On Wed Nov 15 2000 - 01:49:00 EST and in "Salty Oceans"
at http://www.calvin.edu/archive/asa/200011/0160.html
Jim Hofmann (jhofmann@fullerton.edu) wrote:
>Greetings: As some of you know, I teach courses on
>evolution and creation with my colleague Bruce Weber
>at Cal State Fullerton. You can find our course at
>
>http://nsmserver2.fullerton.edu/departments/chemistry/evolution_creation/web/
>
>Jonathan Sarfati has recently posted a report on a young
>earth creationist argument published by Austin and Humphreys
>back in 1990. This is an argument based upon calculations
>of inputs and outputs for salt in the oceans. You can
>find SarfatiUs summary at:
>
>http://www.answersingenesis.org/docs/3910.asp
... text deleted ...
There is certain irony in the "salty oceans" argument
made for a Young Earth by Young Earth creationists
that I find somewhat amusing. This and similar Young
Earth arguments is based an assumption of an absolute
uniformity of the rates by which salts enter and leave
the ocean by different processes that would gladden
the heart of Lyell and his fellow uniformitarianists.
The same Young Earth creationists that regularly heap
abuse upon this version of uniformitarianism, readily
embrace its assumptions when it suits their purposes
for proving a Young Earth. It is ironic the same
modern geologists and paleontologists that these
Young Earth creationists falsely caricature as practicing
Lyell's uniformitarianism would reject the
hyper-uniformitarism that Austin and Sarfati assume in
their arguments as being unrealistic to the point
of being completely useless for making the calculations
they make.
To paraphrase Goldwater, these Young Earth creationists
must think "Uniformitarianism in defense of a Young
Earth is no vice." :-) It is strange to think that
Austin and Sarfati are closet uniformitarianists when
it serves their arguments.
Keith Littleton
littlejo@vnet.net
New Orleans, LA
Dr. Stephen Franklin: "It's all so brief, isn't it?
Typical human lifespan is almost a hundred years,
but it's barely a second compared to what's out
there. It wouldn't be so bad if life didn't take
so long to figure out. Seems you just start to
get it right and then .. it's over."
Lt. Commander Susan Ivanova: "Doesn't matter. If we
lived two hundred years, we'd still be human.
We'd still make the same mistakes."
Franklin: "You're a pessimist."
Ivanova: "I am Russian, Doctor. We understand
these things."
Babylon 5 Episode "Soul Hunter"
http://www.midwinter.com/lurk/countries/master/guide/002.html
This archive was generated by hypermail 2b29 : Thu Nov 23 2000 - 01:56:19 EST