I was saddened to hear of the death, at age 90, of Rev. Dr. John C. Polkinghorne. An incredibly distinguished scholar, he held so many titles that it was impossible for this American to keep up with them, or to … Continue reading
NOTE: In the first article on this topic, I noted that while the COVID-19 vaccines were developed quickly, they weren’t unduly rushed. This article digs deeper into another common concern. Here’s a thought experiment. What if our experience with COVID-19 … Continue reading
In the first month or two of 2020, we had the first hint of a new, strange disease that originated in Wuhan, China. By March, we were locked down in our homes and have lived unprecedented disruptions of normal life … Continue reading
If you want to land on another world, map it first. Since the two Viking missions in the 1970s, we have extensively charted the surface of Mars and the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter spacecraft—equipped with the HiRISE Camera—is now resolving objects … Continue reading
We are in a blessed time now that the medical profession is more likely to heal us than to kill us by its ministrations. In the ancient world, to go to a physician was a gamble, often subjecting patients to … Continue reading
On Christmas Eve, 1968, three humans in the cramped Apollo 8 command module slingshot around the moon. They were the first human beings ever to be in the gravitational sphere of influence of another celestial body. While in lunar orbit, … Continue reading
The man for whom I was named has died. John Glenn, the last of the Mercury astronauts, died on December 9 at age 95. Five decades ago he was launched atop a refurbished Atlas intercontinental ballistic missile that had originally … Continue reading
In 1989, America’s Voyager 2 spacecraft performed a reconnaissance flyby of Neptune, the distant ice giant planet that orbits about three billion miles from the sun. I was in graduate school then, and I stayed up all night watching PBS’s … Continue reading
Editor’s note: As we move on from Snovember—a lengthy stretch of below average temperatures across the country—and into December, we thought it would be a perfect time to discuss the heated topic of climate science. This is the third and final … Continue reading
Editor’s note: This is the second of a series of discussions with Grove City College physicist Dr. Glenn Marsch regarding global warming. In the first Q&A we compared the articles that ran in the New York Times and the Wall Street Journal about how the Obama administration … Continue reading
Editor’s note: After two leading newspapers ran climate-related pieces seemingly at odds with one another, The Center for Vision & Values discussed the contrast with Grove City College physicist Dr. Glenn Marsch. A New York Times article reported that President Obama is pursuing … Continue reading
As Americans nationwide mark Memorial Day, this will be my first Memorial Day without my dad. He was a World War II veteran. Since my father’s passing two months ago, seven years after my mother’s, I consider how both significant … Continue reading
