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

natural philosophy

Astronomical clock in Czech capital Prague
Type
post
Author
Melissa Travis
Date
April 1, 2024
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Online Course Explores History of Science and Christianity

Melissa Travis
April 1, 2024
Did Christianity help or hinder the rise of science? On this ID The Future, host Andrew McDiarmid speaks with Dr. Melissa Cain Travis about her latest online course Science & Christianity: An Historical Exploration. The live 6-week course offered this spring gives a small cohort of students the opportunity to dive into the historical relationship between science and Christianity and the skill to address the distorted historical narratives that persist in the contemporary conversation. Read More ›
the-study-of-the-origin-evolution-and-structure-of-the-universe-as-a-whole-stockpack-adobe-stock
The study of the origin, evolution, and structure of the universe as a whole
Type
post
Author
Melissa Travis
Date
September 13, 2023
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Uncovering the Hidden Mathematical Structure of the Universe

Melissa Travis
September 13, 2023
Do humans project mathematical order onto nature? Or was it there all along? On this ID The Future, host Andrew McDiarmid concludes his conversation with Dr. Melissa Cain Travis about her recent book Thinking God’s Thoughts: Johannes Kepler and the Miracle of Cosmic Comprehensibility. In Part 3, we look at how Kepler's ideas and work can inform the scientific enterprise today. Many scientists recognize the mystery of cosmic comprehensibility, including such respected voices as Albert Einstein, Sir Roger Penrose, and Paul Davies. Materialists remain agnostic or put it down to chance. But there's a more satisfying explanation, says Travis. "Centuries ago, Kepler already held the trump card. Science itself...can't be explained within the framework of scientific materialism." Genuine human rationality - the very thinking that helped fuel the enormous success of the natural sciences - would not exist if a naturalistic account of the human mind were correct. To get an intellectually satisfying answer for the cosmic comprehensibility we enjoy as humans, we have to think outside the materialist box. Travis explains how we can do that using Kepler's tripartite harmony of archetype, copy, and image. It turns out Keplerian natural theology is more robust than ever before and can help us make sense of the mysteries of our age, including the multiverse, the limits of AI, transhumanism, and more. This is Part 3 of a 3-part discussion. Read More ›
composite-image-of-solar-system-against-white-background-3d-stockpack-adobe-stock
Composite image of solar system against white background 3d
Type
post
Author
Melissa Travis
Date
September 11, 2023
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Kepler’s Pursuit of a Mathematical Cosmology

Melissa Travis
September 11, 2023
Why is the cosmos intellectually accessible to us? On this ID The Future, host Andrew McDiarmid continues his conversation with Dr. Melissa Cain Travis about her recent book Thinking God’s Thoughts: Johannes Kepler and the Miracle of Cosmic Comprehensibility. In Part 2, Travis illuminates Kepler's university years to show us how his study of mathematics and astronomy complemented his interest in theology. We learn about obstacles he overcame during his education and how an unexpected appointment to assist imperial mathematician Tycho Brahe jump-started his career as an astronomer and gave him the tools he needed to develop and advance his revolutionary ideas. Travis unpacks Kepler's major works, from Mysterium Cosmographicum to his magnum opus Harmonices Mundi. She also tracks for us the progression of Kepler's ideas to show us how he became a key figure in the transition from ancient astronomy to a true celestial physics. This is Part 2 of a 3-part discussion. Read More ›
silhouette-of-the-man-standing-against-the-milky-way-in-the-mountains-with-a-flashlight-in-his-hands-nepal-everest-region-view-of-the-mount-thamserku-6608-m-from-thame-village-3750-m-stockpack-adobe-stock
Silhouette of the man standing against the Milky Way in the mountains with a flashlight in his hands. Nepal, Everest region, view of the mount Thamserku (6,608 m) from Thame village (3,750 m).
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post
Author
Melissa Travis
Date
September 6, 2023
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Thinking God’s Thoughts: Kepler and Cosmic Comprehensibility

Melissa Travis
September 6, 2023
On this ID The Future, host Andrew McDiarmid kicks off a three-episode discussion with Dr. Melissa Cain Travis about her recent book Thinking God's Thoughts: Johannes Kepler and the Miracle of Cosmic Comprehensibility. A fellow at the Discovery Institute's Center for Science and Culture, Dr. Travis serves as Affiliate Faculty at Colorado Christian University's Lee Strobel Center for Evangelism and Applied Apologetics, where she teaches courses in the history and philosophy of science. In Part 1, learn why Kepler was instrumental in transforming classical astronomy into a true celestial physics. Like others before him, Kepler perceived a remarkable resonance between the rational order of the material world, mathematics, and the human mind. In response, he developed a three-part cosmic harmony of archetype, copy, and image to explain this unity. Travis unpacks his tripartite harmony for us. But that's not all. To give us a richer appreciation for Kepler's work, Travis also traces the intellectual pedigree of Kepler's ideas all the way back to the ancients, from pre-Socratic philosopher Pythagoras through the Early Christian era, the Middle Ages, and on through Kepler's own university years. It's a fascinating journey that shows how long humans have pondered the design of the universe and the uncanny connection between the natural world and the mathematics that lie at the heart of it. Kepler's revolutionary discoveries in natural philosophy and his unique insights into natural theology have inspired generations of scientists and philosophers. As we continue to discover new evidence of design in life and the universe, Travis argues that Kepler's work is as relevant today as ever. This is Part 1 of a 3-part discussion. Read More ›
God the Geometer
Type
post
Author
William A. Dembski
Date
May 2, 2022
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William Dembski on Scientism, Science, and Christian Faith

William A. Dembski
May 2, 2022

On today’s ID the Future, philosopher William Dembski and host Casey Luskin explore the relationship between science and faith. What is science? What is faith? How does Christianity define faith? Dembski explains that faith in the Judeo-Christian tradition is not the opposite of reason; at the same time, faith possesses a relational component—trust in a just, gracious, and reasonable God—that goes beyond mere assent to propositions. As for science, Dembski describes it as a careful search for truths about the natural world, including truths about key elements such as the birth of our fine-tuned universe and the origin of living things. Dembski says that he is convinced that scientific discoveries, unshackled from atheistic blinders, point strongly to intelligent design as the best explanation for life and the universe, a conclusion friendly to theism. As Dembski also notes, science was invented by theists, most of them Christians. They were motivated to search out the rational underpinnings of a cosmos because they believed it was fashioned by a rational designer. The occasion for the conversation is the recent Harvest House anthology, The Comprehensive Guide to Science and Faith: Exploring the Ultimate Questions about Life and the Cosmos, which Dembski co-edited and contributed a pair of chapters to. Get your copy here.

Discovery Institute