creationism
pharyngula | April 22, 2009It's long and fairly detailed, but this synopsis by a lawyer will give you the gist.
This lawsuit is gloriously insane. From top to bottom, this is exactly the kind of lawsuit you would expect from the kind of minds who think the world is 6,000 years old.
pharyngula | April 22, 2009The NCSE has been posting videos of events at the Texas Board of Education — they are very informative and well worth spending some time watching.
Here's an example of the bad guys: Don Patton preening smarmily and accusing Darwinism of failing because a 'prediction' had failed. The 'prediction', as he presents it, is that the fossil record would disgorge a complete accounting of all of evolution…and he can quote biologists from Darwin to Eldredge saying that such a complete series has not been found. He ignores the fact that the actual scientific prediction that the fossil record would…
pharyngula | April 20, 2009A while back, the Institute for Creation Research tried to get approval to issue degrees in the state of Texas — they would have used this authority to churn out science teachers whose knowledge would have been derived entirely from the Bible and young earth creationist tracts. Fortunately, the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board flatly turned them down, one of the smart moves in which Texas can take some pride.
Now, however, the ICR is now suing the THECB. Seriously. Even better, the lawsuit is a dense compendium of concentrated hilarity.
The sixty-seven-page complaint teems with…
pharyngula | April 20, 2009If anyone is in the Roseville area tomorrow, somewhere near Northwestern College, you might have an entertaining time if you drop in on a meeting of the Twin Cities Creation Science Association. I can't even imagine what they're going to say in this one.
God's Design in Weather
Weather is more talked about
than any other topic. God has
arranged the weather system on
the earth. There are patterns to
this weather. How does a tornado
form? What causes hurricanes?
Why aren't raindrops larger?
Science is about finding patterns
and then predicting what will
happen. The study of weather
allows us…
mikethemadbiologist | April 20, 2009Julian Sanchez, writing about global warming, makes an excellent point about how denialists are able to be so successful (italics original; boldtype mine):
Come to think of it, there's a certain class of rhetoric I'm going to call the "one way hash" argument. Most modern cryptographic systems in wide use are based on a certain mathematical asymmetry: You can multiply a couple of large prime numbers much (much, much, much, much) more quickly than you can factor the product back into primes. A one-way hash is a kind of "fingerprint" for messages based on the same mathematical idea: It's really…
pharyngula | April 18, 2009Sometimes I get requests for assistance with creationists. Usually, it's because some unwarrantedly confident ignoramus has been lying his butt off. Here's a perfect example:
I have a quick question concerning an encounter I had with a man last night who claimed he was a scientist (although, foolishly, I didn't ask him what field).
He made the claim that the majority of biologist do not "believe" in evolution. (He also pulled out the standard canards of "no macro biology" and "evolution requires faith"; I'm not wasting my time or your with this.) He claimed he has a "list" of all the…
pharyngula | April 17, 2009Stop the presses! I was sent a better, more accurate, and more informative timeline for Intelligent Design creationism. Use this one.
(Click for larger image)
You can see why this one is better. It goes into the future.
pharyngula | April 17, 2009I hand out a geological timeline in my introductory biology course, and I expect the students to learn it. It's a busy little sheet of paper. But have you ever wondered what the old earth creationist timeline would look like?
The young earth creationist timeline would be a fraction of pixel high.
The intelligent design creationist timeline would be the same as the one above, except god would be diddling creation imperceptibly and invisibly throughout. At least it gives the old man something to do.
gregladen | April 16, 2009"Just in time for the bicentennial observance of Charles Darwin's birth, a new survey of Louisiana residents shows 40 percent of the respondents believe evolution is not well-supported by evidence or generally accepted within the scientific community," the Baton Rouge Advocate (April 14, 2009) reports. The Louisiana Survey, sponsored by the Manship School of Mass Communication's Reilly Center for Media & Public Affairs at Louisiana State University, asked (PDF), "Do you think the scientific theory of evolution is well supported by evidence and widely accepted within the scientific…
razib | April 14, 2009I've suggested before that the idea of Turkey entering the EU is a farce. One could make the economic case that it is far too large and poor to be absorbed easily (unlike the Eastern European nations Turkey is nearly as populous as Germany). But there is a strong cultural case too. Turkey is a very religious nation in a European context. It is more Creationist than the United States. Though Turkey is secular for a Muslim nation, it is not secularfor a European nation. But many people seem to be intent on accusing Europeans of racism or discrimination based on their evident disinclination to…
mikethemadbiologist | April 14, 2009While I'm away on vacation, here's a blast from the past:
Once again, the science framing wars have flared up. While I'm not allergic to the concept of framing as some are, one of the major reasons why I'm not a big fan of dwelling on the topic is that obsessing over language reminds me of the late 80s and 90s when the Left won the battle of words, and the fundamentalist Uruk-hai took over the damn country.
I've been doing some thinking about the 'progressive' concern with media communication (including my own)--and it is important, no doubt about it. But, as the 2006 elections have shown,…
pharyngula | April 13, 2009It's an article about yet another Christian who was once an atheist, telling us how awful and unfulfilling life was until he found Jebus. The guy is a fool, and just to spice it up, they threw in…a poll! A poll that needs fixing!
Should creationism have a place in the curriculum?
54% are saying yes
46% are saying no
So fix it already. Go ahead and leave a comment there, too, although the comments so far all seem to be going our way anyway.
laelaps | April 13, 2009I really admire folks like those at the NCSE who keep up with the latest schemes of creationists. Not only is their service valuable to protecting science in the United States, but I just don't think I could match their endurance when it comes to listening to creationist nonsense. Creationism is just so dull! Not only is there an unsatisfying blanket explanation for everything ("Because God said so.") but creationists make a business out of repeating themselves. If you have read one tract you have generally read them all.
Young earth creationism in its present manifestation hatched during the…
pharyngula | April 10, 2009Someone at the Discovery Institute received a vaguely threatening email. If the writer is someone who reads this, you've done something disgraceful, and you should send an apology immediately; we do not threaten to silence or cause harm to the clowns of creationism. Laugh at them, dissect their arguments, explain that they are damaging education in this country…but you draw the line at intimidation and threats of personal damage. Got it?
That said, I have to also say that the DI's reaction was amusing. This is the first time they've received a death threat? Overall, then, our side (with the…
pharyngula | April 9, 2009The races aren't quite over, but the good news is that the four non-creationists running for the Lincoln board of education have successfully advanced to the general election. Don't forget to vote on 5 May!
pharyngula | April 9, 2009Get ready, West coast: in two weeks I'll be in Ashland, Oregon, speaking in the Meese Room, Hannon Library, at Southern Oregon University, at 7:00pm on 23 April. If you aren't a student, you'll have to pay a whole $10 to hear me — that's more than I'd pay to see a Michael Bay movie, and I won't have any car chases or explosions! This is a talk sponsored by The Jefferson Center, and you should check them out if you want to know more. There may be other events around that date — I know I'm doing a radio program one morning, and I'll be there for a few days.
The subject of the talk is the legacy…
pharyngula | April 8, 2009Ray Comfort went off to New Zealand to have a debate — and wouldn't you know it, he stood up there and repeated the same bunk he spouts on his blog. Oh, wait: he did change one thing. Instead of talking about elephants, he changed his animal that he claimed couldn't possibly have evolved to a dog. Woo hoo. He also completely ignored his opponent's arguments.
Ray Comfort is currently in the lead for top status in my list of dishonest, stupid creationists.
pharyngula | April 8, 2009I keep telling people this isn't only about biology — every scientific discipline is under attack. I'm sure physicists aren't complacent: another teaching standard diluted into meaninglessness was one about the age of the universe.
Originally in the Texas school standards was this phrase: "concept of an expanding universe that originated about 14 billion years ago." However, board member Barbara Cargill thought this wasn't good enough. It was too definite. The standards now read, "current theories of the evolution of the universe including estimates for the age of the universe." You can bet…
pharyngula | April 7, 2009Once upon a time, a creationist invented a brand new pseudo-scientific term, which he even presented at a scientific conference. It was a very, very silly idea called "ontogenetic depth". I criticized the idea publicly and viciously, pointing out that the concept had no explanation, no methodology, and had produced no results, which prompted the creationist, Paul Nelson, to promise to present us all with a detailed explanation "tomorrow".
We've been waiting for a little while for tomorrow to get here. Paul Nelson promised us an answer tomorrow 5 years ago.
Ever since, we celebrate Paul Nelson…
gregladen | April 6, 2009Do you believe that indoctrination of children into the fundamentalist christian is child abuse? If so, skip this video. If not, watch it and I'm sure it will change your mind.
Hat tip: Colloquy