The movie 'million Dollar Baby? is, in many ways, a wonderful piece of drama, well acted, and well presented, and also a tribute to the skills of its director, but its message is dismal. A female boxer from Missouri takes a terrible beating and winds up brain-damaged. She wants to commit suicide and with the help of her coach she does so. The message: if you don't like life, drop out.
The movie is, in many points, very similar to events in the life of a real person, Katie Dallam, a Missouri girl who grew up in poverty. In 1996 she began boxing and after two months her trainer entered her in a professional match. Four rounds later she was comatose before she reached hospital. The doctors told Katie's sister 'she probably won't make it, and, if she did, would most likely be a vegetable.?
But Katie survived, relearned to walk and read, despite blurred vision and poor memory. For a short time she was depressed and she tried to end her life but instead of helping her, as in the movie, Katie's sister moved Katie into her home. Katie became optimistic and started painting. When Katie saw the movie she had nightmares, but it led to her to start speaking to others with brain injuries, encouraging and helping them to make the most of the life they still had.
Another similar case is that of Joni Eareckson Tada, a quadriplegic who . . .
Wonders of Creation
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Here is how an evolutionist reports a discovery:
?Ancient butterflies exquisitely preserved in amber hint that the winged insects evolved far earlier than previously thought. They may even have fluttered around the heads of dinosaurs, more than 65 million years ago.
'the oldest butterfly fossils found in rocks suggest they evolved about 40 or 50 million years ago. But the amber specimens, although just 15 to 25 million years old, have changed that view . . . the amber pieces come from the Dominican Republic and each contains a metalmark butterfly, which is now extinct. ?It was just incredible,? says Robert Bobbins of the Smithsonian Institution in Washington DC. ?It's no different than if you took a modern-day butterfly and put it under a light microscope.? (New Scientist March 2004)
Here's how a creationist might report the same thing:
?We have found some butterflies preserved in amber. They probably lived in the same general area where all the dinosaurs lived, since all living things were created within the same creation week. Some dead butterflies have also been found, preserved in sedimentary rock. This rock was probably formed . . .
?Ancient butterflies exquisitely preserved in amber hint that the winged insects evolved far earlier than previously thought. They may even have fluttered around the heads of dinosaurs, more than 65 million years ago.
'the oldest butterfly fossils found in rocks suggest they evolved about 40 or 50 million years ago. But the amber specimens, although just 15 to 25 million years old, have changed that view . . . the amber pieces come from the Dominican Republic and each contains a metalmark butterfly, which is now extinct. ?It was just incredible,? says Robert Bobbins of the Smithsonian Institution in Washington DC. ?It's no different than if you took a modern-day butterfly and put it under a light microscope.? (New Scientist March 2004)
Here's how a creationist might report the same thing:
?We have found some butterflies preserved in amber. They probably lived in the same general area where all the dinosaurs lived, since all living things were created within the same creation week. Some dead butterflies have also been found, preserved in sedimentary rock. This rock was probably formed . . .
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Was there water on Mars, and why is it so important to know?
The first of these questions can be answered with an almost certain "Yes". There is a lot of evidence which points to the conclusion that Mars used to have large amounts of water flowing about on its surface - as was reported at a recent Lunar and Planetary Science Conference where some 1,200 scientists gathered to compare notes.
The general picture is one of a planet once encircled by briny, acidic lakes and rivers.
Some general evidence includes layering of sediments, and what appear to be dried up river and stream beds, but these could have been formed by other forces.
Steven Squyres, lead scientist for the two Mars rovers (Spirit and Opportunity) spoke about what looked like the effect of water-flow at Meridiani Planum, and Gusev crater. He described the discovery of haematite (meaning red), a mineral usually found in the presence of water. Haematite forms as mineral-rich water flows through layers of loose sediments. The same mineral concretions have been found in the arid Navajo sandstone formations of Utah, where very briny . . .
The first of these questions can be answered with an almost certain "Yes". There is a lot of evidence which points to the conclusion that Mars used to have large amounts of water flowing about on its surface - as was reported at a recent Lunar and Planetary Science Conference where some 1,200 scientists gathered to compare notes.
The general picture is one of a planet once encircled by briny, acidic lakes and rivers.
Some general evidence includes layering of sediments, and what appear to be dried up river and stream beds, but these could have been formed by other forces.
Steven Squyres, lead scientist for the two Mars rovers (Spirit and Opportunity) spoke about what looked like the effect of water-flow at Meridiani Planum, and Gusev crater. He described the discovery of haematite (meaning red), a mineral usually found in the presence of water. Haematite forms as mineral-rich water flows through layers of loose sediments. The same mineral concretions have been found in the arid Navajo sandstone formations of Utah, where very briny . . .
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When a baby is born, all it knows is the warmth and security of its womb, but suddenly it has a whole new universe to understand. From inside its basinet, the world appears to be inhabited by giants, which loom over the sky and smile down, but soon the baby knows there is a room around its bed, and that room is just one of many. When the child begins to walk it discovers the house, and the house next door. In time it learns about the town, the city, the land, and the globe. It learns that Earth is just an infinitesimal speck in a limitless universe and that Man is still reaching out, trying to understand his place in a thing so big he cannot measure it.
The same thing has happened at the other end of the scale. When atoms were discovered, it seemed that all material things were made of invisible 'dots? of energy, but then subatomic particles were identified. Now the list of parts discovered in the atom is quite large, and a new possibility has emerged, called 'string theory?. And just when it looked like this was the end of discovery in this area, ?quantum physics? appeared. The funny thing is, if anyone says they understand quantum physics, they probably don't.
Quantum physics defies our common sense. It suggests (among several other weird things) that the universe is full of ?entangled? particles. In practice, this means that if you alter the physical properties of a particle on . . .
The same thing has happened at the other end of the scale. When atoms were discovered, it seemed that all material things were made of invisible 'dots? of energy, but then subatomic particles were identified. Now the list of parts discovered in the atom is quite large, and a new possibility has emerged, called 'string theory?. And just when it looked like this was the end of discovery in this area, ?quantum physics? appeared. The funny thing is, if anyone says they understand quantum physics, they probably don't.
Quantum physics defies our common sense. It suggests (among several other weird things) that the universe is full of ?entangled? particles. In practice, this means that if you alter the physical properties of a particle on . . .
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How often has someone convinced you to say yes to something when you really did not want to? There are some very clever ploys at large, which can persuade even the toughest individuals to change their minds, but how do the persuaders do it?
The scientific study of social influence began about the time of WW II, when public information, propaganda and persuasion programs began in earnest. One scientist who has studied the phenomena for about 30 years is Robert Cialdini. He discovered that there are six basic tendencies that help govern our response to a request ? reciprocation, consistency, social validation, liking, authority and scarcity.
Reciprocation plays on a human desire to give back to someone who first gives to us. For example, when the Disabled American Veterans mail out requests for money, they usually get an 18% response, but this doubles if they include some free, personalized address labels. Receiving a gift seems to obligate us to give something in return. This is why we frequently receive free samples, of gifts, tokens, vouchers and so on with product promotions.
Consistency has to do with an expectation of a person's integrity. If a person says they will give money, they usually do. If a person says they will use the table they have reserved in a restaurant, they usually . . .