Taking Science on Faith

[countrycousin]

is an op-ed piece in the NY Times:  http://www.nytimes.com/2007/11/24/opinion/24davies.html

The apparent aim is to improve the dialog between the religious and science.  I'm all for the aim, and Davies has impressive credentials, but

Comments

[countrycousin]

re: last para - well, I can't argue with him. :<) Not quite sure why he picked the Civil War. Maybe he visited Gettysburg or similar - that does tend to be convincing. And if once was a while ago, perhaps he knew people still influenced by the era and its aftermath.

The Center he runs has a web page http://beyond.asu.edu/home.html that starts off:(1)

It bothers me that someone in charge of that can write the piece he did.

(1)
Confronting the Big Questions
For thousands of years, people have gazed in wonder at the world about them and asked the big questions: How did the universe come to exist? What is it made of? Where do human beings fit into the great cosmic scheme? Is there a meaning to it all?

Such questions have mostly been restricted to religion and philosophy. Now, scientists are addressing them too. On every front, science is transforming our world view and challenging age-old assumptions about the nature of the physical universe and our place within it.

BEYOND is a pioneering international center at Arizona State University specifically dedicated to confronting the big questions of existence raised by these stunning scientific advances, and facilitating new research initiatives that transcend traditional subject categories.

[charlie_ego]

Actually... the blurb you posted, I think, speaks to that confusion a bit. "Is there a meaning to it all" and "the big questions of existence" are kind of... well, not exactly right as questions of science. Though I bet that Davies is very good at his job, which probably involves getting people all excited about science.

Waaait a second... this is the Paul Davies, the Australian? I thought it had to be someone else with the same name. Okay, I read one or two of his books as a teenager (I sem to remember not being a huge fan, but whatever), and in fact I have actually met this guy (he is friends with the prof who was my advisor when I was abroad). That is really, really, disturbing. I don't understand this at all, because he really ought to know better. Maybe it isn't the same guy?

[countrycousin]

Looks like it. He says he's a theoretical physicist by profession. His home page is http://cosmos.asu.edu/