News to Note, April 7, 2007

1. Kinds of Man

Researchers have announced in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences the discovery of “34 bone fragments belonging to a single” thought-to-be early modern human in China. The bones have been radiocarbon dated to some 40,000 years ago (but see our Radiometric Dating topic page to read how accurate such dating really is).

2. New Theory Impacts Crater Site

Remember that impact crater under the North Sea, the “Silverpit structure,” thought to be “the UK’s only impact crater” and dated at 60-65 million years old? Well, according to University of Edinburgh geologist John Underhill, it is not the vestige of a prehistoric meteorite, but rather “probably the movement of salt rocks at depth.”

3. Educator Warns About De-Emphasizing Evolution Education

Canada’s Toronto Star reports on McGill University professor Brian Alters’ efforts to “warn” Canada of the dangers of “de-emphasizing” evolution education. As director of McGill’s Evolution Education Research Centre, he explains that “informal research by his centre has found that about one-third of teachers report pressure from parents to teach creationism or intelligent design” (the article does not make clear what the “informal research” was). Alters believes teachers respond to such pressure by “teaching neither evolution nor creationism [sic], leaving students with the impression that the two are of equal merit.”

4. “Evo-devo” Devolves

Although Ernst Haeckel’s dishonest drawings of embryos, purported proofs of evolution, have long since been uncovered as frauds, the use of embryos in support of evolutionary theory continues to this day. ScienceDaily carries a University of Bath release that explains how a field that is widely identified with Haeckel’s fraud is still fraught with problems today. The story begins on a bad note for evolutionists:

5. Cell Press: “Mutation improves memory, may lead to memory-enhancing pill”
https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2007-04/cp-mim033007.php

Who wouldn’t want it: a mutation that results in “enhanced long-term memory”-in mice, anyway. Researchers writing in Cell examined a gene that typically boosts levels of a protein that prevents memories from forming. Animals with a mutation in this gene have a lower level of the protein, and as a result, outperform their peers in “classical behavioral memory tests.”

Darwinian evolution is based on the idea that many mutations, over a very, very long period of time and shaped through natural selection, could create men out of molecules. The problem: such molecules-to-man evolution would require mutations that increase the genetic information in an organism. Such random, information-increasing mutations have never been observed; indeed, most mutations are both information-decreasing and debilitating. But on occasion, a mutation that destroys information-such as this abnormal mice gene-can have a beneficial result (although, we must note, research hasn’t concluded there are no downsides to this “super memory”). A prime example of a beneficial yet information-destroying mutation is a beetle that loses its wings on a windy island. Yet no matter how many mice become smarter through defective genes (nor how many beetles stay alive due to defective/nonexistent wings), mice won’t be a step closer to being men!

6. Baptist Press: “ABC News looks at ministries that misuse donations”
http://bpnews.net/25327/culture-digest-abc-news-looks-at-ministries-that-misuse-donations-

This week, Baptist Press reports on America’s ABC TV news examination of ministries that misuse donations. Answers in Genesis is mentioned in the article-but as an example of one of the “Top 30 Brightest Shining Light” organizations for last year, as rated by MinistryWatch for trustworthy money-handling last year.

We say this not to brag, but rather to emphasize that we take stewardship very seriously, both in the Creation Museum project and in our ministry as a whole. If you decide to support us, know that your donations-financial or otherwise-will be put to efficient use in fulfilling our mission.