^{Date
Mar202024
March
03
Mar
20
20
2024

Time
09:30AM

Locale
Spokane, WA

Venue
Great Northern University at Fourth Memorial Church

Register
Register}

How to Code Life — Intelligent Design Education Day

Discovery Institute is pleased to announce that the annual Intelligent Design Education Day is returning to Spokane, Washington with thanks to our hosts at Great Northern University.

This year’s theme — “How to Code Life” — will explore the incredible coding and decoding technology that lies at the heart of every living thing. How do these biological codes compare to computer code authored by humans? What is the implication of finding unique code in each type of organism? How can our study of life’s codes enhance scientific research, medical treatments, and more?

Join us on Wednesday, March 20, to find out. This in-person event is open to all ages but designed especially for middle school and high school students in home or private school settings. Take advantage of this field trip opportunity for students to meet and interact directly with scientists who study the design of life.

The goal will be to introduce students to the concept of intelligent design, to share updates from the field of biology, and to think critically about the evidence (or lack thereof) for Darwinian evolution. In the panel Q&A, students will be encouraged to engage with our presenters to discuss the implications of their presentations on culture and worldview, thereby helping them develop critical thinking skills and (in many cases) bolster their faith.

When

Wednesday, March 20, 2024
9:30 AM – 2:30 PM

Where

Great Northern University
at Fourth Memorial Church
2000 N Standard St.
Spokane, WA 99207

Contact

John Felts
eventbrite@discovery.org
(206) 826-5532

Tentative Schedule

8:30 am	Doors open for check-in
9:30 am	Welcome & introductions Wendy Liddell & Daniel Reeves
9:45 am	The Information Codes Inside Your Body (Video)
10:00 am	Beyond Ones & Zeroes — Key Principles from the World of Computer Coding Brendan Dixon, Software Architect
10:30 am	Break
10:45 am	Interactive audience activity
11:00 am	The Codes of Life — A Tour of Biological Cryptography Pedro Moura, Biologist & Science Educator
11:30 am	Lunch break
12:30 pm	A Battle of Predictions: Junk DNA (Premiere of New “Codes of Life” Episode)
12:45 pm	Debugging the Code — How a Study of the Genome Can Help Us Fight Disease Emily Reeves, Biochemist & Metabolic Nutritionist
1:15 pm	Break
1:25 pm	The Earthworm Codes — Secrets from the Subterranean George Damoff, Megadrilologist (Earthworm Specialist)
2:00 pm	Ask a Scientist (Panel Q&A)
2:30 pm	Dismissal (bookstore open until 3:00 pm)

Speakers

George A. Damoff

George A. Damoff (Ph.D., forestry) has been an Adjunct Graduate Research Faculty member in the Department of Environmental Science at Stephen F. Austin State University, Arthur Temple College of Forestry and Agriculture from 2009 to the present. He has journal publications in both discovery and applied sciences on earthworm ecology that include the naming of three new species to science—Diplocardia deborahae Damoff and Reynolds 2017, D. hebi Damoff 2018, and D. farrishi (currently being written). Since the 1980s, Dr. Damoff has taught biology, ecology, and environmental science courses to 6th grade through graduate level students at both private and public schools. He frequently speaks to civic groups about soil, composting, and earthworms. In April 2023, for example, he presented on the challenge of invasive earthworm species to native plants in North Idaho to the Calypso Chapter of the Native Plant Society. Dr. Damoff has been reading intelligent design books and literature since the late 1980s and in the past ten years has been active with the Discovery Institute through Insider Briefings, Science and Faith Conferences, the Engineering Research Group, and serving with the DI-Dallas Action Committee.

Brendan Dixon

_{Fellow, Walter Bradley Center for Natural & Artificial Intelligence}

Brendan Dixon is a Software Architect with experience designing, creating, and managing projects of all sizes. His first foray into Artificial Intelligence was in the 1980s when he built an Expert System to assist in the diagnosis of software problems at IBM. Since then, he’s worked both as a Principal Engineer and Development Manager for industry leaders, such as Microsoft and Amazon, and numerous start-ups. While he spent most of that time other types of software, he’s remained engaged and interested in Artificial Intelligence.

Pedro Moura

Pedro Moura (MS, Biology) is the Science teacher at Covenant High School (Tacoma, WA). He holds a Bachelor of Science in Biology and a Master’s Degree of Science in Biology from State University of Sao Paulo (Sao Paulo – Brazil), and he is completing a Master’s Degree of Divinity in Theological Studies from Mackenzie Presbyterian University. Mr. Moura is a Discovery Institute Summer Seminar Alumnus (2021) and has taught several courses to high school and college students in chemistry and biology. His main goal is to provide students with a distinctively Christian approach to the study of nature, which “declares the glory of God” and “proclaims His handiwork.” (Ps. 19). He has also published biodiversity research in journals such as the Biological Journal of the Linnean Society, PLoS One, and the Annals of the Brazilian Academy of Sciences. He is married to his wife, Marina, and enjoys playing chess, walking by the Puget Sound waterfront, and reading books about science and faith.

Daniel Reeves

_{Director, Education & Outreach, Center for Science and Culture}

Daniel Reeves is Director of Education & Outreach with Discovery Institute’s Center for Science and Culture. He holds a BA in Biology with additional graduate studies in Zoology. Before joining the Discovery Institute, Daniel has engaged in both field and laboratory research for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and U.S. Department of Agriculture. He also has a passion for education, and has taught science in both museums and public schools.

Emily Reeves

_{Research Scientist, Center for Science and Culture}

Emily Reeves is a biochemist, metabolic nutritionist, and aspiring systems biologist. Her doctoral studies were completed at Texas A&M University in Biochemistry and Biophysics. Emily is currently an active clinician for metabolic nutrition and nutritional genomics at Nutriplexity. She enjoys identifying and designing nutritional intervention for subtle inborn errors of metabolism. She is also working with fellows of Discovery Institute and the greater scientific community to promote integration of engineering and biology. She spends her weekends adventuring with her husband, brewing kombucha, and running near Puget Sound.