I saw a blog by Jerry Coyne which referenced an article in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. In particular there is a chart that shows a surprising percentage of adults who have false beliefs about science: 33% of adults don't think the Earth goes around the Sun once per year. 49% think that "ordinary" tomatoes don't have genes but genetically modified tomatoes do. 14% think that sound travels faster than light. And this one is a bit more challenging, 45% think that antibiotics kill viruses (they don't; they kill bacteria). The point of the article is that there are several reasons for scientific illiteracy. For one thing, we need to improve science education in order to help adults have a

John Michael Greer, who is headlining the first-ever Paganicon conference (beginning tonight), has been interviewed by the MN Bureau of the Pagan Newswire Collective. Paganicon is a brand new spring weekend event just outside Minneapolis, Minnesota. Based on the weekend conference model used by other Pagan events around the country, it will be a weekend of workshops, panels, music, and more with others from the Pagan community. Greer will be the guest of honor as well as the keynote speaker at the event. Read the full interview with John Michael Greer here. The MN Bureau of the Pagan Newswire Collective also interviewed Llewellyn's very own Elysia Gallo, Aquiring Editor for

The year was 1987. For over 15 years, an unusual astrological alignment had been predicted to begin on August 16–17: The Sun, Moon, Mars and Venus were in alignment, what astrologers call a conjunction, at the first degree of Virgo Mercury was at the fourth degree of Virgo, within the "orb of influence" of the four-planet conjunction Jupiter was in Aries, about 180 degrees from the massive conjunction. Saturn and Uranus were in Sagittarius, about 90 degrees between both the massive conjunction and Jupiter. This made what astrologers call a "Grand Trine," one of the most amazing such formations in history, involving eight of astrology's eleven planets (the famous nine plus the

This card has changed a lot throughout history. It originally meant a traitor; someone who had betrayed someone or something. Later, it meant sacrifice, and some still read it as that. But more commonly, now, people read it as being in a kind of comfortable limbo waiting for a revelation or realization of some sort. In this image in particular, there is a sense of balance. Many tarot cards suggest balance: Lovers, Chariot, Justice, Temperance. Even the cards with pillars, such as the High Priestess, or the Moon with its two towers. Examining all the different flavors of balance in the tarot...now that would be an interesting study. I usually read it as a kind of time out, a