An Ohio 8th-grade creationist science teacher with a habit of branding crosses on his students' arms has been fired, after a long and tedious process and a lawsuit that cost the school district some big bucks.

The referee who evaluated the case for termination nicely summed up in one sentence (PDF) exactly what you can't do when you're a public school science teacher:

...He persisted in his attempts to make eighth grade science what he thought it should be - an examination of accepted scientific curriculum with the discerning eye of Christian Doctrine.

In ancient times, when things went wrong in battle or the economy, people blamed leaders (if they didn't like them) or the Gods (if they liked the leaders) but maybe they should have blamed global warming.   Errr, and cooling.

A new study in Science uses the same techniques as dendrochronology to map the rise and fall of empires and cultures as it was recorded in tree rings - and then to weather conditions.

It is well known among those who study schizophrenia that speech which does not reflect the true underlying reality produces the kinds of violent and crazy reactions displayed by the assassin of Tucsan. When we can no longer trust that the words our elected representatives, that our public servants, say are true and reflective of their beliefs, a deliberative and representative democracy can no longer function, and it will necessarily devolve into a system where might equals right and violence becomes a preferred means of political expression.

Last week I told you how to get your degree.  Now it's time to look at the life of a working scientist.  It's time for me to answer oft-asked questions like:

• What is a scientist's regular day at work like?
• What do you do?
• Where do you do it-- office, home, et cetera?
• Do you work alone or with others in the same enviornment?
• What got you interested in science?
• Was it easy to get a job?
• Around how much can i expect to earn?
• How many hours do you work a day?
• Do you feel you have enough time to spend with your family?

Why are we forked creatures instead of tumbling beach balls of undifferentiated cells?

An embryo begins by dividing into identical cells, but within hours these cells begin to make genetic decisions, turning off some genes and turning on others. So the ball of cells acquires a front end and a back end, a top and a bottom, nerve cells and muscles cells, all still carrying the same DNA, but DNA now packaged in such a way that some genes are shrink wrapped and silent but others are spread-eagled for easy access and active.