Religion & Law

Roosts

By John Pieret

Here is something of a rarity: a transcript of an interview that does not include the questions. The subject is Edward O. Wilson and here are some of his answers (guess the questions yourself):

If someone could actually prove scientifically that there is such a thing as a supernatural force, it would be one of the greatest discoveries in the history of science. So the notion that somehow scientists are resisting it is ludicrous.

The intelligent-design folks say, "You haven't explained everything." What they don't appreciate is that that's what biologists do for a living. And, one by one, the things that can't be explained are explained. ...

What makes humanity is not reason. Our emotions are what make us human.

Religion is a manifestation of deep emotion that will out, one way or the other. Either in an atheistic political ideology or an excessive fierceness in being secular. Or the Red Sox. In other words, we constantly seek a tribe that we feel is innately superior and has the great truths, and we want to identify with them. We shouldn't deny that.

Well, it's definitely the egg.

Now, if I were a good philosopher, I'd say that's an unanswerable question. But I'm a biologist, and I say it's answerable. It's the egg. The egg that first obtained the mutation that's manifested in the proto-chicken. That produces the next mutated egg that produces the next stage of the proto-chicken.

Full post as published by Thoughts in a Haystack on January 05, 2009 (boomark / email).