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Post by Prince Hal on Jan 29, 2020 14:54:43 GMT -5
That was an advantage of being raised Catholic: the Bible was said to be inerrant in its theological message, but not to be a science textbook. It was made clear to us kids that Adam and Eve, the snake and the apple were all metaphors, and that the early books of the Old Testament were not historical. No problem with dinosaurs or cavemen, with a 15 billion years old universe or with our being related to chimpanzees (something our behaviour in class sometimes tended to confirm anyway). I was raised Catholic, too, and even served an 8-year sentence in a Catholic elementary school, and I can tell you that not all Catholics subscribe to the metaphorical interpretation of Biblical, mainly Old Testament, stories. In fact, I specifically recall (when I was in the 5th or 6th grade) floating that possibility to one of the nuns based on something my dad said to me, and she cut me off right there and said everything in the Bible is true, i.e., Adam and Eve were real people, there was a Garden of Eden, a Flood, and so forth. Of course, this didn't effect anything taught in our science classes (also often taught by the same nuns). There was high-grade compartmentalization going on there.Others would call it cognitive dissonance. Or willful ignorance. |
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Post by Roquefort Raider on Feb 19, 2020 20:57:46 GMT -5
This is both very cool and practical! It really helps put things in perspective (especially as I’ve just started to watch The Expanse).
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Post by thwhtguardian on Feb 27, 2020 20:11:38 GMT -5
This is both very cool and practical! It really helps put things in perspective (especially as I’ve just started to watch The Expanse).In a slightly related topic the Earth has a new moon. It's orbit is irregular so we probably won't have it for too long but for now we have a second moon and it's about the size of a large refrigerator. |
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Post by Roquefort Raider on Feb 28, 2020 8:48:08 GMT -5
And that's what happens when Galactus and Eternity throw cosmic cubes and Infinity gems at each other. |
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Post by Duragizer on Feb 28, 2020 23:44:01 GMT -5
Religious education teachers were also irked with my "Who made God?" questions. They were sincere questions based on a love of knowledge. Sounds like they weren't familiar with Paul Tillich's theology. Most people aren't, unfortunately. It'd be nice if we had a thread for religious/spiritual discussion; I like discussing such topics. I can understand why there isn't, though. |
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Post by Rob Allen on Mar 2, 2020 1:47:15 GMT -5
It'd be nice if we had a thread for religious/spiritual discussion; I like discussing such topics. I can understand why there isn't, though. There's a Bible thread on CBR's forum if you want specifically Christian discussion. For general religious/spiritual discussion, try www.city-data.com/forum/religion-spirituality/ for general discussions, with half-a-dozen subforums for specific traditions. |
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Post by Roquefort Raider on Apr 12, 2020 17:40:47 GMT -5
Nature is AWESOME!!! And so are sperm whales.
Such magnificent creatures. One of the unexpected moments in my biochemistry class (for the students, that is) is when I start on sperm whales and giant squids. Because... in a science class, why not indulge in all that the world has to offer??? I also refer to the lyre bird and the icefish in genetics. Mother Nature is even crazier than the Kirbys, Druillets and Moebius of this world when it comes to creativity!!! |
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Post by Slam_Bradley on Apr 12, 2020 18:05:11 GMT -5
Nature is AWESOME!!! And so are sperm whales.
Such magnificent creatures. One of the unexpected moments in my biochemistry class (for the students, that is) is when I start on sperm whales and giant squids. Because... in a science class, why not indulge in all that the world has to offer??? I also refer to the lyre bird and the icefish in genetics. Mother Nature is even crazier than the Kirbys, Druillets and Moebius of this world when it comes to creativity!!! Giant squids are cool. I’m a big fan of cephalopods in general. |
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Post by EdoBosnar on Apr 12, 2020 18:34:01 GMT -5
Nature is AWESOME!!! And so are sperm whales.
Such magnificent creatures. One of the unexpected moments in my biochemistry class (for the students, that is) is when I start on sperm whales and giant squids. Because... in a science class, why not indulge in all that the world has to offer??? Sperm whales are bad-a**: they dive down anywhere from 1,000 to 7,000 ft and hunt giant squid, while holding their breath. They get nothing but respect from me. |
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Post by Roquefort Raider on May 19, 2020 19:04:47 GMT -5
I had never seen this tour of the ISS. It’s awe-inspiring!
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Post by Roquefort Raider on May 31, 2020 7:53:12 GMT -5
The Mutual of Omaha's Wild Kingdom presents... a humpback whale in Montreal!
That's several hundred kilometres inland. The poor animal is obviously lost (must be a male... refusing to ask for directions...) but appears healthy. I really envy the people who saw it! |
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Post by EdoBosnar on May 31, 2020 10:18:35 GMT -5
The Mutual of Omaha's Wild Kingdom presents... a humpback whale in Montreal!
That's several hundred kilometres inland. The poor animal is obviously lost (must be a male... refusing to ask for directions...) but appears healthy. I really envy the people who saw it! Is anyone going to try to guide it back to sea? As I understand it, whales can't stay in freshwater too long. |
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Post by Roquefort Raider on May 31, 2020 10:47:52 GMT -5
The Mutual of Omaha's Wild Kingdom presents... a humpback whale in Montreal!
That's several hundred kilometres inland. The poor animal is obviously lost (must be a male... refusing to ask for directions...) but appears healthy. I really envy the people who saw it! Is anyone going to try to guide it back to sea? As I understand it, whales can't stay in freshwater too long. I don't think it wil be tried; in previous cases of porpoises getting lost like that, they were left to find their own way back. Unless an animal is clearly in distress, they're usually left to their own devices; human intervention is very stressful to these animals (to the point that it's now forbidden to go near them while whale-watching, a popular activity in the Tadoussac region). The whale won't be able to go much further inland anyway, as the river gets pretty shallow upstream; furthermore, the strong current should entice it to make its way back to the ocean soon. It will also have a hard time feeding where it is right now, and curiosity won't beat an empty stomach. It's a good thing that whales can communicate over extremely long distances; while this fellow may not not where it is exactly, it can probably tell that other whales can be found downstream. |
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Post by thwhtguardian on May 31, 2020 12:22:12 GMT -5
While nothing about it was super revolutionary, it was pretty awesome to see the SpaceX ship dock with the ISS.
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Post by Roquefort Raider on May 31, 2020 16:50:05 GMT -5
While nothing about it was super revolutionary, it was pretty awesome to see the SpaceX ship dock with the ISS. Hats off to SpaceX, Elon Musk, all the engineers involved, and the United States as a whole for this new step in space exploration! |
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