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“People like us, who believe in physics, know that the distinction between past, present and future is only a stubbornly persistent illusion.” - Albert Einstein My problem: I can’t decide whether to go back in time and be considered a genius, or forward in the hope that mankind has improved and life on earth is truly better. “I fear the day that technology will surpass our human interaction. The world will have a generation of idiots.” - Albert Einstein Who am I kidding, I have seen the future and it is as Einstein feared: a video game. Perhaps time...

The oldest solid material on Earth has just been identified, and it predates the Solar System itself by at least a few hundred million years. The teensy tiny microscopic grains of dust were forged in a distant star somewhere between 5 and 7 billion years ago, according to new research. By comparison, our Sun is just 4.6 billion years old. Eventually, these grains were carried to Earth in a meteorite. "This is one of the most exciting studies I've worked on," said cosmochemist Philipp Heck of the Field Museum of Natural History and the University of Chicago. "These are the...

I'd like to have a frank discussion about the cost of entry for you or others who wish to discover more about the Founding Fathers, and even moreso the barrier that presents toward educating others. As we approach the completion of the audiobook version of James Madison's Notes, one of the goals for this project is cost reduction. I would like for you to consider three aspects: Time costMoney costExclusivity or efficiency I assume people will automatically think in terms of money, and it is true that the scope of what I'm looking for could have been better asked in...

Earlier this week, 16-year-old Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg was named Time's Person of the Year, defeating four other finalists, including US President Donald Trump, Speaker of the US House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi, the Hong Kong protesters, and the whistleblower in the Trump-Ukraine scandal. A group of Trump supporters has edited the TIME magazine's 'Person of the Year' cover by replacing the head of climate activist Greta Thunberg with that of the US president. The altered picture was accompanied by a list of things the group claims Trump has accomplished since taking office three years ago.

Donald Trump Jr. blasted Time on Twitter for choosing teen climate activist Greta Thunberg as Person of the Year. Trump Jr. suggested the pro-democracy protesters who have rocked Hong Kong should have been given the title instead. "Time leaves out the Hong Kong Protesters fighting for their lives and freedoms to push a teen being used as a marketing gimmick," he tweeted. "How dare you?" The comment, "How dare you?" is seemingly another jab at Thunberg. The teen famously asked world leaders that same question during an emotional speech at the United Nations in New York City in September. Edward...

Time magazine has chosen Greta Thunberg, a Swedish climate crisis activist, as person of the year. Each year, the magazine features the most influential person, group, movement or idea of the previous 12 months. Last year, it was "The Guardians," a group of journalists who have been targeted or assaulted for their work. In 2017, it was "The Silence Breakers," the group of people who came forward to report sexual misconduct. Past Persons of the Year include Adolf Hitler, Ayatollah Khomeini and Joseph Stalin.

Greta Thunberg sits in silence in the cabin of the boat that will take her across the Atlantic Ocean. Inside, there’s a cow skull hanging on the wall, a faded globe, a child’s yellow raincoat.

**SNIP** Also on TIME's list for Person of the Year 2019 is President Trump, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, and the intelligence community whistleblower whose report sparked impeachment proceedings into Trump. TIME is slated to reveal the winner of the annual award on Wednesday morning.

Six years ago, in Haditha, Iraq, in the wake of a deadly insurgent attack on their convoy, a Marine quick reaction force raided several houses from which they were taking fire. At the conclusion of the action it became clear that a number of Iraqi civilians had been killed, which was duly reported up the Marine Corps chain of command. The command determined that while the deaths were unfortunate, the engaged Marines had not violated the laws of war. Then, early in 2006, a reporter from Time Magazine got wind of the incident, and all hell broke loose. An...

Some of the greatest unanswered questions about the nature of the universe are related to light, the vacuum (i.e. space where neither matter nor radiation exists), and their relationship with time. In the past, physicists and philosophers have addressed a variety of complex questions, for instance, what is the nature of the vacuum, and how is the propagation of light connected to the passing of time? Researchers at the University of Konstanz have recently carried out a study exploring the quantum states of light and vacuum fluctuations, as well as their interplay with time. Their paper, published in Nature Physics,...

Posted on June 3, 2019 by Msgr. Charles Pope O Tempus! Time Belongs to God, Not to Us The ancient Greeks had at least three different words for time: Chronos is close to what we call “clock time.” It answers the question of where we are on the scale used to note sequential time. For example, 3:00 PM refers to an agreed point in the middle of the afternoon. Aeon refers to the fullness of time or to “the ages.” It is akin to our notion of eternity, not as an inordinately long time but as a comprehensive experience of...

May 30, 2019 by Msgr. Charles Pope “Just a Little While Longer…” – A Meditation on the Brevity and Urgency of Life 1 There is a passage in John 16 that is unusual for its repetition. This past Sunday it was the assigned Gospel in the Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite. The expression “in a little while” is repeated seven times in the brief passage. Its repetition is almost to the point of being annoying, such that the reader is tempted to say, “All right, already. I get it!” Obviously, John, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit want to drill...

Time Magazine columnist Ian Bremmer apologized Monday for fabricating a quote from President Donald Trump about North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un that went viral the day before. “My tweet yesterday about Trump preferring Kim Jong Un to Biden as President was meant in jest,” Bremmer tweeted Monday. “The President correctly quoted me as saying it was a ‘completely ludicrous’ statement. I should have been clearer. My apologies.” Bremmer’s apology comes after he tweeted a quote attributed to the president alleging he said, “Kim Jong Un is smarter and would make a better President than Sleepy Joe Biden.” Many people...

FFor months, the European Union’s leaders have waged a fierce battle against Hungary’s Prime Minister Viktor Orbán. They have accused him of targeting minorities and opposition media, and threatened to withdraw Hungary’s voting rights in the E.U. Parliament, and to eject permanently members of Orbán’s far-right Fidesz party from the biggest political grouping in the legislative body in Brussels. Yet none of that has succeeded in softening Orbán’s views — far from it. As his campaign has ramped up for this week’s crucial E.U. Parliament elections, so has his hardline rhetoric — especially his opposition to migrants coming to Europe....

President Donald Trump’s trade war with China could cost the average American family of four up to $2,300 a year, according to a report on the effect of tariffs on the U.S. economy and workers. The study, by the economic consulting firm Trade Partnership Worldwide, assesses how tariffs will affect American consumers and the economy. According to the report, an average American family of four would pay $2,300 more in goods and services each year if Trump imposes a 25% tariff on all goods from China, as he has repeatedly threatened. If tariff levels remain where they are today, the...

An early pioneer of conservative talk radio was the late Bob Grant (1929 - 2013) who broadcast out of New York City. Often when Grant was commenting on some outrage in the news, he'd say, "It's sick out there and getting sicker." If only he knew how his words would ring ever more true in the years to come.  The case in point is the cover of the current Time magazine.  It is a photograph of "Mayor Pete" Buttigieg and his "husband" Chasten Buttigieg standing close together with the caption "First Family." (Permit me a minor digression here. If Chasten is the...

“In many ways, Buttigieg is Trump’s polar opposite: younger, dorkier, shorter, calmer and married to a man. His success may depend on whether Democrats want a fighter to match Trump, or whether Americans want to ‘change the channel,’ as Buttigieg puts it. “‘People already have a leader who screams and yells,” he says. “How do you think that’s working out for us?’” TIME’s detailed, nearly 4,100-word piece goes on to discuss Buttigieg’s relationship, his military experience and his childhood. Mayor Pete has become something of a media darling as he has surged in the polls, so much so that the...

**SNIP** Many workers would then begin their workday in darkness. Worse, young children waiting for the school bus would also be in darkness, creating a potential safety hazard. Further, this delayed sunrise would impact the body’s circadian rhythms. Shift work has long been known to have negative impacts on health. The delayed winter sunrise would have a similar effect, causing the equivalent of jet lag. Various scientific bodies have released statements opposing year-round DST and endorsing a return to year-round standard time. The Society for Research on Biological Rhythms has stated that year-round standard time would enhance sleep, increase cardiac...

Dr. Christine Blasey Ford's testimony against then-Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh captivated the attention of the nation and the world last fall. Now, Time magazine's annual list of the world's 100 most influential people has brought them into the spotlight again — with both receiving a coveted spot in the edition. Sen. Kamala Harris, a Democrat on the Senate Judiciary Committee who took part in the confirmation hearings, wrote a moving tribute for the magazine about Blasey Ford. "Her courage, in the face of those who wished to silence her, galvanized Americans," wrote Harris, who is also a 2020 presidential...

TIME mag releases glowing AOC cover, but may have overlooked one hilarious – yet fitting – faux pas (full title) March 21, 2019 | Vivek Saxena | On Thursday, Time magazine unveiled the cover for its April 1, 2020, edition. This wouldn’t usually attract the attention of conservatives, who for the most part dislike the magazine because of its left-wing bias, except that this edition’s cover contained something unusual. Under the date, April 1, 2020, which as a reminder denotes April Fool’s Day, was a picture of the Democrat Party’s biggest fool, socialist congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.