Conservapedia - User contributions [en]

User talk:RandRover

2012-01-04T23:38:36Z

RandRover:

{{welcome|sig=<big>[[User:TK|'''ṬK''']]</big><sub>/Admin</sub><sup>[[User_Talk:TK|/Talk]]</sup> 20:12, 3 February 2010 (EST)}}
==New page==
Thanks!--[[User:JamesWilson|James Wilson]] 14:22, 28 September 2011 (EDT)
On hiatus.

User:RandRover

2012-01-04T23:38:17Z

RandRover: Created page with "On hiatus."

On hiatus.

Talk:Question evolution! campaign

2012-01-04T23:35:01Z

RandRover: /* Third-party coverage */

[[Talk:Question_evolution!_campaign/Archive_1|Archive 1]]
[[Talk:Question_evolution!_campaign/Archive_2|Archive 2]]

== "Question Evolution" Link ==

Under the "Notes" section, the first link is supposed to bring the user to the Question Evolution! page on the Creation Ministries website, correct? Currently, the link is broken. It should say, "creation.com/question-evolution," whereas right now it says "creation.com/question-evIolution."

Note the "I" between "v" and "o" in "evolution." I cannot fix this link, so someone with that power may wish to do so. [[User:JHunt1487|JHunt1487]] 14:51, 23 November 2011 (EST)
:::Fixed thinks.[[User:Conservative|Conservative]] 02:35, 2 December 2011 (EST)

== Seven Questions Creationists Can't Answer! ==

The Bible has quite a few dates and talks about lots of old men who supposedly lived for 900 years. Using these dates and records, Christian apologist Bishop Ussher created the most commonly accepted chronology that claims that the Earth was created in 4004 BC. Most Christian Fundamentalists still accept this date or at least a very similar one. Here are seven reasons that they are wrong!
#The Pyramids Everyone knows that they are there. Even Southern Baptist apologists can't deny their existence. So how does their very existence destroy Biblical inerrantism? Because every single one of them was built hundreds of years before the Bible says that the Flood supposedly wiped out humanity. The Great Pyramid of Khufu in Giza was built around 2550 BC according to Egyptian records. That is 200 years before the flood. Embarrassingly, God's miles high flood made no mark on the pyramids or their contents. The mummies and artifacts inside are still dry and in great shape. If there really had been enough water to cover the Earth, it would have exerted a force of at least 1.8 million pounds per square foot on the Pyramids (assuming that the water was high enough to cover the entire Earth and all the mountains as the Bible says). This amount of pressure would have completely destroyed the antiquated architecture and mummies.
::''Where did you come up with your Flood date?''
#Tree Rings Dendrochronology, the study of tree rings, is an interesting and informative science that can tell us much about history. Every year, each tree creates a new growth ring. The size of this ring depends on the conditions of that year. Scientists can take cores of these trees and count the number of tree rings in order to give the age of the tree. Each year has a distinctive pattern depending on the local conditions. Amazingly, we have a species of tree, known as Bristlecone Pines, that provide a record of tree rings that extends back 11,000 years to 9,000 BC. This is an obvious problem for those that believe that the Earth was still "matter unorganized" back then. We even have a tree, known as Methuselah, that has now been alive for 4,842 years and counting as shown by its rings. That means that the tree was born in 2831 BC. This tree (and many others) kept living right on through the Flood that supposedly killed everything in 2350. The lowly Bristlecone Pine has toppled the Holy Bible simply by living when it should have died.
::''5,000 years ago is when the Flood happened, and bristlecone pines have been shown to be younger than that. Where is this 11,000 year tree-ring record you speak of?''
#Carbon Dating Radiometric dating is one of the strongest killers of Biblical literacy and one that creationists love to hate. Basically, radiometric dating measures the amount of an isotope and its decayed products are present in a given sample. It is based on the universally admitted fact that radioactive things decay at a certain rate. Through simple math, one can figure out the age of the sample. Radiometric dating is important because it proves that fossils are much older than a few thousand years old. This data shows that the Earth has been around for 4.5 billion years which obviously destroys the Ussher Chronology. Creationists often claim that "decay rates may have changed" or "I carbon dated my dead cat and the answer was off, so..." I have heard all kinds of silly attempts to discredit radiometric dating. The fact remains that we have used this method with not only carbon-14, but with more than 50 other isotopes to confirm the dates. Each of these 50 isotopes decays at a different rate. Yet, they all agree that the Earth is more than 4.5 billion years old. This is important. The half-lives for isotopes range from 70*10-18 seconds for Be-8 to 2.28*1024 years for Te-128. This is a huge range of time. That means that God would have had to speed up each of the 50 isotope's half-lives by vastly different factors in order to fool us into thinking that the Earth is 4.5 billion years old. How ridiculous. My question is: why do creationists make insane claims about basic laws of physics in order to defend a Bronze Age myth?
::''You can believe what you want to believe, but there are major flaws based around the word "assumption" in regards to radiometric dating; too many people have too many problems with it to be reliable.'' [http://www.earthage.org/EarthOldorYoung/Radiometric%20Dating,%20and%20The%20Age%20of%20the%20Earth.htm]
#Egyptian Hieroglyphs and Sumerian Before 2250 BC and the Tower of Babel, according to Biblical mythology, the only language on the planet was Adamic. All of the other languages, including Egyptian and Sumerian, were created by the confusion of tongues. Therefore, it is devastating that we have found hundreds of examples of writing that date to a thousand years before the Tower of Babel. Egyptian writings are also powerful evidence against Biblical literalism. The first known Egyptian hieroglyphic inscription was the Narmer Palette which is a collection of writing that dates to 3200 BC. This writing existed 1,000 years before the Tower of Babel when the Egyptian language was supposedly created. The first examples of Sumerian Cuneiform date to 3300 BC. Obviously, two completely different languages existed long before the Tower of Babel "created" them all and neither of them was Adamic.
::''For years scholars have been stating that written language is no older than 5,000 years (the Flood date again!), and recently things began to change. Could this change have been connected with militant atheism and a hostility towards the Bible?''
#Egyptian Dynastic Records Thanks to a well-developed system of record keeping and well-preserved papyri (which oddly enough, survived the Flood), we know an amazing amount about the Egyptian dynasties of the Old Kingdom. We know the exact years that each pharoah rose to power and then was replaced beginning with the Pharoah Zanakht, who rose to power in 2649. This line continues unbroken until the Pharoah Unas (2356-2323 BC) who obviously survived the "Global Flood" in 2349. This line continues until Nemtyenmzaf (2255-2246 BC) who reigned while God was changing everyone's language. Luckily, God forgot Egypt existed and no major disruptive linguistic change occurred during those few centuries when the Tower of Babel suppposedly happened.
::''Are you stating here that Pharoah Zanakht is the first Egyptian king? And are you sure about those dates? David Rohl did some checking and found out the scholars were wrong by about 350 years.'''
#Kangaroos, Lemurs, Frogs, and Emus Besides the obvious absurdity that Noah crammed 2 of each of the more than 5,000 mammal species, 10,000 bird species, 1,000,000 insect species, and 9,000 reptile species in a 450 foot long boat, there are other biological problems with the Bible. Leaving aside all the evidence for evolution, we can look at current animal distribution to see that Noah's Ark is bunk. Supposedly, Noah collected 2 of each animal into his boat and rode the Flood out for a year until he disembarked and released all of these animals from one point on Earth (legend says in Turkey). They then reproduced and spread out to where they are now. If this were true, animals would be present wherever they could have migrated since the Flood. Animals go where they can survive. That would mean that there would not be the kind of differences that we see in the world. Why are most Marsupials in Australia? Are we really expected to believe that all the Kangaroos got off the Ark and made a beeline for Australia without leaving one behind on the mainland? Why did all the Lemurs head for Madagascar? Why are the platyrrhines only found in the Western Hemisphere and catarrhines only in the Old World? How did all those animals get to Australia or any other island at all? Frogs cannot survive in salt water, so how did they get to Australia? I could list such problems in animal distribution forever. These questions are all easily answered by evolution, but they really make no sense if we accept Genesis.
:''Those questions are easily answered by Genesis, and an order by God that they go to their appointed places after the Flood. After all, how did people migrate out from the Old World to the New? Did they cross land bridges? And did they take several thousand years to do it...or did they actually do it in a few months? Wasn't the island of Krakatoa repopulated with animal and plant life within a couple years after an 1883 eruption which killed off everything, including bacteria?''
#Oil and Coal Every time a creationist drives he is benefitting from the fact that he is wrong. Petroleum only exists because the Earth is billions of years old. As most know, it is formed when the remains of phytoplankton and zooplankton settle to the bottom of the sea and are compressed and decomposed in anaerobic conditions. There is no other way to make petroleum. Enormous amounts of heat, pressure, and time are require to create petroleum. Only geologic time could do it. The gas in your car is great proof that Christian Fundamentalists are wrong when they said that the Earth was 6,000 years old.
::''What exactly do you mean by "as most know?" When phytoplankton and zooplankton settle on the bottom of the sea they are disposed of by scavengers before any sort of burial takes place, and this little fact is observable. And it isn't just dead animal and plant life that is being consumed; try looking at the remains of an iron-hulled ship that used to be called "Titanic". Courtesy of the recent oil well blow out in the Gulf of Mexico, we have the news from several sources that there are biological critters which eat oil. So, where is the oil coming from if it's being eaten away every time an animal dies?''

Unless all 7 of these questions can be answered, Creationism must be dismissed as pseudoscience. [[User:FRodgers|FRodgers]] 23:20, 1 December 2011 (EST)
::Basically, FRodgers, all those questions were answered, and they were answered too many times by too many people with a lot of evidence to back it all up. The first thing you had better do is to disprove the existence of God beyond all doubt; then you can talk about why we should not believe in what you call "pseudoscience". [[User:Karajou|Karajou]] 02:09, 2 December 2011 (EST)

::FRodgers, I see the evolutionists are getting desperate because they still can't the 15 questions. Second, the fluff you put forth certainly should not be taken seriously. For example, "Peter Clayton remarked that “it may come as a surprise to realize that it is extremely difficult to fix true or absolute dates in Egyptian chronology” (1994, p. 12, emp. added). Sir Alan Gardiner, the foremost Egyptologist of the twentieth century, spoke of “lamentable gaps” and “many a doubtful attribution,” finally exclaiming: “What is proudly advertised as Egyptian history is merely a collection of rags and tatters” (1961, p. 48, emp. added). Noting that our present knowledge of Egyptian chronology is “far from satisfactory,” Olaf Toffteen, curator of the Hibbard Egyptian Library in Chicago, explained that the deficiency can be attributed “not to the scarcity of material, but rather to its abundance. This material...exhibits so many contradictions that Egyptologists and historians differ radically in their theories on Egyptian chronology” (1907, 1:149). This indefiniteness does not remove all validity from the chronology, but it must be recognized that the ancient chronology of Egypt, though well established, is far from infallible."[http://www.apologeticspress.org/APContent.aspx?category=9&article=92] [[User:Conservative|Conservative]] 23:38, 1 December 2011 (EST)
Here is some addition information: "The uncertainty to which these scholars refer, results from the shaky foundation upon which Egyptian chronology is built. Manetho, the source of “the basic structure or skeleton of Egyptian chronology that we use today” (Clayton, p. 9), is unreliable and inaccurate. In the introduction to his translation of that historian, W.G. Waddell suggested “there were many errors in Manetho’s work from the very beginning” (1997, p. xxv). Further indicting this ancient source, Breasted confessed: “Wherever he can be controlled, Manetho is generally wrong in his figures, and any chronology based on his data is hopelessly astray” (1927, 1:32). Whatever the reason for Manetho’s untrustworthiness, one immediately sees the unreliability of a system whose “basic structure” is “hopelessly astray.”"[http://www.apologeticspress.org/APContent.aspx?category=9&article=92] [[User:Conservative|Conservative]] 23:44, 1 December 2011 (EST)
:::And the Question Evolution! campaign relies entirely on quote mining, misrepresentation of science, extremely flawed assumption, critical misinterpretation of evolutionary theory, and outright lies. I don't see your point. While there is some dissent about dates regarding Egypt, the consensus is that Egypt formed pre-flood and survived until the Greeks moved in. You can't explain that. [[User:FRodgers|FRodgers]] 00:25, 2 December 2011 (EST)
:Don't you have any recent references? You can find some good stuff at my YouTube video, "More analysis of the Flood myth" or on my channel, voiceoftruth2006. I'm happy to debate you, by the way. --[[User:VOT2011|VOT2011]] 23:48, 1 December 2011 (EST)
Evolutionists, all your evolutionist jargon, evolutionist whining/kvetching and evolutionist consensus doesn't amount to a hill of beans. This campaign will throw creationist sabots into the machinery of evolutionary indoctrination. Get used to the Question evolution! campaign because you are not going to stop it. [[User:Conservative|Conservative]] 01:17, 2 December 2011 (EST)

==Archiving==
Archiving shouldn't be used as a tool for [[last wordism]]! I un-archived those arguments to which someone contributed less than a day ago. [[User:AugustO|AugustO]] 09:43, 2 December 2011 (EST)

== Third-party coverage ==

I'd like it if the article showed some coverage from outside the Question Evolution! blog network. Can anyone point to such sources? [[User:RandRover|RandRover]] 18:52, 30 December 2011 (EST)
:Just Google it. --[[User:ArtWellesley|ArtWellesley]] 19:30, 30 December 2011 (EST)
::Everything on the first page appears to be either content from the QE! campaign network reposted to other pages or twaddle critical of the campaign posted by atheists. Isn't there some positive publicity that wasn't created by the people running the campaign? [[User:RandRover|RandRover]] 18:47, 31 December 2011 (EST)
:::Third party coverage and press is given in the article. I suggest actually reading the article before commenting on the talk page. I guess it's true that atheists have a hard time finding evidence because they don't want to see it or look for it. "Maybe the atheist cannot find God for the same reason a thief cannot find a policeman." - Francis Thomson. see: [[Atheism Quotes]]. [[User:Conservative|Conservative]] 10:02, 4 January 2012 (EST)
::::That was uncalled for; please do not accuse me of being an atheist. I want this article to be strong and while it's true that I missed a short few lines in the middle of the article, I was looking in the references which by and large fit the pattern I mentioned above (38 of 44 are to either ShockofGod's YouTube channel or to one of the campaign's creators; the other 6 do not mention the campaign at all). Those pages are all dated before September 1; is the media simply ignoring us? Surely a local paper or similar has run an article. [[User:RandRover|RandRover]] 16:53, 4 January 2012 (EST)
:::::::Rand, If it is important for you to know if there has been media coverage, then ask your locale librarian to help you search on newspapers. Since the only thing that is necessary for the campaign to be effective is for students to ask their teachers the 15 questions in class and for people to examine the questions with an open mind, I don't see why media coverage is paramount though at this early stage. For example, the Question evolution blog (network) has only been around a month, as can be seen [http://questionevolution.blogspot.com/search?updated-max=2011-11-23T22:11:00-08:00&max-results=7 HERE]. The Traditional Values Coalition seemed to jump in right around the beginning of school in late August based on their website and the WND story which cited their website.[http://www.wnd.com/2011/08/337937/] That is only 3 months ago. Maybe it is just me, but Christians tend to be more patient and tenacious and don't expect instant results nor do they expect mainstream media validation. Plus, there are so many ways now to get the word out without the use of mainstream media. Also, I wouldn't be surprised if social movements go through stages and some preparation, recruiting and organizing is involved before deciding to seek attention from press outlets in a significant way. I know that impatient people like the fire, aim, ready approach, but I personally think the ready, aim, fire approach has more wisdom. :) However, I can see how a person who comments on a talk page before carefully reading an article would feel differently. :) [[User:Conservative|Conservative]] 18:12, 4 January 2012 (EST)
::::::::There's no reason for the snark. Please refrain. [[User:RandRover|RandRover]] 18:35, 4 January 2012 (EST)

==Who is this campaign aimed to ?==
Is it aimed to students ? Is it aimed to people who are hesitant about creationism/evolution ?<br/>
I ask this question because the only reactions I could see are from militant creationists. Therefore, even if the goal seems laudable, I am not optimistic about the success of this campaign. --[[User:PhilipN|PhilipN]] 18:20, 4 January 2012 (EST)

Monetary Policy

2012-01-04T22:00:45Z

RandRover: Stubby article; will expand

'''Monetary policy''' is policy enacted by a government or government agency with the aim of controlling the money supply.

In the United States, monetary policy is made by the [[Federal Reserve Bank]] and operates using three main tools:
* The reserve ratio
* The discount rate
* Open-market operations

==The Reserve Ratio==
The '''reserve ratio''' is the ratio of money deposited in a bank that the bank is required to keep on hand. This amount of reserves is to ensure that banks can meet withdrawal demand and also prevents banks from becoming too leveraged.

==The Discount Rate==
The '''discount rate''' is the rate at which the Federal Reserve Bank will lend money to individual banks. The Fed is a lender of last resort and banks generally meet reserve shortfalls by borrowing from other banks; borrowing from the Fed can be seen as a bellwether of insolvency.

==Open-Market Operations==
The Fed's open-market committee can buy or sell Treasury Bonds to cause money to flow toward or away from the government.

Talk:Question evolution! campaign

2012-01-04T21:53:25Z

RandRover: /* Third-party coverage */

Evolutionary game theory

2012-01-04T02:10:23Z

RandRover: Removed redundant redirect

In the field of '''[[evolution|evolutionary]] game theory''', an 'evolutionarily stable strategy or '''ESS''' is one which resists infiltration by other strategies. The concept was proposed by [[population genetics|population geneticists]] [[John Maynard Smith]] and [[George R. Price]]<ref>Maynard Smith, J. and G. R. Price (1973) The logic of animal conflict. ''Nature'' '''246''': 15-18.</ref>. It is important to note that there may be multiple behaviors which could be potential ESSs in a given situation; which one actually prevails is dependent upon the initial conditions of the population.

==See also==
*[[Behavioral ecology]]
*[[Evolution]]
*[[Game theory]]
*[[Prisoner's dilemma]]
==References==
<references />

==Further reading==
*Maynard Smith, J. (1982) ''Evolution and the Theory of Games''. ISBN 0-521-28884-3

[[Category:Evolution]]
[[Category:Mathematics]]

Evolutionary game theory

2012-01-04T02:09:42Z

RandRover: Fixed a redirecting link

In the field of '''[[evolution|evolutionary]] game theory''', an 'evolutionarily stable strategy or '''ESS''' is one which resists infiltration by other strategies. The concept was proposed by [[population genetics|population geneticists]] [[John Maynard Smith]] and [[George R. Price]]<ref>Maynard Smith, J. and G. R. Price (1973) The logic of animal conflict. ''Nature'' '''246''': 15-18.</ref>. It is important to note that there may be multiple behaviors which could be potential ESSs in a given situation; which one actually prevails is dependent upon the initial conditions of the population.

==See also==
*[[Behavioral ecology]]
*[[Evolution]]
*[[Game theory]]
*[[Prisoner's dilemma]]
*[[Theory of evolution]]

==References==
<references />

==Further reading==
*Maynard Smith, J. (1982) ''Evolution and the Theory of Games''. ISBN 0-521-28884-3

[[Category:Evolution]]
[[Category:Mathematics]]

Talk:Question evolution! campaign

2011-12-31T23:47:04Z

RandRover: /* Third-party coverage */

Talk:Question evolution! campaign

2011-12-30T23:52:08Z

RandRover: /* Third-party coverage */ new section

Counterexamples to an Old Earth

2011-11-12T14:47:06Z

RandRover: This is a nonsequitur. Legal standards are unrelated to truth.

It takes only one "counterexample" to disprove the theory of an [[Old Earth]]. Most of the "evidence" for an [[Old Earth]] is based on claims that lack testability, as in [[radiometric dating]]. As with any logical proposition, one contradiction disproves the proposed rule. If each of 38 counterexamples has merely a 10% chance of being valid -- an underestimate -- then the probability that the Earth is billions of years old is less than 3.8%. In other words, '''the Earth must be young with a likelihood of greater than 96%'''.<ref>The same analysis can be applied to the [[Young Earth]] theory, but no valid counterexamples have been found in centuries of atheist attempts. In addition, there are over 100 evidences of a young [[earth]] and [[universe]] (Please see: [http://creation.com/age-of-the-earth ''Age of the earth: 101 evidences for a young age of the earth and the universe'']).</ref>

The motivation for [[atheist]]s to insist on falsely teaching that the Earth is old is to pull students away from [[God]]'s immediate presence, and to turn them away from [[Jesus Christ]]. Also, atheists are motivated, and biased, by the fact that their [[evolutionism|evolutionist]] theories require the world to be an implausible billions of years old.

== Counterexamples ==
The growing list of counterexamples to the theory of an [[Old Earth]] includes:

=== Astronomy ===
# The [[moon|Moon's]] orbit is a very strong counterexample: the moon is receding from the [[Earth]] at a rate<ref>"Measurements show that the Moon is receding from Earth at a rate of about 3.8 centimeters per year." [http://eclipse.gsfc.nasa.gov/SEhelp/ApolloLaser.html Measuring the Moon's Distance] ''Apollo Laser Ranging Experiments Yield Results'' by Fred Espenak, GSFC Planetary Systems Laboratory (LPI Bulletin, No. 72, August, 1994).</ref> that would have placed it too close to the Earth merely four billion years ago, causing instability in its orbit, tidal catastrophes on Earth, and other problems that would have prevented the Earth and the Moon being as they are today. Additionally, the [[moon]]'s orbit is becoming increasingly and unexpectedly eccentric, suggesting a lack of long-term stability,<ref>http://arxiv.org/abs/1102.0212</ref> which further disproves the theory of an [[Old Earth]].
# [[Spiral galaxies]] appear to be young, and only implausible proposals of the existence of [[dark matter]] can reconcile the spirals with a belief in an old universe.
# The expansion of the universe is accelerating, which would not occur if the [[Big Bang]] were billions of years ago; the acceleration suggests that the Big Bang (or creation) was recent.<ref>Some insist there is hokey, unseen "[[dark energy]]" and "[[dark matter]]" to try to explain the acceleration.</ref>
# The planetary orbits in the Solar System - including Earth's - are unstable and unsustainable over the long periods claimed by Old Earth believers.<ref>[http://www.newsweek.com/id/201582 Newsweek: "An embarrassing little secret of astronomy ...."]. (Newsweek has inexplicably taken down its article, but it is quoted by Google and other links)</ref><ref>[http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v459/n7248/full/nature08096.html Existence of collisional trajectories of Mercury, Mars and Venus with the Earth] by J. Laskar & M. Gastineau, ''Nature'' 459, 817-819 (11 June 2009). Believers in an Old Earth speculate that the instability would not result in problems in a billion years, but other computer simulations could be developed to demonstrate multi-body instability for the solar system far more recent than that.</ref>
# At least one [[spiral galaxy]] spins in the direction opposite to the spin of its tail, suggesting an age too young to have generated the tail and contradicting the theory that the tails of spiral galaxies were formed over a long period of time.<ref>[http://www.unisci.com/stories/20021/0207023.htm "Hubble Shows Galaxy Rotating In The Wrong Direction"]</ref>
# The primary reaction in the [[Sun]] is the fusing of [[hydrogen]] to make [[helium]], but the ratio of these is too high for the Sun to have been burning for millions of years.

=== Biology ===
# The intelligence of humans is rapidly declining, whether measured by SAT scores,<ref>''See, e.g.'', David G. Savage, "The Long Decline in SAT Scores," Educational Leadership 290 (Jan. 1978). [http://www.ascd.org/ASCD/pdf/journals/ed_lead/el_197801_savage.pdf]</ref> music, personal letters,<ref>E.g., Civil War letters.</ref> quality of political debates,<ref>E.g., contrast the Lincoln-Douglas debates with debates today.</ref> the quality of news articles,<ref>''The Federalist'' was written for the newspaper audience in the late 1780s, but is far too intellectual for newspapers today.</ref> and many other measures. This means that if one goes back far enough, intelligence would measure at ridiculous heights, if humans were even tens of thousands of years old.
# The age of onset of [[puberty|sexual maturity]] is rapidly changing, suggesting that life is in a short-term rather than long-term equilibrium.<ref>For evidence of a rapidly changing age for sexual maturity in fish, see http://icesjms.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/content/abstract/46/3/235</ref>
# The high observed rate of [[extinctions of species]]<ref>[http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2010-10-26/animals-face-extinction-threat-as-conservation-efforts-slow-report-says.html One in five species are at risk of extinction]</ref> and harmful [[genetic mutation]]s suggest a relatively short period for the existence of life rather than a long one.
# The age of onset of graying of hair or balding is rapidly decreasing, with many teenagers now experiencing baldness or premature graying ([[CNN]]'s [[Anderson Cooper]] began graying as a teenager and was fully gray long before age 40);<ref name="Graying">http://articles.sfgate.com/2006-06-18/living/17299704_1_hair-taylor-hicks-american-idol</ref> many celebrities (such as [[American Idol]] winner Taylor Hicks graying in his 20s)<ref name="Graying"/> and athletes (such as Cal Ripken, Jr. graying and balding in his mid-30s)<ref>"There's a man, close-cropped gray hair, looks older than 35": Sports Illustrated's description of Cal Ripken at 35. [http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1163438/index.htm#ixzz12ONbgydd] By age 50 he was bald too.</ref> increasingly experience premature graying or balding.
# The age of onset of [[cancer]] is markedly decreasing,<ref>http://www3.interscience.wiley.com/journal/109865519/abstract?CRETRY=1&SRETRY=0</ref> suggesting rapid changes inconsistent with an alleged long existence to life.
# The number of natural, pure-bred bred dogs declines over time as dogs naturally crossbreed; a short period of time is suggested by the fact that there are over 100 different natural, pure breeds of dog thriving today.
# Lack of genetic diversity among the ''Homo sapiens'' species. Were evolution and the old earth true, the human population would show a much larger genetic variance.<ref>http://www.godandscience.org/evolution/descent.html#rpafAHIwKHS7</ref> Some scientists have calculated that a troop of 55 chimpanzees contains more genetic diversity than the entire human race; this demonstrates that chimpanzees descended from a large initial population while humans descend from a much smaller one, which indeed we know to have been two people.
# Frequent occurrences of massive deaths of birds and fish, which if extrapolated over millions of years would result in little or no such life today.<ref>http://abclocal.go.com/wabc/story?section=news/technology&id=7884786</ref>
# The separation between salt and freshwater fish, coupled with their inability to survive in the opposing environment, shows a lack of millions of years of evolution to enable them to spread to the opposing environment.
# Furthermore, the separation of land and aquatic life and a similar inability for the organisms to survive in the other environment shows a lack of millions of years of evolution to enable them to spread to the opposing environment.
# Biodiversity on Earth is declining too rapidly to be consistent with a long-term (Old Earth) equilibrium, with the Living Planet Index (LPI) showing "a global decline of 27% between 1970 and 2005. The terrestrial index declined by 25%, freshwater by 29% (this index is calculated to 2003 due to the lack of data available for latter years), and marine by 28%."<ref>http://www.zsl.org/science/research-projects/lpi,1162,AR.html</ref>
# The [[Bible]] makes references to the [[dinosaurs]]. There is no explanation for this if dinosaurs supposedly lived hundreds of millions of years ago. <ref>http://www.christiancourier.com/articles/93-dinosaurs-and-the-bible</ref>

=== Geology ===

Geological counterexamples to an Old Earth include:

# The frequency of large [[earthquakes]] (more than 6.99 on the Richter scale) doubles roughly every 40 years,<ref>http://www.earth.webecs.co.uk/</ref> rendering long-term stability impossible. Large earthquakes have increased by more than 20% in only the last decade.<ref>http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eqarchives/year/eqstats.php</ref>
# The continued existence of fragile natural arches without having collapsed a short time period for erosion and stresses on them.<ref>http://www.naturalarches.org/big9.htm</ref>
# An extrapolation of time between the collapse of weaker arches<ref>http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/08/11/AR2008081102290.html</ref> with still-standing stronger arches supports a young earth age.
# The existence of inland saltwater lakes at high altitudes, such as [[Mono Lake]] and the [[Great Salt Lake]], suggest a recent global [[flood]].
# The relative purity of underground well water, which should be a muddy slurry had millions of years of erosion taken place.
# The plentiful supply of high concentrations of underground well water, which would be expected based on familiar principles of [[entropy]] to dissipate over a long period of time.
# Earthquakes alter the Earth's rotation several times each century;<ref>http://www.redorbit.com/news/science/2010872/japan_quake_changed_earths_rotation/</ref> extrapolating by orders of magnitude in time would have resulted in the occurrence of much larger earthquakes that would have destabilized the rotation<ref>A similar analysis may be performed for the likelihood of devastating collisions with meteors as time is extrapolated by orders of magnitude.</ref>
# The lack of erosion between rock layers.<ref>http://www.amazon.com/review/R1WTZL8GG4H9K0</ref><ref>http://www.knowthebible.net/id115.html</ref>
# Levels of contamination in water are rising, as water proceeds through the [[water cycle]] it becomes progressively more contaminated. If earth (and life) had existed for billions of years, a limit would have long been reached where water (essential to life) was too contaminated for life to continue.
# [[Paraconformity]] and unconformity such as that seen at the [[Grand Canyon]] disprove the [[uniformitarianism (science)|uniformitarian]] view of earth history.
# All [[carbon dating]] of water supplies, even the most ancient and the deepest underground reservoirs, result in relatively young ages,<ref>http://www.betalabservices.com/PDF/Geyh.pdf</ref> and no water has been found suggesting an Old Earth.
# The ratio of strontium isotopes in seawater, which should change due to long-term erosion, has varied by only 0.35% throughout history. In fact, its value today is exactly the same as in the oldest samples, which are claimed to be from 500 million years ago.
# The interior of the earth is heated by decay of radioactive isotopes, which could not possibly still be persisting in sufficient quantities after 5 billion, or even half a billion, years.
# The relatively recent separation of the still-moving continents from one land mass -- denied for 100 years by [[atheist]]s before they accepted it -- suggest a young earth or at least a relatively recent cataclysmic event.
# Fresh tracks of motion by stationary rocks are still visible in some areas, which have baffled Old Earth scientists for more than 60 years; Old Earth magazines refer to them as "self-moving rocks."<ref>http://www.usnews.com/science/articles/2011/02/18/rafting-for-rocks?s_cid=rss:rafting-for-rocks</ref>
# Beaches have long been eroding far too quickly for the Old Earth theory; "between 80 and 90 percent of the sandy beaches along America’s coastlines have been eroding for decades," sometimes by as much as 50 feet per year.<ref>http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=what-causes-beach-erosion</ref>
# Land is sinking into the oceans at a rate of at least 7 inches per century,<ref>http://www.app.com/article/20110319/NJNEWS/103190327/Global-warming-rising-seas-threaten-New-Jersey-expert-says</ref> which would have rendered most of the United States under water if the Earth were not young.
# The flow of water in the [[Colorado River]] has been declining since the early 20th century, even after usage is considered, and the man-made Lake Mead is at risk of drying up on the next decade.<ref>http://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/13/us/13mead.html</ref>

[[Image:516XZRGNCKL AA240 .jpg|right|300px]]
[[William R. Corliss]] also provides scores of anomalies which challenge the [[Old Earth]] [[paradigm]].<ref>[http://www.science-frontiers.com/sourcebk.htm#Geology Geological Catalogs] (Science Frontiers)</ref> An accomplished author,<ref name="sf">[http://www.science-frontiers.com/ Science Frontiers] (Corliss' web-site)</ref>
Corliss has written 13 books for the [[National Aeronautics and Space Administration]] (NASA), a dozen educational booklets for the [[Atomic Energy Commission]] (AEC), and a dozen articles for the [[National Science Foundation]] (NSF).<ref>Corliss, 2002</ref> The science magazine ''[[New Scientist]]'' had an article which focused on the career of William Corliss.<ref>Adrian Hope, ''Finding a Home for Stray Fact'', New Scientist, July 14, 1977, p. 83</ref> ''New Scientist'' wrote regarding Corliss's work: "All I can say to Corliss is carry on cataloging."<ref>Quoted on the [http://www.science-frontiers.com/sourcebk.htm Science Frontiers web-site]</ref> [[Arthur C. Clarke]] described Corliss as "[[Charles Fort|Fort]]'s latter-day - and much more scientific - successor."<ref>Clarke, Arthur C. (1990) ''Astounding Days: A Science Fictional Autobiography''. Gollancz. Page 110</ref>

=== Science & Discovery ===
# A stalemate of significant and valid discoveries in the last several decades.<ref>Though there has been some progress in this timeframe, many of the "discoveries" are liberal propaganda, or are scientifically weak.</ref>

=== Biblical testimony ===

The Bible contains multiples pieces of evidence showing its authenticity including [[Bible history]], [[Biblical archaeology|Bible archaeology]] and [[Bible prophecy]]. Competent and honest [[Bible exegesis]] indicates the earth is approximately 6,000 years old.<ref>[http://creation.com/should-genesis-be-taken-literally Should Genesis be taken literally?]</ref>

''See also:'' [http://creation.com/history-questions-and-answers How reliable is biblical chronology?]

== Recommended books ==

*[[William R. Corliss]], Anomalies in Geology: Physical, Chemical, Biological (A Catalog of Geological Anomalies), 1989. ISBN 915554-23-2
*William R. Corliss Neglected Geological Anomalies, 1990. ISBN 915554-24-0
*William R. CorlissInner Earth: A Search for Anomalies (A Catalog of Geological Anomalies), 1991. ISBN 915554-25-9
*William R. Corliss, Carolina Bays, Mima Mounds, Submarine Canyons (A Catalog of Geological Anomalies), 1988. ISBN 915554-22-4

== External links ==
*[http://creation.com/age-of-the-earth Age of the earth -101 evidences for a young earth and universe] by [[Creation Ministries International]]
*[http://creation.com/refuting-evolution-chapter-8-how-old-is-the-earth How old is the earth?] - ''Refuting evolution'' - Chapter 8 by Dr. [[Jonathan Sarfati]] at [[Creation Ministries International]]
*[http://www.preteristcentral.com/Debunking%20Old%20Earth%20Creationism%20&%20a%20Regional%20Flood.html Debunking the Old Earth Theory]

== Footnotes ==

<references/>

== See also ==

*[[Counterexamples to Evolution]]
*[[Counterexamples to the Bible]]
*[[Counterexamples to Relativity]]
*[[Counterexamples to Global Warming]]
*[[Radiometric dating]]
[[Category:Counterexamples]]
[[Category:geology]]

Counterexamples to an Old Earth

2011-11-11T19:50:38Z

RandRover:

It takes only one "counterexample" to disprove the theory of an [[Old Earth]]. Most of the "evidence" for an [[Old Earth]] is based on claims that lack testability, like [[radiometric dating]]]. As with any logical proposition, one contradiction disproves the proposed rule. If each of 38 counterexamples has merely a 10% chance of being valid -- an underestimate -- then the probability that the Earth is billions of years old is less than 3.8%. In other words, '''the Earth must be young with a likelihood of greater than 96%'''.<ref>The same analysis can be applied to the [[Young Earth]] theory, but no valid counterexamples have been found in centuries of atheist attempts. In addition, there are over 100 evidences of a young [[earth]] and [[universe]] (Please see: [http://creation.com/age-of-the-earth ''Age of the earth: 101 evidences for a young age of the earth and the universe'']).</ref>

The motivation for [[atheist]]s to insist on falsely teaching that the Earth is old is to pull students away from [[God]]'s immediate presence, and to turn them away from [[Jesus Christ]]. Also, atheists are motivated, and biased, by the fact that their [[evolutionism|evolutionist]] theories require the world to be an implausible billions of years old.

== Counterexamples ==
The growing list of counterexamples to the theory of an [[Old Earth]] includes:

=== Astronomy ===
# The [[moon|Moon's]] orbit is a very strong counterexample: the moon is receding from the [[Earth]] at a rate<ref>"Measurements show that the Moon is receding from Earth at a rate of about 3.8 centimeters per year." [http://eclipse.gsfc.nasa.gov/SEhelp/ApolloLaser.html Measuring the Moon's Distance] ''Apollo Laser Ranging Experiments Yield Results'' by Fred Espenak, GSFC Planetary Systems Laboratory (LPI Bulletin, No. 72, August, 1994).</ref> that would have placed it too close to the Earth merely four billion years ago, causing instability in its orbit, tidal catastrophes on Earth, and other problems that would have prevented the Earth and the Moon being as they are today. Additionally, the [[moon]]'s orbit is becoming increasingly and unexpectedly eccentric, suggesting a lack of long-term stability,<ref>http://arxiv.org/abs/1102.0212</ref> which further disproves the theory of an [[Old Earth]].
# [[Spiral galaxies]] appear to be young, and only implausible proposals of the existence of [[dark matter]] can reconcile the spirals with a belief in an old universe.
# The expansion of the universe is accelerating, which would not occur if the [[Big Bang]] were billions of years ago; the acceleration suggests that the Big Bang (or creation) was recent.<ref>Some insist there is hokey, unseen "[[dark energy]]" and "[[dark matter]]" to try to explain the acceleration.</ref>
# The planetary orbits in the Solar System - including Earth's - are unstable and unsustainable over the long periods claimed by Old Earth believers.<ref>[http://www.newsweek.com/id/201582 Newsweek: "An embarrassing little secret of astronomy ...."]. (Newsweek has inexplicably taken down its article, but it is quoted by Google and other links)</ref><ref>[http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v459/n7248/full/nature08096.html Existence of collisional trajectories of Mercury, Mars and Venus with the Earth] by J. Laskar & M. Gastineau, ''Nature'' 459, 817-819 (11 June 2009). Believers in an Old Earth speculate that the instability would not result in problems in a billion years, but other computer simulations could be developed to demonstrate multi-body instability for the solar system far more recent than that.</ref>
# At least one [[spiral galaxy]] spins in the direction opposite to the spin of its tail, suggesting an age too young to have generated the tail and contradicting the theory that the tails of spiral galaxies were formed over a long period of time.<ref>[http://www.unisci.com/stories/20021/0207023.htm "Hubble Shows Galaxy Rotating In The Wrong Direction"]</ref>
# The primary reaction in the [[Sun]] is the fusing of [[hydrogen]] to make [[helium]], but the ratio of these is too high for the Sun to have been burning for millions of years.

=== Biology ===
# The intelligence of humans is rapidly declining, whether measured by SAT scores,<ref>''See, e.g.'', David G. Savage, "The Long Decline in SAT Scores," Educational Leadership 290 (Jan. 1978). [http://www.ascd.org/ASCD/pdf/journals/ed_lead/el_197801_savage.pdf]</ref> music, personal letters,<ref>E.g., Civil War letters.</ref> quality of political debates,<ref>E.g., contrast the Lincoln-Douglas debates with debates today.</ref> the quality of news articles,<ref>''The Federalist'' was written for the newspaper audience in the late 1780s, but is far too intellectual for newspapers today.</ref> and many other measures. This means that if one goes back far enough, intelligence would measure at ridiculous heights, if humans were even tens of thousands of years old.
# The age of onset of [[puberty|sexual maturity]] is rapidly changing, suggesting that life is in a short-term rather than long-term equilibrium.<ref>For evidence of a rapidly changing age for sexual maturity in fish, see http://icesjms.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/content/abstract/46/3/235</ref>
# The high observed rate of [[extinctions of species]]<ref>[http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2010-10-26/animals-face-extinction-threat-as-conservation-efforts-slow-report-says.html One in five species are at risk of extinction]</ref> and harmful [[genetic mutation]]s suggest a relatively short period for the existence of life rather than a long one.
# The age of onset of graying of hair or balding is rapidly decreasing, with many teenagers now experiencing baldness or premature graying ([[CNN]]'s [[Anderson Cooper]] began graying as a teenager and was fully gray long before age 40);<ref name="Graying">http://articles.sfgate.com/2006-06-18/living/17299704_1_hair-taylor-hicks-american-idol</ref> many celebrities (such as [[American Idol]] winner Taylor Hicks graying in his 20s)<ref name="Graying"/> and athletes (such as Cal Ripken, Jr. graying and balding in his mid-30s)<ref>"There's a man, close-cropped gray hair, looks older than 35": Sports Illustrated's description of Cal Ripken at 35. [http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1163438/index.htm#ixzz12ONbgydd] By age 50 he was bald too.</ref> increasingly experience premature graying or balding.
# The age of onset of [[cancer]] is markedly decreasing,<ref>http://www3.interscience.wiley.com/journal/109865519/abstract?CRETRY=1&SRETRY=0</ref> suggesting rapid changes inconsistent with an alleged long existence to life.
# The number of natural, pure-bred bred dogs declines over time as dogs naturally crossbreed; a short period of time is suggested by the fact that there are over 100 different natural, pure breeds of dog thriving today.
# Lack of genetic diversity among the ''Homo sapiens'' species. Were evolution and the old earth true, the human population would show a much larger genetic variance.<ref>http://www.godandscience.org/evolution/descent.html#rpafAHIwKHS7</ref> Some scientists have calculated that a troop of 55 chimpanzees contains more genetic diversity than the entire human race; this demonstrates that chimpanzees descended from a large initial population while humans descend from a much smaller one, which indeed we know to have been two people.
# Frequent occurrences of massive deaths of birds and fish, which if extrapolated over millions of years would result in little or no such life today.<ref>http://abclocal.go.com/wabc/story?section=news/technology&id=7884786</ref>
# The separation between salt and freshwater fish, coupled with their inability to survive in the opposing environment, shows a lack of millions of years of evolution to enable them to spread to the opposing environment.
# Furthermore, the separation of land and aquatic life and a similar inability for the organisms to survive in the other environment shows a lack of millions of years of evolution to enable them to spread to the opposing environment.
# Biodiversity on Earth is declining too rapidly to be consistent with a long-term (Old Earth) equilibrium, with the Living Planet Index (LPI) showing "a global decline of 27% between 1970 and 2005. The terrestrial index declined by 25%, freshwater by 29% (this index is calculated to 2003 due to the lack of data available for latter years), and marine by 28%."<ref>http://www.zsl.org/science/research-projects/lpi,1162,AR.html</ref>
# The [[Bible]] makes references to the [[dinosaurs]]. There is no explanation for this if dinosaurs supposedly lived hundreds of millions of years ago. <ref>http://www.christiancourier.com/articles/93-dinosaurs-and-the-bible</ref>

=== Geology ===

Geological counterexamples to an Old Earth include:

# The frequency of large [[earthquakes]] (more than 6.99 on the Richter scale) doubles roughly every 40 years,<ref>http://www.earth.webecs.co.uk/</ref> rendering long-term stability impossible. Large earthquakes have increased by more than 20% in only the last decade.<ref>http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eqarchives/year/eqstats.php</ref>
# The continued existence of fragile natural arches without having collapsed a short time period for erosion and stresses on them.<ref>http://www.naturalarches.org/big9.htm</ref>
# An extrapolation of time between the collapse of weaker arches<ref>http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/08/11/AR2008081102290.html</ref> with still-standing stronger arches supports a young earth age.
# The existence of inland saltwater lakes at high altitudes, such as [[Mono Lake]] and the [[Great Salt Lake]], suggest a recent global [[flood]].
# The relative purity of underground well water, which should be a muddy slurry had millions of years of erosion taken place.
# The plentiful supply of high concentrations of underground well water, which would be expected based on familiar principles of [[entropy]] to dissipate over a long period of time.
# Earthquakes alter the Earth's rotation several times each century;<ref>http://www.redorbit.com/news/science/2010872/japan_quake_changed_earths_rotation/</ref> extrapolating by orders of magnitude in time would have resulted in the occurrence of much larger earthquakes that would have destabilized the rotation<ref>A similar analysis may be performed for the likelihood of devastating collisions with meteors as time is extrapolated by orders of magnitude.</ref>
# The lack of erosion between rock layers.<ref>http://www.amazon.com/review/R1WTZL8GG4H9K0</ref><ref>http://www.knowthebible.net/id115.html</ref>
# Levels of contamination in water are rising, as water proceeds through the [[water cycle]] it becomes progressively more contaminated. If earth (and life) had existed for billions of years, a limit would have long been reached where water (essential to life) was too contaminated for life to continue.
# [[Paraconformity]] and unconformity such as that seen at the [[Grand Canyon]] disprove the [[uniformitarianism (science)|uniformitarian]] view of earth history.
# All [[carbon dating]] of water supplies, even the most ancient and the deepest underground reservoirs, result in relatively young ages,<ref>http://www.betalabservices.com/PDF/Geyh.pdf</ref> and no water has been found suggesting an Old Earth.
# The ratio of strontium isotopes in seawater, which should change due to long-term erosion, has varied by only 0.35% throughout history. In fact, its value today is exactly the same as in the oldest samples, which are claimed to be from 500 million years ago.
# The interior of the earth is heated by decay of radioactive isotopes, which could not possibly still be persisting in sufficient quantities after 5 billion, or even half a billion, years.
# The relatively recent separation of the still-moving continents from one land mass -- denied for 100 years by [[atheist]]s before they accepted it -- suggest a young earth or at least a relatively recent cataclysmic event.
# Fresh tracks of motion by stationary rocks are still visible in some areas, which have baffled Old Earth scientists for more than 60 years; Old Earth magazines refer to them as "self-moving rocks."<ref>http://www.usnews.com/science/articles/2011/02/18/rafting-for-rocks?s_cid=rss:rafting-for-rocks</ref>
# Beaches have long been eroding far too quickly for the Old Earth theory; "between 80 and 90 percent of the sandy beaches along America’s coastlines have been eroding for decades," sometimes by as much as 50 feet per year.<ref>http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=what-causes-beach-erosion</ref>
# Land is sinking into the oceans at a rate of at least 7 inches per century,<ref>http://www.app.com/article/20110319/NJNEWS/103190327/Global-warming-rising-seas-threaten-New-Jersey-expert-says</ref> which would have rendered most of the United States under water if the Earth were not young.
# The flow of water in the [[Colorado River]] has been declining since the early 20th century, even after usage is considered, and the man-made Lake Mead is at risk of drying up on the next decade.<ref>http://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/13/us/13mead.html</ref>

[[Image:516XZRGNCKL AA240 .jpg|right|300px]]
[[William R. Corliss]] also provides scores of anomalies which challenge the [[Old Earth]] [[paradigm]].<ref>[http://www.science-frontiers.com/sourcebk.htm#Geology Geological Catalogs] (Science Frontiers)</ref> An accomplished author,<ref name="sf">[http://www.science-frontiers.com/ Science Frontiers] (Corliss' web-site)</ref>
Corliss has written 13 books for the [[National Aeronautics and Space Administration]] (NASA), a dozen educational booklets for the [[Atomic Energy Commission]] (AEC), and a dozen articles for the [[National Science Foundation]] (NSF).<ref>Corliss, 2002</ref> The science magazine ''[[New Scientist]]'' had an article which focused on the career of William Corliss.<ref>Adrian Hope, ''Finding a Home for Stray Fact'', New Scientist, July 14, 1977, p. 83</ref> ''New Scientist'' wrote regarding Corliss's work: "All I can say to Corliss is carry on cataloging."<ref>Quoted on the [http://www.science-frontiers.com/sourcebk.htm Science Frontiers web-site]</ref> [[Arthur C. Clarke]] described Corliss as "[[Charles Fort|Fort]]'s latter-day - and much more scientific - successor."<ref>Clarke, Arthur C. (1990) ''Astounding Days: A Science Fictional Autobiography''. Gollancz. Page 110</ref>

=== Science & Discovery ===
# A stalemate of significant and valid discoveries in the last several decades.<ref>Though there has been some progress in this timeframe, many of the "discoveries" are liberal propaganda, or are scientifically weak.</ref>

=== Biblical testimony ===

The Bible contains multiples pieces of evidence showing its authenticity including [[Bible history]], [[Biblical archaeology|Bible archaeology]] and [[Bible prophecy]]. Competent and honest [[Bible exegesis]] indicates the earth is approximately 6,000 years old.<ref>[http://creation.com/should-genesis-be-taken-literally Should Genesis be taken literally?]</ref>

''See also:'' [http://creation.com/history-questions-and-answers How reliable is biblical chronology?]

== Recommended books ==

*[[William R. Corliss]], Anomalies in Geology: Physical, Chemical, Biological (A Catalog of Geological Anomalies), 1989. ISBN 915554-23-2
*William R. Corliss Neglected Geological Anomalies, 1990. ISBN 915554-24-0
*William R. CorlissInner Earth: A Search for Anomalies (A Catalog of Geological Anomalies), 1991. ISBN 915554-25-9
*William R. Corliss, Carolina Bays, Mima Mounds, Submarine Canyons (A Catalog of Geological Anomalies), 1988. ISBN 915554-22-4

== External links ==
*[http://creation.com/age-of-the-earth Age of the earth -101 evidences for a young earth and universe] by [[Creation Ministries International]]
*[http://creation.com/refuting-evolution-chapter-8-how-old-is-the-earth How old is the earth?] - ''Refuting evolution'' - Chapter 8 by Dr. [[Jonathan Sarfati]] at [[Creation Ministries International]]
*[http://www.preteristcentral.com/Debunking%20Old%20Earth%20Creationism%20&%20a%20Regional%20Flood.html Debunking the Old Earth Theory]

== Footnotes ==

<references/>

== See also ==

*[[Counterexamples to Evolution]]
*[[Counterexamples to the Bible]]
*[[Counterexamples to Relativity]]
*[[Counterexamples to Global Warming]]
*[[Radiometric dating]]
[[Category:Counterexamples]]
[[Category:geology]]

Counterexamples to an Old Earth

2011-11-02T04:09:30Z

RandRover: Fixed my own typo

It takes only one "counterexample" to disprove the theory of an [[Old Earth]]. Most of the "evidence" for an [[Old Earth]] is based on claims that lack testability, as in [[radiometric dating]], and hence would not even satisfy minimum requirements for admissibility in a court of law. As with any logical proposition, one contradiction disproves the proposed rule. If each of 38 counterexamples has merely a 10% chance of being valid -- an underestimate -- then the probability that the Earth is billions of years old is less than 3.8%. In other words, '''the Earth must be young with a likelihood of greater than 96%'''.<ref>The same analysis can be applied to the [[Young Earth]] theory, but no valid counterexamples have been found in centuries of atheist attempts. In addition, there are over 100 evidences of a young [[earth]] and [[universe]] (Please see: [http://creation.com/age-of-the-earth ''Age of the earth: 101 evidences for a young age of the earth and the universe'']).</ref>

The motivation for [[atheist]]s to insist on falsely teaching that the Earth is old is to pull students away from [[God]]'s immediate presence, and to turn them away from [[Jesus Christ]]. Also, atheists are motivated, and biased, by the fact that their [[evolutionism|evolutionist]] theories require the world to be an implausible billions of years old.

== Counterexamples ==
The growing list of counterexamples to the theory of an [[Old Earth]] includes:

=== Astronomy ===
# The [[moon|Moon's]] orbit is a very strong counterexample: the moon is receding from the [[Earth]] at a rate<ref>"Measurements show that the Moon is receding from Earth at a rate of about 3.8 centimeters per year." [http://eclipse.gsfc.nasa.gov/SEhelp/ApolloLaser.html Measuring the Moon's Distance] ''Apollo Laser Ranging Experiments Yield Results'' by Fred Espenak, GSFC Planetary Systems Laboratory (LPI Bulletin, No. 72, August, 1994).</ref> that would have placed it too close to the Earth merely four billion years ago, causing instability in its orbit, tidal catastrophes on Earth, and other problems that would have prevented the Earth and the Moon being as they are today. Additionally, the [[moon]]'s orbit is becoming increasingly and unexpectedly eccentric, suggesting a lack of long-term stability,<ref>http://arxiv.org/abs/1102.0212</ref> which further disproves the theory of an [[Old Earth]].
# [[Spiral galaxies]] appear to be young, and only implausible proposals of the existence of [[dark matter]] can reconcile the spirals with a belief in an old universe.
# The expansion of the universe is accelerating, which would not occur if the [[Big Bang]] were billions of years ago; the acceleration suggests that the Big Bang (or creation) was recent.<ref>Some insist there is hokey, unseen "[[dark energy]]" and "[[dark matter]]" to try to explain the acceleration.</ref>
# The planetary orbits in the Solar System - including Earth's - are unstable and unsustainable over the long periods claimed by Old Earth believers.<ref>[http://www.newsweek.com/id/201582 Newsweek: "An embarrassing little secret of astronomy ...."]. (Newsweek has inexplicably taken down its article, but it is quoted by Google and other links)</ref><ref>[http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v459/n7248/full/nature08096.html Existence of collisional trajectories of Mercury, Mars and Venus with the Earth] by J. Laskar & M. Gastineau, ''Nature'' 459, 817-819 (11 June 2009). Believers in an Old Earth speculate that the instability would not result in problems in a billion years, but other computer simulations could be developed to demonstrate multi-body instability for the solar system far more recent than that.</ref>
# At least one [[spiral galaxy]] spins in the direction opposite to the spin of its tail, suggesting an age too young to have generated the tail and contradicting the theory that the tails of spiral galaxies were formed over a long period of time.<ref>[http://www.unisci.com/stories/20021/0207023.htm "Hubble Shows Galaxy Rotating In The Wrong Direction"]</ref>
# The primary reaction in the [[Sun]] is the fusing of [[hydrogen]] to make [[helium]], but the ratio of these is too high for the Sun to have been burning for millions of years.

=== Biology ===
# The intelligence of humans is rapidly declining, whether measured by SAT scores,<ref>''See, e.g.'', David G. Savage, "The Long Decline in SAT Scores," Educational Leadership 290 (Jan. 1978). [http://www.ascd.org/ASCD/pdf/journals/ed_lead/el_197801_savage.pdf]</ref> music, personal letters,<ref>E.g., Civil War letters.</ref> quality of political debates,<ref>E.g., contrast the Lincoln-Douglas debates with debates today.</ref> the quality of news articles,<ref>''The Federalist'' was written for the newspaper audience in the late 1780s, but is far too intellectual for newspapers today.</ref> and many other measures. This means that if one goes back far enough, intelligence would measure at ridiculous heights, if humans were even tens of thousands of years old.
# The age of onset of [[puberty|sexual maturity]] is rapidly changing, suggesting that life is in a short-term rather than long-term equilibrium.<ref>For evidence of a rapidly changing age for sexual maturity in fish, see http://icesjms.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/content/abstract/46/3/235</ref>
# The high observed rate of [[extinctions of species]]<ref>[http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2010-10-26/animals-face-extinction-threat-as-conservation-efforts-slow-report-says.html One in five species are at risk of extinction]</ref> and harmful [[genetic mutation]]s suggest a relatively short period for the existence of life rather than a long one.
# The age of onset of graying of hair or balding is rapidly decreasing, with many teenagers now experiencing baldness or premature graying ([[CNN]]'s [[Anderson Cooper]] began graying as a teenager and was fully gray long before age 40);<ref name="Graying">http://articles.sfgate.com/2006-06-18/living/17299704_1_hair-taylor-hicks-american-idol</ref> many celebrities (such as [[American Idol]] winner Taylor Hicks graying in his 20s)<ref name="Graying"/> and athletes (such as Cal Ripken, Jr. graying and balding in his mid-30s)<ref>"There's a man, close-cropped gray hair, looks older than 35": Sports Illustrated's description of Cal Ripken at 35. [http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1163438/index.htm#ixzz12ONbgydd] By age 50 he was bald too.</ref> increasingly experience premature graying or balding.
# The age of onset of [[cancer]] is markedly decreasing,<ref>http://www3.interscience.wiley.com/journal/109865519/abstract?CRETRY=1&SRETRY=0</ref> suggesting rapid changes inconsistent with an alleged long existence to life.
# The number of natural, pure-bred bred dogs declines over time as dogs naturally crossbreed; a short period of time is suggested by the fact that there are over 100 different natural, pure breeds of dog thriving today.
# Lack of genetic diversity among the ''Homo sapiens'' species. Were evolution and the old earth true, the human population would show a much larger genetic variance.<ref>http://www.godandscience.org/evolution/descent.html#rpafAHIwKHS7</ref> Some scientists have calculated that a troop of 55 chimpanzees contains more genetic diversity than the entire human race; this demonstrates that chimpanzees descended from a large initial population while humans descend from a much smaller one, which indeed we know to have been two people.
# Frequent occurrences of massive deaths of birds and fish, which if extrapolated over millions of years would result in little or no such life today.<ref>http://abclocal.go.com/wabc/story?section=news/technology&id=7884786</ref>
# The separation between salt and freshwater fish, coupled with their inability to survive in the opposing environment, shows a lack of millions of years of evolution to enable them to spread to the opposing environment.
# Furthermore, the separation of land and aquatic life and a similar inability for the organisms to survive in the other environment shows a lack of millions of years of evolution to enable them to spread to the opposing environment.
# Biodiversity on Earth is declining too rapidly to be consistent with a long-term (Old Earth) equilibrium, with the Living Planet Index (LPI) showing "a global decline of 27% between 1970 and 2005. The terrestrial index declined by 25%, freshwater by 29% (this index is calculated to 2003 due to the lack of data available for latter years), and marine by 28%."<ref>http://www.zsl.org/science/research-projects/lpi,1162,AR.html</ref>
# The [[Bible]] makes references to the [[dinosaurs]]. There is no explanation for this if dinosaurs supposedly lived hundreds of millions of years ago. <ref>http://www.christiancourier.com/articles/93-dinosaurs-and-the-bible</ref>

=== Geology ===
[[Image:516XZRGNCKL AA240 .jpg|right|300px]]
[[William R. Corliss]] is a cataloger of scientific [[Anomaly|anomalies]] (observations and facts that challenge prevailing scientific [[paradigm]]s) and has published many works on the subject.<ref name="sf">[http://www.science-frontiers.com/ Science Frontiers] (Corliss' web-site)</ref>
He also wrote 13 books for the [[National Aeronautics and Space Administration]] (NASA), a dozen educational booklets for the [[Atomic Energy Commission]] (AEC), and a dozen articles for the [[National Science Foundation]] (NSF).<ref>Corliss, 2002</ref> The science magazine ''[[New Scientist]]'' had an article which focused on the career of William Corliss.<ref>Adrian Hope, ''Finding a Home for Stray Fact'', New Scientist, July 14, 1977, p. 83</ref>
''New Scientist'' wrote regarding Corliss's work: "All I can say to Corliss is carry on cataloging".<ref>Quoted on the [http://www.science-frontiers.com/sourcebk.htm Science Frontiers web-site]</ref> [[Arthur C. Clarke]] described Corliss as "[[Charles Fort|Fort]]'s latter-day - and much more scientific - successor."<ref>Clarke, Arthur C. (1990) ''Astounding Days: A Science Fictional Autobiography''. Gollancz. Page 110</ref>

Corliss's work on geological anomalies catalogs scores of anomalies which challenge the [[Old Earth]] [[paradigm]].<ref>[http://www.science-frontiers.com/sourcebk.htm#Geology Geological Catalogs] (Science Frontiers)</ref>

Other examples include:

# The frequency of large [[earthquakes]] (more than 6.99 on the Richter scale) doubles roughly every 40 years,<ref>http://www.earth.webecs.co.uk/</ref> rendering long-term stability impossible. Large earthquakes have increased by more than 20% in only the last decade.<ref>http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eqarchives/year/eqstats.php</ref>
# The continued existence of fragile natural arches without having collapsed a short time period for erosion and stresses on them.<ref>http://www.naturalarches.org/big9.htm</ref>
# An extrapolation of time between the collapse of weaker arches<ref>http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/08/11/AR2008081102290.html</ref> with still-standing stronger arches supports a young earth age.
# The existence of inland saltwater lakes at high altitudes, such as [[Mono Lake]] and the [[Great Salt Lake]], suggest a recent global [[flood]].
# The relative purity of underground well water, which should be a muddy slurry had millions of years of erosion taken place.
# The plentiful supply of high concentrations of underground well water, which would be expected based on familiar principles of [[entropy]] to dissipate over a long period of time.
# Earthquakes alter the Earth's rotation several times each century;<ref>http://www.redorbit.com/news/science/2010872/japan_quake_changed_earths_rotation/</ref> extrapolating by orders of magnitude in time would have resulted in the occurrence of much larger earthquakes that would have destabilized the rotation<ref>A similar analysis may be performed for the likelihood of devastating collisions with meteors as time is extrapolated by orders of magnitude.</ref>
# The lack of erosion between rock layers.<ref>http://www.amazon.com/review/R1WTZL8GG4H9K0</ref><ref>http://www.knowthebible.net/id115.html</ref>
# Levels of contamination in water are rising, as water proceeds through the [[water cycle]] it becomes progressively more contaminated. If earth (and life) had existed for billions of years, a limit would have long been reached where water (essential to life) was too contaminated for life to continue.
# [[Paraconformity]] and unconformity such as that seen at the [[Grand Canyon]] disprove the [[uniformitarianism (science)|uniformitarian]] view of earth history.
# All [[carbon dating]] of water supplies, even the most ancient and the deepest underground reservoirs, result in relatively young ages,<ref>http://www.betalabservices.com/PDF/Geyh.pdf</ref> and no water has been found suggesting an Old Earth.
# The ratio of strontium isotopes in seawater, which should change due to long-term erosion, has varied by only 0.35% throughout history. In fact, its value today is exactly the same as in the oldest samples, which are claimed to be from 500 million years ago.
# The interior of the earth is heated by decay of radioactive isotopes, which could not possibly still be persisting in sufficient quantities after 5 billion, or even half a billion, years.
# The relatively recent separation of the still-moving continents from one land mass -- denied for 100 years by [[atheist]]s before they accepted it -- suggest a young earth or at least a relatively recent cataclysmic event.
# Fresh tracks of motion by stationary rocks are still visible in some areas, which have baffled Old Earth scientists for more than 60 years; Old Earth magazines refer to them as "self-moving rocks."<ref>http://www.usnews.com/science/articles/2011/02/18/rafting-for-rocks?s_cid=rss:rafting-for-rocks</ref>
# Beaches have long been eroding far too quickly for the Old Earth theory; "between 80 and 90 percent of the sandy beaches along America’s coastlines have been eroding for decades," sometimes by as much as 50 feet per year.<ref>http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=what-causes-beach-erosion</ref>
# Land is sinking into the oceans at a rate of at least 7 inches per century,<ref>http://www.app.com/article/20110319/NJNEWS/103190327/Global-warming-rising-seas-threaten-New-Jersey-expert-says</ref> which would have rendered most of the United States under water if the Earth were not young.
# The flow of water in the [[Colorado River]] has been declining since the early 20th century, even after usage is considered, and the man-made Lake Mead is at risk of drying up on the next decade.<ref>http://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/13/us/13mead.html</ref>

=== Science & Discovery ===
# A stalemate of significant and valid discoveries in the last several decades.<ref>Though there has been some progress in this timeframe, many of the "discoveries" are liberal propaganda, or are scientifically weak.</ref>

=== Biblical testimony ===

The Bible contains multiples pieces of evidence showing its authenticity including [[Bible history]], [[Biblical archaeology|Bible archaeology]] and [[Bible prophecy]]. Competent and honest [[Bible exegesis]] indicates the earth is approximately 6,000 years old.<ref>[http://creation.com/should-genesis-be-taken-literally Should Genesis be taken literally?]</ref>

''See also:'' [http://creation.com/history-questions-and-answers How reliable is biblical chronology?]

== Recommended books ==

*[[William R. Corliss]], Anomalies in Geology: Physical, Chemical, Biological (A Catalog of Geological Anomalies), 1989. ISBN 915554-23-2
*William R. Corliss Neglected Geological Anomalies, 1990. ISBN 915554-24-0
*William R. CorlissInner Earth: A Search for Anomalies (A Catalog of Geological Anomalies), 1991. ISBN 915554-25-9
*William R. Corliss, Carolina Bays, Mima Mounds, Submarine Canyons (A Catalog of Geological Anomalies), 1988. ISBN 915554-22-4

== External links ==
*[http://creation.com/age-of-the-earth Age of the earth -101 evidences for a young earth and universe] by [[Creation Ministries International]]
*[http://creation.com/refuting-evolution-chapter-8-how-old-is-the-earth How old is the earth?] - ''Refuting evolution'' - Chapter 8 by Dr. [[Jonathan Sarfati]] at [[Creation Ministries International]]
*[http://www.preteristcentral.com/Debunking%20Old%20Earth%20Creationism%20&%20a%20Regional%20Flood.html Debunking the Old Earth Theory]

== Footnotes ==

<references/>

== See also ==

*[[Counterexamples to Evolution]]
*[[Counterexamples to the Bible]]
*[[Counterexamples to Relativity]]
*[[Counterexamples to Global Warming]]
*[[Radiometric dating]]
[[Category:Counterexamples]]
[[Category:geology]]

Counterexamples to an Old Earth

2011-11-02T04:08:13Z

RandRover: Fixed style - this is not a footnote nor a reference.

It takes only one "counterexample" to disprove the theory of an [[Old Earth]]. Mostof the "evidence" for an [[Old Earth]] is based on claims that lack testability, as in [[radiometric dating]], and hence would not even satisfy minimum requirements for admissibility in a court of law. As with any logical proposition, one contradiction disproves the proposed rule. If each of 38 counterexamples has merely a 10% chance of being valid -- an underestimate -- then the probability that the Earth is billions of years old is less than 3.8%. In other words, '''the Earth must be young with a likelihood of greater than 96%'''.<ref>The same analysis can be applied to the [[Young Earth]] theory, but no valid counterexamples have been found in centuries of atheist attempts. In addition, there are over 100 evidences of a young [[earth]] and [[universe]] (Please see: [http://creation.com/age-of-the-earth ''Age of the earth: 101 evidences for a young age of the earth and the universe'']).</ref>

The motivation for [[atheist]]s to insist on falsely teaching that the Earth is old is to pull students away from [[God]]'s immediate presence, and to turn them away from [[Jesus Christ]]. Also, atheists are motivated, and biased, by the fact that their [[evolutionism|evolutionist]] theories require the world to be an implausible billions of years old.

== Counterexamples ==
The growing list of counterexamples to the theory of an [[Old Earth]] includes:

=== Astronomy ===
# The [[moon|Moon's]] orbit is a very strong counterexample: the moon is receding from the [[Earth]] at a rate<ref>"Measurements show that the Moon is receding from Earth at a rate of about 3.8 centimeters per year." [http://eclipse.gsfc.nasa.gov/SEhelp/ApolloLaser.html Measuring the Moon's Distance] ''Apollo Laser Ranging Experiments Yield Results'' by Fred Espenak, GSFC Planetary Systems Laboratory (LPI Bulletin, No. 72, August, 1994).</ref> that would have placed it too close to the Earth merely four billion years ago, causing instability in its orbit, tidal catastrophes on Earth, and other problems that would have prevented the Earth and the Moon being as they are today. Additionally, the [[moon]]'s orbit is becoming increasingly and unexpectedly eccentric, suggesting a lack of long-term stability,<ref>http://arxiv.org/abs/1102.0212</ref> which further disproves the theory of an [[Old Earth]].
# [[Spiral galaxies]] appear to be young, and only implausible proposals of the existence of [[dark matter]] can reconcile the spirals with a belief in an old universe.
# The expansion of the universe is accelerating, which would not occur if the [[Big Bang]] were billions of years ago; the acceleration suggests that the Big Bang (or creation) was recent.<ref>Some insist there is hokey, unseen "[[dark energy]]" and "[[dark matter]]" to try to explain the acceleration.</ref>
# The planetary orbits in the Solar System - including Earth's - are unstable and unsustainable over the long periods claimed by Old Earth believers.<ref>[http://www.newsweek.com/id/201582 Newsweek: "An embarrassing little secret of astronomy ...."]. (Newsweek has inexplicably taken down its article, but it is quoted by Google and other links)</ref><ref>[http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v459/n7248/full/nature08096.html Existence of collisional trajectories of Mercury, Mars and Venus with the Earth] by J. Laskar & M. Gastineau, ''Nature'' 459, 817-819 (11 June 2009). Believers in an Old Earth speculate that the instability would not result in problems in a billion years, but other computer simulations could be developed to demonstrate multi-body instability for the solar system far more recent than that.</ref>
# At least one [[spiral galaxy]] spins in the direction opposite to the spin of its tail, suggesting an age too young to have generated the tail and contradicting the theory that the tails of spiral galaxies were formed over a long period of time.<ref>[http://www.unisci.com/stories/20021/0207023.htm "Hubble Shows Galaxy Rotating In The Wrong Direction"]</ref>
# The primary reaction in the [[Sun]] is the fusing of [[hydrogen]] to make [[helium]], but the ratio of these is too high for the Sun to have been burning for millions of years.

=== Biology ===
# The intelligence of humans is rapidly declining, whether measured by SAT scores,<ref>''See, e.g.'', David G. Savage, "The Long Decline in SAT Scores," Educational Leadership 290 (Jan. 1978). [http://www.ascd.org/ASCD/pdf/journals/ed_lead/el_197801_savage.pdf]</ref> music, personal letters,<ref>E.g., Civil War letters.</ref> quality of political debates,<ref>E.g., contrast the Lincoln-Douglas debates with debates today.</ref> the quality of news articles,<ref>''The Federalist'' was written for the newspaper audience in the late 1780s, but is far too intellectual for newspapers today.</ref> and many other measures. This means that if one goes back far enough, intelligence would measure at ridiculous heights, if humans were even tens of thousands of years old.
# The age of onset of [[puberty|sexual maturity]] is rapidly changing, suggesting that life is in a short-term rather than long-term equilibrium.<ref>For evidence of a rapidly changing age for sexual maturity in fish, see http://icesjms.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/content/abstract/46/3/235</ref>
# The high observed rate of [[extinctions of species]]<ref>[http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2010-10-26/animals-face-extinction-threat-as-conservation-efforts-slow-report-says.html One in five species are at risk of extinction]</ref> and harmful [[genetic mutation]]s suggest a relatively short period for the existence of life rather than a long one.
# The age of onset of graying of hair or balding is rapidly decreasing, with many teenagers now experiencing baldness or premature graying ([[CNN]]'s [[Anderson Cooper]] began graying as a teenager and was fully gray long before age 40);<ref name="Graying">http://articles.sfgate.com/2006-06-18/living/17299704_1_hair-taylor-hicks-american-idol</ref> many celebrities (such as [[American Idol]] winner Taylor Hicks graying in his 20s)<ref name="Graying"/> and athletes (such as Cal Ripken, Jr. graying and balding in his mid-30s)<ref>"There's a man, close-cropped gray hair, looks older than 35": Sports Illustrated's description of Cal Ripken at 35. [http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1163438/index.htm#ixzz12ONbgydd] By age 50 he was bald too.</ref> increasingly experience premature graying or balding.
# The age of onset of [[cancer]] is markedly decreasing,<ref>http://www3.interscience.wiley.com/journal/109865519/abstract?CRETRY=1&SRETRY=0</ref> suggesting rapid changes inconsistent with an alleged long existence to life.
# The number of natural, pure-bred bred dogs declines over time as dogs naturally crossbreed; a short period of time is suggested by the fact that there are over 100 different natural, pure breeds of dog thriving today.
# Lack of genetic diversity among the ''Homo sapiens'' species. Were evolution and the old earth true, the human population would show a much larger genetic variance.<ref>http://www.godandscience.org/evolution/descent.html#rpafAHIwKHS7</ref> Some scientists have calculated that a troop of 55 chimpanzees contains more genetic diversity than the entire human race; this demonstrates that chimpanzees descended from a large initial population while humans descend from a much smaller one, which indeed we know to have been two people.
# Frequent occurrences of massive deaths of birds and fish, which if extrapolated over millions of years would result in little or no such life today.<ref>http://abclocal.go.com/wabc/story?section=news/technology&id=7884786</ref>
# The separation between salt and freshwater fish, coupled with their inability to survive in the opposing environment, shows a lack of millions of years of evolution to enable them to spread to the opposing environment.
# Furthermore, the separation of land and aquatic life and a similar inability for the organisms to survive in the other environment shows a lack of millions of years of evolution to enable them to spread to the opposing environment.
# Biodiversity on Earth is declining too rapidly to be consistent with a long-term (Old Earth) equilibrium, with the Living Planet Index (LPI) showing "a global decline of 27% between 1970 and 2005. The terrestrial index declined by 25%, freshwater by 29% (this index is calculated to 2003 due to the lack of data available for latter years), and marine by 28%."<ref>http://www.zsl.org/science/research-projects/lpi,1162,AR.html</ref>
# The [[Bible]] makes references to the [[dinosaurs]]. There is no explanation for this if dinosaurs supposedly lived hundreds of millions of years ago. <ref>http://www.christiancourier.com/articles/93-dinosaurs-and-the-bible</ref>

=== Geology ===
[[Image:516XZRGNCKL AA240 .jpg|right|300px]]
[[William R. Corliss]] is a cataloger of scientific [[Anomaly|anomalies]] (observations and facts that challenge prevailing scientific [[paradigm]]s) and has published many works on the subject.<ref name="sf">[http://www.science-frontiers.com/ Science Frontiers] (Corliss' web-site)</ref>
He also wrote 13 books for the [[National Aeronautics and Space Administration]] (NASA), a dozen educational booklets for the [[Atomic Energy Commission]] (AEC), and a dozen articles for the [[National Science Foundation]] (NSF).<ref>Corliss, 2002</ref> The science magazine ''[[New Scientist]]'' had an article which focused on the career of William Corliss.<ref>Adrian Hope, ''Finding a Home for Stray Fact'', New Scientist, July 14, 1977, p. 83</ref>
''New Scientist'' wrote regarding Corliss's work: "All I can say to Corliss is carry on cataloging".<ref>Quoted on the [http://www.science-frontiers.com/sourcebk.htm Science Frontiers web-site]</ref> [[Arthur C. Clarke]] described Corliss as "[[Charles Fort|Fort]]'s latter-day - and much more scientific - successor."<ref>Clarke, Arthur C. (1990) ''Astounding Days: A Science Fictional Autobiography''. Gollancz. Page 110</ref>

Corliss's work on geological anomalies catalogs scores of anomalies which challenge the [[Old Earth]] [[paradigm]].<ref>[http://www.science-frontiers.com/sourcebk.htm#Geology Geological Catalogs] (Science Frontiers)</ref>

Other examples include:

# The frequency of large [[earthquakes]] (more than 6.99 on the Richter scale) doubles roughly every 40 years,<ref>http://www.earth.webecs.co.uk/</ref> rendering long-term stability impossible. Large earthquakes have increased by more than 20% in only the last decade.<ref>http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eqarchives/year/eqstats.php</ref>
# The continued existence of fragile natural arches without having collapsed a short time period for erosion and stresses on them.<ref>http://www.naturalarches.org/big9.htm</ref>
# An extrapolation of time between the collapse of weaker arches<ref>http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/08/11/AR2008081102290.html</ref> with still-standing stronger arches supports a young earth age.
# The existence of inland saltwater lakes at high altitudes, such as [[Mono Lake]] and the [[Great Salt Lake]], suggest a recent global [[flood]].
# The relative purity of underground well water, which should be a muddy slurry had millions of years of erosion taken place.
# The plentiful supply of high concentrations of underground well water, which would be expected based on familiar principles of [[entropy]] to dissipate over a long period of time.
# Earthquakes alter the Earth's rotation several times each century;<ref>http://www.redorbit.com/news/science/2010872/japan_quake_changed_earths_rotation/</ref> extrapolating by orders of magnitude in time would have resulted in the occurrence of much larger earthquakes that would have destabilized the rotation<ref>A similar analysis may be performed for the likelihood of devastating collisions with meteors as time is extrapolated by orders of magnitude.</ref>
# The lack of erosion between rock layers.<ref>http://www.amazon.com/review/R1WTZL8GG4H9K0</ref><ref>http://www.knowthebible.net/id115.html</ref>
# Levels of contamination in water are rising, as water proceeds through the [[water cycle]] it becomes progressively more contaminated. If earth (and life) had existed for billions of years, a limit would have long been reached where water (essential to life) was too contaminated for life to continue.
# [[Paraconformity]] and unconformity such as that seen at the [[Grand Canyon]] disprove the [[uniformitarianism (science)|uniformitarian]] view of earth history.
# All [[carbon dating]] of water supplies, even the most ancient and the deepest underground reservoirs, result in relatively young ages,<ref>http://www.betalabservices.com/PDF/Geyh.pdf</ref> and no water has been found suggesting an Old Earth.
# The ratio of strontium isotopes in seawater, which should change due to long-term erosion, has varied by only 0.35% throughout history. In fact, its value today is exactly the same as in the oldest samples, which are claimed to be from 500 million years ago.
# The interior of the earth is heated by decay of radioactive isotopes, which could not possibly still be persisting in sufficient quantities after 5 billion, or even half a billion, years.
# The relatively recent separation of the still-moving continents from one land mass -- denied for 100 years by [[atheist]]s before they accepted it -- suggest a young earth or at least a relatively recent cataclysmic event.
# Fresh tracks of motion by stationary rocks are still visible in some areas, which have baffled Old Earth scientists for more than 60 years; Old Earth magazines refer to them as "self-moving rocks."<ref>http://www.usnews.com/science/articles/2011/02/18/rafting-for-rocks?s_cid=rss:rafting-for-rocks</ref>
# Beaches have long been eroding far too quickly for the Old Earth theory; "between 80 and 90 percent of the sandy beaches along America’s coastlines have been eroding for decades," sometimes by as much as 50 feet per year.<ref>http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=what-causes-beach-erosion</ref>
# Land is sinking into the oceans at a rate of at least 7 inches per century,<ref>http://www.app.com/article/20110319/NJNEWS/103190327/Global-warming-rising-seas-threaten-New-Jersey-expert-says</ref> which would have rendered most of the United States under water if the Earth were not young.
# The flow of water in the [[Colorado River]] has been declining since the early 20th century, even after usage is considered, and the man-made Lake Mead is at risk of drying up on the next decade.<ref>http://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/13/us/13mead.html</ref>

=== Science & Discovery ===
# A stalemate of significant and valid discoveries in the last several decades.<ref>Though there has been some progress in this timeframe, many of the "discoveries" are liberal propaganda, or are scientifically weak.</ref>

=== Biblical testimony ===

The Bible contains multiples pieces of evidence showing its authenticity including [[Bible history]], [[Biblical archaeology|Bible archaeology]] and [[Bible prophecy]]. Competent and honest [[Bible exegesis]] indicates the earth is approximately 6,000 years old.<ref>[http://creation.com/should-genesis-be-taken-literally Should Genesis be taken literally?]</ref>

''See also:'' [http://creation.com/history-questions-and-answers How reliable is biblical chronology?]

== Recommended books ==

*[[William R. Corliss]], Anomalies in Geology: Physical, Chemical, Biological (A Catalog of Geological Anomalies), 1989. ISBN 915554-23-2
*William R. Corliss Neglected Geological Anomalies, 1990. ISBN 915554-24-0
*William R. CorlissInner Earth: A Search for Anomalies (A Catalog of Geological Anomalies), 1991. ISBN 915554-25-9
*William R. Corliss, Carolina Bays, Mima Mounds, Submarine Canyons (A Catalog of Geological Anomalies), 1988. ISBN 915554-22-4

== External links ==
*[http://creation.com/age-of-the-earth Age of the earth -101 evidences for a young earth and universe] by [[Creation Ministries International]]
*[http://creation.com/refuting-evolution-chapter-8-how-old-is-the-earth How old is the earth?] - ''Refuting evolution'' - Chapter 8 by Dr. [[Jonathan Sarfati]] at [[Creation Ministries International]]
*[http://www.preteristcentral.com/Debunking%20Old%20Earth%20Creationism%20&%20a%20Regional%20Flood.html Debunking the Old Earth Theory]

== Footnotes ==

<references/>

== See also ==

*[[Counterexamples to Evolution]]
*[[Counterexamples to the Bible]]
*[[Counterexamples to Relativity]]
*[[Counterexamples to Global Warming]]
*[[Radiometric dating]]
[[Category:Counterexamples]]
[[Category:geology]]

Polar coordinates

2011-09-28T18:21:37Z

RandRover: Created page. Hopefully others can help add to it as this concept is much more fundamental and therefore useful to students than a lot of the topology articles.

'''Polar coordinates''' are an alternative way of representing points on the [[coordinate plane]]. Under the standard system, a point is represented as an ordered pair (x, y) of coordinates for distance 'x' along the horizontal axis and distance 'y' along the vertical axis from a fixed point, called the origin. Under the polar coordinate system, a point is represented as an angle <math>\theta</math> from the origin and a distance 'r' extended in that direction. Thus, a point under rectangular coordinates can be transformed to polar coordinates using the following rule:

:<math>
x = rcos(\theta)</math>
:<math>y = rsin(\theta)</math>

William Ayers

2011-09-27T23:49:36Z

RandRover: /* Obama, the Annenberg Challenge, ACORN and the Woods Fund */ Removed redlink

[[Image:Features_ayers1.jpg|thumb|William Ayers as he appeared in ''Chicago Magazine''.]] '''William Charles "Bill" Ayers''' (born December 26, 1944 in Oak Park, Illinois) is currently a professor at the [[University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign|University of Illinois]] at [[Chicago]] and former Chicago community organizer. He is best known as a founder of the internationally supported [[terrorist]] [[Weather Underground|Weather Underground Organization]] (WUO), and good friend of U.S President [[Barack Obama]]. The WUO has often mistakenly been labeled as a Vietnam era protest organization, however many of the organizations activities continued well past the end of American involvement in [[Vietnam]],<ref>''Ambush:The Brinks Robbery of 1981'', [http://www.trutv.com/library/crime/terrorists_spies/terrorists/brinks/2.html truTV - Crime Library: Terrorists, The Weather Underground & Black Liberation Army]</ref> the fall of [[South Vietnam]], and the victory of the [[Communist]] regime of [[North Vietnam]], which was the groups oft stated goals.

Ayers is the husband of terrorist [[Bernardine Dohrn]].
<br><br>
==Early Life and Upbringing==
Ayers grew up in a wealthy home as the son of Thomas G. Ayers, former Chairman and CEO of Commonwealth Edison. <ref>Northwestern University, Obituary: Thomas Ayers Served as Board Chair from 1975 to 1986[http://www.northwestern.edu/newscenter/stories/2007/06/ayers.html]</ref> He lived in Glen Ellyn, a suburb of Chicago. Ayers attended public schools and received a bachelor of Arts degree from the [[University of Michigan]] in 1968. At age 21, Ayers became director of the Children's Community, a small school in a basement that did not have grades, report cards, and had children address teachers by their first names. It was part of a "free school movement."

== Internationally sponsored terrorism ==
[[Image:Ayers.jpg|left|thumb|Bill Ayers in August 1968.]]
In 1968, Ayers became leader of the [[Students for a Democratic Society]], and then a prominent leader of the violent "Weatherman group." The group was associated with other international communist guerrilla and terrorist groups, including the [[Vietcong]]. Its objective was the furtherance of [[Soviet]] foreign policy and the defeat of the U.S. in Vientam. In May 1970, the organization issued a Declaration of War<ref>FBI file, [http://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Weather_Underground_Declaration_of_a_State_of_War Weather Underground Declaration of a State of War]</ref> against the United States authored by Bernardine Dohrn who was later to become Ayers wife but not until other members of the group, including Ayers girlfriend at the time, blew themselves up in a bomb making factory in [[Greenwich Village]] [[New York]].
[[File:Bring the War Home2.JPG|right|thumb|SDS leaflet organizing the Chicago Days of Rage, October 11, 1969. [http://www.archive.org/stream/TheWayTheWindBlewAHistoryOfTheWeatherUnderground/waythewindblew#page/n27/mode/2up] ]]
The WUO was responsible for roughly 72 bombings in all, including the [[United States Capitol]] (March 1 1971), [[The Pentagon]] (May 19 1972), the United States [[Department of State]] (January 28 1975)<ref> [http://foia.fbi.gov/weather/weath1c.pdf FBI file Weather Underground] pgs. 67-71 pdf</ref> and numerous other targets. In 1969, the Weather Underground planted a bomb at a statue dedicated to [[police]] casualties in the 1886 [[Haymarket Riot]]. The statue was blown into pieces, but was rebuilt in 1970. It was blown up again by the Weather Underground, five months later.

Ayers stated, "I'm not so much against the war as I am for a Vietnamese victory," and "I'm not so much for peace as for a U.S. defeat."

In 1970, Ayers explained what the Weather Underground was all about: "Kill all the rich people. Break up their cars and apartments. Bring the revolution home, kill your parents, that's where it's really at."<ref>http://www.wnd.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=76714</ref>

==The San Francisco Police Department bombing==

In sworn testimony before the U.S. [[Senate Internal Security Subcommittee]] on October 18 1974,<ref>Senate Internal Security Subcommittee, October 18, 1974 quoted in [http://www.usasurvival.org/docs/chicago-obama.pdf''Communism in Chicago and the Obama Connection''], USA Survival, Inc.</ref> an [[FBI]] informant declared,
{{cquote|"When he [Bill Ayers] returned, we had another meeting at which time -- and this is the only time that any Weathermen told me about something that someone else had done -- and Bill started off telling us about the need to raise the level of the struggle and for stronger leadership inside the Weathermen 'focals' [i.e., cells] and inside the Weatherman organization as a whole. And he cited as one of the real problems was that someone like Bernardine Dohrn had to plan, develop and carry out the bombing of the police station in San Francisco, and he specifically named her as the person that committed that act."}}

The informant added that Ayers said "the bomb was placed on the window ledge and described the kind of bomb that was used to the extent of saying what kind of shrapnel was used in it." He was asked, "Did he say who placed the bomb on the window ledge?" He replied, "Bernardine Dohrn."<ref>[http://www.wnd.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=78130 Did Ayers' wife kill policeman? FBI report said Dohrn named as bomb builder, planter], ''WorldNetDaily.com, October 16, 2008.</ref>

The ''San Francisco Chronicle'' reported on March 12 2009, in a highly unusual move, the San Francisco Police Officers Association have accused Ayers and his wife of taking part in the bombing. The Association claims,
{{cquote|There are irrefutable and compelling reasons to believe that Bill Ayers and his wife Bernardine Dohrn ... are largely responsible for the bombing of Park Police Station,}} and a cold case investigation is being called for.<ref>[http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2009/03/12/BATK16DHA4.DTL&hw=ayers&sn=001&sc=1000 S.F. police union accuses Ayers in 1970 bombing], Demian Bulwa, ''[[San Francisco Chronicle]]'' March 12, 2009.</ref><ref>[http://marklevin.ning.com/forum/topics/ayers-dohrn-murder-case Ayers, Dohrn Murder Case Reopened] marklevin.ning.com</ref>

==Prairie Fire Organizing Committee and Maoist thought==
:''Main article : '''[[Prairie Fire Organizing Committee]]'''''

[[Image:Prairie Fire.jpg|thumb|left|150px]]

In 1974, William Ayers, Bernardine Dohrn, [[Jeff Jones]] and other members formed the [[Prairie Fire Organizing Committee]], the publishing arm of the Weather Underground Organization. The name was inspired by [[mass murder]]er [[Mao Zedong]] who said, "a single spark can set a prairie fire." Its first book was ''Prairie Fire: The Politics of Revolutionary Anti-imperialism.'' In this book, William Ayers admits that he is a communist,

:"We are a guerrilla organization. We are communist women and men, underground in the United States for more than four years."

[[Image:Dedicated to Sirhan Sirhan.jpg|thumb|right|Prairie Fire is dedicated to Sirhan Sirhan, Robert F. Kennedy's assassin.]]
Interestingly, the book lists [[Sirhan Sirhan]], [[Robert F. Kennedy]]'s assassin, among many other now-obscure '60s-era radicals, criminals and revolutionaries on the dedication page.

Ayers and his fellow co-authors brag about their numerous acts of domestic terrorism, and provide a handy list detailing not only each crime but in most cases the justification for each crime as well.
[[Image:Weather Underground bombings.jpg|thumb|right|Ayers and his fellow co-authors brag about their numerous acts of domestic terrorism.]]

Among the bombings by Ayers' group listed in the book:

*Haymarket police statue, Chicago
*Chicago police cars
*New York City police headquarters
*Marin County Courthouse
*Long Island City Courthouse
*Department of Corrections, San Francisco
*Office of California Prisons, Sacramento
*Department of Corrections, Albany NY
*103rd Precinct of New York City police
*Harvard Center for International Affairs
*[[U.S. Capitol]]
*MIT research center
*[[The Pentagon]]
*Draft and recruiting centers
*ROTC buildings
*ITT Latin America Headquarters
*National Guard Headquarters, Washington D.C.
*Presidio Army Base and MP Station, San Francisco
*Federal Offices of Health, Education and Welfare, San Francisco <ref>[http://www.zombietime.com/prairie_fire/ William Ayers' forgotten communist manifesto: Prairie Fire], zombietime.com, October 22, 2008</ref> <ref>[http://www.dakotavoice.com/2008/10/forgotten-terrorist-manifesto-prairie.html Forgotten Terrorist Manifesto: Prairie Fire], Bob Ellis, Dakota Voice, October 24, 2008</ref> <ref>[http://michellemalkin.com/2008/10/23/reading-bill-ayers/ Reading Bill Ayers], Michelle Malkin, MichelleMalkin.com, October 23, 2008</ref>

== "Guilty as hell, free as a bird" ==

Bill Ayers, his wife Bernardine Dohrn and other WUO figures were not prosecuted because of alleged [[FBI]] misconduct while investigating the foreign influence in domestic terrorism. In fact, FBI officials [[W. Mark Felt]]<ref>[http://www.gwu.edu/~nsarchiv/NSAEBB/NSAEBB156/ Nixon and the FBI: The White House Tapes], National Security Archive, The George Washington Universtiy, Washington, D.C.</ref> and Edward S. Miller were indicted and convicted in November 1980 of conspiring to violate the civil rights of relatives of the Weather Underground, including Jennifer Dohrn,<ref>http://www.archive.org/search.php?query=jennifer%20dohrn</ref> sister of Bernardine, whose homes had been burglarized.

However, on April 15, 1981, President [[Ronald Reagan]] in his first 100 days granted full and unconditional pardons, saying, in part:
{{Cquote| Messrs. Felt and Miller followed procedures they believed essential to keep the Director of the FBI, the [[Attorney General]], and the [[President of the United States]] advised of the activities of hostile foreign powers and their collaborators in this country.<ref>[http://www.reagan.utexas.edu/archives/speeches/1981/41581d.htm Statement on Granting Pardons to W. Mark Felt and Edward S. Miller], April 15, 1981.</ref><ref>[http://www.nytimes.com/1983/12/01/us/two-top-fbi-officials-cleared.html Two Top F.B.I. Officials Cleared], [[New York Times]], December 1, 1983.</ref>}}

At the end of Ayers ''Fugitive Days'' he writes that he is "Guilty as hell, free as a bird—it’s a great country." Historian [[Ronald Radosh]] reviewing ''Fugitive Days'' in the [[Weekly Standard]] notes, "As for those who might believe without irony that America is a great country, Ayers has one reaction: 'It makes me want to puke.'"<ref>[http://www.weeklystandard.com/Content/Public/Articles/000%5C000%5C000%5C267rdlhy.asp ''Don't Need a Weatherman : The clouded mind of Bill Ayers''.] by Ronald Radosh, The Weekly Standard, 10/08/2001, Volume 007, Issue 04.</ref>

==Fugitive Days==

Today, Ayers and his wife -- fellow former Weather Underground fugitive [[Bernardine Dohrn]] -- live in Hyde Park, where they moved after surrendering in 1980.

In a 2001 interview with the [[New York Times]], an unrepentant Ayers said, "I don't regret setting bombs" and "I feel we didn't do enough." Ayers later claimed that he was quoted out of context, and that he meant that he felt that he had not done enough to oppose the war in Vietnam, which he defined as ''"[an] illegal, murderous, imperial war."'' <ref>Bill Ayers' blog, Episodic Notoriety–Fact and Fantasy, by Bill Ayers, 4/06/2008[http://billayers.wordpress.com/2008/04/06/episodic-notoriety-fact-and-fantasy/]</ref>

Ayers has claimed that his actions were not terrorist acts.<ref>Bill Ayers' blog, Episodic Notoriety–Fact and Fantasy, by Bill Ayers, 4/06/2008[http://billayers.wordpress.com/2008/04/06/episodic-notoriety-fact-and-fantasy/]</ref> He has stated that according to the official definition of both the U.S. and the U.N., terrorism consists of violent acts intended to intimidate or coerce a populace into a political end, and that his actions were intended to draw attention to and combat the state terrorism of the U.S. in the Vietnam War. In his autobiography, Fugitive Days, Ayers claimed that his bombing of the [[Pentagon]] prevented aerial bombardments in Vietnam for several days, which he defined as terrorism. In this regard, Ayers has implied that he ''prevented'' terrorism rather than caused it.

Asked if he would do it all again, Ayers stated, ''I don't want to discount the possibility.''

Ayers rebellion against authority also extended to sexual morality. He stated that that the Weathermen tried to ''smash monogamy,'' and engaged in fornication, including for Ayers, homosexual relations with his best male friend. <ref>''No Regrets for a Love Of Explosives,'' N.Y. Times, September 11, 2001</ref>

==Obama, the Annenberg Challenge, ACORN and the Woods Fund ==

Ayers and [[Barack Obama]] worked together at the Chicago Annenberg Challenge (CAC), from 1995-1999, an [[organisation]] that funneled money to [[ACORN]]. On his curriculum vitae, Ayers identifies himself as the co-founder and grant writer of the Annenberg Challenge Grant of $49,200,000 and the one who obtained this and other grants for "the support of the Small Schools Workshop and/or the Chicago forum for School Change at the University of Illinois at Chicago..."

Obama joined Ayers again in a paid nine-member board of the Woods Fund of Chicago. Ayers also says that he obtained grants from the Chicago-based MacArthur foundation, the Joyce Foundation, and the Woods Fund, on whose board he sat with [[Barack Obama]] from 1999 to 2002.

The announcement of Obama's candidacy for higher office was made in the home of Bill Ayers and his wife, Bernardine Dohrn in 1995.

In 2001, Ayers supported and contributed $200 to Obama's state Senate campaign<ref>[http://www.followthemoney.org/database/StateGlance/contributor.phtml?d=330121189]</ref>.

Obama was asked about the relationship in an April 2008 Presidential debate by moderator [[George Stephanopoulos]]:

:''"Can you explain that relationship for the voters, and explain to Democrats why it won't be a problem?"''

To which Obama replied,

:''"This is a guy who lives in my neighborhood, who's a professor of [[English]] in Chicago who I know and who I have not received some official endorsement from. He's not somebody who I exchange ideas from on a regular basis. And the notion that somehow as a consequence of me knowing somebody who engaged in detestable acts 40 years ago, when I was eight years old, somehow reflects on me and my values doesn't make much sense, George"''

In February of 2008, Obama Chief Strategist David Axelrod said:

:''"Bill Ayers lives in his neighborhood. Their kids attend the same school … They’re certainly friendly, they know each other, as anyone whose kids go to school together."'' He called Ayers current defense of his 1960s bombings ''"objectionable, and I think Barack would also say that was objectionable. I don't think he's ever had an in-depth discussion [with Ayers] about them."''<ref>Politico, ''Ax on Ayers'', by Ben Smith, February 26, 2008 [http://www.politico.com/blogs/bensmith/0208/Ax_on_Ayers.html]</ref>

In an October 2008 article in ''American Thinker'', Jack Cashill presented evidence that Ayers ghostwrote Obama's first book, "Dreams From My Father". He based his assertion on a comparison of the writing styles of Bill Ayers' 2001 memoir, ''Fugitive Days'', and Barack Obama's earlier 1995 book, ''Dreams From My Father'', and came to the conclusion that Ayres had ghostwritten ''Dreams''. <ref>American Thinker, October 26, 2008, ''Who Wrote Dreams From My Father?'', by Jack Cashill, October 09, 2008 [http://www.americanthinker.com/2008/10/who_wrote_dreams_from_my_fathe_1.html]</ref>

==See Also==
*[[Mystery:Who Ghostwrote Obama's Books?]]

==References==
<references />

==External links==
*[http://www.usasurvival.org/docs/bombing.case.pdf The Park Police Station Bombing Case], usasurvival.org

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ayers, William}}

[[Category:Terrorists]]
[[Category:Liberals]]
[[Category:Criminals]]
[[Category:Weather Underground]]

Counterexamples to an Old Earth

2011-09-27T23:44:13Z

RandRover: Removed a nonsequitur. The reference does not address the proposition.

It takes only one "counterexample" to disprove the theory of an [[Old Earth]]. As with any logical proposition, one contradiction disproves the proposed rule. If each of 37 counterexamples has merely a 10% chance of being valid -- an underestimate -- then the probability that the Earth is billions of years old is less than 3.8%. With the total of these counterexamples at 37, '''they demonstrate that the Earth must be young with a likelihood of greater than 96%'''.<ref>The same analysis can be applied to the [[Young Earth]] theory, but no valid counterexamples have been found in centuries of atheist attempts. In addition, there are over 100 evidences of a young [[earth]] and [[universe]] (Please see: [http://creation.com/age-of-the-earth ''Age of the earth: 101 evidences for a young age of the earth and the universe'']).</ref>

The motivation for [[atheist]]s to insist on falsely teaching that the Earth is old is to pull students away from [[God]]'s immediate presence, and to turn them away from [[Jesus Christ]]. Also, they are motivated, and biased, by the fact that their [[evolutionism|evolutionist]] theories require a world which is billions of years old.

== Counterexamples ==
The growing list of counterexamples to the theory of an [[Old Earth]] includes:

=== Astronomy ===
# The [[moon|Moon's]] orbit is a very strong counterxample: The moon is receding from the [[Earth]] at a rate<ref>"Measurements show that the Moon is receding from Earth at a rate of about 3.8 centimeters per year." [http://eclipse.gsfc.nasa.gov/SEhelp/ApolloLaser.html Measuring the Moon's Distance] ''Apollo Laser Ranging Experiments Yield Results'' by Fred Espenak, GSFC Planetary Systems Laboratory (LPI Bulletin, No. 72, August, 1994).</ref> that would have placed it too close to the Earth merely four billion years ago, causing instability in its orbit, tidal catastrophes on Earth, and other problems that would have prevented the Earth and the Moon being as they are today.<br />Additionally, the [[moon]]'s orbit is becoming increasingly and unexpectedly eccentric, suggesting a lack of long-term stability.<ref>http://arxiv.org/abs/1102.0212</ref> This disproves the theory of an [[Old Earth]] even further.
# [[Spiral galaxies]] appear to be young, and only implausible proposals of the existence of [[dark matter]] can reconcile the spirals with a belief in an old universe.
# The planetary orbits in the Solar System - including Earth's - are unstable and unsustainable over the long periods claimed by Old Earth believers.<ref>[http://www.newsweek.com/id/201582 Newsweek: "An embarrassing little secret of astronomy ...."]. (Newsweek has inexplicably taken down its article, but it is quoted by Google and other links)</ref><ref>[http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v459/n7248/full/nature08096.html Existence of collisional trajectories of Mercury, Mars and Venus with the Earth] by J. Laskar & M. Gastineau, ''Nature'' 459, 817-819 (11 June 2009). Believers in an Old Earth speculate that the instability would not result in problems in a billion years, but other computer simulations could be developed to demonstrate multi-body instability for the solar system far more recent than that.</ref>
# At least one [[spiral galaxy]] spins in the direction opposite to the spin of its tail, suggesting an age too young to have generated the tail and contradicting the theory that the tails of spiral galaxies were formed over a long period of time.<ref>[http://www.unisci.com/stories/20021/0207023.htm "Hubble Shows Galaxy Rotating In The Wrong Direction"]</ref>
# The primary reaction in the [[Sun]] is the fusing of [[hydrogen]] to make [[helium]], but the ratio of these is too high for the Sun to have been burning for millions of years.

=== Biology ===
# The intelligence of humans is rapidly declining, whether measured by SAT scores,<ref>''See, e.g.'', David G. Savage, "The Long Decline in SAT Scores," Educational Leadership 290 (Jan. 1978). [http://www.ascd.org/ASCD/pdf/journals/ed_lead/el_197801_savage.pdf]</ref> music, personal letters,<ref>E.g., Civil War letters.</ref> quality of political debates,<ref>E.g., contrast the Lincoln-Douglas debates with debates today.</ref> the quality of news articles,<ref>''The Federalist'' was written for the newspaper audience in the late 1780s, but is far too intellectual for newspapers today.</ref> and many other measures. This means that if one goes back far enough, intelligence will end up reaching ridiculously high, if humans were supposedly hundreds of thousands of years old.
# The age of onset of [[puberty|sexual maturity]] is rapidly changing, suggesting that life is in a short-term rather than long-term equilibrium.<ref>For evidence of a rapidly changing age for sexual maturity in fish, see http://icesjms.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/content/abstract/46/3/235</ref>
# The high observed rate of [[extinctions of species]]<ref>[http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2010-10-26/animals-face-extinction-threat-as-conservation-efforts-slow-report-says.html One in five species are at risk of extinction]</ref> and harmful [[genetic mutation]]s suggest a relatively short period for the existence of life rather than a long one.
# The age of onset of graying of hair or balding is rapidly decreasing, with many teenagers now experiencing baldness or premature graying ([[CNN]]'s [[Anderson Cooper]] began graying as a teenager and was fully gray long before age 40);<ref name="Graying">http://articles.sfgate.com/2006-06-18/living/17299704_1_hair-taylor-hicks-american-idol</ref> many celebrities (such as [[American Idol]] winner Taylor Hicks graying in his 20s)<ref name="Graying"/> and athletes (such as Cal Ripken, Jr. graying and balding in his mid-30s)<ref>"There's a man, close-cropped gray hair, looks older than 35": Sports Illustrated's description of Cal Ripken at 35. [http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1163438/index.htm#ixzz12ONbgydd] By age 50 he was bald too.</ref> increasingly experience premature graying or balding.
# The age of onset of [[cancer]] is markedly decreasing,<ref>http://www3.interscience.wiley.com/journal/109865519/abstract?CRETRY=1&SRETRY=0</ref> suggesting rapid changes inconsistent with an alleged long existence to life.
# The oldest direct evidence of life -- written documents, clothing, remnants of civilizations, tree rings, etc. -- is no older than about 3000 B.C.
# The number of natural, pure-bred bred dogs declines over time as dogs naturally crossbreed; a short period of time is suggested by the fact that there are over 100 different natural, pure breeds of dog thriving today.
# Lack of genetic diversity among the ''Homo sapiens'' species. Were evolution and the old earth true, the human population would show a much larger genetic variance.<ref>http://www.godandscience.org/evolution/descent.html#rpafAHIwKHS7</ref> Some scientists have calculated that a troop of 55 chimpanzees contains more genetic diversity than the entire human race; this demonstrates that chimpanzees descended from a large initial population while humans descend from a much smaller one, which indeed we know to have been two people.
# Frequent occurrences of massive deaths of birds and fish, which if extrapolated over millions of years would result in little or no such life today.<ref>http://abclocal.go.com/wabc/story?section=news/technology&id=7884786</ref>
# The separation between salt and freshwater fish, coupled with their inability to survive in the opposing environment, shows a lack of millions of years of evolution to enable them to spread to the opposing environment.
# Furthermore, the separation of land and aquatic life and a similar inability for the organisms to survive in the other environment shows a lack of millions of years of evolution to enable them to spread to the opposing environment.
# Biodiversity on Earth is declining too rapidly to be consistent with a long-term (Old Earth) equilibrium, with the Living Planet Index (LPI) showing "a global decline of 27% between 1970 and 2005. The terrestrial index declined by 25%, freshwater by 29% (this index is calculated to 2003 due to the lack of data available for latter years), and marine by 28%."<ref>http://www.zsl.org/science/research-projects/lpi,1162,AR.html</ref>
# The [[Bible]] makes references to the [[dinosaurs]]. There is no explanation for this if dinosaurs supposedly lived hundreds of millions of years ago. <ref>http://www.christiancourier.com/articles/93-dinosaurs-and-the-bible</ref>

=== Geology ===
[[Image:516XZRGNCKL AA240 .jpg|right|300px]]
[[William R. Corliss]] is a cataloger of scientific [[Anomaly|anomalies]] (observations and facts that challenge prevailing scientific [[paradigm]]s) and has published many works on the subject.<ref name="sf">[http://www.science-frontiers.com/ Science Frontiers] (Corliss' web-site)</ref>
He also wrote 13 books for the [[National Aeronautics and Space Administration]] (NASA), a dozen educational booklets for the [[Atomic Energy Commission]] (AEC), and a dozen articles for the [[National Science Foundation]] (NSF).<ref>Corliss, 2002</ref> The science magazine ''[[New Scientist]]'' had an article which focused on the career of William Corliss.<ref>Adrian Hope, ''Finding a Home for Stray Fact'', New Scientist, July 14, 1977, p. 83</ref>
''New Scientist'' wrote regarding Corliss's work: "All I can say to Corliss is carry on cataloging".<ref>Quoted on the [http://www.science-frontiers.com/sourcebk.htm Science Frontiers web-site]</ref> [[Arthur C. Clarke]] described Corliss as "[[Charles Fort|Fort]]'s latter-day - and much more scientific - successor."<ref>Clarke, Arthur C. (1990) ''Astounding Days: A Science Fictional Autobiography''. Gollancz. Page 110</ref>

Corliss's work on geological anomalies catalogs scores of anomalies which challenge the [[Old Earth]] [[paradigm]].<ref>[http://www.science-frontiers.com/sourcebk.htm#Geology Geological Catalogs] (Science Frontiers)</ref>

Other examples include:

# The continued existence of fragile natural arches without having collapsed a short time period for erosion and stresses on them.<ref>http://www.naturalarches.org/big9.htm</ref>
# An extrapolation of time between the collapse of weaker arches<ref>http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/08/11/AR2008081102290.html</ref> with still-standing stronger arches supports a young earth age.
# The massive [[Great Lakes]] and freshwater lakes near the equator could not exist for millions of years, and several of these lakes are rapidly receding in volume; the third largest saltwater lake, Oroumieh Lake, could completely evaporate within the next five years.<ref>http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20110525/ap_on_re_mi_ea/ml_iran_environmental_disaster</ref>
# The existence of inland saltwater lakes at high altitudes, such as [[Mono Lake]] and the [[Great Salt Lake]], suggest a recent global [[flood]].
# The relative purity of underground well water, which should be a muddy slurry had millions of years of erosion taken place.
# The plentiful supply of high concentrations of underground well water, which would be expected based on familiar principles of [[entropy]] to dissipate over a long period of time.
# Earthquakes alter the Earth's rotation several times each century;<ref>http://www.redorbit.com/news/science/2010872/japan_quake_changed_earths_rotation/</ref> extrapolating by orders of magnitude in time would have resulted in the occurrence of much larger earthquakes that would have destabilized the rotation<ref>A similar analysis may be performed for the likelihood of devastating collisions with meteors as time is extrapolated by orders of magnitude.</ref>
# The lack of erosion between rock layers.<ref>http://www.amazon.com/review/R1WTZL8GG4H9K0</ref><ref>http://www.knowthebible.net/id115.html</ref>
# Levels of contamination in water are rising, as water proceeds through the [[water cycle]] it becomes progressively more contaminated. If earth (and life) had existed for billions of years, a limit would have long been reached where water (essential to life) was too contaminated for life to continue.
# [[Paraconformity]] and unconformity such as that seen at the [[Grand Canyon]] disprove the [[uniformitarianism (science)|uniformitarian]] view of earth history.
# All [[carbon dating]] of water supplies, even the most ancient and the deepest underground reservoirs, result in relatively young ages,<ref>http://www.betalabservices.com/PDF/Geyh.pdf</ref> and no water has been found suggesting an Old Earth.
# The ratio of strontium isotopes in seawater, which should change due to long-term erosion, has varied by only 0.35% throughout history. In fact, its value today is exactly the same as in the oldest samples, which are claimed to be from 500 million years ago.
# The interior of the earth is heated by decay of radioactive isotopes, which could not possibly still be persisting in sufficient quantities after 5 billion, or even half a billion, years.
# The relatively recent separation of the still-moving continents from one land mass -- denied for 100 years by [[atheist]]s before they accepted it -- suggest a young earth or at least a relatively recent cataclysmic event.
# Fresh tracks of motion by stationary rocks are still visible in some areas, which have baffled Old Earth scientists for more than 60 years; Old Earth magazines refer to them as "self-moving rocks."<ref>http://www.usnews.com/science/articles/2011/02/18/rafting-for-rocks?s_cid=rss:rafting-for-rocks</ref>
# Beaches have long been eroding far too quickly for the Old Earth theory; "between 80 and 90 percent of the sandy beaches along America’s coastlines have been eroding for decades," sometimes by as much as 50 feet per year.<ref>http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=what-causes-beach-erosion</ref>
# Land is sinking into the oceans at a rate of at least 7 inches per century,<ref>http://www.app.com/article/20110319/NJNEWS/103190327/Global-warming-rising-seas-threaten-New-Jersey-expert-says</ref> which would have rendered most of the United States under water if the Earth were not young.
# The flow of water in the [[Colorado River]] has been declining since the early 20th century, even after usage is considered, and the man-made Lake Mead is at risk of drying up on the next decade.<ref>http://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/13/us/13mead.html</ref>

=== Science & Discovery ===
# A stalemate of significant and valid discoveries in the last several decades.<ref>Though there has been some progress in this timeframe, many of the "discoveries" are liberal propaganda, or are scientifically weak.</ref>

=== Biblical testimony ===

The Bible contains multiples pieces of evidence showing its authenticity including [[Bible history]], [[Biblical archaeology|Bible archaeology]] and [[Bible prophecy]]. Competent and honest [[Bible exegesis]] indicates the earth is approximately 6,000 years old.<ref>[http://creation.com/should-genesis-be-taken-literally Should Genesis be taken literally?]</ref>

''See also:'' [http://creation.com/history-questions-and-answers How reliable is biblical chronology?]

== Recommended books ==

*[[William R. Corliss]], Anomalies in Geology: Physical, Chemical, Biological (A Catalog of Geological Anomalies), 1989. ISBN 915554-23-2
*William R. Corliss Neglected Geological Anomalies, 1990. ISBN 915554-24-0
*William R. CorlissInner Earth: A Search for Anomalies (A Catalog of Geological Anomalies), 1991. ISBN 915554-25-9
*William R. Corliss, Carolina Bays, Mima Mounds, Submarine Canyons (A Catalog of Geological Anomalies), 1988. ISBN 915554-22-4

== External links ==
*[http://creation.com/age-of-the-earth Age of the earth -101 evidences for a young earth and universe] by [[Creation Ministries International]]
*[http://creation.com/refuting-evolution-chapter-8-how-old-is-the-earth How old is the earth?] - ''Refuting evolution'' - Chapter 8 by Dr. [[Jonathan Sarfati]] at [[Creation Ministries International]]
*[http://www.preteristcentral.com/Debunking%20Old%20Earth%20Creationism%20&%20a%20Regional%20Flood.html Debunking the Old Earth Theory]

== Footnotes ==

<references/>

== See also ==

*[[Counterexamples to Evolution]]
*[[Counterexamples to the Bible]]
*[[Counterexamples to Relativity]]
*[[Counterexamples to Global Warming]]
*[[Radiometric dating]]
[[Category:Counterexamples]]
[[Category:geology]]

Two-Pancake Problem

2011-08-19T22:59:36Z

RandRover: Rewrote a portion of the article; the title is the PROBLEM. The article is about the THEOREM.

The '''Two-Pancake Problem''' is an introductory problem in [[topology]] that asks whether two pancakes can be bisected with a single cut. The solution generates a theorem, called the '''Two-Pancake Theorem''', that the area of any two pancakes having an arbitrary two-dimensional shape can both be perfectly bisected with one straight line (one cut of a knife). Its proof is an illustration of the properties of continuous functions. It is the two-dimensional version of the three-dimensional [[Ham Sandwich Theorem]].
[[Category:mathematics]]
[[Category:topology]]

Ham Sandwich Theorem

2011-08-19T22:55:53Z

RandRover: Removed unnecessary analogy that detracts from tone of encyclopedia. No evidence that it's easier to visualize, and in fact I think it's harder. Talk page discussion suggests such removal.

The '''Ham Sandwich Theorem''' is a theorem in [[analysis|mathematical analysis]] stating that the volume of any three 3-dimensional objects of any shape (imagined as a slice of bread, some ham, and another slice of bread) can all be perfectly bisected with one plane. That is, one straight slice of a knife will create two half-sandwiches, with exactly equal amounts of bread on top, equal amounts of ham, and equal amounts of bread on the bottom. It is the three-dimensional version of the two-dimensional [[Two-Pancake Problem]].

[[Category:mathematics]]
[[Category:topology]]

Talk:Evolutionary game theory

2011-08-19T22:51:30Z

RandRover: Page should be moved

This page defines not '''Evolutionary Game Theory''' but the narrower concept of an ESS. It should therefore be retitled. [[User:RandRover|RandRover]] 18:51, 19 August 2011 (EDT)

Macroeconomics

2011-06-24T17:20:17Z

RandRover: /* Schools of Thought */ Fixed a typo and added a line to explain monetarism (It said what monetarism IS NOT - we should add what it IS)

'''Macroeconomics''' is the analysis of the aggregate activity of a nation's [[economy]]. Topics in the study of macroeconomics include [[inflation]], [[unemployment]], and [[fiscal policy]]. The purpose of this discipline is to understand how societies can more effectively achieve goals such as economic growth, economic security, and [[full employment]].

== Development of Macroeconomics ==
Macroeconomics is a relatively new field of study, gaining attention during the 1930's; with the term first being used by the Norwegian nobel prize-winning economist Ragnar Frisch<ref>http://cepa.newschool.edu/het/profiles/frisch.htm</ref> although naturally the principles upon which it is founded have been in existence far longer. During the 1930's it became possible for the first time to collect increasingly detailed economic data on national income, balance of trade and the current account; allowing for a more precise analysis of the entire national economy.

=== The Great Depression ===
[[The Great Depression]] of 1929 was a powerful influence behind the development of macroeconomics, since it highlighted the major flaws in applying [[microeconomics|microeconomic]] theory to the national economy. According to microeconomic, or "market-clearing" theory, the large amount of unemployment following the Great Depression should have been adjusted by the "invisible hand" of the markets, whereby workers revised their wage expectations downwards to the point where firms were willing to employ more workers. However, due to the unemployment and poverty, the demand for goods and services dropped, so firms did not require workers. In addition to this, workers were unwilling to accept substantially lower wages to do the same jobs as before, preventing the wage rate dropping to an appropriate level.
In response to this situation, the British economist [[John Maynard Keynes]] wrote ''The General Theory of Employment, Interest and Money'' in which he outlined the limitations of Microeconomics and put forward many founding macroeconomic principals such as aggregate demand <ref>http://www.economyprofessor.com/economictheories/general-theory-of-employment-interest-and-money.php</ref>, and thus can be considered the "father" of Macroeconomics. Since then many of Keynes' original theories have been subject to intense scrutiny and critique, notably by [[monetarists]] such as [[Milton Friedman]] who claim government intervention to correct market failure is inefficient, and private firms motivated by [[profits]] and price competitiveness are far better at ironing out market failures.

== Government Policy ==
Typically, governments use [[Fiscal Policy|Fiscal]] and [[Monetary Policy]] to stabilize the economy and prevent events such as the Great Depression from happening. Fiscal policy involves government taxation and spending to reduce or increase aggregate demand and Monetary policy seeks achieves the same using the manipulation of [[Interest rates]].

==Schools of Thought==
Since the 1930's, two main schools of macroeconomic thought have developed, although within these other sub-groups exist. The two schools are:
*'''Monetarism'''- advocated by economists such as [[Milton Friedman]] and [[Anna Schwartz]], monetarism rejects Keynes' demand management and government intervention proposals, stating that these create distortions in the market and force out the more efficient private firms. Rather, monetarism seeks to understand changes in the economy through the lens of the money supply.
*'''Keynesian'''- this school stems from the original work of [[John Maynard Keynes]], and uses the principal of [[aggregate demand]] to explain unemployment and changing levels of economic growth. Keynesian economists usually advocate demand management or [[fiscal policy]] as a means of correcting market failure.

==Further reading==
* Buchholz, Todd G. ''New Ideas from Dead Economists: An Introduction to Modern Economic Thought'' (2007), [http://www.amazon.com/New-Ideas-Dead-Economists-Introduction/dp/0452288444/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1254858338&sr=8-2-fkmr0 excerpt and text search], by conservative economist
* [http://www.h-net.msu.edu/reviews/showrev.cgi?path=9872935679950 Cate, T., Colander, D., and Harcourt,g. ''Encyclopedia of Keynesian Economics''. 1997]
* Coats, A. W. Bob ''The Development of Economics in Western Europe since 1945'' 1999 [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=109285982 online edition]
* Dorfman, Joseph. ''The Economic Mind in American Civilization,'' (5 vol 1947-1959), thorough coverage down to 1933.
* Eatwell, John et al eds. ''The New Palgrave Dictionary of Economics'' 3 vol 1998;
** 2nd edition (8 vol 2008), edited by Steven Durlauf and Lawrence Blume
*Ekelund, Robert B., and Robert F. Hebert. ''A History of Economic Theory and Method'' (2007)
* Negishi, T. ''History of Economic Theory'' (1989) [http://www.amazon.com/History-Economic-Advanced-Textbooks-Economics/dp/044470437X/ref=sr_1_18/103-4827826-5463040?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1190649241&sr=8-18 excerpt and text search]
* Robbins, Lionel et al. ''A History of Economic Thought'' (2000) [http://www.amazon.com/History-Economic-Thought-Lionel-Robbins/dp/0691070148/ref=pd_bbs_3/103-4827826-5463040?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1190648431&sr=8-3 excerpt and text search]
* Roncaglia, Alessandro. ''The Wealth of Ideas: A History of Economic Thought'' (2006) [http://www.amazon.com/Wealth-Ideas-History-Economic-Thought/dp/0521691877/ref=pd_bbs_sr_4/103-4827826-5463040?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1190648431&sr=8-4 excerpt and text search]
* Samuels, Warren, John Davis, and Jeff Biddle, eds. ''A Companion to the History of Economic Thought.'' (2003) [http://www.amazon.com/Companion-Blackwell-Companions-Contemporary-Economics/dp/1405134593/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1/103-4827826-5463040?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1190729175&sr=8-1 excerpt and text search]
* Samuels, Warren J. ''Histories of Economic Thought'' (2003) [[http://www.amazon.com/Histories-Economic-Thought-Research-Methodology/dp/0762309970/ref=sr_1_16/103-4827826-5463040?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1190648431&sr=8-16 excerpt and text search]
* Snowdon, Brian ''The Power of Ideas - an interview with Joel Mokyr'' World Economics July-September 2007 [www.world-economics-journal.com]
* [http://www.chass.utoronto.ca/~munro5/schump.htm#N_1_ Schumpeter, Joseph A., ''History of Economic Analysis'', (1954, 1996)] [http://www.amazon.com/History-Economic-Analysis-New-Introduction/dp/0195105591/ref=sr_1_15/103-4827826-5463040?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1190648431&sr=8-15 excerpt and online search]
* Wahid, Abu N. M. ''Frontiers of Economics: Nobel Laureates of the Twentieth Century'' 2002 [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=107166560 online edition]
==References==
<small><references/></small>

==See Also==
* [[Microeconomics]]
* [[Milton Friedman]]
* [[John Maynard Keynes]]
* [[Ludwig von Mises]]
[[Category:Economics]]

Microeconomics

2011-06-24T17:14:45Z

RandRover:

'''Microeconomics''' is the study of the behavior of individual units, firms, households or persons in the [[economy]].

If [[macroeconomics]] is compared to the study of a "forest", then microeconomics is the study of the trees in the forest.

A typical course in microeconomics for late high school or early college students considers consumer theory in the form of utility maximization and producer theory in the form of profit maximization and cost minimization. Upperclass courses often include discussion of monopoly, market failure, externalities, and more advanced mathematical modeling techniques for lower-level material.
[[Category:Economics]]

Integral

2011-06-24T01:26:48Z

RandRover: /* Types of Integrals */ Mentioned improper integrals

{{Template:Math-h}}

An '''integral''' is a mathematical construction used in [[calculus]] to represent the area of a region in a plane bounded by the graph of a [[function]] in one [[real]] variable. [[Definite integral]]s use the following notation:

:<math>\int_a^b f(x)dx</math>

where ''a'' and ''b'' represent the lower and upper bounds of the [[interval]] being integrated over, ''f(x)'' represents the function being integrated (the '''integrand'''), and ''dx'' represents a dummy variable given various definitions, depending on the context of the integral.

[[Image:Definiteintegralnv7.gif|thumb|A definite integral.]]

[[Indefinite integral]]s use the notation
:<math>\int f(x) dx </math>

==Integration==
===Definition===
If <math> f</math> is a function of [[bounded variation]], then the [[Riemann integral]] of <math> f</math> is defined as the limit of a [[Riemann sum]]:
:<math>\int\limits_{x_1}^{x_N} f(x) dx = \lim_{dx\to 0} \sum_{i=1}^N f(x_i)*dx</math>.

The fact that <math> f </math> is of bounded variation implies that the Riemann sum above converges and is independent of the choices of <math>x_1,\dots,x_N</math>. For integration of measurable functions which may not have bounded variation, the [[Lebesgue integral]] must be used. It is easy to see that <math>\int\limits_a^b f(x) dx</math> is the area under the curve f(x) between the vertical line x=a and the vertical line x=b. <tt>a</tt> and <tt>b</tt> are called the ''limits'' of the integral, and <tt>f(x)</tt> is called the ''integrand''. This type of integral is referred to as a ''definite integral'', or an integral between definite limits.

Indefinite integrals are related to definite integrals by the second part of the [[Fundamental Theorem of Calculus]].

===Applications===
The first part of the [[Fundamental Theorem of Calculus]] states that integration is the reverse function of [[derivative|differentiation]]. Thus, if <math>\int f(x) dx = g(x)</math>, then <math>\frac{d}{dx}g(x) = f(x)</math>.

Note that, because the derivative of any constant function is 0, <math>\frac{d}{dx}x^2+2 = \frac{d}{dx}x^2+3 = \frac{d}{dx}x^2 = 2x</math>. Therefore, <math>\int 2x dx</math> does not simply equal x<sup>2</sup>, but rather x<sup>2</sup> + C for any constant real number C. The above-mentioned functions are the ''family of antiderivatives'' for 2x.

The concept of integration can be extended to functions in more than one real variable, as well as functions defined over the [[complex numbers]].

Integration has many physical applications. The indefinite integral of an [[acceleration]] function with respect to time gives the [[velocity]] function defined to within a constant, while the definite integral of an acceleration function with respect to time gives the change in velocity between the upper and lower limits of integration. Likewise, the indefinite integral of a time function of velocity with respect to time gives the position function defined to within a constant, and the definite integral of this velocity function will give the change in position between the two limits of integration.

=== Methods of Integration ===
{{main|Methods of integration}}
There are many different ways to integrate functions. Sometimes, when it is impossible to directly integrate a function, an approximation is used, such as the Riemann integral. Or, there may be a process to integrate the function using a rule, such as with [[Integration by parts]].

==Types of Integrals==

There are two types of integrals. [[Definite integral|Definite integrals]] are integrals that are evaluated over limits of integration. [[Indefinite integral|Indefinite integrals]] are not evaluated over limits of integration. Evaluating an indefinite integral yields the antiderivative of the integrand plus a constant of integration.

A third type - an improper integral - is an integral in which one of the limits of integration is infinity. Evaluating an improper integral requires taking the limit of the definite integral as the appropriate limit of integration approaches infinity.

==Properties of integrals==

Integration has the following properties<ref>[http://www.sosmath.com/calculus/integ/integ02/integ02.html Properties of Integrals]</ref>

<h3>Additive Distribution</h3>
If an integral contains two functions added together, it may be rewritten as two separate integrals, each containing one function.
:<math>\int_{a}^{b}(f(x)+g(x))dx=\int_{a}^{b}f(x)dx+\int_{a}^{b}g(x)dx</math>

<h3>Constant Multiplicative Distribution</h3>
If an integral contains a function multiplied by a constant, it may be rewritten as the constant times the integral of the function.
:<math>\int_{a}^{b}cf(x)dx=c\int_{a}^{b}f(x)dx</math>

<h3>Area</h3>
Any integral that contains the same upper and lower bounds is equal to zero.
:<math>\int_{a}^{a}f(x)dx=0</math>

<h3>Separation</h3>
An integral may be rewritten as the sum of two integrals with adjacent bounds.
:<math>\int_{a}^{b}f(x)dx=\int_{a}^{c}f(x)dx+\int_{c}^{b}f(x)dx</math>, <math>c\in(a,b)</math>

<h3>Additive Inversion</h3>
Any integral is equal to the additive inverse of the same integral with reversed upper and lower bounds.
:<math>\int_{a}^{b}f(x)dx=-\int_{b}^{a}f(x)dx</math>

==Antiderivative vs Integration==
There are important differences between the anti-derivative and integration. An anti-derivative of a function <math>f(x)</math> is a function <math>F(x)</math> such that,

:<math>\frac{d}{dx}F(x)=f(x)</math>

The integral of a function can be evaluated using its antiderivative,

:<math>\int_a^b f(x)dx=F(b)-F(a)</math>

This works for the kind of functions encountered in late high school and early university mathematics. It is, however, an incomplete method. For example one cannot write the anti-derivative of <math>e^{x^{2}}</math> in terms of familiar functions (such as [[trigonometric function]]s, [[exponential]]s, and [[logarithm]]s) and function operations.

==Riemann integral==
{{main|Riemann Integral}}
As a geometric interpretation of the integral of the [[area]] under a curve, the Riemann integral consists of dividing the area under the curve of the function into slices. The [[domain]] of the function is partioned into N segments of width <math>\frac{b-a}{N}</math> The height of the segment is dependent on which side of the rectangle is taken. The lower sum takes the lower side of the rectangle, the upper sum the higher side of the rectangle. In the [[limit]] of <math>N\rightarrow\infty</math> these two [[series (mathematics)|series]] become the integral. If they approach the same value then the integral exists, otherwise it is undefined.

===Simpson's Rule===
{{Main|Simpson's rule}}
'''Simpson's Rule''' is an extension of the Riemann integral. Instead of using shapes such as rectangles or trapezoids, Simpson's Rule allows for the use of parabolas or other higher order polynomials to approximate integrals.

==Multiple integrals==
[[Image:DoubleIntegral.png|right|thumb|200px|A double integral gives the volume under a function over a given area - here, the area under the function (at top) within a square.]]

Multiple integrals are integrals extended to higher dimensions. Just like a definite integral gives the area under a 2-dimensional function, a double integral gives the volume under a three-dimensional function, and a triple integral gives the four-dimensional volume under a four-dimensional function. An ordinary integral is integrated over a single variable, such as x; similarly, a double integral is integrated over a two-dimensional area, usually written A; and a triple integral is integrated over a three-dimensional volume, usually written V.
:A double integral: <math>\iint\limits_D f(x,y) dA</math>
:A triple integral: <math>\iiint\limits_V f(x,y,z) dV</math>

[[Fubini's Theorem]] states that, for double integrals,
:<math>\iint\limits_D f(x,y) dA = \int\limits_{y_0}^{y_N} \int\limits_{x_0}^{x_N} f(x,y) dx dy</math>
and for triple integrals,
:<math>\iiint\limits_V f(x,y,z) dV = \int\limits_{z_0}^{z_N} \int\limits_{y_0}^{y_N} \int\limits_{x_0}^{x_N} f(x,y) dx dy dz</math>

These functions can be integrated with respect to the variables x, y, and z in any order. For example, the double integral above is also equivalent to <math>\int\limits_{x_0}^{x_N} \int\limits_{y_0}^{y_N} f(x,y) dy dx</math>.

==Lebesgue Integral==
The Lebesgue integral is usually introduced in late university or early postgraduate mathematics. It is naively described as rotating the Reimann integral, in that it is the range instead of the domain that is partitioned. An understanding of [[measure theory]] is required to understand this technique.

The Lebesgue integral is defined for every function for which the Riemann integral is defined, as well as for an even larger class of functions: this possibility of integrating functions which are not Riemann integrable is a large part of the motivation for the Lebesgue theory. A typical example of a function which is Lebesgue integrable but not Riemann integrable is the [[characteristic function]] of the [[rational number|rationals]], <math>\chi_{\mathbb Q}</math>, defined by
::<math>\chi_{\mathbb Q}(x) =
\begin{cases}
1 & \mbox{if } x \in \mathbb Q, \\
0 & \mbox{if } x \notin Q
\end{cases}</math>.
Because the rationals are only countable, this function is zero "almost everywhere": there are far more irrationals than rationals, and the function is <math>0</math> at all of these. Thus we would expect that
::<math>\int_0^1 \chi_{\mathbb Q}(x) \, dx = 0</math>
Unfortunately, this function has so many discontinuities that its Riemann integral is not defined. However, if we use the Lebesgue integral instead, the function is integrable as hoped, and has the expected value <math>0</math>.

==See Also==
*[[Methods of integration]]
*[[Definite integral]]
*[[Indefinite integral]]
===External Links===
*[http://mathworld.wolfram.com/Integral.html Integrals - Wolfram MathWorld]
*[http://www.relativitycalculator.com/mathematical_references.shtml Some Quick and Dirty Mathematical References]

==References==
{{reflist}}

[[Category:Calculus]]
[[Category:integration]]

Calculus

2011-06-24T01:23:48Z

RandRover: /* Integrals */ Parallel syntax and minor grammar

{{Template:Math-h}}

::The word "calculus" has historically had a much more general meaning than at present. It means "a method or 'trick' for calculating something". (The word means "little stone" in Latin, referring to the use of pebbles for counting.) Among the types of calculus are:
:::*'''Propositional calculus'''—a notation for proving theorems about logical expressions.
:::*'''Predicate calculus'''—a notation for proving theorems about functions in [[set theory]].
:::*'''Lambda calculus'''—a notation for proving theorems about recursive functions and computability in [[computer science]].
:::*'''Residue calculus'''—a trick for evaluating integrals of complex functions around a closed loop, by examining the singularities of the function inside the loop.
:::*and, of course, '''Differential''' and '''Integral''' calculus—the common modern meaning of the term, and the subject of this article. These two forms are sometimes collectively called '''infinitesimal calculus'''.

'''Calculus''' is the [[mathematics|mathematical]] subject that studies rates of change of functions. There are two main branches of calculus—[[derivative|differential]] calculus, and [[integral]] calculus. There are subfields of these: single [[variable]] calculus, [[exterior calculus]], and multi [[variable]] calculus.

Calculus has numerous applications in many fields, such as [[engineering]], [[physics]], [[chemistry]], [[biology]], and [[economics]]. Many physical properties can be explained and/or modeled through the use of calculus.

[[Isaac Newton]] was one of the most famous inventors of calculus, however there are several others who developed calculus simultaneously including [[Gottfried Leibniz]].<ref>Calculus, 5th edition, by James Stewart, Nelson Canada</ref> The [[Calculus Controversy|disagreement]] over the originator of calculus created rifts within the European mathematical community for years.

==Integrals==
{{Main|Integral}}
Integration is primarily defined as the method to calculate the area in an xy-plane above the x-axis. There are two fundamentally different kinds of integrals.

===Indefinite Integrals===
{{main|Indefinite integral}}
The antiderivative of a function is often called the ''indefinite integral''. It is called indefinite because the limits of integration are not specified. So, for example, the derivative of <math>\frac{x^3}{3}+7</math> is <math>x^2</math>. From this it follows that the antiderivative of <math>x^2</math> could be <math>\frac{x^3}{3}+7</math>. But note that the "7" in that formula was a [[red herring]]. Adding any constant to a function doesn't change its derivative, so the antiderivative of <math>x^2</math> could have any constant added to it. This arbitrary constant is usually written '''C''' and is called the "constant of integration". The indefinite integral could be written:

:<math>\int x^2\ \mathrm{d}x = \frac{x^3}{3} + C\,</math>,

The Fundamental Theorem of Calculus says that the area under the graph of <math>x^2</math> between a and b is the difference in the values of <math>\frac{x^3}{3}+C</math> between a and b. Note that the constant of integration cancels out.

===Definite Integrals===
{{main|Definite integral}}
This kind of integral is called a ''definite integral'', written with the limits <math>[a,b]</math>:

:<math>\int_a^b f(x)\,dx = F(b) - F(a)</math>

The above is a simplified "intuitive" treatment of calculus and of this theorem. The actual "rigorous" proof, "rigorous" definitions of derivative and integral, and statement of the conditions under which the theorem is true, are beyond the scope of this article. Definite integrals are strongly connected to the [[Fundamental Theorem of Calculus]].

==Derivatives==
{{Main|Derivatives}}
Derivatives are defined as the instantaneous rate of change of differentiable functions. Derivatives themselves can be functions that give the slope of the instantaneous rate of change of a function at any differentiable point. The slope of a tangent line is another way of defining a derivative. A tangent line touches a graph at only one point (locally). So its slope can be interpreted as the instantaneous rate of change of that graph.

===Power Functions===

== External Links ==
[http://www.wannalearn.com/Academic_Subjects/Mathematics/Calculus/ Calculus Tutorials]

==See also==
*[[Fundamental Theorem of Calculus]]
*[[Derivative]]
*[[Integral]]

==References==
<references/>

[[Category:Mathematics]]
[[Category:Calculus]]

Methods of integration

2010-02-04T01:04:10Z

RandRover: Corrected typo

{{Template:Math-h}}

This article details several methods of [[integral|integration]] for advanced high school or early university student, each with an example.

==Estimation==
There are various methods of estimating integrals. This is particularly useful if the rule for integrating is unknown or extremely complicated, as in the case of <math>e^{x^2}</math>. The primary method of estimation is the Riemann integral.

<br />Another major method, known as [[Simpson's rule]] uses the Riemann integral. Instead of using linear estimations, Simpson's rule allows for the use of [[parabola]]s or other higher order expressions to estimate integrals.
:{{main|Simpson's rule}}

==Integration by Parts==
{{main|Integration by parts}}
'''Integration by parts''' is a special technique to facilitate the integration of the product of two functions that otherwise lack an obvious integral. This technique can be proven with the [[product rule]].

The rule for '''integration by parts''' is stated as follows:
:<big><math>\int f(x) g'(x)\,dx = f(x) g(x) - \int f'(x) g(x)\,dx,</math></big>
:or
:<big><math>\int u\,dv = uv - \int v\,du\,</math></big>

This rule is often useful when one function is a power of ''x'' and the other function is a trigonometric function or ''e'' raised to a power of ''x''.

Note that it may be necessary to repeat the '''integration by parts''' several times, one for each power of ''x''.

==Partial Fractions==
{{Main|Partial fractions in integration}}
'''Integration by partial fractions''' is a technique to facilitate the integration of a rational expression by partial fraction decomposition.

Given an integral
<br />
:<math>\int \frac {f(x)}{g(x)}dx</math>
<br />
where <math>f(x)</math> and <math>g(x)</math> are both polynomials, integration by partial fractions shows how to separate the problem into multiple integrals before integrating.

==Algebraic Substitution==
'''Integration by Algebraic Substitution''' is a technique to facilitate the integration of a rational expression by substituting a more complicated expression with a variable.

Given an integral

:<big><math>\int\frac{2x}{x^2+3}dx</math></big>

We can substitute the term :<big><math>x^2+3</math></big> with a u. Giving us

:<big><math>u=x^2+3</math></big>

We then take the derivative of u with respect to x,

:<big><math>\frac{du}{dx}=2x</math></big>

We then set the terms equal to du,

:<big><math>du=2xdx</math></big>

Now we are ready to rewrite the integral,

:<big><math>\int\frac{2x}{x^2+3}dx=\int\frac{1}{u}du</math></big>

We can rewrite the integral this way due to the subsitution of the x terms with the u terms.

Now we can solve the integral in terms of u.

:<big><math>\int\frac{1}{u}du=ln|u|+c</math></big>

Now we replace u with the term :<big><math>x^2+3</math></big> to get,

:<big><math>ln|x^2+3|+c</math></big>

We can check this by taking the derivative of :<big><math>ln|x^2+3|</math></big>,

:<big><math>\frac{d}{dx}ln|x^2+3|=\left (\frac{1}{x^2+3} \right)(2x)=\frac{2x}{x^2+3}</math></big>

==Trigonometric Substitution==
'''Integration by Trigonometric Substitution''' is a technique to facilitate the integration of a rational expression by substituting a more complicated radical expression with a trigonometric expression.

Given an integral

:<big><math>\int\frac{1}{\sqrt{9-x^2}}dx</math></big>

By looking at the radical we can determine that it represents the base of a right triangle by understanding the [[Pythagorean theorem]].

:<big><math>\sqrt{9-x^2}=3+x</math></big> where 3 is the hypotenuse and x is the height of the triangle.
This allows us to rewrite the expression to :<big><math>sin\theta=\frac{x}{3}</math></big>. This allows us to substitute x with :<big><math>3sin\theta</math></big>.
Now to do the substitution
:<big><math>9-x^2=9-(3sin\theta )^2</math></big>
:<big><math>9-(3sin\theta )^2=9-9sin^2\theta </math></big>
:<big><math>9-9sin^2\theta=9(1- sin^2\theta) </math></big>
And by use of trigonometric identities we know that
:<big><math>1- sin^2\theta=cos^2\theta </math></big>
:<big><math>9(1- sin^2\theta)=9cos^2\theta </math></big>
Therefore
:<big><math>\sqrt{9-x^2}=3cos\theta </math></big>
We are not done yet, we must also take the derivative of :<big><math>3sin\theta</math></big>
:<big><math>\frac{dx}{d\theta}3sin\theta=3cos\theta </math></big>
By partial derivatives we move the :<big><math>{d\theta}</math></big> over.
:<big><math>dx=3cos\theta d\theta </math></big>

Now we are ready to rewrite our integral.

:<big><math>\int\frac{1}{\sqrt{9-x^2}}dx=\int\frac{3cos\theta}{3cos\theta}d\theta=\int d\theta=\theta+c</math></big>

From our trigonometric expression :<big><math>x=3sin\theta</math></big> we can see that
:<big><math>\theta=sin^{-1}\left(\frac{x}{3}\right)+c</math></big> giving us the final solution.

:<big><math>\int\frac{1}{\sqrt{9-x^2}}dx=sin^{-1}\left(\frac{x}{3}\right)+c </math></big>

== Other methods of integration ==
The primary methods of integration include:

* [[Integration by parts]]
* [[Integration using polar coordinates]]
* [[Multiple integration]]
* [[Residue calculus]] (for definite integrals)
* [[Method of simultaneous convolutions]]
* [[Mellin transform]]s
* [[Inflation-restriction sequence]]s

==See also==
*[[Fundamental Theorem of Calculus]]
*[[Calculus]]
*[[Integration]]

==External links==
*[http://user.mendelu.cz/marik/maw/index.php?lang=en&form=integral Antiderivative Solver]

[[Category:calculus]]
[[Category:integration]]

Master of Business Administration

2010-02-04T01:01:31Z

RandRover: Usage

An '''MBA''' or Master of Business Administration is the primary graduate degree for students seeking a career as an executive in [[business]]. It is typically a two-year degree program, though some institutions offer an intensive one-year program. It can also be obtained during night school while continuing to work at a day job.

[[category:education]]

William Ayers

2008-12-03T22:58:37Z

RandRover: Corrected defaultsort typo

[[Image:Features_ayers1.jpg|thumb|William Ayers]] '''William Charles "Bill" Ayers''' (born 1944) is a professor at the [[University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign|University of Illinois]] at [[Chicago]] and former Chicago community organizer. He is best known as a radical [[left-wing]] activist in the 1960's and 1970's and founder of the violent [[terrorist]] organization the [[Weather Underground]].
<br><br>
==Early Life and Upbringing==
Ayers grew up in a wealthy home as the son of Thomas G. Ayers, former Chairman and CEO of Commonwealth Edison. <ref>Northwestern University, Obituary: Thomas Ayers Served as Board Chair from 1975 to 1986[http://www.northwestern.edu/newscenter/stories/2007/06/ayers.html]</ref> He lived in Glen Ellyn, a suburb of Chicago. Ayers attended public schools and received a bachelor of Arts degree from the [[University of Michigan]] in 1968. At age 21, Ayers became director of the Children's Community, a small school in a basement that did not have grades, report cards, and had children address teachers by their first names. It was part of a "free school movement."

==Work with Radical Groups==
[[Image:Ayers.jpg|left|Bill Ayers in August 1968.]]
In 1968, Ayers became leader of the [[Students for a Democratic Society]], and then a prominent leader of the violent "Weatherman group." Ayers and other members of the Weather Underground group created a bomb factory in [[New York]], and the organization would go on to bomb buildings such as the [[United States Capitol]], [[The Pentagon]], the United States [[Department of State]]. The aim of these acts was never to kill or injure human beings but rather to intimidate the government and sway popular opinion -- the organization always announced its targets beforehand and allowed time for evacuation. The only instance of a fatal Weatherman explosion was in [[Greenwich Village]] in [[New York City]], when an accidental explosion killed three members of the Weather Underground organization. In 1969, the Weather Underground planted a bomb at a statue dedicated to [[police]] casualties in the 1886 [[Haymarket Riot]]. The statue was blown into pieces, but was rebuilt in 1970. It was blown up again by the Weather Underground, five months later.

In a 2001 interview with the [[New York Times]], Ayers said, "I don't regret setting bombs" and "I feel we didn't do enough." Ayers later claimed that he was quoted out of context, and that he meant that he felt that he had not done enough to oppose the war in Vietnam, which he defined as ''"[an] illegal, murderous, imperial war."'' <ref>Bill Ayers' blog, Episodic Notoriety–Fact and Fantasy, by Bill Ayers, 4/06/2008[http://billayers.wordpress.com/2008/04/06/episodic-notoriety-fact-and-fantasy/]</ref>

<blockquote>
Today, Ayers and his wife -- fellow former Weather Underground fugitive Bernardine Dohrn -- live in Hyde Park, where they moved after surrendering in 1980. Federal charges against the two were dropped because of improper surveillance, so they avoided prison. <ref>Chicago Sun-Times, ''Who is Bill Ayers? Former radical or respected prof, he's a liability if Obama's nominated, Hillary warns'', April 18, 2008, by CHRIS FUSCO AND ABDON M. PALLASCH[http://www.suntimes.com/news/politics/obama/902213,CST-NWS-ayers18.article] </ref>
</blockquote>

Ayers has claimed that his actions were not terrorist acts. <ref>Bill Ayers' blog, Episodic Notoriety–Fact and Fantasy, by Bill Ayers, 4/06/2008[http://billayers.wordpress.com/2008/04/06/episodic-notoriety-fact-and-fantasy/]</ref> He has stated that according to the official definition of both the U.S. and the U.N., terrorism consists of violent acts intended to intimidate or coerce a populace into a political end, and that his actions were intended to draw attention to and combat the state terrorism of the U.S. in the Vietnam War. In his autobiography, Fugitive Days, Ayers claimed that his bombing of the Pentagon prevented aerial bombardments in Vietnam for several days, which he defined as terrorism. In this regard, Ayers has implied that he ''prevented'' terrorism rather than caused it.

==Prairie Fire==

[[Image:Prairie Fire.jpg|thumb|left|150px]]
In 1974, William Ayers, Bernardine Dohrn and other members of the Weather Underground wrote the book, ''Prairie Fire: The Politics of Revolutionary Anti-Imperialism''. In this book, William Ayers admits that he is a communist,

:"We are a guerrilla organization. We are communist women and men, underground in the United States for more than four years."

[[Image:Dedicated to Sirhan Sirhan.jpg|thumb|right|Prairie Fire is dedicated to Sirhan Sirhan, Robert F. Kennedy's assassin.]]
Interestingly, the book lists [[Sirhan Sirhan]], [[Robert F. Kennedy]]'s assassin, among many other now-obscure '60s-era radicals, criminals and revolutionaries on the dedication page.

[[Image:Weather Underground bombings.jpg|thumb|right|Ayers and his fellow co-authors brag about their numerous acts of domestic terrorism.]]
Ayers and his fellow co-authors brag about their numerous acts of domestic terrorism, and provide a handy list detailing not only each crime but in most cases the justification for each crime as well.

Among the bombings by Ayers' group listed in the book:

*Haymarket police statue, Chicago
*Chicago police cars
*New York City police headquarters
*Marin County Courthouse
*Long Island City Courthouse
*Department of Corrections, San Francisco
*Office of California Prisons, Sacramento
*Department of Corrections, Albany NY
*103rd Precinct of New York City police
*Harvard Center for International Affairs
*U.S. Capitol
*MIT research center
*The Pentagon
*Draft and recruiting centers
*ROTC buildings
*ITT Latin America Headquarters
*National Guard Headquarters, Washington D.C.
*Presidio Army Base and MP Station, San Francisco
*Federal Offices of Health, Education and Welfare, San Francisco <ref>[http://www.zombietime.com/prairie_fire/ William Ayers' forgotten communist manifesto: Prairie Fire], zombietime.com, October 22, 2008</ref> <ref>[http://www.dakotavoice.com/2008/10/forgotten-terrorist-manifesto-prairie.html Forgotten Terrorist Manifesto: Prairie Fire], Bob Ellis, Dakota Voice, October 24, 2008</ref> <ref>[http://michellemalkin.com/2008/10/23/reading-bill-ayers/ Reading Bill Ayers], Michelle Malkin, MichelleMalkin.com, October 23, 2008</ref>

==Relationship with Barack Obama==
Obama and Ayers worked together at the Chicago Annenberg Challenge (CAC), from 1995-1999, an [[organisation]] that was guided to contribute money to organisations such as ACORN (The Association Of Community Organizations For Reform Now). From 1999 to 2002, Senator [[Barack Obama]] joined Ayers again in a paid nine-member board of the Woods Fund of Chicago, an [[poverty|anti-poverty]] foundation. While running for the state Senate in [[Illinois]] in 1995, Ayers meet with Obama and would later introduce him at his house. In 2001, Ayers supported and contributed $200 to Obama's state Senate campaign<ref>[http://www.followthemoney.org/database/StateGlance/contributor.phtml?d=330121189]</ref>. Barack Obama was asked about the relationship in an April 2008 Presidential debate by moderator George Stephanopoulos:

:''"Can you explain that relationship for the voters, and explain to Democrats why it won't be a problem?"''

To which Obama replied,

:''"This is a guy who lives in my neighborhood, who's a professor of [[English]] in Chicago who I know and who I have not received some official endorsement from. He's not somebody who I exchange ideas from on a regular basis. And the notion that somehow as a consequence of me knowing somebody who engaged in detestable acts 40 years ago, when I was eight years old, somehow reflects on me and my values doesn't make much sense, George"''

In February of 2008, Obama Chief Strategist David Axelrod said:

:''"Bill Ayers lives in his neighborhood. Their kids attend the same school … They’re certainly friendly, they know each other, as anyone whose kids go to school together."'' He called Ayers current defense of his 1960s bombings ''"objectionable, and I think Barack would also say that was objectionable. I don't think he's ever had an in-depth discussion [with Ayers] about them."''<ref>Politico, ''Ax on Ayers'', by Ben Smith, February 26, 2008 [http://www.politico.com/blogs/bensmith/0208/Ax_on_Ayers.html]</ref>

In an October 2008 article in ''American Thinker'', Jack Cashill speculated that Ayers [[ghostewrite|ghostwrote]] Obama's first book, "Dreams From My Father".<ref>American Thinker, October 26, 2008, ''Who Wrote Dreams From My Father?'', by Jack Cashill, October 09, 2008 [http://www.americanthinker.com/2008/10/who_wrote_dreams_from_my_fathe_1.html]</ref> He based his assertion on a comparison of the writing styles of Bill Ayers' 2001 memoir, ''Fugitive Days'', and Barack Obama's earlier 1995 book, ''Dreams From My Father'', and came to the conclusion that Ayres had ghostwritten ''Dreams''.<ref>www.cashill.com, ''Who Wrote “Dreams From My Father"?'', by Jack Cashill, October 9, 2008, retrieved on 10/16/2008 [http://www.cashill.com/natl_general/who_wrote_dreams_from.htm]</ref><ref>WorldNet Daily, ''Obama didn't write 'Dreams from My Father''', by Jack Cashill, October 13, 2008[http://wnd.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=77815]</ref>

==See Also==
*[[Mystery:Who Ghostwrote Obama's Books?]]

==References==
<references />

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ayers, William}}

[[Category:Terrorists]]
[[Category:Criminals]]

William Ayers

2008-10-24T18:20:11Z

RandRover: /* Relationship with Barack Obama */ Added a link to an article I found on Conservapedia

Death

2008-10-24T18:15:51Z

RandRover: /* Personification */ Grammatical edit - no change to content

'''Death''' is the end of a living thing's [[life]]. What death is and what occurs after death is a matter of some debate, particularly where [[religion]] is involved, since most religions have mutually exclusive views on death.

One assumption is that nothing happens after one dies and the body simply rots away (this would imply people do not have spirits or [[souls]]).
Religions deal with this issue in different ways. The concept of the [[afterlife]] is reassuring, and many have reported heavenly experiences in near death experiences.<ref>[http://bibleprobe.com/nde.htm http://bibleprobe.com/nde.htm]</ref>

Death is something people fear to varying degrees (and is a matter of taboo in some cultures). Some argue that it is the end of all, and the opposite of life.

As the body of the deceased remains observably dead and eventually decomposes, afterlife belief requires the concept of a [[soul]] - a version of the deceased which continues to exist in some form after death.

==Personification==
Certain peoples often use a personification of death. This personification is sometimes known as the Grim Reaper or simply Death, and usually appears wearing a black hooded robe and carrying a scythe. Many religions use a god or deity who stood for death and/or the afterlife:

*[[Ankou]] (Breton)
*[[Hades]] ([[Greece|Greek]])
*[[Hel]] (Norse)
*[[Hun-Came]] ([[Maya|Mayan]])
*[[Izanami]] (Shinto)
*[[Kamatayan]] ([[Philippines]])
*[[Loki]] (Norse)
*[[Mictlantecuhtli]] ([[Aztec]])
*[[The Morrigan]] ([[Ireland|Irish]])
*[[Mors]] ([[Rome|Roman]])
*[[Mot]] (Canaanite)
*[[Odin]] (Norse)
*[[Osiris]] ([[Egypt]]ian)
*[[Shemal]] (Semitic)
*[[Shinigami]] ([[Japan]]ese)
*[[Sielulintu]], [[Kalma]], [[Surma]] (Finnish)
*[[Thanatos]] (Greek)
*[[Tuoni]] (Finnish)
*[[Yama]] ([[Hinduism|Hindu]])
*[[Yanluo]] ([[China|Chinese]])

==Religious Interpretations==
Many religious people, including [[Christians]], believe only their bodies die, not their souls. They believe they have everlasting life in either Heaven or Hell once their corporeal life has ended. Other Christians believe that the noncorporeal soul may die in the future, or that the death of the body equates to the death of the soul.{{fact}}

''Not that any man hath seen the Father, save he which is of God, he hath seen the Father.

Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me hath everlasting life.

I am that bread of life.''

- John 5:46-48 King James Version

Other religions, such as [[Paganism]] or [[Hinduism]], believe in [[reincarnation]], the transmigration of the soul after death into a new body.

[[Category:Biology]]
[[Category:Religion]]
[[Category:Culture]]
[[Category:Philosophy]]
[[Category:Human Development]]

== References ==
<references/>

William Ayers

2008-10-24T18:12:07Z

RandRover: /* Relationship with Barack Obama */ Added a citation for speculation that Ayers wrote Dreams From My Father