Category Archives: Franklin Corridor
EVOLUTION – RELIGION or SCIENCE?
Cited in US News & World Report
www.discovery.org
February 12 used to be universally recognized as the birthday of Abraham Lincoln–a day celebrating freedom. Needing a patron saint, Darwinists in recent years have converted February 12 into "Darwin Day."
There’s nothing wrong with celebrating Darwin’s birthday–if that’s what you really want to do. But in recent years the advocacy of evolution has become increasingly associated with attempts to subvert freedom. To reclaim February 12 for those who love freedom, Discovery Institute and others in the intelligent design (ID) movement are calling February 12, 2009, "Academic Freedom Day" (see www.AcademicFreedomDay.com).
To be sure, Darwin supported academic freedom. In On the Origin of Species, he openly discussed weaknesses in his arguments and declared that "a fair result can only be obtained by stating and balancing the facts and arguments on both sides of each question."
One would think that Darwin’s latter-day defenders would follow his approach and allow debate over evolution in the classroom. But a lot has changed in the past 150 years.
Darwinists today seek to stifle scientific dissent from their viewpoint by asserting that there are no serious scientific weaknesses in modern evolutionary theory (called neo-Darwinism). The real losers here are students and scientific progress.
The more we discover about the cell, the more we are learning that it functions like a miniature factory, replete with motors, powerhouses, garbage disposals, guarded gates, transportation corridors, and most importantly, CPUs. The central information processing machinery of the cell runs on a language-based code composed of irreducibly complex circuits and machines: The myriad enzymes used in the process that converts the genetic information in DNA into proteins are themselves created by the process that converts DNA into proteins.
The problem for Darwinists is obvious: The simplest cell won’t function unless this basic machinery is intact, so how does such complexity evolve via a "blind" and "undirected" Darwinian process of numerous, successive, slight modifications?
Even scientists who reject ID admit that neo-Darwinism is lacking. Biochemist Franklin Harold stated in a 2001 Oxford University Press monograph that "there are presently no detailed Darwinian accounts of the evolution of any biochemical or cellular system, only a variety of wishful speculations." Indeed, over 750 Ph.D. scientists have signed a list declaring their view that random mutation and natural selection are impotent to explain the complexity of life (see www.dissentfromdarwin.org).
As we sequence more genomes of species, biologists are also finding that one gene or trait implies one evolutionary tree, while another gene yields an entirely different tree. No wonder the cover of the journal New Scientist recently declared that with respect to his vision of a grand tree of life, "Darwin Was Wrong."
Common descent–the view that all species are related–has also failed to overcome a problem that Darwin recognized in his own day: the lack of evolutionary transitions documented in the fossil record. Instead, what we see are new biological forms coming into existence in "explosions," without clear evolutionary precursors.
Finally, Darwinists have long-argued that our cells can’t be designed because they are full of functionless "junk DNA." But in recent years, biologists have discovered that the vast majority of our DNA is performing vital cellular functions and isn’t "junk" at all. The wrong-headed conclusions of modern Darwinists have stifled scientific progress and slowed discovery of function for noncoding DNA.
Despite the bluffs of Darwinists, neo-Darwinism has plenty of scientific weaknesses that are discussed in the peer-reviewed scientific literature. Since cellular language implies an author, and microbiological machines imply an engineer, and genetically encoded programs imply a programmer, increasing numbers of scientists feel the solution is intelligent design.
ID proponents are making their case in the mainstream scientific literature, but some Darwinists have sought to stifle the debate by pretending that teaching about ID–or even raising mere scientific challenges to evolution–contravenes the scientific method and brings religion into the classroom.
In 2005, such Darwinists even managed to convince one federal judge to ban ID from a school district and rule that ID is not science. Darwinists today continue to cite this wildly inaccurate and activist judicial ruling as if one federal judge can settle this entire scientific debate.
Unfortunately, the bluffs and authoritarian tactics of Darwinists create a climate of intolerance that leads to discrimination against academics and educators who dissent from neo-Darwinism.
The latest example took place last week when economist, comedian, and Darwin skeptic Ben Stein withdrew from offering the spring
can some one review my application essay for Temple University, please?
Imagine you have graduated from Temple University. You are preparing to attend your 10 years reunion, the alumni office has asked you to write a one page essay about personal and professional accomplishments since graduation. What would you say?
What a decade! It was overfilled with accomplishments. Here I am in the same place, where I started my professional path not too long ago. In this place, I feel the same energy that I had once to achieve my goals before ten years. Throughout my road to success professionally and personally, I realized how this great place motivated me towards the fulfillment of my dreams. I also realized how to be a successful human being as part of larger successful society. In Temple University, I experienced a great educational environment, which provided me with all acknowledgments I needed to accomplish my ambitions.
Interesting in architectural engineering, I attended Temple University as my first step in a corridor to become a professional architectural engineer. I challenged myself and became a proactive learner. I gained enormous skills and acquaintances during my studying years, wherefore; I felt that knowledge is spread throughout the entire camps, and it can be absorbed from the air. I discerned more educational material in every building, every classroom, and every corner of the camps. Motivated by my desire to achieve outstanding and marvelous accomplishments; I used my education and researched to manipulate some of the most impressive projects. Some of my extraordinary and remarkable accomplishments are buildings which able to resist against the world’s most devastating disasters like “09/11’s”, earthquakes, tsunamis, and etc. These outstanding projects were not just introduced to the world as guards to limit the loss of human in such situations, but it merged with a creative design to make them not merely exceptional but also terrific.
In Temple University, I experienced extraordinary environment to improve professionally and personally. Great deal of socializing took place in Temple University. Communication among professors, students, classmates, and friends is a daily routine, upon which structured the community in Temple University. As citizen in that community, I absorbed the same configuration. Talking of personal accomplishments, I was surrendered by massive number of friends; I still in touch with some of my close friends and most of the audience here. I accompanied some of those friends the entire period I spent in Temple University. Furthermore, I discovered a wonderful treasure in the same place. I found my lovely wife, who graduated from Temple University as well and became a professional plastic surgeon. We enjoyed the same educational environment. We also were gifted with two wonderful children, to whom we will make sure to hand down every great principle we have learned.
My professional life was not limited to architecture. I attempted to become a professional soccer player, and yet I succeeded. I had a long history in soccer as my middle school’s team captain in Egypt for two years in the row, and then I moved to United States. A year later, I attended Franklin Learning Center. I immediately joined the soccer team. After the first season, the coach decided that I deserve to be the captain of the team for next season. It was my last season in high school, since I only spent three years in high school. Yes, I graduated a year earlier. I took the same path in college as well. I was motivated to present outstanding performance by the same desire to be a professional architectural engineer. I challenged myself and my teammates to improve our skills and our ability to play as a team. As an aggressive defender and clever mid-fielder, I was chosen as captain once again. I was an effective part in the team, and helped to carry out victory after great number of games.
In the past decade, I lived the most lucrative period of my life so far, and yet I am willing to achieve even more. I thank God that over-achieved my goals by great deal of help and motivation from every aspect in Temple University. My mission to make the world a better place began here. I am truly glad to be given this opportunity to thank every staff member, who helped me and helped every student to become successful human beings. Likewise, I would like to thank all of the audience for their attention. Also, I wish happy and successful lives for all of you to make the world a better place.
I will appreciate your honesty, and FYI English is not my native language. I moved to the U.S 3 yrs ago
Thank you for your time