There were no surprises in the latest Gallup poll on public opinion about evolution in the United States. Asked in May 2014 "[w]hich of the following statements comes closest to your views on the origin and development of human beings," 31% of the respondents accepted "Human beings have developed…
A milestone: there are now over 70,000 fans of NCSE's Facebook page. Why not join them, by visiting the page and becoming a fan by clicking on the "Like" box by NCSE's name? You'll receive the latest NCSE news delivered straight to your Facebook Home page, as well as updates on evolution-related…
"Evolution will soon be a mandatory part of the middle-school science curriculum, after years of being an optional subject that most students were never taught," according (registration required) to the Israeli newspaper Haaretz (June 1, 2014). "Until now, evolution was taught in high…
The Cosmos series is drawing to a close, and in Sunday's penultimate episode, “The World Set Free,” Neil deGrasse Tyson delved deeply into a topic touched upon in almost every episode so far: climate change. Tyson did a spectacular job explaining the fundamentals of climate science, in…
Photo Credit: PeterThoeny via Compfight cc Last week on Fossil Friday, I accidentally posted a summer rerun! No, I wasn't being lazy, I was just forgetful! Blame it on the summer heat! So what was this rerun? If you missed it before, you certainly got it this time. As…
Photo Credit: www.ericcastro.biz via Compfight cc Education comes in many forms, and not always in a formal classroom setting. Sometimes education occurs in museums or parks or aquariums, sometimes in the media, and sometimes in conversations with a wise neighbor who has a strong background in a…
In late 2012, GQ magazine asked Florida’s Senator Marco Rubio, “How old do you think the Earth is?” He answered “4.55 billion years” and no one ever talked about it again. He replied at length, opening by saying, “I’m not a scientist, man,” and then muddled science and theology without…
Sunday the 18th's episode of Cosmos begins with the flood myth (the Babylonian version featuring Gilgamesh, not the gritty reboot with Noah). Thereafter, Neil deGrasse Tyson takes us to the early Earth, asks how the first life arrived on our planet, and speculates about how life might…
This week's fossil is one that everyone should recognize. Though this one dates back to the Miocene, it is a delicacy people still enjoy today, myself included! It may look like a footprint or even a sloth coprolite (that's a fancy word for fossilized poop), but no, it was probably as tasty then…