Spring Break
Veritas forum explores empirical proof of the Bible
By: Lindsey Coyne
Issue date: 2/29/08 Section: News
Last week, the Christian Faculty and Staff Network, along with several student organizations, had Texas A&M's annual Veritas forum. The Veritas forum, a nationally headquartered team, presents forums at universities across the nation in order to instill the relevance of Jesus Christ in all aspects of life. The forum took place on two evenings and featured two keynote speakers addressing the question and ultimate validity of God in the universe.
The first of these speakers, Walter Bradley, a professor of mechanical behavior of materials at Baylor University and former A&M professor of mechanical engineering, gave scientific evidence of the complex characteristics of the universe in his presentation, "The Bio-Friendly Universe: By Design?"
Bradley said his research in this field is to highlight "what about the universe makes it a place for complex life forms." His findings run the gamut of formulas and figures across chemistry, physics and genetics. Ultimately, the whole of the evidence provided by Bradley demonstrated that if there were an absence of certain value-specific universal constants, this planet would be incapable of supporting human life. Specifically, the values associated to the amount of "dark energy" present at the Big Bang is precisely what is needed for the universe to form. Bradley equates his interest and research in this field to his own personal beliefs in Christian deism. Within the past 15 years, everything he has found has reinforced his beliefs.
"Nothing about our universe is random, chaotic or purposeless," Bradley said, even though the deductions of past scientists suggest otherwise. Bradley co-authored a book, The Mystery of Life's Origins, based on these findings, and has presented this information in forums on more than 100 college campuses to more than 40,000 students nationwide.
Sherri Verm, a senior political science major, found the information contained in Bradley's presentation quite remarkable.
"I decided to attend because I found it very interesting that science and math could potentially work together to prove some element of theology," Verm said. She said she identified with the simple analogy Bradley offered the crowd about the chances of rolling a die 100 times and getting a six to make the emphasis about how unique, diverse and deliberate the constants of the universe actually are.
The first of these speakers, Walter Bradley, a professor of mechanical behavior of materials at Baylor University and former A&M professor of mechanical engineering, gave scientific evidence of the complex characteristics of the universe in his presentation, "The Bio-Friendly Universe: By Design?"
Bradley said his research in this field is to highlight "what about the universe makes it a place for complex life forms." His findings run the gamut of formulas and figures across chemistry, physics and genetics. Ultimately, the whole of the evidence provided by Bradley demonstrated that if there were an absence of certain value-specific universal constants, this planet would be incapable of supporting human life. Specifically, the values associated to the amount of "dark energy" present at the Big Bang is precisely what is needed for the universe to form. Bradley equates his interest and research in this field to his own personal beliefs in Christian deism. Within the past 15 years, everything he has found has reinforced his beliefs.
"Nothing about our universe is random, chaotic or purposeless," Bradley said, even though the deductions of past scientists suggest otherwise. Bradley co-authored a book, The Mystery of Life's Origins, based on these findings, and has presented this information in forums on more than 100 college campuses to more than 40,000 students nationwide.
Sherri Verm, a senior political science major, found the information contained in Bradley's presentation quite remarkable.
"I decided to attend because I found it very interesting that science and math could potentially work together to prove some element of theology," Verm said. She said she identified with the simple analogy Bradley offered the crowd about the chances of rolling a die 100 times and getting a six to make the emphasis about how unique, diverse and deliberate the constants of the universe actually are.
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