Almost everyone at one time of their life or another has been struck frozen by some fantastic aspect of the Earth. Indeed most of the world beholds the beauty of nature and meditates in adoration at the splendor of it all. In it they see an awesome design, one that points right to the Divine. The 20th century has brought forth though a very different opinion of the earth and the heavens above. Many scientists and intellectuals alike see no uniqueness in our earth. In fact they see the earth, as the late astronomer Carl Sagan did, as nothing more than an ordinary, unimportant, and meaningless accident. In recent times this cosmology has been labeled the ‘Copernican Principle’ or otherwise known as the Principle of mediocrity. This cosmology does not simply hold that the earth itself is not at the center of the universe, but strives to illuminate a mediocre and unexceptional outlook of the earth. Flowing from this mindset is the assumption that since our solar system must too be unexceptional the emergence of intelligent life must be ordinary and probable because of the vastness of the universe.
In the past decade or so, there have been many ID advocates that have combated this cosmology and have offered scientific insight to the special place our earth has in the cosmos. Together they have donated to the development of what is known as the Anthropological principle, or as I called it earlier, anthropism. As I mentioned earlier, Wiker favors this insights and has made it one the focuses of his work in ID.
There are many books that have help develop this principle. Three of the more recent ones are The Privileged Planet (PP) by Dr. Guillermo Gonzalez and Jay Richards, Peter Ward and Donald Brownlee’s Rare Earth, and Michael Denton’s Nature’s Destiny. Though each of them support the ID theory through showing the cosmos as fined tuned for human existence, none of the above writers conclude through the anthropic argument that a designer for the cosmos must exist. I will discuss each of these books and there support of the anthropic claim, and also how I believe each of them have fallen a little short in seeing the end that such a claim has, namely the existence of an Intelligent Designer.
The Privileged Planet (PP) by Dr. Guillermo Gonzalez and Jay Richards refutes the contention of the world as unimportant which has permeated the minds of the intellectual and the general public. Gonzalez and Richards contend that contrary to the Copernican mindset that the scientific knowledge acquired through the many technological advances made in the 20th century will bring a greater understanding and appreciation of our unique place in the universe. Their book, in essence, offers evidence to substantiate that claim. They theorize a correlation between the “measurability” of the cosmos, that is the conditions necessary for viewing and studying the universe, and the “habitability” of the universe. They say that “the conditions that allow for intelligent life on earth also make it strangely well suited for viewing and analyzing the universe.” (p.2) Thus, by showing the optimal uniqueness the earth possess in studying the universe and for discovering the laws of physics, the book demonstrates the many conditions that are necessary for life to exist here on earth and the high unlikely hood that such conditions exist ordinarily anywhere else in the cosmos.
An example of their claim can be seen in studying the moon. The moon plays an extremely important role in the habitability of the world. Ironically, it also plays a major part of understanding the rest of the cosmos. For example, the unique size and roundedness of the moon make possible optimal eclipses to be observed from here on earth. The ability to behold a perfect-eclipse has resulted in many important scientific discoveries. In particular, studying eclipses has brought about greater understanding in the area of the physics of atmospheres. Because of earth’s optimal eclipses, we now understand the Sun’s atmosphere, which in turn helps us understand the chemical makeup of distant stars. An Eclipse also played an important role in testing General Relativity and in measuring the slowdown of the Earth’s rotation. (p.12) There is definitely many other ways the uniqueness of our moon supports the measurability of the cosmos. PP declares it just the tip of the iceberg in relation to the similar mounting evidence throughout the rest of the cosmos. (p16)
Unfortunately though, beyond showing the special purpose of earth in the cosmos, PP doesn’t have a necessarily ID end. Through correspondence with the authors and my teacher Dr. Benjamin Wiker, I have come to learn that the writers of PP do not believe that the anthropic principle, which they have so well supported, can stand alone as a means of showing the existence of a designer. I think their conclusion misses the mark. How could one not see design in such order and purpose. Inferring an intelligent designer from their work wouldn’t be a far-fetched idea, but a logically grounded conclusion.
Unfortunately though, beyond showing the special purpose of earth in the cosmos, PP doesn’t have a necessarily ID end. Through correspondence with the authors and my teacher Dr. Benjamin Wiker, I have come to learn that the writers of PP do not believe that the anthropic principle, which they have so well supported, can stand alone as a means of showing the existence of a designer. I think their conclusion misses the mark. How could one not see design in such order and purpose. Inferring an intelligent designer from their work wouldn’t be a far-fetched idea, but a logically grounded conclusion.
To be continued and concluded later this month . . .
No comments:
Post a Comment