Optogenetics

Easy to read article about precise two way communication between brain and machines. Really interesting stuff. It would enable things like a prosthetic limb user to be able to move the prosthesis and feel what it was touching.

http://www.wired.com/magazine/2009/10/mf_optigenetics/all/1

Empty Words

Slow Down

An excellent article to make you think about what you take for granted.Pearls Before Breakfast
Can one of the nation's great musicians cut through the fog of a D.C. rush hour? Let's find out.

By Gene Weingarten
Washington Post Staff Writer
Sunday, April 8, 2007; Page W10

HE EMERGED FROM THE METRO AT THE L'ENFANT PLAZA STATION AND POSITIONED HIMSELF AGAINST A WALL BESIDE A TRASH BASKET. By most measures, he was nondescript: a youngish white man in jeans, a long-sleeved T-shirt and a Washington Nationals baseball cap. From a small case, he removed a violin. Placing the open case at his feet, he shrewdly threw in a few dollars and pocket change as seed money, swiveled it to face pedestrian traffic, and began to play...

Faith and Knowledge - Functional Opposites??

Greg Koukl, from Stand to Reason, wrote an article in his newsletter this month addressing the word "Faith" and it's Biblical meaning. I've posted his introduction below with a link to the newsletter. It's an excellent article and well worth your time.
In an odd sort of way, Christians have abetted atheists in their efforts to cast doubt and even derision on believers. Here’s how.

Atheists have tremendous confidence that science will continue its record of silencing superstition. As knowledge waxes, foolishness wanes. Consequently, there’s no need for sticking God in the so-called “gaps.” Science will fill them soon enough.

Atheists are buoyed in their confidence by what they consider an inverse relationship between knowledge and faith. The more you have of the first, the less you need of the second.

Faith is merely a filler for ignorance. As knowledge increases, silly superstitious beliefs are discarded. As science marches forward, ignorance will eventually disappear and faith will simply dry up.

Simply put, faith and knowledge are functional opposites. The only place for faith, then, is in the shadows of ignorance.

Ironically, this same perspective has been promoted by Christians themselves. “If I know that God exists,” they challenge, “or that Jesus rose from the dead, or that Heaven is real, then where is room for faith?” Note the same inverse relationship between knowledge and faith held by atheists: Faith and knowledge are functional opposites.

This view is obviously false if you pause to think about it. The opposite of knowledge is not faith, but ignorance. And the opposite of faith is not knowledge, but unbelief. It’s certainly possible to have knowledgeable faith and ignorant unbelief.

More importantly, the knowledge vs. faith equation is not what the Bible teaches. In fact, Scripture affirms just the opposite. In this month’s Solid Ground, I lay out the case that biblical faith is based on knowledge, not contrary to it. Once you see the textual evidence, I think you’ll agree that faith and knowledge are compatible, shoring up our confidence in the Way, the Truth, and the Life.

Link to newsletter:
http://www.str.org/site/DocServer/11-12_SG_2009.pdf?docID=4181

E=mc^2

Here's an excellent and understandable article explaining E=mc^2 and what that means for renewable energy sources. It's a little long, but well worth it.By William Tucker

Understanding E = mc2

Ed. note: A few weeks ago, I had the pleasure of hearing William Tucker speak at a conference in Washington, DC. His explanation of E = mc2 was the best I had ever heard. Even better, Tucker explained how Einstein's equation applied to renewable energy sources like wind, solar, and hydro. His lecture was a revelation. It showed that the limits of renewable energy have nothing to do with politics or research dollars, but rather with simple mathematics. During a later exchange of emails with Tucker, I praised his lecture and suggested he write an article that explained E = mc2 and its corollary, E = mv2.

To my delight, he informed me that he'd already written such an essay and he agreed that we could publish it in Energy Tribune.

I love this essay. And I'm proud that Tucker has allowed us to run it.

-Robert Bryce
http://www.energytribune.com/articles.cfm?aid=2469

Economy

I think I've posted this before, but I just ran across it again today. I had to repost it. Click on the picture to enlarge it.

Pre-birth

Stunning pictures from the book "A Child Is Born".

If you're on facebook, here's the link:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/gallery/2009/sep/30/unborn-children-health-pictures?picture=353625255

Are learning the Biblical languages important?

Westminster Seminary professor Elizabeth Groves on why learning the biblical languages is so important: