[Vision2020] why a scientist would be interested in the Shroud

[Tom Hansen]

Mr. Cheng -

I sincerely appreciate a man of your caliber weighing in on such a topic
concerning the authenticity of the Shroud of Turin.

Your education and experience far outweighs any other person(s) that has
publicly discussed this topic locally.  Your willingness to discuss this
matter clears the air of the "smoke and mirrors" created by a person of far
lesser credentials.

I enjoy reading your comments and evaluations.  Perhaps you can provide the
subscribers of this listserve with your professional opinion concerning the
Shroud.  

I have read where a team of scientists' research may have traced the origin
back to Christ's time.

Your thoughts, please.

Tom "Curious for the Truth" Hansen
Moscow, Idaho

We could learn a lot from crayons: some are sharp, some are pretty, some are
dull, some have weird names, and all are different colors....but they all
exist very nicely in the same box. 

-----Original Message-----
From: vision2020-bounces at moscow.com [mailto:vision2020-bounces at moscow.com]
On Behalf Of Frank Cheng
Sent: Sunday, March 27, 2005 12:34 PM
To: vision2020 at moscow.com
Subject: [Vision2020] why a scientist would be interested in the Shroud

After reading some of the comments on this forum I
felt compelled to address the reasons why a tax-payer
support scientist such as myself would want to study
the Shroud. 

I began my scientific interest as a teenager
splitting water to hydrogen and oxygen with car
batteries in the garage. The hydrogen flames were
great fun I must admit. That lead me to study
chemistry then on to grad school to study the
splitting of water with solar energy (which is very
impractical even now). The generation of hydrogen from
water involves reaction known as oxidation/reduction
reactions, which lead to my first faculty position
where I became interested biological oxidations. These
reactions are the pathological bases of many diseases
including cancers and Alzheimers and Parkinsons.
Naturally, that lead me to become interested in
antioxidants which prevents those conditions. I do
this work for the NIH. Learning what I could about
antioxidants led me to understand about how to more
efficiently set off oxidations of pollutants and
nerve-agents using only water, iron particles, and
refined dirt, completely destroying these nasties in
an open unheated beaker on my lab bench. I do this
with funding from the NSF and EPA. Learning about
these reactions has lead to a better understanding on
my part of batteries and fuel cells which have a
series of oxidation/reduction reactions. I develop
these for the Navy and industry. 

Where does the Shroud fit in all of this? The fibers
on the Shroud were oxidized in a fashion not at all
completely understood. Was this from bodily compounds
emitted in death? Im still learning. Why even
consider the oxidation of Shroud fibers? Because the
Shroud fibers are made of bio-polymers, and we are
made of bio-polymers. The reactive oxidizing compounds
emitted by the poor mans body (it could have been
from Christ) was probably the result of trauma which
results in inflammation which heightens biological
oxidations. It could also be a very good forgery which
still merits investigation.

So by considering the oxidation of the Shroud fibers I
am also studying:

Solar energy conversion
Batteries
Fuel Cells
Cancer
Alzheimers
Antioxidants
Environmental Remediation Methods
And also if this really is the burial cloth of Christ.

Many more also. No one person has the collective
wisdom to predict where a human endeavor such a
scientific investigation will lead.

I hope this helps.

Frank Cheng


		
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