NCSE Evolution Education Update for 2008/11/28

(by NCSE Deputy Director Glenn Branch)

Dear Friends of NCSE,

Video and audio of Barbara Forrest's recent talk in Texas is now
available.  Plus NCSE Supporter Philip Kitcher wins a Lannan Literary Award
for his Living with Darwin.  And a new batch of selected content from
NCSE's journal is now available on-line.

BARBARA FORREST IN TEXAS

Barbara Forrest explained "Why Texans Shouldn't Let Creationists Mess with
Science Education" on November 11, 2008, at Southern Methodist University
in Dallas.  Now video and audio of her talk is available on-line.  The talk
was sponsored by the Texas Freedom Network Education Fund, and the Annette
Caldwell Simmons School of Education and Human Development, the Center for
Teaching Excellence, the Department of Anthropology, the Department of
Biological Sciences, and the Department of Philosophy in the Dedman College
of Humanities and Sciences at Southern Methodist University.

Forrest is a professor of philosophy at Southeastern Louisiana University;
she is also a member of NCSE's board of directors.  She coauthored (with
Paul R. Gross) Creationism's Trojan Horse (rev. ed., Oxford U.P.
2007).  She also testified for the plaintiffs in Kitzmiller v. Dover, and
Judge Jones wrote in his ruling, "Barbara Forrest ... has thoroughly and
exhaustively chronicled the history of ID in her book and other writings
for her testimony in this case.  Her testimony, and the exhibits ...
admitted with it, provide a wealth of statements by ID leaders that reveal
ID's religious, philosophical, and cultural content."

For video and audio of Forrest's talk, visit:
http://smu.edu/flashvideo/?id=248
http://smu.edu/newsinfo/audio/barbara-forrest-11nov2008.mp3

For information about Creationism's Trojan Horse, visit:
http://www.creationismstrojanhorse.com/

CONGRATULATIONS TO PHILIP KITCHER

Philip Kitcher's Living with Darwin:  Evolution, Design, and the Future of
Faith (Oxford U.P., 2006) was the recipient of a Lannan Literary Award for
Faith (Oxford U.P., 2006) was the recipient of a Lannan Literary Award for
Notable Book for 2008 from the Lannan Foundation, which "hopes to stimulate
the creation of literature written originally in the English language and
to develop a wider audience for contemporary prose and poetry."  The award
includes a $75,000 prize.  A Supporter of NCSE, Kitcher is the John Dewey
Professor of Philosophy at Columbia University.

Discussing Living with Darwin in BioScience, NCSE deputy director Glenn
Branch wrote that Kitcher's aim was "not only to debunk intelligent design
and expound the case for evolution but also 'to respond to the concerns of
the thoughtful people who are beguiled by the advertisements for
intelligent design, to expose just what it is that is threatening about
Darwinism, and to point to the deeper issues that underlie this recurrent
conflict' ... He succeeds brilliantly."

For information about Living with Darwin, visit:
http://www.oup.com/us/catalog/general/subject/Philosophy/?view=usa&ci=9780195314441

For information about the award, visit:
http://www.lannan.org/lf/lit/awards-list/by-last-name/P80/12583

For Glenn Branch's comments in BioScience (PDF), visit:
http://www.bioone.org/archive/0006-3568/57/3/pdf/i0006-3568-57-3-278.pdf

CATCHING UP WITH RNCSE

Selected content from volume 28, number 1, of Reports of the National
Center for Science Education is now available on NCSE's website.  Featured
are Barbara Forrest's commentary on the forced resignation of Chris Comer
from the Texas Education Agency, NCSE's Louise S. Mead's report at a
symposium aimed at training teachers how to use the latest creationist
textbook, Explore Evolution, in the classroom, and Ulrich Kutschera's
latest report on creationism in Germany.  And there are reviews,
too:  David Morrison discusses the late Robert Schadewald's Worlds of Their
Own and Rebecca J. Flietstra assesses Deborah B. Haarsma and Loren D.
Haarsma's Origins:  A Reformed Look at Creation, Design, & Evolution.

If you like what you see, why not subscribe to RNCSE today?  The next issue
(volume 28, numbers 5-6) is a special issue devoted to debunking the recent
creationist propaganda film, Expelled, containing not only the material
already to be found at Expelled Exposed, but also reports on the reception
of Expelled at the box office, among critics, and in Canada; a summary of
the ways in which organizations with a stake in the creationism/evolution
controversy reacted to the film; a summary of the various controversies
over Expelled's use of copyrighted material; and a detailed explanation of
Expelled's unsuitability for the classroom.  Don't miss out -- subscribe now!

For selected content from RNCSE 28:1, visit:
http://www.ncseweb.org/rncse/28/1

For Expelled Exposed, visit:
http://www.expelledexposed.com/

For subscription information for RNCSE, visit:
http://www.ncseweb.org/membership

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Thanks for reading! And as always, be sure to consult NCSE's web site:

http://www.ncseweb.org

where you can always find the latest news on evolution education and
threats to it.

Sincerely,

Glenn Branch
Deputy Director
National Center for Science Education, Inc.
420 40th Street, Suite 2
Oakland, CA 94609-2509
510-601-7203 x305
fax: 510-601-7204
800-290-6006
branch@ncseweb.org
http://www.ncseweb.org

Not in Our Classrooms:  Why Intelligent Design Is Wrong for Our Schools
http://www.ncseweb.org/nioc

Eugenie C. Scott's Evolution vs. Creationism
http://www.ncseweb.org/evc

NCSE's work is supported by its members.  Join today!
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