William Dembski

On the 150th anniversary of the publication of Charles Darwin’s seminal work, The Origin of Species, the American Freedom Alliance is pleased to present a series of events in Los Angeles devoted to an examination of issues surrounding the debate on the origins of life.

The Origins of Life Debate

A Public Debate featuring:
Stephen Meyer, Rick Sternberg, Michael Shermer and Don Prothero

Two Advocates of Intelligent Design vs Two Advocates of Evolutionary Theory

Monday, November 30, 2009 7:30 PM
Saban Theater
8440 Wilshire Boulevard, Beverly Hills

From Saturday Morning Breakfast Cereal:

RationalWiki is reprinting large portions of an article I did with Robert Marks that far exceeds anything permissible under “fair use” copyright protections. I was getting ready to contact my attorney about having them remove our article from their website (go here — I’ve saved this page in case it changes as a consequence of this post), but couldn’t find any contact information on the site. Question: Who is running this site and how to contact them?

I’ll be speaking on the Texas A&M campus at Rudder Theater from 7:00 to 9:00pm tomorrow (Thursday) November 12, 2009. For the flyer describing my talk, click here.

The phrase “Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement” sounds innocent enough. Who could be against such an agreement? But in fact it appears to be a pretext for a massive invasion of privacy, motivated in part by the entertainment industry seeking to maintain copyrights. But once unleashed, such an assault on freedom will know no bounds. What if Big Brother finds on your laptop that you think ID supports certain traditional moral views, and what if any articulation of such views comes to be regarded as a hate crime?

IPFW religious forum explores the nature of science Staff reports Tuesday, 10 November 2009 08:33 www.fwdailynews.com The Indiana University-Purdue University Fort Wayne (IPFW) University Religious Forum will host “Understanding the Nature of Science: Why Intelligent Design is Considered a Pseudo-Science” with Jeff Nowak, Ph.D., Thursday, Nov. 19, from noon to 1:15 p.m. in IPFW Walb Student Union, Room G21. The presentation is free and open to the public. A simple lunch is served; donations are accepted. Reservations are not necessary. The series is sponsored by IPFW Campus Ministry. Nowak is an associate professor of science education at IPFW and director of Northeast Indiana Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (NISTEM) Education Resource Center. He will discuss why people believe the theory Read More ›

Getting Over Our Love for Darwin
By William A. Dembski
Posted Tuesday, November 03, 2009

http://www.texanonline.net/default.asp?action=article&aid=6474&issue

Charles Darwin published his “Origin of Species” in 1859. There he presented the classic formulation of his theory of evolution. Lady Ashley, reacting to the theory at the time, remarked, “Let’s hope that it’s not true; but if it is true, let’s hope that it doesn’t become widely known.” Lady Ashley’s second hope has failed: Darwin’s theory is everywhere and has now become textbook orthodoxy. This year, universities around the globe are celebrating the 150th anniversary of Darwin’s “Origin of Species” as well as the 200th anniversary of his birth.

But what about Lady Ashley’s hope that Darwin’s theory is false? Darwin presented a bleak picture of ourselves: we are mere modified apes; we are the “winners” in a brutal competitive evolutionary process, most of whose players are “losers,” wiped off the evolutionary scene before they could leave a legacy; the traditional Christian view that we are made in God’s image is simply a story we tell to convince ourselves that we’re special. 

Intelligent design supporters like me view Darwin’s theory as untrue and even as laughable: The theory purports to give a materialistic account of life’s development once life is already here, but it has a gaping hole at the start since matter gives no evidence of being able to organize itself from non-life into life. The fossil record, especially the sudden emergence of most animal body plans in the Cambrian explosion, sharply violates Darwinian expectations about the historical pattern of evolutionary change. The nano-engineering found in the DNA, RNA, and proteins of the cell far exceeds human engineering and remains completely unexplained in Darwinian terms.

Darwin lovers are quick to reject such complaints.  Read More ›

People increasingly ask me about Francis Collins’s opposition of ID and what to make of it. The short answer is, “Though a Christian, Collins is a thorough-going Darwinist, implacably opposes ID, asserts that it has been discredited scientifically, yet gives little evidence of understanding ID’s main arguments and refuses to engage proponents of ID in public discourse.” For the longer answer, see the following replies to Collins by ID proponents: Biography of Collins: http://www.discovery.org/a/10491 Jonathan Wells, “Darwin of the Gaps: A Review of The Language of God by Francis S. Collins” http://www.discovery.org/a/4529 Jonathan Witt, “Random Acts of Design and Francis Collins” http://www.discovery.org/a/3795 [originally at:] http://www.touchstonemag.com/archives/article.php?id=19-08-032-f   David Klinghoffer, “Facing Darwin and the Deity” http://www.weeklystandard.com/Content/Protected/Articles/000/000/012/542pbkmy.asp Denyse O’Leary, multi-part review http://post-darwinist.blogspot.com/2006/11/book-review-language-of-god-and.html   Read More ›

On the other hand, if this is what you’ve got to do to sell the product, maybe it ain’t so great … SOURCE: www.youtube.com/watch?v=7hUNBhRiKCI

Check this out — move the cursor to the right: learn.genetics.utah.edu/content/begin/cells/scale

| In THE DESIGN OF LIFE, Jonathan Wells and I describe E. O. Wilson’s attack on Mother Teresa as follows (the context of the discussion is that whereas traditional morality must come to terms with the problem of evil, evolutionary morality must come to terms with the problem of good): For E. O. Wilson, goodness depends on “lying, pretense, and deceit, including self-deceit, because the actor is most convincing who believes that his performance is real.” Accordingly, Wilson attributes Mother Teresa’s acts of goodness to her belief that she will be richly rewarded for them in heaven. In other words, she was simply looking out for number one, acting selfishly in her own self-interest, looking to cash in on the Read More ›

Nick Matzke and other critics of ID like nothing better than to conflate ID with young-earth creationism (go here for the latest in this vein by Matzke). But as University of Wisconsin science historian Ron Numbers has noted, even though it’s inaccurate to conflate the two, this is “the easiest way to discredit intelligent design” (go here). Matzke, as a loyal Darwinist, is thus simply being true to form. For the record, just because various non-ID conferences and events are reported here at UD (e.g., creationist, atheist, or theistic evolutionist) does not constitute an endorsement of those events. Nor does the appearance of an ID proponent at such events constitute complicity with the positions of the organizers. I myself have Read More ›

[This just in an email from the skeptics:]

The Center for Inquiry is launching a Secular Celebrant Program!

CFI Secular Celebrant Training
December 5, 2009
Center for Inquiry Indiana
350 Canal Walk, Suite A, Indianapolis
Click here to register online.

Why a CFI Secular Celebrant Program?

As we move through life, we celebrate many occasions filled with joy and love, accomplishment and striving, loss and grief. Unfortunately, the choice of persons to conduct ceremonies for these occasions is usually between religious clergy and impersonal civil officials.

For the 16% of the U.S. population not affiliated with any religion,
this can be a traumatic experience.

They may be required to go through religious counseling and/or have religious references in their ceremony. They may be prevented from having their choice of music or readings as part of the ceremony. The local minister called on to conduct a funeral/memorial may preach a “come to Jesus” sermon or otherwise use religious references that are not in keeping with the worldview of the person being memorialized. Many of us have seen this done.

Wedding ceremonies, memorials, and other life passages are extremely important events—they are life’s milestones—and people should be able to have these ceremonies conducted in a manner and by a person of their choosing.

While some people of the secular worldview do not see a need for rituals and ceremonies of any kind, many feel that having a way of marking life passages is important. CFI feels that this is a personal choice and that secular ceremonies—and persons to conduct these ceremonies—should be available to those who want them.

Who can become a Secular Celebrant?

CFI Secular Celebrant Training is open to all, but additional steps are required of those wishing to receive CFI Secular Celebrant Certification and listing in the CFI Celebrant Directory.

Cost for all-day training workshop: $75.00 Read More ›

Forget all those technical treatises on the evolution of neuronal topology. Here’s all you need to know: “Well you see, Norm, it’s like this… A herd of buffalo can only move as fast as the slowest buffalo. And when the herd is hunted, it is the slowest and weakest ones at the back that are killed first. This natural selection is good for the herd as a whole, because the general speed and health of the whole group keeps improving by the regular killing of the weakest members. In much the same way, the human brain can only operate as fast as the slowest brain cells. Now, as we know, excessive intake of alcohol kills brain cells. But naturally, it Read More ›

Science and Faith: Friends or Foes?  Riley Conference Center | Campus of Southwestern Seminary | October 23-24, 2009 Register now — Please contact Riley Center at 817.923.1921 x 2440 Are science and faith at war? Does science undermine or corroborate belief in God? Does faith suppress or inspire scientific research? Explore these questions and more at this two-day conference held at the Riley Center on the campus of Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. Sessions will explore a Biblical theology of nature; the role of Christianity in the founding of modern science; the impact of Darwinian Evolution on ethics, society, Biblical studies and theology; and the scientific evidence for intelligent design and its implications for theism. Featured speakers include Dr. William Dembski, author Read More ›