By JIM NICHOLS Diffusion is a principle considered in many science classes. It is a simple concept, but quite significant in many physical situations. The concept identifies that a substance moves naturally from an area where it is more concentrated to an area where it is less concentrated. For instance, if one puts a spoonful of sugar into a cup

By JIM NICHOLS One way to make people happy is to carry a baby into a store. Taking one of these little ones out of the house was one of my favorite events of being a father. Once they get to be two years old or so the pleasure wears off for everyone (including the two-year-old), but, until then, carrying

By JIM NICHOLS Several mornings we pass each other, sometimes multiple times. I am in my running shoes, shirt, and shorts. The man is driving a white vehicle and the dog is running alongside or behind. This may irritate some of you, but I am not a dog person. This probably started when I was in junior high and had

By JIM NICHOLS My brain is odd because it remembers single phrases that seem to be just the right statement at the right time. Professor Harold Hill was a shyster. He was the “Music Man” from the same-named musical and he traveled from small town to small town (“You Really Ought to Give Iowa a Try”) and duped the townsfolk

By JIM NICHOLS The previous article ended with a suggestion that competition between humans has significant negative consequences; collaboration and cooperation are preferable. As usual, however, suggesting alternatives (collaboration and cooperation) requires identification of their inherent problems also. Working with one another rather than against one another is difficult to accomplish because of our competitive nature. Whether that nature is

By JIM NICHOLS Here comes a compressed story, a punchline, and some reflections. A bit over twenty years ago I moved for a year from teaching to research responsibilities. I was engaged in a research laboratory in Atlanta and was one of several workers in what might be called a “research group.” The group had a boss who was about

By JIM NICHOLS Fellow Spirit of Abilene contributor Nancy Patrick recently referenced the book Hind’s Feet on High Places. It is a story following the character Much-Afraid as she encounters guidance from God. Hearing about that book I had read long ago, I searched our bookshelves at home and found our yellowed copy. As I opened the cover, I was

By JIM NICHOLS That question was implied in a devotional item I was reading, and it caused me to wonder how I would answer it. My first connection was an ecology illustration that I have mentioned before. Ecology considers how forms of life relate to and interact with their environment. Their environment consists of the other organisms plus the physical