I’m not sure this school board in Louisiana has thought this through. Benton said that under provisions of the Science Education Act enacted last year by the Louisiana Legislature, schools can present what she termed “critical thinking and creationism” in science classes. Board Member David Tate quickly responded: “We let them teach evolution to our [...]
Will getting a transplant from a murderer make you evil? More people willing to refuse transplant from a criminal. Share/Bookmark
I just came up with that title for certain blog posts. The criterion? If the teaser title or abstract makes me utter, “Whaaaaaaaaat?!” it qualifies as a brain freeze. (By the way, I’m open to other suggestions instead of “brain freeze”, but I trust you get my point.) The original post I came across cited [...]
I suppose we can’t have it both ways. This from the NY Times: For atheists, it is not a particularly welcome thought that religion evolved because it conferred essential benefits on early human societies and their successors. If religion is a lifebelt, it is hard to portray it as useless. For believers, it may seem [...]
OK. Here’s more on the Vatican and space. This time a search for alien life. In the interview last year, Funes told Vatican newspaper L’Osservatore Romano that believing the universe may host aliens, even intelligent ones, does not contradict a faith in God. “How can we rule out that life may have developed elsewhere?” Funes [...]
The discovery of “Ardi” supports a creationist perspective? This isn’t what I’d have thought but apparently there is a rise of creationism in some Muslim communities. But there is another creationist movement whose influence is growing, and which is fueling challenges to science in countries where Christianity has little sway: Islamic creationism. Campaigners in countries [...]
8 Nov, 2009
in PHIL 525, Science
by PH
This is a long way from Galileo! There have been some bizarre guesses, often involving little green men. Consolmagno recalls that a British group calling itself the Catholic Truth Society once asked him if he would write a book about the official Church teaching on aliens. “But we’ve never found any,” he says. “How could [...]
Richard Wolin has weighed in on the debate in this article from the Chronicle of Higher Education. He gives a balanced overview of the history of the debate and its past and current interlocutors. In this short article Wolin takes us through Hegel, Adorno, Habermas, Berger, Dennett, Dawkins, Taylor, and more. I agree with Wolin [...]
18 Feb, 2009
in Darwin, PHIL 500, Science
by PH
Caught sight of this on the online British newspaper Times Online. It links over to the website, Theos where there are a few more links about Darwin and faith. Prominent scientists and leading religious figures have joined forces to call for an end to the fighting over Charles Darwin’s legacy. Share/Bookmark
Mark Thompson writes: …science demeans itself when it used as a proof of the non-existence of god. Science is not meant to provide unfalsifiable answers, nor is it intended to answer questions that can only admit of unfalsifiable answers. To do so is to turn the scientific method on its head. And in so doing, [...]