I don’t post every article I read about evolution, just the ones that I think the general public would find interesting. I can’t believe with all the evidence there is for evolution, that some 40% of Americans believe the Earth is less than 10,000 years old. That is not only an affront to biology, but every other form of science as well. Just today, two new articles about evolution: First Evolutionary Branching For Bilateral Animals Found; New Comprehensive Analysis Sheds Light On The Origin Of Cetaceans. I implore those of you that doubt evolution to pick up Richard Dawkin’s new book “The Greatest Show on Earth”. He beautifully illustrates the scientific fact of evolution in a way anyone can understand. For those of you that do accept evolution, the book is still a great read, and will give you tons of facts to present if ever arguing the side of evolution.

An international team of researchers, including Monash University biochemists, has discovered evidence at the molecular level in support of one of the key tenets of Darwin’s theory of evolution.

Molecular Decay Of Enamel-specific Gene In Toothless Mammals Supports Theory Of Evolution

Long-term Cooling Trend In Arctic Abruptly Reverses, Signaling Potential For Sea Rise

Last week, I received a brochure from my city’s water department detailing the quality of the municipal water in my area. You’ll never get a similar report from the bottled water companies. Municipal water is inspected frequently by the EPA and must meet its standards. Bottled water is controlled by the FDA, but most is not transported between states, which exempts it from FDA regulation. Even when it is, the testing is less rigorous and the standards are not as high as for tap water. For more information, check the startling charts on the NDRC’s site, including EPA tap water/FDA bottled water rules, comparison of standards, and monitored contaminants.

It seems there is a large choice when you see the varieties of bottled water offered for sale, but the truth is that Pepsi, Coke, and Nestle own more than half of them (including the largest 2, Aquafina and Dasani, which are nothing more than purified municipal water). At least those 2 save oil, they start as municipal water and don’t need to be transported far. Half of the wholesale cost of bottled water that must be transported, like spring water, is spent on transportation. It takes millions of gallons of oil every year to make plastic bottles, and even more oil to transport bottled water. Water is so heavy, you cannot fill an 18-wheeler truck with it, you must leave empty space.

Bisphenol A (BPA) is a chemical used to make plastic bottles that has been shown to harm reproductive development in animals. In humans, it has been linked to heart disease, diabetes, chemotherapy resistance, and a whole wealth of other problems. A recent study from the Harvard School of Public Health showed a 2/3 increase in BPA found in subject urine that used plastic bottles for a week. They used cold drinks; if the plastic bottle is heated the amount of BPA is higher. This does not only apply to disposable containers, but some baby bottles and other polycarbonate products.

Buying bottled water is like throwing away your money. Actually it’s worse than throwing away your money, you’re giving it to huge corporations. Water is extremely cheap. Most of the money you pay for a bottle of water goes toward paying for the bottle. Municipal water like tap or well costs, at the most, a few cents per gallon. Assuming you get a 20oz bottle of water at the vending machine for $1, that’s 5 cents per ounce, or $6.40/gallon. Where I live, gas is pretty expensive, but bottled water is 3 times the cost of gas here. The companies don’t have to spend very much on advertising, either. Water practically sells itself, especially if you make it seem healthier than tap water. The bottled water industry is about half the size of the soda industry, but the advertising budget is only 15% of what they spend to market soda.

The bottles are recyclable, but most of them are thrown out. Plastic has a very slow rate of decay, and bottled water alone (not including sodas and other drinks) account for 1.5 million tons of plastic waste per year. I can’t deny that bottled water is convenient. It’s there, it’s ready, you can just grab it and go. But is using a refillable container all that much of an inconvenience? My advice is buy a water filter and buy a stainless steel thermos. You can save money, help the environment, and it’s better for your health.

Sources/further reading:

Message in a Bottle

Natural Resources Defense Council’s Bottled Water Information

Five Reasons Not to Drink Bottled Water

Plastic Bottle Facts Make You Think Before You Drink

Thirst: A Documentary on the Corporatization of Water

‘Five Dimensional’ Discs With A Storage Capacity 2,000 Times That Of Current DVDs

New Memory Material May Hold Data For One Billion Years

Robot Scientist Becomes First Machine To Discover New Scientific Knowledge

Breakthrough In Quantum Control Of Light: Implications For Banking, Drug Design, And More

Scientists Engineer Cellular Circuits That Count Events

An older astronomy article, but very interesting. Mira, a dying star, is hurtling through space at 291,000mph, with a comet-like tail that is 13 light-years long. How long is 13 light-years? Why, it’s “about 20,000 times the average distance of Pluto from the sun“.

Of course if you check any kind of news, you know new telescopes are finding exoplanets. There’s even crazier telescopes in the making, and I’m sure within the next few decades we’ll know which of those exoplanets contain life. I wonder, will it still be in bacterial form? Will we be able to see actual creatures? It’s all very exciting.

Have you ever heard the Christian anti-evolution argument about watches? The argument states a watch, with all of its gears and parts, is too complicated to self-assemble. There has to be a watchmaker. The world is also a complex place, so there must have been an earthmaker. You know, becuse the Earth is just like a watch. Of course the earth, with its living organisms, is nothing like a watch. The argument also points out that the earth is very unique that is contains life…these new telescopes are going to prove that “fact” is completely untrue.

Tyrannosaur ‘Missing Link’ Among New Dinosaurs From China

Biology article from Science Daily, a very interesting science news site. A few times per week, I see a new article that gives more evidence for evolution. It really bothers me that so many people in the US reject the theory of evolution so vehemently. Scientists are among the smartest people in the world, you can’t disagree with that. Why do so many reject most scientists believe to be true?

The theory of evolution does not say there is no God. Many Christians believe in God but accept the scientific theory. Here’s another article for you: Vatican says Evolution does not prove the non-existence of God. Of course I’m more on the side of Dawkins than the Church on this one, but at least they acknowledge evolution.