Articles » Intermediate

The common perception of the Arctic is that it is a frozen, uninhabited wasteland.  Truthfully, most of it is.  Evolutionists claim it has been like this for millions of years but that there is evidence that it was warmer and wetter in the past.  In 1985, Paul Tudge of the Geological Survey of Canada spotted tree stumps on the Canadian Arctic island of Axel Heiberg while conducting a helicopter survey.  A year later, a team of geologists, paleobotanists, and graduate students returned and found enormous tree stumps they interpreted as being still rooted in the soil they grew in (Basinger, 1987).

Pelicans are large water birds with a giant throat pouch designed for storing fish catches. This feature makes pelicans unique compared to all other birds (Burton, M and R. 1977. Inside the World Animal World. Quadrangle). The pelican’s famous foot-long bill, the longest of any living bird, can hold a hundred or more fish (Scott, J. 1975. That Wonderful Pelican. Putnam). The volume of its full bill is up to 11.4 liters, (3 gallons), a size larger than that of most entire birds (Fitzgerald, D. B. 2010. A Critical Evaluation of Origin of Species. TEACH Services, Inc. p. 35). It has a specially designed bone and muscle system it uses to operate its beak and pouch. The pouch normally folds conveniently under its bill, but expands when fishing. These versatile fishermen can scoop up fish with their bills and can store them in their pouch, which can stretch many times their original size.  Read the rest of this entry »

One of the “top arguments” against the creation world view is the well-documented development of insect resistance to insecticides. Many Neo- Darwinists claim that the historical development of pesticide resistance in insects is actually one of the strongest evidences of Neo-Darwinian evolution by mutations: “Insects that survived insecticides did so by helpful genetic mutations, and thus they bred a new generation that was not brought down by the farmers’ poison” (Larry Witham. 2002. Where Darwin Meets the Bible. Oxford University Press p. 78) Read the rest of this entry »

It seems almost too amazing to contemplate. Measured from its antennae, Pioneer 10 extends less than 3 m (9 feet) and weighs about 270 kg (570 lb.). Its power comes from four nuclear generators each of which provided only 40 watts at launch, 29 years ago. Now that spacecraft is almost 12 billion km alway (7 billion miles). Despite the immense distance and the tiny onboard power source, a message from Pioneer 10 was successfully detected on April 28/01 by a tracking station in Spain. Some people might wonder how signals from Pioneer 10 are recognized from so far away. Apparently there is a new analytical technique based on chaos theory, which may enable scientists to sift real signals out of background noise. Read the rest of this entry »

We have seen scientists in the past, like famous evolutionist Stephen Jay Gould, who declared that “science” and “ethics” including religion, were separate issues, each with their own spheres of influence. The implication was that everyone should be free to support the philosophy of one’s choice. Well that was then, and this is now. Today, with ethical issues as with everything else, it seems there is only one respectable position, that of the secular scientist. To support any other views is to fight “all of science.” Read the rest of this entry »

According to astronomer/author Timothy Ferris in his new book The Whole Shebang: A State of the Universe(s) Report, cosmologist Andrei Linde considers speculation on ultimate origins an excitingly “dangerous” subject. (1997 published by Simon and Schuster see p. 260) Apparently Dr. Linde sometimes wakes up wracked by doubt. Maybe all the speculations in cosmology are simply myths, with no foundation in reality at all. Author Ferris quotes Linde as remarking “Maybe actually the solution is quite aside from what we’re thinking about. It is a very dangerous feeling, this feeling that you’re not totally secure in what you’re doing.” It is one thing to have tentative views, but why should this scientist consider his to be dangerous? What or whom does he fear? Certainly fellow cosmologists have no similar scruples. A review of Dr. Ferris’ book in Astronomy magazine July 1997 p. 108 claims “His work is a tour de force, a spiral galaxy of thoughts recounted in eloquent and vibrant prose.” We are advised to “Relish its prose, ponder its implications.” Well then let’s do it. Let’s see what the implications of cosmology are for us today. Read the rest of this entry »

When I was 19, I had a summer job in a hospital laboratory in Sherbrooke, Quebec. The hospital was fairly small, as it served an English community of perhaps 20,000 to 30,000 people in the extended region. Read the rest of this entry »

The new generation of creation scientists are young, smart and sophisticated. Along with geneticists, taxonomists, and palaeontologists, experts in DNA sequencing analysis and phylogenetic analysis (the search for relationship patterns) are asking new questions and revisiting old issues. No longer do they concentrate on fighting evolutionary theories. They don’t need to. Rather, they are forging new creation-based theories. With this positive approach, they are certain to attract yet further support from Christians in educational and professional circles. It was to learn more about some new initiatives that I attended a conference in Lynchburg, Virginia on August 5-7, 1999. Read the rest of this entry »

There are some useful and visually attractive programs available on YouTube. For example, Privileged Species (previously reviewed in Dialogue) at 32 minutes, has already recorded 33,300 views. However for better quality display, a DVD is required which CSAA sells for $15.00 each.

Several years ago CSAA distributed free copies of the DVD Programming of Life which runs 44 minutes and is produced by LaBarge Media (with Don Johnson). We distributed this to high school and university students, teachers, and pastors. This program examines mathematical issues concerning the living cell. In this context, information is a critical feature of living cells. The kind of information required (proscriptive) involves instructions. From that discussion we proceed to protein manufacturing which is illustrated with beautiful graphics. We then learn the essential features of a computer and how the cell demonstrates these capacities. Read the rest of this entry »

American scientists from the Institute for Creation Research and the Creation Research Society set up a committee to study dating techniques which are often used to justify claims that the earth is very old. This was several years ago. Specifically, these scientists wanted to find out how the numbers obtained from most studies on rocks, could be explained in the context of a relatively young earth. Read the rest of this entry »

Review of Evolution’s Achilles’ Heels (book)

Like Alice of Wonderland fame (in Through the Looking Glass), who found that she had to run extremely fast just to stay in the same place, so also it is hard to maintain an up-to-date understanding in science. The scientific journals constantly churn out new articles with new information and arguments. Keeping up to date is hard work! But it is extremely helpful to have an understanding of current issues in science and their significance. This makes the new book Evolution’s Achilles’ Heels (Robert Carter, Editor) and its companion DVD of the same title, extremely relevant. Read the rest of this entry »

Have you ever wondered how this transformation takes place?  The caterpillar makes his cocoon (or chrysalis) and out pops the butterfly – pretty simple, right?  Simple – until you realize that nearly every single organ in the caterpillar body is destroyed and then remade into a beautiful butterfly.  Eat leaves? Now change your diet to drinking nectar.  Those tiny suction-cupped feet?  Forget those – now you can fly with wings that make the whole world envious of your beauty.  Read the rest of this entry »

Some years ago during the summer, I was a counselor at a small camp in southeastern Quebec. Nature interpretation was my specialty. It was dark each evening by the time the campers converged on the washroom after campfire. The lights of that building attracted all manner of creepy crawlies. Frequently at this time I would hear a shout “Moxie, Moxie — what is this thing in the washroom?” Read the rest of this entry »

In many parts of North American, the most common wild mammals one sees are  rodents in the order Rodentia. The largest known modern rodent is the South American semiaquatic capybara, which can grow to be 107 to 134 cm (3.51 to 4.40 ft) long, 50 to 64 cm (20 to 25 in) tall and typically weighs 35 to 66 kg (77 to 150 lb). Rodents are classified in one of the most successful mammalian groups today (Churakov et al. p. 1315). Read the rest of this entry »

With sparkling eyes, the baby on the cover of TIME magazine’s 1997 Special Issue “The Age of Discovery”, is ready to reach out for some fascinating object. The theme is a “celebration of mankind’s exploration of the unknown.” However the issue seems most noteworthy for its atheistic and evolutionary bias. For example, one British author, in describing his boyhood enthusiasm for collecting insects, at the same time confides to us: “The life of those Wiltshire woods and rivers and ponds became, as the comfort of God’s presence drained away, so very much more complex than their romantic and theological past suggested. But at 14, this secular revelation was wildly exciting, a liberation from faith.” (p. 41) For author Redmond O’Hanlon, the joys of observing nature were closely connected to his new found enthusiasm for Darwin, which he began to read at that time. Read the rest of this entry »