So, we have some ideas for how to deal with climate change. Will they work? I don't know. I hope my friends that read my last post will discuss will educate themselves on climate change and work to talk with their friends about it. Also, let me know if you do and how it goes!
How do we deal with evolution though? This one is a lot trickier, not that dealing with climate change is easy (but I think my idea is a step in the right direction). People who are much smarter than I am have been attempting to tackle this one for some time, including Richard Dawkins who is extremely knowledgeable about the topic. He wrote a fantastic book about evolution called "The greatest show on Earth" where he discusses each of the "counter" claims of ID (Intelligent design) advocates.
However, in some ways this is even besides the point. The major issue is that people are trying to remove evolution from the classroom. This is the biggest problem. This would destroy our capabilities to compete in the future in biomedical applications.
Why are people trying to fight evolution? Well, they feel that it will drive people to atheism. This isn't true. There are many people that have figured out ways to reconcile their religious beliefs with evolution. The biggest problem is that it directly contradicts the bible. Which in the US there is a growing minority that take the bible literally. The next issue is the growing minority that falsely claim the US is a "Christian Nation" which this CNN contributor debunks.
It appears that we need to not just worry about scientific accuracy but also historical. For it is impossible to really understand the "controversy" without understanding the context that it is being framed within. Without this claimed backdrop there would be no basis under which to fight having evolution in school classes. Evolution is not a religion. With the pope accepting it, it's as much of a part of catholicism as it is part of secular humanism or part of the accepted scientific facts of an atheist. Since the supporters of ID place the argument within this framework though we must first refute the framework of a christian nation and from there we can show that it is impossible to teach ID in school while evolution must be taught in school.
Additional ponderable thoughts:
"Nothing in Biology Makes Sense Except in the Light of Evolution" is a 1973 essay by the evolutionary biologist and Russian Orthodox Christian Theodosius Dobzhansky, criticising anti-evolution creationism and espousing theistic evolution. The essay was first published in the American Biology Teacher, volume 35, pages 125-129. (Wikipedia)
We teach our vets, doctors, nurses and pharmacists biology. Without a clear understanding of biology from a young age the quality of our healthcare can only go down. As a country we will not be able to stay on top of the life sciences research and pharmaceutical production.
If we fail to education our students on biology how do we keep up, and how to we keep our economy running?
W
ReplyDeleteIt's indeed a troubling issue - the fight between science, technology and religion. But who are we to decide? I think it's fair to put all differences aside and just accept our fellow men.
ReplyDeleteWell we can accept our fellow man. However, the problem lies in the fact that there are people out there that insist they are correct and that science is mistaken. A perfect example is Rick Perry currently running for US president. He fully believes that evolution is wrong and has pushed the school board to adopt creationism in the text books. That choice would have long term economic impacts. Students from texas wouldn't succeed in medicine, Bio technologies, or any bio sciences.
ReplyDeleteI also think that scientists have gone with the live and let live mentality for being outspoken towards evolution and other sciences. This needs to change.