The Greatest Show On Earth

I’d like to see Dawkins’ fans camped out in front of book stores in anticipation of a midnight release of The Greatest Show On Earth, like at those crazy Harry Potter events.  Now, that’s a lineup I’d join. The array of interesting people –those wacky creationists included– that would be found [...]

I’ve Been Tagged… Now Release Me Back Into Suburbia

I’ve just received a shot across my bow from InformalSkepticism aka NaonTiotami. In other words, he’s tagged me. I’ve always known America and Australia would one day go to war. The Aussies are warlike by nature. Being constantly surrounded by strange and poisonous animals like the Duckbill Platypus makes them nervous and unpredictable. But as [...]

Monkey See, Monkey Do Math

I think the general public has a somewhat comical view of animals and their mental abilities. From chickens playing tic-tac-toe at county fairs to ”stupid pet tricks” on TV to humorous news clips of zoo animals entertaining the masses. It isn’t much of a résumé. Perhaps one of the mental barriers to seeing evolution in a clear light is [...]

Robotic Fish

These robotic fish can organize themselves into a school. This type of research touches on the study of emergent behavior and self-organization. Ants, for example, don’t consciously decide how they will perform their work. Each individual ant has basic programmed behaviors. But when ants interact as a group, behaviors emerge that aren’t inherent in the individual ants. [...]

Defeating Darwinism In 4 Easy Steps… Not

I enjoy reading PZ Myers’ blog Pharyngula, because he digs up the worst right-wing religious nutbars. And I get to comment on them, too. He found Bryan Fischer, a truly deluded fool. And hungry for more creationist foolery, I sifted through Fischer’s garbage – I mean archive – and went straight for his article on [...]

The Snake In The Garden Of Eden With A Squirrel

Evolution is truly fascinating. There’s a video of a squirrel tap dancing around a snake and bravely nibbling on its body. The quality isn’t that great, so the identity of the snake is a bit of a mystery. It acts like a rattlesnake, but it doesn’t have the arrow shaped head, which is characteristic of the viper [...]

Little Ben Stein Gets A Big Fat F

Teacher: “OK class, who doesn’t know the difference between science and cheap emotional propaganda?”
Little Benjamin Stein: “I do, I do.”
Teacher: “Well, that ashame, Benjamin, because this is a science class, not Washington politics 101. Now go wait in the hall, you little loser.”
Little Benjamin Stein: “When my father hears about [...]