by Dave Thomas : nmsrdaveATswcp.com (Help fight SPAM!  Please replace the AT with an @ . NOTE - ALSO, PLEASE USE A DESCRIPTIVE SUBJECT LINE! E-MAILS WITH NO SUBJECT LINE, OR ONLY A ONE-WORD SUBJECT LINE, WILL BE AUTOMATICALLY DELETED AS SPAM!)

Stein: Science Equals Gas Chambers...

Sandwalk notes that "John Derbyshire has just posted an excerpt from an interview with Paul Crouch Jr. on the Trinity Broadcasting Network. Stein's views need to be widely known. Here's what he said ...
Stein: When we just saw that man, I think it was Mr. Myers [i.e. biologist P.Z. Myers], talking about how great scientists were, I was thinking to myself the last time any of my relatives saw scientists telling them what to do they were telling them to go to the showers to get gassed … that was horrifying beyond words, and that’s where science — in my opinion, this is just an opinion — that’s where science leads you.
Crouch: That’s right.
Stein: …Love of God and compassion and empathy leads you to a very glorious place, and science leads you to killing people.
Crouch: Good word, good word. ..."

Source: http://sandwalk.blogspot.com/2008/05/ben-stein-is-idiot.html

Witchcraft Giving People the 'Willies'...

Reuters reports on April 23rd that "(Reuters) - Police in Congo have arrested 13 suspected sorcerers accused of using black magic to steal or shrink men's penises after a wave of panic and attempted lynchings triggered by the alleged witchcraft. Reports of so-called penis snatching are not uncommon in West Africa, where belief in traditional religions and witchcraft remains widespread, and where ritual killings to obtain blood or body parts still occur. ... Purported victims, 14 of whom were also detained by police, claimed that sorcerers simply touched them to make their genitals shrink or disappear, in what some residents said was an attempt to extort cash with the promise of a cure. ..."

Source: http://www.reuters.com/article/oddlyEnoughNews/idUSN2319603620080423

Squid has Natural "Cloaking"...

National Geographic reports on May 1st that "A colossal squid being defrosted this week in New Zealand is yielding 'astonishing' new discoveries. For starters, the giant species has the world's biggest eyes, as well as light-emitting organs that may serve as cloaking devices, scientists say.... As the 1,091-pound (495-kilogram) female gradually unfolded yesterday, she revealed her two 10.6-inch (27-centimeter) eyes, stunning a team of international experts in a lab at Te Papa Tongarewa, New Zealand's national museum. 'They are clearly the largest eyes ever recorded from any animal,' said biologist Dan-Eric Nilsson, of the University of Lund in Sweden. 'About the size of a soccer ball.' ..."

Source: http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2008/05/080501-giant-squid.html

Congress Votes Up "Genetic Discrimination Bill"...

The AP reports on May 1st that "Congress sent President Bush a bill Thursday forbidding employers and insurance companies from using genetic tests showing people are at risk of developing cancer, heart disease or other ailments to reject their job applications, promotions or health care coverage, or in setting premiums. Bush was expected soon to sign the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act, which lawmakers and advocates called "the first major civil rights act of the 21st century." Federal law already bans discrimination by race and gender. "Your skin color, your gender, all of those are part of your DNA," said Francis Collins, head of the National Human Genome Research Institute. "Shouldn't the rest of your DNA also fall under that protective umbrella?" ..."

Source: http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5g9PKo1Dr67gVSZWb-B4tOfMvmgDwD90D626G0

Dramatic Lizard Evolution...

National Geographic News reported on April 21st that "Italian wall lizards introduced to a tiny island off the coast of Croatia are evolving in ways that would normally take millions of years to play out, new research shows. In just a few decades the 5-inch-long (13-centimeter-long) lizards have developed a completely new gut structure, larger heads, and a harder bite, researchers say. In 1971, scientists transplanted five adult pairs of the reptiles from their original island home in Pod Kopiste to the tiny neighboring island of Pod Mrcaru, both in the south Adriatic Sea. Genetic testing on the Pod Mrcaru lizards confirmed that the modern population of more than 5,000 Italian wall lizards are all descendants of the original ten lizards left behind in the 1970s. ..."

Source: http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2008/04/080421-lizard-evolution_2.html

High Mileage Devices - Where's the BEEF?

From a letter sent by NMSR's Dave Thomas, to a New Mexico dealer of the HAFC "Hydrogen Assist Fuel Cell" technology, sent Tuesday April 8th: Hello. I'm Dave Thomas, president of a local science/skeptics group here in New Mexico. ... I'm writing because Eric Krieg has told me that you may be interested in getting an independent test of your outfit's purported 50% boosts in mileage with a $1000 Dennis Lee HAFC (Hydro-Assist Fuel Cell) kit. I would be interested in discussing such a test with you. Ideally, I think it should include starting with getting a fill-up (more than half a tank) at a given service station, topping it off there, then taking the vehicle out for a run of 100 miles or so, then returning to the same filling station and topping it off at the same pump (so as to get a decent measure of gasoline used). The resultant gallons used and mileage should allow for an easy calculation of miles per gallon. I've a mechanic friend, Rooster, who I would like to come along for the ride. He is quite interested in mileage-boosting technologies, and learning about driving techniques for same. I'm hoping that Rooster or I could be at the wheel during all/part of the test, if possible. Getting a test by an independent science group could go a long way toward getting your claims some good publicity, if the performance is indeed as advertised. Let me know if/how you want to proceed. Where is your facility located? Regards, Dave Thomas ..."

The response? THERE HAS BEEN NO RESPONSE. Perhaps the "test" was too difficult?

More: http://www.nmsr.org/denislee.htm

A New Independent Newspaper in NM...

The New Mexico Independent is run by David Alire Garcia, Trip Jennings, and is published on the Web. Check it out!

Source: http://www.newmexicoindependent.com/

In Darwin's Back Yard...

Cornelia Dean of the NY Times reports on April 25th that "In 1860, while studying primroses in the garden of Down House, his home in Kent, England, Charles Darwin noticed something odd about their blooms. While all the flowers had both male and female parts --- anthers and pistils --- in some the anthers were prominent and in others the pistils were longer. So he experimented in his home laboratory and greenhouses, cross-pollinating some plants with their anatomical opposites. The results were striking. 'He determined that if they cross-pollinate, they produce more seed and more vigorous seedlings,' said Margaret Falk, a horticulturalist and associate vice president at the New York Botanical Garden. The variation is evolution's way of increasing cross-pollination, she said. Now the Botanical Garden is replicating this work, and more of Darwin's Down House experiments, in a stunning, multipart exhibition called 'Darwin's Garden: An Evolutionary Adventure.' In all, the tour is 33 stops, spread throughout about half of the garden's 250 acres. ..."

Source: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/25/arts/design/25darw.html

"Set Ben Straight" Contest...

The NCSE's "Expelled Exposed" site has a contest, open until April 28th ONLY, titled "Set Ben Straight." Its purpose is to collect the most outrageous science flubs and misstatements made by Ben Stein during the marketing for the "Expelled" movie. An example, by yours truly, in the section titled "On what evolution explains": Ben Stein says … Darwinism explains so little. It doesn’t explain how life began. It doesn’t explain how gravity works to keep the planets in their orbits. It doesn’t explain how thermodynamics works. It doesn’t explain how physics or the laws of motion work. – interview on Pat Robertson’s 700 Club, March 17, 2008 ..."

Dave Thomas answers "Chemistry doesn’t explain how gravity works, or the laws of motion, so chemistry is wrong too. Physics doesn’t explain why Paris Hilton is still popular, so it must be wrong also."

Source: http://www.expelledexposed.com/index.php/contest

Question for the Pope...

Perhaps someone will ask the Pontiff the following during his trip to the United States: Why is Venezuela's capybara, called the "world's largest rodent," classified by the Vatican as a FISH? I'm not making this up! A 2005 report in the New York Sun notes that "Though it's hard to imagine eating a boiled, oversize rat, salted capybara is considered a delicacy in Venezuela, where thousands this week are enjoying the meat of the rodent during Holy Week. Centuries ago, the Vatican ruled that these furry cousins of rats and mice native to South America's plains qualify as fish - paving the way for capybara feasts during Lent, when red meat is prohibited. ..."

Source: http://www2.nysun.com/article/11063

Candidate Speaks on Evolution...

The York Daily Record, chronicler of the Dover, PA "Intelligent Design" trial, asked this of candidate Barack Obama during a recent visit to Pennsylvania: "York County was recently in the news for a lawsuit involving the teaching of intelligent design. What's your attitude regarding the teaching of evolution in public schools?"

Obama's answer: "I'm a Christian, and I believe in parents being able to provide children with religious instruction without interference from the state. But I also believe our schools are there to teach worldly knowledge and science. I believe in evolution, and I believe there's a difference between science and faith. That doesn't make faith any less important than science. It just means they're two different things. And I think it's a mistake to try to cloud the teaching of science with theories that frankly don't hold up to scientific inquiry." ..."

Source: http://ydr.inyork.com//ci_8744384

Myths and Misconceptions about Evolution EXPOSED...

The April 16th edition of New Scientist has a major new article titled "Evolution: 24 myths and misconceptions." The article notes that "Evolution is as firmly established a scientific fact as the roundness of the Earth. And yet despite an ever-growing mountain of evidence, most people around the world are not taught the truth about evolution, if they are taught about it at all. Even in the UK, the birthplace of Darwin with an educated and increasingly secular population, one recent poll suggests less than half the population accepts evolution. ... So here is New Scientist's guide to some of the most common myths and misconceptions about evolution ..."

Source: http://www.newscientist.com/channel/life/dn13620?DCMP=NLC-nletter&nsref=dn13620

Darwin's Writings On Line...

In the original handwriting, no less! It's courtesy of the University of Cambridge, and is called "The Complete Work of Charles Darwin Online ."

Besides books, it contains letters and notes as well. Want to see the first diagram of the Tree of Life? Here's your chance!

Source: http://www.darwin-online.org.uk/

Expelled Exposed...

For the quick cartoon review of Ben Stein's propagandistic film, "Expelled," check out my post on the Panda's Thumb: "Ben Stein’s Career goes Down the Toilet ..."

Check out the revealing Freudian Slip that made it into the Expelled "Leader's DVD" there, too!

Source: http://pandasthumb.org/archives/2008/04/ben-steins-care.html

For general information on the falsehoods in the movie, check out NCSE's detailed informational site: http://www.expelledexposed.com/

Cosmic Carnival: SUNDAY, APRIL 20th, Noon-6PM!

Cosmic Carnival is coming! Sunday, April 20th, 2008. Noon to 6:00 PM, Old Town Albuquerque, New Mexico (just off the Plaza). Cosmic Carnival is a free family Science Festival to celebrate National Astronomy Day and Fiesta de Albuquerque Cosmic Carnival is sponsored by Science and science education organizations through out New Mexico, who offer public friendly information, demos, activities, and materials to promote science and their organization. In partnership with the 2008 City of Albuquerque's Fiestas de Albuquerque celebration, Cosmic Carnival features lots of hands-on activities and demos, safe telescope observing of the Sun, astronomy and science exhibitors from all over New Mexico, educational give-aways, and free raffles with great prizes. More Info: http://www.cosmiccarnival.org/

It's Free, and Open to the Public. Exhibitors include Albuquerque Rocket Society, Anderson- Abruzzo Albuquerque International Balloon Museum, Balloon Explorium, Explora!, NASA JPL Solar System Ambassador Program, National Atomic Museum, National Solar Observatory, New Mexico Museum of Natural History & Science, New Mexico Science Writers Association, NOAA (National Weather Service), Rio Grande Astronomical Society, Sandia National Laboratories, The Albuquerque Astronomical Society, Magdalena Ridge Observatory (MRO) Institute, Very Large Array (NRAO), and New Mexicans for Science and Reason

Source: http://www.nmsr.org/meetings.htm#latest

The Ex-Mayor Strikes Back...

Cue the Darth Vader theme. The Albuquerque Journal reports on April 10th that "Former Rio Rancho Mayor Kevin Jackson has broken months of silence with a stinging counterattack against employees, former employees and board members of a nonprofit that sued him. Jackson claims 15 people associated with Family Lifeline Inc. collaborated to falsely imprison him in his office, conspired to cause him harm, interfered with his business relationships, refused him access to his personal property and made slanderous remarks about him to the media. Family Lifeline sued Jackson in Sandoval County's 13th Judicial District Court in January claiming he used at least $25,000 of federal grant money he secured for the nonprofit for personal purposes. Jackson's response, filed last week by Albuquerque attorney David A. Standridge, denies the allegations and makes a counterclaim. Jackson is asking for a jury trial and seeking punitive damages, court costs, attorney fees and other relief as the court deems proper.... ..."

Source: http://www.abqjournal.com/news/metro/299537metro04-10-08.htm

More on Kevin Jackson: http://www.nmsr.org/whatsnew.htm#jackson

UFO Plan Crashes in NM Desert...

The Journal/AP reported on April 10th that "For now, plans for a proposed UFO-themed amusement park in Roswell have been sucked into a black hole. The project is going nowhere after state officials withdrew a $245,000 legislative appropriation intended for initial planning, saying that the outlay would have violated New Mexico's anti-donation clause. Under state law, New Mexico cannot donate to private individuals or entities. The money had been designated for Roswell city government. But because city officials never intended to run the park, the state Department of Finance and Administration determined the appropriation was illegal. ..."

Source: http://www.abqjournal.com/news/state/299521nm04-10-08.htm

Plagiarism Scandal Engulfs "Expelled"...

The Panda's Thumb, in an April 11th post titled "David Bolinsky: 'Expelled' ripped off Harvard's 'Inner Life of the Cell' animation", quotes Bolinsky: To the anti-ID community which is giving XVIVO support in our ideological battle against the microcephalic apostates of “Intelligent Design”: XVIVO created The Inner Life of the Cell for Harvard, through fourteen months of painstaking examination of how a myriad of systems, functional structures and proteins in a cell, could be depicted in a sweeping panoramic style of animation, reminiscent of cinema, that fundamentally raised the bar on the visualization of molecular and cellular biology for undergraduate students. ... Given the vast number of structures to be removed, and given the structures remaining “on camera”, whose positioning and relationships, both aesthetic and functional, needed to remain true to the function and beauty of molecular biology, it is inconceivable, mathematically, that the animator hired by EXPELLED’s producers, independently and randomly came up with the same identical actin filament mesh XVIVO depicted in one scene, which had never before been rendered anywhere in 3D! ... Once we uncover the EXPELLED animation dollar trail, and bring it to light, we will have even more fun. The sublimely ridiculous claim that EXPELLED uses completely original animation, in light of copying our work so closely that a budget was reserved to pay for an infringement suit by Harvard, is delicious! Why should I try to take you guys down when you are doing such a splendid job yourselves? For free! So go ahead and release your movie. Just keep track of how many tickets you sell. We may just find that data valuable, too. David Bolinsky ..."

Source: http://pandasthumb.org/archives/2008/04/david-bolinsky.html

NMSR Profiled in Alb. Journal...

From science reporter John Fleck's April 7th article about NMSR: "'Lake Monsters I Have Known' sounds like the setup for a bad horror movie or an even worse children's book. One thing it might not sound like is science. But without science, Ben Radford explained at a recent meeting of New Mexicans for Science and Reason, the stories of the Loch Ness monster and her kin spin out of control in a hurry. Monthly meetings of NMSR, as the organization is known by its members and friends, are the sorts of places you can go to learn about the truly strange— UFOs and lake monsters, to take two examples— but also the scientifically serious. Curious about the latest scientific findings on the extinction of the dinosaurs? The dawn of rationalism in ancient Greece? The science behind vaccination? The evolution of political values? Or do you just like good magic tricks? You'll get that at NMSR as well. ... NMSR began in May 1990, the brainchild of Ken Frazier, an Albuquerque resident who is the editor of Skeptical Inquirer magazine. The national organization that publishes the magazine was trying to create local skeptic groups. Frazier sent invitations to all the magazine's Albuquerque-area subscribers. ... The organization's goal, Frazier said, was "to encourage critical thinking." [Dave] Thomas explained the difference between science and the sort of pseudoscience frequently debunked by the group this way: Science, he said, looks at all of the available evidence and tries to come up with some sort of overarching explanation that explains it all. Scientists call them "theories," but when they use the word, they mean a well-established idea: the theory of relativity, the theory of quantum mechanics, the theory of continental drift, the theory of evolution. Pseudoscience does the opposite. 'They start out with a belief and then they cherry-pick the data to find little nuggets that support that belief,' he said. ..."

Source: http://www.abqjournal.com/news/metro/298957metro04-07-08.htm

Ken Miller in Live Webcast, 6PM MDT Friday, April 4th...

On April 4, 2008 at 7:00 pm CDT (GMT - April 5, 2008 at 12:00 midnight), Dr. Kenneth R. Miller, a professor of biology at Brown University, will give a talk entitled God, Darwin, and Design: Lessons from the Dover Monkey Trial. Miller was a lead witness in the Dover, Pennsylvania “intelligent design” case that began in September 2005, and which has been front-page news since it started. The talk is sponsored by the The University of Texas at Austin, which is also web-casting the event, live. The public is invited to participate in the Live Webcast of the lecture, April 4, 2008 at 7:00 pm CT (click here for times all over the world). The webcasts are very high quality, and viewers can submit questions to the speaker through our website, and hear the speaker answer several online questions in real time. The webcasting software we use requires viewers to download a small plugin, but it is very simple and quick to install.

Source: http://www.esi.utexas.edu/outreach/ols/lectures/Miller

Science Blogger Served Subpoena...

Kathleen Seidel, who blogs at Neurodiversity.com on Autistic Spectrum Resources & Advocacy, comments on and cites news reports on the alleged link between autism and mercury-based vaccines (thimerosal). In this regard, she has been served a subpoena in the case of Rev. Lisa Sykes and Seth Sykes’ $20,000,000 personal injury lawsuit, Sykes v. Bayer (Case No. 3:07-CV-660, Eastern District of Virginia, Richmond Division).

Read Kathleen's report. It's chilling.

Source: http://neurodiversity.com/weblog/article/150/

New Creo Bill in Louisiana...

James Gill of the Times-Picayune (New Orleans, LA), in a March 30th commentary titled "Creationist attack evolves once again," writes "The creationists are with us again, determined in the upcoming legislative session to make the whole of Louisiana like Ouachita Parish. Lord, have mercy upon us. Creationism is the myth that dare not speak its name these days. Spurned by the U.S. Supreme Court, it came creeping back under the alias of Intelligent Design, but was soon rebuffed again. Now it has painted on a new face and emerged on the arm of state Sen. Ben Nevers, D-Bogalusa, who is pushing what he humorously terms the "The Louisiana Academic Freedom Act" in the upcoming session. Nevers has filed Senate Bill 561 with the spurious premise that evolution is a matter of serious scientific debate and that both sides are entitled to a hearing. A lot of people have fallen for that line, including Gov. Bobby Jindal, although, of course, scientists, save a few stray zealots, regard the evidence for evolution as overwhelming. Nevers' concept of academic freedom requires that 'any writing, document, record or other content' on the subject be allowed in science class. It is a license for crackpots. ... ..."

Source: http://www.nola.com/news/t-p/gill/index.ssf?/base/news-0/1206854413135090.xml&coll=1

Flying Spaghetti Monster, the Courthouse Statue...

In the March 24th Crossville Chronicle (Tennessee), Gary Nelson writes "Among the county's historic directional sign post, farm equipment and gazebo stand several monuments and expressions of free speech. The displays include an Iraq and Afghanistan Soldier's Memorial, Statue of Liberty, chainsaw-carved monkeys and bears, Jesus carrying a cross, and the most recent display added — a Flying Spaghetti Monster. Several onlookers and tourists have stopped to take pictures of the sculptures. The Flying Spaghetti Monster is the latest display to a slew of others that have been erected on the lawn over the past year. Several marches and demonstrations have also taken place on the courthouse grounds. ..."

Source: http://www.crossville-chronicle.com/archivesearch/local_story_084161126.html

"Pseudoscientist" Stabbed in Santa Fe...

Tom Sharpe of the Santa Fe New Mexican reports on April 3rd that "An Englishman speaking on 'thought transference' during an international conference at La Fonda on Wednesday was stabbed in the leg by a Japanese man who seemed upset by his remarks, witnesses said. Rupert Sheldrake of London was sitting up and alert as medics took him on a gurney to an ambulance outside Santa Fe's historic hotel at the southeast corner of the Plaza. Asked if he was OK, Sheldrake smiled and responded, 'I hope so.' Hirano Kazuki, 33, of Yokohama, Japan, spent Wednesday night in jail after he was arrested on charges of aggravated battery and assault with intent to commit a violent felony. He provided no resistance as officers led him in handcuffs from the hotel. Hirano had been attending the 10th International Conference on Science and Consciousness. Other attendees said he had been acting oddly. They said he confronted Sheldrake earlier this week, telling him he heard voices and saw demons. Another featured speaker at the conference told the man he was 'full of negative energy' and counseled him to 'calm down,' said Evan Mecham, an attendee from Broomfield, Colo. .. Many people attending the conference appeared shaken by the incident and declined to comment. A man who helped subdue Hirano would only say, 'The creator will take care of the rest of it.' Attendees gathered for a prayer session before leaving La Fonda on Wednesday afternoon. ..."

Source: http://www.santafenewmexican.com/Local%20News/Man-accused-of-stabbing-speaker-at-La-Fonda

Learn more from Sheldrake's website, which discusses his book "Dogs that Know When Their Owners are Coming Home, and Other Unexplained Powers of Animals (1999) ..."

Source: http://www.sheldrake.org/homepage.html

Earliest Known Recording of Sound Recovered from 1860...

The New York Times reports on March 27 that "For more than a century, since he captured the spoken words 'Mary had a little lamb' on a sheet of tinfoil, Thomas Edison has been considered the father of recorded sound. But researchers say they have unearthed a recording of the human voice, made by a little-known Frenchman, that predates Edison’s invention of the phonograph by nearly two decades. The 10-second recording of a singer crooning the folk song 'Au Clair de la Lune' was discovered earlier this month in an archive in Paris by a group of American audio historians. It was made, the researchers say, on April 9, 1860, on a phonautograph, a machine designed to record sounds visually, not to play them back. But the phonautograph recording, or phonautogram, was made playable — converted from squiggles on paper to sound — by scientists at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory in Berkeley, Calif. ..."

Source: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/27/arts/27soun.html?_r=1&scp=2&sq=edison&st=nyt&oref=slogin

Florida Modifies "Academic Freedom" Bill ...

The Miami Herald reports on March 26th that "A bill to ensure teachers can scientifically criticize evolution was made less controversial Wednesday when it was re-written to all but bar the controversial theory of Intelligent Design in science classrooms. Originally, the bill encouraged teachers to present the 'full range' of 'scientific information' about evolution, but it didn't define what that information is. And that lead to the real possibility that teachers could profess the Intelligent Design, which a 2005 federal court banned from Pennsylvania science classrooms because it was a religious theory in that it posits an intelligent cause -- God to most adherents -- designed biological organisms. To quell critics who thought that she was trying to sneak religion in the classroom, Sen. Ronda Storms, a Valrico Republican, decided to define scientific information as 'germane current facts, data, and peer-reviewed research specific to the topic of chemical and biological evolution as prescribed in Florida's Science Standards.' Storms said the standards are too 'dogmatic' and could unfairly lead to penalties of teachers and students who question evolution. ..."

Source: http://www.miamiherald.com/news/breaking_dade/story/471282.html

So, this will keep Florida safe from all the non-peer-reviewed, non-germane facts and data put forth by the minions of Intelligent Design. Florida's kids will only get the peer-reviewed, germane facts and data put forth by the minions of Intelligent Design.

Memo to Florida: Creationists don't "Compromise." Ever.

"Expelled" gets Buzz, But To What Effect?

I've a March 26th blog titled "Like 'Expelled,' 'Left Behind: Eternal Forces' had Net Buzz - So, Why did it TANK?" A snippet: "While Disco’s Robert Crowther is crowing 'Ben Stein’s New Film Expelled No. 1 in Blogosphere', he should ponder the fly in the ointment: not all buzz is Good buzz. In particular, he should consider what “buzz” has done for the video game based on LaHaye’s “Left Behind” series, “Left Behind: Eternal Forces.” While the video game garnered lots of attention on the Net, a lot of it was bad - quite like the attention 'Expelled' earned this week in regard to the Expulsion of PZ. Did 'Left Behind: Eternal Forces' get a boost from negative attention? Quite the contrary - it Tanked. It Fizzled. It Bombed. The game’s makers are now forced to simply give it away, free. ..."

Source: http://pandasthumb.org/archives/2008/03/like-expelled-l.html

Today, the producers of "Expelled" had a by-invitation-only gabfest conference call. Trouble is, they invited the entire crew of the Panda's Thumb blog, which includes P.Z. Myers, Reed Cartwright, and others, including myself. From Reed's report: "Today we sat in on a conference call with the Expelled frauds. PZ has his story up, and others will probably follow. However, some people, including the producers of Expelled, have already taken to accuse us of crashing their call, much like the lies about PZ crashing the Expelled screening. This is false. We got an explicit invitation yesterday from Expelled‘s media relations firm to participate ..."

Source: http://pandasthumb.org/archives/2008/03/pz-invited-to-e.html

Wacky Aztec UFO Fest for a "Good Cause"...

Sue Vorenberg, finding post-Trib life at the Santa Fe New Mexican, writes on March 20th "Even Katee McClure, organizer for The Aztec UFO Symposium, admits her event can be sort of 'wacky' at times. McClure, vice president for the Friends of the Aztec Public Library, says she's undecided in the debate over whether an alleged UFO crashed in Aztec in March 1948. But that doesn't really matter, she said. What matters is that the event brings in much-needed funds for the Aztec Public Library, and is a forum for discussion on both sides of the issue. ...Dave Thomas, president of New Mexicans for Science and Reason, isn't planning to attend the event, but in the past he's attended and discussed the swindle that led to the Aztec UFO story, he said. In his investigation, Thomas found that two con men, Silas M. Newton and Leo A. GeBauer, came up with the story as a way to sell the "doodlebug," a device that could supposedly locate oil or gold. "Before they got into UFOs, they would try to get people to invest hundreds of thousands of dollars in their gadgets, which they said could detect oil," Thomas said. "Although actually it appears they would pump oil into a well at night so they could impress investors into thinking their gadget found it in a search the following morning." When the two con men heard of the alleged Roswell UFO incident in 1947, they decided to fabricate their own crash in Aztec as a means to sell their gadgets — by claiming that they were made using alien technology developed by government scientists, Thomas said. ...'In 1952, in fact, the two were convicted of fraud,' Thomas said. 'And that certainly should have been the end of all this, but it has continued.' Of course, the UFO-loving crowd often argues that Thomas' story was fabricated by the government to cover up a real incident, and that's the part McClure says she finds interesting. ..."

Source: http://www.santafenewmexican.com/HealthandScience/Wacky-UFO-fest-supports-good-cause

Evolution Geared for Increasing Complexity?

Science Daily reports on March 18th "Researchers have found evidence which suggests that evolution drives animals to become increasingly more complex. Looking back through the last 550 million years of the fossil catalogue to the present day, the team investigated the different evolutionary branches of the crustacean family tree. They were seeking examples along the tree where animals evolved that were simpler than their ancestors. Instead they found organisms with increasingly more complex structures and features, suggesting that there is some mechanism driving change in this direction. ... 'Sooner or later, however, you reach a level of complexity where it’s possible to go backwards and become simpler again. 'What’s astonishing is that hardly any crustaceans have taken this backwards route. Instead, almost all branches have evolved in the same direction, becoming more complex in parallel. 'This is the nearest thing to a pervasive evolutionary rule that’s been found.' ..."

Source: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080317171027.htm

Myers EXPELLED from "Expelled," But Dawkins Gets In...

Cornelia Dean of the New York Times reports on March 21st that " Two evolutionary biologists — P. Z. Myers of the University of Minnesota, Morris, and Richard Dawkins of Oxford — tried to go to the movies at the Mall of America in Minneapolis Thursday evening. Dr. Dawkins got in. Dr. Myers did not. On those facts, everybody agrees. After that, things break down. The movie the two scientists wanted to see was 'Expelled,' whose online trailer asserts that people in academia who see evidence of supernatural intelligence in biological processes — an idea called “intelligent design” — have unfairly lost their jobs, been denied tenure or suffered other penalties as part of a scientific conspiracy to keep God out of the nation’s laboratories and classrooms. Dr. Myers asserts that he was unfairly barred from the film, in which both he and Dr. Dawkins appear, and that Dr. Dawkins would have been, too, if people running the screening had realized who he was — a world leader in the field of evolutionary biology. But Walt Ruloff, a partner in Premise Media, the film’s producer, said the screening was one of a series the producers have organized for the film, which opens April 18, in hopes of building favorable word-of-mouth among people likely to be sympathetic to its message. People like Dr. Myers and Dr. Dawkins would not have been invited, he said. Mark Mathis, a producer of the film who attended the screening, said that 'of course' he had recognized Dr. Dawkins, but allowed him to attend because 'he has handled himself fairly honorably, he is a guest in our country and I had to presume he had flown a long way to see the film.' Actually, Dr. Myers and Dr. Dawkins said in interviews that they had long planned to be in Minneapolis this week to attend a convention of atheists. Dr. Dawkins, an vocal critic of religion, is on the convention program. ..."

Source: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/21/science/21expelledw.html?ref=science

Myers himself has blogged on March 21st that "The New York Times has weighed in, and they contacted the producers of Expelled…and what do you know, they're still scrambling to find a credible story. They haven't succeeded yet. ... So basically it's a baseless implication that I would be a troublemaker, and the arrogant and absurd assumption that Dawkins flew to Minneapolis from Oxford to see their preview of the movie. Lying is just a reflex for them at this point. He also claims that he made Dawkins 'shrink' in the Q&A, which is total nonsense. Mathis is a shrill and frightened man when he's confronted ... ..."

Source: http://scienceblogs.com/pharyngula/2008/03/still_straining_to_find_an_exc.php

Ben Stein endorsed as "Einstein" by Ken Ham's Answers in Genesis...

Mark Looy of AiG-U.S. writes on March 13, 2008 "Two of the better-known challengers of the evolutionary belief system met in Nashville, Tennessee, on Tuesday to discuss ways that the upcoming movie Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed can have a major impact on the creation/evolution debate. Expelled is hosted by the brilliant Ben Stein, actor/economist/lawyer/presidential speechwriter/science observer—a 21st-century Einsteinian figure. While his film arrives at American movie theaters on the weekend of April 18, Mr. Stein came to Nashville for a special preview showing of Expelled for several hundred attendees at the annual convention of the National Religious Broadcasters (NRB). ... Before Tuesday’s film preview, Mr. Stein spent 15 minutes chatting with AiG-U.S. President Ken Ham, who informed Mr. Stein that he had seen a director’s cut of Expelled last month at AiG’s Creation Museum. Ben told Ken that he was aware of the 'wonderful' facility near Cincinnati and hoped to visit one day ..."

Source: http://www.answersingenesis.org/articles/2008/03/13/meeting-of-minds

More Small Human Fossils Discovered in Palau...

National Geographic Magazine reports on March 10th that "Thousands of human bones belonging to numerous individuals have been discovered in the Pacific island nation of Palau. Some of the bones are ancient and indicate inhabitants of particularly small size, scientists announced today. ... The smaller, older bones represent people who were 3 to 4 feet (94 to 120 centimeters) tall and weighed between 70 and 90 pounds (32 and 41 kilograms), according to the paper. The diminutive people were similar in size to the so-called hobbit discovered in National Geographic Society-supported excavations on the Indonesian island of Flores in 2003. Scientists classified the hobbit as a separate human species, Homo floresiensis. According to Berger, the estimated brain size of the early Palauans is about twice the size of the hobbit brain. ..."

Source: http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2008/03/080310-palau-bones.html

Amber reveals Dinosaur-Era Feathers...

National Geographic News reports on March 11th that "Seven dino-era feathers found perfectly preserved in amber in western France highlight a crucial stage in feather evolution, scientists report. The hundred-million-year-old plumage has features of both feather-like fibers found with some two-legged dinosaurs known as theropods and of modern bird feathers, the researchers said. This means the fossils could fill a key gap in the puzzle of how dinosaurs gave rise to birds, according to a team led by Vincent Perrichot of the Museum f|r Naturkunde-Berlin in Germany. The find provides a clear example "of the passage between primitive filamentous down and a modern feather," said team member Didier Niraudeau of the University of Rennes in France. The study team isn't sure yet whether the feathers belonged to a dino or a bird. ..."

Source: http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2008/03/080311-amber-feathers.html

UNM Awards Genie Scott with Honorary Doctorate of Science...

On March 13th, Dave Thomas reports on Panda's Thumb that "John Geissman, Professor and Chair of the Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences at the University of New Mexico (UNM) issued this Press Release formally this week: 'On Friday, 15 February, 2008, the University of New Mexico Board of Regents voted unanimously to approve the recommendation forwarded by the UNM Honorary Degree Committee and the Faculty Senate Graduate Committee that Dr. Eugenie Scott, Executive Director of the National Center for Science Education, be awarded an Honorary Doctorate of Science from UNM. The nomination, spearheaded by Professor John Geissman, now Chair of Earth and Planetary Sciences, was enthusiastically endorsed by the faculty from Earth and Planetary Sciences, Biology, and Anthropology.' ..."

Source: http://pandasthumb.org/archives/2008/03/unm-awards-geni.html

Creo Legislation Surfaces in Florida...

The New York Times editorialized on March 6th that "Has Florida come to its senses over the teaching of evolution? Sound science appears to be winning the latest round, but the struggle isn’t over. ... The compromise was to insert the phrase 'scientific theory of' before the word evolution as a sop to opponents who contend that evolution is just a theory, not a fact. But it looks to us like the scientists got the better of the argument. School officials inserted the same 'scientific theory of' before every other major scientific consensus. The document now refers, for example, to 'the scientific theory of cells,' the 'scientific theory of atoms,' and the 'scientific theory of electromagnetism.' Although some supporters of teaching evolution grouse that the standards were watered down, they actually look more airtight with the revisions. The standards make it clear that a 'scientific theory' is well supported by evidence, not a mere claim, and that evolution is no different in this respect than many other widely accepted 'theories.' Some anti-evolutionists are now pushing Florida’s Legislature to step in and allow the teaching of alternative explanations of biological origins. The alternatives that they have in mind would almost certainly not be deemed 'scientific' and would have no legitimate place in science classes. ..."

Source: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/06/opinion/06thu3.html

The Discovery Institute weas quick to protest, however, claiming that "The Academic Freedom Act introduced in Florida’s Senate reads in part:
'An act relating to teaching chemical and biological evolution; ... providing public school teachers with a right to present scientific information relevant to the full range of views on biological and chemical origins; prohibiting a teacher from being discriminated against for presenting such information; prohibiting students from being penalized for subscribing to a particular position on evolution; clarifying that the act does not require any change in state curriculum standards or promote any religious position; ...'
Nowhere does this bill call for allowing any alternative theories to be introduced into the classroom. Neither does it say that teachers should be protected in order to safely be able to present alternatives. Articles stating otherwise are flatly false. ..."

Source: http://www.evolutionnews.org/2008/03/darwinist_activists_at_florida.html

Now I'm puzzled. I thought "Intelligent Design" was supposed to be "scientific." BUT, if "scientific information relevant to the full range of views on biological and chemical origins" does NOT include "alternatives" like "Intelligent Design," perhaps ID is NOT "scientific" after all! Kudos to the NY Times (and other media) for seeing right through the Discovery Institute's latest "Bait and Switch" tactic.

NASA Missions to Outer Planets threatened by Plutonium Shortage...

Space.com reports on March 6th/7th that "NASA is facing the prospect of trying to explore deep space without the aid of the long-lasting nuclear batteries it has relied upon for decades to send spacecraft to destinations where sunlight is in short supply. NASA Administrator Mike Griffin told a House Appropriations subcommittee March 5 that the U.S. inventory of plutonium-238 - the radioactive material essential for building long-lasting batteries known to the experts as radioisotope power systems - is running out quickly. 'Looking ahead, plutonium is in short supply,' Griffin told lawmakers during the first of two days of hearings on the U.S. space agency's 2009 budget request. ... 'In the future, in some future year not too far from now, we will have used the last U.S. kilogram of plutonium-238,' Griffin said. 'And if we want more plutonium-238 we will have to buy it from Russia.' ... But even the Russian supply might not last for much longer. ..."

Source: http://www.space.com/news/080306-nasa-plutonium-shortage-fin.html

NM Academy of Science Weighs In on Fossil Dispute...

The New Mexico Academy of Science published this statement in the March 5th Albuquerque Journal: "A recent article in the journal 'Nature' details a dispute among paleontologists regarding the discovery and naming rights of an armor-plated, ancient reptile. The allegations of plagiarism and usurping of naming rights are extremely serious and involve a small number of researchers associated with the New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science. The case has received international attention, has been covered on the front page of the Journal and is the subject of numerous blogs. Therefore, it is imperative that the facts and circumstances leading to the allegations be reviewed by an independent, unbiased authority, as well as by subject experts. Due process is needed so that both sides may receive a fair review. The board members of the New Mexico Academy of Science fully support the thorough review of the case that is currently being spearheaded by the Ethics Education Committee of the Society of Vertebrate Paleontology, as well as reconsideration of the case by Stuart Ashman, secretary of the New Mexico Department of Cultural Affairs. ANGELA WANDINGER-NESS President, New Mexico Academy of Science ..."

Between the drafting of this letter and its publication, the Ashman panel heard from Dr. Lucas, but not from any of the scientists claiming problems, before deciding that nothing wrong had happened. The May 6th Albuquerque Journal editorialized that "Lucas is poorly served by a process so one-sided that it does nothing to clear the cloud above the solid reputation he has achieved. ..."

Source: http://www.miketaylor.org.uk/dino/nm/coverage.html

Did Government Pay Out in Vaccine=Autism Case?

Mike Stobbe and Marilynn Marchione of the AP report on March 7th that "For those convinced that vaccines can cause autism, the sad case of a Georgia girl, daughter of a doctor and lawyer, seems like clear-cut evidence. The government has agreed to pay the girl's family for injury caused by vaccines. But it turns out it's not that simple — and maybe not even a first. The 9-year-old girl, Hannah Poling, had an underlying condition that may have been worsened, triggering her autism-like symptoms. Her parents believe it was the five simultaneous vaccines she got as a toddler in one day eight years ago that did it. Government scientists say something like a fever or infection could have set off the problem — but they didn't rule out the vaccines either. This week, government officials said they have agreed to pay the Polings from a federal fund that compensates people injured by vaccines. The amount is not yet determined. While parents and advocates for autistic children say the case is a landmark legal precedent that signals the government is finally conceding potential autism-related risks from childhood vaccines, government officials are saying it's nothing of the kind. 'This does not represent anything other than a very special situation,' said Dr. Julie Gerberding, head of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. ..."

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080307/ap_on_he_me/autism_vaccines_analysis;_ylt=AkdoTG_rOqwzH1DtEFJWaIJI2ocA

William F. Buckley Jr., Dies...

The San Jose Mercury News reports on Feb. 29th, in an article titled "William F. Buckley Jr., the last true conservative," that In a parliamentary democracy President Bush would have had to step down. ... Like no other personality, Buckley pulled together the disparate strands of the conservative movement to endow it with panache, self-confidence and a sense of being on the cutting edge. An avid sailor, a writer of numerous spy novels and the host of the first of the political talk shows, 'Firing Line,' Buckley quickly became a celebrity who made conservatism respectable. ..."

Source: http://www.mercurynews.com/opinion/ci_8403687

Buckley, along with Phillip Johnson, Michael Behe, and David Berlinski, argued in favor of the proposition "Resolved: The Evolutionists Should Acknowledge Creation" in the December 4th, 1997 "Firing Line Creation-Evolution Debate." Arguing against the resolution were Kenneth Miller, Michael Ruse, Eugenie Scott, and Barry Lynn.

1997 FIRING LINE TRANSCRIPT: http://www.bringyou.to/apologetics/p45.htm

ONLINE VIDEO: http://rationallythinkingoutloud.wordpress.com/2007/11/14/firing-line-1997-a-creationism-vs-evolution-debate/

Arctic 'Doomsday' Seed Vault Opened...

The AP reports on Feb. 26th that "Norway opened a frozen 'doomsday' vault Tuesday deep within an Arctic mountain where millions of seeds will be stored to safeguard against wars or natural disasters wiping out food crops around the globe. Biblical references repeatedly cropped up as guests at the opening ceremony carried the first seed deposits into the vault in the remote Norwegian archipelago of Svalbard. 'This is a frozen Garden of Eden,' European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso said ..."

Source: http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/N/NORWAY_DOOMSDAY_VAULT?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT

"Gay" Quake Rattles Israel?

Ynet News reported on Feb. 10th that "The recent earthquake that was felt across Israel was the result of the 'homosexual activity practiced in the country,' Knesset Member Shlomo Benizri said Wednesday. During a special Knesset session on Israel's preparedness for the possibility of another earthquake hitting the region, the Shas member said 'the Gemara refers to earthquakes as disasters, but you are searching only for the practical solutions how to prevent and repair. But I know of another way to prevent earthquakes; the Gemara mentions a number of causes of earthquakes, one of which is homosexuality, which the Knesset legitimizes,' Benizri said. ..."

Source: http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3509263,00.html

Are Bacteria the Ultimate Cloud Seeds?

Montana State University announced on Feb. 29th that "A Montana State University professor and his colleagues have found evidence suggesting that airborne bacteria are globally distributed in the atmosphere and may play a large role in the cycle of precipitation. The research of David Sands, MSU professor of plant sciences and plant pathology, along with his colleagues Christine Foreman, an MSU professor of land resources and environmental sciences, Brent Christner from Louisiana State University and Cindy Morris, will be published today in the journal 'Science.' These research findings could potentially supply knowledge that could help reduce drought from Montana to Africa, Sands said. ..."

Source: http://www.montana.edu/cpa/news/nwview.php?article=5659

Finally, "Evolution" Gets Into Florida Standards...

Wired.com reports on Feb. 20th that " The Florida Board of Education officially upheld evolution yesterday. The board didn't quite mean to do that, of course. In a 4-3 vote, the Board accepted a proposed curriculum that replaced all references to evolution with the phrase "the scientific theory of evolution." In so doing, the board inadvertently made evolution central to public school science education, and also, almost incidentally, mandated education on just what constitutes a "scientific theory." Until now, Florida's schools weren't required to teach evolution. The old curriculum guidelines didn't even mention it by name. That state education officials would approve the new standards was not a foregone conclusion. ..."

Source: http://blog.wired.com/wiredscience/2008/02/evolution-wins.html

And Boy, is the Discovery Institute P.O.'d...

Casey Luskin of the Discovery Institute opined on Feb. 19th, in a piece titled "Florida State Board Tricked into Meaningless 'Compromise' to Retain Dogmatism and call Evolution 'Scientific Theory'," that " Today the Florida State Board of Education voted 4-3 to adopt science standards that call evolution “the fundamental concept underlying all of biology.” While it is good that students will learn about evolution, these standards will make for bad science education because they elevate Darwin’s theory to a dogma that cannot be questioned. Even worse, some board members thought that they could rectify the dogmatic tone of the standards by calling evolution a "scientific theory." Some news articles are even calling this a "compromise." Those board members were tricked into a false compromise: inserting the word 'scientific theory' before the word 'evolution' is a meaningless and impotent change that will do absolutely nothing to actually inform students about the scientific problems with evolution. ..."

Source: http://www.evolutionnews.org/2008/02/florida_state_board_of_educati_1.html

DNA Supports "Out of Africa" Hypothesis...

The San Francisco Chronicle reports on Feb. 22nd that "Separate teams of researchers from Stanford and the University of Michigan have found convincing evidence locked inside the human genome that much of the world today is populated by descendants of a small band of migrants who left Africa for the Middle East some 100,000 years ago. The tale told by DNA - the chain of chemicals that carries information in our genes - was uncovered by new machines that can rapidly scan for subtle differences in the genetic makeup of people living in far-flung parts of the globe. Earlier genetic studies and paleontologic evidence supported the "Out of Africa" theory of global colonization. The latest genome studies are, by far, the largest and most conclusive on that topic to date. 'There is lots and lots of confirmation that the Middle East was the gateway for migration out of Africa,' said Richard Myers, chairman of the department of genetics at the Stanford University School of Medicine and senior author of a study appearing in today's issue of the journal Science. ..."

Source: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/02/22/MN5RV6L1C.DTL

Tiny Pterodactyl Found in China...

The AP reports on Feb. 12th that "As pterodactyls go it was small, toothless and had unexpectedly curved toes - yet scientists are welcoming their new find as another piece in the puzzle of ancient life. 'We have this really amazing creature, sparrow sized, which lived essentially in the trees, showing us a very new, very interesting side of the evolutionary history of those animals,' said Alexander W. A. Kellner of the National Museum of the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. 'We would never have thought of it,' Kellner said in a telephone interview. The find, by researchers led by Xiaolin Wang of the Chinese Academy of Science, is reported in this week's online edition of Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. ..."

Source: http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/P/PETITE_PTERODACTYL

The Physics of Coltrane...

Kenneth Chang of the New York Times writes on Feb. 12th about "The Physics of Coltrane's Technique: How Pros Hit the High Notes. Comparing saxophone sounds from an amateur, a pro and a giant ..." Check out the on-line sound clips! [Spock]Fascinating...[/Spock]
Hat Tip: Belshaw

Source: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/12/science/12saxw.html?ex=1203483600&en=538dd02803464214&ei=5070&emc=eta1

Happy Valentine's Day!

It's a day late, but check out these cool geeky Valentines:

Source: http://www.jacksofscience.com/art/bring-love-to-the-lab-with-a-science-valentine/

And check out these gorillas - doing it HUMAN-Style!

Source: http://tierneylab.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/02/14/the-ultimate-valentine-card-full-frontal-gorilla-love/?hp

NMSR Profiled in THE ALIBI...

Check out the WEEKLY ALIBI's full-page Expose on NMSR: "Keeping the Faith - In Science ..."

Source: http://www.alibi.com/index.php?story=22204&scn=news

And don't forget to VOTE!

NEW THIS WEEK AT NMSR

Marshall Berman's Feb. 13th Darwin Day Talk "The 'Intelligently Designed' Attack on Science and Society" is ON-LINE!

Source: http://www.nmsr.org/mberman.pdf

ID Prof's Tenure Appeal is Denied...

The Iowa State Daily reported on Feb. 7th that "Guillermo Gonzalez was denied his tenure appeal Thursday morning after the Iowa Board of Regents met in a closed session. Accompanied by his wife, Joan, and a group of supporters, Gonzalez listened as Board of Regents President David Miles affirmed the decision previously made by ISU President Gregory Geoffroy. The board's decision was the last step within the University's jurisdiction for Gonzalez's appeal and further action, if taken, must be within the Iowa courts. Following the decision, John McCarroll, executive director of university relations, said 'this decision was the result of thorough, complete evaluation by President Geoffroy and the university. The president gave the appeal two careful considerations - the first being the initial decision, and the second being the appeal,' he said. 'The board's vote affirms the legal process and the belief maintained by President Geoffroy. He felt Guillermo Gonzalez was not successfully qualified to be granted tenure.' Gonzalez appealed to the Iowa Board of Regents to reverse the president's decision, made in the spring of 2007. He and his attorney met in a press conference following the decision. 'This is a coverup of a coverup,' said Chuck Hurley, Gonzalez's attorney. "The whole thing was procedurally unjust, and the effectiveness of the Board of Regents is in serious question.' ..."

Source: http://media.www.iowastatedaily.com/media/storage/paper818/news/2008/02/08/News/Regents.Dismiss.Gonzalez.Appeal-3197302.shtml

Some Good News in Florida...

Ron Matus, state education reporter of TampaBay.com reports on Feb. 5th that "A second Board of Education member has come out in favor of the state's proposed new science standards, adding to the intrigue two weeks before the BOE vote on Feb. 19. 'I'm in support of the standards in the way they have been proposed,' Akshay Desai of St. Petersburg told The Gradebook. 'I do support evolution. There's not a question about that at all.' The current tally for the 7-member board now stands at two in favor, two appearing to lean against and three either undecided or unwilling to say. ..."

Source: http://blogs.tampabay.com/schools/2008/02/make-that-two-f.html

MMR Vaccine CLEARED of Links to Autism...

AFP reports on Feb. 5th that "A new study published on Tuesday dealt a fresh blow to accusations that a triple vaccine against measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) is linked to autism. The investigation by British doctors comes nearly 10 years to the day since a paper, appearing in The Lancet, unleashed a health scare that prompted many parents to refuse the MMR jab for their children. That paper has since been debunked by several other studies and was finally retracted by 10 of its 13 authors in 2004. The new study is based on antibody tests on blood samples taken from 240 children aged between 10 and 12 in southern England. It looked at 98 children with autism, and two comparison groups -- 52 children with special educational needs but no autism, and 90 children who were developing normally. All of the children had been given the MMR vaccination, but not all had been given the two scheduled doses. The researchers looked at three paths that have been suggested as the various links between MMR vaccine and autism -- evidence of persistent measles infection; an abnormal immune response; and an inflammatory bowel disorder called enterocolitis. They found no association at all. ..."

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20080205/hl_afp/healthautismvaccine;_ylt=AlsozUSW_6.GooAv0eLi4wYDW7oF

More on Dino Naming Fracas at NM Museum...

An update on last week's story Dinosaur Publishing Controversy Focused on New Mexico": NMSR offered Dr. Lucas the opportunity to comment on the allegations in detail. His reply was only that the story is "beneath criticism."

John Fleck reported on the story in the Sunday Journal (Feb. 3rd), writing "An argument over ancient Northern New Mexico fossils has led to charges that the acting director of the New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science violated scientific ethics. A group of scientists charged in a complaint last year that Spencer Lucas snatched away naming rights to a newly discovered ancient alligator-like creature from a young graduate student at Northern Arizona who had made the key discoveries. The complaint against Lucas, a paleontologist, was submitted to the New Mexico Department of Cultural Affairs, which runs the Natural History Museum. Lucas, in an interview Friday, denied the charges, and Stuart Ashman, state Secretary of Cultural Affairs, said a department inquiry concluded they were without merit. But John Geissman, chairman of the University of New Mexico's Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, wrote to the complaining scientists last August that, based on the evidence they provided, their 'suggestions of unethical behavior on the part of Dr. Lucas appear to be well-founded.' ... ..."

Source: http://www.abqjournal.com/news/metro/282358metro02-03-08.htm (subscription)

In a report published in the Journal on Feb. 8th, John Fleck writes "Faced with growing criticism nationally, the head of New Mexico's Department of Cultural Affairs on Thursday acknowledged the state's response to scientific ethics complaints against the head of the New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science has been insufficient. Stuart Ashman said he is considering a new review into allegations against acting Museum Director Spencer Lucas in the face of a growing controversy that included: # The Society of Vertebrate Paleontology— the professional organization for those who study fossils— said this week that its ethics committee is undertaking a formal investigation. ... Kevin Padian, a world-renowned paleontologist at the University of California, Berkeley, said New Mexico state officials owe the scientists involved a more thorough explanation than a two-word statement that the charges are 'without merit.' 'This is not good for our field. It's not good for the museum,' Padian said in a telephone interview. Padian was careful to note that he does not know whether Lucas's critics are correct. Padian and Lucas attended graduate school together and have known each other for 30 years, he noted. But he said that, in fairness to all the scientists involved, the issue deserves a more public airing. 'I must admit there are some things I don't understand about this affair, and it makes the present stonewalling inexplicable to me, as it is worrisome to many graduate students and younger workers,' Padian wrote in an online posting outlining his views. ... Padian called the lack of any sort of formal accounting of the state's inquiries into the charges 'puzzling.' 'It's not the sort of thing that you expect from a public institution,' he said. Ashman said he is considering asking the museum board's executive committee to convene again to look into the case and create a more formal record of its review. Padian offered praise for the Museum of Natural History. 'It's got a very strong program of research and public education,' he said. That is why, he said, a more open inquiry is so important. 'There's a cloud out there now,' Padian said. 'The cloud is over the museum.' ... ..."

Source: http://www.abqjournal.com/news/state/283786nm02-08-08.htm

FREQUENT UPDATES: http://www.miketaylor.org.uk/dino/nm/ and
http://www.miketaylor.org.uk/dino/nm/coverage.html

"Expelled" gets Panned in Orlando...

The Orlando Sentinel commented on Feb. 1st about the tactics being used to promote Ben Stein's upcoming new ID Martyr Movie. "Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed. It's a rabble-rouser of a doc that uses all manner of loaded images, loaded rhetoric, few if any facts and mockery of hand-picked 'weirdo' scientists to attack the those who, Stein claims, are stifling the Religious Right's efforts to inject intelligent design into science courses, science curricula and the national debate. He was showing the movie to what he and the producers hoped would be a friendly, receptive audience of conservative Christian ministers at a conference at the Northland mega-church next to the dog track up in Longwood. They're marking this movie, which they had said, earlier, they'd open in Feb. (now April) the same way they pitched The Passion of the Christ and The Chronicles of Narnia, said Paul Lauer of Motive Entertainment, who introduced Stein. In other words, a stealth campaign, out of the public eye, preaching to the choir to get the word out about the movie without anyone who isn't a true believer passing a discouraging judgment on it. ..."

Source: http://blogs.orlandosentinel.com/entertainment_movies_blog/2008/02/is-ben-stein-th.html

Beatles' "Across the Universe" Is Being Sent "Across the Universe"...

UPI reports on Feb. 1st that "U.S. space officials said The Beatles song 'Across the Universe' will be blasted directly into deep space next week. The tune will be beamed over NASA's Deep Space Network at 7 p.m. EST on Feb. 4. to commemorate the 40th anniversary of the day The Beatles recorded the song, as well as the 50th anniversary of the founding of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, the agency said in a release. The transmission is being aimed at the North Star, Polaris, 431 light years away from Earth. ... 'Amazing! Well done, NASA!'' former Beatle Paul McCartney said in a message to the space agency. 'Send my love to the aliens. All the best, Paul.' 'I see that this is the beginning of the new age in which we will communicate with billions of planets across the universe,'' [Yoko] Ono said in a statement. ..."

Source: http://www.upi.com/NewsTrack/Science/2008/02/01/beatles_song_directed_into_deep_space/3361/

Get Ready for Graphene...

The Australian Broadcasting Corporation reports on Jan. 30th about an exciting new research breakthrough. "The new research has implications for a range of developments from solar cells to bionic ears. Australian researchers have discovered a cheap and simple way to make sheets of carbon just one atom thick - a finding that has implications for a range of developments from solar cells to bionic ears. The sheets, known as graphene, normally stack together to make the kind of graphite used in pencils. But Professor Gordon Wallace from the University of Wollongong says that when separated, graphene sheets have extraordinary electronic, thermal and mechanical characteristics. ..."

Source: http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2008/01/30/2149996.htm

GM Onions: No More Tears...

AFP reports on Feb. 1st that "Scientists in New Zealand and Japan have created a 'tear-free' onion using biotechnology to switch off the gene behind the enzyme that makes us cry, one of the leading researchers said Friday. The discovery could signal an end to one of cooking's eternal puzzles: why does cutting up a simple onion sting the eyes and trigger teardrops? The research institute in New Zealand, Crop and Food, used gene-silencing technology to make the breakthrough which it hopes could lead to a prototype onion hitting the market in a decade's time. Colin Eady, the institute's senior scientist, said the project started in 2002 after Japanese scientists located the gene responsible for producing the agent behind the tears. ..."

Source: http://afp.google.com/article/ALeqM5ggfiC3uHCumDbQmTiS0eFMnfcCug

Dinosaur Publishing Controversy Focused on New Mexico...

Rex Dalton at Nature reports on a name-calling dispute over aetosaurs on Jan. 30th. Dalton writes "An ethics row has broken out among palaeontologists over the naming of aetosaurs, a type of ancient armoured reptile. Doctoral students in the United States and Poland are accusing scientists at the Albuquerque-based New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science (NMMNHS) of publishing articles that allegedly pilfered their research. The allegations concern three articles published in the NMMNHS Bulletin by the museum's interim director Spencer Lucas, former director Adrian Hunt and their co-authors. The disputed articles name and describe different aetosaurs, and detail how the 220-million-year-old reptiles are related to crocodiles and dinosaurs. In one instance, Lucas, Hunt and Justin Spielmann, the museum's geoscience collections manager, are accused of rushing to publish a new name for an aetosaur (Rioarribasuchus) when they allegedly knew that palaeontologist William Parker of the Petrified Forest National Park in Arizona was soon to publish an article naming the species (as Heliocanthus). ..."

Source: http://www.nature.com/news/2008/080130/full/451510a.html

NEW AT NMSR

Homeopathy - Quack Medicine. A Special Report by Harry M. Murphy

Source: http://www.nmsr.org/quacky.htm

"Beyond Earthquake Lights: Progress in Seismo-EM" by Alberto Enriquez

Source: http://www.x.org/d.htm

Shubin's "Tiktaalik" Book a "Creationist’s Nightmare"...

Lizzy Ratner of the New York Observer reviewed Neil Shubin's book "Your Inner Fish" on January 18 She writes "When the renowned paleontologist Neil Shubin announced in 2006 that he’d discovered an ancient fossil with an uncanny resemblance to a 'missing link' between fish and land-dwellers, creationists responded with all the fury of pissed off-apes. Jumping, hooting and thumping their chests, they denounced the discovery as secular 'propaganda' and trashed Dr. Shubin’s creature, named Tiktaalik, as nothing more than a desperate, pro-evolution publicity stunt. ..."

Source: http://www.observer.com/2008/creationist-s-nightmare-evolutionary-anatomy-lesson-0

Cooking Up an Entire Genome in the Lab...

Maggie Fox (Reuters) reports on Jan. 24th that "Researchers have assembled the entire genome of a living organism — a bacterium — in what they hope is an important step to creating artificial life. The bug, Mycoplasma genitalium, has the smallest known genome of any truly living organism, with 485 working genes. Viruses are smaller, but they are not considered completely alive as they cannot replicate by themselves. Bacteria can and do, and the team at the non-profit J. Craig Venter Institute in Maryland has been working for years to try to build M. genitalium from scratch. "We consider this the second in significant steps of a three-step process in our attempts to make the first synthetic organism," Craig Venter, founder of the institute, told a telephone briefing. 'This entire process started with four bottles of chemicals.'..."

Source: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/22827585/print/1/displaymode/1098/

Video Takes On ID's Cambrian "Bait and Switch"...

For years, Intelligent Design Creationist Jonathan Wells has gone around saying "... according to the fossil record all the major types of animals appeared abruptly about 550 million years ago. ... This 'Cambrian explosion' of living things contradicts the branching-tree pattern predicted by Darwin's theory. ..."

We at NMSR called him on this way back in 1999, writing "But his 'types' of animals don't include amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals, which all came into being hundreds of millions of years after the Cambrian explosion with extant fossil records showing common descent. ..."

Wells responded to NMSR, writing "Regarding the Cambrian explosion: It's true that in my Melvindale op-ed piece I wrote that 'all the major types of animals' arose in the Cambrian, by which I meant the major animal phyla. There is no substantial controversy over this among paleontologists. I used 'major types' instead of 'phyla' because of the audience I was addressing, but this usage is not unique among science writers. As you correctly point out, the various classes of vertebrates arose later; but the chordate phylum is represented in the Cambrian fauna. ..."

Source: http://www.nmsr.org/jonwells.htm

Source: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sui4CadfhDM

Hat Tip: Dorid, The Radula http://theradula.blogspot.com/2008/01/why-people-laugh-at-creationists.html

DI Still Touting Misleading "Dissent From Darwin" List...

The Discovery Institute's Robert Crowther writes on January 23, 2008 that "Every so often the Darwinists get all riled up about the Scientific Dissent From Darwin list, which lists over 700 PhD scientists who publicly affirm: 'We are skeptical of the claims for the ability of random mutations and natural selection to account for the complexity of life. Careful examination of the evidence for Darwinian Theory should be encouraged.'..."

However, some of the affiliations of List Signers are quite inaccurate, even years after a mistake was reported. A case in point is NM's own Rebecca Keller, formerly at UNM. Keller is currently (2008) listed as: Rebecca Keller, Research Professor, Department of Chemistry University of New Mexico.

I was suspicious of this way back in October of 2001, and wrote her about it then. She replied that she was not a "Research Professor," but instead a "Research Assistant Professor" (an unpaid, untenured position). In another letter to her, I said "... It appears the Discovery Institute's page at http://www.reviewevolution.com/press/pressRelease_100Scientists.php isn't exactly right when they refer to you as a 'research professor' rather than a 'research assistant professor,'' but I suspect that that mistake might be theirs rather than yours. ... I will leave it to you to inform the DI folks of their minor error. ..."

Seven years later, not only did Keller never get the "Magisterium" (e.g. the Discovery Institute) to correct their error - she is no longer at UNM in ANY capacity. Just go to the UNM Directory at www.unm.edu, and search on Keller. Rebecca Keller is not one of the 18 people at UNM with Keller in their names, but her husband, David Keller, is still there. Short Version: former UNM Chem. dept. "research assistant professor" was wrongly listed as a 'research professor' on the DI's List, and the mistake persists to the present day, at which time Keller is not even at UNM at all. ...

Source: http://www.evolutionnews.org/2008/01/doubts_about_darwin_stem_from.html

and http://www.disssentfromdarwin.org/

Researchers outsmart quantum physics? The Low Noise Laser...

Physorg.com reports on Jan. 25th that "Researchers at the Max Planck Institute for Gravitational Physics and Leibniz University of Hanover have produced a laser beam of especially high quality. In doing so, they have achieved a new world record in the control of photons by precisely placing the photons in a specific order. This results in a reduction in the quantum mechanical intensity fluctuations, known as photon noise, of 90 percent. Using this extremely quiet light in gravitational wave detectors can drastically increase their sensitivity. This so-called squeezed light can also be used in quantum key distribution, where a message is encrypted using a key whose security is guaranteed by quantum mechanics. ..." ...

Source: http://www.physorg.com/news120489240.html

ID Resolutions Bombarding FL School Boards - do they have a Common Ancestor?

Florida Citizens for Science on Jan. 16th writes "Where did those anti-evolution resolutions come from? A lengthy article in the Florida Baptist Witness doesn’t come right out and say it, but the source of the anti-evolution resolutions seems to be: 'Kendall [Kim Kendall, a leading activist opposing the standards and a member of First Baptist Church in Jacksonville] agreed with the idea of academic freedom in the classroom, she told the Witness in a later e-mail. ... Kendall said the president overseeing the school districts plans to send a copy of the resolution to further awareness in other districts and provide a template for them to use should they choose to do so.' Acknowledging that other districts may not follow suit, Kendall said she urges residents of other counties to encourage their school boards to form their own resolutions. ..."

Source: http://www.flascience.org/wp/?p=389

See Also: http://www.floridabaptistwitness.com/8258.article

Vast Cloud Of Antimatter Traced To Binary Stars...

ScienceDaily reports on Jan. 10 "Four years of observations from the European Space Agency’s Integral (INTErnational Gamma-Ray Astrophysics Laboratory) satellite may have cleared up one of the most vexing mysteries in our Milky Way: the origin of a giant cloud of antimatter surrounding the galactic center. Integral found that the cloud extends farther on the western side of the galactic center than it does on the eastern side. This imbalance matches the distribution of a population of binary star systems that contain black holes or neutron stars, strongly suggesting that these binaries are churning out at least half of the antimatter, and perhaps all of it. ..."

Source: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/01/080109173722.htm
Hat Tip: Teddy Kring

Barbara Forrest on Texas Ed. Agency and "Neutrality that Isn't" ...

Barbara Forrest writes on Jan 14 at talk2action.org that "There are times when 'neutrality' isn’t neutral, when a desire to appear unbiased betrays a bias. The Texas Education Agency’s reluctance to appear biased in favor of evolution and against intelligent design (ID) creationism is one of those times. ..."

Source: http://www.talk2action.org/story/2008/1/14/15527/0696/war_on_public_education/Neutrality_that_Isn_t_The_Case_of_the_Texas_Education_Agency

City of ABQ Caught Fudging "Green Claims"...

John Fleck of the Albuquerque Journal writes on Jan. 13th that "It is a claim every Albuquerque resident who cares about global warming could be proud of: Since 1990, city residents have cut their greenhouse gas emissions by 6 percent. It is also untrue. The claim was contained in a report that was until recently featured prominently on the city's AlbuquerqueGreen Web site. As the nation's emissions of global warming-causing pollutants is on the rise, ours are going down, the report claimed. But the report vastly overstated the city's greenhouse gas reductions. City officials acknowledged the problem and removed the report from a city Web site after the Journal requested supporting data. It is not an isolated case. A Journal review shows the claims of greenhouse gas reductions and other "sustainability" successes made by the city are often exaggerated, misleading or wrong." ...

Source: http://www.abqjournal.com/news/metro/276859metro01-13-08.htm (subscription)

He's BAAACK... Dennis Lee's UCSA Pimping "9x Mileage" Device in Newsweek...

UCSA takes out FULL-PAGE Ad in Newsweek (Jan. 14th, 2008). While the ad makes no mention of Dennis Lee or UCSA, the web site DOES! The device was tested at "OUR Research Facility". Where is the Independent test? Where's the BEEF?

Source: http://www.nmsr.org/denislee.htm

Inquisition at JPL?

Tim Rutten of the Los Angeles Times writes on Jan. 16th that "The government shouldn't be prying into the personal lives of its scientists. ... For the last four years, two robot rovers operated from the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in La Canada Flintridge have been moving across the surface of Mars, taking photographs and collecting information. It's an epic event in the history of exploration, one of many for which JPL's 7,000 civilian scientists and engineers are responsible - when they're not fending off the U.S. government's attempts to conduct an intimidating and probably illegal inquisition into the intimate details of their lives. ..."

Source: http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/la-oe-rutten16jan16,0,2608869.story

CU Biology Dep't Stalker E-mails He'll "Back Off"...

Colorado Daily reports on Jan. 16th that "CU officials served a formal notice last month to a man who has allegedly sent more than a dozen death threats to CU-Boulder's biology faculty. CU's notice told the man to not contact the faculty any more and says CU will start civil proceedings against him if he does. The letter, sent Dec. 6, was addressed to Menacher 'Michael' Korn, a 49-year-old Christian-baptized Israeli national who allegedly threatened and defamed CU's biology faculty for teaching evolution. Korn replied to the email saying 'i have read your letter and understand its terms. i appreciate your warning, and i will heed it even as i am saddened by the refusal of the CU faculty to conduct open and honest discourse on this matter.' Korn's response neither admitted nor denied that he'd written a rash of death threats." ...

Source: http://www.coloradodaily.com/articles/2008/01/17/news/c_u_and_boulder/news1.txt

Expelled: Gaming the Movie Ratings...

In a blog titled "Flunked, Not Expelled: Gaming the Movie Ratings," Wesley Elsberry writes on Jan. 16th about Ben Stein's upcoming ID movie, "Expelled," noting that " ,..Apparently, these folks are running scared that their project will be little more than one step up from 'direct to video' projects, and are coordinating mass attendance of students and their parents from literalist-Christian schools. They are providing what amounts to a kickback to school administrators for movie ticket stubs from attendees who go to the 'Expelled' movie during its first two weeks in the local theater. Notice that the ticket stubs become worth $10 each to participating schools at the maximum on their scale, a value that is likely higher than the actual ticket price. We knew before that antievolutionists fell into the 'more money than sense' category, but this provides abundant confirmation that someone is very, very worried about reception of this film, and is willing to pay a premium to artificially drive up ticket sales. And note the specific recommendations given to schools for this kickback drive: 'Q: What’s the best way to get our school families to come out to the movies? A: In speaking with Christian Schools, we’ve found that hosting a school-wide "mandatory" field trip is the best way to maximize your school’s earning potential.' ..." ...

Source: http://austringer.net/wp/index.php/2008/01/16/flunked-not-expelled-gaming-the-movie-ratings/

Answers in Genesis and Ken Ham Hoppin' Mad over UNM Grand Canyon Project...

Ken Ham of Answers in Genesis complains on Jan. 9th about "Evolutionists are becoming more aggressive as more and more people are educated in creation apologetics (e.g., through the Creation Museum and AiG). A recent news release tells of a $2.1 million grant to even further indoctrinate the 5 million visitors a year at the Grand Canyon. The news release states: 'An interpretive walking timeline trail that focuses on Grand Canyon vistas and rocks is being created with the help of scientists at the University of New Mexico, the National Park Service and a $2.1 million grant from the National Science Foundation. This ‘Trail of Time’ will help visitors explore, ponder and understand the magnitude of geologic time and its stories encoded by Grand Canyon rock layers and landscapes. Professors Karl Karlstrom and Laura Crossey in the Earth and Planetary Sciences Department in the College of Arts and Sciences are working on the planning and installation of the exhibit along the South rim of the Grand Canyon. The trail would be the world’s largest geo-science education exhibit at one of the world’s grandest geologic landscapes.' ... The evolutionary establishment are certainly worried—just makes me more zealous than ever to expand the Creation Museum and disseminate creation/gospel/worldview information more widely than ever. Thanks for stopping by and thanks for praying. ..."

Source: http://blogs.answersingenesis.org/aroundtheworld/2008/01/09/21-million-in-evolutionary-indoctrination-at-the-grand-canyon/

See Also: http://www.unm.edu/~market/cgi-bin/archives/001992.html

Creationists STILL Feuding...

Last year, a feud erupted between the Australian-based Creation Ministires International (CMI) and its American offspring, Answers in Genesis (AiG). While it was reported that the two factions had settled arguments about AiG's alleged theft of the Creation magazine title and membership, it appears the Rift is back on.

Source: http://www.creationontheweb.com/content/view/5563/

Christian Science Monitor on "Your Beliefs vs. the Facts" ...

Thomas Martin of the Christian Science Monitor writes on Jan. 3rd "... the phenomenon of "evidence blindness" is hardly restricted to inexperienced students, or even to ideological segments of the general population. To varying degrees, it can be found across the spectrum, including some very striking examples in the realm of professional science itself. As noted last year in Seed magazine, leading disciplinary practitioners who feel threatened by unorthodox new findings will sometimes band together to suppress such information, with the explicit intention of blocking its appearance in scientific journals. ..." ...

Source: http://www.csmonitor.com/2008/0103/p09s01-coop.html

Huckster Huckabee and Dodging Evolution...

Inside Higher Ed reports on Jan. 11th that " ...professors need to take a closer look at Huckabee’s record on the teaching of evolution in the public schools — an issue that is not specific to higher education, but that ultimately can have a major impact on science education policy and the nature of intellectual debate in the United States. During Huckabee’s tenure as Governor, evolution education in Arkansas languished in an environment of general hostility and insufficiency." ...

Source: http://www.insidehighered.com/views/2008/01/11/wiles

Genetic Links to Autism...

ABC News reports on Jan. 9th that "Children with a rare chromosome abnormality may be 100 times more likely to develop autism, says a study published in the New England Journal of Medicine today. A team of researchers says it has found a genetic anomaly on one chromosome that makes up the DNA of human beings. For years, it's been a mystery. The number of children with autism was growing, but researchers could not understand why. Some parents and advocates suspected the cause was chemical. They wondered if there might be a link between autism and mercury, which was used for years as a preservative in childhood vaccines. But a study published this past Monday says no. Autism rates in the state of California continued to increase for children between the ages of 3 to 12, even after mercury was removed from most childhood shots in 2001. The study was published in the journal Archives of General Psychiatry. ..."

Source: http://www.abcnews.go.com/WN/story?id=4111896

Trouble Brewing in Florida - 12 Counties Infected with ID Virus...

Florida Citizens for Science reports on Jan. 10th that a Miami Herald opinion piece says that "Oscar Howard Jr., superintendent of Taylor County’s School District, and Danny Lundy, vice chairman of the School Board, spoke in accents from that other Florida. 'We're opposed to teaching evolution as a fact,'' Howard said, adding that his School Board and 11 others have passed resolutions against the imposition of evolution in the school curriculum."...

Source: http://www.flascience.org/wp/?p=380

NMSR's BEST AND WORST AWARDS FOR 2007!

It's time once again for NMSR's Annual Awards, for 2007 ...

Source: http://www.nmsr.org/nmsrbest.htm

New January Puzzle ...

Test your brains on NMSR's Puzzle of the Month for January: "The Flower and the Lake" ...

Source: http://www.nmsr.org/puzzles.htm

NMSR's JANUARY 2008 Newsletter is On-Line ...

Check out the January 2008 NMSR Reports!

Source: http://www.nmsr.org/pdfnews.htm

Wonder Quest January Column...

Check out April Holladay's Wonder Quest column for January 2008: "Vacuum - where nothing weighs something" ... (This is the ON-LINE column, and is NOT the same as the Newsletter Column!)

Source: http://www.nmsr.org/wonderqu.htm

See Also Hot News of the Week, or News Summaries for 2007, 2006, 2005, 2004, 2003, 2002, 2001 or 2000.

 

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