Last fall, I defended my Ph.D. dissertation, and in May I attended my graduation at Virginia Tech's Blacksburg campus. My studies were challenging, especially since I was changing my discipline, from engineering to Science and Technology Studies (STS), which is built around a core of history, sociology, and philosophy. Fortunately, I had some advantages as a “non-traditional” student. First, I was accustomed to research and writing after a long, successful career as an engineer. Second, my STS interests ran deep. And … [Read more...] about How Did You Do It? Faith and My Dissertation
Christian Theology
Book Review: The Passionate Intellect (2)
Alister McGrath holds a doctorate from Oxford and is an atheist convert to Christian faith. This book is an attempt by McGrath to demonstrate both the value to the Christian of an engagement with Christian theology and to directly engage the critique of Christianity advanced by the new atheism. In the first section of his book, McGrath contends that rigorous theological reflection liberates us from the confines of our own narrow spiritual perspectives by engaging us in a conversation with the greatest minds of two … [Read more...] about Book Review: The Passionate Intellect (2)
Headed to Graduate School: Begin with the End in Mind
In my travels to campuses around the country (40 in the past two years), I meet up with a lot of students who are headed to grad school someday. Here is what I wish I could suggest to each one of them: Begin with the end in mind. The “end” is the final goal, the destination of one's schooling. For many students, that would be to get a good job in their field and make a significant contribution to the overall good of humanity. Not bad! But in my view, for the Christian it's shooting too low. Let me suggest a goal … [Read more...] about Headed to Graduate School: Begin with the End in Mind