Upcoming Debate at Boston University

_{William Dembski

September 19, 2005

Education, Evolution, Intelligent Design}

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Bob Zelnick, well known news personality and chair of the BU journalism school, is organizing a debate on whether ID should be taught in conjunction with conventional evolutionary theory. The debate will feature Edward Sisson and me on the ID side and Eugenie Scott and James Trefil on the evolutionist side. The debate will take place at Boston University on Wednesday, November 2, 2005. Stay tuned for details. I’ve been informed that CSPAN is expected to cover the debate.

Comments

The primary presenters get 15 minutes to argue their positions. Then usually the two student presenters get 7 minutes each. Then the final two panelists present for 10 minutes. The chair then opens up the debate to the floor. The panelists and the audience are not allowed to ask questions of each other, so sorry guys, No one gets to challenge any of the speakers. You can view last semesters debate at http://comstuff.bu.edu/greatdebate/.doran_{September 23, 2005
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What's a debate in ID without a quotation: "...everything we have learned about life in the past twenty years shows that we are unique, and therefore, special in GodÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s sight." -- James Trefil Salvador PS I left out a little qualifier in the quote, so the quote is not for serious consumption, but I found it amusing nonetheless. :-)scordova_{September 22, 2005
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MP3s and videos: Another page of interest might be "TV & Radio Interviews with CSC Fellows (Frequently Updated)". Not sure why is this so well hidden, but hey, here goes: http://www.discovery.org/scripts/viewDB/index.php?command=view&id=2635&program=CSC%20-%20Views%20and%20Newsrobocopper_{September 21, 2005
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JP Moreland has a few audio lectures available on the web. See also: http://greatbibleteaching.com/#JPMorelandrobocopper_{September 21, 2005
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Good deal! I am really excited about this debate and I am sad that I won't be able to be there in person. I like the thread of thoughts about J.P. Moreland's work in the area of philosophy of science. I caught a lecture that he gave once where he destroyed the notion that there is one exclusive definition of sceince that sets a line of demarkation that subsequently leaves anthing that doesn't meet the definition as non-science (and everthing that does meet the definition as science). There may be many *methods* of science, but not just one. He then went on in his presentation to refute materialism about as good as one could possibly do so. This line of reasonong could come in handy against E. Scott. I saw her lecture once during a panel discussion with Hugh Ross and Duane Gish. Ross argued for an intelligent cause from fine tuning in the universe, Gish did so from the complexity in nature-- but Scott just went back and forth about what is and isn't science, and basically put forth a definition that excluded what Ross and Gish were saying as science. Moreland would obviously not stand for such a thing! I am sure that Dr. Dembski more than understands the Moreland thesis (which is an extention on Larry Lauden, if I am not mistaken) and may just play that card in the debate. I also caught a presentation by Ed Sission at the Uncommon Dissent conference in South Carolina last month. He certainly knows his stuff! This should be an awesome debate and a key contribution to the furtherance of Intelligent Design theory. Exciting times!Sal Monella_{September 21, 2005
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EdH, Though I haven't read it personally, I've heard good things about this book of Moreland's: http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0830815775/qid=1127309055/sr=1-7/ref=sr_1_7/102-1476596-3751354?v=glance&s=booksBombadill_{September 21, 2005
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EdH said: "Can someone direct me to one of J.P. MorelandÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s critiques of naturalism - best book or a paper available on the web?" I don't know if this is exactly what you're looking for: http://www.asa3.org/ASA/topics/Philosophy/ http://startthinking.homestead.com/naturalism1.html http://boundless.org/features/a0000855.htmlruss_{September 20, 2005
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CSPAN eliminated some rather curious responses to Ron Paul over the Iraq war...JaredL_{September 20, 2005
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a tip for anyone who didnt realize, CSPAN will archive the video to their website (i think in real player format) after its aired. i think they do this with ALL of their stuff, or nearly all of it- you can go to their site and search the archives and find nearly anything theyve aired (ive never NOT found something they aired that i wanted to find). decent quality too- especially considering some of these archived videos are 4 and 5 hours in length.jboze3131_{September 20, 2005
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Can someone direct me to one of J.P. Moreland's critiques of naturalism - best book or a paper available on the web? As for the CSPAN coverage, I wonder if I told my TiVo to just look for "Dembski" if it would pick it up whenever it was shown?EdH_{September 20, 2005
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How much time has been allotted for this debate (e.g., half-hour, hour)?morpheusfaith_{September 20, 2005
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J. P. Moreland's critique of naturalism is probably the best out there today. As good a job as all the ID guys are doing, I'm not sure that the battle can really be won until scientists on both sides examine the philosophical foundations that underlie all scientific enterprises. Even though ID isn't a movement limited to Christianity (or theism, for that matter), I don't think it is possible for scientific knowledge to even be justified outside of the Christian theistic framework. We'll see.mechanicalbirds_{September 20, 2005
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jimbo, I'll fall over :) How many RPM's can you get ? Bill we need to get some debate mp3's!vpr_{September 20, 2005
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Cool - right down the street from me! Maybe since it's so vlose to Halloween, I should come dressed up as a bacterial flagellum. Or maybe just show up in a cheap tuxedo...jimbo_{September 19, 2005
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"On a side note, IÃ¢â‚¬â„¢d love to see J. P. Moreland in a debate with them over the nature of science." That would be priceless, and a key part of the debate.Conspirator_{September 19, 2005
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On a side note, I'd love to see J. P. Moreland in a debate with them over the nature of science.Ben Z_{September 19, 2005
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It seems to me that neither Eugenie Scott nor James Trefil are qualified for a real debate on ID. They're just going to go for the same old boring objections.Ben Z_{September 19, 2005
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If it gets shown on C-SPAN, please please PLEASE post the date and time on the blog. I really need to tape that.FishyFred_{September 19, 2005
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You guys will need an opening act. And have you considered integrating pyrotechnics? Flash-pots and a fog machine for dramatic impact? Seriously, I wish you the best Dr. D. Be aggressive and remember to ask Eugenie how Darwinism constitutes "good news" in any way, shape, or form. Also, try to get it all on video and maybe you could stream it on your site?Bombadill_{September 19, 2005
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