2009 – Page 19

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Evolution of Photosynthesis: A Theory in Crisis

March 23, 2009

“Although the last word on the origins of oxygen-making photosynthesis isn’t in,” writes Mitch Leslie in Science,1 “researchers say they are making progress. One thing is for certain, however: Without this innovation, Earth would look a lot like Mars.” That’s the end of his story. What did he say in the beginning and middle? Not […]

Physics

Whoops, the Wrong Star Exploded

March 23, 2009

“Our understanding of the evolution of massive stars before their final explosions as supernovae is incomplete, from both an observational and a theoretical standpoint.” That’s how a paper in Nature begins.1 Avishay Gal-Yam was not kidding; a star exploded that theory says was not supposed to. The famous supernova 1987A was already an […]

Cell Biology

Crystal Mysticism Invades Astrobiology

March 20, 2009

Mystical ideas about the life-giving power of crystals usually go with New Age movies and storefronts. Science is above all that, right? Then what is a reader supposed to think of this opening line by Leslie Mullen on Space.com? One of the greatest mysteries about the origin of life is how the necessary ingredients consistently […]

Birds

Amazing Fossils: Do They Help Darwin?

March 19, 2009

Some remarkable fossils have been found recently. According to the reports, scientists are not sure what to make of them, even though evolutionary language is liberally applied to the interpretation. Octopus: The earliest fossil octopus is 100% octopus. A rare well-preserved octopus fossil, as unlikely as finding a fossilized sneeze according to Live Science, shows […]

Physics

Physicists Bow to Darwin

March 18, 2009

What’s Darwin got to do with physics? Presumably, if you dropped his statue off the leaning tower of Pisa, it would fall at 32 feet per second squared, but the man is remembered for his speculations about biology, not physics. Why, then, did Nature Physics devote a special issue to Darwin? Here’s what it presented. […]

Dumb Ideas

From Dust to St. Patrick in 5 Billion Years Flat

March 17, 2009

Biblical creationists and evolutionists have one belief in common: we came originally from dust. How that dust became organized is the difference. Both views teach that our bodies are comprised of the same atoms found in dust, but creationists say an intelligent designer purposefully molded the dust into a fully-formed man and woman, whereas evolutionists […]

Early Man

Peking Man Ages 200,000 Years

March 16, 2009

Dates for Chinese fossils of Homo erectus have been pushed back 200,000 years to 780,000 years before the present, reported Live Science. The report is based on a paper in Nature by scientists who used cosmogenic nuclide dating methods for the first time.1 Ciochon and Bettis, in the same issue of Nature,2 said the report […]

Cell Biology

Shedding Light on the Protein Big Bang Theory

March 13, 2009

The precise three-dimensional structure of a typical protein molecule is so complex, its origin would seem hopeless by chance. What if evolutionary biologists were to discover a whole host of proteins literally exploded into existence at the beginning of complex life? We can find out what they would think by looking at an article on […]

Genetics

More Functional Non-Coding DNA Found

March 12, 2009

Another finding undermines the concept of “junk DNA.” A team of scientists in Massachusetts found over a thousand functional RNA transcripts from intergenic sequences. These RNA transcripts, coming not from genes but from regions earlier thought to be non-functional, take part in diverse functions from stem cell pluripotency to HOX gene developmental processes to cell […]

Education

Scientists Crave Integrity: Can They Evolve It?

March 12, 2009

An important item not found on lab shelves or test tubes has been appearing in science news stories recently: integrity. That’s a word about character: moral rectitude, honesty, accountability, uprightness, the ability to resist temptation. It’s the kind of word one might hear in a sermon. For those who follow Darwin, how did integrity evolve? […]

Dumb Ideas

Ye Are the Salt of the Evolution

March 11, 2009

Salt is good, the good book says (Mark 9:50). Another good thing it may do for you, according to Science Daily, is act as “Nature’s Antidepressant.” Presumably it’s hard to have a good mood about a steak with no salt on it. In the midst of this article about the mood-enhancing effects of salt, an […]

Biomimetics

See Like a Bee, Fly Like a Fly

March 11, 2009

An aerospace engineer in Australia was inspired by insects to design a better way for missiles to find their targets. Aviation Week reported on work announced by the Australian Government Department of Defense. “Bioseeker,” a new guidance system for smarter weapons, was inspired by insect navigation. The Hon. Warren Snowdon, on his website as Minister […]

Early Man

Gobekli Tepe: What Mean These Ancient Stones?

March 10, 2009

Imagine stone carvings and monuments whose age make the pyramids and Stonehenge look like artifacts of modern history. Such monuments exist on a hill in Turkey at a site called Gobekli Tepe. Squared-off limestone blocks stacked like the letter T, arranged in circles, with ornate animal carvings on them, have been baffling archaeologists for the […]

Fossils

Permian Extinction: The Origin of Specious Geological Events

March 9, 2009

The Permian extinction – one of the most dramatic events in the history of life on Earth, in which some 90% of species went extinct – lay people assume scientists can back up this story with evidence from geology and fossils, but where is it? Whatever happened at the prime site in South Africa, from […]

Cell Biology

Elect Obama, Get Embryonic Stem Cells

March 8, 2009

President Obama is about to fulfill of his campaign promises: lifting restrictions on creating new embryonic stem cell lines (see Fox News). The question now is, are they really needed? They have yet to show any successes, while adult stem cells are enjoying an accelerating boom of amazing discoveries that could provide hope for some […]

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