburg. The events were so shrouded in mystery, and the victims so interesting (particularly the four beautiful daughters), that public interest in the story has never faded. Now, thanks to some remarkable espionage carried out in Russia during the final years of the Communist regime, and to some recently developed skills in forensic science, the final chapter on the Romanov saga will be written during the summer of 1998. If all goes according to plan, the Romanovs will be buried in the family sepulchre in St. Peter and St. Paul Cathedral in St. Petersburg. The funeral service with appropriate imperial grandeur is scheduled for July 17 — 80 years to the day after their untimely deaths. Read the rest of this entry »

We all like to communicate, don’t we – at the very least to tell others what to do. Indeed a slang expression has been coined about this “Communication is the name of the game!” People, of course, are able to communicate in words. However there are other sorts of communication which do not involve words, but which nevertheless involve information. Some scientists, especially in their study of biology, have become very interested in information and its source. Dr. A. E. Wilder-Smith, for example, discussed the genesis of biological information in his 1981 book The Natural Sciences Know Nothing of Evolution. Moreover this fall two new books on this subject (by Dr. William A. Dembski) are scheduled to be released. Dr. Dembski is an associate editor of Origins and Design (www.arn.org) and the titles of these new books are The Design Inference (Cambridge) and Mere Creation: Reclaiming the Book of Nature (InterVarsity). Dr. Dembski’s interest in information theory is in its implications for origins theory. This also was Dr. Wilder-Smith’s concern. In addition there is another book recently translated from German, which provides fascinating insights on this topic. The title of Dr. Werner Gitt’s book is In the Beginning was Information. Read the rest of this entry »

It is easy to remind ourselves not to believe everything which is confidently declared as fact, but it is quite another to actually follow that good advice. How many generations of English students, for example, have memorized Shakespeare’s ominous declaration in Merchant of Venice: “All that glitters is not gold–/ Often have you heard that told.” (Act II Scene 7). Even today however, centuries after Shakespeare’s time, we all too often believe appearances, whether they be objects for sale or statements of scientific fact. Read the rest of this entry »

The Creation Science Association of Alberta is delighted to announce that biologist and long time creation apologist Dr. Jerry Bergman has agreed to speak at our Creation Weekend October 14 and 15, 2011. Dr. Bergman is a well known author and speaker on creation issues. His articles in Dialogue are extremely popular and among his published books, our association sells Slaughter of the Dissidents and Persuaded by the Evidence. What makes Dr. Bergman particularly interesting is the story of his rejection of atheism based on deficiencies in evolution theory. Read the rest of this entry »

Creation Science Association of Alberta is delighted to announce that Dr. Marcus Ross has agreed to speak at our creation weekend in Edmonton on Friday and Saturday, October 15 and 16, 2010. This young scientist brings with him a wealth of experience and expertise. He graduated with a B.S. from The Pennsylvania State University, a M. S. in Paleontology at south Dakota School of Mines and Technology and a Ph.D. in Geosciences from University of Rhode Island. His doctoral thesis dealt with the abundance and spread of mosasaurs, marine reptiles which are found in Cretaceous sediments, rock levels similar to those of many dinosaurs. Read the rest of this entry »

Dr. Paul Nelson is a prominent spokesperson for the creation and intelligent design communities. It was in that capacity that he introduced enthusiastic participants at the 2013 Creation Weekend in Edmonton, to new arguments and exciting information. Read the rest of this entry »

People came from hundreds of kilometres away to hear Dr. Steven Ausin speak at CSAA’s Creation Weekend in Edmonton in October. His first lecture on Friday evening, October 24 was on the global flood model, also known as catastrophic plate tectonics. This model provides an explanation for how the earth came to its present state (as a result of a worldwide flood). The model was first proposed in a paper in 1994. There were six authors, Drs. Steven Austin, John Baumgardner, Hubert Humphreys, Andrew Snelling, Larry Vardiman and Kurt Wise (each representing different relevant technical areas of expertise). Read the rest of this entry »