All posts filed under: Science

Maybe, just maybe, there’s something to MOND?

November 3, 2022
by Nicholas Knisely
Science

Given the failure of all Dark Matter detection experiments so far, some have suggested that maybe classical understandings of Gravity (both Newtonian and the more complete General Relativity) are incomplete. The idea is that we have to tweak the equations a bit to explain the anomalous observed behavior at larger scales in the galaxy (and the local Universe). The tweaks are generally all thought to be part of a rethinking of our understanding of gravity […]

Why the sudden shift to the Lambeth Conference program?

July 23, 2022
by Nicholas Knisely
Climate Change / Reconciliation / Religion / Science

The unexpected release of a series of Lambeth Conference Call statements on assorted subjects, and the equally unexpected news that bishops attending the Lambeth Conference next week would be voting on them, has knocked a bunch of Anglicans around the world back on their heels. Some in the Communion are delighted with this sudden turn – but most of the voices I hear are dismayed. And here in the Episcopal Church, many people in our […]

The connection between Ancient Aliens and White Supremacy

October 5, 2021
by Nicholas Knisely
Religion / Science

I’ve wasted some afternoons binge watching the TV series Ancient Aliens on Hulu over the past few years. It seems like a harmless “what if” exercise. And it’s fun when in a particular episode I’m introduced to some new site or artifact that I’d not heard of before. But I do notice that if I know something about what’s being presented, the information shared is not very robust and often weirdly wrong. In an article […]

Information Algorithms Are Proving Deadly in this Pandemic

May 7, 2020
by Nicholas Knisely
Current Affairs / Science

The Internet and its communications technologies are allowing us to work from home in the midst of this pandemic, to stay in touch with each other and “shelter in place” in ways that simply wouldn’t have been possible even 10 years ago. But like most technological advances, it’s become a veritable Sword of Damocles. It has developed so quickly that we simply haven’t had time to adapt completely to what it makes possible. That’s particularly […]

NYT: Coronavirus Antibody Tests: Can You Trust the Results?

April 26, 2020
by Nicholas Knisely
Current Affairs / Science

Before we can re-open things and start the recovery phase of this pandemic, we need to know if people have had COVID-19 and recovered, or if they are still susceptible. I’ve seen speculation about issuing people who’ve recovered some sort of digital certificate of immunity. Possessing the certificate would allow the bearer to enter buildings, return to work, go to church, etc. But there’s a problem. Apparently there are a number of inadequate tests being […]

Rhode Island COVID-19 and the Tuesday jump

April 22, 2020
by Nicholas Knisely
Current Affairs / Rhode Island / Science

Yesterday Rhode Island reported its highest number of new positive tests for coronavirus so far. But is this a cause for worry that things are unexpectedly going sideways, or is it something else? “Dr. Drang”, an engineer and data expert, has noticed a consistent bump in the national numbers every Tuesday for almost a month now: The Tuesday jump – All this: These plots are for the daily figures, and you can see by the […]

Stephen Hawking – a life that pointed to something beyond.

March 14, 2018
by Nicholas Knisely
Current Affairs / Science

I woke up to the news this morning that Prof. Hawking had died. It’s hard to express the deep admiration people had for his work and the way he surmounted challenges in a way that few others have managed. There will be plenty of articles written about his scientific legacy. But I found this quote at the end of an article by Robert Barr to be the most evocative: Lucy Hawking said her father had […]

Could Self-Driving Trucks lead to more jobs? – The Atlantic

February 1, 2018
by Nicholas Knisely
Futurism / Science

“We’ve been disappointed over the last year to see a lot of stories about how self-driving trucks are going to be this huge problem for truck drivers,” says Alden Woodrow, the product lead for self-driving trucks at Uber. “That’s not at all what we think the outcome is going to be.” For one, Uber does not believe that self-driving trucks will be doing “dock to dock” runs for a very long time. They see a […]

Grace for Creation: free!

April 2, 2016
by Nicholas Knisely
Climate Change / Religion / Science / SOSc / Uncategorized

We have a great tradition of holding classes for parishioners in Lent, but once Easter comes, and Spring springs, we tend to focus on other things. But, what would happen if we tried an Easter class – like a Lent class, but later? Have I got a deal for you: In 2011, the Episcopal Church House of Bishops issued a pastoral letter on the environment. In response, a five-week study course titled A Life of Grace […]