Ecological speciation of bacteriophage lambda in allopatry and sympatry | Science
Two central article of faith in creationist circles are that speciation has never been observed and that evolution can't be replicated in a laboratory.
So essential are these dogmas to creationism that nothing will shake their faith in them, not even the evidence of evolution being replicated in a laboratory and speciation being observed in the process. You can rarely make any progress with a creationist without these 'killer' assertions being thrown into the debate. They are almost the motto or battle-cry of creationism. So we can be sure the best available dismissal techniques will be brought to bear on the paper published in Nature a few days ago showing exactly that.
That's right, creationists, scientists have observed evolution, including speciation, in the laboratory. And their experiment is reproducible.
Religion, Creationism, evolution, science and politics from a centre-left atheist humanist. The blog religious frauds tell lies about.
Wednesday, 30 November 2016
Saturday, 26 November 2016
Why We Atheists Are Hated. We Frighten Them!
What If They’re Right About the Afterlife? Evidence of the Role of Existential Threat on Anti-Atheist Prejudice.
In America and probably many other countries, though much less so in the United Kingdom and probably most of Western Europe, Atheists are amongst the least trusted of all people. Some surveys even putting them on a par with Islamic extremists.
The reasons given are usually that Atheists don't have a moral framework and therefore have no way of knowing that rape, theft, murder, etc. are wrong and that complete selfishness and disregard for others is to be expected. That this is manifest nonsense when the actual behaviour of known Atheists is observed will show, does not seem to affect the underlying cultural assumption that a hoped-for reward or the threat of punishment are the only things which motivate people to behave well and that no-one knew how to behave before we had the Christian Bible.
A paper published in the journal, Social Psychology and Personal Science in September 2015 sheds some light on this strange and irrational attitude. The authors cite 'Terror Management Theory' as the likely cause:
Labels:
Atheism
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Hate
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Psychology
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Religion
Thursday, 24 November 2016
Gut Microbes Influence Our Evolution
Diet-Microbiota Interactions Mediate Global Epigenetic Programming in Multiple Host Tissues | Molecular Cell:
We need to stop thinking of the higher animals (and maybe plants) as a single species with a single genome as the unit on which natural selection operates.
We, along with all higher animals, are colonies of more-or-less cooperating species each of which has it's own evolutionary 'agenda' but each of which, like us, is inextricably bound up with the evolution of the colony as a whole. In effect, what is evolving is the colony with its distributed genome. This also has damaging implications for creationism and its dressed up little brother, intelligent (sic) design.
We need to stop thinking of the higher animals (and maybe plants) as a single species with a single genome as the unit on which natural selection operates.
We, along with all higher animals, are colonies of more-or-less cooperating species each of which has it's own evolutionary 'agenda' but each of which, like us, is inextricably bound up with the evolution of the colony as a whole. In effect, what is evolving is the colony with its distributed genome. This also has damaging implications for creationism and its dressed up little brother, intelligent (sic) design.
Labels:
Biology
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Creationism
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Evolution
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Health
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Science
Wednesday, 23 November 2016
Those Poor Christians Are Being Persecuted Again!
John Freshwater |
In a ruling that will no doubt shock and enrage Christian fundamentalists everywhere, the Ohio Supreme Court has confirmed once again that even Christians have to obey the laws of the land. This will almost certainly be presented as a war on Christianity and a denial of their 'freedom' to disregard laws they don't like whilst demanding the right to impose their own 'laws' on everyone else.
The ruling brings to an end a four-year campaign to have a fundamentalist Christian creationist teacher, sacked for disregarding instructions not to teach his superstition as fact to public school children in contravention of the US Constitution's 'Establishment' clause, reinstated and to be allowed to continue to flout the law, ignore the Constitution and use his salaried position to teach his creationist version of 'science' to school children.
In a 4:3 verdict, the court ruled:
After detailed review of the voluminous record in this case, we hold that the court of appeals did not err in affirming the termination. The trial court properly found that the record supports, by clear and convincing evidence, Freshwater’s termination for insubordination in failing to
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Christianity
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Religion
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Science
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Secularism
Tuesday, 22 November 2016
A Newly-Discovered Species of Archaic Humans?
Two Vanuatu girls. Photo credit: Graham Crumb Source: Wikipedia |
It's hard to see how the Abrahamic religions can continue to hold on to the myth of a single ancestral couple for the whole of humanity in the face of the onslaught from scientific evidence that this model is nonsensical. The Catholic Church's attempt to subscribe to it as an essential part of their dogma whilst also accepting the scientific evidence for the evolution of humans from a common ancestor with other apes and through a series of archaic pre-modern hominids is becoming increasingly untenable.
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Anthropology
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Creationism
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Evolution
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Science
Monday, 21 November 2016
Something Dodgy In America
Major Players in 2016 Election Get Low Marks, Including Trump | Pew Research Center
Somehow the election figures and post-election polling returns are not adding up!
Something is looking decidedly dodgy. It's almost as though the actual election was conducted elsewhere because the result it produced looks oddly out of place.
Firstly, there is the fact that, with counting still to be completed in places, Clinton not only won the popular
Somehow the election figures and post-election polling returns are not adding up!
Something is looking decidedly dodgy. It's almost as though the actual election was conducted elsewhere because the result it produced looks oddly out of place.
Firstly, there is the fact that, with counting still to be completed in places, Clinton not only won the popular
Labels:
Politics
Sunday, 20 November 2016
Holy Poland!
In Poland in the presence of the first persons of the state officially crowned Jesus Christ | true-news
Poland is now an official monarchy - if you believe the Catholic Church.
In a ceremony in Krakow Cathedral, reportedly attended by government officials including President Andrzej Duda, Jesus was crowned King of Poland. The ceremony was also attended by 'huge numbers' from Germany, Canada and the United States as well as from the rest of Poland.
This is not the first divine monarch to occupy the
Poland is now an official monarchy - if you believe the Catholic Church.
In a ceremony in Krakow Cathedral, reportedly attended by government officials including President Andrzej Duda, Jesus was crowned King of Poland. The ceremony was also attended by 'huge numbers' from Germany, Canada and the United States as well as from the rest of Poland.
This is not the first divine monarch to occupy the
Labels:
Catholics
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Christianity
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Secularism
Friday, 18 November 2016
Why Christians Supported the Very Un-Christian Trump
How the faithful voted: A preliminary 2016 analysis | Pew Research Center
One of the most outstanding features of the American presidential election was the complete abandonment of any pretense of morality by the evangelical white conservative Christians in their eagerness to promote a white supremacist, misogynist, serial adulterer, self-confessed serial molester of women and public mocker of disabled people, to the top job. Almost as noticeable was the eerie silence from the black evangelicals and Catholics, even the hispanic Catholic leaders.
One of the most outstanding features of the American presidential election was the complete abandonment of any pretense of morality by the evangelical white conservative Christians in their eagerness to promote a white supremacist, misogynist, serial adulterer, self-confessed serial molester of women and public mocker of disabled people, to the top job. Almost as noticeable was the eerie silence from the black evangelicals and Catholics, even the hispanic Catholic leaders.
Labels:
Christianity
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Humanism
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Hypocrisy
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Morality
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Politics
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Secularism
Wednesday, 16 November 2016
Rapid Human Evolution in America!
A time transect of exomes from a Native American population before and after European contact | Nature Communications.
Right on the heels of the paper showing how a change in the domestic dog's environment drove their evolution, pushing them closer to humans, we have this example of how changes in the environment by one human group can have a major impact on the evolution of another human group.
In this case, the environmental change was in the microbial and viral environment of Native Americans brought about by contact with European colonists.
It has long been recognised that the huge range of viruses carried by Europeans, probably as a result of
Right on the heels of the paper showing how a change in the domestic dog's environment drove their evolution, pushing them closer to humans, we have this example of how changes in the environment by one human group can have a major impact on the evolution of another human group.
In this case, the environmental change was in the microbial and viral environment of Native Americans brought about by contact with European colonists.
It has long been recognised that the huge range of viruses carried by Europeans, probably as a result of
Labels:
Anthropology
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Creationism
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Evolution
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Science
Canine Conundrum For Creationists
Amy2B copy number variation reveals starch diet adaptations in ancient European dogs | Open Science
Here is a sweet treat for dog lovers, anthropologists and evolutionary biologists, though not so much for creationists.
An open access paper published very recently in Royal Society Open Science not only sheds light on domestic dog and modern human co-evolution but illustrates an important principle in evolutionary biology: evolution will occur in the presence of a change in the environment with little or no change in the information in the genome. It also shows how gene duplication can play an enormous role in the evolution of a species.
Here is a sweet treat for dog lovers, anthropologists and evolutionary biologists, though not so much for creationists.
An open access paper published very recently in Royal Society Open Science not only sheds light on domestic dog and modern human co-evolution but illustrates an important principle in evolutionary biology: evolution will occur in the presence of a change in the environment with little or no change in the information in the genome. It also shows how gene duplication can play an enormous role in the evolution of a species.
Labels:
Anthropology
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Creationism
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Dogs
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Evolution
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Science
Monday, 14 November 2016
Nasty Design. Nasty Designer?
Mycobacterium abscessus, a species of multidrug resistant mycobacteria, has recently emerged as a significant global threat to individuals with cystic fibrosis and other lung diseases. Picture credit: © adiruch na chiangmai / Fotolia Source: ScienceDaily |
I've written several posts with examples of the sheer malevolent nastiness of creationists' notional intelligent (sic) designer, asking if it can get any nastier, but this latest example really does take some beating.
It has now redesigned a mycobacterium so it can now overcome our attempts to stop it making children with cystic fibrosis even sicker, often fallay so!
This was discovered by a team from the University of Cambridge, UK and the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute was published a few days ago in Science:
Labels:
Biology
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Creationism
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Evolution
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Medicine
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Science
Thursday, 10 November 2016
Brain Development and Creationism
Evolution of Osteocrin as an activity-regulated factor in the primate brain : Nature : Nature Research
Scientists at Harvard Medical School have discovered that a gene that regulates bone and muscle growth may also be involved in brain development and activity in primates, including humans. In particular, this gene appears to be active in areas of the brain involved in cognition and learning. Their finding were published yesterday in Nature.
This is a good example of how genes can be used by the evolutionary process for new functions, and, because this particular retooled gene is only found in primates, it suggests that the repurposing occurred in a common ancestor of this clade.
Scientists at Harvard Medical School have discovered that a gene that regulates bone and muscle growth may also be involved in brain development and activity in primates, including humans. In particular, this gene appears to be active in areas of the brain involved in cognition and learning. Their finding were published yesterday in Nature.
This is a good example of how genes can be used by the evolutionary process for new functions, and, because this particular retooled gene is only found in primates, it suggests that the repurposing occurred in a common ancestor of this clade.
Tuesday, 8 November 2016
Ten Great Reasons Women Should Vote For Trump
Donald Trump is the perfect choice for women.
Here are ten great reasons women should vote for him!
Here are ten great reasons women should vote for him!
- He has a penis and you need a penis to run a country. Even a small one will do. Women are physically handicapped in the genital department.
- He doesn't have a vagina, despite what his enemies call him. A vagina would mean he can't think rationally.
- He grabs women he happens to meet in lifts by
Labels:
Politics
Monday, 7 November 2016
Time For Positive Thinking!
It's time for Americans to think and act positively!
Don't be negative!
Don't vote for Hillary just because Trump is a racist who is supported by the KKK and just about every white supremacist redneck!
Don't vote for her just because Trump is a self-obsessed psychopath who regards everyone else as insignificant!
Don't be negative!
Don't vote for Hillary just because Trump is a racist who is supported by the KKK and just about every white supremacist redneck!
Don't vote for her just because Trump is a self-obsessed psychopath who regards everyone else as insignificant!
Labels:
Politics
Thursday, 3 November 2016
Catholic Church Can Keep Child Abuse Secret!
Pope Francis "We will not take one step back..." |
The Batton Rouge diocese had contested a case for negligence brought against them and Fr. Jeff Bayhi by Rebecca Mayeux, now 22. She had claimed that in 2008, when she was 14, she told Fr. Jeff Bayhi that she was being sexually abused by a fellow parishioner but Fr. Jeff Bayhi did nothing to prevent the abuse continuing.
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Catholics
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Religious abuse
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Secularism
No Women Priests! Cowardly Pope Blames His Predecessor.
Pope Francis - ban on women priests for ever, Pope John Paul II said so! |
Popes are supposed to be infallible and to be the absolute, ultimate authority on all spiritual and ecumenical matters - but not when it comes to trying to ride two horses simultaneously, it seems.
Face with a question from a Swiss journalist about whether women ever being admitted to the Catholic priesthood, Pope Francis confirmed that the ban would remain in place. When pressed he blamed Pope John Paul II who confirmed the ban in 1994, saying, "Saint Pope John Paul II had the last clear word on this and it stands, this stands".
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Catholics
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Christianity
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Religion
Tuesday, 1 November 2016
A Christian Husband's Guide to Sleeping Around
A good Christian man with a wife and bit on the side. |
Still trying to understand why American fundamentalist Christians regard Donald Trump as such a great role model and eminently suited to being President of the USA, I looked further into how Christian fundamentalists see a man's marital infidelities. So I turned again to the Biblical Gender Roles blog for an explanation.
Maybe fundamentalist Christians won't be surprised by the hypocritical double standards and cherry-picking approach to the Bible that I found there, but I suspect normal people might at least raise an eyebrow. After all, don't fundamentalists normally make a big thing of the Ten Commandments, including the instruction to not covet a neighbour's wife? Well, that was a mistake, apparently, or maybe it just applies to other people.
Labels:
Christianity
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Hypocrisy
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Morality
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Politics
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