...at one point or another, you realize that all of the anti-science pointing and shouting in the world will never take away from a utterly bizarre, wonderful discovery like this:
Astronomers have discovered what they believe to be a rogue planet
floating through space without a star. The super-Jupiter, called
CFBDSIR2149, has a mass four to seven times that of our own gas giant,
and is probably a scorching 800 or so degrees Fahrenheit. It appears to
sit in a moving group of stars that, at a rough distance of 65
light-years, is just a cosmic stone’s throw away from us.
If the idea of a planet sans star seems more than a trifle outlandish, it probably isn't. Probably.
Researchers aren't quite sure how such an untethered planet comes to
be: It may be that they form the standard way, from the ring of
coalescing dust around a young star, and is later somehow kicked out of
the system.
So the next time anyone is daft enough to believe that there's no point to scientific research or even the idea of science in general, show them this. And then feel free to shake your head.
(Also on WTTFTG)
Thursday, November 15, 2012
Indiana: more nonsense on stilts
No one should really be surprised that the Indiana state Senate is about to undergo yet another round of "intelligent design" silliness in the form of a bill drafted by the Discovery Institute and sponsored by Dennis Kruse (R-14th), who was also one of the parties responsible for Senate Bill 89 last year. As usual, the emphasis of the bill on alleged scientific doubts about the theory of evolution (just like all of the others based on the "teach the controversy" approach the DI favors) quickly took a back seat to the religious rhetoric of the sponsor:
Although the text of the bill that Kruse eventually introduces in the senate may disclaim any intention to promote a religious doctrine, it seems likely that in Indiana as in Tennessee and Louisiana, it will be difficult for the legislative sponsors to avoid disclosing their true intentions. "I'd guess 80 percent of Indiana would be oriented with the Bible and creation," Kruse was quoted as saying. His previous efforts — SB 89 and two similar bills he introduced in 2000 and 2001 while serving in the Indiana House of Representatives, plus a 1999 pledge to introduce legislation to remove evolution from the state science standards — might also be taken as indicative.
When somebody like Kruse admits that he's playing to the crowd as blatantly as he does, you can take it as a sign that a real scientific argument for the bill is hardly an issue - he's just trying to get re-elected. One of these days, maybe his district will wise up; but somehow, I doubt it.
(Also on WTTFTG)
Although the text of the bill that Kruse eventually introduces in the senate may disclaim any intention to promote a religious doctrine, it seems likely that in Indiana as in Tennessee and Louisiana, it will be difficult for the legislative sponsors to avoid disclosing their true intentions. "I'd guess 80 percent of Indiana would be oriented with the Bible and creation," Kruse was quoted as saying. His previous efforts — SB 89 and two similar bills he introduced in 2000 and 2001 while serving in the Indiana House of Representatives, plus a 1999 pledge to introduce legislation to remove evolution from the state science standards — might also be taken as indicative.
When somebody like Kruse admits that he's playing to the crowd as blatantly as he does, you can take it as a sign that a real scientific argument for the bill is hardly an issue - he's just trying to get re-elected. One of these days, maybe his district will wise up; but somehow, I doubt it.
(Also on WTTFTG)
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