NEWSLETTER 

of the

American Scientific Affiliation & Canadian Scientific & Christian Affiliation

Volume 35 Number 6                                                                   December 1993

Intelligent Design
by Walt Heam

The symposium, organized by ASA's Committee for Integrity in Science Education, was chaired by David Willis of Oregon State University. It brought together four speakers moving toward a positive answer to the question from four different perspectives. The symposium put aside theological considerations to concentrate on scientific and philosophical issues.

Philosopher of science Steve Meyer of Whitworth College vigorously took on the "demarcation arguments" allegedly excluding design inferences from scientific consideration. According to Steve, when historical rather than inductive sciences are under consideration, all demarcation distinctions against intelligent design (e.g., it isn't falsifiable, it invokes unobservables, etc.) "either dissolve or must be recast in such a way as to make these objections equally telling against evolutionary argument." 

Biochemist Michael Belie became  known to ASAers when his apt response  to a put-down of Phillip Johnson's Darwin on Trial appeared in Science magazine a year ago. His talk dealt with the nitty-gritty of the itty-bitty - what he called the "irreducible complexity" of the molecular machinery of biochemical systems in all living things. At home in research on such systems himself, Mike charged that in its ten years of publishing hundreds of papers on "sequence similarities" of proteins and nucleic acids from various taxa, the Journal of Molecular Evolution has not published a single paper even remotely proposing a detailed mechanism for an evolutionary origin of a real system. Believing that "Evolution did it" obviously hasn't given scientists much to go on, yet is considered acceptable in empirical science.

Paul Nelson, working toward a Ph.D. in evolutionary biology as well as philosophy at the U. of Chicago, rebutted the usual charge that intelligent design is inherently theological - in fact, merely a repackaging of an older "God of the gaps" theology. Paul said that a positive research program might resolve  some long-standing questions in evolutionary biology. Mechanistic scientists may be "put out" by a theistic alternative, but they won't be put out of work. Without laying a competitive claim on "gaps in our knowledge" where naturalistic evolutionists are working, the panel members hope to encourage exploration of questions beyond those boundaries - to see where the two approaches meet or overlap.

Bringing the symposium to a close after a lively audience discussion, David Willis pointed to some promising signs: these young scholars are well-trained in their disciplines, are determined to press forward, and are collaborating on a book setting forth their views.

Remember Vista, in San Diego County, California? That's where a conservative Christian majority was elected to the school board last fall. According to a story in the Los Angeles Times by Michael Granberry (14 Aug 1993), the other shoe finally dropped when the board voted 3-2 this summer to have teachers include "discussions of divine creation, ultimate purposes or ultimate causes ('the why')" at appropriate times in the history-social sciences and/or English-language arts curricula.

The new policy also required "exploration and dialogue" of "scientific evidence that challenges any theory in science" and stated that "no student shall be compelled to believe or accept any theory presented in the curriculum."

Amid threats of lawsuits and recall petitions, two op-ed pieces appeared on the commentary page of the 17 Aug Times. One, by Rabbi Michael Gotlieb of Vista's Temple Judea, expressed belief that the Bible, though divinely inspired, should not be read "literally" or considered to hold scientific truths. The other, under the headline, "Can 80% of Us Be Dead Wrong?" was contributed by U.C. Berkeley law professor Phillip Johnson. (The 80% referred to the fraction of Americans who, according to polls, "believe either in a sudden creation by God or in a God-guided evolution.")

Noting that the Vista board had endorsed non-coercion of belief and freedom of discussion about alternative answers to the big questions of life' Johnson wrote, "That sounds like liberal education to me." But since the news story had said without qualification that the board's policy is "in defiance of California educational guidelines" and that the ACLU had immediately threatened lawsuits, Johnson asked, "What's going on here?"

Let evolution be taught in the schools, of course. But let the problems with the Darwinian theory also be honestly acknowledged, and let students be taught how to tell the difference between what biologists really know by observation and what they fervently believe because it fits their philosophy. Teaching the difference between philosophy and science isn't creationism; it's good critical thinking.

An ASA press release sent to major California newspapers and national media drew calls to the Ipswich office and to members of the Committee for Integrity in Science Education. On Sept 22, Walt Hearn of Berkeley got his  minutes of fame," answering three questions on air from "KIRO Midday" talkshow host Dave Delacki on the CBS affiliate station in Seattle.

John Wiester of Buellton was interviewed by staff writer Randy Dotinga of the Escondido Times Advocate, which has covered the school-board flare-up in nearby Vista so thoroughly that ASA member Jim Gaughan of Escondido has filled two thick notebooks with clippings. Dotinga's Sept 18 story, headlined, "Christian Biology Teachers Issue Evolution Booklet," corrected a statement in ASA's press release that Vista is "a small city of 22,000" (Vista has 75,800 residents; the school district has about 22,000 students) and generally painted a clear picture. Once again, however, NCSE's Eugenie Scott had the last word, quoted as saying that the ASA booklet shouldn't be taught in classrooms "because it teaches science from a sectarian religious perspective."

Well, maybe not the last word. John Wiester was planning to submit a 500word op-ed piece to the Times Advocate refuting Scott's "textbook example" of misinformation. In the body of his story, writer Dotinga got it right: "The booklet tells teachers to discuss evolution 'as science."' (Regrettably, on the editorial page presided over by editor Logan Jenkins, an unsigned Opinion piece on Sept 21 echoed Scott, saying that "Actually, if biology teachers adopt this teaching aid, little Vistas will crop up around the state like mushrooms after a heavy rain.")

Eugenie Scott's zeal to protect evolution (from "unsafe sects"?) was evident in a nationwide broadcast of "Falk of the Nation: Science Friday" on National Public Radio on Oct 1. On that occasion, for a change, the last word went to Phil Johnson, who asked her, "Why don't you ever define evolution?" (After arguing that the concept of evolution includes the formation of galaxies and many other things "well established in science," Scott had berated Johnson for bringing up origin-of-life studies, "which have nothing to do with evolution.")

The new Institute of Science and Christian Faith is emphasizing the equipping of Christians and Christian leaders to communicate the common ground of science and Christian faith, according to its director, Dr. Nate Olson. Both Nate and associate director Dr. Richard B. Parker attended the ASA Annual Meeting in Seattle, and there expressed the complementarity of roles of the ASA and the new Institute, which intends to use academic and research results of organizations such as the ASA..

Catalyzed by an interested trustee of the M.J. Murdock Charitable Trust, whose grants through Western Evangelical Seminary in Portland, OR is providing funding, the Institute wants to serve a broader Christian community than Western. Nate, who is from outside the Seminary, accepted directorship contingent upon Rick Parker's willingness to join him as associate because of Rick's scientific credentials and reputation in the scientific community. (Small-world note: The Editor's brother, Lewis Feucht, worked with both Nate and Rick at their start-up company, NuLabs, which commercialized Rick's innovative microbial product ideas. NuLabs was acquired several years ago by Pioneer, the giant crop-seed supplier in Iowa.)        

The Institute is currently selecting an Advisory Council and a Board of Directors. ASA director Bob Herrmann's enthusiasm to assist the Institute in any way possible was an encouraging factor to Nate, and a number of other ASA members also offered their support. Nate noted, in reference to the Institute's statement of faith and philosophical position, that it is aligned with the ASA. To implement its mission, the Institute will establish and maintain a resource center, curricula, and instructional courses for credit and/or audit; to organize conferences and seminars, conduct workshops, and publish and disseminate findings and information produced by the various symposia. For more information on the Institute, contact: Dr. Nate Olson, Institute of Science and Christian Faith ' P.  0.  Box 23939, Portland, OR 97281; tel. (503) 639-0559, fax (503) 598-4338.

The Committee for Integrity in Science Education has announced three winners in the 1993 ASA "Caring Research" competition. The modest cash awards of $100 for empirical (data driven) papers given at ASA's Annual Meeting are intended to stimulate research (including amateur investigations) demonstrating care for the earth, for people and for science.

The 1993 "Caring for the Earth" Award went to Robert J. Vos and two coworkers at Dordt College, Sioux Center, Iowa, for their poster session on "Monitoring and Modeling Cropping System Nitrates for a Sustainable Agriculture." ASA keynote speaker Calvin DeWitt alluded to potential dangers to human health from nitrates leaching from Midwestern agricultural soils into groundwater supplies. Vos and his coworkers in agriculture and biology studied nitrogen (N) use and movement under field conditions over a three-year period. They found that alfalfa (despite its N-fixing role as a legume) actually decreased concentrations of leachable solid nitrates, and that many farmers were applying excess N to their cornfields. This information, disseminated through Iowa State's extension network, - has begun to make a difference only a few years after their initial counterintuitive discovery. Iowa farmers who test for soil N at appropriate times in the growing season and rotate alfalfa between corn crops now practice stewardship by mitigating groundwater pollution.

A number of papers were considered runner-ups for the "Caring for the Earth" Award. Environmental engineer Li-Yang Chang of the Christian Wilderness Fellowship (currently of Concord, CA) described his studies of a particular metal-plating company's processes with regard to both pollution-abatement and economic reality. Biologist Lazarus Walter Macior gave a paper and a poster session representing 27 years of meticulous study of fern flowers (family Scrophulariaceae of the genus Pedicu laris) and of their bumblebee pollinators. Walt's work clearly demonstrated his great love for God's creation as well as his focused efforts at understanding how the creation works. (Incidentally, the judges decided to call this the "Caring for Creation" Award in the future.) In the amateur category, Gerald Hess of Messiah College gave a personal account of some not-so- successful experiments at recycling.

The 1993 "Caring for People" Award went to chemist Rolf Myhrman and his students at Judson College in Elgin, Illinois, for their paper on "Measurement and Removal of a Toxic Substance from Velvet Beans." Last year in Hawaii, Martin Price told of a need for smallscale research on the versatile velvet bean, which has so much dihydroxyphenylalanine (L-DOPA) as to raise questions about its food use in Third World countries. Rolf put undergraduate students to work on the problem, first devising a good analytical procedure and then testing various ways to extract L-DOPA from velvet bean meal. The judges commented that this project, highly stimulating to students and immediately useful to needy people, exemplified the kind of research the Awards were meant to encourage.

As might be expected, a number of papers by social scientists could be regarded as empirical studies in the "Caring for People" category. In one such runner-up paper, for example, "Caring for Cultures: Verbal Art Genres as Cultural Systems," anthropologist Miriam Adeney of Seattle Pacific University collected examples of such genres as story, song and debate, evaluating their functions among Christians in those cultures.

The 1993 "Caring for Science" Award went to chemist Steven Fawl of Napa Valley College in California for hisr&mputer generation of possible phylogenies based on cytochrome-c sequences in various taxa. His poster session, entitled "Creation, Evolution, and Taxonomy," showed the attention to detail and the self-critical attitude characteristic of the best scientific work. His results, though based on the same data, do not entirely agree with standard evolutionary models; it isn't clear yet whether Steve is onto a valid "creationistic" model, but it was clear that he was bold in tackling the problem and appropriately cautious in drawing conclusions.

A number of papers on teaching science were runner-ups in the "Caring for Science" category, reporting local experiments in turning students on to scientific investigation by hands-on participation. Good examples were papers by Joseph Lechner of Mount Vernon Nazarene College in Ohio ("The Kokosing River Project: Helping a High School Integrate Environmental Research into the Science Classroom") and by Larry Martin of North Park College in Illinois ("Caring for Creation in Choosing Undergraduate Research Topics").

Congratulations to the three Award winners and to all the near-winners! Offering the Awards was itself an experiment, difficult to evaluate but worth trying again next year. The sponsoring committee hopes to announce the 1994 competition rules in the Call for Papers early next spring. Can the American Scientific Affiliation foster a caring attitude in scientific work? We'll see. Meanwhile, congratulations to you 1993 Caring research winners!

While Africa is far away from our usual daily lives, modem satellite communication now makes it possible for North American ASA members to assist fellow Christians in science in Nairobi, Kenya. Ken Dormer has been leading an ASA effort for the African Institute for Scientific Research and Development (AISRED), reported in the last ASAN issue, to enable Africans to establish their own scientific credibility and be able to apply for grants to do their own scientific research. Ken is looking for ASA members with e-mail addresses to serve as "scientific resources" for the Africans, willing to provide scientific opinion to them in their research.

You may access, without cost to you, AISRED in Nairboi via SatelLife, a satellite service, via e-mail. Contact the ASA office for complete instructions. Because the satellite link is for health and medical information only, mail must be related to biology and science generally, and is not to be used for personal correspondence.

ASA members call the SatelLife ground station in Nairobi and the station operator, Dr. Bill Odongo, will receive the message and relay it to the director of AISRED, Professor George Kinoti. (When George gets his own modem (this is Africa) then ASA members will no longer need to send e-mail through Dr. Odongo.)

African "information poverty" leads to planning without facts, decisions based on outdated information, and irrelevant or redundant research. For example, in Zambia a study of goiter was repeated, performed several years earlier and published in a British journal not available in their national medical library. They have no search capacity for bibliographies or abstracts. Developing countries typically have one to two orders of magnitude fewer periodical subscriptions than American medical schools, and under pressure from the International Monetary Fund, many have had to cancel all subscriptions requiring foreign currency.

SatelLife's initial pilot project involves seven east-central African nations including Kenya. SatelLife administers HealthNet, a decentralized communications network. The HealthSat satellite transmits "store and forward" messages via radio, avoiding the land-based longdistance telephone network and its costs. The low-cost, million dollar low-earthorbit satellite (a geostationary one costs $250 million) is accessed via a personal computer connected to a radio, costing about $7,500. The technology is thus affordable and sustainable in the developing world. With access twice per day for at least 10 minutes, and with a transmission rate of about a page per second, HealthSat can handle up to 500 ground stations each communicating 100 pages of electronic mail per day. A second satellite is in the works for 1993-94.

The AIP (American Institute of Physics) Press "Masters of Modern Physics" series has published a new book by Owen Gingerich, of the Smithsonian Astrophysical Laboratory and Harvard University, entitled The Eye of Heaven: Ptolemy, Copernicus, Kepler. The front cover describes the work as a "provocative writing and brilliant detective work by a renowned astronomer and science historian." The transformation of astronomy from Ptolemy's geocentrism to Copernican cosmology is the focus, employing some of Gingerich's favorite themes: the importance of the historical context in the study of science, the careful examination of work habits as a key to understanding, and the role of creativity and artistry in science. Among other topics, Gingerich looks at Newton's Principia as a work of art and crisis versus aesthetic in the Copernican revolution. The cloth-bound 320 page book is priced at $24.95: to order, call (800)488BOOK; in VT: (802)878-0315; fax: (802)878-1102.  Alton Everest

The aim of the conference was to engender conversation about faith and contemporary life and, in particular' the theological and ethical implications of science and technology for church life and ministry - because "The churches today have no other place to fulfill their mission than a world whose basic assumptions are shaped by modern science and technology." The conference was hosted by the Ecumenical Roundtable on Science and Technology, and the 350 attendees were divided about equally between clergy and laity. :!  Gordon Mills, George Murphy

ASA members John Bloom, Robert C. Newman, Perry Phillips, and John Studenroth participated in an "Evidence for Faith" seminar, a two-day course on Christian evidences, at Biblical Theological Seminary in Hatfield, PA, about 30 miles NW of Philadelphia. Each seminar speaker happens to have a doctorate from Cornell and to have done master's work at Biblical Seminary. The course was also sponsored by the Interdisciplinary Biblical Research Institute (IBRI), which encourages training of believers in various academic disciplines to become educated in biblical interpretation. IBRI offers seminars, publications and--cassettes to help churches, Christian schools, campus Christian groups and individuals. A free catalog of publications is available: IBRI, P.O. Box 423, Hatfield, PA 19440-0423.

Francis S. Collins, director of NIH's National Center for Human Genome Research, shows up just about everywhere these days, including in at least one segment of the up-to-the-minute September PBS TV series, "Secrets of Life," narrated by geneticist David Suzuki. On Oct 25, Francis spoke on "Molecular Medicine and the Human Genome Pr ' C in Houston, at the 37th Conference on Chemical Research sponsored by the Robert A. Welch Foundation. Other speakers included Nobelists James Watson, Francis Crick, Walter Gilbert, Paul Berg, and Thomas Cech.

William F. Campbell, an MD missionary in France, wrote a book reviewed two years ago in PSCF, The Qur'an and the Bible in the Light of History and Science, which addresses some of the destructive criticisms of the Bible in a French book, La Bible, le Coran et la Science by another MD, Maurice Bucaille. The book was published in French but is now available in English in the U.S. from the publisher: Middle East Resources, P.O. Box 96, Upper Darby, PA 19082.

Philip Johnson, not to be confused with the U. C. Berkeley law professor, is instead from "down under." A graduate of the University of Sydney, Ph-ilip-rutis a part-time apologetics ministry and is a part-time lecturer at the Presbyterian Theological Centre in Sydney. He has just co-authored a book with Ross Clifford, Shooting for the Stars, on and for the New Age, from Albatross Books. Based on experience with the largest annual New Age gathering, the Mind* Body*Spirit Festival, the book has been

Pittsburgh Local Section Forming

At the initiative of Robert T. Voss, a recent former member of the New York-New Jersey local section, the "Greater Pittsburgh Section - In Formation" met on the occasion of two talks by Stanley Jaki at Duquesne U. on 14 October 93. The ten A-SAers-in attendanee-showed-mterest in continuing. "I'm ecstatic" remarked Voss, regarding the response to invitations and interest level of participants. Tentatively, the group will meet twice a year, somewhere around April and October. Besides the Editor's 161 kilometer drive, members showed up from as far as Morgantown, West Virginia. Several members had attended the same ASA Annual Meetings of the past, though we were mutual strangers at the Pittsburgh meeting-at first, that is. For more information, contact: Robert Voss, 624 Karrastyn Court, Gibsonia, PA 15044-6018;(412)444-0018.

well received so far and praised by cult experts. Order by fax from Albatross Books at (612)521-1515, or write Philip at: RO. Box 367, Hurstville NSW 2220, Australia. Price: $9.95 AUST

1993 ASA Meeting keynote speaker Calvin DeWitt, the MacLaurin Institute executive director William Monsma and U.K. Christians in Science member R. J. Berry participated in Earth Week (an extension of Earth Day) at the University of Minnesota. Though most programs "viewed the earth with a new-age mysticism," DeWitt and Berry spoke to environmental concerns from a Christian point of view. From DeWitt's talk, "Religion and Environmental Ethics," deeper changes than recycling are required: a new system of environmental- ethla-is needed, and "his choice was to explore the leading ethical tradition in ihe West by reading the Bible!" His findings were reminiscent of those reported at the Annual Meeting, but with more commentary on biblical texts.

Cal's low-key talk kept the audience's attention and was followed by many questions - and made the Minnesota Daily, amazed that the Bible teaches us to care for the earth! R.J. Berry's talk also surprised its hearers that Christianity provides a basis for caring for the earth.

Finally, Bill Monsma participated in a panel sponsored by the Sierra Club on the University campus. Population growth was the topic, and Monsma pointed out that the Genesis I instruction to "be fruitful and increase" was "conditioned by God's prior creation of the animals and by God's giving us responsibility for them." The idea of a Christian approach met -with -mixed audience reaction.

Two ASAers, Pam VanderWerff and Harold R. Underwood, published reports resulting from participation in Christian College Coalition workshops sponsored by the M.J. Murdock Charitable trust, designed to help educators explore connections between their disciplines and their Christian faith. Pam's report was entitled "A Berean's Guide to Science" (17 pages, $5); Harold's was: "Connections to Complete an Engineer's Education" (15 pages, $4.75). Other reports are also available. Order copies of reports from: Christian College Coalition, 329 Eighth Street NE, Washington, DC 20002. Only prepaid orders (check or money order) will be filled.

The Coalition, in cooperation with Messiah College, plans to also publish an annual collection of articles on Christian higher education, entitled Research on Christian Higher Education, to provide a forum for the many research projects that focus on the kinds of colleges represented by the Coalition. For further information and instructions for submissions of manuscripts, contact Ron Burwell, Editor, Research On Christian Higher Education, Messiah College, Grantham, PA 17027. Deadline for submissions: I Feb 94.

James E. Gaughan of Escondido, California, a couple of towns away from Vista, has kept ASA informed of happenings in the Vista Unified School Dis-

The ASA/CSCA Newsletter is still bimonthly, but the date on the header is being adjusted to align the six issues within the same calendar year. The next issue is Jan/Feb 94 and will appear late Jan/early Feb. By centering the arrival of an issue within its stated time interval, events occurring up to the beginning of the interval can still be reported. As it is, the latest events that can be reported in this issue, for example, are those of late October 1993, a month before the beginning (1 Dec) of its interval.

Terry Morrison, director of IVCF's Faculty Ministries, has a full year ahead. In addition to guiding the faculty track at IV's triennial Missons Conference at Urbana (Dec 27-31), Terry is participating in eight regional conferences of faculty and grad students. The next one covers the New England area (Feb 1820). Terry is putting together a directory of Christian faculty. To get in it, contact Terry at InterVarsity Faculty Ministries, RO. Box 7895, Madison, WI 537077895; by phone at (608)274-4823..

James W. Sire of Downers Grove, Illinois, was traveling again this fall, to Eastern College and McMaster U., then to eastern Europe and Denmark. He was hoping that the Bulgarian translation of his Universe Next Door would appear from Kliment Ohridski Univ. Press by the time he arrived in Sofia to lecture under Christian auspices to university students. The Orthodox Church in Bulgaria has been exerting political pressure on "foreign sects," which some see as including any non-Orthodox religious group. Meanwhile, Jim's latest book, Chris Chrisman Goes to College, a fictional distillate from his encounters with students and faculty as an evangelistic lecturer for IVCF, has been published ($9.99, IVP, 1993). Jim hopes real-life Christian students will be better prepared to cope with pluralism, relativism, and other isms after following the protagonist's encounters with challenges to faith in and out of class.

Charles Thaxton managed to get to Seattle for ASA!s Annual Meeting, though he and his family are now residents of the Czech Republic. Throughout eastern Europe, The Mystery of Life~ Origin has opened many opportunities to lecture on science and to speak of his Christian faith. With more than 7,500 copies of the Romanian version in circulation, Charlie is looking for a Romanian science publisher to reprint it. A Czech translation was due in October and a Russian translation should be completed in 1994. Governments are beginning to shut off the influx of western evangelists and religious literature, Charlie says, but a scientist can still have an audience. The chapter on science he contributed to the volume honoring Carl F. H. Henry on Henry's 80th birthday (God and Culture, Eerdmans, 1993), by the way, is cast in the form of a dialog on Christianity and science with an American student in Prague.

Hillsdale Volume a Good Resource
by Walt Hearn

Man and Creation: Perspectives on Science and Theology, the proceedings from a 1992-93 Seminar at the Hillsdale College Center for Constructive Alternatives, appeared this fall. The inexpensive paperback volume contains papers by ASA members Mark Kalthoff, Dick Bube, Howard Van Till, Owen Gingerich, and Don Heckenlively, and by Ron Numbers, J. P. Moreland, Craig Chester, Phil Johnson, and Richard Alexander.

The editor, Hillsdale theologian Michael Bauman, closes with a fine chapter of his own plus a reprint of the Van Till/Johnson exchange on "God and Evolution" from the Jun/Jul 1993 First Things. Bauman gave the last word to Art Battson's "Proffering Some Advice" from the June 1993 issue of Perspectives on Science and Christian Faith.

This volume, No. 6 in The Christian Vision series, seems well suited for classroom use in Christian colleges: it is current, shows a range of opinion on matters of faith and science (even within ASA), and retails for only $9.95, from Hillsdale College Press, Hillsdale, MI 49242.

Phil Johnson Video Available

The Access Research Network (ARN) has available a professionally produced videotape of a lecture of Phillip Johnson's at UC Santa Barbara, where he challenged the audience to view Darwinian evolution as more of a philosophy than a scientific theory. (See related article "Hasta La Vista" involving Johnson.) This VHS tape, "Darwinism: Science or Philosophy?" goes for $19.95 plus $2 S&H ($1 per extra tape) from: Access Research Network, P.O. Box 38069, Colorado Springs, CO 809378069. Contact: Dennis Wagner, (719)633-1772.

The October 1993 special issue of Omni, a popular science magazine with a New Age spin, featured "Science and the Soul" for the front-cover 4 its "15th anniversary collector's edition." The article, "The Consciousness Wars," by Robert K. J. Killheffer, explores the mind/body problem, or "how the brain makes a mind," with a mixture of philosophy of mind and brain science. Citing a panorama of philosophers of mind and scientists (Daniel Dennett, Gerald Edelman, Richard Restak, John R. Searle, Thomas Nagel, Colin McGinn, Owen Flanagan, Francis Crick, John Hopfield, Stephen Kosslyn, Michael Merzenich, Patricia Churchland, Roger Penrose) and the interplay between them, the article points out that the dominant materialist position ("Mind and brain are one; the mind is what the brain does.") is still being challenged, not only by dualism (such as that of Sir John Eccles), but by the need to go beyond simple dualism or monism and materialism (Searle), Gbdelian or Heisenberg-like limitations (Douglas Hofstadter), or limitations in understanding physics as it applies to understanding the brain and consciousness (Penrose).

Near the end of the article, materialist predilections are aired, posed as the question that "if science demonstrates that the soul is entirely the creation of the brain, which will die with the rest of the body, it could shatter this deeply held and cherished hope" of life beyond death. An implication of a better understanding of consciousness for ethics is that it will become more accurate and complete, not destroyed. Near the end, Timothy FAmis 4The Mind's-Sky, Bantam, 1992) remarks that the observable universe "is eternally smaller than the totality of the universe" and likewise our understanding of the mind - that we are ,'more than the sum of the observations made of us." Likewise, Nobel laureate Edelman assures us that whatever advances the science of mind makes, "the conscious life it describes will always remain richer than its description." While positioned within materialism and naturalism, this article at least found plenty of room to discuss current approaches beyond.

It was a blow to the ASA when one of its major contributors, W. Jim Neidhardt, died unexpectedly. (See Oct-NoV 93 ASAN obituary.) Tribute was paid Jim by his co-author of The Knight's Move, Dr. James Loder, in a memorial service on 20 Jul 93. Loder emphasized in his eulogy that, as a whole person, Jim did not detach his intellect from his heart" and loved to place himself in the biblical tradition "so the labor of his mind was generated in and from his heart." His remarkable energy "was matched by genuine humility and a delightful sense of humor. His humor seemed usually to embody the comment from Niels Bohr that he loved to repeat, Ee., Bohr's comment to a young physicist who complained that there was too much humor at the Bohr Institute. "People should be more serious," the young physicist exclaimed. To which Bohr replied, "Some things are so serious that they must be taken with a sense of humor." I think this was the source of Jim's humor. He took serious things seriously and that was the source of much of his humor about lesser things.

Jim also "seemed to have more sorrow or compassion rather than anger at those physicists, theologians, scientists who apparently could not see or comprehend the grace of God" but also, "nothing gave him more joy than the triumph of a sound Biblically-based theological argument in the face of a reductionistic and secularized concept of humanity, nature, cosmology." Believing, as his mentors Tom Torrance and Harold Nebelsick, in the contingency in all things upon the grace of God, his "service was rendered most of the time in an atmosphere of scientific hostility, to the deepest conviction of his- heart, that science and theology belonged together."

In closing, Loder alluded to the good that could continue from Jim's effort, though he is no longer among us. And indeed, even now in the ASA, such fruit is being manifested. Robert T. Voss was introduced to the ASA by Jim and has recently relocated from the New York-New Jersey ASA local section (of which Jim Neidhardt was a member) to Pittsburgh, where a new local section is in formation. (See "Pittsburgh Local Section Forming.") .

John F. Peppin, D.O., is not an "osteopathologist" nor any longer a student member, as the Directory of ASA Members indicates. John, an ASAN Gatekeeper, says that gatekeepers are "familiar for those of us in medicine." John is possibly the only osteopathic physician member of the ASA. Thanks, John, for covering both theology and medical ethics journals for the ASAN!

John A. Bloom has a new position as assistant professor of physics at Biola U. in California - a big move from the East Coast! His new address is: 12631 Biola Ave., LaMirada, CA 90638; phone (310)946-1258.

While continuing as a part-time VP of Sierra Research in Mountain View, CA, Bill Swan has become vicar of St. Edward's Episcopal Church in Silverton, OR, south of Portland. With time left over from these two activities, Bill says, he is writing a daily devotional book based upon the lives of 365+ Western saints, ancient and contemporary.

Patricia C. Tice has moved to West Virginia U. and did research last summer on the Wheeling, YvrV Customs House and covered bridges, including current and historical loadings. She is now studying bridge rehabilitation. With the move, she has again found the blessing of Christ's love and a "blooming" church to be ubiquitous.

Fred J. Hickernell, head of mathematics at Hong Kong Baptist College, is spending a seven-month sabbatical at the dept. of statistics, Stanford U. He and his wife Elaine are enjoying the more relaxed pace of life and are trying to learn some Mandarin (Guoyfi) so as to better communicate with the many new colleagues and visitors from China who have come to Hong Kong in recent years. The mathematics department expects to have two openings within the next two years, as it expands its graduate program, with a preference for experts in scientific computing and statistics.

Positions Looking For People: Biology: Full-time faculty member, Aug 94, Ph.D. in biology, post-doc experience preferred; expertise in several of following areas: botany, conservation of natural resources, ecology, environmental science, allied health professions, occupational safety & health, wildlife management. Contact Dr. Joseph Lochner, Mount Vernon Nazarene College, 800 Martinsburg Road, Mount Vernon, OH 43050; (614) 397-1244. Biology: Fall 1994 tenure-track assistant/associate professor; PhD required; teaching and research experience preferred, with a commitment to Christian liberal arts education and undergrad research. Teach intro. biology and 3 upper-division courses in cell & molecular biology. Letter, cy, res/teach interests to Dr. George Ayoub, Dept. Biology, Westmont College, Santa Barbara, CA 93108; (805) 565-7019; fax: (805) 565-7035. Review of applications begins 15 Nov 93. Chemistry: tenure-track assistant professor; seeking a Ph.D. chemist to teach in a liberal arts college which cherishes academic excellence in the context of a firm Christian commitment. Teach lectures/labs in physical/inorganic; share duties in general and analytical sequences. A personal commitment to Christ and a desire to integrate faith and learning is expected. Submit cover letter, CV, names and addresses of 3 references to: Chemistry Search Committee, Office of Human Resources, Whitworth College, Spokane, WA 99251.

People Looking for Positions: Education Administration: Dr. M. Samuel Jayaral recently retired from the Pondicherry Central U. seeks educational administration position in any country. M.Sc. and Ph.D. degrees in zoology. Offices held: warden, bursar, registrar professor and H.O.D. & vice-principal in colleges; dean and director in university; co-authored two books; 40 years total teaching experience. Write or call: 13 Balaji Road cross, Krishnanagar, VELLORE-632001, India; tel. 0413-38823. Chemistry/Physics: John P. Chan seeks teaching or research position. Born in China in 1936; B.S. in Chemistry at Oregon State, M.S. in physical metallurgy and Ph.D. in physical chemistry (1964, under Nobelist W. F. Giauque) at U.C. Berkeley. Two yrs NMR rsch as chemistry lecturer at U. of Hong Kong, 6 yrs as rsch scientists at Sandia Labs in Livermore, CA, then 5 yrs as dean of science and engineering at Hong Kong Baptist College. Product development for Shell (1977-79), technical marketing for Perkin-Elmer Physical Electronics (1979-89); directed quality assurance in large factory in China (1990-91); currently teaching advanced physical instrumentation (scanning tunneling microscopy, HPLC, GC, IR, UV-Vis, DSC, TGA, DTA) at Hong Kong City Polytechnic. Taught most recently in Oman. (See Oct/Nov 93 ASAN, p. 6.) John is a U.S. citizen living in HK. Contact at: 4756 225th Avenue SE, Issaquah, WA 98027; tel. (206) 392-8942.