WP: War on evolution threatens our health, safety, and economic well-being

[DeepModem Mom]

THE EDUCATION ISSUE
By Paul A. Hanle
Sunday, October 1, 2006; Page B04

....Proponents of "intelligent design" in the United States are waging a war against teaching science as scientists understand it. Over the past year alone, efforts to incorporate creationist language or undermine evolution in science classrooms at public schools have emerged in at least 15 states, according to the National Center for Science Education. And an independent education foundation has concluded that science-teaching standards in 10 states fail to address evolution in a scientifically sound way. Through changes in standards and curriculum, these efforts urge students to doubt evolution -- the cornerstone principle of biology, one on which there is no serious scientific debate.

This war could decimate the development of U.S. scientific talent and erode whatever competitive advantage the United States enjoys in the technology-based global economy. Already, U.S. high school students lag near the bottom in math skills compared with students in other developed nations, and high school seniors are performing worse in science than they were 10 years ago.

These trends can only worsen if students come to regard evolution as questionable or controversial. Thirty-seven percent of the high school Advanced Placement biology examination tests knowledge of evolution, evolutionary biology and heredity, according to the College Board. Students who do not thoroughly understand evolution cannot hope to succeed on this exam; they will be handicapped in competitive science courses in college and the careers that may follow.

By teaching intelligent design or other variants of creationism in science classes at public schools -- or by undercutting the credibility of evolution -- we are greatly diminishing our chances for future scientific breakthroughs and technological innovations, and are endangering our health, safety and economic well-being as individuals and as a nation....

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/09/29/AR2006092901628.html

[Double T]

1. We need a 'war' on religious fundamentalism not only HERE........

but throughout the world. Ignorance should not be an excuse to be devout.

[MountainLaurel]

2. Excellent article.

And dead on in many of its conclusions.

Interestingly, also in today's WP opinion section was an article by a Muslim scholar whose visa to the United States -- he was coming here for a scholar position at Notre Dame -- was revoked, in all likelihood because of his views about the Bushistas. Will the foreign scientists want to come to the United States to pursue scholarly work, and what will happen when they don't? This is a vital questions since more than half of doctoral candidates in the sciences in this country are not actually from this country.