AI and the Genome

In this episode, biochemist Fuz Rana describes recent insight from two investigators who make the case that genomes are generative AI systems. The architecture and operation of biochemical information is far more sophisticated and complex than previously recognized and points to purposeful design.

Earth’s Past Temperature

Two new studies on Earth’s past climate have provided important data for predicting Earth’s future climate, as well as exoplanet habitability. Oxygen-18 measurements from shale, iron oxide, carbonates, and chert show that Earth’s climate was warm from 2.0–0.5 billion years ago. Then a drop in global mean surface temperature (GMST) occurred 500 million years ago to a decline in atmospheric carbon dioxide. An integration of geological data with climate model simulations shows that GMSTs varied from 11–36°C over the past 485 million years, a much larger range than previous reconstructions. Temperature changes were especially dramatic at high latitudes. During the Phanerozoic, Earth spent more time in warm climate states than cold ones and atmospheric CO2 was the dominant control on climate. Throughout the past 2 billion years, atmospheric CO2 played the most important role in compensating for increasing solar luminosity.

Links and Resources:

• Hot and Cold Earth Through Time

• A 485-Million-Year History of Earth’s Surface Temperature

• Oxygen Isotope Ensemble Reveals Earth’s Seawater, Temperature, and Carbon Cycle History

• The Genomic Code: The Genome Instantiates a Generative Model of the Organism

Join Jeff Zweerink and Kevin Birdwell 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.

Winter Gatekeeper Hypothesis

Virtually all public discussion about climate changes focuses on greenhouse gases—usually only carbon dioxide. Clearly greenhouse gases impact the climate, but scientific research demonstrates that the climate system is far more complicated than any single set of gases could describe. Specifically, one of the dominant drivers of the climate may be Earth’s capacity to transport energy from the tropics to the poles. This episode describes the winter gatekeeper hypothesis and its consequences for the global climate.

Links and Resources:

• The Winter Gatekeeper Hypothesis (VII). A Summary Plus Q&A
• Solving the Climate Puzzle. The Sun’s Surprising Role

Nuclear Power and Climate Change

One undeniable question accompanies any discussion about climate change: How much power do we need and what existing technologies are capable of generating that power? Most technologies capable of producing sufficient power for the world’s energy needs also emit large amounts of greenhouse gases. Technologies emitting fewer greenhouse gases don’t produce abundant power—except for nuclear power. In this episode, atmospheric scientist Kevin Birdwell and astrophysicist Jeff Zweerink discuss how current and future nuclear power technologies dramatically impact our ability to generate adequate power for humanity in an environmentally friendly way.

Links and Resources:

• Safe, Clean, Proliferation Resistant and Cost-Effective Thorium-Based Molten Salt Reactors for Sustainable Development
• Time Warp: Molten Salt Reactor Experiment—Alvin Weinberg’s Magnum Opus