Their Own Version of a Big Bang

Science, Just Science - News

From the L.A. Times:

Their Own Version of a Big Bang

By Stephanie Simon
L.A.Times Staff Writer
February 11 2006

Those who believe in creationism -- children and adults -- are being taught to challenge evolution's tenets in an in-your-face way.

WAYNE, N.J. — Evangelist Ken Ham smiled at the 2,300 elementary students packed into pews, their faces rapt. With dinosaur puppets and silly cartoons, he was training them to reject much of geology, palaeontology and evolutionary biology as a sinister tangle of lies.

"Boys and girls," Ham said. If a teacher so much as mentions evolution, or the Big Bang, or an era when dinosaurs ruled the Earth, "you put your hand up and you say, 'Excuse me, were you there?' Can you remember that?"
The children roared their assent.

"Sometimes people will answer, 'No, but you weren't there either,'" Ham told them. "Then you say, 'No, I wasn't, but I know someone who was, and I have his book about the history of the world.'" He waved his Bible in the air.

"Who's the only one who's always been there?" Ham asked.

"God!" the boys and girls shouted.
"Who's the only one who knows everything?"
"God!"

"So who should you always trust, God or the scientists?"

The children answered with a thundering: "God!"

A former high-school biology teacher, Ham travels the nation training children as young as 5 to challenge science orthodoxy. He doesn't engage in the political and legal fights that have erupted over the teaching of evolution. His strategy is more subtle: He aims to give people who trust the biblical account of creation the confidence to defend their views — aggressively.

He urges students to offer creationist critiques of their textbooks, parents to take on science museum docents, professionals to raise the subject with colleagues. If Ham has done his job well, his acolytes will ask enough pointed questions — and set forth enough persuasive arguments — to shake the doctrine of Darwin.

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Science, Education, Evolution, Intelligent Design, Creationism

How evolution can save lives

Times Online - Junk medicine: creationism
by Mark Henderson

How evolution can save lives

The creationist movement, and its cloak of “intelligent design” theory, is usually seen in Britain as a peculiarly American phenomenon. Most of us are relieved that our schools have not had to fight off a lobby seeking to deny the facts of evolution and enforce teaching of theocratic dogma in its place.

A recent poll for the BBC’s Horizon programme, however, suggests that Britons of a scientific bent would be unwise to be complacent. A surprising four people in ten, it found, think that religiously inspired alternatives to evolution should be taught in the science classroom.

The survey probably overestimates support for creationism, but on the eve of Darwin Day — the 197th anniversary of the great man’s birth is tomorrow — it is a reminder that Britain is not immune. Whether it is city academies adding God to science lessons, or columns pushing intelligent design in The Daily Telegraph, creationism is seeking to establish a British foothold.

This must be resisted, chiefly because introducing faith to science, a discipline based on experiment and evidence, undermines the critical thinking that education should promote. But the practical consequences of evolution denial are worth considering, too. Prominent among them is the effect it has on health. It is impossible to understand biology, and therefore medicine, without a good grasp of evolution.

Science, Education, Evolution, Intelligent Design, Creationism

Royal Society Lecture on Creationism

The Royal Society are organising a free lecture by Prof Steve Jones on:

"Why creationism is wrong and evolution is right"

- on April 11th in London - details here:

http://www.royalsoc.ac.uk/event.asp?id=4140

Science, Education, Evolution, Intelligent Design, Creationism

Churches Urged to Back Evolution

Science, Just Science - News

It's time to recognise that science and religion should never be pitted against each other

Gilbert Omenn
AAAS president

BBC: Churches Urged To Back Evolution

US scientists have called on mainstream religious communities to help them fight policies that undermine the teaching of evolution.

The American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) hit out at the "intelligent design" movement at its annual meeting in Missouri.

Teaching the idea threatens scientific literacy among schoolchildren, it said.

Its proponents argue life on Earth is too complex to have evolved on its own.

As the name suggests, intelligent design is a concept invoking the hand of a designer in nature.

There have been several attempts across the US by anti-evolutionists to get intelligent design taught in school science lessons.

At the meeting in St Louis, the AAAS issued a statement strongly condemning the moves.

"Such veiled attempts to wedge religion - actually just one kind of religion - into science classrooms is a disservice to students, parents, teachers and taxpayers," said AAAS president Gilbert Omenn.

"It's time to recognise that science and religion should never be pitted against each other.

"They can and do co-exist in the context of most people's lives. Just not in science classrooms, lest we confuse our children."

Evolution, Intelligent Design, Creationism

Evolution vs. Intelligent Design on BBC Radio

The subject of 'Intelligent Design' has cropped up a couple of times on the BBC recently. Firstly on the 'Today' programme - you can listen again here

and for us insomniacs on 'Up all night' on Radio 5. (you'll have to use the fast forward buttons to navigate 1 hour and 5 mins into the broadcast)


Science, Evolution, Intelligent Design