subscribe to our mailing list:
|
SECTIONS
|
 |
|
|
Miscellaneous
|
About heresy in science - again
|
|
This a story from the author's personal experience. In 1969 the author and his doctoral student discovered the existence of materials with a negative value of Poisson coefficient. At that time the existence of such materials was assumed to be impossible. Nevertheless the authors' experimental data and their suggested explanation were promptly published in a prestigious journal of the Russian Academy of Sciences, thus offering an example of the fallacy of ID advocates' often-used attacks upon the peer review system allegedly preventing publication of results contradicting the prevailing view of the "orthodox" scientific cabal. As an additional note, it can be pointed that although the authors' paper was the first publication of that sort, nowadays there are many papers describing various materials with a negative Poisson ratio.
|
author(s):
Perakh, Mark;
|
published: Apr 10, 2004
|
|
Nonsensical statements?
|
|
Soon after Mark Perakh’s short essay (www.talkreason.org/articles/ruse.cfm) was posted both on this site and on the Panda’s Thumb blog, three contributors to the latter posted emotional rebuttals of Perakh’s statement about the philosophy of science being of little help to practicing scientists. In this post Perakh replies to the angry outburst by the three critics.
|
author(s):
Perakh, Mark;
|
published: Jul 30, 2012
|
|
Evolution on the big screen
|
|
This item contains information about a new film about Charles Darwin, which may be of interest to our readers.
|
author(s):
Luhn, Robert;
|
published: Jan 22, 2010
|
|
Ten Amino Acids Thermodynamically Favored
|
|
New data regarding the spontaneous generation of amino acids indicate the plausibility of a natural path to life's emergence both on the earth and elsewhere in the universe.
|
author(s):
Hoppe, Richard B. ;
|
published: Apr 14, 2009
|
|
Science education and attitudes toward evolution and related issues: A survey of university students
|
In this post its author reports the results of a survey of a group of Jewish students who were asked questions regarding evolution, the origin of humans, etc. It has to be noted that any conclusions from the author's survey would have a limited value because of the unavoidable sampling error - the sample size was too small (only 72 individuals surveyed) and hence the results are not reliable enough to construe them as reflecting the actual distribution of views among the Jews at large.
Nevertheless, these data, if not generalized beyond their limited statistical value, are of some interest, which is why we post them.
|
author(s):
Nussbaum, Alexander ;
|
published: Aug 01, 2008
|
|
The Great Desecration
|
|
This post by Professor Myers, on his Pharyngula blog, has invoked an extraordinarily lively discussion, with close to 1000 comments so far. Since some readers of Talk Reason may not have read the post in question, we post here a link to it. It is self-explanatory and the comments are of interest as well. As far as Talk Reason is concerned, of special interest is the first part of Myers's post, where he provides a brief exposition of the Catholic church's centuries-long instigation of the merciless persecution of totally innocent Jews, fraudulently accused of "desecrating" the crackers which are viewed by Catholics as "sacred." These pieces of history are educational in that they again demonstrate the complete falsity of the idea that the source of the Holocaust was in "Darwinism," aview that was in particular promoted in the shamelessly mendacious recent film "Expelled," narrated by Ben Stein. (Off-site link.)
|
author(s):
Myers , PZ ;
|
published: Jul 24, 2008
|
|
Flew, Schroeder, Varghese: What a company!
|
|
For the last few years a lot of noise has been filling a number of websites regarding the "conversion" of British author Antony Flew from atheism to deism. Recently a new book, ostensibly authored by Flew, was published by HarperCollins, wherein Flew’s newly adopted deistic worldview is defended. Two Christian propagandists, Roy Varghese and Bob Hostetler, and, indirectly, Jewish religious propagandist Gerald Schroeder seem to have played a substantial role in producing that book.
Some advocates of theism try to present Flew’s "conversion" as a supposedly important event somehow proving their beliefs. Is it indeed an important event deserving numerous posts and articles? This essay tries to answer that question.
|
author(s):
Perakh, Mark;
|
published: Nov 10, 2007
|
|
Intelligent Design: A blind alley
|
|
Muslim populations have not been very hospitable to Darwinian evolution, supporting some of the most successful versions of creationism in the world. Lately, some Muslim intellectuals have been showing interest in intelligent design as well. Taner Edis, author of An Illusion of Harmony: Science and Religion in Islam (Prometheus Books, 2007), argues that this is a mistake, and that enthusiasm for intelligent design can only harm the already weak state of science in Muslim lands.
|
author(s):
Edis, Taner;
|
published: Oct 14, 2007
|
|
A lawyer of high standing writes to Pivar
|
|
Our readers may already know that an art collector from New York by the name of Stuart Pivar, who claimed to have been a close friend of the late Stephen Jay Gould, and who asserted, contrary to all that is known about Gould, that the late prominent biologist allegedly did not believe in the role of natural selection in evolution, and who also published a book offering his own theory instead of Darwinian theory of evolution, has recently sued (for 15 million dollars) the well known blogger, Professor Paul Z. Myers, for referring to Pivar's theory as "classical crockpottery."
This post is a letter written to Pivar by a highly qualified lawyer, Peter Irons, wherein Mr. Irons discusses the merits of Pivar's suit.
According to new information (dated August 28, 2007) Stuart Pivar has dropped his lawsuit against Professor P.Z. Myers and the Seed Publishing group.
|
author(s):
Irons, Peter;
|
published: Aug 26, 2007
|
|
The Limits of Organic Life in Planetary Systems
|
|
This is a book-length report of the Committee on the Limits of Organic Life in Planetary Systems, Committee on the Origins and Evolution of Life, National Research Council, commissioned by NASA. It is available free online (but can also be purchased in printed form from National Academies Press). It contains a very interesting discussion by a committee of experts, based on the today's best science, of the problems related to the possible discovery of various forms of life beyond our planet. (Off-site link.)
|
author(s):
National Research Council , ;
|
published: Jul 08, 2007
|
|
The Bible and Astronomy
|
|
In view of the ongoing assaults of ID advocates upon Professor Hector Avalos (triggered by the tenure denial to astronomer Guilermo Gonzalez by Iowa State University) wherein ID advocates brazenly attempt to smear Dr. Avalos by willfully distorting his publication record, we post a link to Dr. Avalos's article relevant to the question of his credentials. Dr. Avalos is a contributor to Talk Reason (see http://www.talkreason.org/articles/Avalos.cfm), therefore we feel that we must stand up for him against the shameful smear campaign by dishonest attackers like Dembski, O'Leary, and their cohorts. (Off-site link.)
|
author(s):
Avalos, Hector;
|
published: May 27, 2007
|
|
Michael Behe Takes Another Turn as Expert
|
|
Some Christian schools in California are suing the University of California for considering textbooks used in those schools as not meeting the standards for admission. The textbooks on biology used in the schools in question contain creationist falsehoods, and in any case universities obviously have the right to establish their own admission standards. In the forthcoming trial, one of the expert witnesses will be Michael Behe, defending the use of creationist textbooks. Evidently Behe has not drawn the proper conclusions from his disastrous performance as an expert witness at the Dover trial.
|
author(s):
Elsberry, Wesley R.;
|
published: May 18, 2007
|
|
Evolving Robotspeak
|
|
Renowned science writer Carl Zimmer provides interesting information about experiments with robots who, in a situation simulating evolution of organisms, evolve communication skills.
|
author(s):
Zimmer, Carl;
|
published: Feb 26, 2007
|
|
Gimme that Old Pharisee Religion
|
|
This post reveals the amazing depth of nuttiness and ignorance of some state legislators in the USA, who seem to readily swallow and propagate the most preposterous anti-scientific piffle despite its being an obvious display of wild nonsense (sometimes laced with a pinchful of anti-Semitism).
|
author(s):
Cartwright, Reed A. ;
|
published: Feb 20, 2007
|
|
Earliest Semitic Text Revealed In Egyptian Pyramid Inscription
|
|
Scientists at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem have, for the first time, deciphered the oldest texts written in an ancient Semitic language (from which Hebrew, Phoenician, and Aramaic languages originated). This proto-Semitic language was in use about 5,000 years ago, and the deciphered inscriptions used Egyptian characters. (Off-site link; via ScienceDaily website.)
|
author(s):
Hebrew University, of Jerusalem;
|
published: Feb 12, 2007
|
|
Scientists Discover Parallel Codes In Genes
|
|
Two Israeli scientists from the Weizmann Institute report on an exciting discovery of hitherto unknown properties of the genetic code. (Off-site link; via ScienceDaily.)
|
author(s):
Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, ;
|
published: Feb 11, 2007
|
|
Disinformation Theory
|
|
Mathematician Mark Chu-Carroll shows the egregious misinformation fed to readers by one of the notorious trolls from the ID camp, who tries to enlist three great thinkers (Goedel, Turing, and Chaitin) as allegedly being "friendly to ID." Of course, in fact, the outstanding results of those three mathematicians not only do not support ID concepts, but are utterly incompatible with the latter.
|
author(s):
Cartwright, Reed A. ;
|
published: Feb 06, 2007
|
|
Evolution Sunday February 11, 2007
|
|
Thousands of Christian clergy members in the USA join the celebration of Evolution Sunday (February 11, 2007) and claim that in their opinion religion and science need not be at war with each other.
|
author(s):
Young, Matt;
|
published: Feb 04, 2007
|
|
A fin is a limb is a wing
|
|
With his usual mastery of the material and words, Carl Zimmer demonstrates how evolution uses simple elements to create unlimited complexity. (Off-site link.)
|
author(s):
Zimmer, Carl;
|
published: Nov 23, 2006
|
|
Peer review
|
|
This is a discussion of merits and shortcomings of the peer-review system. Mike Dunford's view is that while the peer-review system has a number of faults, it is still the best system available to assure a decent level of scientific publication. ID advocates' usual complaints attributing the paucity of ID-friendly publications in the scientific media to the biases inherent in the peer-review process are misplaced as ID is simply not supported by evidence and that is why it usually cannot percolate through the peer-review process. Moreover, these are exactly the weaknesses of peer review which serve to let some rare ID-friendly pieces get published in quality media despite their contents being scientifically vacuous. (Off-site link.)
|
author(s):
Dunford, Mike;
|
published: Nov 19, 2006
|
|
Orthodox Judaism: does it have a case?
|
|
This essay offers a detailed argument supporting the thesis that the empirical foundations of Judaism (and, of course, of other religions adopting these foundations) are not only incorrect, but are absolutely detached from reality. Moreover, a comprehensive analysis of Orthodox Jewish empiricism leads to the inevitable conclusion that it is practically meaningless – and that renders attempts to appeal to specific details, which have become popular in today’s apologetic circles, irrelevant. The Orthodox view of physical world, of ancient history (including the history of culture and Jewish history proper), can only be studied as a mythological worldview, one that is not detached from ideology, far from unbiased, and most importantly, one that has a poignant anti-scientific view of the world. As for the old quasi-scientific debate with Jewish apologetics, the author believes that it is being conducted incorrectly from the standpoint of methodology. The Orthodox picture of the world must be clearly regarded as the classical, easily recognizable no-case scenario. The sum and substance of apologetic arguments is nothing but a bag of manipulative tricks that do not merit a detailed scholarly discussion.
|
author(s):
Eterman, Alexander;
|
published: Sep 06, 2006
|
|
Speech by U.S. District Judge John E. Jones III to the Anti-Defamation League
|
|
This is the text of a speech given by Judge John E. Jones III to the Anti-Defamation League. Judge Jones speaks about his experience regarding the Kitzmiller vs. DASD trial. It is of interest to all who followed the famous trial which has become a milestone in the creationism vs. enlightment struggle.
|
author(s):
Jones, John E.;
|
published: Jun 06, 2006
|
|
Creationists, Hitler and Evolution
|
|
As part of their efforts to equate evolution with all the evil in the world, creationists often make the assertion that "darwinism was the cause of nazi-ism" or "Hitler was an evolutionist". This essay examines that claim.
|
author(s):
Flank, Lenny ;
|
published: Apr 23, 2006
|
|
Science and Non-Science: An Epistemological Conflict
|
|
A small minority of religious people are confusing the public about fundamental differences
between science and religion. This essay is intended to help clarify the issues and to support educators, politicians and ordinary people opposing the imposed introduction of religion into science classrooms.
|
author(s):
Kabay, Michel E. ;
|
published: Apr 05, 2006
|
|
What We're up Against
|
|
Matt Young shares with readers the news from Colorado, where a music teacher in a school was suspended for letting her pupils listen to a segment from Gounod's famous classical opera Faust, based on Goethe's story. Comments to Young's post, appearing on the Panda's Thumb blog, are as telling as the post itself. Note the hysterical assault upon Young from one of the ID blogs.
|
author(s):
Young, Matt;
|
published: Mar 21, 2006
|
|
Steve Fuller and The Hidden Agenda of Social Constructivism
|
|
The recent Kitzmiller case, over attempts to introduce "Intelligent Design" into
Pennsylvania biology teaching, presented the surprising spectacle of an avowedly
left-wing sociologist, Steve Fuller, appearing as a vociferous, if ultimately futile, defence witness on behalf of ID proponents. This essay examines the core of Fuller's doctrines and the way they provided a rationale for him to enlist in a campaign apparently inimical to his professed political ideals. Moreover, I take up the question of whether Fuller's background in philosophy really results in cogent analysis or sophisticated thinking about science. My answer is decidedly negative. Further, I scrutinize doctrines and discontents that lie, mostly hidden, behind much of the hostility to science found in social constructivist theory, an ethos out of which Fuller himself arose.
|
author(s):
Levitt, Norman ;
|
published: Feb 19, 2006
|
|
A book list for evolutionists
|
|
Professor Myers has compiled a list of books recommended for readers of different ages and at different stages of familiarity with evolution theory and the fight against creationism in its various forms.
|
author(s):
Myers , PZ ;
|
published: Feb 17, 2006
|
|
Intelligent Design belittles God
|
|
Pim van Meurs comments on the discussion within the Catholic church of evolution theory vs. Catholic faith, which has found its recent expression in Father Coyne's critique of the cardinal archbishop of Vienna's views on evolution. The discussion of this essay can be found on the Panda's Thumb blog.
|
author(s):
van Meurs, Pim;
|
published: Feb 06, 2006
|
|
Kitzmiller Decision: Plaintiffs Prevail
|
|
The verdict in Kitzmiller vs. DASB has been released by Judge Jones. The judge found for the plaintiffs. He determined that intelligent design is not science but religion, that it is disguised creationism, that it has no place in science classes of public schools, and that the defendants lied to cover up their real religious motivation. Thus the Kitzmiller case adds one more item to the long list of legal defeats for creationism, this time disguised as intelligent design "theory." A good day for all friends of genuine science and of enlightement and a bad day for the purveyors of obscurantism. More details can be seen in the full decision.
An extensive discussion of the court decision and of its predictable spin by the Discovery Institute can be seen in today's (December 20) posts to the Panda's Thumb blog. There is also a discussion on the Talk Reason letters section.
|
author(s):
NCSE, Staff;
|
published: Dec 20, 2005
|
|
Rev. Ridiculous doesn't speak well for intelligent design
|
|
A staff writer for Knight-Ridder Newspapers discusses the recent silly utterance of the notorious Christian fundamentalist and one time presidential contender Pat Robertson. As reported in the mass media, the voters in Dover, PA have voted out of the office eight pro-ID members of the Board of Education and elected, instead, eight new members who are against including ID in science classes (but allowing teaching it in comparative religion classes). Pat Robertson has threatened the people of Dover with punishment from God for their vote. (Off-site.)
|
author(s):
Pitts Jr., Leonard;
|
published: Nov 14, 2005
|
|
Can biology do better than faith?
|
|
Darwin's On the Origin of Species was published 150 years ago, but evolution by natural selection is still under attack from those wedded to a human-centered or theistic world view. Edward O. Wilson, who was raised a creationist, ponders why this should be, and whether science and religion can ever be reconciled. (Off-site link.)
|
author(s):
Wilson, Edward O.;
|
published: Nov 10, 2005
|
|
Divine Farce: A Scientific / Philosophic Romp Through Intelligent Design
|
|
The history of science can be regarded as the gradual process of removing the supernatural from our understanding of natural events and replacing it with concepts of material causality, matter and energy. In so doing, science has often found itself in conflict with religious dogma committed to a contrary view of the natural order. In the past such conflicts have usually taken the form of open contests between competing magisteria: theological on the one hand, empirical and rational on the other. Intelligent Design presents science with a qualitatively new kind of challenge: theology masquerading as science -- a modern Trojan Horse. In responding to this subterfuge, this paper reviews the history and philosophy of science, neo-Darwinian evolution theory, and examines in detail some of ID's specific claims.
|
author(s):
Danielson, Sheldon;
|
published: Nov 07, 2005
|
|
No supernatural causes
|
|
Often proponents of intelligent design and/or older forms of creationism argue for the possibility of a "supernatural" agency being responsible for the variety of living organisms. In the opinion of the author of this essay, there is no such thing as a "supernatural" phenomenon. Murphy argues that if a phenomenon exists (i.e., it's not imaginary or fictional), then by definition it is a natural phenomenon. He further argues that if evolution in living organisms is mediated by some sort of "intelligent designer," such mediation is a "natural," as opposed to a "supernatural," phenomenon. In Murphy's view, although there's no guarantee that science would be able to figure out the mechanism behind such mediation, if Intelligent Design wants to be taken seriously as a real scientific theory, it's going to have to at least come up with a testable hypothesis.
|
author(s):
Murphy, Eric;
|
published: Sep 26, 2005
|
|
Einstein and Darwin: A tale of two theories
|
|
MSNBC science editor Alan Boyle reports on an interview he conducted with prominent astronomer (and author of popular books) Neil deGrasse Tyson. Tyson discusses the reasons for the differing status of Einstein and Darwin in the popular consciousness. While both suggested revolutionary theories that caused cardinal changes in how science explains reality, Einstein became a cultural icon while Darwin's theory continues to encounter stubborn resistance from certain quarters. Tyson is optimistic, expecting that as science progresses evolution theory, which enjoys the almost unanimous support of scientists, will gradually win overwhelming public acceptance as well, on a par with the most advanced theories in physics.(Off-site link.)
|
author(s):
Boyle, Alan ;
Tyson, Neil deGrasse;
|
published: Sep 25, 2005
|
|
Report on the 2005 Mega Creation Conference
|
|
In July 2005, nearly two thousand people assembled in Lynchburg, VA to hear presentations from the biggest creationist "stars" in the business. The following account provides a detailed description of the goings-on at this conference.
|
author(s):
Rosenhouse, Jason ;
|
published: Aug 23, 2005
|
|
The Skeptic on Dembski
|
|
In this brief essay Mark Perakh informs the readers about two papers relevant to the critique of intelligent design in vol.11, No 4, 2005 of Skeptic magazine and explains the reasons for his writing one of those papers. Simultaneously posted to Panda's Thumb, where a discussion is also being conducted.
|
author(s):
Perakh, Mark;
|
published: Aug 16, 2005
|
|
Ian Stewart: Entropy vs. disorder and gravitics vs. thermodynamics
|
|
This essay is the third installment in the review of the collection From Complexity To Life edited by N. H. Gregersen. Two previously posted installments - the reviews of papers by Benneth and Davies in the same collection - are found here and here. This essay relates to the paper by Ian Stewart in the collection in question, wherein the interpretation of entropy as a measure of disorder is discussed. Stewart disputes the logic of such an interpretation while in this essay Stewart's argument is critiqued. Another point is Stewart's suggestion of a "2nd law of gravitics" as a place-holder for a future law complementing the known laws of thermodynamics. While such a putative law is of interest, in this essay it is construed as not yet meeting the requirements for a well defined profound law of science.
|
author(s):
Perakh, Mark;
|
published: Nov 12, 2004
|
|
Paul Davies: Emergentist vs. Reductionist
|
|
This essay contains a brief commentary to a paper by Paul Davies titled "Introduction: Toward an Emergentist Worldview" in the collection From Complexity to Life, edited by Niels Henrik Gregersen. It is expected to be part of a review of the entire collection in question (a commentary to the article by Charles H. Bennett in the same collection is found on this site).
|
author(s):
Perakh, Mark;
|
published: Sep 25, 2004
|
|
Thou shalt not separate thyself from the collective
|
|
This essay presents and examines the premise that contemporary religious fundamentalism basically represents the means and the form of the cramped, primitive collective existence of the "anthill" of religious believers, which effectively precludes any individual religious consciousness on the part of its members. This applies to all fundamentalist groups without exception, including Jewish Orthodoxy, whose example is discussed in more detail. In the author's opinion, the theological content of fundamentalist belief is all but irrelevant for a researcher who analyzes the behavior of an ultra-religious collective, which is almost entirely determined by its tribal (or even pre-tribal) collective conditioning.
|
author(s):
Eterman, Alexander;
|
published: Sep 09, 2004
|
|
Defining complexity
|
This essay is a commentary on a paper by Charles H. Bennett titled "How to Define Complexity in Physics and Why," found in the anthology From Complexity to Life (Oxford Univ. Press, 2003) edited by H. Gregersen. Originally it was supposed to be a part of the overall review of the anthology in question. The author of that review started writing it last year but did not complete the work. Among the partial reviews that were almost completed was the review of Bennett's paper. The publication of that review was, however, supposed to wait until the completion of the reviews of other parts of the anthology. Now the author of this partial review decided to post it as a stand alone piece for reason explained in detail in the introductory section of the essay. It was prompted by the appearance of an article by William Dembski (wherein this writer has supposedly suggested an innovative approach to measuring information) and its critique by C. R. Shalizi. Responding to Shalizi, Dembski asserts that several critics of his work, including Mark Perakh, lack qualifications necessary to judge his new paper and therefore had to solicit help from Shalizi (in Dembski's words, "Perakh is out and Shalizi is in"). Perakh, while by no means claiming to be an expert in the pertinent subfield of mathematics, points out that in his commentary to Bennett's paper (which in itself has no relation to Dembski’s paper) he referred to works of Rènyi and others which are relevant to the subject of Dembski's new paper but with which Dembski was apparently not familiar. Hence Dembski's self-confident assertions regarding qualifications of his critics acquires an ironic tenor. Perhaps Dembski should more often look at a mirror before suggesting disdainful remarks about his critics. [PDF format]
Comment on September 12, 2004. This essay contains a link to Dembski's article. We have found that this link no longer opens Dembski's article in question (there is instead a message that the article will be re-posted when ist author is confident that he has "worked out all kinks"). The amended version of Dembski's article is, however, available online. (PDF format.)
|
author(s):
Perakh, Mark;
|
published: Aug 12, 2004
|
|
Theses on the nature of human morality
|
|
In this essay, the author offers a functional interpretation of the social role of what he terms "the moral mechanism". In the framework of this model morality mercifully ceases to be a mere flowery adornment born of European thought. On the contrary, it becomes a practically and functionally significant evolutionary product of advancing civilization, instrumental in determining the nature of the interpersonal relations that take shape at different stages of social evolution. The author, holding it to be axiomatic that human society progresses from the basic to the complex, demonstrates the way that social dynamics give rise to new, hitherto unknown socio-psychological phenomena of the moral kind, which manifest themselves in society as it passes through the different stages of its evolution. Having done with theory, the author proceeds to deal with two applied issues. He demonstrates the way his theory explains the failure of the numerous socialist experiments of the 20th century and predicts that the evolution of social morality has every potential to ensure the success of future experiments of this sort. Furthermore, using the rough example of Orthodox Judaism, he demonstrates why the emergence of a fundamentalist social morality is essentially impossible.
|
author(s):
Eterman, Alexander;
|
published: Jun 06, 2004
|
|
Wave-particle duality demystified?
|
|
In this essay a hypothetical alternative interpretation of the wave-particle duality is suggested for material particles. This interpretation is based on the distinction between photons on the one hand and material particles possessing rest mass on the other. The main thesis of the essay is that the diffraction of material particles may possibly be caused by the interaction of particles' magnetic moments with the electromagnetic fields in the slits (or in the inter-atomic gaps of the crystalline lattice of solids). If this interpretation were confirmed, it would provide a more parsimonious explanation of certain quantum-mechanical effect which are often misused for unsubstantiated extensions of quantum mechanical concepts into crank science, in particular in attempts to prove the compatibility of the Torah story with scientific data.
|
author(s):
Perakh, Mark;
|
published: Mar 10, 2003
updated: May 18, 2003
|
|
Science In the Eyes Of a Scientist
|
|
This item contains a detailed discussion of what constitutes genuine science, what are its essential components and how to distinguish it from pseudo-science. Whereas such questions are usually discussed within the framework of the philosophy of science, this article is from the standpoint of a scientist rather than a philosopher.
|
author(s):
Perakh, Mark;
|
published: Nov 02, 2001
updated: Aug 11, 2003
|
|
Improbable Probabilities
|
|
This item offers a general explanation of probability and of its proper calculation and interpretation in terms understandable for laymen and discusses the incorrect calculations, misuse, and misinterpretation of probabilities, often encountered both in the books written to prove the biblical story and its compatibility with science and in the writing of some of the proponents of the Intelligent Design theory.
Most of this version is identical to the initial version of 1999. The part which has been updated is in the section titled "Probability Estimate is Often Tricky." In its updated version it clarifies certain points which invoked questions from readers (see the Discussion of this article).
|
author(s):
Perakh, Mark;
|
published: Jul 22, 1999
updated: Nov 26, 2006
|
|
|
