Congressional Conferees Language on Controversies Such as Evolution (Revised Santorum Amendment): 2001-107th Congress-1st Session-House of Representatives Report-107 334 NoChild Left Behind Act of 2001 Conference Report to accompany H.R. 1 The Conferees recognize that a quality science education should prepare students to distinguish the data and testable theories of science from religious or philosophical claims that are made in the Read More ›
This article is written in response to Matt Young’s “How to Evolve Specified Complexity by Natural Means” which appeared in Metanexus. The mathematician George Polya used to quip that if you can’t solve a problem, find an easier problem and solve it. Matt Young seems to have taken Polya’s advice to heart. Young has taken Shannon’s tried-and-true theory of information Read More ›
Cynical lawyers have a maxim: When you have the facts on your side, argue the facts. When you have the law on your side, argue the law. When neither is on your side, question the motives of the opposition. The latter seems to be the strategy of die-hard defenders of Charles Darwin’s theory of evolution, now that the State Board Read More ›
A year ago, I posted “Ten Questions To Ask Your Biology Teacher About Evolution.” On November 28, 2001, The National Center for Science Education (NCSE) posted its answers to my questions. According to the NCSE, many of the claims in my questions “are incorrect or misleading,” and they are “intended only to create unwarranted doubts in students’ minds about the Read More ›
Review of Bernard d’Abrera, The Concise Atlas of Butterflies of the World (London: Hill House, 2001), 353 pages. Bernard d’Abrera’s concise atlas of the world’s butterflies is a beautifully produced book with the most stunning photographs of butterflies that I’ve ever seen. Though not intended as a coffee-table book, it could eminently serve that purpose. D’Abrera himself is a world-renowned butterfly Read More ›
A rather interesting exchange has taken place recently at Whitworth College. It began when students of the Whitworthian, the campus newspaper, asked Discovery Senior Fellow and Associate Professor of Philosophy Dr. Stephen Meyer for permission to reprint his op-ed from the WorldnetDaily.com which critiqued PBSs Evolution series. Among other errors, this piece criticized the series promotion of the universal genetic Read More ›
The war on terrorism has absorbed our attention since September 11th. While this is appropriate, we should not forget that the long-simmering cultural wars continue. The other side is hard at work, chipping away patiently while all eyes are turned toward Afghanistan. The latest threat? Courtesy of PBS, the bonobos the “make love, not war” primates are coming Read More ›
An important part of the current controversy over the theoretical status of evolutionary theory concerns its moral implications. Does evolutionary theory undermine traditional morality, or does it support it? Does it suggest that infanticide is natural (as Steven Pinker asserts) or is it a bulwark against liberal relativism (as Francis Fukuyama argues)? Does it rest on a universe devoid of Read More ›
America is the most scientifically advanced nation on Earth, yet a majority of its citizens reject Charles Darwin’s theory of evolution. Gallup polls have shown that about 45 percent of Americans believe God created living things in their present form a few thousand years ago; about 40 percent believe that things evolved over a long time with God’s guidance; while Read More ›