People Ask me ...

I was almost 25 years old, employed as an Engineering Tech for a large company in southern Ohio.  My wife and I were active in a local Baptist Church teaching in the youth programs..

Missionaries from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints had visited our home a few times and taught us a few lessons.  I had only known two 'Mormons' before and was interested in their ideas and beliefs, just as I have been interested in hearing and reading about other philosophies and other religions before and since that autumn in 1962.  For me, it was just an academic interest.

They challenged me to read the Book of Mormon and pray.  But, I didn't have time to read and understand a new book, and absorb all the new names and places and events that it described.   However, I did know the Bible pretty well, and this thought came to me: "Christ was spoken of in riddles and metaphors hidden throughout the Old Testament and only fully reveled in the New Testament.  So if the Book of Mormon and the establishment and trials of that church was true, it would be in the Bible, but hidden.  If it was not true, then it would be revealed and condemned by the same text."

I really believed the Bible was true.  AND I also believed that the Lord was on my side.  But how could I find the right passages, the hidden chapters and verses in  the Bible?  I did not know where to look.  But He did.

I had a week of vacation starting, and I decided to spend 2-4 hours a day searching the Bible.  I would sit down on the end of our couch, lay the Bible on my lap, and pray for His guidance.  Then I would flip open the Bible, totally at random, and start reading. 

Each time I did this, I sensed that He was standing behind me with a hand on my shoulder.  I took notes, I marked scriptures.

When the Missionaries returned at the end of the week I had to confess that I had not read even one page of the Book of Mormon.  Then I started teaching them "our" Gospel, the Latter Day Saint Gospel, from passages in the Bible.

... so that is when and how I knew this,...

... the Book of Mormon, the Doctrine and Covenants, The Pearl of Great Price, and the Gospel of Jesus Christ are all true.

 LAZY SCIENTISTS

One of the lingering problems in all basic science seems to be the reluctance to invent NEW terms for NEW concepts. It creates the problem of confusing people outside a specific field, aka the public.

For example in statistics "standard deviation" is an oft used and very valuable term, but to the public it is an oxy-moron... how can a "deviation" be "standard"??? This concept needs a new word.

And in physics, what does Charm and Color and Flavor and other commonly used terms have to do with subatomic particles? Spin I understand because I can spin a top or a planet or a subatomic particle, but how do I charm anything but another human. And do the particles actually taste different? This "LAZY" use of common terms for high tech concepts may be cute and easier to memorize but, to me, it does not help people learn anything.

Wouldn't Charg, or Kolor, or Flaver be just as memorable... and more specific to a single technical concept... and much less confusing to the public?

Just saying.

Content to be Dis-Satisfied

 "contradistinguishabilitiveness"..

When I was in High School this word, 30 letters long, was listed as the longest (non-scientific) word in the English language. Defined as the ability to see large differences between seemingly similar concepts... they gave as an example "seeing the difference between being 'content' and being 'satisfied'"

Since then, I always strive to be completely content with what I have and who I am, yet so dissatisfied that I am always striving for a better world and for self improvement.

I think this kind of contentment is the kind of "Peace" the Savior promised us.