The Battle Over the Meaning of Everything

Beschreibung

A compelling eyewitness account of the recent courtroom drama inDover, Pennsylvania that put evolution on trial. Journalist Gordy Slack offers a riveting, personal, and oftenamusing first-hand account that details six weeks of some of themost widely ranging, fascinating, and just plain surreal testimonyin U.S. legal history--a battle between hard science andreligious conservatives wishing to promote a new version ofcreationism in schools. During the Kitzmiller vs. Dover Areas School Board trial, the members of the local school board defended their decision torequire teachers to present intelligent design alongsideevolution as an explanation for the origins and diversity of lifeon earth. The trial revealed much more than a disagreement abouthow to approach science education. It showed two essentiallydifferent and conflicting views of the world and the lengths somepeople will go to promote their own. The ruling by George W.Bush-appointed Judge John Jones III was unexpected in itsstridency: Not only did he conclude that intelligent design wasreligion and not science and therefore had no place in a scienceclassroom, he scolded the school board for wasting public time andmoney. A sophisticated examination of the deep cultural, religious, andpolitical tensions that continue to divide America, The Battle Overthe Meaning of Everything is also journalist Gordy Slack'spersonal and engaging story of the high drama and unforgettablecharacters on both sides of the courtroom controversy. Gordy Slack (Oakland, CA) has been writing about science andevolutionary biology for 15 years. He is a regular commentator onKQED, an affiliate of NPR, and his articles have appeared in MotherJones, Salon.com, Wired, California Wild, the San FranciscoChronicle, and many other publications.

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Gordy Slack

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Religion & Theology Religion & Theology Special Topics Religion u. Theologie Spezialthemen Religion u. Theologie

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Slack, the former editor of natural history magazine PacificDiscovery, has long covered clashes between scientists andcreationists, and he knows both sides thoroughly--his ownfather, an experimental psychologist, took up creationism in thelate 1990s, following a conversion to fundamentalist Christianity.In 2005, online magazine Salon assigned Slack to cover afederal court case in which a group of parents sued a Pennsylvaniaschool board after it voted to include creationist material in highschool science curricula. While Slack never hides his ownconvictions--firmly in support of evolution--he isstaunchly evenhanded throughout, giving all players the opportunityto represent themselves and their ideas. Everyone involved in thecase--the presiding judge, the opposing teams of attorneys,the students and townspeople of Dover--come alive in Slack'seconomical yet revealing prose, and his history of both thecontemporary creationist resurgence and the long-runningphilosophical debates behind it provide some much neededperspective on modern American culture wars. In this must-read foranyone involved in education--from federal officials to localschool board voters--Slack demonstrates in crisp, clearlanguage how science and religion are not opposites but differentways of thinking, each valuable for different purposes.(June) (Publishers Weekly, December 31, 2007) "concise and readable." (Nature, 19th July 2007)"A lively, lucid account of a fascinating trial." --Margaret Talbot, staff writer, the New Yorker "The Battle Over the Meaning of Everything ismagnificent--by far the best depiction I have seen ofAmerica's culture war that pits religious concepts of thesupernatural against the materialism of science. Slack'snon-polemical narrative skillfully reveals the ins and outs ofcreationism, intelligent design, evolutionary biology, and thenature of modern science in clear and compelling prose. Slack's ownstory of trying to understand his father's religious positionstands as a poignant microcosm of the larger debate--adding apersonal touch that helps bring into focus the frustration andsadness that is often present, but usually not acknowledged, as theculture war rages on." --Niles Eldredge, curator, division of paleontology; curator,Darwin Exhibition, The American Museum of NaturalHistory "Gordy Slack's beautifully written The Battle Over theMeaning of Everything should be on absolutely everyone's mustread list. Although Slack does not conceal his own evolutionarycommitments, he is balanced and fair, showing above all that thisis a cultural battle and not simply one of science versus religion.The book is a terrific read." --Michael Ruse, Lucyle T. Werkmeister Professor of Philosophyand director of the program in the history and philosophy ofscience, Florida State University, Tallahassee "The Battle Over the Meaning of Everything is a well-toldtale of the clash of two cultures--scientific evolution andintelligent design creationism--in a Federal court of law.Gordy Slack is a gifted storyteller. If the conversation betweenscience and religion is of interest to you, get this book. TheBattle is a pleasure to read." --Francisco J. Ayala, university professor and Donald BrenProfessor of Biological Sciences, University of California,Irvine
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