Introducing the Stretch & Squish Theory of Evolution
December 14, 2004
How do you squish an arm into a wing, or stretch a fin into a leg? This sounds like the silly putty theory of evolution.
VIEW HEADLINES ONLY
Did Martians Win the War of the Worlds?
December 14, 2004
In the H.G. Wells version, the Martian invaders with their tripod machines and death rays, wreaking havoc on Earth, were defeated by Earth bacteria. The new scientific plot envisioned by scientists, reported on Space.com, is that the Martians had the bacteria, and invaded Earth with it to either conquer Earth life or spread it onto […]
Intelligent Design Evidence Convinces Atheist of Designer
December 9, 2004
According to an AP report on ABC News, a famous British atheist now believes in God based on scientific evidence. “At age 81, after decades of insisting belief is a mistake, Antony Flew has concluded that some sort of intelligence or first cause must have created the universe. A super-intelligence is the only good explanation […]
Nature Takes Note of Religious Influence
December 9, 2004
The surprisingly strong show of support for moral issues in the recent U.S. election has been the talk of the news for weeks now, and Big Science can’t ignore it. “The voices of religion are more prominent and influential than they have been for many decades,” begins a prominent editorial in Nature1 Dec. 9, entitled […]
Did Life Begin as “Failed Mineralogy” on the Seafloor?
December 3, 2004
A geologist with a lot of bluff and bluster makes the origin of life sound easy, but gets nailed by direct questions.
Mars Opportunity for Life Must Tolerate Salty Acid
December 3, 2004
The first slew of scientific papers from the Mars Exploration Rover mission appeared in Science Dec. 3,1 with the focus of interest on Opportunity’s evidence for past water at Meridiani, because Spirit found only “volcanic rock rubble and inorganic soils” in the presumed lakebed at Gusev Crater. Jeffrey Kargel (U.S. Geological Survey) sums up the […]
Origin-of-Life Expert Jokes about Becoming a Creationist
November 5, 2004
Chemist admits problems in chemical evolution are so hard, he is tempted to become a creationist.
Bacterial Flagellum Reveals New Structural Complexity
October 27, 2004
The bacterial flagellum, the unofficial mascot of the Intelligent Design movement, got more praise from the evolutionary journal Nature this week: Samatey et al.1 analyzed the hook region in detail and found that it is composed of 120 copies of a specialized protein that “reveals the intricate molecular interactions and a plausible switching mechanism for […]
DNA Coding Multiplies in Complexity
October 27, 2004
As if the discovery that DNA is a language translation system was not enough to challenge evolutionary theories, it is becoming increasing clear that DNA is a code operated by another code. Science on Oct. 221 had a feature on gene regulation, which writer Elizabeth Pennisi termed “Genome’s Second Code.” She began, “The genome has […]
News Nuggets
October 12, 2004
Here’s a collection of news items that deserve quick notice: Mars Rumbles: Mars still has minor earthquakes, says Space.com, That’s without plate tectonics, “But scientists don’t know exactly how Mars is constructed.” The Mars Exploration Rovers, meanwhile, awaking from a winter’s nap, are still gathering science data long past their expected lifetime. Evidence for past […]
Another Thing to Worry About: Synthetic Biology
October 11, 2004
Philip Ball is no alarmist, but as consultant editor of Nature,1 he had sobering words last week about things that could go wrong in the new field of synthetic biology, where scientists are tinkering with cells to create artificial life forms: The expanding toolbox of ways to re-engineer microbes – and even construct new ones […]
Volcanic Gas Helps Link Up the Building Blocks of Life
October 8, 2004
A gas emitted by volcanoes, carbonyl sulfide (COS), enables amino acid molecules to form peptide bonds. That’s what long-time origin-of-life researcher Leslie Orgel and colleagues at Scripps Institute have found. The reaction is especially productive in the presence of metal ions that act as catalysts, and even better in the presence of oxidizing agents. Moreover, […]
PBS Airs Another Evolution Series: Origins
September 29, 2004
PBS NOVA aired its latest installment on evolution, a 4-hour miniseries entitled Origins, on September 28 and 29. The website hype describes it as follows: Has the universe always existed? How did it become a place that could harbor life? What was the birth of our planet like? Are we alone, or are there alien […]
Update: Intelligent Design Paper
September 24, 2004
The controversy over Stephen Meyer’s intelligent design paper (see 09/16/2004 headline) continues. Science printed a brief but dismissive news item claiming its publication was a mistake, but journal editor Rick Sternberg has answered the charges on his personal website. Meyer has responded to criticisms leveled by Richard Monastersky in the Chronicle of Education. The Discovery […]
Cell Exhibits Robust Engineering Design
September 22, 2004
Cells are so good at robustness against perturbations and uncertainty, engineers could well learn from their design principles.