One of my life goals/dreams has for the longest time been to thru-hike the AT.

The ATC keeps a record of people who have hiked the ~2180 miles of the AT. It calls these people “2000-milers”, regardless of how they hiked the trail ( Read more... )

This entry is related in part to one I posted nearly three years ago on the "spiritual left"'s view of nature.[1] In that entry I wrote about how many in today's world assume that natural = good ( Read more... )

...woolly mammoths, that is.

I recently read the following two articles:

Japanese clone mouse from frozen cell, aim for mammoths
Woolly mammoth task: Extinct critter's DNA mappedTo summarize, the first article shows for the first time that it is possible to clone a dead animal whose body had been preserved in ice (for 16 years, not quite 100,000 ( Read more... )

I've rambled before about how much the term "organic" when referring to food irks me,[1] but this is primarily a matter of terminology.

I am all for healthier food. And it may well be that (some) more "old fashioned" methods of raising crops and animals are healthier.

However, I think it a very faulty idea that natural is always better than man- ( Read more... )

My wife and I are currently watching two British nature documentary series, "The Blue Planet" and "Planet Earth", both narrated by David Attenborough ( Read more... )

For my last group meeting presentation, I presented on a newly-discovered knockout mouse (which was actually made known to me by ubersecret -- thanks!) able to regenerate body parts, including limbs, heart, liver, and brain. That a single gene mutation was able to produce such an amazing ability in a mammal to me is extremely fascinating ( Read more... )

One of the common arguments given for why homosexuality is morally wrong is that it is unnatural. Those who are against this notion, wanting to accept homosexuality as morally neutral like heterosexuality, are quick to point out that this argument is absurd, for homosexuality exists quite abundantly in nature ( Read more... )

I read an interesting article the other day in one of my science magazines. I am used to reading countless articles about how horrible "right wing" Christians are to science and how they must be stopped at any cost. It is pretty scary reading the vehemence with which these scientists write, and I am getting sick of it. (Now, while I think that most ( Read more... )

(Is that the proper term?)

Anyhow, I love animals. I've mentioned this before.[1] I love to watch them and talk to them. They are fun and cute. However, this is all marred by the nastiness of nature.[2] Nature is not all beauty. Those same cute animals eat other cute animals, killing them and causing pain. It would be nice to think that the lions ( Read more... )

If there is a God, why do so many people assume that He is only the God of "black boxes"?

( What is a black box? )