In battle, one clever military tactic is to focus enemy troops' attention on a spectacular frontal assault so they will overlook a deadly side attack. This approach works in other arenas, as well.

During his April 27, 2009, address at the National Academy of Sciences’ annual meeting, President Barack Obama called for focused scientific research aimed to improve the daily lives of American citizens.

A major achievement for design engineers is building precise control mechanisms for active processes. Lives depend on the precision in which certain processes are maintained, such as the manufacture of drugs.

The day-age theory, which posits that the creation days of Genesis were not 24-hour days but long "ages" spread over many years, is often used by old-earth creation adherents to compromise the creation account with evolution. Some even claim that the seventh day on which God rested is still going on today!