Monthly Archives: June 2010
The intriguing beak of the earliest known pelican
| June 30, 2010 | Posted by David Tyler under Intelligent Design |
Although geographically widespread, the genus Pelecanus has only 7 or 8 species extant (depending on the classification system used). A similar number of fossil species have been identified, although the morphological differences are quite small. Until recently, the earliest fossil form was dated as Early Miocene. Newly published work pushed the first appearance back to… more
The “H” in Evolution
| June 30, 2010 | Posted by Cornelius Hunter under Intelligent Design |
Evolutionists say it is a fact that all of biology just happened to arise by accident, and they harshly criticize those who do not agree. But with amazing consistency their criticism is hypocritical—it applies to evolutionary thinking. Consider this recent paper about creationist movements: Read more more
Dennett’s Strange Idea is a Bad Idea for Recognizing Biological Function
| June 29, 2010 | Posted by scordova under Intelligent Design |
Question: When does adaptationism stop being a useful research strategy and start being a silly exercise? Allen Orr Dennett’s Strange Idea Answer: pretty much all the time. In Dennett’s book Darwin’s Dangerous Idea Dennett argued: “[Darwinism] eats through just about every traditional concept, and leaves in its wake a revolutionized world-view, with most of the… more
O’Leary’s favourite science books
| June 29, 2010 | Posted by O'Leary under Books of interest |
This question started out as “science and religion” but the religion part got lost somehow, not because I am unreligious but because I wasn’t sure how much religion, as such, you can learn from a serious exposition of the reasons for thinking that design is a feature of our universe. All you can really learn… more
My favorite science-religion books
| June 28, 2010 | Posted by Steve Fuller under Books of interest, Christian Darwinism, Cosmology, Ethics, Evolution, Intelligent Design, Philosophy, Religion, Science |
In response to Thomas Cudworth’s request, these are the five science-religion books that I would recommend, or at least has influenced me the most — and help to explain my distinctive take on ID. You’ll see that some of these are available free on-line. Since my explanations are long-ish. They are located below the fold. more
Dover a half decade later: And what difference did it really make?
| June 27, 2010 | Posted by O'Leary under Christian Darwinism, Darwinism, Medicine |
A friend offers observations about the Dover (Kitzmiller) decision (2005). I didn’t cover it, because everyone else did, and I was writing a book, under contract, about something else, basically. Just as well. Everyone else who cared seemed to be on the scene already, and I was otherwise occupied. Essentially, modern American culture is biased toward… more
New book announcement: The truth about the ruthless Darwinian eugenics campaign in Canada
| June 26, 2010 | Posted by O'Leary under Darwinism |
I am pleased to announce this book by Jane Harris-Zsovan on the Canadian eugenics scandal. I tried to cover it in the 1970s, from Ontario, but couldn’t get very far – literally. It took someone like Jane, who went through box loads of archives in her home province of Alberta, to start putting the pieces… more
Darwin Meets Orwell
| June 26, 2010 | Posted by Cornelius Hunter under Intelligent Design |
Evolution’s corruption of science in general, and the peer-review process in particular, continues to reach new heights. Consider a recent paper written by an evolutionist in a leading journal about, of all things, our criminal justice system. That’s right, evolutionists now want to recast sentencing procedures according to their beliefs about origins. It’s another should-we-laugh-or-cry… more
The Best Five Books on Religion and Science: UD Readers Speak
| June 25, 2010 | Posted by Thomas Cudworth under Intelligent Design |
A couple of weeks ago, over on Biologos, Dr. Ted Davis, a fine historian of science (and one of the few TEs who does not misrepresent the ID position) ran an interesting column. He invited all readers of Biologos to submit their “top five” books in the area of “science and religion,” i.e., the five… more
Evolutionary psychology racket alert: Serious news, not just more embarrassment for science
| June 25, 2010 | Posted by O'Leary under Evolutionary psychology |
“Frankly, evolutionary psychologists come up with stuff so stupid that it falls beneath mockery.” more
Another Day, Another Bad Day for Darwinism
| June 23, 2010 | Posted by PaV under Evolutionary biology, Intelligent Design |
In the latest issue of Nature, a definitive role for pseudogenes is established. In the last sentence of the Abstract the authors conclude: These findings attribute a novel biological role to expressed pseudogenes, as they can regulate coding gene expression, and reveal a non-coding function for mRNAs. Haven’t read the full article* (no time at… more
When Is a Rejoinder Not a Rejoinder? The Disappointing Evasion of Karl Giberson
| June 23, 2010 | Posted by Thomas Cudworth under Intelligent Design |
In my column of May 18, I sharply criticized Dr. Karl Giberson for an earlier column on Biologos, which in my view argued for a dangerous subservience to scientific consensus. Dr. Giberson’s article generated quite a lot of controversy on the Biologos site, where two posters named “Rich” and “gingoro” argued firmly (but politely) that… more
Atheism’s (Not So) Hidden Assumptions
| June 23, 2010 | Posted by Cornelius Hunter under Intelligent Design |
Evolutionist Jerry Coyne thinks atheism is true. But if atheism (in addition to evolution) is true, then how could Coyne know it? For if atheism and materialism are true, then Coyne’s brain is nothing more than a set of molecules in motion. Its various configurations are simply a consequence of its beginning, subsequent inputs, and… more
Maybe ID’s coffin is empty because no one actually died so no one bought it?
| June 22, 2010 | Posted by O'Leary under Christian Darwinism |
1. Mayday mayday mayday SoS Darwin! Is it really that bad? Guess so, if you go by BioLogos. The skinny: … you have heard about the “massive evidence” for Darwinism, right? No, that is a confusion cleverly created by Darwinist tax and donor burdens. What they do is they cleverly confuse two concepts: One is… more
You Mean There Really Was a Cambrian Explosion?
| June 21, 2010 | Posted by PaV under Intelligent Design |
Here is a story today about a “second” rise in oceanic oxygenation, a rise that allowed, the authors tell us, the ‘evolution’ of higher life forms. Here’s a portion of the link: These widespread sulphidic conditions close to the continents, coupled with deeper waters that remained oxygen-free and iron-rich, would have placed major restrictions on… more
[Off Topic] Parents of College Freshman to be, Beware
| June 21, 2010 | Posted by Barry Arrington under Intelligent Design |
Jody Bottum is one of the best writers we have. I believe this even when I disagree with him, which is more often than one might think. Today’s piece in “On the Square” is a gem. more
Upcoming Journal of Interdisciplinary Studies Volume to Focus on Intelligent Design
| June 21, 2010 | Posted by johnnyb under Intelligent Design |
The next volume of the Journal of Interdisciplinary Studies is going to focus on evolution and Intelligent Design, as well as the interweaving of the two. For those who are unaware, the Journal of Interdisciplinary Studies (JIS) is a publication of the Institute for Interdisciplinary Research (IIR), and has been in publication since 1989, and… more
You Cannot Make This Stuff Up, Part 3
| June 20, 2010 | Posted by Cornelius Hunter under Intelligent Design |
In your idiotic ideas file you no longer have to go back to the ancient myths, or even to centuries-old folly such as bloodletting, for we now have evolution–an idea that is promoted at this very time. One of the many inanities of evolution is its serendipity. If evolution is true, then we must believe… more
Reductionist Predictions Always Fail
| June 19, 2010 | Posted by Barry Arrington under Intelligent Design |
Rod Dreher writes: Time and time again, an experimental gadget gets introduced — it doesn’t matter if it’s a supercollider or a gene chip or an fMRI machine — and we’re told it will allow us to glimpse the underlying logic of everything. But the tool always disappoints, doesn’t it? We soon realize that those… more
Marvin Olasky on theistic atheism – oops, I meant theistic evolution
| June 19, 2010 | Posted by O'Leary under theistic evolution |
Journalism dean Marvin Olasky notes, Today’s three great cultural flashpoints are abortion, same-sex marriage, and evolution. We can hedge on them and justify our hedging: Playing it cool here will help me gain for Christ people who would otherwise walk away. I’m not knocking such considerations. Nor am I assuming that anyone who tries to… more