Science

The world recently (Nov 24, 2009) marked the 150th anniversary of the publication of On the Origin of Species, by Charles Darwin. But some are rethinking exactly what Darwin’s legacy should be:

Bicentennial celebrations have portrayed Darwin as a kindly old gentleman pottering around an English house and garden. What that misses is the way his ideas were abused in the 20th century and the way in which Darwin was wrong about certain key issues. He asserted that different races of mankind had traveled different distances along the evolutionary path — white Caucasians were at the top of the racial hierarchy, while black and brown people ranked below. [Racism] was a widespread prejudice in British society at the time, but he presented racial hierarchy as a matter of science. He also held that the poor were genetically second-rate — which inspired eugenics.

[...]The thinking behind eugenics is still present. Many senior geneticists point to a genetically engineered future. As the technology for this falls into place, there has also been an explosion of the field of evolutionary psychology that tries to describe every element of human behavior as genetically determined. What we will begin to see is scientists arguing for the use of genetics to breed out certain behavioral traits from humanity. [full story]

I think it’s a healthy reexamination of how we hold up one of the most genius, controversial, misunderstood and misapplied theories in human history.  There is no question that Darwin’s discovery as a whole was an eye-opening moment for us – even for those still skeptically considering it.  But this isn’t about whether or not different aspects of evolution are entirely true or not.  The question being asked here is how have Darwin’s theories actually contributed to the improvement of human life?  He is held up as a hero in so many circles, but is that because he so greatly contributed to the good of humanity or because so many mistakenly believe he has greatly contributed to a particularly materialistic world-view?  It’s hard not to believe it’s the latter. [Keep Reading]

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