THERE IS A PRETENSE in contemporary assisted suicide advocacy that goes something like this: “Aid in dying” (as it is euphemistically called) is merely to be a safety valve, a last resort only available to imminently dying patients for whom nothing else can be done to alleviate suffering. Meanwhile, in the real world, the founder of the Swiss suicide facilitating Read More ›
This article, published by Linux.SYS-CON.com, mentions Discovery Institute Senior Fellow George Gilder: This was a show unlike any other. The work around Java was frenzied, kicked off by breathless articles by the likes of George Gilder and the staff of Wired magazine. The rest of the article can be found here.
The concept of altruism, or disinterested concern for another’s welfare, is a common human characteristic, and has been discussed by everyone from theologians to biologists. This volume brings together renowned researchers from various disciplines to examine the evolutionary, neurological, developmental, psychological, social, cultural, and religious aspects of altruistic behavior. Altruism is most famously recognized as occurring within a biological family, Read More ›
In the closing session of the 1998 Telecosm conference, hosted by Gilder Publishing and Forbes at Lake Tahoe, inventor and author Ray Kurzweil engaged a number of critics. He advocated “Strong Artificial Intelligence” (AI), the claim that a computational process sufficiently capable of altering or organizing itself can produce “consciousness. The session had an unexpectedly profound impact, not least because a Read More ›
While most people throughout history have believed that we are both physical and spiritual beings, the rise of science has called the existence of the soul into question. Many argue that neurophysiology demonstrates the radical dependence, indeed, identity between mind and brain. Advances in genetics and in mapping DNA, some say, show there is no need for the hypothesis of Read More ›
In Consumer’s Guide to a Brave New World, Discovery Institute Senior Fellow, attorney, and bioethicist Wesley J. Smith asks the simple but difficult question, “should the importance of human life be sacrificed for the potential advancement of human technology?” So provocative are Smith’s ideas, that his writings have led to a quote on Starbucks coffee cups! Cloning researchers claim to Read More ›
This article, published by Xchange Magazine, quotes Discovery Institute Senior Fellow Hance Haney: ”The term ’competition’ means different things to different people,” writes Hance Haney, an analyst for the Discovery Institute think tank, in his blog. The rest of the article can be found here.
You can now watch the video or listen to the audio of the unusually fair debate on intelligent design that took place on April 26th at Town Hall, Seattle. Participating in the debate were Dr. Peter G. Ward, noted University of Washington astro-biologist and co-author of Rare Earth, and Dr. Stephen C. Meyer, philosopher of science, Director of the Center Read More ›
Agents Under Fire defends a robust notion of intelligent agency and intentionality against eliminative and naturalistic alternatives. Working with a Discovery Institute research grant, philosopher Angus Menuge tries to rescue the traditional conception of selfhood from the attacks of Darwinian psychologists. Following the reductionist logic of Darwinism, evolutionary psychologists attempt to portray the mind as a collection of isolated genes Read More ›