Comment Re: Texas Barely Registers (Score 1) 544
That isn't what I'm talking about. I agree that creationism is not science. I agree you can't simply inject unsubstantiated postulation in to a scientific theory. I understand how you got that impression from the overall context of this article, however I am referring more specifically to how one forms the basis for their interpretation of the facts and formulates a theory that they support. It is not inherently bad science to look at how the facts fit a viewpoint that you believe is accurate, so long as you are willing to abandon that viewpoint when the facts speak contrary to it. If we found out tomorrow that some aspect of quantum mechanics didn't work the way we thought, we wouldn't simply throw out quantum mechanics, we'd look for what needs to change to fit our new observations.
A good religious perspective on science can do the same thing, looking for where science supports our understanding of things laid out in scripture and seeking to refine our understanding when there is an apparent conflict. The science is not in improving this interpretation though, the science is always the facts and what the facts support. Until there is substance to support it, it isn't a scientific theory and the existence of God will never and can never be a scientific theory as near as I can tell. Evidence that suggests that things could have happened in a way consistent with the Bible however is a valid scientific theory, in so far as it is talking strictly about the factual observations that support that direction. The cause or reasoning or creator are not part of the theory, only the understanding of the mechanisms.
I'm also not saying that it isn't an exceedingly fine line between willing the facts to say what you want and going where the facts take you, but that's always a fine line in science. I'm also not saying that large portions of "Christian Science" don't often cross over that line, to its own detriment. I personally agree with the thought process that Intelligent Design isn't a scientific theory, however it does have a place in a philosophy class. I also think it is worth highlighting in the presentation of evolution (and scientific study in general) that science specifically doesn't make claims about what it can't measure and possibly just in passing using the fact there are some who view evolution as likely being a random process and there are others that view it as being guided, but explaining that since that isn't testable, science can't really speak to either direction. It is mostly valuable as a lesson on what science can and can't do and helps really clarify what science is.