Posted on 02/27/2004 12:04:20 PM PST by Michael_Michaelangelo
OKLAHOMA CITY (CNHI) — The Oklahoma House passed a bill Monday that would require public school textbooks that discuss evolution to include a disclaimer stating that it is a controversial theory and not fact.
Rep. Bill Graves successfully included the language in House Bill 2194, a measure that originally changed the format for Braille versions of instructional materials.
“I think so many of the textbooks make it appear that evolution is a scientific fact and it’s not,” said Graves, R-Oklahoma City. “Even the U.S. Supreme Court says it’s a theory, so I was just trying to make that clear.
“I think it’s very important for children to know,” Graves said. “If they just believe that they came from some slime in a swamp that’s a whole lot different from being created in the image of God.”
According to the bill, any state school district textbook that discusses evolution would have to include a disclaimer that states, in part, “This textbook discusses evolution, a controversial theory which some scientists present as scientific explanation for the origin of living things, such as plants and humans. No one was present when life first appeared on earth. Therefore, any statement about life’s origins should be considered as theory, not fact.”
The disclaimer goes on to state, “Study hard and keep an open mind. Someday you may contribute to the theories of how living things appeared on earth.”
The bill passed on a 96-0 vote and now heads to the Senate.
Officials with the State Department of Education did not return a phone call seeking comment.
Sean Murphy is the Capitol Bureau reporter in Oklahoma for Community Newspaper Holdings, Inc. He can be reached at smurphy@cnhi.com.
You are wrong. I am implying no such thing. If you wish to argue with a pretend creationist straw man don't address your arguments at me.
Origin of species, not of life itself. I think the author is using incorrect wording. Either that or he does not understand the scope of evolution. I guess its possible since others have lumped in everything from the Big-Bang to Meg Ryan's hair in with evolution.
Well said.
No one can actually prove objective truth, therefore everything considered true should instead be considered theory with a disclaimer attached. </appropriate tag>
Apples to apples, fact to fact, theory to theory. There is no more doubt about the FACT of a heliocentric solar system (the sun is measured to be approximately at the center of the solar system) than there is about the FACT of evolution (the flora and fauna preserved in one stratum look substantially different from the flora and fauna in other, well-separated strata). There are some open questions about the THEORY of the heliocentric solar system (the planets move in an approximately central potential that is dominantly generated by the sun's mass), just as there are open questions about the THEORY of evolution (species change over time through the mechanism of variation plus natural selection). The two are exactly parallel.
Precisely, teach the theory, the good ideas, and make it clear what is solid and what is speculative.
And do you actually believe that they teach "problems with the heliocentric theory" in public schools? If not, should the state legislatures step in?
Because in the heliocentric model, we claim to know the specific structure of all the forces involved (namely, gravity). In the geocentric model, there are epicycles upon epicycles, but the mathematical details of the forces that cause the planets to move in those convoluted paths are unknown. Without those details, you can't say whether you'd expect the orbits to be stable or unstable.
For that matter, why is that even a gap at all? What would cause the orbits to be unstable?
The fact that the planets interact with each other via gravity. For example, every time we swing past Jupiter on the same side of the sun, we get a little tug, and our orbit gets distorted a little bit. Those distortions pile up over time, and eventually the planets kick each other out...at least, according to the computer simulations.
Obviously, planetary orbits are stable over the long term in the real solar system. Something keeps them stable, but there is no unanimity on what that something is. The problem is enormously complicated, and the answer, subtle.
No, all laws begin as theories. Only after intense scrutiny and many years can a theory become a law.
"For every action there is an equal and opposite reaction" began as a hypothesis, was tested and became a theory. As the theory gained more acceptance, it became a law of physics.
Have always wondered why theory was being taught as fact.
Hope more states follow suit.
The bonfire.
That's not true. The heliocentric model was quite well-developed before any coherent theory of gravity was put forth.
Those distortions pile up over time, and eventually the planets kick each other out...at least, according to the computer simulations.
Now that I agree is interesting. Still, however, it doesn't in any way call into question the heliocentric theory - that is, the explanation for planetary motion, particularly the epicycles, first articulated by Copernicus.
Don't believe everything you heard in public school.
Laws are empirical relationships. Theories are conceptual models. Theories never become laws, and the two terms have nothing to do with the certainty or uncertainty of what they assert. Ampere's Law, for example, is known to fail under rather simple conditions, but a law it is, and ever shall be. The atomic theory of matter is known to be correct as the basis of chemistry, but a theory it is, and ever shall be.
I really can't see how that has anything to do with it. Our understanding is better now, so there should be fewer disagreements, right?
Agreed! :-)
There are still arguments about the Titius-Bode law and whether it's even a valid one. I happen to think it is. The coincidences are pretty big if not. However, the mechanisms are still not understood.
Including the Pope?
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