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Did beliefs about junk DNA hinder the Human Genome Project?

But wasn’t a vast pile of junk DNA supposed to be one of the Great Proofs of Darwinism in the DNA? Funny, no one suggests that the constant diminution of the pile is evidence against the theory that its presence was supposed to be evidence for. Now why do you think that might be? Read More ›

When psychology tries to be a science instead of a mythology…

Gabriel encourages us to see psychology as a mythology and, of course, he is right: “Sigmund Freud’s theories were largely unfalsifiable, and the promissory note that the mind is the brain has yet to be cashed in.” The idea that the mind is just the brain is unfalsifiable too. Beliefs that do not originate in fact are impervious to evidence. Read More ›

Dawkins’s claim: “every gene delivers approximately the same tree of life” contested at Nature Portfolio Ecology & Evolution

You know, Dawkins may be losing his shine. New Scientist was making similar types of noise last October. It's now okay to say when there's something wrong with this stuff. Read More ›

We are urged to believe in the “facts” of science yet, historically, these facts often change

Nicoll: The "scientific" label comes freighted with assumptions that a matter is factual, proven, and settled. Yet the dust-bin of science is filled with once-settled "facts" that stand as reminders that scientific conclusions can be wrong—very wrong. Read More ›

The rarity of bonobo adoption as an argument for human exceptionalism

The willingness of our pets to adopt other animals’ offspring — relative to that of the wild chimpanzees — is an argument for human exceptionalism. The real story is a reason that humans are not just animals. Read More ›

Horizontal gene transfer as a serious blow to claims about universal common descent

Trust our stalwart physics color commentator Rob Sheldon to draw the logical conclusion about horizontal gene transfer between plants and insects: If plants and insects can exchange genes (and who knows what else can?), what are we to make of dogmatic claims about universal common descent? Read More ›

Horizontal gene transfer between plants and insects acknowledged

So what becomes of all the Darwinian casuistry around “fitness” and “costly fitness” if things can happen so simply as this? The article emphasizes the benefits of studying “evolution.” Indeed, but that can’t mean fronting Darwinism 101 any more. Read More ›