Don't Give Up on Science!

In an article entitled "Stop Believing in Science" journalist Daniel Greenfield states, "Science is not a religion. It doesn’t offer virtue or certainty."

The sciences are not the problem. They seek confirmed data and often that takes many years to establish. The trouble comes when the authority of "science" is claimed by ideologues and politicians.

This journalist's facts are wrong from the first paragraph. The forebears of the sciences were rulers and their royal priests, not alchemists and astrologers. Among the royal priests were pioneers of physics, geometry, medicine, and animal husbandry. By 4245 BC, the priests of the Upper Nile had established a calendar based on the appearance of Sirius. Apparently, they had been tracking this star and connecting it to seasonal impacts on agriculture for thousands of years. The priest Manetho reported in his history (c. 241 BC) that Nilotic Africans had been “star-gazing” as early as 40,000 years ago.

Greenfield writes, "Politicized science does not seek to learn, but to affirm the cultural convictions of its class. It is not searching for the truth, because it already knows it. Its only purpose is to uphold the ruling class."

Clearly, Daniel Greenfield is not describing science, an empirical approach based on observations that can present reliable data. He is describing scientism. His vitriol equals that of those who arrogantly claim science as their highest authority. The sciences have brought advances to the benefit of humans throughout history. Don't give up on science.


Related reading: Ancient Wisdom, Science and Technology; The Arrogance of Scientism; Pursuing Truth as Persons of Faith; Science and Miracles; The Bible and Science; The Relation of Faith and Science; Reading the Bible as a Christian; Science and Religion in a Time of Plague

COVID-19 Confinements Clear the Air

Satellite images have shown a dramatic decline in pollution levels over China, which is "at least partly" due to an economic slowdown prompted by the Coronavirus, according to Nasa.



Daily global carbon dioxide emissions dropped 17 percent, from about 100 million metric tons to about 83 million metric tons, in early April compared with average daily emissions in 2019, researchers report May 19 in Nature Climate Change.

During the most stringent confinement periods, when only essential workers were permitted to commute, daily aviation activity shrank by 75 percent, the team reports. Surface transportation was reduced by about 50 percent, while power use shrank by about 15 percent.

Read more here.

The Earliest Symbols for Zero

The Bakhshali manuscript is an ancient Indian mathematical manuscript written on more than 70 leaves of birch bark. It was found in 1881. It is notable for having a dot representing zero. This symbol then grew into something that today captures the concept of nothing.

A team of researchers at the University of Oxford and the Bodleian Libraries carbon dated the manuscript and found that it dates from between 200 and 400 AD. This use of a symbol of zero is older than the zero symbol found on the ninth century Gwailor temple manuscript found in India.

 𓄤

By 1740 BC, the Egyptians used the Nefer symbol (shown above) for zero. It resembles an inverted ankh. When this glyph appears with two horizontal lines at the top and a flag to its left it represents "The Good God."

The symbol is related to the hieroglyph for beauty (neferu).The symbol appears in the name of the famous queen Neferitti and in the title Nefer-neferu-aten (cartouche shown below). It usually appears in a set of three or four and with an empty oval.

The ancient Egyptians used the nefer symbol to indicate the base level in drawings of tombs and pyramids, and distances were measured relative to the base line. In building construction, horizontal leveling lines were used to guide the construction of pyramids and other large monuments. One of these leveling lines was labeled "nfr," or "zero." Other horizontal leveling lines were spaced 1 cubit apart and labeled as "1 cubit above nfr," "2 cubits above nfr," or 1 cubit, 2 cubits, etc. below nefer.  Thus, zero was used as a reference for a system of numbers and measurements in ancient architecture.

Related reading: The Origin of the Zero

The Ring of Fire

"The Ring of Fire" is an apt name for the belt around the Pacific Ocean’s edge where movement of the Earth's plates causes frequent earthquakes and volcanic eruptions. The zone is also called the "Circum-Pacific Belt."

The majority of Earth’s volcanoes and earthquakes take place along the Ring of Fire. The region is prone to the destructive force of tsunamis.

The Ring of Fire stretches about 24,900 miles (40,000 kilometers) and approximately 90% of earthquakes occur in this zone.

In most places the seismic activity is due to subduction. As rock is subducted, it melts and becomes magma. So much magma near Earth’s surface creates the perfect conditions for volcanic activity. 

An exception is the border between the Pacific and North American Plates. In this stretch of the Ring of Fire the plates move sideways past one another. This "transform boundary" generates a large number of earthquakes as tension in Earth’s crust builds up and is released.


Related reading: Volcanic Eruptions and Climate; Plate Tectonics

Francis Collins on the Coronavirus

The Atlantic interviewed Dr. Francis Collins, Director of the National Institutes of Health. This interview is informative. Please read to the end.

NIH Director: ‘We’re on an Exponential Curve’
Francis Collins speaks about the Coronavirus, his faith, and an unusual friendship.

If you are seeking a prayer during this time, you might use this (adapted from the Book of Common Prayer).

O Lord, save thy servants;
Who put their trust in thee.
Send them help from thy holy place;
And mightily defend them.
Let the plague pass by them and have no advantage of them;
Nor the wicked approach to hurt them.
Be unto us, O Lord, a strong tower;
Shelter us in thy wings.
O Lord, hear our prayer.
And let our cry come unto thee.


O Lord, Almighty God, look down from heaven and behold, visit, and relieve thy sick servants. Look upon them with mercy, give them comfort and sure confidence in thee, defend them from all dangers, and keep them in perpetual peace and safety; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Earliest Female Saint in England?

Human remains kept in a Kent church are those of England's earliest known female saint, St Eanswythe. She was a member of the Kent royal family and is believed to have founded monastic communities in England in AD 660. These are the earliest verified remains of an English saint, and of a relative of the British monarch.

She is the patron saint of St Mary and St Eanswythe’s Church in Folkestone, Kent, situated near cliffs overlooking the English Channel.

Eanswythe was a devout Christian who refused to marry the pagan king of northeast England. Instead, she became a nun. This was a common practice among royal maidens who were denied marriage or refused to marry.

One of the earliest known male English saints is St. Alban who died in 305 AD. He was beheaded when he refused to renounce his Christian faith. Alban is honored as Britain’s first saint, and his hillside grave became a place of pilgrimage. St Albans Cathedral stands near the site of his execution.

Dark Algae Increases Ice Melt

The healthy ecosystem of algae is turning parts of the Greenland ice sheet pink.

The dark pigments in algae increases sunlight absorption, leading to an increase in the rate of  ice melting. Algae blooms appear on glaciers and ice sheets once the snow begins to melt.

New research led by scientists from the University of Bristol has revealed how the microscopic algae that thrives along the edge of the Greenland Ice Sheet causes widespread darkening.

Darkened pigmentation in the algae protects cells from excessive sunlight, but also harnesses the energy for melt generation proximal to the cell, providing access to liquid water and dissolved nutrients critical for life.

Unfortunately, this heavy production of darker pigment also contributes to the Greenland Ice Sheet melting during summer when glacier algae reach bloom abundances.

A study found that algal blooms can contribute as much as 13 percent more ice melt over a season.

Related reading: Pink Polar Ice