creationism
gregladen | October 14, 2008Consider the following words:
The evidence supporting evolution is overwhelming and comes from diverse disciplines, such as molecular biology, paleontology, comparative anatomy, ethology, and biochemistry. There is no controversy among biologists about whether evolution occurs, nor are there science-based alternative theories. Evolution is a unifying theme in biology; teaching it as such is the best way to show students what biology is about and how they can use evolution as a tool to understand our world. [Evolution] is as important an idea as there is in science - it is a great gift to…
pharyngula | October 14, 2008The latest issue of Science has a deservedly cruel review of Steve Fuller's dreary philosophical assault on evolution, Dissent over Descent: Intelligent Design's Challenge to Darwinism. I could tell from the title alone that the book was going to be worthless—Intelligent Design creationism provides no coherent "challenge" to evolution other than the purblind relabeling of it as "Darwinism"—but poor Michael Ruse had to actually read the whole book. Here's his quick summary of the contents:
More amused than cross, let me go to the heart of Fuller's case against Darwinian evolutionary theory and…
pharyngula | October 13, 2008Ah, the weird, wild world of the interwebs, where one actually finds people calling themselves "VenomFangX" and "Thunderf00t" squaring off to do battle. VenomFangX is one of the lower denizens of Youtube, a creationist notorious for the arrogant confidence with which he states the ridiculous and ignorant. Thunderf00t is a calm rationalist and defender of science and evolution on Youtube, and they recently did battle.
VenomFangX, unable to actually outargue and outreason Thunderf00t, made a series of legal accusations, that Thunderf00t was violating copyright, and convinced Youtube to briefly…
pharyngula | October 11, 2008The Brunswick school district, AKA Dover's dumber little brother, is still struggling with the creationists trying to smuggle creationism into the science classroom. The latest report, though, suggests that the pro-science side is being aggressive in fighting back, and the pro-ignorance side is backing off due to pocketbook pragmatism — a costly court case could hurt them badly.
I thought this comment was revealing.
District 2 Republican Catherine Cooke, who presents herself as an active parent and therefore insider in the county school system, said she knows creationism is not to be taught…
pharyngula | October 11, 2008It's a wonder that these people know how to tie their own shoes. I was sent a link to Perry Marshall's Intelligent Evolution Quick Guide, and it is certainly a fine example of the kind of reasoning that allows creationism to thrive. It's a short guide, but it goes on for over a page, when the essential syllogism that defines ID is actually presented in three all-encompassing lines.
DNA is not just a molecule - it is a coding system with a language & alphabet, and contains a message
All languages, codes and messages come from a mind
Therefore DNA was designed by a Mind
As I'm sure…
gregladen | October 10, 2008Consider this question from a recent poll:
"Should topics such as creationism or intelligent design be taught in public schools alongside the theory of evolution?"
The correct answer is, of course, no. And the poll results support this:
This may not seem remarkable, until you learn where the poll is from. It is from "One New Snow" which is apparently some sort of Christian Yahoo thing:
Details here.
Click the picture of the poll if you want to vote too.
gregladen | October 10, 2008After both the state and federal courts rejected the attempts of Yoko Ono Lennon and EMI Records to enjoin the showing of Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed on the ground it used a 15-second fragment of John Lennon's Imagine, all of the plaintiffs in both cases have now withdrawn their claims and dismissed their cases.
Bad for evolution, but probably good for the fair use doctrine. Here's some details.
evolvingthoughts | October 5, 2008
But, allowing that we were to take the operations of one part of nature upon another, for the foundation of our judgement concerning the origin of the whole, (which never can be admitted,) yet why select so minute, so weak, so bounded a principle, as the reason and design of animals is found to be upon this planet? What peculiar privilege has this little agitation of the brain which we call thought, that we must thus make it the model of the whole universe? Our partiality in our own favour does indeed present it on all occasions; but sound philosophy ought carefully to guard against so…
evolvingthoughts | October 5, 2008
... here, at IAmYourGod. Personally, I suspect God actually wants all those atheists and agnostics, because he values critical thinking.
pharyngula | October 5, 2008Parents in the Berkeley Unified School District are horrified to discover that one of their elementary school teachers is a creationist. Berkeley is like another weird world: this is so common everywhere else, and Berzerkeleyites are so shocked when it happens among their own. I was actually amused at what the creationist teacher did, though.
Parents said that Martin had listed Santa Claus, the Easter Bunny and Harry Potter under fiction on the blackboard, which promptly reduced some of the 8-year-olds to tears, after which she made the comment about God. ["the only thing they should believe…
grrlscientist | October 4, 2008tags: John Scopes, Scopes Monkey Trial, Tennessee v. John T. Scopes Trial, evolution, creationism, religious fundamentalism, education
Tennessee v. John T. Scopes Trial: John Thomas Scopes.
Image: Watson Davis (1896-1967), courtesy of the Smithsonian Institution (copyright free). [larger view].
Description: Taken the month before the Tennessee v. John T. Scopes Trial. June 1925
Creator/Photographer: Watson Davis
Medium: Black and white photographic print
Dimensions: 4.25 in x 3 in
Culture: American
Geography: USA
Date: 1925
Persistent URL
Repository: Smithsonian Institution Archives…
grrlscientist | October 4, 2008tags: John Scopes, Scopes Monkey Trial, Tennessee v. John T. Scopes Trial, evolution, creationism, religious fundamentalism, education
Tennessee v. John T. Scopes Trial: Privies outside the Rhea County (Tennessee) courthouse with "Read Your Bible" sign.
Image: Watson Davis (1896-1967), courtesy of the Smithsonian Institution (copyright free). [larger view].
For the first time ever, a series of 39 original photographs from the 1925 Scopes Monkey Trial are now available for your viewing pleasure.
Description: Taken during the Tennessee v. John T. Scopes Trial. July 1925
Creator/…
pharyngula | October 4, 2008Looking for some images from a classic trial? The Smithsonian has recently put a set of photos from the 1925 Scopes trial on Flickr.
pharyngula | October 4, 2008I received an email today that brings up a curious decision by Lund University: they have appointed a new head of the university who seems to have a few bats in the belfry, and there is some concern that they may be rabid. The situation isn't helped by the fact that this newly appointed head, Per Eriksson, refuses to discuss some of his beliefs, even though these beliefs may well affect his performance on the job.
I'm hampered by the fact that all the news about this selection is in Swedish, and I can't read a word of it. Here's the short summary I was sent.
The Lund University board ignored…
evolvingthoughts | October 3, 2008
... by GumbyTheCat, with just the right amount of snark.
Late note: See the critical commentary by Galley Proofs.
pharyngula | October 3, 2008I just got a nice letter from the Science Research Foundation of Turkey, an organization founded by Adnan Oktar and with a name so duplicitous that our American Republicans are writhing with envy. Here's their request and my answer.
Dear Dr. Paul Zachary Myers,
I am more or less aware of your writings and ideology. Anyhow I would like
to suggest you an email debate with Mr. Adnan Oktar. If you are interested
to participate in such a debate or just ask questions that you wish answers
for, I might be able to arrange such a correspondence.
We are full defenders of freedom of speech,…
laelaps | October 3, 2008
About two weeks ago I mentioned that, in conjunction with Expelled, a book called Fossil Hunter was released. I had not heard anything about it until I stumbled upon it by accident, but the book's synopsis did not give me much reason for hope;
Fossil Hunter is an Indiana Jones-style thriller that explores the Intelligent Design controversy from the points of view of two field scientists working in the strife-torn countries of Iran and Pakistan. When paleontologist Dr. Katie James leads an expedition to search for an ancient whale fossil rumored to be in the Iraqi desert, she has no idea her…
pharyngula | October 2, 2008This is a very silly story.
Spring Hill resident Anita Koper thought she'd heard it all - until last week, when her 12-year-old daughter came home from school at Explorer K-8 and started asking her about "revolution."
"She said her science teacher told the class that in some religions, if you are bad, you come back in another life as a dog, cow or pig," Koper said.
She said she soon realized her daughter was asking about evolution, not revolution, and that her sixth-grade science teacher had mentioned the theory of reincarnation.
"He also told the class that if you are any religion, you can…
tfk | October 2, 2008Having been mocked for claiming global warming is being rejected by a standard which would also make gravity a theory in crisis, DaveScot is going back to the same well, claiming that ID is winning the battle because it has more people searching for it than made up terms like "theological evolution."
If we use actual terms in common use, the results are a bit different:
Red: Evolution
Blue: Intelligent design
Orange: Creationism
Note that search volume for Creationism has exceeded that for Intelligent Design over the last few months.
laelaps | October 2, 2008
Supposed human footprints from the "Old Red Sandstone" of Missouri. From Voices From the Rocks.
I mention these facts to show how easy it is for one to be led astray, when every possible phase of the subject is not carefully studied. Let us, therefore, attend strictly to detailing facts of observation, and they are sure to lead to a correct solution of all problems within the compass of the human mind. - Unknown author, from "Impressions of Human Feet in Sandstone," Proceedings of the Indiana Historical Society
Fossil footprint fraud isn't anything new. For nearly 200 years (if not longer…