Chris Lintott’s Universe

It hasn’t been a good week for my blood pressure. Reading stupid things written by people who know nothing is fine. Reading stupid things written or said by people in a position of authority who really should know better is just upsetting.

First up, NASA chief executive Mike Griffin.

First of all, I don’t think it’s within the power of human beings to assure that the climate does not change, as millions of years of history have shown. And second of all, I guess I would ask which human beings — where and when — are to be accorded the privilege of deciding that this particular climate that we have right here today, right now is the best climate for all other human beings. I think that’s a rather arrogant position for people to take.

I’m not sure where to begin with this, so I’ll let the Bad Astronomer say it for me, and move on to something more local.

Step forward the Rev Jan Ainsworth, the Church of England’s new head of education, who according to the Guardian said about intellegent design

You would get howls of protest from the scientific community, which would say there is absolutely no place for it in the curriculum. But you could do it in history of science,” she added, pointing out that religious education lessons in CofE schools include discussions of different beliefs.

This is just utterly wrong, so consider this my howl of protest. Would it be possible to include discussions of the alternatives to evolution that were considered in the late 19th and early 20th centuries? Yes, and such a discussion might even be a useful way of demonstrating the evidence in support of evolution. Is intellegent design such an alternative? No. It was invented 20 years ago when the US supreme court ruled that teaching ‘creation science’ breached the ban on mixing state and religion. See this and much else on the Panda’s Thumb for more details.

I’m writing to the Guardian right now.

This worries me a little; the idea that creationism could gain any sort of foothold in the UK is disturbing. Luckily, the important quotation is at the bottom of the article, where

“A spokesperson for the DfES said: “Neither creationism nor intelligent design are taught as a subject in schools, and are not specified in the science curriculum. The national curriculum for science clearly sets down that pupils should be taught that the fossil record is evidence for evolution, and how variation and selection may lead to evolution or extinction.”

Following the fuss earlier in the year, it’s good to see that the government is holding firmly to this line. The important thing is to keep watching, and making sure that they stick to it. In the meantime, may I recommend the Panda’s Thumb for a virtual pint?