Archives
New Centre for Intelligent Design opens in UK
Intelligent design is gaining steam in Britain. According to a press release from The Centre for Intelligent Design: In recent years, the development of Intelligent Design theory has been associated with the USA, but now a Centre for Intelligent Design has opened in the UK. Intelligent Design (ID) theory argues that certain features of the universe and of living things are best explained by intelligent causation. As the scientific case for ID has become increasingly visible around the world, it deserves a voice in Britain. The Centre brings ID back to its roots, which are deeply embedded in the history of science in the UK and in Europe. Some of the best known pioneers of modern science did their work Read More ›
Shape-Shifting Protein in Bacterial Flagellum Controls Spin Direction
It’s been long known that the bacterial flagellum can spin in one direction and then quickly reverse directions and spin in the other. A recent issue of Nature has an article titled, “Structure of the torque ring of the flagellar motor and the molecular basis for rotational switching” which elucidates some of the biomechanical properties of the FliG motor protein that allows this rotation switch to occur: The flagellar motor drives the rotation of flagellar filaments at hundreds of revolutions per second, efficiently propelling bacteria through viscous media. The motor uses the potential energy from an electrochemical gradient of cations across the cytoplasmic membrane to generate torque. A rapid switch from anticlockwise to clockwise rotation determines whether a bacterium runs Read More ›
Berlinski Takes on St. Christopher, Now Viewable Online at C-SPAN
Good news! The Berlinski/Hitchens debate of a couple weeks ago, “Does Atheism Poison Everything?,” is now viewable online in full at C-SPAN. Berlinski is inimitably rapier-like yet courteous as always, though I don’t envy him having to fend off the sympathy vote for the ailing and recently sainted Christopher Hitchens (who looks eerily like Sebastian Shaw as Anakin Skywalker in Return of the Jedi). At Why Evolution Is True, Jerry Coyne notes the C-SPAN production, first smugly saying — apparently before he watched it — how enjoyable it is to see Hitchens “take apart” the “haughty” Berlinski. Then he offers an update to the same post, apparently now having watched the event, where he pronounces it a “reasonably good debate” Read More ›
Four Nails in Darwin’s Coffin Premieres Tomorrow Night at SMU
Tomorrow night four new arguments against Darwin’s theory will be revealed before an audience at Southern Methodist University. Scientists from Discovery Institute and Biologic Institute are already heading down to Dallas for the event, where they’ll present new evidence against Darwinian evolution after a free screening of the film Darwin’s Dilemma. Presenting tomorrow night are: Molecular biologist Douglas Axe Evolutionary biologist Richard Sternberg Molecular and cell biologist Jonathan Wells, author of The Politically Incorrect Guide to Darwinism and Intelligent Design Philosopher of science Stephen Meyer, author of Signature in the Cell: DNA and the Evidence for Intelligent Design If you’re in the area, this is your chance to bring your questions, as they’ll engage in a Q & A session Read More ›
What Nova Never New
The Nova series on PBS airs a documentary tonight titled, What Darwin Never Knew. You mean like, how life evolved? Naw, of course not. The focus is evolutionary developmental biology, or evo devo, and needless to say it turns out that what Darwin never knew actually confirms how much he did know. From the publicity material: The results are confirming the brilliance of Darwin’s insights while revealing clues to life’s breathtaking diversity in ways the great naturalist could scarcely have imagined.