Category Archives: Science

Revisiting Carl Sagan’s The Cosmic Connection

Posted on Friday 26 June 2015 by Mark R. Kelly

The Cosmic Connection, published in 1973, was the first popular book by Carl Sagan, after some academic tomes and an anthology of essays about UFOs, who later gained much fame as the author and host of the 1980 book and … Continue reading →

Posted in Book Notes, Evolution, Personal history, Quote at Length, Science, Space | Comments Off on Revisiting Carl Sagan’s The Cosmic Connection

Alan Lightman, The Accidental Universe

Posted on Wednesday 24 June 2015 by Mark R. Kelly

Alan Lightman’s THE ACCIDENTAL UNIVERSE (2014) is a short book of seven essays, most previously published, on various ways the universe is not obviously what it appears to be, or is at odds with what humans might prefer. (Lightman is … Continue reading →

Posted in Book Notes, Cosmology, Philosophy, Science | Comments Off on Alan Lightman, The Accidental Universe

Links and Comments: Jerry Coyne; Max Planck; Creationism and Education; Human history and progress; and others

Posted on Thursday 11 June 2015 by Mark R. Kelly

Finished reading Jerry Coyne’s new book Faith Vs. Fact, subtitled “Why Science and Religion Are Incompatible”, which I took extensive notes on that at some point I will summarize here on my blog. Meanwhile, Coyne did a Q&A with National … Continue reading →

Posted in Book Notes, Psychology, Religion, Science | Comments Off on Links and Comments: Jerry Coyne; Max Planck; Creationism and Education; Human history and progress; and others

Links and Comments: Modern Physics; Evolution and Strangers; Coming out in totalitarian societies; Elizabeth Kolbert on Mars

Posted on Monday 8 June 2015 by Mark R. Kelly

Sunday’s New York Times has a “Gray Matter” essay on A Crisis at the Edge of Physics by Adam Frank and Marcelo Gleiser* is about whether the empirical method — validating theories via predictions and evidence — does not work … Continue reading →

Posted in Evolution, Physics, Science, The Gays | Comments Off on Links and Comments: Modern Physics; Evolution and Strangers; Coming out in totalitarian societies; Elizabeth Kolbert on Mars

Upon Returning from a Wedding

Posted on Tuesday 2 June 2015 by Mark R. Kelly

I’ve tweaked a few passages in my Provisional Conclusions today, in light of attending a family wedding in a socially conservative state and observing first-hand a community that obviously thrives in the context of a traditional religious narrative. What my … Continue reading →

Posted in Culture, Evolution, Narrative, Religion, Science | Comments Off on Upon Returning from a Wedding

How Science Works, Concerning that Retracted Gay Marriage Survey, and the Ironies

Posted on Monday 25 May 2015 by Mark R. Kelly

New York Times op-ed: What’s Behind Big Science Frauds? Other links: SFGate: Study retracted: 20 minutes actually CAN’T change a homophobe’s mind The New Yorker, Maria Konnikova: How a Gay-Marriage Study Went Wrong This concerns a report from a few … Continue reading →

Posted in MInd, Psychology, Science, The Gays | Comments Off on How Science Works, Concerning that Retracted Gay Marriage Survey, and the Ironies

Links and Comments: Flip-Flopping Politicians; Jerry Coyne’s new book; Six Basic Storylines; Trigger Events

Posted on Wednesday 20 May 2015 by Mark R. Kelly

Slate: Our Best Presidents Are Flip-Floppers Politicians are attacked for changing their positions due to political expediency — as Louisiana governor Bobby Jindal, a one-time biology major, has done about the teaching of creationism in schools, to appeal to his … Continue reading →

Posted in Book Notes, Narrative, Religion, Science | Comments Off on Links and Comments: Flip-Flopping Politicians; Jerry Coyne’s new book; Six Basic Storylines; Trigger Events

Links and Comments: Decline of US Religion; Narrative in Science and TV Finales

Posted on Monday 18 May 2015 by Mark R. Kelly

Major news this past week, covered by many sources. NPR: Christians In U.S. On Decline As Number Of ‘Nones’ Grows, Survey Finds Washington Post: Christianity faces sharp decline as Americans are becoming even less affiliated with religion It’s often been … Continue reading →

Posted in Human Progress, Narrative, Religion, Science | Comments Off on Links and Comments: Decline of US Religion; Narrative in Science and TV Finales

Natalie Angier, The Canon

Posted on Thursday 7 May 2015 by Mark R. Kelly

Subtitled: A Whirligig Tour of the Beautiful Basics of Science As I was unpacking books these past few weeks, at our new home in Oakland, I came across this book which I hadn’t yet read, but which seemed appropriate to … Continue reading →

Posted in Science | Comments Off on Natalie Angier, The Canon

A Month’s Worth of Links and Comments

Posted on Friday 1 May 2015 by Mark R. Kelly

New York Times, March 20: In the Age of Information, Specializing to Survive The Internet makes it easy to learn almost anything. And yet And yet, even as the highbrow holy grail — the acquisition of complete knowledge — seems … Continue reading →

Posted in Children, Culture, Economics, Evolution, MInd, Morality, Narrative, Psychology, Religion, Science, The Gays | Comments Off on A Month’s Worth of Links and Comments