We went to see Ben Stein's movie Expelled over the weekend. The film is basically a documentary that explores how academic circles have reacted to the idea of Intelligent Design (ID). For those who are not familiar with it ID basically says that certain features of the universe and life are better explained by an intelligent agent than an undirected process. If you consider the ever unfolding complexity of cells and the second law of thermodynamics (things naturally become more chaotic in the absence of an external force) it certainly seems a rational hypothesis that something intelligent (God, Zeus, Martians) had a hand in setting up life. It is natural and appropriate that educators and academia guard against bogus science that has a religious agenda. But Expelled exposes that scientists who desire to explore the validity of ID are meeting a firestorm of PC that is costing them credibility and in some cases their jobs. It seems that ID is being viewed as an attempt to bring Creationism into the classroom. While an instructor with a creationist agenda could possibly use ID to promote it, that should not be reason to brand anyone researching the topic as a religious zealot to be ostracized. In short, scientists should be able to explore the theory and publish their findings for peer review in an environment that is free of reprisal. That is the heart of science - making observations and determining how well a theory predicts them. Of course ID is not the only arena that is suffering from this stifling of scientific discussion. Our current study of global climate changes is a critical point in case. Climate science, like cell biology, is an incredibly complex field in which our understanding is far from perfect. If you get the chance I'd recommend that you see Expelled. We need to have an open academic climate where scientists can present their findings for review so that, through debate and review, we can hopefully arrive at the best decision. PC has no value in science.
