Over 500 Scientists Proclaim Their Doubts About Darwin’s Theory

Discovery Institute
February 20, 2006

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The Scientific Dissent From Darwinism list is now located at a new webpage, www.dissentfromdarwin.org.

SEATTLE — Over 500 doctoral scientists have now signed a statement publicly expressing their skepticism about the contemporary theory of Darwinian evolution.

The statement reads: “We are skeptical of claims for the ability of random mutation and natural selection to account for the complexity of life. Careful examination of the evidence for Darwinian theory should be encouraged.”

The list of 514 signatories includes member scientists from the prestigious US and Russian National Academy of Sciences. Signers include 154 biologists, the largest single scientific discipline represented on the list, as well as 76 chemists and 63 physicists. Signers hold doctorates in biological sciences, physics, chemistry, mathematics, medicine, computer science, and related disciplines. Many are professors or researchers at major universities and research institutions such as MIT, The Smithsonian, Cambridge University, UCLA, UC Berkeley, Princeton, the University of Pennsylvania, the Ohio State University, the University of Georgia, and the University of Washington.

Discovery Institute first published its Scientific Dissent From Darwinism list in 2001 to challenge false statements about Darwinian evolution made in promoting PBS’s “Evolution” series. At the time it was claimed that “virtually every scientist in the world believes the theory to be true.”

“Darwinists continue to claim that no serious scientists doubt the theory and yet here are 500 scientists who are willing to make public their skepticism about the theory,” said Dr. John G. West, associate director of Discovery Institute’s Center for Science & Culture. “Darwinist efforts to use the courts, the media and academic tenure committees to suppress dissent and stifle discussion are in fact fueling even more dissent and inspiring more scientists to ask to be added to the list.”

According to West, it was the fast growing number of scientific dissenters which encouraged the Institute to launch a website -- www.dissentfromdarwin.org -- to give the list a permanent home. The website is the Institute’s response to the demand for information and access to the list both by the public, and by scientists who want to add their name to list.

“Darwin’s theory of evolution is the great white elephant of contemporary thought,” said Dr. David Berlinski, one of the original signers, a mathematician and philosopher of science with Discovery Institute’s Center for Science and Culture (CSC). “It is large, almost completely useless, and the object of superstitious awe.”

Other prominent signatories include U.S. National Academy of Sciences member Philip Skell; American Association for the Advancement of Science Fellow Lyle Jensen; evolutionary biologist and textbook author Stanley Salthe; Smithsonian Institution evolutionary biologist and a researcher at the National Institutes of Health’s National Center for Biotechnology Information Richard von Sternberg; Editor of Rivista di Biologia / Biology Forum --the oldest still published biology journal in the world-- Giuseppe Sermonti; and Russian Academy of Natural Sciences embryologist Lev Beloussov.

What I really don't understand with this controversy is why anyone cares about it? Evolution, Divine intervention, Intellegent Design - I don't really care how I got here, I am most concerned with what I will do with my time here.

If evolution was proven to be a scientific fact, would anyone's deeply held religious beliefs suddenly become vaporized? I know mine wouldn't. So Rory, rather than posting this stuff, why don't you tell me (in your own words) why its important?

Naming supporters of a theory does nothing to prove or disprove said theory.

So who cares?

Any of these 500 scientists proposing an alternative theory........or are they just saying Darwinism is faulty?

Do I have to write the monkey rant again?

This is an ancient bit of propaganda from the Discovery Institute. The American Assoc of Scientists had 2,000 PhD's named Steve, in memory of Stephen Jay Gould, sign a paper in support of evolution as a rebuttal to the Discovery Center.
Basically I have as much respect for wacko 'christian' religous zealots, as I do for people who practice Wahhabism, or the Taliban. History has borne out that anytime religeon butts heads with science, progress is slowed, communities languish in the shadow of fear and ignorance, and it sucks the mercy and humanity out of worship.

How many people have died in the name of Religion?
I can't stand organized religion.
Yeah, I know I'll burn in Hell right?
It's all hooey in my book. (Science 101)
Funny, cause I'm pretty conservative by many standards.
VHawk, I agree completley!

I am in line with what Eddie said.. Who really cares how you got here ??? Its where we are going that concerns me the most. The rocket scientist that can come up with that little bit of information is the one I want to hear from.

Thats easy for me to believe. It gets fuzzy when anyone states they know exactly what that might be, what it looks like or how it thinks you should be.

I got a list of things I am supposed to do this A.M and have done none of them.. I gotta get my ass in gear.

Just a bunch of Beagle haters. bigots.

......or it could be an electrochemical reaction that takes place in a dying brain.

Once again, the answer may never be known.

Rory,

I'm sorry Eddie is being mean to you by asking you to post an original thought, given that you've repeatedly demonstrated here your inability to think.

Your post is basically irrelevant. Most scientists who believe that evolutionary theory better explains diversity of living forms also have a lot of serious questions about it as well. However, they accept that life is complex, and we don't have, and may never have, all the explanatory answers. It's the unfortunate simpletons like you, who need a simple black or white answer, when there simply is no such answer, that I feel sorry for. I used to think you were simply unwilling to open your mind to knowledge, but I've come to think you're simply unable. Optimist that I am, I believe most humans can learn to think. I'm sorry that you haven't been able to join us.

Discovery Institute is a well exposed shill. I can't believe anyone still listens to that org.

Who's to say both evolution and creationism aren't correct? It seems impossible that our universe could be infinite. How can something be infinite? But if it isn't what's outside of that? Even string theory, which basically theorizes that dimensions or plates, if you will, create new dimensions by colliding with each other (big bang), and still what's outside all of those dimensions? All way too much for man's small mind to contemplate. But, the wacko zealots want to believe that we are the only living intelligent beings in all the universes, dimensions, etc. The chosen ones. God created all of what we see and don't see out there and yet put life on only one tiny planet....lol. Here's where they put their fingers in their ears and sing lalalalala until the talking stops.

Back in the old days religion slowed science but the main factor slowing science these days is politics.

The pope doesnt have the power to say the world isnt round anymore.

Space the final frontier. Of course the universe is infinite whats so hard about that. Its not like the planets are bubbles in a soda pop bottle. Space contains everything dont expect to run into a wall in space because space contains the wall. Just because everything we know of is contained within something else we can see or touch many people assume Space has to be contained some how, but its us that are contained in space. We are in an infinite dimension. particulate matter in a walless, floorless, ceilingless closet. Space is contained in Space would also be a false statement suggesting there were layers or levels of space. Space just goes on. No walls, ceilings, or floors.

space/universe two words that mean the same thing. Infinite openness. The hard part of explaining this is we dont have the right words in are language.

And how do you know that space is infinete. All we can explore is our own little part of it.

I know space is infinite beacause I can drop a penny on my floor through space. The penny was contained by the floor, but when I drill a hole in my floor and drop the penny again it continues into more space. We look at the space under our house as being confined. We call it a crawl space suggesting all our lives that the space is confined by the house. Thats not the fact. The fact is that our house is contained in space. The crawl space is not contained by the house the house is contained in space. Again its hard to explain without some new words.

I am sending my response to you via telepathy right not Aunty

Prove it.....

If I could do that I wouldnt be living in a rental.

Its harder for me to believe though that if there was a "brick wall" containing space that you couldnt break through it into more space.

maybe it's all a big sphere of space but then that would mean it's not infinite and something is outside of it.

So, was it a big bang? If so was there a massive blob of matter in empty space? Was that a planet? Or was it just empty space and the matter came from else where? Or were the matter and space created at once? I need to go back to smoking pot. lol.

Imagine the upheavel if one day an alien visited and told us all about how they seeded this planet and created man. Some would think "well that makes sense" others would want to kill the alien for blasphemy.

Rory - Still waiting.......

Eddie,

No 'Big Meaning' here....just throwing a little chum in the water. :p

I'm not purporting to have any answers for the forum members regarding this issue, I just saw an article and wanted to share it with other board members to see their reaction.

It's been like a ghost town in these parts since TK went AWOL...regardless of how one might feel about him you have to admit he stirred the pot regularly and kept the party moving.

Must be interferance from Belfair. Its all that aluminum foil the meth heads are using. I dont use a foil hat anymore. The doctor said I could get poisoned from the metal so I made a hair net with smelt dipping mesh and lead split shot.

vhawk,Salmonella.

check out the hovind theories- that guy is soooo wacko