ريتشارد دوكنز's Blog, page 124

Quantum Teleportation Reported in a Qutrit For The First Time

By David Nield Earlier this year, we celebrated a first in the field of quantum physics: scientists were able to ‘teleport’ a qutrit, or a piece of quantum information based on three states, opening up a whole host of new possibilities for quantum computing and communication. Up until then, quantum teleportation had only been managed with qubits, albeit over impressively …

British Columbia Pastafarian Files Human Rights Complaint Regarding Religious Headgear

By Val Wilde How can you tell if a person’s religious beliefs are sincere enough to merit accommodation in law? And who gets to decide? The case of Gary Smith revolves around that very question. The Grand Forks resident and ordained Pastafarian minister has come into conflict with the Insurance Corporation of British Columbia (ICBC) after they declined …

Journalist leaves Christian Post amid its plans to attack Christianity Today

By Sarah Pulliam Bailey The decision by Christianity Today to publish an editorial describing President Trump as “immoral” and calling for his removal drew immediate rebuke from the president himself, who called the outlet “a far left magazine.” The piece drew nearly 3 million unique visitors to the magazine’s website and became the talk of …

A major funder of the anti-vaccine movement has made millions selling natural health products

By Neena Satija and Lena H. Sun The nation’s oldest anti-vaccine advocacy group often emphasizes that it is supported primarily by small donations and concerned parents, describing its founder as the leader of a “national, grass roots movement.” But over the past decade a single donor has contributed more than $2.9 million to the National Vaccine Information …

A New Secularism Is Appearing in Islam

By Mustafa Akyol For decades, social scientists studying Islam discussed whether this second biggest religion of the world would go through the major transformation that the biggest one, Christianity, went through: secularization. Would Islam also lose its hegemony over public life, to become a mere one among various voices, not the dominant one, in Muslim …

Louisiana Church Filled A Plane With Holy Water And Blessed A Whole Community

By Bobby Allyn A Roman Catholic church in rural Louisiana hoping to maximize its blessings has come up with a way to do it: filling up a crop-duster plane with holy water and letting the sanctified liquid mist an entire community. “We can bless more area in a shorter amount of time,” Rev. Matthew Barzare …

Do humanists celebrate Christmas? Ethical humanist Anne Klaeysen on holiday spirit

By Emily McFarlan Miller The war on Christmas is over — if you want it, according to Anne Klaeysen, leader emerita of the New York Society for Ethical Culture. Even the idea that there’s a war on Christmas is “antithetical to the holiday spirit, whether it’s Hanukkah or Christmas or Kwanzaa,” Klaeysen said. “(The holiday spirit) …

The Bransfield report: Post publishes secret Vatican document as parishioners demand answers

By Shawn Boburg, Robert O’Harrow Jr., and Michelle Boorstein For months, civil authorities and Catholic parishioners have sought access to a secret church report about Michael J. Bransfield, the West Virginia bishop ousted for alleged sexual and financial misconduct. Law enforcement authorities in two jurisdictions contend that it could aid investigations they have launched, and …

What We Learned in Space and Astronomy News in 2019

By The New York Times It’s not easy to say that any particular space or astronomy development was the most important in a given year. But if we had to choose some highlights, we’d opt for these unforgettable events and findings. We saw the unseeable You’ve seen black holes in science fiction movies and in …

Whistleblower Alleges $100B Hoarding Scandal by LDS Church; But There’s an Easy Fix

By Andrew L. Seidel The Mormon church’s recently unearthed $100 billion stash should tell Congress it’s time to close the absurd loophole that allows churches to misuse and abuse their tax exemption. American taxpayers should demand as much and Congress should find the political courage to act. With some apparently shady maneuvering, the Church of Jesus …