Archive for May 10, 2008

Defining Science (Short Post)

A couple of people have asked, in comments, why scientists get to define science so as to exclude the supernatural. The answer is, science is that which you can prove, either by observation or by reasoning, and the Panda’s Thumb has an excellent post up today about how evolution encourages scientific knowledge to grow through the asking, testing, and answering of important biological questions. Please check it out.

Another note: the minute we allow the scientific method to be watered down in our school system by the forced teaching of intelligent design & other forms of creationism, this is what we have to lose, and this is what’s at stake: the value of reasoning as a method of inquiry.

Young McCain on Google Ads

With increasing certainty, November will see John McCain, the old guard of the Republican party, facing off against Barack Obama, the young, resurgent populist wing of the Democratic party. It’s hard to see how McCain’s age will not be an issue.

But I didn’t expect it to become an issue by his own creation:

I came across this on a Google banner adspace: an animated clip featuring young, fighter pilot McCain. Apparently, the McCain campaign is tackling the issue of their candidate’s age by… denying its existence. While it’s not exactly on par with “Cindy McCain’s Homemade Recipes,” this is still an impressive little bit of spin.

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