Sunspots 695

Things I have recently spotted that may be of interest to someone else:

Christianity: Relevant, and other sources, report that China is attacking Christians and churches, and other religions, too. In another report, China is blocking on-line Christian services.

Richard Mouw, in Sojourners, argues against uncritical support for Israel, and claims that the Bible does not teach such support.

Some prominent Christians have recently argued that Christians have no business trying to work for social justice. Russell Moore, of the Southern Baptist Convention, begs to differ.


Food: Listverse has posted 10 little-known facts about Avocados.

In case you didn't know it, cacao (the plant that chocolate comes from) is susceptible to plant diseases. Scientific American reports on attempts to find resistant cacao plants.

Gizmodo on whether breakfast cereal is good for us or not.

Politics: Not a surprise. Scientific American reports that more people are killed by active shooters when they are using semi-automatic weapons.

Earther reports that, as Hurricane Florence neared landfall, President Trump called the government's response to Hurricane Maria, in Puerto Rico, an "unsung success," in spite of plenty of contrary evidence. Then, later, he claimed that the death toll, about 3,000, was a figure made up by Democrats, to make him look bad.

The Trump administration is in process of relaxing regulations on institutions that lend money to military personnel, and has done so without consulting the Pentagon, which is opposed to these changes, according to National Public Radio.

Relevant reports that the number of Christian refugees entering the US has fallen sharply under the Trump administration.

(Not really politics, I hope) Gizmodo reports that a system is being developed to allow the President to send a warning text message to every cell phone in the US, in case of terrorist attacks, weather disasters, and the like.

Science: Barrier islands in the Atlantic Ocean, which protect North and South Carolina from some hurricane damage, are disappearing, says Scientific American.

Gizmodo reports that there is a plan in place to sequence the DNA of all living vertebrate species, about 66,000.

Earther reports on a typhoon that was stronger than Florence, at about the same time.

Scientific American reports on a study that indicates that people who are new to us dislike us less than we think they do.

Thanks for looking!

Sunspots 690

Things I have recently spotted that may be of interest to someone else:

Christianity: Relevant on what to do when you don't like reading the Bible.

Relevant also tells us that we never marry the right person, in an excerpt from a book by Timothy Keller.

And Relevant has an article on the dangers of trying to please people.

BioLogos has posted quotes from some important Christians who believed that evolution and Christian faith were compatible.


Computing: New Scientist reports on a study of on-line dating behavior: what age persons get most inquiries, and more.

History: Listverse tells us about some ancient (mostly prehistoric) household items, including the first toy car.


Politics: National Public Radio reports that the Trump administration is in the process of taking away regulations that would protect military personnel from predatory lending practices.

Science: I am not making this up. Some scientists have recently been considering what the earth would be like if it was made of blueberries. How would it form, etc.? See here, here, and especially here.

Thanks for looking!

Image source (public domain)

Sunspots 570

Things I have recently spotted that may be of interest to someone else:

The Arts: (And science) Wired reports on the creation of some 3-D virus trading cards. You read that correctly.

Christianity: Ken Schenck on the command to not steal.

Christianity Today reports on a church in Texas that has attacked predatory lenders, and mostly won.

Computing: Relevant has an essay on the effect of pornography on society, and how some non-Christians are trying to stop wide-spread use of pornography. "...porn culture offers an accessible, instant kind of sex but in the end leaves you with no sex at all. God offers sex that requires self-sacrifice and covenant, and it brings far more than just sex."

Gizmo's Freeware on the best video player for Android information appliances.

Gizmo's also notes a free tool that gives you all kinds of specifications of your Windows computer. (My motherboard is currently running at from 55-60 degrees C, for example.)

The Environment: (Or something) Wired has an article on the many ways that space under elevated highways is being used.

Science: Wired reports on a woman who "has no episodic memories—none of those impressionistic recollections that feel a bit like scenes from a movie, always filmed from your perspective."

Wired also reports on a quadriplegic who, with help from a brain implant, is able to control some of his movements by thinking about doing them.

Listverse describes 10 carnivorous plants and fungi that you probably didn't know about. Some of them are pretty gross.

Listverse also describes 10 amazing moth facts. Some of them are pretty gross, too. All are interesting.

From Discover: Fairy wrens teach their chicks a "password" while they are in the egg, which helps the parents to not feed brood parasites.


Image source (public domain)

Sunspots 524

Things I have recently spotted that may be of interest to someone else:

Computing: Windows 10 is supposed to be out next month, free on computers with Windows 7 or 8. Gizmo's Freeware tells Windows users what to do if you don't want to upgrade to the new operating system.


Education: National Public Radio reports on a public school kindergarten teacher in Vermont, who has been taking her kids outside, one day a week, all day, regardless of the weather.


Politics: (or philosophy, or The Law) NPR reports that the legal status of chimpanzees is still undecided -- it is possible that they may be granted some legal rights, following a trial. (The judge hadn't ruled yet, at the time of the report.)


Christianity Today reports that evangelical Christians, including the Southern Baptist Convention, are starting to fight against predatory lending. (Some predatory lenders charge 300% annual interest.)


Science: Wired reports on why road rage is so common.


NPR reports that the use of embryo transfer techniques is fairly common in cows. Some "elite" cows have numerous offspring, but have never given birth themselves -- surrogates do this.



Image source (public domain)