Special Events about Science, Evolution, Christianity, and Islam

Ohio State will experience a confluence of lectures and other events regarding the sometimes tumultuous interaction between science and religion. I have listed five events below.

The first four are courtesy of Prof. Fisher in the College of Biological Sciences. I am particularly excited to hear from Judge Jones who rendered the Kitzmiller decision. More details and important information can be found at the Ohio State University Libraries web site. The fifth event is not directly related to the other four; it is the Physics department's weekly colloquium and should appeal to similar interests.

October 20, 7:00 PM, Independence Hall: You are invited to two very special lectures, one given by Judge John Jones who presided over Kitzmiller et al. v. Dover area School Board and wrote the definitive opinion on teaching intelligent design in public schools.

October 21, 7:00 PM, Jennings Hall Auditorium: The second lecture will be given by Pulitzer Prize winning author, Ed Humes, who wrote Monkey Girl, the very readable chronicle of the Kitzmiller trial.

October 22, 2008, 3:00 PM 104 Aronoff Laboratory: "Evolution and Religion: Conflict, Contrast, or Conversation?" by Connie Bertka. Dr. Bertka is a geophysicist and former Director of the Program of Dialogue on Science, Ethics, and Religion of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. She is currently teaching a course on Contemporary Issues in Science and Religion at Wesley Theological Seminary.

October 22, 7:00 COSI and the Fawcett Center: ...we're having our annual religion and science panel discussion, live at COSI or by videolink to Fawcett Center. This year's panelists are: Joan Roughgarden, Stanford, Connie Bertka, Carnegie Mellon and Carol Anelli, Washington State. The panel is being moderated by David Brancaccio, host of PBS's NOW.

October 28, 4:00 p.m., Physics Research Building (PRB), Room 1080: Physics Colloquium presented by Pervez Hoodbhoy of Quaid-e-Azam University. With well over a billion Muslims, extensive material resources, and a history of brilliant scientific achievements, why has the Islamic world disengaged from science and the process of creating new knowledge? Although science is under pressure globally, and from every religion, a strong and growing anti-science component in the Muslim world threatens to keep Muslims away from modern thought and exacerbate conflicts locally and globally. How can science be made to return to the Islamic world, and what is it that the West needs to do for reducing its multi-faceted conflict with the Muslim world?