| Happy (Belated) Darwin Day |
[Feb. 13th, 2008|08:17 pm] |
February 12th was Charles Darwin's birthday. In honor of his birthday, I've decided to review the book Monkey Girl: Evolution, Education, Religion, and the Battle For America's Soul by Edward Humes.
Dover, Pennsylvania became the unlikely battleground over science versus religion in America, leading to an eventual victory for science and reason (From a conservative judge, nonetheless!)
Humes recounts the first famous science vs. religion trial in America--the Scopes Monkey Trial, which led to the town of Dayton, Tennessee becoming an unwitting laughingstock. The Scopes Trial was a calculated move by a town council seeking ways to increase revenue and publicity for their small town. Instead, it led to the town being portrayed as a backwater hillbilly breeding ground by journalists of the time, including H.L. Mencken.
While recounting these past trials and court decisions, Humes provides a context for what happened in Dover. By 2004, creationism in public school had been revamped as intelligent design, replacing god with an unnamed designer (aka god). The problem is that science refrains from attributing what can't be explained to the supernatural, which is exactly what intelligent design does. We gave that up when we realized that seizures weren't caused by demons and that the sun is at the center of the solar system.
Of course, the point was never about good science. The point was a minority group of fundamentalist Christians hijacking a local school board with intimidation tactics seeking a way to legally return god to the classroom (Of course, their idea of god, not a Muslim, pagan, or Shinto god). Humes tells of William Buckingham, the oxycontin-addicted former cop and current fundamentalist who was prone to rants such as, "Jesus died on a cross for us 2,000 years ago, won't someone stand up for him now?" At the trial, he failed to recall making such statements, and the tapes of the meetings were conveniently missing. Buckingham, undoubtedly guided by the kind, giving spirit of Jesus, attacked anyone who disagreed with him. The shame (For him) is that he attacked moderate Christians, people that probably shared similar beliefs with him.
For me, the highlight of the book was when Humes recounted Michael Behe's--Discovery Institute wunderkind--testimony where he confesses that by his definition, astrology is science:
"When you call it [intelligent design] a scientific theory," Rothschild asked, "you're not defining that term the same way that the National Academy of Sciences does?"
Behe nodded. "Yes, that's correct."
...
Rothschild then reviewed the National Academy's definition of a scientific theory, which did not include ID: a well-substantiated explanation of some aspect of the natural world that can incorporate facts, laws, inferences, and tested hypotheses. Then Rothschild asked Behe: "Your definition is a lot broader?"
Behe preferred a definition that excluded "well-substantiated."
"That's right, intentionally broader..."
"Sweeps in a lot more propositions?" Rothschild asked.
"It recognizes that the word is used a lot more broadly than the National Academy of Sciences defined it."
"And using your definition, intelligent design is a scientific theory, correct?"
"Yes."
And then the next trap was sprung. "Under that same definition, astrology is a scientific theory, correct?"
Astrology. Horoscopes. Magic. Behe hesitated and at first did not answer directly, but when Rothschild pressed him, he admitted, "Yes, that's correct." The definition he used to qualify ID as a scientific theory also encompassed astrology (301)
At its heart, this book is an indictment of American scientific illiteracy, and the illiteracy of the people in charge of choosing our children's curriculae. Several of the school board members in the book admitted to not understanding EITHER evolution or intelligent design, but choosing ID because it felt morally right.
Monkey Girl was a gripping read that illuminated scientific concepts in terms that laypeople could understand. Beyond that, it also explains legalese behind court decisions regarding creation and evolution in the classroom.
At the end of the book, I could only hope that the state of science education in America gets better. Not only because evolution is right, but if we want to compete globally in fields outside of reality tv, then we really have to step up what is taught to our children. |
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