[Phys-L] Re: Another attack on Evolution

[Josh Gates-fac <Josh_Gates-fac@NOBLES.EDU>]

Ken, I can't help but point out that your analogy is maddeningly specious.
 Eating is important to all physicists, but not BECAUSE they are
physicists.  Hugh's argument is that this topic affects us AS PHYSICISTS,
because it threatens to impact our ability to teach - at the very least -
topics like astronomy, cosmology, etc.   At the very least, it affects us
as scientists, a much more narrow classification than your eating analogy
would imply.  As a matter of fact, the very inability to critically assess
arguments and to think sequentially and logically, and the lack of
attention to empirical evidence will affect the quality of the students
that we receive in class!

jg

Josh Gates
Physics Faculty
Noble and Greenough School
Dedham MA


> The claim that the topic is or should be important to us all is
> inadequate, even if it is or should be important to all scientists.
> What's next?  Eating is important to all scientists, but that does not
> authorize extended paroxysms of gastronomical verbosity on this list.
> (I know, the analogy is stretched a bit thin.)




> Ken Caviness
> Physics @ Southern
>
> (* Yes, I do view members of a list dedicated to the discussion an
> agreed-upon topic who insist on using the forum for another discussion
> as "non-compliant".)
>
> (** "Nevermore".  I'm done with this thread, and I will not bore the
> rest of you any further with my discontent.  After all, even the copy of
> this message sent out to the list will be deleted my new filter, and
> I'll never know if anyone replies to it either.  I'll try to bear up
> under the disappointment.)
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Forum for Physics Educators [mailto:PHYS-L@list1.ucc.nau.edu] On
> Behalf Of Hugh Haskell
> Sent: Monday, January 23, 2006 11:50 AM
> To: PHYS-L@LISTS.NAU.EDU
> Subject: Re: Another attack on Evolution
>
> At 11:18  -0500 1/23/06, Ken Caviness wrote:
> > Friends, I'm here for discussions about Physics, _not_ Biology.  What
> > about you?
> >
> > Could those contributing to this thread _please_ take this discussion
> to
> > a more appropriate forum?  Pretty please with sugar on it?
>
> As I said earlier, in response to another similar comment, if you
> don't think this issue pertains to teaching physics, you haven't been
> paying attention.
>
> Evolutionary biology is just the current high-profile target. If they
> win on this one, who do you think will be next? Who is it who talks
> about a universe that is billions of years old? Who talks about the
> earth forming from the debris of earlier exploded stars? Etc., etc.,
> etc. This is not just a problem for the biologists. It involves all
> of science teaching and if we aren't involved now, we sure will be
> later, when they come for us.
>
> Hugh
> --
>
> Hugh Haskell
> <mailto:haskell@ncssm.edu>
> <mailto:hhaskell@mindspring.com>
>
> (919) 467-7610
>
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