Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Furthermore your assumption is that scientific theory is a house of cards is a bit scary in my view.
I don't believe that although it is certainly implied. What I meant was that we are expected to take this huge leap of faith from "See, this finches beak ir round and that one is pointed" to "See, this finch must have come from the same sludge that tree and that gopher did" That's a huge leap of faith and is, in my opinion, a mouse of cards.
I also read this a while back but it took me a bit to find it again.
Does Ben Stein believe that the human body is an example of Intelligent Design? (Can I introduce him to inguinal hernias and the Achilles tendon?)
Or male nipples. That has always fascinated me. What purpose do they serve? I know, I know, if there were no women around, a man could breastfeed...except that it would take literally weeks, if not months, of continuous suckling to get that going and I just can't see any baby hanging in with that...or any dude. Not to mention there is no basis in history, AFAIK, of males nursing babies...
I always thought men's nipples should come with a little tag that says "For Entertainment Purposes Only".
I'm sure it's not required reading. I didn't realize that's what you meant.
Tell ya what, I'll get one of them to bring me in their science textbooks and I'll see what they say.
The good thing about where I live though is that many of the science teachers are Christian. So....well...let's just say every once in a while my kids tell me these great stories about discussions they have outside of the 'government approved' curriculum.
Did you watch the movie trailer, Troop?
No, I didn't see the movie trailer. I briefly heard about it several months ago. I heard Ben Stein was doing it and the first thing that popped into my mind was:
"Oh, that's nice, they're going to have a financial expert who was a science teacher on The Wonder Years explain the whole ID and Evolution thing. That'll just knock the whole scientific community flat. "
Honestly, if it were someone like Ken Miller I might be a little more interested but I don't really see what Ben Stein is going to say or do that is going to make everyone do a double-take. Living in the south, I'm sure that it'll be broadcast on every channel made available once it comes to that market so I might watch it when it comes on TV. And evolution is the "dominator"?? Yeah, that's why the local PBS station blocked the NOVA documentary on the Kitzmiller case in Pennsylvania...
Quite honestly, if you ask me, Ben Stein's movie doesn't really even require a response. Just because Ben Stein taught science on a TV show doesn't mean he knows a thing about it. Therefore, the only option I can think of is that he's going to attack Darwin as a racist.
As far as Social Darwinism is concerned. Well, yes, that would implicate prejudice and probably far worse things. But, the point of Darwinism isn't so that we humans carry it out on our own terms but that it is done by natural selection in the first place.
Or male nipples. That has always fascinated me. What purpose do they serve? I know, I know, if there were no women around, a man could breastfeed...except that it would take literally weeks, if not months, of continuous suckling to get that going and I just can't see any baby hanging in with that...or any dude. Not to mention there is no basis in history, AFAIK, of males nursing babies...
I always thought men's nipples should come with a little tag that says "For Entertainment Purposes Only".
Sorry for the hijack. Carry on...
Male nipples are developed prior to the development of sexual organs in fetuses. To put it in a scientifically incorrect odd way:
The fetus does not know whether it's going to be a boy or girl so it grows nipples. Therefore, males and females have nipples.
Male nipples are developed prior to the development of sexual organs in fetuses. To put it in a scientifically incorrect odd way:
The fetus does not know whether it's going to be a boy or girl so it grows nipples. Therefore, males and females have nipples.
But then how come they don't invert or at least stop developing? The body starts off with the appearance of a tail as well, but the spine shortens--or rather, the other way around, the body around it grows more quickly (I think) so that the fetus ends up with a nub rather than a tail, because by evolutionary standards, we obviously don't need a tail any more. Or that's how I understand it. You can feel free to correct me as I'm sure there's more than one correction to be had in that little mini-dissertation...
Anyway. Same with a penis, AFAIK. Both sexes start off with a nub, but the female's "stops growing" in that direction and inverts and a few other things happen and, well...there you have it. (Or there you don't have it.)
So if it's sex-determinant and during development is deemed unnecessary, why would the nipples stay, but not the tail or the magic wand?
Also, how could the fetus not "know" whether it's going to be male or female (or its development not know) when the designation of sex is determined from the start?
If this is a hijack...just e-mail me! I'm very curious. I do believe in evolution, btw. I really just put that other post in to make people laugh.
But then how come they don't "stay" (or invert or what-have-you)? The body starts off with the appearance of a tail as well, but the spine shortens--or rather, the other way around, the body around it grows more quickly (I think) so that the fetus ends up with a nub rather than a tail, because by evolutionary standards, we obviously don't need a tail any more. Or that's how I understand it. You can feel free to correct me as I'm sure there's more than one correction to be had in that little mini-dissertation...
Anyway. Same with a penis, AFAIK. Both sexes start off with a nub, but the female's "stops growing" in that direction and inverts and a few other things happen and, well...there you have it. (Or there you don't have it.)
So if it's sex-determinant and during development is deemed unnecessary, why would the nipples stay, but not the tail or the magic wand?
Also, how could the fetus not "know" whether it's going to be male or female (or its development not know) when the designation of sex is determined from the start?
If this is a hijack...just e-mail me! I'm very curious. I do believe in evolution, btw. I really just put that other post in to make people laugh.
It's not that it doesn't "know". That's why I said it was scientifically incorrect. During the developing stages of a fetus, the tissue structure is mostly the same for male and female. Part of that tissue structure is the nipple. As the fetus grows inside the womb (with the nipples already there) the introduction of testosterone is what makes the appendage of the male grow. Since that happens AFTER the fetus already has nipples, the nipples stay for the rest of the male's nipple loving life!
I don't believe that although it is certainly implied. What I meant was that we are expected to take this huge leap of faith from "See, this finches beak ir round and that one is pointed" to "See, this finch must have come from the same sludge that tree and that gopher did" That's a huge leap of faith and is, in my opinion, a mouse of cards.
I also read this a while back but it took me a bit to find it again.
"It is initially quite astonishing that something as obvious as intelligent design should even need testing."
and
"Nonetheless, the skeptical biological community demands that our theories be tested – and so in due time I predict that it will be one of the most rigorously tested theories known to man."
I read "in due time" and that tells me that the theories are not tested now.. nor are they peer reviewed. However, I knew that before I even started reading.
Whats even more interesting thought is the following:
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Not to mention there is no basis in history, AFAIK, of males nursing babies...
" 
