This review in the latest issue of Books & Culture by John Copeland Nagle, associate dean for Faculty Research and professor at the Notre Dame Law School, reflects on a book on the environmental history of China, by Mark Elvin. Nagle begins the piece with a brief personal anecdote of his experience with environmental problems in China: On the morning of March 20, 2002, I left my windowless office in the Tsinghua University Law School for a short break. Then...

In the weeks that have passed since the announcement of the nomination of John Roberts to serve as an Associate Justice of the United States Supreme Court, an old debate has moved into the forefront once again: can a person with deeply held religious beliefs (in Judge Roberts’ case, a devout Catholic) hold a high political or judicial office and still abide by the Constitution? Rev. Robert Sirico made a guest appearance on the Laura Ingraham Show this morning to...

An article posted today at LiveScience explores the problems facing scientists who attempt to explain human consciousness in terms of human disciplines like physics or biology. According to the story, “Roger Penrose, a mathematical physicist at Oxford University, believes that if a ‘theory of everything’ is ever developed in physics to explain all the known phenomena in the universe, it should at least partially account for consciousness.” Consciousness studies is e a hot topic, along with areas like string theory:...

A most worthy piece in The New Atlantis by Matthew B. Crawford, “The Computerized Academy,” examines some of the implications puterization and technological advance on the traditional liberal education. Among the important trends that Crawford observes is the application of a consumer/producer relationship model between student and teacher. This trend is facilitated by technological advances, especially the free flow of information possible on the Internet. But Crawford wonders “what education will e—or already is—when it es so sensitive to the...

If you’re inclined to praise GE for its “green” makeover, featuring cutesy ads like the one in which the baby elephant dances playfully in the rainforest, William Baldwin has some practical suggestions in a piece in this week’s issue of Forbes. “Should you show your support by buying a few shares of this ecologically pany? There are better ways to help the environment,” he contends. These include: opposing windmill subsidies, buying hormonal milk, and not recycling newspapers. ...

Hopeful signs are emerging for the future of economic prosperity in Europe despite some serious opposition. The European Parliament recently moved to scrap the ratification of an informal agreement reached last year by EU member states and supported by the European Commission, that would have made important strides forward in the legal recognition of intellectual property rights. The Computer Implemented Inventions Directive (CIID), which would protect intellectual property and standardize EU software patent law, now appears dead. This leaves in...

On August 9, 1945, 60 years ago today, the second atomic bomb named “fat man” was dropped on Nagasaki, Japan. Total casualties from the bomb are estimated at about 100,000, many dying from the effects of radiation following the dropping of the bomb. The bomb was dropped on Nagasaki, which was a secondary target, at the perimeter of the city near strategic military targets. Nagasaki, located in the midst of hills, suffered much less damage than Hiroshima, bombed three days...

This Wired News article looks at the practices of mitted to reducing manufacturing and industrial waste. Cutting waste makes good economic and environmental sense. “Anything that’s waste is an inefficiency in the process, and inefficiency is lost dollars,” says Patricia Calkins, vice president for environment, health and safety at Xerox. A cost that is often overlooked is that associated with waste management. “Skyrocketing landfill costs during the late 1980s and early 1990s” helped panies toward minimization of waste. Carpetmaker Collins...

In a recent post, Jordan Ballor highlighted the efforts of Mr. Armen Yousoufian, who has been seeking public disclosure of records relating to the financing of the new stadium built recently for the Seattle Seahawks largely at taxpayer expense. Mr. Yousoufian has responded to Ballor’s post with the ment: In reply to: “They picked on the Wrong Armenian”, which is about my successful and landmark Public Disclosure Act violation lawsuit here in Washington state, thank you for the coverage. The...

Dr. Samuel Gregg appeared on Kresta in the Afternoon on Ave Maria Radio yesterday to discuss the public outrage over the recent Supreme Court decision that allowed the taking of private property through eminent domain for private economic development reasons. You can listen to the interview below (mp4). ...

In this week’s Acton Commentary, Dave Phelps looks at the case of Susan Torres, a woman who gave birth while reported to be brain dead. The case was considered by some to be a miracle. Others with a more material bent looked at her as merely a corpse, kept alive by advanced medical technology to incubate the child. mentary points out that a great many physicians, schooled in the sciences, retain a belief in God. A “surprising” poll indicates that...

Now that the crew of Space Shuttle Discovery is safely back on terra firma (along with the entire shuttle fleet, which has once again been grounded over safety concerns), arguments over the future viability of the Shuttle program have resumed in earnest. By far, my favorite swipe at NASA to date has to be today’s Wall Street Journal opinion column (subscription required) by Homer Hickam, a former NASA engineer. Mr Hickam argues that many NASA engineers would like to see...