Cargill: The universe isn't expanding

Board member Barbara Cargill is bullish on the "new and improved" Earth Science standard which strikes the phrase "the concept of an expanding universe that originated 14 billion years ago" and replaces it with more nebulous wording that, says Cargill, "leaves it up to [students and teachers] to discuss how many billions of years".

Category:

Education

Tags:

• NCSE
• Texas board of education
• Barbara Cargill
• earth science standards
• expanding universe
• big bang
• science standards
• creationism
• intelligent design
• Darwin
• Genie Scott

[artgoat]

This is Rick Perry's vision for the entire country. (He appointed her).

[winterstellar]

These idiots are making America look ridiculous. How can a lady as ignorant as that be allowed to be on a board on education?

[Reddogovereasy]

Please understand that the Evolution and Creation are theories. Both are works of faith. We can only deal with what we can observe. However, our understandings of the observations are sifted through our presuppositions. If one has trouble with a particular presupposition the reason is that you may not be comfortable with or even know that you have a pre disposed view. To thine own self be true, William Shakespeare. This is the point of this woman’s objections.

[jknengr796]

These dimwits want the "weaknesses" of evolution taught in schools but how dare we demand that the "complete lack of physical evidence" of Creationsim be taught in their fundy church.

[0debug]

(cont. my last comment): So instead of debating for and against different models in class, it's better to learn _why_ or _how_ some theory was formed, what questions it answered that had been unexplained before, what predictions it makes and how the theory has been tested (or may be tested in the future) etc. Challenging existing theories should imo thus _not_ take a disproportionaly large amount of time from regular education. (Research into new theories is better done at universities.)

[0debug]

Evaluating evidence for and against different models, that is good in general. HOWEVER: Two reasons to _not_ spend too much time on that when kids are young are: a) if it takes away too much time from learning what we already know (ranging from science/biology/evolution, to math, to psychology, to history, etc), then they will be behind those who learned more. And b) there's the risk of politicizing science (e.g. by letting extreme religious groups affect future scientific litteracy).

[krapptacular]

And now all your kids can work at wallmart. LOL

[winterstellar]

What does that old weird lady want, to make Texas youths complete ignorants? The universe IS 13.7 billion years old, it IS expanding and it IS accelerating it's expansion, these are the facts even though they may go against the fairytales the old llady was probably taught in sunday school ages ago:)

[kyjodo]

Why do people think the universe has an age or that it began with anything? Isn't time neither linear nor occuring at a constant rate and limitless? Where is there room for a beginning or even an end?

[shifragri]

@winterstellar MONEY.