October 21, 2002

Possible Proof of the Existence of Jesus http://dsc.discovery.com/news/briefs/20021021/jesus.html You may not know this, but there is no proof that Jesus existed. But this discovery may be the first actual evidence that Jesus was a historical character and not just a story. Of course, an ossuary inscription can go little further than strong suggestion, and nowhere even close to corroborating any of the many biblical stories about Jesus. But Christians apparently do not need such evidence -- there's been 2000 years of believers with only faith to go on -- and this only goes to show the amazing resilience of "believing without seeing" in the face of lack of evidence. 8:32:32 PM    comment []

Foreign Accent Syndrome http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/2300395.stm http://www.nytimes.com/2002/10/15/health/15CHAN.html Here's a couple of links on recent developments in understanding the rare, curious disorder called "Foreign Accent Syndrome". It got me thinking about how some people, when in the company of people speaking with accents, take on some of accent themselves. This latter phenomenon obviously doesn't have to do with a change in brain structure, but is an interesting little psychological happening I've noticed. Have you ever found yourself talking with an accent (not on purpose)?  7:36:32 PM    comment []