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Museum Drafts Guide for Dealing With Evolution's Foes

Posted on: Tuesday, 27 December 2005, 21:00 CST

By William Kates THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

ITHACA, N.Y. -- Educated as a geologist in her native Hungary, Eniko Farkas knows, understands and firmly believes in the science behind evolution.

Still, she was caught off guard last year when a visitor to the Museum of the Earth where she volunteers angrily confronted her, denouncing evolution and insisting the museum teach creationism instead.

"I had a difficult time getting out of the situation," said Farkas, a retired Cornell University librarian and volunteer at the museum for the past seven years. "It got personal and very negative, and I got so flustered and frustrated that I know I didn't make much sense trying to explain myself."

With challenges to the theory of evolution becoming more widespread -- and sometimes hostile -- museum director Warren Allmon developed a special workshop and a 13-page guide book to help volunteers and staff answer questions about evolution, creationism and intelligent design.

"This is not a defensive reaction, or an attempt to change anyone's mind," said Allmon. "It's just that we find most people are uninformed about evolution, or have been given misinformation."

The guide provides information on the scientific method (using observations about the natural world and the rules of logic to test hypotheses), the theory of evolution, creationism and intelligent design.

It also offers a script for how to answer frequently raised challenges, such as, "Is it true that there is lots of evidence against evolution?" Answer: "No. Essentially all available data and observationsfrom the natural world support the hypothesis of evolution. No serious biologist or geologist today doubts whether evolution occurred."

Evolutionary theory holds that all organisms are connected by genealogy and have changed through time driven by several processes, including natural selection.

Creationists believe the Earth and all life were created by God. Intelligent design advocates argue that life is so well-ordered and "irreducibly complex" that it must have been created by a higher power -- an argument evolution supporters say is merely repackaged creationism.

On Tuesday, a judge dealt a blow to intelligent design when he rejected a Pennsylvania school board's plan to teach intelligent design in high school biology classes. U.S. District Judge John E. Jones ruled that intelligent design is not science but religion in disguise and rebuked the school board for its actions.

At the Ithaca museum, volunteers take a six-week paleontology course before working the museum floor.

If challenged, Allmon instructs guides to listen respectfully, be firm and clear in their answers but don't get defensive.

If all else fails and a confrontation erupts, the book gives docents several ways to end the conversation, including telling the visitor: "This is a place to talk about science, not philosophy, religion or politics."

The book warns guides that they cannot "win" against a convinced creationist.

"The most you can hope for is a respectful exchange of views," it says.

Source: Daily Breeze

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