"Then we'll let the topic lie, if you like." Mulcahy's never suffered any dissonance between scientific advancement and faith himself, not since he was a child, but perhaps the fellow just has a way with inquiry that ticks people off.

"I feel the same way about the Temple. The sermons are lovely, and it's quiet and peaceful otherwise, and Degas and Angel are both wonderful. Are you still studying astrophysics, or is the island a little too far behind for that? I must assume that you're from a time after humans landed on the moon."