Noah's Flood by William Ryan and Walter Pitman

Noah's Flood is a novel whose subject has been the debate of religious experts and scientists alike since the beginning of written history. Almost every creationist story has an origin pertaining to or involving in some way a "great flood" in which the world that the ancients knew was destroyed. In this book, the authors describe in great detail their research and expeditions in an effort to solve this mystery. One of the things that I found most interesting about the book was how detailed the research that they did on the sea and river beds was. Some of the fossil remains that they examined varied only in minute detail, but implied drastic changes in environment. To ensure that an accurate depiction of the past was created, the team members responsible for analyzing the remains had to be meticulous in their examination. It turned out, however, that the painstaking attention to detail and identification of the fossilized organisms along with the analysis of the mineral concentration in various parts of the Black Sea led them to the theory that the Ancients did witness a huge flood, but it was more than likely not the result of divine intervention. They, along with the rest of their expedition, hypothesized that the ancients inhabiting the world at that time were congregated around the Black Sea because of its centralized location. They believe that next, because of rising sea levels, the Mediterranean Sea level rose so high that it overflowed into the Black Sea, causing a huge flood. Although the subject of the book is quite fascinating (the mingling of religion and science), the way that the book is written is rather dull. I would recommend this book only to friends who are able to maintain focus through pages of fossil analysis and sea bed material composition comparisons.

Questions:

1. If the author is writing on a debatable issue, does he or she give proper consideration to all sides of the debate, or does he or she seem to have a bias?

The topic of this book is one of the most hotly debated among geologists and religious experts. However, the authors of this book do an excellent job of providing an objective environment throughout their expedition as well as providing an objective environment for the reader in order to develop his or her own perspective on the matter. They also make an effort to provide examples of religious texts from various different sources as well as alluding and analyzing pertinent ancient texts such as the Epic of Gilgamesh. It is because of this objectivity, along with the results that they obtained, that the theory they propose is so widely discussed by the scientific community.


2. How has the book increased your interest in the subject matter?

This book has increased my interest in the subject matter of geology through the way its authors used it to solve an age-old question. Too often, we forget that there is application in all fields of science. However, this book is refreshingly symbolic of how science can be used not only to improve technology, but how it can also be used to solve ancient mysteries both logically and effectively.


(Word Count: 486)

Book Blog #7: Tiki By Tiki Barber

Tiki by Tiki Barber was a particularly interesting book to me. The author of the book is a former superstar of my favorite football team, the New York Giants. Before reading the book, I viewed Tiki Barber as a great football player, but solely as that; I was unaware of his background or history before entering the NFL. That part of Tiki's story was the most inspiring, and ultimately my favorite part of his memoir. His early childhood is one right out of the story books. He lived in a rural town in Virginia with only his mother and brother to fall back on, but that was more than enough. He goes into great detail as to how his mother's personality played into who he is as a person, and how it contributed to his success as a person as well as a football player. He also goes into great depth about how his relationship with his brother made him a better, more competitive player. Before reading the book, I was aware that Tiki had a twin brother, and assumed that they were close. However, I was unaware of just how close they were. The two seem to be a perfect pair, one being more academic, and the other being more athletic. They both pushed the other to excel in the others forte. In doing so, they made each other more competitive while strengthening their bond. While I enjoyed the background that Tiki developed and put into the book, at times I disliked the way the book was written. Several times throughout the book, I found myself re-reading parts of paragraphs because the sentence structure confused me and abrupt punctuation stopped the flow of the text. Perhaps the book was written this way on purpose, but on more than a few occasions it bothered me. After taking all of this into consideration, I would recommend this book to any of my friends who happen to enjoy football as well as to anyone who wants to read a true story of a man (in all reality, two men) who overcame adversity.

Question:


1. How has reading this book change your opinion of a certain person or topic?

This book has changed my opinion about Tiki Barber. Before reading the book, I saw him not so much as a person, but as a football player distanced from society. After reading the book, I see him as more than just a player- I see him as a down-to-Earth person. Throughout most of the book, he maintains a relatively humble approach to writing it. At certain times, he does add an unnecessary shot at a defender or someone assigned to stop his rushes; he also has a controversial perspective on his former coach, Tom Coughlin. However, after reading the book, I view Tiki Barber as a more intellectual and profound person.

2. If the author is writing on a debatable issue, does he or she give proper consideration to all sides of the debate? Or does he/she seem to have a bias?

Tiki Barber does address a topic of controversy- his comments about his former coach, Tom Coughlin. He has said in the past that Coughlin pushed him and many of the other veteran players too hard, and that they should have been treated differently because not only are they more experienced, but because some play more contact-intensive roles, such as running back (in Tiki's situation). Although I disagree with Tiki's perspective, he does address the opposing side of the argument respectfully and defends his side effectively.

(Word Count: 546)