Bulletin of the American Physical Society
2006 APS March Meeting
Monday–Friday, March 13–17, 2006; Baltimore, MD
Session M50: Intelligent Design: Its Impact and Responses to It |
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Sponsoring Units: FPS Chair: Robert Eisenstein Room: Marriot Waterfront Hotel Grand Salon V |
Tuesday, March 14, 2006 7:30PM - 8:00PM |
M50.00001: Legal Perspectives on Religion in Public School Science Classes Invited Speaker: In the 1920s, state legislatures in the United States became involved in enacting laws prohibiting the teaching of evolution in public schools. The famous \textit{Tennessee v. John Scopes} trial of 1925 was the most famous test case to determine the constitutionality the first phase of the laws. Scopes was convicted of violating~one such~law and~many of these anti-evolution laws continued to be in effect for the next forty years. During the 1950s, for a number of reasons, the teaching of evolution became more common as the anti-evolution laws were either repealed or ignored. In 1968, the Supreme Court in \textit{Epperson v. Arkansas} ruled that the prohibition of the teaching of evolution was unconstitutional. Since the \textit{Epperson} decision, there have been several other federal court decisions that have considered the constitutionality of allowing religious theories to be taught in the science curriculum. For all practical purposes, federal courts since 1968 have prohibited the teaching of creationism. ~ The new current battleground is on the issue of intelligent design. The first court decision on intelligent design, from Dover, Pennsylvania,~is expected by January 2006. The significance of this decision, and the fallout from it, will be discussed. ~ In many ways, the current controversy over the teaching of intelligent design may be only the tip of a far larger public controversy involving the roles of science, law, politics, and religion. Suggestions will be made as to how the scientific community can contribute to the legal and cultural issues that underlie this debate. [Preview Abstract] |
Tuesday, March 14, 2006 8:00PM - 8:30PM |
M50.00002: Science and Society Under Attack: The Need for Political As Well As Scientific Responses Invited Speaker: Today science and scientists are under attack. This is not new in human history. Copernicus delayed publishing for fear of possible persecution. Bruno was burned at the stake. Galileo was forced to recant. Darwin worked for 20 years without publishing his ideas, perhaps out of fear of possible consequences. In the US today, fundamentalist evangelicals have launched an attack on science, from intelligent design creationism, to stem cell research, global warming, vaccines to prevent cervical cancer, even museums that show exhibits on evolution. In the 21$^{st}$ century, this medieval mentality must be strenuously resisted. Rational thought can co-exist with religious faith, unless extremism becomes the norm. Scientists have often ignored politics in their pursuit of new knowledge. But they must understand that public opinion is strongly influenced by non-scientific elements of society, from the pulpit, from politicians and bureaucrats, from a scientifically illiterate public, and from a media that frequently treats all points of view as equal, when they are most certainly not. Will science eventually be required to pass muster for religious fundamentalists in the near future? [Preview Abstract] |
Tuesday, March 14, 2006 8:30PM - 9:00PM |
M50.00003: APS Activities with Other Professional Societies Invited Speaker: In 1981, the APS Council issued a statement that opposed ``equal time'' presentation in public school science classes of creationism and evolution. The statement clarified that ``Scientific inquiry and religious beliefs are two distinct elements of the human experience. Attempts to present them in the same context can only lead to misunderstandings of both.'' The APS Council revisited the issue in 1999 when a school board in Kansas attempted to eliminate the Big Bang, among other issues, from the science curriculum. Since that time, the APS has been more directly involved in confronting efforts that would dilute the teaching of science in public school science classes. This talk will review the APS activities and describe a developing multi-science society activity. [Preview Abstract] |
Tuesday, March 14, 2006 9:00PM - 9:30PM |
M50.00004: Media Coverage of Evolution and Intelligent Design Invited Speaker: |
Tuesday, March 14, 2006 9:30PM - 10:00PM |
M50.00005: Panel Discussion |
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