News to Note, July 28, 2007

1. news@nature.com: “Organic compound found in the stars”

The Search for Terrestrial Intelligence has an important announcement, courtesy of findings published by two teams in Astrophysical Journal:

Thus, the astrobiological announcements carrying the most weight these days ... are decidedly underwhelming to creationists.

Astronomers have found the largest negatively charged molecule so far seen in interstellar space. [...] The molecule is a chain of eight carbons and a single hydrogen called the octatetraynyl anion (C8H¯). Two teams of scientists have spotted it near a dying star and in a cloud of cold gas.

For creationists, the find—while interesting—is clearly a far, far cry from even the most basic form of life imaginable (see Origin of Life for more on this topic). But consider the plight for evolutionists: not only has off-world exploration not turned up little green men, but extraterrestrial excavations on Mars have failed to turn up signs of even basic microbial life forms.

Thus, the astrobiological announcements carrying the most weight these days—such as this indirect discovery of a pre-pre-biotic molecule near a dying star 550 light years away (and another one 450 light years away)—are decidedly underwhelming to creationists.

2. Dinosaurs Contrasted with Birds: Breeding Age

It turns out dinosaur youths may have been promiscuous—or so hints research co-authored by Florida State University evolutionary biologist and paleontologist Gregory Erickson and Science Museum of Minnesota paleontologist Kristina Curry Rogers.

3. Babel for Elephants

Scientists from the U.S., Germany, and Switzerland have “calculated the date at which the African and the Asian elephant went their separate ways”—supposedly some 7.6 million years ago.

4. No Creation for the Pope

From Lorenzago di Cadore, Italy, comes a pronouncement by Pope Benedict XVI that the creation/evolution debate is an “absurdity.” The pope instead reiterated the Holy See’s official approval of evolution, echoing his predecessor that belief in evolution can coexist with faith.

5. LiveScience: “Business Booming at Controversial Creation Museum”

If you heard the news, then let us be the first to confirm that, yes, you heard it right: in the slightly-under-two months our Creation Museum has been open to the public, we’ve presented the true account of world history—and the gospel message—to more than 100,000 visitors.

You can read more about our reaching the milestone in our adapted news release, Something to roar about, as well in the surprisingly fair AP story (carried by LiveScience, as linked above in their "Strange News" section).

We thank God for the visitors He has brought to the museum here in northern Kentucky (near the Cincinnati Airport), and continue to pray for the effect their visits will have in their lives and, consequentially, in the lives of those around them. And if you haven’t yet visited, why not start planning your trip?