This Week in Science

post from Daily Kos on 04 July 2009 10:16:05 AM. © Daily Kos

Last week a group of paleo-biologists from all over the world visited that crowning fundamentalist temple of insular self indulgence, the Creationist Museum. Here there be dinosaurs wearing saddles, toothy raptors peacefully munching veggies next to Adam and Eve, and everywhere you look posters and exhibits lay the blame for mankind's greatest sins on evolution. Some of the scientists chuckled, others were confused, and educated Americans from every political background could only hang our heads in shame-by-proxy:

"It's sort of a monument to scientific illiteracy, isn't it?" said Jerry Lipps, professor of geology, paleontology and evolution at University of California, Berkeley.

There have been many reviews of the creationist theme park and gift shop. Some funny, many informative, and each depressing in its own way. But the most hilarious and -- I'm warning you -- ruthlessly irreverent such article of all time has to be this one.

Meanwhile, Pat Buchanan channeled the ghost of Jerry Falwell in an anti-evolution screed so hoary, so egregiously bad, that it was panned by a number of conservatives.

Any piece that starts like this is going to be good:

It was probably inevitable. Given the mileage progressives got out of slamming the Bush administration for abusing science, conservatives were bound to bring parallel charges against the Obama administration.

Igor Derysh has a brief and critical look at ACES well worth reading:

The bill allows companies to skimp on the set standards of the bill and allows them to miss the milestone goals. That's like telling your child "you're not allowed to drive, but if you drive for less than two hours it's ok."

For all its amazing abilities, the number one mortal flaw in vertebrate physiology is our single, beating heart. Researchers have now identified the master stem cell that could one day be harnessed to grow new cardiac components, or even whole new tickers.