Evolution Survives Assault on Louisana Textbooks

[n2doc]

By Brandon Keim December 8, 2010



Louisiana’s high school biology textbooks have survived the latest creationist-flavored attempt at distorting education about evolution.

A subcommittee of the state’s Board of Elementary and Secondary Education voted 6-to-1 Tuesday to approve an industry-standard biology text, which conservative critics had attacked for failing to teach the “controversy” about evolution.

The final decision on whether to include disclaimers with the text will be made Thursday by the Board, but Tuesday’s vote is expected to guide this one. Barring some radical, last-minute reversal, evolution education in Louisiana is safe.

“Since they can’t attack the science, they don’t have the expertise, they’re trying to attack the process” of textbook approval, said Barbara Forrest, a philosophy professor at Southeastern Louisiana University and co-author of Creationism’s Trojan Horse: The Wedge of Intelligent Design.

http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/2010/12/louisiana-biology-textbooks/#more-44449

[derby378]

1. My wife taught science education in Texas once upon a time

When she'd flunk students who resorted to creationist answers on science tests, their parents (including at least one preacher) would try to berate or intimidate her at parent-teacher conferences.

[Permanut]

2. Creationists are doomed to extinction...

through natural selection; but sad to say, probably not within our lifetimes.

[Lionel Mandrake]

3. Maybe.

But creationism has evolved from the young-earth version to "intelligent design" (ID).

The most logical argument against ID is that because it cannot be falsified by any conceivable new data, it isn't science.

We can also poke fun at ID.