Testing the God Hypothesis

Dr. Stephen Meyer
(Public Domain)

Although belief in God has fallen out of favor within certain circles, Dr. Stephen Meyer is harkening back to the hypothesis that an intelligent Creator indeed exists.

During an 2021 Hoover Institution interview, Meyer declared, “We can judge the merits of a metaphysical hypothesis of a worldview by looking at the world around us, to see if it matches the expectations, what we think should follow if that hypothesis were true.”

Meyer has dedicated a huge chunk of his life to checking the God Hypothesis against the world around us.  After noting the profound intricacy of even a single human cell, he concludes that Richard Dawkins’ theory of a “blind pitiless” and fundamentally indifferent Universe seems out of kilter.

Meyer points out that the Big Bang had a beginning point, commonly called the Singularity.  He wonders what came before that... Did the Universe just suddenly and randomly arise out of sheer nothingness?

Meyer finds that to be highly unlikely, and questions the notion of nothingness itself.  He also notes that Darwin had no solid explanation for the origin of life, and no solid explanation for the complex evolutionary leaps that go far beyond mere adaptations and variations.  Meyer claims that intelligent design seems a much better theoretical match for such observations than does natural selection.

Resources

https://www.hoover.org/research/stephen-meyer-intelligent-design-and-return-god-hypothesis

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ISUynYz93zY

Larger than Life

Hydrothermal Vent Tubeworms
(Public Domain)

Where there’s life there’s growth, even at the very bottom of the ocean.  Although scientists knew that microbes can thrive within such extreme conditions, they had little proof that anything larger could.

Yet fairly recently a “deep-sea expedition led by the Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research” discovered a host of larger life forms around the Tica Vent “on the Eastern Pacific Rise tectonic barrier.”  This lower-than-low area was surprisingly replete with snails and tubeworms.

Such discoveries lend credence to theories about extraterrestrial life.  If life is this hardy on our third rock from the sun, perhaps it can also be found on the fourth one and beyond.

Resources

https://news.yahoo.com/news/scientists-peeked-underneath-seafloor-discovered-184538431.html

Eight Miles Low

(Fair Use)

In 1965, the Byrds had a hit song called “Eight Miles High.”  It loosely referred to the altitude that a jet flies, although jets don’t usually go higher than seven miles up.  Nevertheless, the band that brought us an Ecclesiastes hit single should be allowed some poetic license.

In 2024, eight miles low seems more in vogue.  During August of this year, geophysicists confirmed the presence of liquid water within the Martian midcrust – “6 to 12 miles below the surface.”  In fact, there's enough down there to “fill ‘oceans’ on the planet’s surface.”

This bodes well for the theory that life once existed on Mars.  It  suggests that life might still exist within the depths of our crusty neighbor.  There are creatures at the bottom of Earth’s oceans, so why not “eight miles low” on Mars? 

Resources

https://news.yahoo.com/news/scientists-first-kind-discovery-mars-190058737.html

 

Thou Shalt Not Murder in Space

Sherlock Holmes
(Illustrated by Sidney Paget)

Since God’s entire creation seems to extend far beyond our third rock from the sun, His commandments likely apply anywhere and everywhere.

Murder would therefore be as heinous within outer space as it is here on earth.  Terra firma parents tend to warn their wayfaring kids, “Wherever you go, there you are.”  The best and worst of human behaviors will inevitably follow astronauts, too.

With that in mind, forensic scientists have already begun researching the effects of zero gravity upon the splattering of blood.  By shooting “fake blood droplets” from a “hydraulic syringe” within microgravity conditions, they found that the liquid’s surface tension makes for less splattering once the opposing force of gravity is weakened.

Gone are the days of Wild West romanticism.  Today’s explorations emphasize the fine art of getting along well enough to survive and thrive.  Kill someone on day 374 of your tight-knit journey to Mars, and the Sherlocks back on Earth will have it all figured out.  Your return passport might then be marked "Null and Void." 

Resources

https://www.iheart.com/content/2024-05-14-scientists-conduct-experiments-to-see-what-murder-would-look-like-in-space/?mid=1284423&rid=98364581&sc=email&pname=newsletter&cid=NATIONAL&keyid=National%20iHeart%20Daily%20NewsTalk&campid=headline2_readmore 

Super Bowl End Day

 

NASA Chart
(Public Domain)

God might not play dice or football, but may instead hurl asteroids the size of football fields.  One, in fact, will be whizzing past Earth shortly before 2024’s Super Bowl Sunday.

Should it perchance strike our planet with the force of “141 gigatons of TNT,” the destruction would be considerable.  If a city were directly hit, the resulting crater would be “11 miles wide.” The human casualty count could be as high as 13 million, two million of which would be subject to instant vaporization.

The statistical chances of this occurring are one in thousands, which sounds lucky unless Earth happens to be that one.  If such a strike were to occur, then even the Super Bowl would be second-rate news.

Resources

https://news.yahoo.com/nasa-issues-warning-asteroid-size-150847943.html   

Leave it to Themis

Statue of Themis
Photo by Ricardo Andre Frantz

It seems as though possibilities for extraterrestrial life are adding up faster than you can say Themis.

Themis was an ancient Greek goddess who personified divine law and order.  That must be why she holds the scales of justice in courthouses throughout the world.

Yet her namesake, 24 Themis, is not of this world.  It zips within the main asteroid belt, somewhere between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter.  This hefty chunk of who-knows-what was found to maintain water ice on its surface, plus a smattering of organic compounds!  

Could this be a recipe for some sort of primordial soup?  If so, could life be forming within numerous parts of the Universe?  Themis has not weighed in on these matters, leaving such inquiries in the fumbling hands of mere mortals.

Resources

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Themis

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/24_Themis

Copernicus: The heliocentric eccentric

Nicolaus Copernicus
Portrait by Nicolaus Reusner, 1578

For polymathic Copernicus, astronomy was just a side dish.  Some of his major preoccupations included serving as a physician, Catholic cleric, military leader, diplomat, translator and economist.

Although he was also a mathematician, jurist, classical scholar, artist, governor and quadrilingual polyglot, he is nevertheless mostly remembered for his earth-shattering cosmology.

All this certainly made Copernicus stand out in a crowd.

His heliocentric ideas were in opposition to some biblical understanding of that time.  Commonly quoted passages such as Ecclesiastes 1:5, Chronicles 16:30 and Psalm 104:5 seemed to promote the idea of a motionless earth and a mobile sun when literally interpreted.

Sixteenth-century Protestants, who particularly relied upon the Bible for guidance, were up in arms about the heliocentric view.  In 1539 Martin Luther said this about Copernicus: There is talk of a new astrologer who wants to prove that the earth moves and goes around instead of the sky, the sun, the moon...  The fool wants to turn the whole art of astronomy upside-down...

Many say that Calvin was not a whole lot kinder about this.  In response to the publication of Copernicus' De revolutionibus orbium coelestium ("On the Revolutions of the Heavenly Spheres" - in Latin, no less), Calvin preached against those who "pervert the course of nature" by saying that "the sun does not move and that it is the earth that revolves and that it turns."  Years later, Lutheran theologian Abraham Calovius allegedly added: Who will venture to place the authority of Copernicus above that of the Holy Spirit?

Interestingly, Catholic contemporaries of Copernicus had looked somewhat favorably upon his heliocentrism.  Pope Clement VII and several cardinals attended lectures in Rome about it.  In 1536 the Archbishop of Capus actively encouraged Copernicus to publish the theory in its entirety.  It wasn't until the 1600s that this position was reversed.

Resources

https://www.britannica.com/biography/Nicolaus-Copernicus 

Rainbow Promises

Photo by Wing-Chi Poon

Although worldly promises are often like pie crusts (made to be broken), spiritual promises are sometimes like rainbows (made to be infinitely pursued but never possessed).

This motif is reflected in rainbow imagery from numerous traditions.  There is usually a visionary promise at the end of the rainbow, and that end is never quite reachable by mere human effort.

Take the pot of gold, for instance.  Leprechauns tend to be blamed for its unavailability, but the real culprit is the rainbow itself.  If the rainbow did not shift and/or disappear when approached, then all the leprechauns in (and out of) this world would not be able to keep that gold from human hands.

Then there's Iris, the elusive Greek goddess.  Although people have been naming their daughters after her for centuries, many are still scratching their heads while asking, "Who is she really?"  That's because Iris rides rainbows, allowing her to be just as flighty.  The Australian aboriginal Rainbow Serpent has been equally unpredictable.  Symbolizing creation and destruction, it may just as easily crush as nurture.

The Covenant of Noah's Rainbow seems like something that humankind can really count on.  Yet while assuring us that God will never again destroy most living things with floodwaters, it says absolutely nothing about nuclear meltdowns, plagues, meteorites, star wars, etc.  That's when faith needs to pick up the slack.  Unlike rainbows, it can continually brighten our Way.  

Resources

https://www.theoi.com/Pontios/Iris.html

https://www.aboriginal-art-australia.com/aboriginal-art-library/rainbow-serpent/

https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Genesis%209&version=NIV

https://learningenglish.voanews.com/a/is-there-a-pot-of-gold-at-the-end-of-the-rainbow-/5810673.html

 

Ophiuchus: Is 13 the new zodiac 12?

Public Domain

What's your sign?  That old pick-up line may have gotten a tad more complicated.

Whereas there used to be only 12 zodiac signs to choose from, now there's a thirteenth one on the horizon.  And if that weren't confusing enough, the inclusion of this extra sign might shift the calculations of all others.  Therefore, a Pisces may no longer swim, nor a Leo roar.

Blame Ophiuchus - Greek for "Snakeholder" and known as "Serpentarius" in Latin.  This constellation is northwest to the center of the Milky Way - its southern part located between Scorpio to the west and Sagittarius to the east.  Although Ptolemy was fully aware of its existence, he nevertheless persisted with a fixed and abstract description of a zodiac with 12 segments of 30 degrees each.  This neatly-packaged, yet inexact interpretation ignores not only Ophiuchus, but also the changing positions of all other constellations with respect to Planet Earth.

What is it about Ophiuchus that Ptolemy and many other astrologers seem to find so compellingly taboo?  Is it that Ophiuchus is the only constellation that seems linked to an actual person?  Is it that this actual person, called Imhotep in Egyptian and Asclepius in Greek, supposedly learned human medicine by watching snakes share healing herbs with one another?  Is it long-term superstition regarding the number 13?

Or was it just so much easier to work with 12 tidy "boxes" than with 13 less standard ones?  After all, the addition of Ophiuchus could shake up our familiar astrological personas faster than one can spell Ptolemy.  Aires would now be from April 19th to May 13th, etc.

But all is not lost!  The alleged gifts of those born within the period of November 30 through December 17 can add zest to the overall zodiac.  These include vivid premonitions, dream interpretations, lofty ideals, the quest for peace and harmony, a pursuit of higher education and wisdom, and the attraction of good luck and fruitful blessings.  Who could ask for more?

Resources

http://the-red-thread.net/ophiuchus2.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ophiuchus

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sidereal_zodiac

http://professorastrology.com/The%20Professor.htm  

Blood Moon on the Horizon

Prophet Joel
Painting by James Tissot

According to the Book of Joel, a bloody-looking moon is no joke.  The prophet warned that "the sun will turn into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and terrible day of the Lord comes."  When the sixth seal is opened in Revelation 6:12, the following occurs: "...there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became as blood."

The October moon (even when ghostly white) has long been called the "Blood Moon" because its eerie light would point so-called "Wild Hunters" straight to their prey.  These were not your average dudes.  They were lost souls, hounds from hell, shining wolves, trolls, demons, and anything else that centuries of embellishment could add.  A motley crew, for sure.

This "Wild Hunt" is so far embedded in the human psyche that it has appeared in classical music, country music, opera, poetry, fiction and folklore.  Across space and time - from the Norse god Odin to the Germanic god Woden - from King Arthur's England to Ghost Riders' America - it has jabbed the minds and hearts of countless individuals.

So next time the heavens rumble, take heed!  It might just be some thunder - but then again, it might not.

Resources

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blood_moon_prophecy

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wild_Hunt

UFOs: Does the U stand for urgent?

CIA Annotated Drawing

NASA recently announced the beginning of a 9-month study that aims to explore the U in UFO sightings, an undertaking which Senator Kirsten Gillibrand recently called "urgent."

Although United Airlines might beg to differ, perhaps the skies are not all that friendly.  Perhaps Stephen Hawking was correct when he warned, "If aliens visit us, the outcome would be much as when Columbus landed in America, which didn't turn out well for the Native Americans."

As a member of the Armed Services and Intelligence committees, Gillibrand has heard many a military report of such sightings.  She feels that "oversight" and "accountability" is therefore in order.  Perhaps Hawking was way off base.  Yet if he were the least bit right, then things on Earth could go very wrong.

Resources

https://www.iheart.com/content/2022-10-24-nasa-makes-groundbreaking-announcement-about-ufos/?mid=966360&rid=98364581&sc=email&pname=newsletter&cid=NATIONAL&keyid=National%20iHeart%20Daily%20NewsTalk&campid=headline3_readmore

https://www.theguardian.com/science/2010/apr/30/stephen-hawking-right-aliens

Casper: The friendliest ghost for real?

Character Art by Adrian Ropp

Many details about Casper are shrouded in mystery.  "Natch!" you say. "He's a ghost!"

But it's far shadier than that...

For example, there's a lot of controversy concerning the veracity of Casper's "ghosthood."  Many insist that death has got to be the very first step for ghosts-in-the-making.  If so, then Casper would have to have died.  This poses a huge problem for cartoon producers who like to eat.  If cute little Casper had died, then he would have to have been a dead little boy.  Dead little boys do not make for lighthearted story lines that sell a lot of ads.

For a very long time, folks were therefore insisting that Casper had never actually died.  They said that Casper had always been a ghost because his mommy and daddy were ghosts when they got married (the intricate mechanics from that point on were never really explained).

Then one day, lo and behold, the truth came out!  It turns out that Casper was a little boy, and he did die (of pneumonia) - while sledding, no less.  And he even had a last name - McFadden!

Paranormal theorists now have something engaging to work with.  It's possible that Casper was a very friendly little boy who now continues on as a very friendly little ghost.  Or it's possible that Casper was a very unfriendly little boy who now has to balance those karmic scales by being the friendliest little ghost you ever did know.

Who knows what really lurks within?

Perhaps only The Shadow does.

Resources

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Casper_the_Friendly_Ghost

 

First they saw it, then they didn't

Mount Asama   (Photo by Ski Mania)

One of history’s great mysteries occurred during May 1100: the month the moon disappeared from sight.

For centuries, people have debated the cause of this strange phenomenon.  Some said it was an eclipse, others chalked it up to an eruption from Iceland’s “Gateway to Hell” (aka “Mount Hekla”).  Neither theory particularly rang true.

Yet those who blamed volcanic eruptions were on the right track.  Right track, wrong volcano!  A series of eruptions from Japan’s Mount Asama lined up well with the moon’s so-called disappearance.  Mystery solved.

Resources

https://www.upi.com/Odd_News/2022/04/20/disappearing-moon/2971650482514/

Copyright April 24, 2022 by Linda Van Slyke   All Rights Reserved

The Hunt is On

LHC Tunnel Sector   (CERN photo)

While many are hunting in the dark, some plan on hunting for the dark.

Physicists will soon be restarting the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) at the CERN center “beneath the Swiss-French border.”  The hunt will then be on for dark matter, thought to be far more prevalent than visible matter.

A decade ago, CERN scientists discovered the Higgs boson particle.  With Lady Luck on their side, they might soon shine some light on sub-atomic darkness.

Resources

https://news.yahoo.com/scientists-prepare-cern-collider-restart-081206229.html 

Copyright April 21, 2022 by Linda Van Slyke   All Rights Reserved

Trip to Europa

Europa   (NASA/JPL/DLR photo)

While many on Earth are planning a trip to Europe, some are planning a trip to Jupiter's Europa.

NASA’s Europa Clipper is set to launch in 2022, and should reach its icy destination by 2030.  Where there’s ice, there’s water - and where there’s water, there’s often life.

What’s even more promising are Europa’s “double ridges,” which offer hope that their ice is penetrable with Earth-developed tools.  Such ridges could indicate “shallow water pockets” within the ice shell.  At the very least, this ice might be somewhat porous.  At the very most, life might exist within these pools. 

Resources

https://news.yahoo.com/chances-finding-alien-life-jupiter-165105231.html 

Copyright April 21, 2022 by Linda Van Slyke   All Rights Reserved

Watch What You Ask For

Pandora's Box   (Engraving by Giulio Bonasone)

There’s an old saying: “Watch what you pray for, you might just get it.”  And once you get it, you might wish it were gone.

Such is the warning that’s currently being given in response to NASA’s plan for broadcasting Earth’s location to possible extraterrestrials (ETs).  Oxford researcher Anders Sandberg worries that this invitation could lure enemies our way. 

Think about it:  If ETs are intelligent enough to interpret that broadcast, then they’re intelligent enough to wreak potential havoc.

Resources

https://news.yahoo.com/stop-revealing-earth-location-dangerous-140354546.html

Copyright April 18, 2022 by Linda Van Slyke   All Rights Reserved

House Calls

Come on up!   (NASA/Boeing photo)

Who says doctors don’t make house calls anymore?  This one does, even though the house he’s visiting is hurtling through space.

NASA’s Dr. Josef Schmid was recently holoported onto the International Space Station (ISS).  His hologram was transported there in order to interact with the astronauts.

This two-way communication occurs in real time, which allows for “medical conferences.”  It can also include visits from holographic celebrities, making ISS life a bit more bubbly.

Resources

https://metro.co.uk/2022/04/18/nasa-holoported-a-doctor-onto-the-international-space-station-16484731/ 

Copyright April 18, 2022 by Linda Van Slyke   All Rights Reserved

In the Pink

(Fair Use)

If you’re seeing red, you might be angry.  But if you’re seeing pink, you might be looking at April’s full moon.

Why pink?  Using logic that’s skewed by springtime fancy, people think pink because of cherry blossoms and the like.  What that has to do with the moon is anyone’s guess, but it sure does sound poetic.

So crane your neck upward this weekend in order to catch a glimpse of the Pink Moon.  You might not see another until you’re also seeing pink elephants.

Resources

https://www.livescience.com/full-moon-april-2022

Copyright April 15, 2022 by Linda Van Slyke   All Rights Reserved

Heading Our Way

Solar Eruption   (NASA photo)

According to The Sun, a coronal mass ejection (CME) is heading our way.  Due to arrive on April 14^th, intense damage to Earth is not expected.

Nevertheless, what was thought to be a “dead sunspot explosion” has regained strength.  Perhaps it drew upon an instability that generated magnetism.  Or perhaps all of Creation is experiencing renewal during this sacred season…

Resources

https://www.thesun.co.uk/tech/18247869/sunspot-explosion-solar-storm/

All Are Aboard

Liftoff!   (Public Domain)

As of this morning, all Axiom-1 crew members are aboard the International Space Station (ISS).  They shall remain there for a “science-packed week,” helping to carry out their chosen experiments.

Larry Connor will focus upon heart health and senescent (post-dividing) cells for the Mayo Clinic, as well as the effects of spaceflight “on spinal and brain tissue” for the Cleveland Clinic. 

Mark Pathy will partner with Canadian research organizations to study Earth’s ecology, as well as the effects of space travel upon visual acuity, sleep and chronic pain.

Israel’s Eytan Stibbe will concentrate on transmitting “values of peace, innovation and social responsibility” through educational and artistic activities.

Resources

https://www.nasaspaceflight.com/2022/04/axiom-1-docking/