There is a form of sleight of hand that happens when Intelligent Designers and Creationists discuss the THEORY of Evolution. They say theory, with a particular meaning in mind (an iffy proposition) and then they wheel the spotlight across the stage onto Evolution. Presumably they want to show us why it is such an iffy idea. Scientists have been driven batty trying to make evolution appear bigger than it is, when they might give attention to the cynical use of the word theory. Theory can mean a guess. Certainly that is true about Creationist Theory. Theory can also mean a construct into which unconnected facts find a home. More than that, they find a home whose address you can verify. Intelligent Design, Creationism leads to a predetermined address, like masturbation. But it is not fruitful to explain interrelations of things. It has no scientific offspring! Evolution is a kind of springboard from which an entire branch of applied science is launched. Advances in ecological theory, in genetics and in the treatment of disease may be seen as important examples of applied evolutionary theory.
It appears that the stakes are quite clear in the Evolution Debate. It is all about theory. One definition leads to buttress the truth claims of an increasingly shrill (and shrinking) segment of the population. Another definition leads to advancement and the improvement of the quality of life of the globe's inhabitants. Now, you make the call. What kind of theory is Evolution?
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It's the same kind of theory as gravity ???
This is one of my favorite subjects, and there was a good article by Christopher Hitchens in Newsweek this week about it.
But anyway, theory, in the vernacular, is a supposition, but in science, is pretty close to truth, because it is observable phenomena. I think the political debate over evolution is exploiting the word theory. "Scientific theory" and having a theory about who stole your garbage cans on trash day, are different.
Yes, the springboard of biological science of evolution. Lots of people don't remember doctors are scientists...DNA needs the study of mutation/evolution to be understood, which is another thing I don't think the masses against evolution-teaching get.
I'm from Kansas which is no stranger to the evolution debate. My eyes flew wide open in college, though, when I learned about it in more detail. It's not just about monkeys and humans, but about every living thing on earth, and evolution is an amazing discovery.
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