Discovery Institute's Blog, page 112

A Special Status for Science?

Over at The Atlantic, Paul Bloom, the Brooks and Suzanne Ragen Professor of Psychology at Yale University, writes about the differences between science and religion -- their epistemological roots. As David Klinghoffer noted earlier, Bloom's particular thesis is that science should be given special status because its basis is in experimental fact rather than belief in an authority.

He begins by saying that most of us would be hard pressed to give reasons for our beliefs about religion, politi...

U.S. Prepares to Push Human Genetic Engineering

There is a predictable kabuki dance that "the scientists" perform as they push forward with Brave New World research.

First, as a new controversial technology becomes foreseeable, they wring their hands about the "ethics" of what they intend to do.

Second, the scientists hold a big meeting to create strict guidelines and ethical parameters.

Third, they craft parameters and issue press releases assuring a wary world that (cloned babies, genetic engineering, name your technology) will not be...

Brain Neurons Are Well Organized, Not Spaghetti Cables

They tested the randomness hypothesis. Researchers at Max Planck, Rockefeller, and Duke Universities examined the connections in brain tissue from the visual cortex, the first stop for information coming in from the retina. It was a tall order. A news item from Max Planck, "No cable spaghetti in the brain," describes the cabling nightmare:

Nerve cells in the human brain are densely interconnected and form a seemingly impenetrable meshwork. A cubic millimeter of brain tissue contains several...

Listen: How to Think for Yourself About Controversial Topics in Science

On an episode of ID the Future, Casey Luskin considers some tips from evolutionary anthropologist on Jennifer Raff on "How to read and understand a scientific paper: a guide for non-scientists" -- including the recommendation to simply ignore any scientific research that is affiliated with Discovery Institute!

Download the podcast by clicking here:

Listen as Casey gives his own advice on how to approach controversial issues including the debate about Darwinian evolution vs. intelligent des...

Clotting: Controlling the System

Editor's note : Physicians have a special place among the thinkers who have elaborated the argument for intelligent design. Perhaps that's because, more than evolutionary biologists, they are familiar with the challenges of maintaining a functioning complex system, the human body. With that in mind, Evolution News & Views is delighted to present this series, "The Designed Body." For the complete series, see here. Dr. Glicksman practices palliative medicine for a hospice organization.

The huma...

NCSE: Transparency in Science? That's Not Science Education!

From the Washington Post:

[Rep. Lamar] Smith, a prominent congressional climate-change skeptic, has for weeks demanded internal documents and e-mails from [the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration] he says will prove that ... scientists manipulated global temperature data to advance President Obama's climate agenda. [NOAA Administrator Kathryn] Sullivan has refused to turn them over.

Now National Center for Science Education executive director Ann Reid is placing her organization...

Thanksgiving Special -- Evolutionists Kick Up Heels at Recent Opinion Polls

Rachel E. Gross at Slate gives thanks that "Evolution Is Finally Winning Out Over Creationism":

Today, 4 in 10 adults in America believe that humans have existed in our present form since the beginning of time, and in many religious groups, that number is even higher. This is woeful.

Now, at long last, there seems to be hope: National polls show that creationism is beginning to falter, and Americans are finally starting to move in favor of evolution. After decades of legal battles, resistan...

Thanksgiving Special -- Evolutionists Kick Up Heals at Recent Opinion Polls

Rachel E. Gross at Slate gives thanks that "Evolution Is Finally Winning Out Over Creationism":

Today, 4 in 10 adults in America believe that humans have existed in our present form since the beginning of time, and in many religious groups, that number is even higher. This is woeful.

Now, at long last, there seems to be hope: National polls show that creationism is beginning to falter, and Americans are finally starting to move in favor of evolution. After decades of legal battles, resistan...

What to Feel Thankful for on Thanksgiving? How About a Universe Minutely Tailored for You

It's a Thanksgiving custom with many families to go around the table and everyone has to say what he or she is especially thankful for. This puts everyone on the spot -- perhaps that's the point -- and can be an occasion for awkwardness since some may feel more or less "blessed" than their dining companions.

But how about this? A reason to be thankful that equally encompasses every human being that has ever existed and will ever exist.

That's the thesis advanced by biologist Michael Denton...

From Yale Psychologist Paul Bloom, a Sweetly Na��ve Love Letter to Science

Ben Carson's thoughts on evolution have proved to be a rich source of occasions for lecturing about how "Scientific Faith Is Different From Religious Faith." That's the headline of an essay at The Atlantic by Yale psychologist Paul Bloom. You know what's coming from the accompanying photo of Dr. Carson. He's at a podium looking maximally clueless -- as we all look when captured at the wrong moment in the middle of certain rhetorical gestures common in public speaking.

Bloom argues that scien...