Reasons To Believe Podcast

Join Fazale “Fuz” Rana and Hugh Ross as they discuss new discoveries taking place at the frontiers of science that have theological and philosophical implications, including the reality of God’s existence.   Neanderthal Flower Burial Nixed Were Neanderthals like us? The answer to this question has profound implications for our understanding of human origins, and for the RTB creation model. Some anthropologists argue that Neanderthals engaged in ritualistic burials reflecting the capacities for symbolism and religion—features that define modern humans. One of the most important pieces of evidence for ritualistic burials among Neanderthals comes from the Shanidar Cave in northern Iraq. One of the layers harboring Neanderthal remains and artifacts includes a partial adult skeleton that was unearthed in what appears to be a grave. The skeleton had a clump of pollen grains from flowering plants on top of it. Some anthropologists believe that this find indicates Neanderthals buried their dead with flowers—possible

How original sin best explains the human condition

A prominent atheist philosopher says original sin is the faith's strongest argument

Join astrophysicist Jeff Zweerink and special guest Christian apologist and lawyer Abdu Murray (president and founder of Embrace the Truth Ministry) as they discuss new discoveries taking place at the frontiers of science that have theological and philosophical implications, including the reality of God’s existence.   Musings on AI Artificial intelligence (AI) has already penetrated many areas of our daily life. While AI can bring some benefits, we often don’t understand the long-term effects of AI use. In this episode, Jeff Zweerink and Abdu Murray explore some of the consequences that might ensue as we utilize AI in the legal profession. Of particular interest is the way AI will impact our relationships, not just in legal matters, but in everyday life as well.   References: Can the AI Driving ChatGPT Help to Detect Early Signs of Alzheimer's Disease? Did Life Exist on Mars? Other Planets? With AI’s Help, We May Know Soon

Abdu Murray discusses how to reach Muslims with the truth of the gospel

Join Hugh Ross and Jeff Zweerink as they discuss new discoveries taking place at the frontiers of science that have theological and philosophical implications, including the reality of God’s existence.   Life on K2-18b? Two months ago the Internet blew up with articles and blogs announcing that astronomers had discovered molecules in the atmosphere of exoplanet K2-18b that only living organisms can produce. Those biosignature molecules were dimethyl sulfide and chloromethane. While there is no doubt that methane was detected in K2-18b’s atmosphere and carbon dioxide likely detected, the detections of dimethyl sulfide and chloromethane were marginal at best. Furthermore, astronomers have detected chloromethane in a comet and an interstellar cloud where it is well established that life and life chemistry is impossible, and they found abiotic pathways for the production of dimethyl sulfide. The Internet articles overlooked the physical characteristics of K2-18b and its host star that categorically rule out any p

Jeff Zweerink discusses the need for Christians to guide the development of AI

Join biochemist Fazale “Fuz” Rana and special guest, Christian apologist Abdu Murray, president and founder of Embrace the Truth Ministry, as they address how Christianity and Islam—two of the world’s three great monotheistic religions—engage with science.   Christianity, Islam, and Science In this special episode, Fuz Rana and Abdu Murray address these questions, and more.   Which religion has a worldview that provides the justification for science? Which religion can legitimately lay claim to the scientific evidence for God’s existence? Which religious text displays scientific accuracy? How can science be used to build a bridge between Christianity and Islam? Visiting Scholar, Abdu Murray Abdu Murray holds a bachelor’s in psychology from the University of Michigan and a JD from the University of Michigan Law School. He is cofounder and president of Embrace the Truth, a ministry dedicated to offering the truth of the Christian gospel to Muslims. More on Abdu Murray: https://reasons.org/team/abdu-murray Webs

Strengths and weaknesses of the major eschatological views

Join Fazale “Fuz” Rana and Hugh Ross as they discuss new discoveries taking place at the frontiers of science that have theological and philosophical implications, including the reality of God’s existence.   Biochemical Maxwell Demons Maxwell’s demon is a thought experiment designed to illustrate the second law of thermodynamics. In this imaginary scenario, a demon operates a massless door separating two boxes filled with gas molecules. The demon opens and shuts the door to allow certain gas molecules to pass from one box to the other. Eventually one box contains high temperature molecules and the other, low temperature molecules—violating the second law of thermodynamics. Physicists have discovered why Maxwell’s demon doesn’t violate the second law by describing the demon’s activity with information theory. Recently, a team of biophysicists from Switzerland demonstrated that a special class of transport proteins found in cell membranes behave as literal Maxwell’s demons, making these proteins sophisticated c

Three points to consider in end times eschatology

Join Fazale “Fuz” Rana and Jeff Zweerink as they discuss new discoveries taking place at the frontiers of science that have theological and philosophical implications, including the reality of God’s existence.   Hominin Burials? Were modern humans the first to bury their dead deliberately and ritualistically? Or did hominins that preceded them in life’s history also deliberately inter their dead? These questions bear on the concept of human exceptionalism and, for Christians, the scientific case for the image of God in modern humans.   In this episode, biochemist and Christian apologist Fuz Rana discusses recent work by a research team of collaborators from the US, Spain, Italy, and South Africa that relies on the use of machine learning algorithms to analyze hominin burials.   What did they discover? How do their insights impact the case for human exceptionalism?   REFERENCES: Hominin Skeletal Part Abundances and Claims of Deliberate Disposal of Corpses in the Middle Pleistocene   Additional Resources: Rabbi

Applying intellectual virtues to conspiracy theories

Questions to ask when considering conspiracies

Why conspiracies theories are popular

How to ground truth in reality

Join Hugh Ross and Jeff Zweerink as they discuss new discoveries taking place at the frontiers of science that have theological and philosophical implications, including the reality of God’s existence.   Sun’s Birth Cluster The quantity of aluminum-26 in primitive meteorites indicates that a nearby core-collapse supernova event occurred during the first 100,000 years of the solar system’s existence. For this to be possible, the solar system’s birth cluster must have contained 2,000–20,000 stars. Additionally, the solar system must have formed in a huge, dense molecular cloud where multiple filaments join to form hubs (the only possible sites where stars with enough mass to become core-collapse supernovae can form) and where dense single filaments stream out from the hubs. Only if the solar system forms in a dense single filament at the just-right distance from a hub will it be enriched with the measured quantity of aluminum-26 without having its system of planets being so disrupted as to rule out the possibil