Doubting Darwin
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Noted biologist and philosopher Sahotra Sarkar exposes the frauds and fallacies of Intelligent Design Theory, and its claim to be ‘good science’.A scientific and philosophical exploration of the debate between evolutionary theory and Intelligent Design in the classroom Puts the debate into its scientific and historical context Looks at a variety of topics, including the relation between Darwinism and modern evolutionary theory, the use of computer science and information theory by the creationists, and the idea of metaphysical naturalism Rejects Intelligent Design’s claim to legitimacy, showing clearly how and why it is an unsuitable alternative to evolutionary biology in the classroom A thought-provoking book for those seeking to understand an intellectual debate that is shaping our education policies Forms part of the provocative and timely Blackwell Public Philosophy series
List of Figures ixPreface xiAcknowledgments xviiIntroduction 1The Central Argument 2The Evidence for Evolution 5Rejecting Theories 10Plan of the Book 18The Legacy of Darwin and Wallace 21The Theory of Natural Selection 22"Absurd in the Highest Possible Degree" 24Darwin's Unfortunate Retreat 27Wallace and Weismann 30The Decline of Darwinism 33Mind and Culture 34Contemporary Implications 37The Argument from Design 39Adaptation and Design 39Function, Design, and Selection 42Blind Variation 48Dembski's Resurrection 50Mere Evolution 59Mendel's Legacy 59The Modern Framework for Evolutionary Theory 61Selectionism and Neutralism 65Reconstructing the Past 67Contemporary Debates 69Terminological Choices 77The Cost of Lunch 79Evolutionary Algorithms 80The "No Free Lunch" Theorems 82Dembski's Excitement 84Utter Irrelevance 86Adaptationism 90Final Assessment 92Complexity is Complicated 95Irreducible Complexity? 96Pathways to ICSs 99The Citric Acid Cycle 104The Blood Clotting System 107The Bacterial Flagellum 111Protein Evolution 113Irreducibility and Design 115Questions of Information 117What is Biological Information? 118Information and Evolution 120Specified Complexity 122The Law of Conservation of Information 126The Cambrian "Explosion" 128Taking Leave of Creation Biology 130Cosmic Coincidences 131Physics and Biology 132Anthropic Principles? 133The Force of Improbability 136A Cosmological Design Argument 138Is Fine-Tuning Surprising? 139A Concluding Note 140Naturalism and Its Discontents 141What Naturalism Is 141Nagel's Legacy 143The Problem of Normativity 146Creationist Critiques 147Metaphysical Naturalism 151Conclusions 155Critiques of Evolutionary Theory 156Is ID Science? 160Back to the Classroom 163Notes 167References 191Index 209
