Drinking Blood
There is currently a debate going on in PZ Meyer’s science blog (see also The Panda’s Thumb)over how evil vs. not evil Richard Dawkins may be in relation to his possible support or lack of support over the question of indoctrination of young children into a particular religion, and the possibility of legally regulating […]

What are the most important deficits in functionality in a Linux-based OpenSource software system? In other words, what need to happen before I scrap my one remaining Windows machine and allow my own total absorption into the Linux Borg?

Every now and then it is suggested that “teaching the controversy” is a good idea in a science classroom. This refers to the phrase “Teach the Controversy” which in turn is part of the so called Wedge Strategy, developed by the creationist Discovery Institute. This strategy cloaks as a pro-education pro-open minded approach […]

I’m hoping to switch topics a bit from the very interesting one of religion and politics (two things one should never blog about, I suppose) back to the more mundane issue of human evolution. To to this I would like to talk a little about hunting I’ve never been that big of a fan of hunting as the human practice that explains everything, and I’ve tended to explore other areas of human ecology and it’s evolution. This has led some to believe that I’m simply against acknowledging any role of hunting in human prehistory and evolution. This of course is not true at all, but I do think the issue needs to be addressed in a more complex and subtle way than it usually is. The present comments are a tiny contribution towards a much larger requirement of thought and discussion.
Why is hunting thought to be a key factor in human evolution? Partly because it was once widely believed that…

PZ, thanks for posting this over on this spot at your place.
Here is what I want people to understand. People ask me about evolution a lot. They know this is what I do, and it is interesting, so it just comes up. A large percentage of those times, someone brings up […]

While making a statement about science, is it necessary … in your opinion … to always make a connected positive and supportive statement about religion, in order that the scientist not offend anyone who might be listening? I’d love to hear opinions on this. (There is some discussion on this at […]

Thanks to Will Mitchell for alerting me to this piece in the Duluth News Tribune:
Evolution facts and friction
I think this is new information (compared to the Star Tribune story):
“Legacy Custom Homes in Cloquet sponsored Haberle’s Duluth billboard.”
Overall this article is a little disappointing. The writer uses phraseology that could be misleading, even […]

First, let’s get up to speed in case you have not heard.

In November, Keith Ellison of Minneapolis was elected to represent the Fabulous Fifth District of Minnesota in the United States Congress. The Honorable Representative-Elect Ellison is a Muslim, a fact that may or may not have had much to do with […]

Current news item:
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Genie Scott, of the National Center for Science Education, has received an honorary degree from the University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee “in recognition of her dedication to promoting the sound teaching of science in schools across the country”
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Congratulations Genie!
The question of “debating” creationists came up in a recent comment (by CalderaGirl) to which […]

…Brief remarks on items on some of the current newsfeeds….

A week ago or so I received word from colleagues in one of the watchdog organizations I’m a member of that a woman named Julie Haberle was to be interviewed that afternoon on a local AM Christian radio station about her new and exciting project. I drew the short straw (actually, it was a […]

A current news story reports new analysis of a Spanish Neanderthal (Neandertal) site called El Sidrón. I think this is an interesting example of how scientific information reported in a peer reviewed journal is transformed into “copy” that generates or supports the public’s mythical view of science …

In considering the evolution of human language, I think it is helpful to contrast these two books, and the ideas presented in them:
Terrence Deacon’s “The Symbolic Species”
and
Stephen Pinker’s “The Language Instinct”
(full references below)
Neither book is exceptionally new, and in fact, Pinker has cranked out a number of books since The Language Instinct. However, I think […]

This FAQ is written for teachers who are considering switching to OpenSource software for at least some of their needs. I am NOT a full-fledged computer geek, so I hope that the information provided here is more directly useful to most teachers than what one generally finds on the web. However, there is a great […]