Monthly Archives: August 2006
ID culture a part of Starbuck’s coffee culture?
| August 31, 2006 | Posted by scordova under Culture, Just For Fun, Philosophy |
In response to Bill’s earlier thread Who said evolution wasn’t progressive, to say nothing of warm and fuzzy?, Rob Crowther posted a followup here: Beasts in the Forest. Crowther points out Discovery Institute CSC Fellow Wesley Smith has a quote appearing on Starbuck’s coffee cups. more
A. N. Wilson skewered — it couldn’t happen to a nicer credulous moron!
| August 31, 2006 | Posted by William Dembski under Intelligent Design |
A. N. Wilson, the epitomy of English snootiness, recently fell for an elaborate prank that he could have avoided if he had drawn a design inference. Note that “Eve de Harben†doesn’t exist either, and the letters in “her†name are an anagram for “Ever been had?†Why am I being so hard on Wilson?… more
Why is abiogenesis even mentioned in public education?
| August 31, 2006 | Posted by Dave S. under Intelligent Design |
The interesting thing about abiogenesis is that there’s no empirical evidence at all to support it yet it’s taught in a vacuum absent any other explanations of how life may have first appeared on this planet. more
[quote mine] if truth be told, evolution hasn’t yielded many practical or commercial benefits
| August 30, 2006 | Posted by scordova under Intelligent Design |
….if truth be told, evolution hasn’t yielded many practical or commercial benefits. Yes, bacteria evolve drug resistance, and yes, we must take countermeasures, but beyond that there is not much to say. Evolution cannot help us predict what new vaccines to manufacture because microbes evolve unpredictably. But hasn’t evolution helped guide animal and plant breeding?… more
Who said evolution wasn’t progressive, to say nothing of warm and fuzzy?
| August 30, 2006 | Posted by William Dembski under Darwinism, Evolution |
Pearl Jam – Do The Evolution: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Sm3trB1fe4. Contrast this with the following music video. You think evolution might be less of a force in this singer’s life? Five For Fighting – The Riddle: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rE9KjXGVl3c. more
Is a materialistic approach to teaching the origin of life inherently atheistic and therefore religious?
| August 30, 2006 | Posted by William Dembski under Darwinism, Evolution, Intelligent Design, Religion, Science |
[There's] a new 501(c)(3) non-profit corporation that approaches the issue of teaching origin-of-life theories in public schools from a new angle . . . Few are aware that the courts have ruled atheism is a religion for the purposes of the First Amendment in 2005 and thought about its implications on the teaching of origin-of-life… more
What I would tell the Catholic Church: re intelligent design and evolution
| August 29, 2006 | Posted by O'Leary under Intelligent Design |
Apparently, there is a big confab right now at the Vatican to decide what to say about intelligent design vs. evolution. A friend insisted, for some reason, that I offer an opinion. Heck, everyone is doing that, it seems. Ever since Pope Benedict XVI said, in his inaugural mass, that we are not “some casual… more
An Honest Presentation of the Evidence in our Public Schools
| August 29, 2006 | Posted by GilDodgen under Intelligent Design |
Let’s face it, the reason Darwinian evolution is so controversial, especially in the public schools, is that it has profound implications concerning who we are, where we came from, and whether or not our lives have ultimate meaning and purpose. This is not the case in chemistry, physics or mathematics. Schoolchildren are not as unperceptive… more
Vatican to reassess its view of evolution and ID?
| August 29, 2006 | Posted by William Dembski under Intelligent Design |
Pope may embrace intelligent design Pope Benedict XVI may reportedly embrace the theory of intelligent design, possibly heralding a fundamental shift in the Vatican’s view of evolution. Philosophers, scientists and other intellectuals are to meet with the pope this week at his summer palace near Rome to discuss the issue, The Guardian reported Monday. Advocates… more
Lee Smolin — next thing you know he’ll be making room for ID
| August 28, 2006 | Posted by William Dembski under Intelligent Design, Science |
Wired interview with Lee Smolin on his upcoming book: The Trouble With Physics: The Rise of String Theory, The Fall of a Science, and What Comes Next From the interview: “Smolin says that string theory is unconvincing — maybe even nonscientific — and that physicists have embraced it at the expense of other promising research.”… more
UVa faculty alarmed by ID’s presence on their campus
| August 28, 2006 | Posted by scordova under Intelligent Design |
Is there another Guillermo Gonzalez in the making? Not quite, but there are some distressing signals coming out of UVa. This time the controversy surrounds the IDEA chapter and its faculty adviser, Bryce Paschal. [For those who may not be aware, UVa is Paul Gross’s school. Gross was co-author of Creationism’s Trojan Horse with Barbara… more
Evolutionary Manifesto by John Davison (part II-1,II-2,II-3)
| August 27, 2006 | Posted by scordova under Intelligent Design |
This is the next installment in the series on John Davison’s An Evolutionary Manifesto: A New Hypothesis for Organic Change. In addition to being a professor of biology since 1954, John is one of the few elites with a published pro-ID peer-reviewed paper (see: Prescribed Evolutionary Hypothesis). Dr. Davison’s work is relevant to the ideas… more
Darwinism: Why it is philosophy, not science
| August 27, 2006 | Posted by O'Leary under Intelligent Design |
My most recent post talked about why Fr. George Coyne was asked to retire from the Vatican Observatory, after his vigorous campaign to oppose the Vatican’s efforts to distance itself from Darwinism (or “evolutionism,” as Cardinal Schoenborn likes to call it). I shouldn’t have to point this out, but hey. Sidelining Fr. Coyne does not… more
The Vatican and the Astronomer: Why George Coyne had to go
| August 27, 2006 | Posted by O'Leary under Intelligent Design |
From what I can determine from recent pronouncements, the Vatican is not backing off the process of evicting Darwinism (“evolutionism”) as an innocuous belief system that a good Catholic can accept. Here’s Cardinal Schoenborn recently proposing an evolution debate: Cardinal Schönborn, who sparked a worldwide debate in 2005 with an article in the New York Times… more
Was Blyth the true scientist and Darwin merely a plagiarist and charlatan?
| August 26, 2006 | Posted by scordova under Intelligent Design |
Edward Blyth (1810-1873) Of course today, for biologists, Darwin is second only to God, and for many he may rank still higher. — Michael White, 2002 more
Steve Fuller reviews Francis Collins
| August 26, 2006 | Posted by William Dembski under Darwinism, Evolution, Intelligent Design, Religion, Science |
God and science: You just can’t please everyone A Review of Francis Collins’s The Language of God By Steve Fuller From NewScientist 26 August 2006, p. 48. Denying the real conflict between religion and science is a sure formula for confusion, finds STEVE FULLER. ————– Let me start by declaring an interest: I am that… more
Catholic hierarchy on slippery slope
| August 26, 2006 | Posted by William Dembski under Darwinism, Evolution, Intelligent Design |
Once the discussion of biological origins opens up in the way the good Cardinal proposes (see below), it’s over for standard evolutionary theory. To be sure, the distinction between “evolutionism” as philosophy and “evolution” as science is valid and at first blush may seem like a way to keep evolution safe. But this distinction is… more
Feeding frenzy at the PT
| August 26, 2006 | Posted by William Dembski under Darwinism, Evolution, Intelligent Design |
[From a colleague who sometimes posts here in the comments:] Like fresh meat tossed into a pit of jackels, Jonathan Wells’ newest book The Politically Incorrect Guide to Darwinism and Intelligent Design has sent the Panda’s Thumb crowd into a feeding frenzy. Right now there are at least 4 opening posts devoted to taking the… more
Another ID example bites the dust — Mt. Rushmore evolving!
| August 25, 2006 | Posted by William Dembski under Darwinism, Evolution, Intelligent Design |
I can’t begin to describe the amount of mileage I’ve gotten out of Mt. Rushmore for the cause of Intelligent Design. It appears that this well is about to run dry (taken from thebrites.org): more
Several Discovery Institute fellows on TV this weekend
| August 25, 2006 | Posted by scordova under Intelligent Design |