Archive

Hibernation on Demand? Here is a question that has baffled me for quite some time. How could eight people on the ark look after so many animals? Consider this: Noah and his three sons had to look after all these animals for 53 weeks while living in the ark. Read the rest of this entry »

Since the advent of global positioning satellites, or at least since their availability to civilians, scientists have found many uses for these devices. One of the more interesting applications is to track animals, as in the “fish with chips” program. This is a multimillion dollar Census of Marine Life project. In conjunction with this program, thousands of marine animals in the Pacific Ocean, including many fish, have been fitted with electronic surveillance tags. Read the rest of this entry »

As far as our solar system is concerned, astronomers have grown accustomed to expecting the unexpected. Certainly nobody expected liquid water spewing from a small moon of Saturn. Read the rest of this entry »

Imagine a society where there are no managers, just workers. Imagine further that all these workers know exactly what to do and they do it, as vigorously as possible. Imagine too that these workers are farmers which do not make mistakes. Read the rest of this entry »

Intelligent design, and indirectly the creation model, have been in the news a lot lately. Not surprisingly, most of the articles have been sympathetic, not to intelligent design, but to Darwinian evolution, the mechanistic explanation for life so favoured by the majority of scientists. Read the rest of this entry »

When we study nature, it is probably a good idea to expect the unexpected.

Certainly the richness and variety of living creatures can never fail to amaze us. One fascinating situation involves certain parasites or disease causing organisms. In several cases, a parasite passes through two entirely different kinds of host in order to continue its nasty parasitic existence. Not only are these situations fascinating, but biologists are mystified how these relationships could ever have developed. Read the rest of this entry »

When we walk outside, putter about the garden, or even splash in waves at the beach, we are making observations of nature whether we realize it or not.

In our backyard during the summer, for example, plump saucy robins take up residence and the male fights off all invader robins. The resident pair is displaying territoriality or the determination to defend their property against all other robins. Other bird species come and go, but our resident robins don’t care. Read the rest of this entry »

Scientists are continually discovering remarkable molecular machines which work inside each living cell. One such machine involves proofreading. Anytime you or I copy a document, it is always a good idea to proofread the script. Since each cell copies or duplicates its own genetic code or DNA before cell division, the cell would be well advised to check the new strands to make sure there are no copying errors. Read the rest of this entry »

There is nothing like problem solving to keep one mentally alert. Some people might say that the study of nature is a form of problem solving and so it is. Collecting information is only half the battle. The real challenge is to try to explain the data. Read the rest of this entry »

Have you ever discovered that something you thought quite ordinary (or even ugly), was actually a priceless antique? I remember harbouring such sentiments when I was a teenager. Since then, of course, I have learned better how to identify valuable items. Read the rest of this entry »

Not everyone appreciates desert landscapes, however most people will admit, when pressed, that there is an awesome grandeur to some dry lands. The scablands in the northeast section of the State of Washington, are a case in point. Does one like drama? Does one appreciate deserts? The State of Washington has it all. Read the rest of this entry »

Among living creatures, it does not take a specialist to realize that jellyfish are not dainty delights of the deep. Although they may be beautiful in appearance, jellyfish are successful predators. Read the rest of this entry »

November 13, 2004, a beautiful fall morning, found me driving south to Red Deer to hear John McKay of Australia. He has been described as a veteran creation geology expert and a walking encyclopedia of creation knowledge. With accolades like that, I was excited about this opportunity to learn. This man’s father was a Scottish lawyer, so he joked that he learned how to argue while very young. Read the rest of this entry »

Have you ever skipped to the back of a story because you simply could not wait another minute to find out how it all ends? Planetary astronomers, in contrast, must be very patient people. Some of them have worked on a project for years, even decades before they ever begin to collect any information. The good news for curious and impatient people is that this is a particularly good time to learn new details about the planets. Read the rest of this entry »

What a glorious occasion it was. On Tuesday, November 9th, I had the opportunity to hear Dr. Vij Sodera, a surgeon from the United Kingdom, speak on “Human Fossils: the myth of evolution from apes.”

As a medical doctor, Vij Sodera compared various skeletons that have been found, and concluded there is no evidence for evolution. The artifacts represent either apes or humans, but there are no missing links or transitional forms. Of special interest to me were two aspects of the discussion: one on skulls and the other on feet. Read the rest of this entry »