Darwin on Trial
Encyclopedia
Darwin on Trial is a 1991 book about the theory of evolution and the creation-evolution debate. It was written by Harvard graduate and University of California, Berkeley
law professor emeritus Phillip E. Johnson
. Because of the number of legal arguments based on science or scientific evidence, Johnson became interested in the presuppositions of scientific investigation and wrote the book with the thesis that evolution could be "tried" like a defendant in court. Darwin on Trial is a central text of the intelligent design movement
, of which Johnson is considered the father.
Eugenie Scott
wrote that the book "teaches little that is accurate about either the nature of science, or the topic of evolution. It is recommended neither by scientists nor educators." Scott pointed out in a second review that "the criticisms of evolution [Johnson] offers are immediately recognizable as originating with the "scientific" creationists". Evolutionary biologist Stephen Jay Gould
's review of the book stated that it contained "no weighing of evidence, no careful reading of literature on all sides, no full citation of sources (the book does not even contain a bibliography) and occasional use of scientific literature only to score rhetorical points." Gould also pointed out that the use of legal criteria, in which a "shadow of a doubt" was enough to destroy a theory, was inappropriate in science since "science is not a discipline that claims to establish certainty".
and a Christian
, describes his specialty as "analyzing the logic of arguments and identifying the assumptions that lie behind those arguments." After reading Michael Dentons' Evolution: A Theory in Crisis
and Richard Dawkins' The Blind Watchmaker
, he came to believe that the scientific theory
of evolution
was based on materialistic assumptions and empty rhetoric, and decided to analyze the evidence for the theory. Johnson states, "I am interested in what unbiased science has to tell us about the history of life, and in particular how the enormously complex organs of plants and animals came into existence. ... What is important is not whether we call this process 'evolution,' but how much we really know about it. The argument of Darwin on Trial is that we know a great deal less than has been claimed." Johnson evaluates the evidence for evolution by natural selection using legal principles for assessing its probative
value, and examines what he sees as the philosophical presuppositions of the scientific community.
Johnson states that he has no interest in discussing the Biblical account of creation
in Genesis. Rather, the focus of the book is to examine whether evolutionary biologists have proven their case using evidence evaluated with an "open mind and impartially," and whether there is convincing evidence that the variety of life on earth came about through the purely material processes of natural selection
. He claims that biologists have not made their case, that there are serious evidentiary holes in the theory of evolution, and that their conclusions are driven mainly by their prior assumptions and "faith" that there must be a naturalistic explanation for everything.
The book begins by recounting Edwards v. Aguillard
, a US Supreme Court case regarding a Louisiana
law requiring the teaching of creation-science
; the law was ruled an "establishment of religion
." Johnson states that an associated amicus curiae
brief by the National Academy of Sciences
improperly "defined 'science' in such a way that [it was impossible to] dispute the claims of the scientific establishment" and a rule it proposed against "negative argumentation [eliminated] the possibility that science has not discovered how complex organisms could have developed." Johnson believes that one cannot begin an argument with the assumption that this kind of definition of science is inherently true. Therefore, these are the kind of definitions and postulates he purports to examine, asking, "When the National Academy of Sciences tells us that reliance upon naturalistic expectations is the most basic characteristic of science, is it implying that scientists somehow know that a Creator played no part in the creation of the world and its forms of life? Can something be nonscience but true?" Darwin on Trial includes Johnson's examination of evidence and arguments about natural selection
, genetic mutation, the fossil
record, prebiological evolution and molecular biology
.
The book initially received more attention from popular media than from the scientific community
, although soon after the book was released Eugenie Scott
of the National Center for Science Education responded to it, saying "scientific creationists" like Johnson "confuse the general public, by mixing up the controversy among scientists about how evolution took place, with a more general question of whether it took place at all.". Stephen Jay Gould
gave a harsh review in Scientific American
, and the controversy even caught the attention of Nobel Laureate Steven Weinberg
. Johnson has since added an epilogue
to the book titled "The Book and Its Critics", in the latest edition of Darwin On Trial.
reviewed the book for Scientific American
, concluding that the book contains "...no weighing of evidence, no careful reading of literature on all sides, no full citation of sources (the book does not even contain a bibliography) and occasional use of scientific literature only to score rhetorical points." Gould's writings are quoted frequently in the book, but Gould complained that it does not fully cite sources.
He also held up Theodosius Dobzhansky
as a counterexample to Johnson's assertion that naturalism undergirds Darwinism and criticized Johnson's decision to include recombination
as a form of mutation
and his assessment of sexual selection as a relatively minor component of Darwinian theory in the late twentieth century. Gould also specifically pointed out an error in the use of the term "polyploidy
"; stated that Johnson incorrectly refers to Otto Schindewolf
as a saltationist, "attacks" outdated statements of Simpson and Mayr; fails to point out that Henry Fairfield Osborn
corrected his own mistake regarding Nebraska Man
; and stated that Johnson overlooks "self-organizing properties of molecules and other physical systems" that, in Gould's opinion, makes the self-assembly of RNA or DNA plausible. Gould states that Darwinism's bringing together of "widely disparate information under a uniquely consistent explanation" implies that it is a successful theory, that amphibians have features that imply a "fishy past", and that the genealogical tree of Therapsida
is a convincing example of macroevolution.
In "research notes" in the second edition, Johnson provides answers to most of Gould's criticisms, but acknowledges that his use of "polyploidy" was indeed incorrect, the error having been missed by his "diligent scientific consultants;" it is corrected in the text. Johnson also replied in an online posting, essentially repeating the assertions he made in the book. Robert T. Pennock
rebutted Johnson's belief that science was improperly defined within Edwards v. Aguillard, stating that the dual model of science established by Johnson (either creationism, or evolution is correct and true, and by disproving any part of evolution, creationism 'wins' by default) is a false dilemma
, a type of logical fallacy.
Eugenie Scott
has pointed out that the book repeats many arguments by creationists that were previously discredited:
Scott further criticizes Johnson's approach, which assumes science and evolution can be treated the same way as a criminal trial. Scott points out that the uses of three critical terms in both science and law are completely divergent. Within science, a law is a descriptive generalization, while a theory is the explanation of the law, and the term "fact" is rarely used (in favour of "observation"). In comparison, the legal term law refers to a rigid set of behavioral proscriptions, a theory is presented by a lawyer in an effort to convince a judge or jury, and facts are assertions that lawyers make and attempt to prove to the court. Scott points out that in science, facts and theories are changeable as knowledge accumulates, and laws are less important than theories, while in court cases laws are immutable, theories are secondary to the laws. Also demonstrated is how the adversarial process works in each profession; during trials lawyers will actively conceal weaknesses in their cases and relevant information from the jury, while science is strongest when it actively attempts to disprove its own theories; a scientist concealing information will ultimately be exposed and disproven. Scott also points out that Johnson criticizes the theory of evolution for changing to accommodate new data, indicating a profound misunderstanding of this strength of science which must adjust theories in order to explain contradictory or new information, and the false dilemma
used by Johnson as well as his use of straw men
.
In a second review, Scott again points out that Johnson's arguments are recycled from scientific creationism
, and
Scott further states that Johnson lacks familiarity with the specifics and nuances of the field necessary to match the critiques of Darwinism offered by evolutionary biologists, and instead parrots the criticisms made by suspect sources (scientific creationists). Scott lists a series of examples demonstrating that "[Johnson] clearly does not understand the meanings scientists give to many of their terms [and] deliberately conflates pairs of ideas that properly are separate", then concludes "Darwin on Trial deserves to be read by scientists, not for its scientific value which is negligible, but for its potential social and political impact." Henry Bauer
, Professor of Chemistry and Science Studies at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
, reviewed the book saying Johnson "misleads about science and about what science says about evolution." Bauer explained, "Johnson lumps evolutionists together as Darwinists...but Johnson doesn't understand that even Darwin's original 'theory' contains at least five separate concepts that can be held independently." In his case studies, for example, "with the Velikovsky affair
, there is much more rhetoric than substance." Bauer noted that when "archaeopteryx
cannot be explained away...Johnson calls it 'a point for the Darwinists, but how important ...?' - as though science were suggesting something else."
University of California, Berkeley
The University of California, Berkeley , is a teaching and research university established in 1868 and located in Berkeley, California, USA...
law professor emeritus Phillip E. Johnson
Phillip E. Johnson
Phillip E. Johnson is a retired UC Berkeley law professor and author. He became a born-again Christian while a tenured professor and is considered the father of the intelligent design movement...
. Because of the number of legal arguments based on science or scientific evidence, Johnson became interested in the presuppositions of scientific investigation and wrote the book with the thesis that evolution could be "tried" like a defendant in court. Darwin on Trial is a central text of the intelligent design movement
Intelligent design movement
The intelligent design movement is a neo-creationist religious campaign for broad social, academic and political change to promote and support the idea of "intelligent design," which asserts that "certain features of the universe and of living things are...
, of which Johnson is considered the father.
Eugenie Scott
Eugenie Scott
Eugenie Carol Scott is an American physical anthropologist who has been the executive director of the National Center for Science Education since 1987...
wrote that the book "teaches little that is accurate about either the nature of science, or the topic of evolution. It is recommended neither by scientists nor educators." Scott pointed out in a second review that "the criticisms of evolution [Johnson] offers are immediately recognizable as originating with the "scientific" creationists". Evolutionary biologist Stephen Jay Gould
Stephen Jay Gould
Stephen Jay Gould was an American paleontologist, evolutionary biologist, and historian of science. He was also one of the most influential and widely read writers of popular science of his generation....
's review of the book stated that it contained "no weighing of evidence, no careful reading of literature on all sides, no full citation of sources (the book does not even contain a bibliography) and occasional use of scientific literature only to score rhetorical points." Gould also pointed out that the use of legal criteria, in which a "shadow of a doubt" was enough to destroy a theory, was inappropriate in science since "science is not a discipline that claims to establish certainty".
Contents
Johnson, a professor emeritus of law at University of California, BerkeleyUniversity of California, Berkeley
The University of California, Berkeley , is a teaching and research university established in 1868 and located in Berkeley, California, USA...
and a Christian
Christian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
, describes his specialty as "analyzing the logic of arguments and identifying the assumptions that lie behind those arguments." After reading Michael Dentons' Evolution: A Theory in Crisis
Evolution: A Theory in Crisis
Evolution: A Theory in Crisis is a 1985 book by Michael Denton in which he claims that the scientific theory of evolution by natural selection is a "theory in crisis"...
and Richard Dawkins' The Blind Watchmaker
The Blind Watchmaker
The Blind Watchmaker: Why the Evidence of Evolution Reveals a Universe without Design is a 1986 book by Richard Dawkins in which he presents an explanation of, and argument for, the theory of evolution by means of natural selection. He also presents arguments to refute certain criticisms made on...
, he came to believe that the scientific theory
Scientific theory
A scientific theory comprises a collection of concepts, including abstractions of observable phenomena expressed as quantifiable properties, together with rules that express relationships between observations of such concepts...
of evolution
Evolution
Evolution is any change across successive generations in the heritable characteristics of biological populations. Evolutionary processes give rise to diversity at every level of biological organisation, including species, individual organisms and molecules such as DNA and proteins.Life on Earth...
was based on materialistic assumptions and empty rhetoric, and decided to analyze the evidence for the theory. Johnson states, "I am interested in what unbiased science has to tell us about the history of life, and in particular how the enormously complex organs of plants and animals came into existence. ... What is important is not whether we call this process 'evolution,' but how much we really know about it. The argument of Darwin on Trial is that we know a great deal less than has been claimed." Johnson evaluates the evidence for evolution by natural selection using legal principles for assessing its probative
Probability
Probability is ordinarily used to describe an attitude of mind towards some proposition of whose truth we arenot certain. The proposition of interest is usually of the form "Will a specific event occur?" The attitude of mind is of the form "How certain are we that the event will occur?" The...
value, and examines what he sees as the philosophical presuppositions of the scientific community.
Johnson states that he has no interest in discussing the Biblical account of creation
Creation according to Genesis
The Genesis creation narrative describes the divine creation of the world including the first man and woman...
in Genesis. Rather, the focus of the book is to examine whether evolutionary biologists have proven their case using evidence evaluated with an "open mind and impartially," and whether there is convincing evidence that the variety of life on earth came about through the purely material processes of natural selection
Natural selection
Natural selection is the nonrandom process by which biologic traits become either more or less common in a population as a function of differential reproduction of their bearers. It is a key mechanism of evolution....
. He claims that biologists have not made their case, that there are serious evidentiary holes in the theory of evolution, and that their conclusions are driven mainly by their prior assumptions and "faith" that there must be a naturalistic explanation for everything.
The book begins by recounting Edwards v. Aguillard
Edwards v. Aguillard
Edwards v. Aguillard, was a legal case about the teaching of creationism that was heard by the Supreme Court of the United States in 1987. The Court ruled that a Louisiana law requiring that creation science be taught in public schools, along with evolution, was unconstitutional because the law...
, a US Supreme Court case regarding a Louisiana
Louisiana
Louisiana is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America. Its capital is Baton Rouge and largest city is New Orleans. Louisiana is the only state in the U.S. with political subdivisions termed parishes, which are local governments equivalent to counties...
law requiring the teaching of creation-science
Creation science
Creation Science or scientific creationism is a branch of creationism that attempts to provide scientific support for the Genesis creation narrative in the Book of Genesis and disprove generally accepted scientific facts, theories and scientific paradigms about the history of the Earth, cosmology...
; the law was ruled an "establishment of religion
First Amendment to the United States Constitution
The First Amendment to the United States Constitution is part of the Bill of Rights. The amendment prohibits the making of any law respecting an establishment of religion, impeding the free exercise of religion, abridging the freedom of speech, infringing on the freedom of the press, interfering...
." Johnson states that an associated amicus curiae
Amicus curiae
An amicus curiae is someone, not a party to a case, who volunteers to offer information to assist a court in deciding a matter before it...
brief by the National Academy of Sciences
United States National Academy of Sciences
The National Academy of Sciences is a corporation in the United States whose members serve pro bono as "advisers to the nation on science, engineering, and medicine." As a national academy, new members of the organization are elected annually by current members, based on their distinguished and...
improperly "defined 'science' in such a way that [it was impossible to] dispute the claims of the scientific establishment" and a rule it proposed against "negative argumentation [eliminated] the possibility that science has not discovered how complex organisms could have developed." Johnson believes that one cannot begin an argument with the assumption that this kind of definition of science is inherently true. Therefore, these are the kind of definitions and postulates he purports to examine, asking, "When the National Academy of Sciences tells us that reliance upon naturalistic expectations is the most basic characteristic of science, is it implying that scientists somehow know that a Creator played no part in the creation of the world and its forms of life? Can something be nonscience but true?" Darwin on Trial includes Johnson's examination of evidence and arguments about natural selection
Natural selection
Natural selection is the nonrandom process by which biologic traits become either more or less common in a population as a function of differential reproduction of their bearers. It is a key mechanism of evolution....
, genetic mutation, the fossil
Fossil
Fossils are the preserved remains or traces of animals , plants, and other organisms from the remote past...
record, prebiological evolution and molecular biology
Molecular biology
Molecular biology is the branch of biology that deals with the molecular basis of biological activity. This field overlaps with other areas of biology and chemistry, particularly genetics and biochemistry...
.
Reception
Darwin on Trial has sold over 250,000 copies. Causing "an uproar in some scientific and literary circles," Darwin on Trial alerted national media to the creationist movement and their fight against the theory of evolution. In the year after Darwin on Trial was released, many articles about the controversy were published in popular newspapers and magazines across the country. Johnson said in an interview in California Monthly that he fully expected to be labeled a "kook" by the academy, but he was "pleasantly surprised by the support he's received from people familiar with his book on the Berkeley campus."The book initially received more attention from popular media than from the scientific community
Scientific community
The scientific community consists of the total body of scientists, its relationships and interactions. It is normally divided into "sub-communities" each working on a particular field within science. Objectivity is expected to be achieved by the scientific method...
, although soon after the book was released Eugenie Scott
Eugenie Scott
Eugenie Carol Scott is an American physical anthropologist who has been the executive director of the National Center for Science Education since 1987...
of the National Center for Science Education responded to it, saying "scientific creationists" like Johnson "confuse the general public, by mixing up the controversy among scientists about how evolution took place, with a more general question of whether it took place at all.". Stephen Jay Gould
Stephen Jay Gould
Stephen Jay Gould was an American paleontologist, evolutionary biologist, and historian of science. He was also one of the most influential and widely read writers of popular science of his generation....
gave a harsh review in Scientific American
Scientific American
Scientific American is a popular science magazine. It is notable for its long history of presenting science monthly to an educated but not necessarily scientific public, through its careful attention to the clarity of its text as well as the quality of its specially commissioned color graphics...
, and the controversy even caught the attention of Nobel Laureate Steven Weinberg
Steven Weinberg
Steven Weinberg is an American theoretical physicist and Nobel laureate in Physics for his contributions with Abdus Salam and Sheldon Glashow to the unification of the weak force and electromagnetic interaction between elementary particles....
. Johnson has since added an epilogue
Epilogue
An epilogue, epilog or afterword is a piece of writing at the end of a work of literature or drama, usually used to bring closure to the work...
to the book titled "The Book and Its Critics", in the latest edition of Darwin On Trial.
Criticism
Johnson's claim to impartiality has been contradicted by reviewers who state that "the driving force behind Johnson's book was neither fairness nor accuracy", and that the claim of impartiality is contradicted by Johnson's stated aim "to legitimate the assertion of a theistic worldview in the secular universities". Stephen Jay GouldStephen Jay Gould
Stephen Jay Gould was an American paleontologist, evolutionary biologist, and historian of science. He was also one of the most influential and widely read writers of popular science of his generation....
reviewed the book for Scientific American
Scientific American
Scientific American is a popular science magazine. It is notable for its long history of presenting science monthly to an educated but not necessarily scientific public, through its careful attention to the clarity of its text as well as the quality of its specially commissioned color graphics...
, concluding that the book contains "...no weighing of evidence, no careful reading of literature on all sides, no full citation of sources (the book does not even contain a bibliography) and occasional use of scientific literature only to score rhetorical points." Gould's writings are quoted frequently in the book, but Gould complained that it does not fully cite sources.
He also held up Theodosius Dobzhansky
Theodosius Dobzhansky
Theodosius Grygorovych Dobzhansky ForMemRS was a prominent geneticist and evolutionary biologist, and a central figure in the field of evolutionary biology for his work in shaping the unifying modern evolutionary synthesis...
as a counterexample to Johnson's assertion that naturalism undergirds Darwinism and criticized Johnson's decision to include recombination
Genetic recombination
Genetic recombination is a process by which a molecule of nucleic acid is broken and then joined to a different one. Recombination can occur between similar molecules of DNA, as in homologous recombination, or dissimilar molecules, as in non-homologous end joining. Recombination is a common method...
as a form of mutation
Mutation
In molecular biology and genetics, mutations are changes in a genomic sequence: the DNA sequence of a cell's genome or the DNA or RNA sequence of a virus. They can be defined as sudden and spontaneous changes in the cell. Mutations are caused by radiation, viruses, transposons and mutagenic...
and his assessment of sexual selection as a relatively minor component of Darwinian theory in the late twentieth century. Gould also specifically pointed out an error in the use of the term "polyploidy
Polyploidy
Polyploid is a term used to describe cells and organisms containing more than two paired sets of chromosomes. Most eukaryotic species are diploid, meaning they have two sets of chromosomes — one set inherited from each parent. However polyploidy is found in some organisms and is especially common...
"; stated that Johnson incorrectly refers to Otto Schindewolf
Otto Schindewolf
Otto Heinrich Schindewolf was a German paleontologist who studied the evolution of corals and cephalopods....
as a saltationist, "attacks" outdated statements of Simpson and Mayr; fails to point out that Henry Fairfield Osborn
Henry Fairfield Osborn
Henry Fairfield Osborn, Sr. ForMemRS was an American geologist, paleontologist, and eugenicist.-Early life and career:...
corrected his own mistake regarding Nebraska Man
Nebraska Man
Nebraska Man was a name applied by the popular press to Hesperopithecus haroldcookii, a putative species of ape. Hesperopithecus meant "ape of the western world," and it was heralded as the first higher primate of North America...
; and stated that Johnson overlooks "self-organizing properties of molecules and other physical systems" that, in Gould's opinion, makes the self-assembly of RNA or DNA plausible. Gould states that Darwinism's bringing together of "widely disparate information under a uniquely consistent explanation" implies that it is a successful theory, that amphibians have features that imply a "fishy past", and that the genealogical tree of Therapsida
Therapsida
Therapsida is a group of the most advanced synapsids, and include the ancestors of mammals. Many of the traits today seen as unique to mammals had their origin within early therapsids, including hair, lactation, and an erect posture. The earliest fossil attributed to Therapsida is believed to be...
is a convincing example of macroevolution.
In "research notes" in the second edition, Johnson provides answers to most of Gould's criticisms, but acknowledges that his use of "polyploidy" was indeed incorrect, the error having been missed by his "diligent scientific consultants;" it is corrected in the text. Johnson also replied in an online posting, essentially repeating the assertions he made in the book. Robert T. Pennock
Robert T. Pennock
Robert T. Pennock is a philosopher working on the Avida digital organism project at Michigan State University where he has been full professor since 2000. Pennock was a witness in the Kitzmiller v...
rebutted Johnson's belief that science was improperly defined within Edwards v. Aguillard, stating that the dual model of science established by Johnson (either creationism, or evolution is correct and true, and by disproving any part of evolution, creationism 'wins' by default) is a false dilemma
False dilemma
A false dilemma is a type of logical fallacy that involves a situation in which only two alternatives are considered, when in fact there are additional options...
, a type of logical fallacy.
Eugenie Scott
Eugenie Scott
Eugenie Carol Scott is an American physical anthropologist who has been the executive director of the National Center for Science Education since 1987...
has pointed out that the book repeats many arguments by creationists that were previously discredited:
Scott further criticizes Johnson's approach, which assumes science and evolution can be treated the same way as a criminal trial. Scott points out that the uses of three critical terms in both science and law are completely divergent. Within science, a law is a descriptive generalization, while a theory is the explanation of the law, and the term "fact" is rarely used (in favour of "observation"). In comparison, the legal term law refers to a rigid set of behavioral proscriptions, a theory is presented by a lawyer in an effort to convince a judge or jury, and facts are assertions that lawyers make and attempt to prove to the court. Scott points out that in science, facts and theories are changeable as knowledge accumulates, and laws are less important than theories, while in court cases laws are immutable, theories are secondary to the laws. Also demonstrated is how the adversarial process works in each profession; during trials lawyers will actively conceal weaknesses in their cases and relevant information from the jury, while science is strongest when it actively attempts to disprove its own theories; a scientist concealing information will ultimately be exposed and disproven. Scott also points out that Johnson criticizes the theory of evolution for changing to accommodate new data, indicating a profound misunderstanding of this strength of science which must adjust theories in order to explain contradictory or new information, and the false dilemma
False dilemma
A false dilemma is a type of logical fallacy that involves a situation in which only two alternatives are considered, when in fact there are additional options...
used by Johnson as well as his use of straw men
Straw man
A straw man is a component of an argument and is an informal fallacy based on misrepresentation of an opponent's position, twisting his words or by means of [false] assumptions...
.
In a second review, Scott again points out that Johnson's arguments are recycled from scientific creationism
Creation science
Creation Science or scientific creationism is a branch of creationism that attempts to provide scientific support for the Genesis creation narrative in the Book of Genesis and disprove generally accepted scientific facts, theories and scientific paradigms about the history of the Earth, cosmology...
, and
Scott further states that Johnson lacks familiarity with the specifics and nuances of the field necessary to match the critiques of Darwinism offered by evolutionary biologists, and instead parrots the criticisms made by suspect sources (scientific creationists). Scott lists a series of examples demonstrating that "[Johnson] clearly does not understand the meanings scientists give to many of their terms [and] deliberately conflates pairs of ideas that properly are separate", then concludes "Darwin on Trial deserves to be read by scientists, not for its scientific value which is negligible, but for its potential social and political impact." Henry Bauer
Henry Bauer
Henry H. Bauer is an emeritus professor of chemistry and science studies at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University . He is the author of several books and articles on such topics as the Loch Ness Monster and Immanuel Velikovsky, and is an AIDS denialist...
, Professor of Chemistry and Science Studies at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, popularly known as Virginia Tech , is a public land-grant university with the main campus in Blacksburg, Virginia with other research and educational centers throughout the Commonwealth of Virginia, United States, and internationally.Founded in...
, reviewed the book saying Johnson "misleads about science and about what science says about evolution." Bauer explained, "Johnson lumps evolutionists together as Darwinists...but Johnson doesn't understand that even Darwin's original 'theory' contains at least five separate concepts that can be held independently." In his case studies, for example, "with the Velikovsky affair
Immanuel Velikovsky
Immanuel Velikovsky was a Russian-born American independent scholar of Jewish origins, best known as the author of a number of controversial books reinterpreting the events of ancient history, in particular the US bestseller Worlds in Collision, published in 1950...
, there is much more rhetoric than substance." Bauer noted that when "archaeopteryx
Archaeopteryx
Archaeopteryx , sometimes referred to by its German name Urvogel , is a genus of theropod dinosaur that is closely related to birds. The name derives from the Ancient Greek meaning "ancient", and , meaning "feather" or "wing"...
cannot be explained away...Johnson calls it 'a point for the Darwinists, but how important ...?' - as though science were suggesting something else."
External links
- Darwin on Trial: A Review - by Eugenie C. Scott
- Naturalistic Fallacy - by Michael RuseMichael RuseMichael Ruse is a philosopher of biology at Florida State University, and is well known for his work on the creationism/evolution controversy and the demarcation problem in science...
, ReasonReason (magazine)Reason is a libertarian monthly magazine published by the Reason Foundation. The magazine has a circulation of around 60,000 and was named one of the 50 best magazines in 2003 and 2004 by the Chicago Tribune.- History :... - The Mistrial of Evolution: A review of Phillip E. Johnson's Darwin on Trial - by Terry M. Gray
- Book Review: Darwin on Trial by Phillip E. Johnson, Henry H. Bauer, Journal of Scientific Exploration 6(2), p. 181.
- Darwin on Trial: Read Free PDF Now - by Phillip E. Johnson