Okay, I need to fill in some details. I showed up to give a seminar and told the crowd I had no more copies of the DM to hand out. Things quickly got out of hand. And if you'll notice, a Teacher in the crowd was able to exploit the ensuing chaos to assault me. I'm thinking that next time, I might need a disguise.

[HT: ChristopherSaint]

Here

In Dec 2005, Seth Shostak, from the SETI Institute, wrote an article that attempts to distance SETI from Intelligent Design. I highly recommend this article, as it helps us see how a scientist goes about trying to detect non-human design.

Shostak makes the mistake of building his analysis around a straw man that circulates as media buzz. In his mind, ID is simply about trying to prove the existence of God and magic with complexity and then forcing children to learn this argument:

Finding evidence of complexity (the Nixon physiognomy) in a natural setting (the spud), and inferring some deliberate, magical mechanism behind it all, would be a leap from the doubtful to the divine, and in this case, Norm feels, unwarranted.

Cliff, however, would have some sympathizers among the proponents of Intelligent Design (ID), whose efforts to influence school science curricula continue to swill large quantities of newspaper ink. As just about everyone is aware, these folks use similar logic to infer a "designer" behind such biological constructions as DNA or the human eye. The apparent complexity of the product is offered as proof of deliberate blueprinting by an unknown creator"”conscious action, presumably from outside the universe itself.

Since Shostak relies on this superficial perspective to discredit ID, I find his critique to be rather irrelevant. So let's turn to something more interesting.

Read the rest of this entry »

There are many people on the internet who claim to speak for Science. These are people who proudly display their academic credentials and positions while trying to explain, defend, and advocate for science. Their credentials and positions are displayed to give their voices added authority. Yet such authority comes with a price.

Read the rest of this entry »

Now that some of you have read The Design Matrix, it might be interesting for y'all to revisit the feedback I received from one of the book's editors.

I have no particular bias on this issue, with the exception of one against its current politicization. I'm lucky to have some excellent molecular biologists as friends, though my science background isn't a formal one"¦"¦Overall, you put forward a fair and well reasoned argument. Its great strength is that it attempts to circumvent a polarized issue by providing a fresh interpretation, and then provides a tool for progress. You bolster your points with many good, specific examples, and on the whole you present your topic in a smart, accessible style. Any reader interested in the topic will be lucky to lay hands on your book"¦..On the whole, my experience of your argument was that it started out shaky and gradually got much stronger. This may be a natural consequence of how readers approach a new idea, guarded at first, and more accepting as the writer earns their trust"¦"¦Your book was a delightful intellectual project, and I can't wait to see it in print.

With that said, we do not question that many of the leading advocates of ID have bona fide and deeply held beliefs which drive their scholarly endeavors. Nor do we controvert that ID should continue to be studied, debated, and discussed. - John E. Jones III

CALLING ALL TEACHERS. CALLING ALL TEACHERS.

Central HQ has been receiving multiple complaints from around the nation. It would seem that children from various states are using their Art time to spread subversive anti-science propaganda in the classroom. Below the fold is one example of material that was confiscated for violating city and state policy and rushed to our attention. Be on the lookout for similar subversion and report such incidents to Central HQ immediately!

Read the rest of this entry »

Throughout history, stereotypes have been a incredible source of harm. Stereotypes are an expression of tribalism, where one tribe uses stereotypes not only to attack the perceived outsiders, but also to help maintain conformity within the tribe. They entrench an Us vs. Them approach to reality that places more value on the group than the individual.

Read the rest of this entry »