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Scientists say Global Warming is reducing ocean life and increasing atmospheric carbon dioxide 2006-12-07 19:01:00 Santa Barbara, California: - Alarming new satellite data show that the warming of the world's oceans is reducing ocean life while contributing to increased global warming.
The ocean's food chain is based upon the growth of billions upon billions of microscopic plants. New satellite data show that ocean warming is reducing these plants - thus imperiling ocean fisheries and marine life, according to an article in the November 7 issue of the scientific journal Nature.
"We show on a global scale that the growth of these plants, called phytoplankton, is strongly tied to changes in the warming of the ocean," said David Siegel (homepage), co-author and professor of marine science in the Department of Geography at the University of California, Santa Barbara. Siegel is also director of the Institute for Computational Earth System Science (ICESS).
"Phytoplankton grow faster in a cool ocean and slower in a warm one," said Siegel. "The scary part is that the oceans are warming now - probably cau Read more:Global
, Global Warming
Home and away: Bat uses magnetic compass for long flights 2006-12-07 10:36:00 Scientists believe a species of bat has an inbuilt magnetic
compass to find its way home over long distances, in addition to its famous echolocation*, which guides it around its neighbourhood.Princeton University batologists used radio telemetry aboard a small aircraft to track big brown bats (Eptesicus fuscus - info) that were released 20 kilometers (12 miles) north of their home.They first tested a 'control' group of bats, which headed due south towards the roost without a problem.Two other groups of bats were then exposed to a false magnetic field for 90 minutes, comprising 45 minutes before and 45 minutes after sunset.One field was 90 degrees clockwise and the other was 90 degrees anticlockwise from magnetic north.The point of this was to see whether the bats used Earth's magnetic field as a guide and, if so, to see whether the bats used sunset or the stars as an additional cue.The 'clockwise' group of bats flew due east, while the 'anticlockwise' group went due west, sugges Read more:flights
BBS: Evolution in Four Dimensions (Jablonka and Lamb) 2006-12-06 18:27:00 A preprint paper for Behavioral and Brain Sciences* (BBS) with the same title as Jablonka and Lamb's recent book**:Precis of Evolution
in Four Dimensions
(pdf file)by Eva Jablonka* & Marion J. Lamb*Cohn Institute for the History and Philosophy of Science and IdeasAbstract:In his theory of evolution, Darwin recognized that the conditions of life play a role in the generation of hereditary variations, as well as in their selection. However, as evolutionary theory was developed further,heredity became identified with genetics and variation was seen in terms of combinations of randomly generated gene mutations. We argue that this view is now changing, because it is clear that a notion of hereditary variation that is based solely on randomly varying genes that are unaffected by developmental conditions is an inadequate basis for evolutionary theories. Such a view not only fails to provide satisfying explanations of many evolutionary phenomena, it also makes assumptions that are not consist
Dinosaurs: Ancient Egg Cluster Preserved in Glass 2006-12-06 08:52:00 The first fossils of half-billion-year-old clusters of soft-shelled eggs have been found preserved in a strange new way in south China - some of the eggs were even caught in the act of dividing.
The three-dimensional clusters of petrified eggs from invertebrate animals that lived in a sea 501 million to 510 million years ago are preserved in silica - glass essentially. Jih-Pai Lin, an Ohio State University (School of Earth Sciences) paleontologist, explained this is a totally unexpected way for soft eggs to fossilize and survive for eons.
Lin is the lead author of a report on the egg clusters published in the December issue of the journal Geology.
The discovery means there are probably even more early eggs and embryos fossilized in ancient rocks. Fossil hunters just need to keep in mind the different ways they might be preserved, and therefore the different types of rocks in which they might be found.
Continued at "Dinosaurs
: Ancient
Egg Cluster Preserved
in Glass
"-------
Based on th
Evolution: RNA Silencing Sheds Light on the RNA World 2006-12-05 20:58:00 Intro: "These findings provide a link between RNA silencing and the earliest mechanisms of RNA transcription - perhaps shedding light on both the origins of RNA replication (and therefore life) and the evolution of RNA silencing".
By PLoS Biology: RNA silencing - also known as RNA interference* - is an intriguing phenomenon in which short, double-stranded RNA "triggers" can prevent the expression of specific genes. First discovered in plants, RNA interference is now recognized as a widespread, if not ubiquitous, phenomenon, and it is causing great excitement as an experimental technique for selectively blocking gene expression.
The mechanisms of RNA silencing have been intensively studied. One important step is the formation of single-stranded RNA pieces (called siRNAs) from the double-stranded triggers. In "lower" organisms - including plants, protozoa, fungi, and nematode worms - it also involves an enzyme - called RNA-dependent RNA polymerase - that can generate a strand of RNA usi Read more:Evolution
, Sheds
, World
Neanderthal Women Joined Men in the Hunt 2006-12-05 17:53:00 From the New York Times (may require free registration): A new explanation for the demise of the Neanderthal
s (background info), the stockily built human species that occupied Europe until the arrival of modern humans 45,000 years ago, has been proposed by two anthropologists at the University of Arizona.Unlike modern humans, who had developed a versatile division of labor between men and women, the entire Neanderthal population seems to have been engaged in a single main occupation, the hunting of large game, the scientists, Steven L. Kuhn and Mary C. Stiner, say in an article posted online yesterday in Current Anthropology.Because modern humans exploited the environment more efficiently, by having men hunt large game and women gather small game and plant foods, their populations would have outgrown those of the Neanderthals.The Neanderthals endured for about 100,000 years, despite a punishing way of life. They preyed on the large animals that flourished in Europe in the ice age like Read more:Women
Creation Science: 'A Question of Origins' (Online Video) 2006-12-05 06:37:00 Creation Science
*: From the Christiananswers.net website:CHAPTERSWatch the entire film (above) or view in segments with Q&A notes (below)Introduction: Overview of the Theory of Evolution 4:38 mins.Agreements: Between Evolutionists and Creationists 3:53 mins.Cosmic Evolution: The Big Bang and the Second Law of Thermodynamics 6:57 mins.The Origin of the Solar System 3:15 mins.The Anthropic Principle: Is the Earth Fine-Tuned for Life? 5:08 mins.Chemical Evolution: Spontaneous generation; Stanley Miller Experiment 6:57 mins.Evolution: Protein Molecules and "Simple" Cells 6:33 mins.Evolution of the Bacterial Flagellum 2:40 mins.Biological Evolution: Darwin's Finches 2:46 mins.The Fossil Record: Intermediate Links 2:54 mins.Archaeopteryx: A Feathered Reptile? 1:06 mins.The Ape-Man: Missing Link 2:26 mins.DNA: Human & Chimpanzee DNA 1:23 mins.More Problems 1:12 mins.Scientific Foreknowledge in the Bible 5:13 mins.Conclusion 3:52 mins.Continued at "'A Question
of Origins
' video presentation Read more:Creation
, Online Video
Evolution: Vanishing beetle horns have surprise function 2006-12-04 17:40:00 Bloomington, Indiana - The function
of horned beetles' wild protrusions has been a matter of some consternation for biologists. Digging seemed plausible; combat and mate selection, more likely. Even Charles Darwin* once weighed in on the matter, suggesting - one imagines with some frustration - the horns were merely ornamental.In this month's American Naturalist (December 2006) and the November 2006 issue of Evolution
, Indiana University Bloomington scientists present an entirely new function for the horns: during their development, Onthophagus horned beetles use their young horns as a sort of can opener, helping them bust out of thick larval shells.The finding will surprise anyone who assumed hornless Onthophagus adults (usually the females) never form the horns in the first place. They do, the scientists say, but the nubile horn tissue is reabsorbed before the beetles' emergence as adults.'The formation of horns by beetle pupas that soon lose them just doesn't seem to make sense Read more:Vanishing
Theory of oscillations may explain biological mysteries 2006-12-04 13:11:00 Connect one pendulum to another with a spring, and in time the motions of the two swinging levers will become coordinated.This behavior of coupled oscillators - long a fascination of physicists and mathematicians - also can help biologists seeking to understand such questions as why some locations overflow with plants and animals while others are bereft, University of Michigan theoretical ecologist John Vandermeer (website) maintains.
In the cover article for the December issue of the journal BioScience, Vandermeer summarizes theoretical work he has done over the past decade, leading to his conclusion that ecologists seeking to understand complex interactions in nature should pay closer attention to coupled oscillations.
The basic idea of oscillating populations is not new to ecology.
'We know that any predator-prey system, say lions and zebras for example, shows oscillations,' said Vandermeer, who is the Margaret Davis Collegiate Professor of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology. 'If t Read more:Theory
, explain
Anthropology: 'From Language to Lucy' - Donald Johanson on NPR (Audio + Video) 2006-12-04 10:26:00 From 'Science Friday', December 1st, 2006: A decade ago, anthropologist Donald
Johanson* wrote 'From Lucy to Language,' the story of our family tree as told by fossil remains, the most famous of which may be his own discovery, the skeleton known as 'Lucy' (Video describing the event).That find, made in November 1974 at the site of Hadar in Ethiopia, consisted of about 40 percent of a skeleton of a hominid that walked upright, stood about three and a half feet tall, and was just less than 3.18 million years old.In this hour, we'll talk with Dr. Johanson about the latest in human origins research, and how our understanding of human origins has changed over the years.Continued at "Anthropology: 'From Language to Lucy' - Donald Johanson on NPR (Audio
)"------- *From a brief bio on Johanson:Dr. Donald C. Johanson is one of the world's leading and best known paleoanthropologist. He received his Masters Degree and Ph.D. in 1970 and 1974 from the University of Chicago, where he studie
Nevada dinosaur fossils unveiled 2006-12-03 15:48:00 Las Vegas - Nevada
's state fossil, the giant ocean-roaming fish-reptile known as the ichthyosaur, will have to share the scientific stage after researchers this week unveiled
the first fossils of land-based dinosaur
s ever found in Nevada.The discovery expands the known range of the prehistoric beasts and offers a new understanding of life in the state some 100 million years ago.Put on display for the first time Thursday were the femur of the raptor, dromaeosaur, the teeth of a sauropod, a tyrannosauroid and an iguanodont and unidentified dinosaur eggshell fragments.Continued at "Nevada dinosaur fossils unveiled"------- Info on The Dromaeosauridae from the University of California Museum of Paleontology:Dromaeosaurs constitute a small clade of theropod dinosaurs which exhibit some highly derived characteristics that they all share, especially modifications of the forelimb allowing for a flexible seizing function (which is thought to have been modified to create the bird "flight stroke"
First time Hybrid Speciation found in Animals 2006-12-03 09:12:00 High in the Sierra Nevada mountains, a new species of butterfly has emerged as a hybrid of two existing species. It is the first time that this type of species formation has been shown in animals, according to the report published online December 1 in Science Express."Darwin published 'On the Origin of Species' in 1859, but we are still learning about the ways new species can form," said Arthur Shapiro (info), professor of evolution and ecology at UC Davis and co-author of the paper. This type of speciation has been shown in plants, but never in animals, he said.Lycaeides melissa butterflies live on the eastern side of the Sierra, and Lycaeides idas live to the west. In between, in the harsh climate above the tree line, is a third, alpine species of Lycaeides.Zachariah Gompert, a graduate student at Texas State University, with James Fordyce at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville; Matthew Forister at the University of Nevada, Reno; Shapiro; and Chris Nice at Texas State, used mole Read more:First
, Hybrid
, Animals
NASA Scientists Find Primordial Organic Matter in Tagish Lake Meteorite 2006-12-01 09:43:00 NASA researchers at Johnson Space Center, Houston have found organic materials that formed in the most distant reaches of the early Solar System preserved in a unique meteorite. The study was performed on the Tagish Lake carbonaceous chondrite, a rare type of meteorite that is rich in organic (carbon-bearing) compounds.Organic
matter in meteorites is a subject of intense interest because this material formed at the dawn of the Solar System and may have seeded the early Earth with the building blocks of life. The Tagish Lake meteorite (info) is especially valuable for this work because much of it was collected immediately after its fall over Canada in 2000 and has been maintained in a frozen state, minimizing terrestrial contamination. The collection and curation of the meteorite samples preserved its pristine state.In a paper published in the December 1 issue of the journal Science, the team, headed by NASA space scientist Keiko Nakamura-Messenger, reports that the Tagish Lake meteorit Read more:NASA
Major African archaeological find reported 2006-11-30 16:48:00 Oslo, Norway, November 30 (UPI): Breaking News - A Norwegian archaeologist has found what might be the African
site of mankind's oldest ritual - a discovery said to change our knowledge of human history.University of Oslo Associate Professor Sheila Coulson* and colleagues say their discovery in northwest Botswana means Homo sapiens began performing advanced rituals in Africa about 70,000 years ago.The archaeologists made the discovery while searching for artifacts from the Middle Stone Age in the only hills for hundreds of miles in any direction. The group of small peaks within the Kalahari Desert is known as the Tsodilo Hills and is famous for having the largest concentration of rock paintings in the world.Original (but short) news report at "Major
African archaeological find reported
"UPDATE: A fuller news report can be found here------- *Info on Sheila Coulson and the Basarwa Project:For the past six years Sheila Coulson has been actively involved as an archaeologist in the Collabor
Dunkleosteus terrelli: Prehistoric 'Jaws' could bite a Shark in two 2006-11-30 10:12:00 Chicago, Illinois - It could bite a shark in two. It might have been the first "king of the beasts." And it could teach scientists a lot about humans, because it is in the sister group of all jawed vertebrates.
Dunkleosteus terrelli (info) lived 400 million years ago, grew up to 33 feet long and weighed up to four tons. Scientist have known for years that it was a dominant predator, but new embargoed research to be published in the Royal Society journal Biology Letters on November 29 reveals that the force of this predator's bite was remarkably powerful: 11,000 pounds. The bladed dentition focused the bite force into a small area, the fang tip, at an incredible force of 80,000 pounds per square inch.
Even more surprising is the fact that this fish could also open its mouth very quickly - in just one fiftieth of a second - which created a strong suction force, pulling fast prey into its mouth. Usually a fish has either a powerful bite or a fast bite, but not both.
"The most interestin Read more:Prehistoric
, Shark
Geologists Provide New Evidence for Reason Behind Rise of Life in Cambrian Period 2006-12-08 12:50:00 Geologists have uncovered evidence in the oil fields of Oman that explains how Earth could suddenly have changed 540 million years ago to favor the evolution of the single-celled life forms to the multicellular forms we know today.Reporting in the December 7 issue of the journal Nature, researchers from MIT, the California Institute of Technology, and Indiana University show that there was a sudden change in the oxygenation of the world's oceans at the time just before the 'Cambrian explosion,'* one of the most significant adaptative radiations in the history of life. With a increased availability of oxygen, the team speculates, single-celled life forms that had dominated the planet for the previous three billion years were able to evolve into the diverse metazoan phyla that still characterize life on Earth.'The presence of oxygen on Earth is the best indicator of life,' says coauthor John Grotzinger (homepage), the Fletcher Jones Professor of Geology at Caltech and an authority o Read more:Evidence
, Reason
, Period
The Future Evolution of Consciousness 2006-12-08 18:56:00
Cogprints - The FutureEvolution
of Consciousness
by John Stewart of the "Evolution, Complextity, and Cognition Group"* (ECCO) at the Free University of Brussels:
Abstract
What potential exists for improvements in the functioning of consciousness? The paper addresses this issue using global workspace theory. According to this model, the prime function of consciousness is to develop novel adaptive responses. Consciousness does this by putting together new combinations of knowledge, skills and other disparate resources that are recruited from throughout the brain. The paper's search for potential improvements in the functioning of consciousness draws on studies of the shift during human development from the use of implicit knowledge to the use of explicit (declarative) knowledge. These studies show that the ability of consciousness to adapt a particular domain improves significantly as the transition to the use of declarative knowledge occurs in that domain. However, this potential f
Finding an answer to Darwin's Dilemma 2006-12-09 07:11:00 The sudden appearance of large animal fossils more than 500 million years ago - a problem that perplexed even Charles Darwin
and is commonly known as 'Darwin's Dilemma' - may be due to a huge increase of oxygen in the world's oceans, says Queen's University (Canada) paleontologist Guy Narbonne (homepage), an expert in the early evolution of animals and their ecosystems.
In 2002, Dr. Narbonne and his research team found the world's oldest complex life forms between layers of sandstone on the southeastern coast of Newfoundland. This pushed back the age of Earth's earliest known complex life to more than 575 million years ago, soon after the melting of the massive 'snowball' glaciers. New findings reported today shed light on why, after three billion years of mostly single-celled evolution, these large animals suddenly appeared in the fossil record.
In a paper published on-line in Science Express, Dr. Narbonne's team argues that a huge increase in oxygen following the Gaskiers Read more:answer
Is there a homosexuality gene? 2006-12-09 15:22:00 Although biologists are still far from answering this question, scattered evidence for a possible gene influencing sexual orientation has recently encouraged scientists to map out a guide to future research. Because many possibilities for such a gene exist, scientists Sergey Gavrilets (homepage) and William Rice (homepage) have recently developed some theoretical guidelines and testable predictions for explaining the evolutionary causes of homosexuality.
"During the 1990s there was a short surge of interest by a small number of labs in finding major genes that might mediate homosexuality," Rice told PhysOrg.com. "However, for a variety of reasons, this effort waned by the turn of the century. I think that - when studying humans - many people shy away from studying sexual phenotypes in general and homosexuality in particular. Much of Sergey's and my motivation in writing our paper was to rekindle an interest in studying the genetic basis of homosexuality. I personally think that if a
NASA Images Suggest Water Still Flows in Brief Spurts on Mars 2006-12-10 09:47:00
[Image right: A new gully deposit in a crater in the Centauri Montes Region. Image credit: NASA
/ JPL/ Malin Space Science Systems]
NASA photographs have revealed bright new deposits seen in two gullies on Mars that suggest water carried sediment through them sometime during the past seven years.
"These observations give the strongest evidence to date that water still flows occasionally on the surface of Mars," said Michael Meyer, lead scientist for NASA's Mars Exploration Program, Washington.
Liquid water, as opposed to the water ice and water vapor known to exist at Mars, is considered necessary for life. The new findings heighten intrigue about the potential for microbial life on Mars. The Mars Orbiter Camera on NASA's Mars Global Surveyor provided the new evidence of the deposits in images taken in 2004 and 2005.
"The shapes of these deposits are what you would expect to see if the material were carried by flowing water," said Michael Malin of Malin Space Science Systems, S Read more:Images
, Flows
, Brief
Professor of Biology speaks for Intelligent Design 2006-12-10 21:21:00 One of the nation's leading proponents of intelligent design* told a Kansas University audience Thursday that Darwinism or evolution can explain how, in the absence of predators, a bird might lose its ability to fly and begin to walk on the ground.
But it can't explain how complex living systems are built - the designs are too complex to have been randomly generated, said Michael Behe** (homepage), author of "Darwin's Black Box: The Biochemical Challenge to Evolution."
Behe's lecture, titled "The Argument for Intelligent
Design in Biology," was part of the "Difficult Dialogues" lecture series sponsored by KU's Hall Center for the Humanities and KU's Biodiversity Institute. About 100 people attended.
A professor of biology at Lehigh University, Behe's main argument was that evolution has become so ingrained and accepted that it becomes difficult to raise any questions about it in the scientific community.
"When I start to point out problems, often people don't have time to lis
Study Detects Recent Instance of Human Evolution 2006-12-11 09:59:00 From the New York Times (may require free registration): A surprisingly recent instance of human evolution has been detected among the peoples of East Africa. It is the ability to digest milk in adulthood, conferred by genetic changes that occurred as recently as 3,000 years ago, a team of geneticists has found.
The finding is a striking example of a cultural practice - the raising of dairy cattle - feeding back into the human genome. It also seems to be one of the first instances of convergent human evolution to be documented at the genetic level. Convergent evolution refers to two or more populations acquiring the same trait independently.
...A research team led by Sarah Tishkoff* of the University of Maryland has now resolved much of the puzzle. After testing for lactose tolerance and genetic makeup among 43 ethnic groups of East Africa, she and her colleagues have found three new mutations, all independent of each other and of the European mutation, which keep the lactase gene perm Read more:Study
, Recent
, Evolution
, Human Evolution
Why altruism paid off for our ancestors 2006-12-11 12:18:00 Humans may have evolved altruistic traits as a result of a cultural 'tax' we paid to each other early in our evolution, a new study suggests.
The research also changes what we knew about the genetic makeup of our hunter-gatherer ancestors.
The origin of human altruism has puzzled evolutionary biologists for many years (see Survival of the nicest).
In every society, humans make personal sacrifices for others with no expectation that it will be reciprocated. For example, we donate to charity, or care for the sick and disabled. This trait is extremely rare in the natural world, unless there is a family relationship or later reciprocation.
One theory to explain how human altruism evolved involves the way we interacted as groups early in our evolution. Towards the end of the Pleistocene period - about 12,000 years ago - humans foraged for food as hunter-gatherers. These groups competed against each other for survival.
Continued at "Why altruism paid off for our ancestors"-------
Based
Volcanic Blast Likely Killed Preserved Antarctic Fossil Plesiosaur 2006-12-11 21:55:00 Amid 70-mile-an-hour winds and freezing Antarctic
conditions, an American-Argentine research team has recovered the well-preserved fossil skeleton of a juvenile plesiosaur (general info) --a marine reptile that swam the waters of the Southern Ocean roughly 70 million years ago.
The fossil remains represent one of the most-complete plesiosaur skeletons ever found and is thought to be the best-articulated fossil skeleton ever recovered from Antarctica. The creature would have inhabited Antarctic waters during a period when the Earth and oceans were far warmer than they are today.
James E. Martin (homepage), curator of vertebrate paleontology and coordinator of the paleontology program at the South Dakota School of Mines and Technology's Museum of Geology, announced today the plesiosaur bones will be unveiled at the museum on December 13, 2006.
The long-necked, diamond-finned plesiosaurs are probably most familiar as the legendary inhabitants of Scotland's Loch Ness*, although scientifi Read more:Volcanic
, Blast
, Killed
, Preserved
, Fossil
Louisiana University Professor Discovers New Lizard Species 2006-12-12 10:08:00 Baton Rouge - Chris Austin (lab), assistant curator of herpetology at LSU's Museum of Natural Science, or LSUMNS, and adjunct professor in biological sciences, recently discovered a new species of lizard while conducting field research in Borneo.
Austin, along with colleague Indraneil Das from the Institute of Biodiversity and Environmental Conservation at the Universiti Malaysia Sarawak, will publish their findings and photos of the new species in the prestigious Journal of Herpetology. The article, which will contain the currently embargoed scientific name of the species, is slated for publication in March 2007.
'We actually found four specimens at once,' said Austin. 'One of the best methods for finding lizards in the rainforest is to look under logs. We found two individuals of the new species under one log and two more under another.' With more than 15 years of fieldwork experience behind him, Austin knew immediately that he had found a new species. After collecting the lizar Read more:Louisiana
, University
, Lizard
Velociraptor: Dinosaur Used Claws For Climbing 2006-12-12 15:27:00 Scientists at Manchester University (UK) have discovered that a dinosaur traditionally regarded as one of the most violent actually used its giant razor-sharp claw to climb trees.
The velociraptor* was immortalised in Steven Speilberg's 1993 film Jurassic Park, where it was depicted as a vicious hunter that slashed open its prey's intestine with its sickle-shaped claw.
But palaeontologist Dr Phillip Manning from Manchester University and scientists from the National History Museum in London have discovered this fearsome-looking appendage was of little use for this purpose.
The researchers found a replica claw attached to the end of a robotic arm was better at hooking on to flesh than slashing it during a simulated attack.
They also replicated the dinosaur's hind leg motion and this led to the discovery it was better suited to climbing.
Full article at "Dinosaur claws used for climbing - research"-------
A related Natural History Museum report from 2005:
Disarming dangerous dinosau Read more:Claws
Fossils reveal New Zealand's indigenous 'mouse' 2006-12-13 10:58:00 From the New Scientist: Fossil bones of a mouse-sized creature that died between 16 million and 19 million years ago have been discovered on the South Island of New Zealand
. It is the first hard evidence that the islands once had their own indigenous land mammals.
Today the only land mammals that live in New Zealand
are animals like Australian possums - which have arrived since human settlement - although the country does have its own species of bats, seals and sea lions.
The find, by Trevor Worthy* of Adelaide University, Australia, and colleagues, includes two jawbones, and one thigh bone, from at least two of the creatures, says team member Suzanne Hand. "The amazing thing is, it is unlike any other fossil mammal found anywhere else," she says.
The shape of the fossil bones suggest a very primitive mammal that would have evolved before the mammal-line split into placental mammals and marsupials, 125 million years ago, says Hand of the University of New South Wales in Sydney, Austral Read more:Fossils
Dover: 'Intelligent design' ruling relied too much on plaintiffs 2006-12-13 17:05:00 Harrisburg, Pennysylvania. - A federal judge who barred a Pennsylvania school district from teaching 'intelligent design
' virtually copied findings suggested by the winning side in a key section of the landmark ruling
, according to a Seattle think tank that promotes the concept and has criticized the decision.
But legal experts say it is common for judges in civil cases to rely heavily on findings proposed by lawyers when they write their opinions, and there is nothing wrong with copying those findings if the legal briefs have been well-prepared.
The Discovery Institute on Tuesday released a study* in which it compared the December 2005 ruling by U.S. District Judge John E. Jones III with findings proposed by lawyers for eight families who sued to have intelligent design removed from the Dover
Area School District's biology curriculum. The decision equated intelligent design, which attributes the complexity of living organisms to an unidentified intelligent cause, with creationism.
Read more:Intelligent
Earliest flying mammal discovered 2006-12-13 21:02:00 From BBC News (UK): Mammals took to the skies at least 70 million years earlier than previously thought, scientists say.
A fossil uncovered in China suggests mammals were trying out flight at about the same time - or even earlier - than birds, the team reports in Nature.
The researchers said the squirrel-sized animal, which lived at least 125 million years ago, used a fur-covered skin membrane to glide through the air.
The creature was so unusual, they said, it belonged to a new order of mammals.
The US-Chinese team said Volaticotherium antiquus, which means 'ancient gliding beast', belonged to a now extinct ancestral line and was not related to modern day flying mammals, such as bats or flying marsupials.
Continued at "Earliest flying mammal discovered"
-------
Based on the jounal Nature paper:
"A Mesozoic gliding mammal from northeastern China"by Jin Meng*, Yaoming Hu, Yuanqing Wang, Xiaolin Wang and Chuankui Li
Abstract
Gliding flight has independently evolved many times in ver
Intelligent Design: The God Lab 2006-12-14 09:50:00 Pay a visit to the Biologic Institute* and you are liable to get a chilly reception. 'We only see people with appointments,' states the man who finally responds to my persistent knocks. Then he slams the door on me.I am standing on the ground floor of an office building in Redmond, Washington, the Seattle suburb best known as home town to Microsoft. What I'm trying to find out is whether the 1-year-old institute is the new face of another industry that has sprung up in the area - the one that has set out to try to prove evolution is wrong.This is my second attempt to engage in person with scientists at Biologic. At the institute's other facility in nearby Fremont, researchers work at benches lined with fume hoods, incubators and microscopes - a typical scene in this up-and-coming biotech hub. Most of them there proved just as reluctant to speak with a New Scientist reporter.The reticence cloaks an unorthodox agenda. 'We are the first ones doing what we might call lab science in in Read more:Intelligent
, Intelligent Design
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