> At 10:57 PM 6/23/98 PDT, you wrote:
> >Rather than solely teaching evolution at schools (which I
> >whole-heartedly agree with), would it not be better to teach theories
> >from all major and minor sciences and religions, and then let the kids
> >work out what they believe to be the truth?
> >
>
> If you present creation mythology as mythology, there's no problem. Where
> the problem comes in is when creationism is presented as a valid scientific
> theory. Off the top of my head, I can think of at least three problems:
>
> - Creationism is simply incorrect. There is about as much doubt that
> evolution is correct, as there is doubt that the earth revolves around the
> sun.
>
Which theory theists, esp. xians, have opposed in the past, and which they
threatened Galelio, a fellow member of their cult, with death for opposing :/
> - Creationism is not a theory, or even a hypothesis, it's a conjecture.
> To qualify as a theory or hypothesis, a proposition must be testable and
> falsifiable. Teaching kids that creationism is a scientific theory
> misleads them about the scientific method, and how science works.
>
Yes, there are many conjectures which are widely believed to be true i.e. the
four-color conjecture, Fermet's last therom, the closed universe, the existence
of black holes, and these can all be regarded as hypothesis, with the possible
excepton of the closed universe, because they can be tested, we just don't know
how to do it yet. On the other hand, creationism, as well as my personal
beliefs regarding the superority of the Bufallo Bills and the Democratic party
and questions regarding the existence of free will, while the answer may seem
almost intuitively obvious to a given person, is not testable and thus is not a
scientific statement. I couldn't make an experiment to show the wrold that the
Bills are cool. On the other hand, I have never gone with a cruscade of tens
of thousands down to Dallas to burn the city and steal back their misbegotten
super bowl rings either, so I suppose I don't think like religious people...
> - In science, there is no room for "belief" or "opinion". Evidence is
> gathered and coldly analyzed, and the results are accepted. Again, to
> teach otherwise is to give misinformation about how science works.
Exactly. I believe that my best friend is a cool guy, that I should have done
better than an 84 on my english final and that red is a more attractive color
scheme than pea-green-and-lavender-checkered, but there is no way that I can
prove any of these beliefs scientifically. I don't try to, but I go on
believing them. I wish that creationists could follow the same philosophy.
-- Nathan Russell frussell@frontiernet.net
"I am confident that the Republicans will pick a nominee that will beat Bill Clinton" -Dan Quayle on the 2000 presidential election