ID the Future Intelligent Design, Evolution, and Science Podcast
Topic

methodological naturalism

galaxy parabola
Collision galaxies. Three-dimensional parabola with collision of galaxies. Universe with stars and stars. Starry sky

Paul Nelson on Freeing Minds Trapped in a Naturalistic Parabola

On this episode of ID the Future, philosopher of science Paul Nelson continues sharing with host Andrew McDiarmid about pursuing intelligent design theory in a science culture committed to naturalism. Or as Nelson puts it this time, it’s about trying to communicate with scientists who are trapped in a naturalistic parabola. That parabola sets the rule and defines the boundaries for science: naturalistic answers only. And it extends to infinity, so no finite number of objections or counter-examples can force naturalistic scientists out of it. Nelson, however, offers an alternative strategy for drawing them out of the parabola.

who question.jpg
Who Question with Copyspace, Chinese Language

David Berlinski Pays Tribute to Phillip Johnson

On this episode of ID the Future, Andrew McDiarmid reads from David Berlinski’s new book Human Nature. The excerpt is a tribute to Phillip Johnson and his 1991 book Darwin on Trial. Berlinski calls the work a “Majestic Ascent.” Johnson, he writes, not only brought evolution into question logically and scientifically; he brought the case where it belongs, before “the considered reflection of the human race.” Berlinski himself reflects on various empty attempts to build a scientific theory on prior commitments to materialism. “Darwin’s theories,” he says, “are correspondingly less important for what they explain, which is very little, and more important for what they deny, which is roughly the plain evidence of our senses.”

empty stage.jpg
An empty stage of the theater, lit by spotlights and smoke before the performance

Nancy Pearcey on the Politics of Darwinism, Then and Now

Some suggest that we keep Darwinian evolution and just trust that God is at work behind the scenes. Pearcey says the effect, then and now, is to render our understanding of God as something that is largely private and subjective. Read More ›

Distinguished Chemist Marcos Eberlin Explains How Life’s Problem-Solving Engineering Requires Foresight

On this episode of ID the Future, Jonathan Wells speaks with distinguished Brazilian chemist Marcos Eberlin about Eberlin’s new book Foresight: How the Chemistry of Life Reveals Planning and Purpose. Eberlin is a world leader in the field of mass spectrometry, and the book is endorsed by three Nobel laureates.

Read More ›
Heretic FB-1

Greg Koukl Talks Heretic: One Scientist’s Journey from Darwin to Design

On this episode of ID the Future, author, speaker, and radio talk show host Greg Koukl, president of Stand to Reason, talks through a review of Heretic: One Scientist’s Journey from Darwin to Design. It’s the autobiographical story, co-written by Jonathan Witt, of distinguished Finnish bioengineer Matti Leisola. His whole perspective on science changed when he asked himself the question Koukl likes to ask: “Do you want the right answers, or do you demand the right kinds of answers — those answers that comport with naturalism, materialism, and physicalism?” Please consider donating to support the IDTF Podcast.

Meyer-and-Prager (2)

How Stephen Meyer Changed Dennis Prager’s Mind, Pt. 1

On this episode of ID the Future we hear part one of Dennis Prager’s remarkable Prager Show conversation with Dr. Stephen Meyer, director of the Discovery Institute’s Center for Science and Culture. Prager had been agnostic on evolution, but reading and talking with Meyer changed his mind, he says. And it wasn’t any religious concerns, Prager explains. It was the science. Please consider donating to support the IDTF Podcast.

Read More ›
ruby throated hummingbird
Ruby-throated Hummingbird

Paul Nelson on Methodological Naturalism and the Big New Theistic Evolution Anthology

On the episode of ID the Future, philosopher of biology Paul Nelson discusses his contribution to the major new volume Theistic Evolution: A Scientific, Philosophical, and Theological Critique, and in particular an essay that asks the question, should the study of evolution depend on methodological naturalism? Nelson explores how the rules of science have changed and can change again. And he argues that the rule of methodological naturalism artificially limits historical biology — its practice and its discoveries.