With a PhD from Michigan State University, Gary Habermas is Distinguished Research Professor and Chair of the Dept. of Philosophy at Liberty University. In the first half of the show, he discussed the historical evidence for the life and miracles of Jesus Christ. There is enough of a basis using historical facts and secular sources to ascertain that Jesus was born around 4-6 BC, and that he indeed performed numerous miracles, including his own resurrection, Habermas stated.
There have been skeptical academics who have questioned the accounts, with one who suggested Jesus was more of a magician than a miracle worker, though that theory has not held up, he said. Even Jesus' enemies never accused him of being a magician (a common charge during the first century), Habermas pointed out. Some of Jesus' miracles that have a high level of criteria for being authentic include accounts of his healing a deaf mute, an epileptic boy, and the blind man Bartimaeus, he detailed. Regarding the claims of Jesus' resurrection, his empty tomb was a strong piece of evidence that it happened, Habermas added.
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In the latter half, Professor in New York University's Journalism Department and science writer, Charles Seife discussed the state of science including the space program, and how manipulation of data is fueling a crisis in science. He has investigated a variety of misuses and misconduct in science, and recently a fraud ring out of China has been exposed. They created papers using dubious research and got them published in peer reviewed journals for a charge of $15,000 (the website, Retraction Watch, is a good source for news on the seamy side of science, he shared).
He spoke about controversies surrounding the company 23andMe, which offers personal genetic testing. They received a letter from the FDA saying they had to stop offering diagnostic services based on their tests. Seife argued that the nature of space exploration has changed, and humans no longer need to go to places like the Moon, when robots can do almost as much. He also touched on such topics as nuclear fusion, comets, time travel, and Project HAARP.
News segment guests: Mish Shedlock, Tim Ball