A couple of years ago, browsing as usual the bulletin board outside our main office, looking for interesting talks and conferences, I noticed some odd advertisement. Apparently UBC has some sort of Christian student club, which occasionally has talks about various topics in theology. Some advertisements for these talks, to be held at the student union, were put up on our bulletin board. So, I took them down with the excuse that it is irrelevant, and that it is covering perfectly interesting announcements. The talks were not related to physics, were not taking place in our building, easy case to make. End of that story.
The next case I recall was an email circulating in our department, from the head’s office, offering free tickets to Ben Stein’s movie “Expelled” (no link, sorry). Again, one can argue that creationism is not precisely something that has to be promoted by a scientific organization, or at least one can wonder if buying legitimacy should not cost more than few movie tickets. But, really, what is the harm? The department did not endorse the guy’s “theory”, I was told, and did not force anyone to take those tickets. Do I really want to be an enemy of free speech, not to mention be such a killjoy?
Yesterday, I find in our bulletin board an advertisement (followed by an email invitation) to a talk by the esteemed creationist (and to everyone’s pride, a graduate of the department) Hugh Ross. It is taking place in the physics building, the abstract is full of scientific sounding gibberish, and apparently on the website of his “Reasons to Believe” organization, Dr. Ross is listed as a visitor to the physics department. To add insult to injury, it was covering up the announcement for Art McDonald’s extremely interesting upcoming talk. All in all, a clear victory in the attempt to market this nonsense as legitimate science.
So, what do you think should (or is likely to) happen? in return for your thoughts I will keep you posted, and if the mood strikes me (which is pretty unlikely), I might even share some thoughts about slippery slopes, and how navigating those came to be part of our business.
update: Turns out that the group in question rented a venue from UBC, in the physics and astronomy building, to hold the event. It was not invited by anybody affiliated with the department. Nevertheless, on their website and in various advertisements the talk is listed as taking place in the physics department, and Dr. Ross is listed as visiting us (with a link to the department’s website). Blurring the boundaries is a skill, you have to admire it.
http://www.mazepath.com/uncleal/reality.png
http://www.godchecker.com/
Religion and science are orthogonal.
I think you should support open discussion; even by people who you think are incorrect. Go to Hugh Ross’ talk, take his arguments seriously and if they don’t hold water you have the perfect venue (this blog) to point out exactly why he is wrong.
I make it a practice to link to Expelled Exposed every time I mention Ben Stein’s crapfest.
science and religion need to remain in two nonintersecting dimensions…
If you let those region people to give a talk in the physics department, what do you think this news will appear in the creationists’ newspaper? They will write UBC recognizes creationism as a science.
Well, a talk will necessarily have a Q&A right?!
Go with the most trusted of smart friends and rip him apart for the finale.
[...] interesting that you titled your post “defending our turf“. Indeed, this is an old academic turf war between two types of doctors, Doctors of [...]
That is more than a little disingenuous on their part. Even a little weasely. Free speech or not, they should not be allowed to say their talks are in the physics department. in the physics building, perhaps.
I think they should be required to take their signs down and make corrections. Or the physics department should put up their own signs saying that that were not invited by the physics department, and that the physics department does not endorse any of their viewpoints.
Who was the genius who allowed them to rent out the room in the first place???
I’m glad to hear I’m not the only one who takes down the Bible Study fliers hanging up in our Science building, which I also justify by its irrelevance.