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Is the Earth Special? Planetary Habitability and Genesis 1

At the time of the writing of this article the earth remains the only place in the universe where humans have been able to empirically detect life and its signatures. Why is it so? Is the earth special?

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Chaos in Science

Science is most powerful when its limitations in understanding the complexity of nature are recognized. Newtonian physics has been a powerful tool for understanding nature for hundreds of years and is still an essential part of any physics class, but it has its limitations in understanding complex systems, so more is needed.

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A Physicist’s Look at Nature and the Nature of God

Because the creation of God bears undeniable evidence of its Author, there are things in nature that may reflect – even though in a very pale way – some of the characteristics of the nature of God. What follows are two analogies from physics that can serve as illustrations for aspects of the Divinity.

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Gravitational Waves and General Relativity: Top Science News in 2017

Einstein’s general theory of relativity was published in 1915. It again made headlines in 2017 with two major reports about gravitational waves that further confirmed the theory’s last remaining major prediction. On October 3, the detection of gravitational waves from coalescing black holes was awarded a Nobel Prize. On October 16, the observation of correlated gravitational and electromagnetic (light)…

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Design in the Physical Universe

This article describes evidence for what appears to be physical design on Earth, in the universe, and in the basic laws of nature. Some have used the examples of design as arguments for the God of religion as the intelligent designer; others have explained the design naturalistically. Some pros and cons of the arguments will be outlined along with cautions in using the arguments.

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A Dialogue Between Contemporary Perspectives and Ellen White on Divine Action and Quantum Physics

The way in which God interacts with the world, or divine action, has long been a matter of discussion for theists in the philosophy of science, and continues to remain a complex and controversial topic. In recent decades, this question has taken on additional complexity with advances in contemporary physics, namely quantum physics, which posits a random or probabilistic world in contradistinction to the apparently completely deterministic natural world of Isaac Newton.

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Science and Design: A Physicist’s Perspective

As science develops more complete naturalistic explanations to describe the universe, it may appear that there is less room for God in the picture. And if science ever discovers a “complete” theory, it could be presumed that it would describe a universe without God. I am confident, however, that this conclusion is neither necessary nor valid. Drawing upon examples from physics, my purpose is to show that in developing a more complete picture of the universe, scientists are led to greater evidences for God and His design.

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Genesis and the Cosmos: A Unified Picture?

How should the Bible and natural science be related, explained, or studied? At least two positions seem possible. On the one hand, there are those who hold that a conservative understanding of the Bible and the findings of science cannot be harmonized. On the other, there are those who believe that conclusions drawn from the two disciplines can be harmonized to fit into one overall view of the world.

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Genesis and the Cosmos: A Unified Picture?

In all this, the overriding importance of a correct paradigm is clear. The conclusions scientists draw from their observations of nature change radically when a different paradigm is used. God does make a difference to the Universe! This is no surprise, because He is not only the Creator, but also the Sustainer.

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The Bible and Astronomy

In this discussion I propose to present a scientific and a biblical model of origins and explore how these can be brought into harmony with each other. I also hope to show that the differences between the statements made by these two disciplines are largely a result of differing interpretations based on different paradigms.

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The Bible and Physics

The concept of a monotheistic God, who is the same yesterday, today and forever, not a plurality of capricious gods, suggested the universality, consistency and coherence of His creation. Among the contingently created beings were humans created in God's own image. This led to "the idea that we lesser rational beings might, by virtue of that Godlike rationality, be able to decipher the laws of nature."

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Where Did the Light on the First Day of Creation Week Come From?

Davidson, R. M. (2003). , Perspective Digest, 8(2), 60-62.

Theologians have given a number of answers. In this short article, Dr. Davidson discusses five. Published on Perspective Digest 8, no. 2 (2003): 60–62.

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Our Creator - The Master Engineer

Engineers have the distinguished legacy of following in their Creator's footsteps, thinking God's creative and analytical thoughts after Him. Should we not spend some time reflecting on the Master Engineer as we train engineers to work responsibly in this world?

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Integrating Faith and Learning in the Teaching of Physics

Historians of science have suggested that the Judea-Christian environment of western Europe and the belief in a monotheistic God were responsible for the development of modem science in that culture. Today students can still see that Christianity and physics are compatible and that similar assumptions underlie both.

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The Big Bang Model: An Appraisal

Modern cosmology, represented by the Big Bang theory, may have its virtues in explaining numerous aspects of the physical, inanimate universe, but that it is a poor model when it comes to explaining everything, and that it leaves too many of our questions unanswered.

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In the Beginning: How to Interpret Genesis 1

An analysis of Genesis chapter 1 is not as simple and straightforward as a casual reading of the biblical text may suggest. Modern interpretation of biblical cosmogony (understanding of origins) in Genesis 1 is extremely complicated, divided between the non-literal and the literal. We will briefly describe seven such interpretations, and evaluate each in the light of the biblical data.

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Through Modern Physics towards a Structure for Causality

This paper suggests that from its beginning, science has been one of those factors informing the Christian understanding of human and Divine causality. We conclude that the new physics suggests a wide-open universe in which the interaction of a Creator-Sustainer god can be postulated with far less confrontation with rational and scientific views of the natural order than was the case with the older Newtonian worldview.

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Does God Play at Dice?

Humans certainly seem to have free will, but how then can God see the future? The statistical nature of quantum theory offers the possibility of unpredictable, chance events. Perhaps God has voluntarily given up some of His ability to see the future in order that free will is possible. Published in Origins v. 4, n. 1.

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