Showing posts with label astronomy. Show all posts
Showing posts with label astronomy. Show all posts

Sunday, July 1, 2012

Ray Comfort's ongoing lies and plagiarism.

Hey -- guess what! I caught Ray Comfort in yet another tangled web of lies and plagiarism!

Shocked? Neither am I.

Over the past week, Ray has been leading a very cherry-picked study of the Book of Job, which used to be my favorite book in the Bible, followed very closely by The Book of Esther. In June 2009, I wrote my own study on the Book of Job, and gave you my personal opinion on what the book is really about -- a fictional tale of an innocent man who lost nearly everything, including his children, as a result from a cosmic pissing contest between Jehovah and Satan.

True to form, Ray would have you believe that he's more of an astrophysicist than Stephen Hawking, conveniently skirting the overwhelming evidence that supports the Big Bang theory. In his blogpost on Thursday, June 28th, Ray resumes his arrogance and smug sense of superiority by inferring that those of us who do not subscribe to his spiritual point of view have "a few intellectual problems."

He goes on asking questions that have already been answered hundreds if not thousands of times, but Ray just keeps ignoring the answers. Yet Ray continues, "What was in the beginning? What produced this huge, incredible natural world in which we live? If you say it was the 'big bang,' then where did the materials come from to make the big bang? If the Big Bang was the product, who or what was the producer?" Ray has received answers to these questions repeatedly and he knows it, but like a terrified puppy, he just runs with his tail tucked firmly between his legs.

Something about Ray's writing at this particular post didn't feel right. Not that it ever does, mind you. But I just had a feeling the words I read weren't his. I copied just one sentence from that post, pasted it into Google, and hit enter. Sure enough, I was right.

When Ray talks about science, his audience, Christian or non-Christian, must research what he says because when he speaks on matters of science, he lies. All the time. I don't just mean some of the time -- I mean all of the time. Ray likely lifted the forementioned sentence from this article written by Fraser Cain, publisher of Universe Today, and co-host of the AstronomyCast podcast. I could beat Cain with a wet trout for a week due to his shoddy writing; Cain should know better. Cain's article is based on this paper published in Astronomy and Astrophysics, May 2011.

Ray:
"Sound travels in waves as does light and heat, but unlike light and heat, sound moves by making molecules vibrate. So, for sound to travel anywhere there must be molecules for it to travel. Sound travels on earth to our ears by vibrating air molecules, but there are no molecules in space."
Fraser:
"Sound travels in waves like light or heat does, but unlike them, sound travels by making molecules vibrate. So, in order for sound to travel, there has to be something with molecules for it to travel through. On Earth, sound travels to your ears by vibrating air molecules. In deep space, the large empty areas between stars and planets, there are no molecules to vibrate."
Ray was then properly educated by the guests at his blog about cosmology and physics, which he will probably ignore. I'm still waiting for his response to my question regarding the source is for his claims.

Having my suspicions confirmed that Ray is a plagiarist, I did a simple Google search on Ray's plagiarism, and even I was a bit surprised at how much of this clown's work is not his. You may recall that in 2009, Ray pulled a stunt by releasing his version of Charles Darwin's "The Origin of Species". In Ray's bastardized version, he offered a brief biography of Darwin. As it turns out, large portions of the introduction were lifted from a paper entitled "A Brief History of Charles Darwin" written by Dr. Stan Guffey, Ph.D., professor of biology at the University of Tennessee. Read more about this story here.

They don't call it the Information Age for nothing, Ray. All I have to do to learn about any topic is punch in a few words and entire digital libraries are at my fingertips. Why, then, do you think that you're the only person who's smart enough to use a search engine? How stupid do you think the rest of us are?

We all know that you're a cowardly, lying, thief, Ray. By your own admission, lying thieves will be sent on a one-way ticket to Hell. Are you willing to finally face your opponents, look them in the eye, and admit that you're a charlatan? Have you ever apologized to Cain, Guffey, or anybody else for presenting their work as your own?

For a person who implores us to examine a religion you claim is the ultimate guide to morality, which condemns lying and stealing, why do you resort to these things, Ray? Do you ever feel even slightly ashamed for your intellectual dishonesty?

To the followers of this charlatan, how much of his intellectual feces are you going to eagerly consume while ignoring the fact that Ray is a liar? You readily accuse atheists and agnostics of being lying thieves without evidence, but you don't dare raise an accusatory finger at somebody who actually deserves it like Ray. A child could tell you that Ray's a lying thief, but grown adults give him carte blanche for no other reason than he professes the same faith that you do. If you know he's a liar, and you still refer to him is a good Christian, you're just as much of a liar as he is.

Here are some cosmological and astrophysical terms for Ray, other creationists, and even Fraser Cain to research:
For a list of Ray's lies, click here.

Just for fun, watch the video below to see just how much of a dishonest, hypocritical douchebag Ray really is.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RbBYUgurfRU

Sunday, September 19, 2010

BFSP - 2010

I haven't posted anything on the Black Forest Star Party this year, so I thought I'd jump on that before I forget.

First off, for those of you who are concerned that if you don't get to Cherry Springs by no later than noon on Friday you won't get a decent spot, you can forget that myth. Mario Andretti had nothing on me as I tried to get there ahead of the crowd, but when I got there I found that there was barely a spot open; people had been there since Monday, September 6th. Don't speed on your way to Cherry Springs for the BFSP because it won't matter and it's not worth it. But it is a fun drive!

Now that that's out of the way, I have a message for you smokers out there. Yes, smoking is permitted at Cherry Springs, but you inconsiderate smokers out there really piss me off. Is it too much to ask for you to not smoke in high traffic areas like the vendors tents, dining area, and door prize room? I had to leave several times because of the smoke. I know that doesn't bother you in the least, but for next year's BFSP please be considerate of the vast majority who do not smoke, and find some secluded area to partake your nasty habit.

Other than this, there was still a few of you who just don't give a flying rat's rear end about park rules. Since Cherry Springs is a state park, that means that no alcoholic beverages are permitted. Nor are you allowed to bring your dog. Yet, some of you still insist on open containers in your vehicles, which is a crime in Pennsylvania. I love dogs a good beer like anyone else, but leave them at home when you go to Cherry Springs.

Aside from these things, BFSP was acceptable this year. Friday night's viewing was very good, but Saturday went down hill as clouds rolled in.

Here are some pics from some of the more outstanding scopes this year. This one, a Takahashi TOA-130 refractor, is my favorite.


Sunday, August 22, 2010

Farewell, Jack.

The world of amateur astronomy took a pretty hard hit on Friday at the passing of Jack Horkheimer. Jack was perhaps most popular for his PBS series, the Star Gazer, formerly Star Hustler. He helped popularize, or better yet, returned amateur astronomy to "naked-eye" astronomy.

Personally, I'll miss Jack. I found him shortly after David introduced me to astronomy, and I made it a point to watch him as often as I could.

Thanks, Jack, for all you've done, and bringing astronomy to the masses.

Farewell.

Sunday, August 15, 2010

For your consideration

For once, no politics, beating down the doors of religion, or the incessant barking of a lunatic in some town, smack dab in the middle of Pennsylvania. No swearing or long-winded diatribes. Nothing more than something for you to consider.

Wednesday, October 14, 2009

Too little, too late (again).

400 years after Galileo was threatened with death and placed under house arrest by the Church for having dared suggest that the earth revolves around the sun, the Vatican decided to have an exhibit celebrating his work.

In 1992, Pope John Paul II pardoned Galileo for confirming the theory held by Copernicus that the earth is not at the center of the Universe. Nice.

Anyway, I never wanted to go the Vatican until now. Anyone got an extra ticket to Italy?

Note to creationists: science once again confirmed a theory, proving that science is self-correcting. It supports theories that work, and weeds out those that don't.

Sunday, September 20, 2009

Black Forest Star Party 2009

In 2007, I had the good fortune of attending Stellafane, an amateur telescope making convention held every year in Springfield, VT. It was my first time to Stellafane, and certainly not my last. I was absolutely awestruck by the darkness of the sky there. It was so dark that the strobe lights of every plane that flew overhead practically blinded you. As I was standing there staring into space, I heard someone near me say, "This is dark, but the darkest skies I ever saw was at Potter County." I didn't realize it at the time, but he was talking about Potter County, PA, home of Cherry Springs State Park.

Whoever he was, that guy back at Stellafane 2 years ago was correct. Let me tell you...wow!

The skies at this year's BFSP were absolutely the darkest skies I had ever seen. It was generally a good time had by all, with the few exceptions. Disrespectful and inconsiderate smokers couldn't stop smoking even under the vendor tents. My feverish hatred for smoking was only magnified under the tents as I couldn't even breathe long enough to check out the wares. The worst part of the weekend is that the guest from Hands-On Optics was the victim of theft after someone walked away with a TeleVue Nagler 26mm eyepiece. There are all types of people that are into amateur astronomy, but it really disgusts me that even this pure hobby isn't immune from crime. I'd like to think that there is a mutual respect for fellow skywatchers. I'd like to think.

Anyway, the overall experience was positive, and I hope Luke had a great time since it was his very first time to BFSP. Much was learned this year, and I have no doubt that even more will be learned next year.

To the upper left is one of my 10 second exposures of the northern sky. For some reason, I couldn't get my mount to track. Very annoying. The bad news is, the stars started to trail. The good news is, there is some color showing up, even after 10 seconds.

Clear skies!

Thursday, June 4, 2009

1 Peter 3:15: Why fundies hate it

Debate any creationist on astronomy or evolution, and you're likely to be met with a sneer. If you ask them to give a scientific alternative to either of these topics, they'll shut right up. If you ask what the red shift is, and they'll shut right up. Prove that their holy book of choice is not inerrant, and they'll shut right up. Ask them to reconcile Matthew 2:1-6 with Luke 2:1-6, and they'll shut right up. Nope, it's not very difficult to pull the rug out from under a fundamental creationist. Especially those who claim to love science, but don't have the first clue about the scientific method, let alone a theory.

Over the past few weeks I have been debating the fundies over at Ray's blog. The more questions I ask, the more I'm met with silence. It's annoying.

Skeptics often ask creationists for evidence of their claims, which always starts with, "In the begininning..." or some variant of "Abracadabra!" But whenever a creationist asks for evidence for the Big Bang, or evolutionary biology, they practically have the evidence thrown at them. Taxonomy, geology, astrophysics, chemistry, genetics, biology, you name it - the evidence there by the boatload for them to sift through. But the moment it's given to them, creationists just shrug it off like it doesn't exist. And the whole time, they say they love science.

Bologna sauce!

Enter 1 Peter 3:15. It says:

"But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear:"

In other words, if you want to put that loud-mouthed, sniveling, snot-nosed creationist in their place, ask them a question about life or the universe based on science, cite this verse, and they'll flee from the Bible like a plague.

Monday, February 9, 2009

At least someone gets it.

I came across this article in Yahoo news this morning. Let's hope State College and surrounding areas read this article as well, and dark skies can be preserved for all.

Friday, January 16, 2009

Methane? Mars?

Over the last week I've been following the reports offered by teams of scientists from NASA and universities in the US that have confirmed the presence of methane on Mars. Creationists' pucker factors currently stand at 9.37 out of 10.

Methane is an organic compound produced through geologic or biologic activity. Scientists have long suspected the presence of methane on Mars but haven't been able to confirm their suspicions until 2003. Astronomers at the Mauna Observatory turned the Keck Telescope toward our nearest neighhbor, while NASA used infrared scopes. They were able to detect three spectral absorption lines indicating that the Martian atmosphere does indeed contain methane. I'm not ready to say just that there is/was life on Mars just yet, but the idea is tantalizing.

Click here, here, and here to read more about this story.

Astronomy rocks.

Wednesday, January 14, 2009

Looking for good astronomy freeware?

There are plenty of astronomical reference tools and software online that you can download absolutely free. But, the absolute best that I have used so far is an increasingly popular freeware called, Stellarium. Stellarium features realistic renderings of the night sky, real-time celestial motion, a catalog with 600,000 stars, and plenty of deep-sky objects. It's perfect for when you want to observe, but it's too freaking cold to go outside.

So why not take Stellarium for a spin? It's fun, educational, and doesn't cost a penny. You can download it here.