Monthly Archives: July 2006
Read my lips: “I take all responsibility for any errors in those chapters”
| July 24, 2006 | Posted by William Dembski under Darwinism, Evolution |
In April I announced on this blog Ann Coulter’s then forthcoming book GODLESS (go here). There I remarked, “I’m happy to report that I was in constant correspondence with Ann regarding her chapters on Darwinism  indeed, I take all responsibility for any errors in those chapters.” Jim Downard, rather than simply taking me at… more
Thinkquote of the day: Why career scientists cannot afford to consider challenges to Darwinism
| July 24, 2006 | Posted by O'Leary under Intelligent Design |
by Denyse O’Leary ARN correspondent Lawyer Edward Sisson writes with considerable insight about the career scientist’s dilemma: There is also a unique reason why scientists are particularly averse to developing an opinion that the theory of unintelligent evolution cannot explain all of the diversity of life on earth, and that an intelligent-designer theory may be… more
The Penguins March Again
| July 23, 2006 | Posted by O'Leary under Intelligent Design |
In yesterday’s post on March of the Penguins, I quoted British Darwinist Steve Jones, noting A group of penguins standing upright looks like co-operation, but in fact the ones on the outside are struggling to get in and those on the inside are trying to stand their ground: it’s a classic Darwinian struggle. The idea… more
Evolutionary Theory and Monty Python’s Black Knight
| July 22, 2006 | Posted by William Dembski under Darwinism, Evolution |
Just as Monty Python’s Black Knight was whittled from a full human to a stump, so evolutionary theory is finally being whittled to its proper size. Where, in the whittling of the Black Knight, is evolutionary theory (stage I, II, III, IV, or V?): more
Shermer critiqued over his recent piece in SCIAM on confirmation bias
| July 22, 2006 | Posted by William Dembski under Philosophy, Science |
Graeme Hunter (a philosophy professor at the University of Ottawa examines Michael Shermer’s recent piece on confirmation bias published in Scientific American: . . . Shermer tells us – or rather science does and Shermer is only its messenger – that opinionated people actually suffer from what is called a “confirmation biasâ€Â, which Shermer defines… more
SSDD: Shallit and Elsberry’s Equivocations and Bluffs
| July 22, 2006 | Posted by scordova under Intelligent Design |
(adapted from: Analogy, Induction, and Specious Arguments.) Equivocation is a powerful technique if one has an indefensible position. For example, here is a way that one can argue that feathers cannot be dark: A feather is light. What is light cannot be dark. Therefore, a feather cannot be dark. Around 2003, Shallit and Elsberry put… more
ID vs. Darwinism: Same evidence, different interpretations?
| July 22, 2006 | Posted by O'Leary under Intelligent Design |
ID advocates and Darwinists can look at the same evidence and see different things. The recent National Geographic film March of the Penguins created a minor furore because some thought of it as pro-ID, though the filmmakers denied that. One difficulty is that, denial or not, elements of the penguins’ behavior inevitably raise questions about… more
Unwitting Pro-ID Peer-Reviewed Articles on the Increase . . .
| July 21, 2006 | Posted by William Dembski under Intelligent Design |
Here is an ID research paper published in PNAS. Note that some important principles of evolutionary theory are criticized in the abstract. This research shows how ID is capable of being applied in biology. Genetics The regulatory utilization of genetic redundancy through responsive backup circuits ( evolution | gene duplications | modeling | systems biology… more
Honesty and Integrity in Science
| July 21, 2006 | Posted by GilDodgen under Intelligent Design |
In his post about the fossil record, Barry raised an important point concerning honesty and integrity in science. Proponents of a scientific theory should consider all the evidence and weigh its overall implications, not choose evidence selectively to support a conclusion that has already been reached. This is a basic axiom in the scientific enterprise.… more
Iders: Start by asking different questions
| July 21, 2006 | Posted by O'Leary under Intelligent Design |
Recently, National Review‘s John Derbyshire took on George Gilder’s case against Darwinism and for ID. To Gilder’s “Darwinian Theory has Become an All-Purpose Obstacle to Thought Rather than an Enabler of Scientific Advance” (his subtitle, actually), Derbyshire ripostes against ID, After being around for many years, it has not produced any science. George’s own Discovery… more
Fossil Record, Case Closed?
| July 20, 2006 | Posted by Barry Arrington under Intelligent Design |
I am reading Douglas Futuyma’s Evolution, which, like his previous textbook Evolutionary Biology, will probably become the standard college text on evolution. On pages 48 and 49 Futuyma lists the “proofs†of evolution. I find the list interesting not so much for what it includes but for what it excludes – transitions in the fossil… more
Hi all, from Denyse O’Leary
| July 20, 2006 | Posted by O'Leary under Intelligent Design |
As Bill Dembski noted here, I will be sharing the task of moderation with him. Joining us will be Bill’s research assistant, Joel Borofsky, who can say a bit more about himself in his own posts. Anyone wondering what sort of changes will ensue at UD should note that I am a journalist and my… more
“ID is a Myth” Quilt Wins National Contest
| July 20, 2006 | Posted by William Dembski under Intelligent Design |
This story is utterly implausible since we don’t know who made the quilt maker. The art of quilting By Tanya Foubert Wednesday July 19, 2006 Barbara West stands in front of her quilt called Myths of our Time: Intelligent Design, which won the National Award of Excellence for innovative quilts from the Canadian Quilters Association.… more
Bio-inspired design
| July 20, 2006 | Posted by William Dembski under Intelligent Design |
Check out this slide show at Slate.com: http://slate.com/id/2145813. It’s about bio-inspired design. If a system inspires us to design something, is that evidence that the system itself was designed? When or when not? more
Natural selection does it again
| July 19, 2006 | Posted by William Dembski under Darwinism, Evolution, Intelligent Design |
Too bad that Nobel Prizes are only awarded to people — natural selection deserves dozens of them. Scientists decode how plants avoid sunburn Source: Arizona State University Too much sun – for plants as well as people – can be harmful to long-term health. But to avoid the botanical equivalent of “lobster tans,†plants have… more
Looking for work? NCSE is hiring.
| July 19, 2006 | Posted by William Dembski under Darwinism, Education, Evolution, Religion, Science |
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Faith Project Director The National Center for Science Education, a non-profit organization that defends the teaching of evolution in the public schools, seeks candidates for the post of Faith Project Director. The FPD’s duties will include: **developing materials pertaining to evolution and religion for print and web; **representing NCSE to the faith community, in print… more
Molecular DNA Switch Found to be the Same for All Life
| July 18, 2006 | Posted by William Dembski under Evolution, Intelligent Design |
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The molecular machinery that starts the process by which a biological cell divides into two identical daughter cells apparently worked so well early on that evolution has conserved it across the eons in all forms of life on Earth. Researchers with the U.S. Department of Energy’s Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and the University of California… more
The new UD with Denyse O’Leary
| July 18, 2006 | Posted by William Dembski under Intelligent Design |
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Uncommon Descent is about to become “The Intelligent Design Weblog of William Dembski, Denyse O’Leary, and Friends.” O’Leary is a Toronto-based Canadian journalist and the author of By Design or by Chance? (Augsburg 2004), an investigation of the intelligent design controversy. In addition to being an equal partner with me on this blog, Denyse has… more
Congratulations All On Another Record Month
| July 18, 2006 | Posted by Dave S. under Adminstrative |
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Aside from setting new records in almost all categories June’s growth was larger than normal in that the total number of referring sites grew by over 20% month over month to 38,209. Growth in all other categories was our normal 10%. Way to go everyone! We continue to get our message out to more and… more
[off topic] My New Blogspot Icon
| July 18, 2006 | Posted by Dave S. under Off Topic |
I finally broke down and this morning added one of those pictures that appear with Blogger comments. As many of you know I proudly served 4 years in the United States Marine Corps and consider that a defining period in my life. The USMC motto is “Semper Fidelis” which means “Always Faithful”. This describes (in… more