Bill Nye 'The Science Guy' Hits Evolution Deniers

By Kevin Dolak | ABC News Blogs – 8 hours ago

In a clip posted to online knowledge forum Big Think via YouTube, former children's show host Bill Nye spoke out against the denial of evolution, saying such views harm young people especially and hamper scientific progress.

Nye, who hosted the educational show "Bill Nye the Science Guy," which aired on PBS Kids from 1993 through 1998, made the statements in a clip posted online on Thursday, and has since been viewed over one million times. In the clip, Nye praises the United States for its contribution to technological innovation, but says that the denial of evolution is unique to the country.

"People still move to the United States. And that's largely because of the intellectual capital we have, the general understanding of science," Nye said in the clip. "When you have a portion of the population that doesn't believe in that, it holds everybody back, really.

"Evolution is the fundamental idea in all of life science, in all of biology. It's like, it's very much analogous to trying to do geology without believing in tectonic plates. You're just not going to get the right answer. Your whole world is just going to be a mystery instead of an exciting place," he added.

Nye made a three-stop tour through New Hampshire earlier this summer to tout President Obama's education policies while making a push for science and engineering programs. He has endorsed Obama's reelection bid.

In the clip, Nye said that one's "world just becomes fantastically complicated when you don't believe in evolution."

"Here are these ancient dinosaur bones or fossils, here is radioactivity, here are distant stars that are just like our star but they're at a different point in their lifecycle. The idea of deep time, of this billions of years, explains so much of the world around us. If you try to ignore that, your world view just becomes crazy, just untenable, itself inconsistent," he said.

Nye then goes on to urge adults not to deny the teaching of evolution to young people.

"And I say to the grownups, if you want to deny evolution and live in your world, in your world that's completely inconsistent with everything we observe in the universe, that's fine, but don't make your kids do it because we need them. We need scientifically literate voters and taxpayers for the future. We need people that can - we need engineers that can build stuff, solve problems.

"It's just really a hard thing, it's really a hard thing. You know, in another couple of centuries that world view, I'm sure, will be, it just won't exist. There's no evidence for it."

before i get asked, no i do not believe in evolution. i do believe in creation. i do not believe the 6000 year old earth theory that most christians believe. i do think evidence shows the earth is much older than that.

SkepticGuy:

You said "i do think evidence shows the earth is much older than that"

What evidence are you referring to?

I have seen people claim to have evidence for billions and billions of years and others who have evidence towards ten thousand years or less.

I was interested in hearing what evidence you have read about that confirms what you read in the scriptures to an earth that is “much older than that”.

I am not trying to start an argument just interested in your story of evidence.

Thanks

Nye then goes on to urge adults not to deny the teaching of evolution to young people.
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Greeting

I believe in creation to just in case you were wondering :) I thought this was an interesting article because of what he says about parents not teaching their children that evolution is not real. I wonder if the next step will be for the government to interfere in families teaching their children their christian beliefs and demand that all children be taught evolution?

God bless
mj

Good question, SkepticGuy!

I would predict that, yes, there is a possibility that "the next step will be for the government to interfere in families teaching their children their christian beliefs and demand that all children be taught evolution?" (SkepticGuy).

Extreme Atheist, Richard Dawkins wrote that he would have parents arrested for raising their children to believe in God. He is a very influential thinker, unfortunately. Science has always been jealous of God.

Love-in-Christ,

KP

Hi SkepticGuy.

RE: SkepticGuy wrote ///i do not believe the 6000 year old earth theory that most christians believe. i do think evidence shows the earth is much older than that.///

Something to consider that many Christians in their zeal neglect is this fact. God did not create Adam and Eve as infants, He created them as Grown Adults, He Did not create the Plants as seeds but rather Created the plants and trees already Grown, He did not create all the animals as babys but rather as grown animals thus we can conclude That He Created the Earth already aged and most likely with an already preexisting fossil record.
Just something to consider and meditate on

MJ wrote:

"I wonder if the next step will be for the government to interfere in families teaching their children their christian beliefs and demand that all children be taught evolution?"
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I don't think there is anything wrong with teaching our children the THEORY of evolution. I think it is important that they know what this theory is; after all they are going to hear about it and we can't shelter them forever.

We obviously do not need to teach it as fact (because it isn't) but we should teach them what it is.

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Todd

proudpapa wrote:

"thus we can conclude That He Created the Earth already aged and most likely with an already preexisting fossil record."
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I think we must be careful when making statements like this. Granted, God did create Adam and Eve as adults, and put full grown plants in the garden.

But did He create Adam with signs of wear and tear in his joints? Did his teeth show any signs of wear? Were there callouses on his hands or feet?

Did the adult trees have growth rings?

God is truth; he is not going to intentionally trick us, which is just exactly what He would be doing if he "planted" a pre-existing fossil record, or created mountains that looked like they had eroded for many, many years, or a grand canyon fully formed showing all the various layers.

Greg Koukl, a Christian apologist, makes this point about the young earth argument which holds that God created light from stars that are millions of light years distant in transit (because if the earth is only 10,000 or so years old we shouldn't be able to see any stars more that 10,000 light years away). You see, if the universe is only 10,000 years old, then there really CAN'T be stars over 10,000 light years away, or else we would be able to see every star in the universe. So, if we are seeing light from a super nova that is a million light years away, and it is true that the universe is only 10,000 years old, we have a dilemma-- because that means there never was star that blew up and became a super nova, and that God MUST have just created the vision of the light from a super nova without ever having actually created the star that exploded. But the Bible says that God created actual stars and other heavenly bodies, not just the light from them.

I do not think God is trying to trick us. He has revealed Himself in the heavens, if we are willing to look.

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Todd

by TMK on 2012/8/27 13:19:03

MJ wrote:

"I wonder if the next step will be for the government to interfere in families teaching their children their christian beliefs and demand that all children be taught evolution?"
________________________

I don't think there is anything wrong with teaching our children the THEORY of evolution. I think it is important that they know what this theory is; after all they are going to hear about it and we can't shelter them forever.

We obviously do not need to teach it as fact (because it isn't) but we should teach them what it is.
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You caught my goof in how I worded that:) I should have said,"I wonder if the next step will be for the government to interfere in families teaching their children their christian beliefs and demand that all children be taught evolution as fact?"

Anyway yes thanks for catching that for me :)

God Bless
maryjane

Hi TMK, you bring up some good thoughts.
I would have used the word possibly rather than most likely but I was not sure if it was spelled possibly or possably and I was to lazy at the time to look it up.

RE: TMK wrote ///did He create Adam with signs of wear and tear in his joints? Did his teeth show any signs of wear? Were there callouses on his hands or feet?
Did the adult trees have growth rings?///

What was the need or purpose of having the tree of life also in the midst of the garden ??

What was the purpose of man having food to eat??

Did the garden with the trees and plants have to have water??

Would the plants ever die??

umm as I ask, I two am struck to ponder, The world was clearly physical rather than spiritual before the fall but to what extent did the natural decaying proccess already exist before the fall is some intense thinking.