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Evolution and the Myth of Creationism: A Basic Guide to the Facts in the Evolution Debate
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Average Rating:  out of 44 Reviews
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Price: $18.95
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Sale: $3.75
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Manufacturer: Stanford University Press
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EAN (European Article Number): 9780804717700
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Number of Items: 1
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Binding: Paperback
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Author: Tim Berra
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Publisher: Stanford University Press
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Edition: 1
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Dewey Decimal Number: 213
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Publication Date: 1990-06-01
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Reading Level: 220
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Description: This clear, candid, and generously illustrated book is written for the open-minded reader who does not understand the technical issues of evolution, but would like to, who sees everywhere the signs of a bitter political, philosophical, and educational debate, but does not know what to make of it or who to believe. It tells how science proceeds, what evolution is, how science knows that it has occurred and continues to occur, and what biologists can point to, in fossils and in the living world, as hard evidence of evolution. For its content and foundations, the book draws on zoology, botany, genetics, embryology, geology, geophysics, cosmology, astronomy, astrophysics, history, religion, and science education - everything expressed with a clarity that enables the general reader without a science background, as well as high school students and their teachers, to understand the argument.
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Customer Reviews
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Review Summary: In the Beginning |
Date: 2008-12-09 |
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Details: Tim Berra wrote a book explaining why he felt compelled to write one about the myth of creationism. It was gaining currency as a science in many high school curricula, and he wasn't going to wait for divine intervention. He decided to write a book in five parts.
On the first day, he started with an explanation of theory and evolution. Theory does not mean the same in science as it does in the vernacular. Theory in everyday speech means a guess or a hunch. Scientists call this a hypothesis. The hypothesis is tested to see if the results will be fairly constant or reliable. The method of testing will be repeated to see if the results are valid i.e. can they be reproduced. When the results are predictable, and the methodology is proven to be sound, a theory emerges that means the results will occur most of the time, with few exceptions. That constitutes a scientific theory.
On the second day, he created Chapter 2 which was an explanation of the geological time and the fossil record. Berra explained how rocks and fossils could be dated accurately, and proved that earth was much older than 10,000 years that creationists claim. These methods are even more accurate than disciples counting 12 loaves of bread and fishes when 5,000 guests drop in at Christmas time.
On the third, fourth and fifth day, Berra gave us lengthy explanations of the power of evolution, the rise of human beings, and science, religion, politics, law and education in three chapters with many verses and versus. The fifth day was my favorite. Berra crystallizes what creationists hope to achieve, which is to accept things on faith, and conclusions without testing as opposed to science which is skeptical without testing and proof. He smote creationist claims one by one, noting that creationists have no papers published in respected journals. He described the Scopes trial, the Arkansas Balanced Treatment Act, and the Lousiana Creationism Act. He notes that fundamentalists are the only religious group that insist creationism be taught as a science. It is not even considered in European curricula.
On the seventh day he created his appendixes which is a true gift to the reader. It provides further research sources on the discussion of chromosomes, genes and genetic variation, creationism and evolution, and a glossary of terms for the scientifically uninitiated.
Tim Berra is a professor of biology, a two-time Fulbright fellow to Australia and a former editor of a science journal. These add to his credentials that can be verified through rigorous scientific googling. And there is not even a trace of an Aussie accent when you read this book, mate! (Sorry, Jen.)
This creation is almost a violation of the seventh commandment it is so cheap for the value. Once you've read it you can stop worrying if three days and nights of rain might not stop. You no longer have to wonder if it might continue for forty days and forty nights, and your neighbor down the block who owns the boat hasn't invited you on it. You won't have to throw in the towel, and you will finally realize that Adam wasn't Fred Flintstone, and he didn't live amongst the dinosaurs in the Garden of Eden.
It is a well-written and easy to read. You will call this book a miracle.
Say, Hallelujah!
Amen.
Also Recommended:
DVD: "Inherit the Wind" 1960. It stars Spencer Tracy, Frederick March, Gene Kelly, Dick York, and Claude Aikens. It is a powerful recreation of the Scopes Trial.
Coulter, Ann, "Godless." Read her description of Darwinism and evolution. The reader will realize just how little she has, excuse me, evolved, especially about evolution. (Borrow.)
P. S. Thanks for recommending I read this book, Kenneth L. Carlson.
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Review Summary: Puttin' My Finger in the Dyke |
Date: 2008-06-25 |
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Details: There are many reasons why "Creationism" (or whatever it is being called this week) should not be taught in a science classroom. Here is another:
IT WILL OPEN THE FLOODGATE FOR EVERY CRACKPOT AND THEIR "SCIENTIFIC" THEORY! "Hey, if you teach Creationism, then why not the theory that the Sun revolves around the Earth, as is implied in the Bible?"
Methuselah lived 900 years without using modern medicine. Teach THAT in health class as a way to push natural/herbal cures!
Carbon 14 dating and all other sorts are invalid because the Earth is only 10,000 years old! Teach that alongside the theories of Charles Lyell! Also, throw out tectonic plate theory and continental drift theory, as the Earth has ALWAYS look like this!
Astronomy is only a theory. Astrology is more accurate. Isn't there a column in almost every newspaper? What the MAJORITY believes--that is the truth!
I could go on, but why? Allowing Creationism to be taught in school might force every nut case out of the closet clamoring for his theory to be taught "alongside" mainstream theory. American education is already dumbed down to the lowest common denominator, and we are way behind other countries in math and science. Allowing Creation science to be taught will be another knife in the tottering body of American education. Don't let it happen. |
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Review Summary: Good, but dated |
Date: 2007-01-05 |
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Details: I found Berra's presentation to be solid and straightforward. However, as Berra himself noted, the scientific outlook changes to incorporate new evidence. Since the publication of this book, science has indeed marched onward. The Origins of Life section seems particularly dated, since it does not cover the "RNA World Theory" which is now widely accepted based on evidence of the last decade or two. Science has advanced in other ways as well, with more transitional fossils (Tiktaalik, for example) and plenty of molecular evidence, all of it compatible with and supporting the theories of evolution.
Meanwhile, even Creationism has evolved. Berra took on "Creation Science," the religion pretending to be science of the 1970s and 1980s. Since the 1987 supreme court decision of Edwards v. Aguillera, Creationism has been repackaged as "Intelligent Design." Basically, Intelligent Design leaves out the overtly Biblical bits such as a 6000 year old universe and the flod of Noah, and dresses up other bits in new clothing, such as Behe's "irreducible complexity" and Dembski's "complex specified information" numerology, which are both re-upholstered versions of Paley's watch. If you are looking for refutations of ID, you should find a newer book.
This is a fine book, and the outdated material is my only reason for downrating it. |
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Review Summary: OK high-school-level intro |
Date: 2006-09-06 |
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Details: The intent of this book is to present the facts and arguments in the debate about creationism versus evolution. It does a reasonably good job of introducing the basic arguments in this debate in a historical context, and then basically states the currently accepted theory of evolution. It also shows how the legal debate is focused on the political issue regarding public school curriculum.
This book is not an even-handed exploration of the debate (which would be hard to do in any case). Nor does it offer compelling arguments for either side.
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Review Summary: A Good Basic Introduction to the Subject |
Date: 2006-07-07 |
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Details: Although now more than a decade and a half old "Evolution and the Myth of Creationism" by Ohio State University zoology professor Tim M. Berra is still a useful introduction to the basic facts of evolution. Written for a general audience and at a level understandable to high schoolers, it presents a useful overview of the evolution/creationism dispute. Berra's goals are simple: to present the scientific case for evolution to the "open minded reader who does not understand the technical issues of evolution but would like to, who sees everywhere the signs of bitter philosophical and educational debate; but does not know what to make of it, or who to believe" (p. ix). With an emphasis on brevity, only 144 pages of text and some really excellent illustrations, Berra presents the scientific pursuit of the origins of humanity, in the process offering compact explanations of population genetics, the fossil record, case histories of bacteria drug resistance and sickle-cell anemia, the Big Bang and the evolution of the universe, and a very useful summary of current views on the human evolutionary experience.
Berra is an unrelenting evolutionist, insisting that from a scientific perspective there is no debate between evolution and creationism, or as it is called in its current incarnation "intelligent design." Evolution, he comments, has the self-correcting underpinning of the scientific method and is accepted by virtually all who seriously study the subject. Creationism is a faith statement not based on any scientific evidence whatsoever and not testable through the scientific method. Berra notes that only a tiny minority of the Americans accept the creationism argument, and that many with deeply-held religious conceptions find no conflict between science and religion. "Creationists, for the most part," he insists, "are fundamentalist Christians whose central premise is a literal interpretation of the Bible and a belief in its inerrancy" (p. viii). In spite of their small numbers creationists are vocal, domineering, and political savvy at getting their belief system into far too many science curricula. They have asserted, although it is a fundamentally flawed belief, that there is a scientific controversy and that both sides should be taught in science classes. Recently, U.S. President George W. Bush made this assertion; never mind that there is no legitimate controversy, a fact that any reader of this book will come to appreciate fully.
I read this book so that I could more readily answer questions about the origins of the universe and life in the universe in my capacity as a curator at the Smithsonian Institution's National Air and Space Museum. We have received an increasing number of questions about intelligent design from visitors to the museum, and the scientific arguments for the "Big Bang," the expanding universe, and the possibilities of life beyond Earth have received sustained criticism from those who embrace intelligent design. While there is some information on this subject in "Evolution and the Myth of Creationism" the focus of this book is on natural history, the fossil record, dinosaurs, and human evolution. It is a useful introduction to this material, although a little outdated now, but for questions of cosmology readers will want to review other works such as "The Fabric of the Cosmos: Space, Time, and the Texture of Reality" (2004) and "The Elegant Universe: Superstrings, Hidden Dimensions, and the Quest for the Ultimate Theory" (2003), both by Brian Greene or "The Cosmic Landscape: String Theory and the Illusion of Intelligent Design" (2005) by Leonard Susskind. |
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