Source: Raw story

TALLAHASSEE Fla. (Reuters) – Florida State University on Tuesday selected a powerful state politician to serve as its next president over the loud objections of angry faculty members and students.

John Thrasher, a Republican political veteran and state senator who lacks academic credentials but is chairman of Governor Rick Scott’s reelection campaign, was selected by the university’s Board of Trustees.

The 11-2 vote was greeted by a brief, furious outburst from about 50 student protesters, many waving signs with messages like “choose an academic” and “this is OUR university.”

Thrasher, 70, is a former state House speaker who once led the Florida Republican Party. He touted his connections and political savvy as the key to raising funds to elevate FSU into a top-tier research university.

Read more: http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2014/09/students-object-as-florida-st-univ-picks-rick-scotts-campaign-chair-as-president/

Science and religion just don’t co-exist, according to a recent study by economists at Princeton University.

“Places with higher levels of religiosity have lower rates of scientific and technical innovation, as measured by patents per capita,” said Roland Bénabou, the study’s lead author, told Mother Jones.

The researchers used an economic model to explore the relationship between scientific innovation, religious faith, and government power as they formed different “regimes.”

They identified a secular, European-style regime where religion had very little policy influence and science enjoyed great support; a repressive, theocratic regime where the state and religion suppress science; and an American-style regime where religion and science generally thrived.



http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2014/09/09/study-science-and-religion-are-not-only-incompatible-religious-areas-being-left-behind/