Blessing 2024

There's plenty of reason to be worried about the New Year--health scares, corruption, dishonesty in public life, crime . . you know that the list could go on for pages. Anxiety could overwhelm us if we let it.

We're not blind to the frightening possibilities. But as people of faith, we know where to take those concerns. We remember that God is (quoting from The Chosen) "King of the Universe." And he loves us.

For sure, we will bring our loved ones as well our neighborhoods and countries and the world to God in prayer. Now.

Space plane 4

Follow-up to this subject

United States Space Force space plane X-37B was successfully launched into orbit last night by SpaceX from Florida. Falcon Heavy's two outer boosters successfully landed back on earth after booster separation, the 257th and 258th successful landings of an orbital class rocket.

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X37-B is an un-crewed orbital test vehicle which will likely stay in space for months or years, testing the performance of certain equipment. Then it will glide back down to earth.

SpaceX itself was started to make humans interplanetary. To achieve that goal, it was absolutely essential to figure out how to make rockets reusable. 

from Space

Meaning 5

(cont'd from yesterday's post)

"There is no evidence of design or purpose to our universe," according to Lawrence Krauss.

Really, Dr. Krauss? No evidence that our universe is finely tuned? No hints that our planet is not just habitable for humans but that it's actually hospitable to humans?

He's unable to think outside his materialist box. Because if you're open to the possibility, there's a lot of evidence for the hand of a designer. But if you're determined to not see the evidence, then you won't see the evidence.

(cont'd tomorrow)

Meaning 4

(cont'd from last week)

Origin of life research, trying to answer the question of how the very first living cell began, has been going on for at least fifty years. Instead of finding the answer, the more science discovers about the living cell, the worse the complications get.

It's like a "factory that contains an elaborate network of interlocking assembly lines, each of which is composed of a set of large protein machines.” 

But the cell goes far beyond the function of a factory. Cells replicate themselves.

We're all messy

Maybe you tried hard to prepare for this day, to give your family/guests the best Christmas you could. Well, good for you! You tried to remember all the details, plan good food and pick good presents. Me too. You wanted to create something beautiful.

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Some say you're just trying to impress people with your curated social media image. But not me. Your good intentions are just that, they're good. On the other hand (as you already know), you have weaknesses and you're not perfect. Your holiday will not be perfect.

Fallen, broken people are the reason God put on a human body and came to live with us. Jesus Christ is the way we can become children of God-- if we want that. 

Have reasonable expectations for your Christmas Day. You're not perfect. God knows you very well. Come to him just as you are, not as you wish you were.

from Stream

Rockin' #1

When Brenda Lee recorded her "Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree," she couldn't have known it would still be popular 65 years later. Not only popular, but her song is #1 on the "Hot 100." She's the most mature musician ever to do that.

Music icons are a small world. She's friends with Dolly Parton, Tanya Tucker, Trisha Yearwood. Mariah Carey sent flowers and congratulations.

On a plane recently, the passengers asked her to sing it:

"We had a lot of turbulence on that flight, and everybody was really nervous. Somebody said, “Brenda, get up and sing “Rockin’!” Before I’d even thought about it, I was up singing. I don't like flying, but that was a fun time for me."

She put out a new video too:

Merry Christmas to you!

from Yahoo

Meaning 3

(cont'd from yesterday's post)

Human beings do consist of material things: blood, bone, muscle, fat, etc. But most of us believe we are more than material. We have dreams, values, choices, loves, convictions - in short, we have a mind that goes beyond the physics and chemistry of our brain.

You are not just a collection of body parts. You are more.

(cont'd next week)

Meaning 2

(cont'd from yesterday's post)

Back in the 1970's, popular scientist Carl Sagan was speaking with conviction to millions of people on tv, standing in a place of breathtaking beauty, when he famously said:

"The cosmos is all that is, or ever was, and or ever will be." 

But most people don't really believe the material cosmos (universe) is all there is. "It's the point of view - the faith - of a materialist. . . His claim is backed by charisma, rhetoric, and celebrity prestige. But not by facts."

How much of reality does that point of view leave out? A lot - the conviction and experience of millions of people throughout history, as the 6-minute video below explains.

(cont'd tomorrow)

Meaning 1

Science can tell us about the structure of planets, plants and animals, and about the physical laws that direct their behavior. But it's silent about why they exist. 

We human beings look for the meaning of things. We want to understand and know the truth.  We're looking for the reason behind the facts. All of us routinely ask "why?" Scientist Albert Einstein himself asked why the universe is the way it is and couldn't answer that question.

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Dr. John Lennox likes to use his example of a tea pot. Science can tell us the facts about H2O molecules, the temperature at which water boils, how long it will take, and more.  But only he can tell us why he's heating water. The answer is: he wants a cup of tea.

Some materialists would like us to agree with them that there's no purpose or meaning to reality, just the brute scientific facts: "[T]here is, at bottom, no design, no purpose, no evil, no good, nothing but blind, pitiless indifference.

But people are not wired that way. We all know there is more.

(cont'd tomorrow)

Plagiarist 2

(cont'd from last Friday's post)

A member of the faculty at the University of Cambridge had something to say about the scandal of leadership in process at Harvard University in the U.S. 

"Claudine Gay is President of Harvard for the same reason she's allowed to commit plagiarism. She's at the top of the left's new racial and gender hierarchy, and she supports its program to create a new intellectual monoculture that discriminates against white, Asians, and men, and which outright bans conservatives . . .

"There will be little appetite among Gay's peers to hold her accountable for anything. Unsurprisingly, the members of the Harvard Corporation released a statement holding that Gay did nothing wrong and that they 'unanimously stand in support' of her.

"And why shouldn't they? Gay has done everything she was hired to do, namely, to be black, to be a woman, and to enforce woke orthodoxy."

From post on X

Space plane 2

SpaceX has announced the next possible launch date for U.S. Space Force's upcoming mission, USSF-52.

Falcon Heavy will lift off on the evening of Thursday, December 28, or Friday, December 29.

from SpaceX

Plagiarist

Maybe you are following the uproar over university presidents who can't bring themselves to say that genocide is always a bad thing. For the president of Harvard University, the spotlight on her testimony in Congress raised more issues.

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Dr. Claudine Gay used to be the Dean of Arts and Sciences before she was promoted to president. In that capacity, she denounced the plagiarism of 27 students who were then kicked out. Disappointingly, it turns out that she has a double standard: when they did it, that was bad; but when she did it, that was fine.

Former Vanderbilt professor Dr. Carol Swain is one scholar whose work Gay used but did not give credit to. Swain believes that standards for tenure are lower today. "I don’t believe her record warranted tenure, and I believe that I had to meet a much higher standard than she did."

In Swain's opinion, it's a case of "affirmative action." That's a privilege granted because of race rather than actual merit. As she says, "A white male would probably already be gone."

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from Christopher Rufo interview of Dr. Swain

EV materials 2

(cont'd from yesterday's post)

Nobody is ready to dispense with modern technology, in spite of problems with their components. Rare earth metals are essential in the motor (not the battery) of electric vehicles, as well as in lots of modern devices like smartphones and wind turbines. They can be both toxic to people and the  environment, and radioactive. 

Most global production of these elements is controlled by China which is moving to increase their hold on the global market. They can use their dominance to achieve political goals.

What's a company to do? They sure won't quit manufacturing modern tech.

General Motors says they are "deeply committed to an all-electric future," so last month they announced a plan to solve the dilemma of rare earths, replacing them with magnets from Niron Magnetics which are not toxic, cost less, and are US-made. Their "Clean Air Magnet" appears on TIME's list of 2023 best inventions.

EV materials 1

As of 2023's third quarter, electric vehicles took 7.9% of the market, a new record. Tesla Motors still leads the field while other companies take an increasing share. EV's are exciting because of their benefits (like in traffic), but problems still exist. Some relate to the materials used in production.

Years ago Tesla set a goal to use less cobalt in its batteries. It's very expensive, the global supply may be declining, and children work the mines to get it in Africa. All good reasons to find an alternative. They've been working on solutions for at least six years.

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Cobalt contributes to the driving distance range of an EV battery (obviously important to the electric vehicle market) so results started in the standard-range models which use less.

As of a report on the first quarter of 2022, "nearly half of Tesla vehicles produced in Q1 were equipped with a lithium iron phosphate (LFP) battery containing no nickel or cobalt." It's progress.

(cont'd tomorrow)

Note: SpaceX has delayed the launch of USSF-52 to a date TBA

Launch delay

(cont'd from yesterday's post)

For the second time, SpaceX has delayed the launch of NASA's space plane, United States Space Force's USSF-52 mission. Tonight (8:14 pm EST) I'll be watching.

From their website:

"This will be the fifth launch and landing of these Falcon Heavy side boosters . . . Following booster separation, Falcon Heavy's two side boosters will land on SpaceX's Landing Zones 1 and 2 (LZ-1 and LZ-2) at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida." 

Those two side boosters on Falcon Heavy do look like they've seen duty.

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(cont'd this evening)

Note: another delay

Space plane 1

You may suppose that NASA's Space Shuttle (1972-2011) was unique in its design, but it is just one in the category of "space planes." They are launched by a rocket and then glide on their wings back to earth.

NASA has launched the reusable space plane X-37B six times, but SpaceX launched it for the first time yesterday.

Falcon Heavy is the launcher.

image

from Space

update: launch re-scheduled for tonight at 8:14 pm

(cont'd tomorrow)

EV mandate

Our government is solidly behind electric vehicles, probably for the climate connection. (The climate argument for EV's is not clear to me yet, since swapping gas for electricity will not eliminate fossil fuel use when electric power plants still use fossil fuels. Am I missing something? I welcome your comment.)

In fact, the current administration wants to force the issue. They mandated (an order, a command) what type of car citizens should drive and car companies should manufacture in the future.

                                       

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But the House of Representatives rejected it two days ago.

According to its sponsor, the "Choice in Automobile Retail Sales Act of 2023" will:

"put a stop to this executive overreach, allowing consumers to have the freedom to decide what car works best for them and their families and preventing auto manufacturers from being forced to meet unrealistic mandates driven by the President’s Green New Deal agenda.”

Traffic jams 2

(cont'd from yesterday's post)

Japanese physicists set up an experiment in 2008 to study traffic. Even with every driver trying to drive a consistent speed, "jamitons" occurred - waves of slowing traffic, though there is no obstacle. Watch the pattern:

Recently researchers re-created the experiment . . but with one difference. An autonomous car was included. After jamitons started forming, the self-driving feature was activated on the one autonomous car, and it changed the pattern.

"What this means in reality is that the presence of just one autonomous car can reduce congestion for all drivers . . "

Practical improvements? According to researchers' calculations, reducing excessive braking will result in a 40% reduction in fuel consumption, and the throughput of the road goes up by about 14%.

Traffic jams 1

 2017 Re-post

When you're in a traffic jam, you guess there's a crash or an obstacle ahead. But then traffic starts moving normally again, you see no crash, and you may be a little annoyed as you think, "wait, so nothing caused this delay??"

There's a term for it: phantom traffic jam. It's caused by one car slowing for any reason, resulting in everyone behind him/her having to slow down even more, then speed up to catch the traffic again, etc., etc., resulting in a wave of slow downs. Call them jamitons.

The maker of this video says the solution to jams is for every driver to keep an equal distance from the cars in front and behind. But can we drivers actually do that? Not really. So the ultimate solution suggested is . . NO humans driving!

And that means autonomous cars, or self-driving cars. 

CNN propaganda

Americans' don't trust newspapers or television news. 

The last time a majority of us said that they had confidence in newspapers was back in the last century. Gallup reported (2022) that only 16% have it now. Confidence in tv news is even lower, just 11%. Most of us have little or none.

Somehow we've picked up on the fact that impartial reporting is long gone, replaced by propaganda. Here's a CNN staffer confirming it:

"Our focus was to get Trump out of office . . I think that's propaganda . . and we did it." 

from Gallup News

 

Fame-driven

Eric Metaxas is always entertaining, but serious as well. In this interview he and his guest talk about the powerful drive for fame. Some people achieve it. Are they satisfied? For those who succeed at that goal, it's often extremely disappointing. 

They urge us to take our lives seriously, to respond to a drive that means something. God's ideas are better.

"Do not envy these people!"

Dr. Tour's story

His credentials, awards, positions, inventions, patents, professional papers are so numerous that I'm not going to list them for you. They're easy to google. This is one of the premier scientists in the world.

Given the materialist worldview so predominant among scientists, it might surprise you that Dr. James Tour is a born-again Christian. He doesn't hide it. Check out his website.

Raised in New York City among a Jewish family, he transitioned to Christian faith as a freshman in college. If your curiosity is raised about how that happened, watch him explain briefly while he also talks about his love of working at the level of molecules: "When I discover things, I see the hand of God."