Scientific American “Gives Up”

For those of you who haven’t seen it yet, Scientific American had a great April Fool’s joke, admitting that their “coverage of so-called evolution has been hideously one-side.”The article, “Okay, We Give Up,” is by the editors of Scientific American and is a real piece of work, I think. Hope you guys enjoy it 🙂

12 Responses to “Scientific American “Gives Up””

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I’m not altogether sure if I get the ‘joke’, but it was an excellent satirical defense of the fact that science doesn’t occur far away from ordinary people in secluded white towers, but is, and should be, part of our daily lives; science is a important way of discovering truth to guide us in life.

Also, they stick it to the Creationists. Bravo!

Paradoxdruid - April 10th, 2005 at 7:47 pm

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Well, it’s not really a “joke,” it’s more of a satire…
As “Merriam-Webster Online”:www.m-w.com describes “satire:”:http://www.m-w.com/cgi-bin/dictionary?book=Dictionary&va=satire
1 : a literary work holding up human vices and follies to ridicule or scorn
2 : trenchant wit, irony, or sarcasm used to expose and discredit vice or folly

Does that help enlighten your humor buds? 🙂

But I think your last joyful cry of “they stick it to the Creationists” shows that you really do see the humor in the satire afterall…

Teisha - April 11th, 2005 at 10:10 am

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Too bad they’re preaching to the choir 🙁 If only that would show up in every editorial page throughout the nation.

Owen - April 12th, 2005 at 1:02 pm

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… People might not think it’s a satire then and go eat the local scientists by mistake…

Teisha - April 12th, 2005 at 1:09 pm

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Well, you know, scientists should be forewarned so they can arm themselves and shoot the idiots.

Owen - April 12th, 2005 at 2:02 pm

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Oooh! It’s like zombie survival horror movies, but instead of plucky teenagers fighting shambling hordes with rotten brains, we get plucky middle-aged scientists fighting… oh, the same thing. 😉

Just as a fairness aside: many, many intelligent and thoughtful people have a fundamental distrust for the principles of science that are espoused by magazines like SciAm… I’m never sure how to interpret that. Have they not spent the time to examine the issues? Do they have other priorities that overwhelm the issues (true and profound spiritual faith, for instance)?

Paradoxdruid - April 12th, 2005 at 2:42 pm

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It is my personal opinion that the vast majority of luddites, technophobes, and Fundamentalists just don’t have a clue. I can’t imagine a decent human being saying “Yes, I oppose stem cell research, even with stem cell lines made from embryos at IVF clinics that will otherwise be thrown away. Yes, I know my choice is killing people daily. God loves me.”
Of course, if they ARE informed and are still making the vast majority of the choices they are, that means they’re just fucking evil.
But, still, don’t ascribe to malice what can just as easily be explained through stupidity.

Owen - April 13th, 2005 at 5:29 am

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Ah, yes– “Hanlon’s Razor”:http://www.jargon.net/jargonfile/h/HanlonsRazor.html strikes again.

P.S. If you can’t be sussed to look at the main page, there’s a link to a Wiki in the upper right corner now. Woot! Time to start writing up recipes, RPG adventures and stuff. You all should contribute. 😉

Paradoxdruid - April 13th, 2005 at 5:52 am

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Well, since I’ve been taking a Bible-related class at CU this semester, it really shocked me when the professor was trying to comfort apparently several students who had said in various written assignments that they were sad and did not understand why now-a-days we don’t have exciting and monumental things happening like in biblical times…

And, um, everyone should check out the Wiki link! 🙂
Um, yes…
Granted these are humanities students, but still..

Teisha - April 13th, 2005 at 1:17 pm

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“that they were sad and did not understand why now-a-days we don’t have exciting and monumental things happening like in biblical times”

As in, they were sad that nobody made huge Gothic cathedrals anymore?

Owen - April 13th, 2005 at 2:52 pm

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I think (having talked to Teisha before) that they meant things like “Moses parting the Sea” and “burning bushes speaking prophesy” and such. Gothic cathedrals aren’t quite biblical times. 😉

Which is, actually, an interesting question to ask, and one that the Catholic Church addresses at great length– they regularly canonize new Saints, who must perform miracles. There’s an interesting body of literature about how the belief in a miracle is more important than proof of the miracle.

Paradoxdruid - April 13th, 2005 at 3:06 pm

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Yeesh, read too quickly and saw “monument” but not the “al”.
I remember my youth minister saying something to the effect that after Jesus, no other miracles were needed, but that was us heretic Protestants.
I guess the same question could be posed to any miracle-performing deity.
It reminds me of the Simpsons episode with the angel skeleton.

Owen - April 13th, 2005 at 4:18 pm

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