ريتشارد دوكنز's Blog, page 169

Atheists’ board invocations help religious freedom

By James Coffin Commissioners on the Brevard County Board of County Commissioners were no doubt stunned when, on July 8, a three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit unanimously declared (Williamson v. Brevard County) that the commissioners’ practice of automatically denying atheists the opportunity to offer solemnizing invocations/reflections at the …

What Boris Johnson’s leadership could mean for science

By Holly Else Boris Johnson has been selected as the United Kingdom’s new prime minister — and is poised to lead the country out of the European Union. At the forefront of many scientists’ minds are questions about how Johnson’s leadership, including his support for a ‘no deal’ Brexit, will affect research. They fear that British …

Christopher Kraft, NASA’s Face and Voice of Mission Control, Dies at 95

By Robert D. McFadden Christopher C. Kraft Jr., the legendary founder of NASA’s mission control, who directed America’s first piloted orbital flights, oversaw the Apollo 11 lunar landing and was director of the Johnson Space Center in Houston, died on Monday in Houston, two days after the 50th anniversary of that historic moment on the moon. …

They Tried to Start a Church Without God. For a While, It Worked.

By Faith Hill When Justina Walford moved to New York City nine years ago, she’d never felt more alone. She’d left behind her Church, her God, and her old city, Los Angeles. Then a secular congregation called Sunday Assembly filled the spiritual void—at least for a time. Walford had just turned 40. As a child, …

Adorable Shark Fits in Your Hand, Looks Like a Mini Sperm Whale

By Mindy Weisberger Tiny, blunt-headed sharks called pocket sharks are so rare that until just a few years ago, only one individual had ever been collected from the southeastern Pacific Ocean. And now, that lonely shark finally has company. Researchers with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) caught a second pocket shark in 2010 …

Georgia GOP Lawmaker Used Legal Loophole to Help Molesting Priest Avoid Prison

By Hemant Mehta In 2012, Ohio preacher Jason Brothers stayed at the home of a family in Georgia when he was giving a guest sermon at North Mt. Zion Church of God in Hiawassee. When the family’s 14-year-old girl got up for a drink of water that night, Brothers, who was in a wheelchair due to his …

Another State Could Soon Insert Anti-Abortion Propaganda Into Public Schools

By Erin Heger As GOP-majority state legislatures pass laws aimed at drastically restricting access to abortion care, Republican lawmakers are seeking to control education and public messaging about abortion, pregnancy, and reproductive health. Ohio Republicans are pushing a measure that would create a public school curriculum infusing anti-abortion languageinto health and science education standards and restricting students’ access …

Vatican bans W.Va. bishop accused of sexual and financial misconduct from public ministry

By Michael Brice-Saddler The Vatican on Friday announced sanctions against retired West Virginia bishop Michael Bransfield, but stopped short of defrocking him, after investigating accusations of sexual harassment and financial misconduct. The sanctions, ordered by Pope Francis and detailed in a letter posted to the Diocese of Wheeling-Charleston’s website, prohibit Bransfield from public ministry and from …

Half a century after Apollo, why haven’t we been back to the Moon?

By Eric Berger The 50th anniversary of NASA’s historic landing on the Moon—this Saturday, July 20th—provokes a decidedly bittersweet feeling. Certainly, this marks an appropriate time to pause and celebrate a singular moment in our shared history, the first time humans ever set foot on another world. Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin, and Michael Collins really …

Trump’s USDA buried sweeping climate change response plan

By Helena Bottemiller Evich The Agriculture Department quashed the release of a sweeping plan on how to respond to climate change that was finalized in the early days of the Trump administration, according to a USDA employee with knowledge of the decision. Staff members across several USDA agencies drafted the multiyear plan that outlines how …