The Lake Malawi Sediment Chronometer and the Toba Super Eruption

Mt St Helens, Washington State

The site of one of the largest volcanic eruptions in earth’s history, the effects of the Toba Super Eruption have been of considerable interest to archaeologists and anthropologists because of its potential impacts on past human populations.   New research exploring the Toba Super Eruption (Sumatra) has been published since I explored the implications of the […]

Implications of Artifacts and Bones on Ancient Human Butchery Practices

A small antelope leg bone with cut marks, indicative of early human butchery practices with stone tools. The tools for making these cuts where also found in the same area. (Credit: Image courtesy of Baylor University)

A recently published study is making news the last couple of days. It regards evidence obtained from remains of preserved bones of human scavenging and/or hunting practices.   The site of the dig is a hillside in southern Kenya where, in less than an acre, more than 3700 fossils and more than 2000 artifacts have been recovered […]

NH Notes: Gall Mites in Amber Similar but Not the Same As Today

Preserved gall mites in amber found encased in rocks at the base of mountains in Italy.

Today Creation.com (Creation Ministries International) published a story about the amazing preservation of clearly identifiable gall mites.   My Facebook feed proclaimed the following:    ”Gall mites magnificently preserved in amber ostensibly 230 million years old are just the same as mites found alive today” with a link to the story HERE.   The gist of the article […]

The Fake Fringes: How I Fell Victim to an Internet Parody

aquatic-child-ape-theory

This is a bit embarrassing but I think instructive so I am going to share how I discovered that I have been utterly fooled by a parody web site for many years.  Last week I wrote about the importance of understanding that even fringe groups have fringes (see:  Human Fossil Footprints: Exploring the Fringes of […]

The State of Creationism as Viewed by Google Trends

Google trends comparison of search terms "evolution and creation" "creation vs evolution" and "theory of creation."  Image credit: Google trends and TheNaturalHistorian.com

Just how much interest is there in various forms of creationism and has that interest been increasing or decreasing? There have been many polls that that have addressed this question over the past several decades. These polls generally suggest that attitudes toward the age of the earth, the origin of man and evolution have not […]

NH Notes: Answers in Genesis and a Mountain of Extraterrestrial Dust

mars-whole-planet

How long would it take for falling dust to accumulate into a mound 2 1/2 miles tall?  Answers in Genesis has commented (Wind, not water, may have built the Martian Mount Sharp) over the weekend on the same research article that I referenced in my post last week (NH Notes: Did Wind and Dust Create a […]

Human Fossil Footprints: Exploring the Fringes of Creationism

This is a human fossil footprint from Ileret, Kenya.  This footprint is widely accepted as an authentic footprint fossil  (center) beside a foot (right) and color-contoured 3D laser scan image (left) of the print.  This fossil was found in relatively young rock that is thought to have formed from a volcanic ash event after which someone walked across the new ash prior to its preservation. (Credit: Brian Richmond/George Washington University)

A friend of mine recently gave me a book that he had found at a local library book sale knowing that I have an interest in creationists’ books.  The book was entitled Evolution and Human Fossil Footprints by Aaron Judkins. I knew right away that the focus of the book was probably on the Paluxy […]

NH Notes: Context is Key For Interpreting Large Fossil Find in Spain

Killer-cave-may-have-enticed-then-trapped-ancient-carnivores

One small site in Spain has yielded 1800 fossil bones from at least 18 species of extinct large animals. That is the update today about a fossil site that has been under investigation for 10 years.  The site represents one of the best sites for fossil carnivores because of the unique circumstances under which it […]

They Have the Gene but Blood is Not Sweet Nectar to the Vampire Bat

vampire-bat

In my class yesterday I reviewed a paper selected by my students that explored the sweet tasting abilities of bats.  We learned that most, but not all, bats can taste sugar like other mammals.   I did not know much about mammalian taste receptors (that is one problems with letting students pick the topics!) and I […]

Equines of the Bible: Horse Series Part V

A photo from the Pech Merle Prehistory Center shows a cave painting of pair of spotted horses, found in the Pech Merle Cave in Cabrerets, southern France. Scientists estimate the drawing, measuring about four metres wide by 1.5 metres high, is about 25,000 years old. Source: AP

Thus far in this series  about horses we have we have explored some of the  interpretations of the fossil record of horses and demonstrated the difficulty of defining the boundaries of species of modern horses.   We have seen that evolutionary theory and most modern young earth creationists propose that the domestic horse, the donkey […]

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