The Genius of Charles Darwin
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DVD details
Brand: AcornHost: Richard Dawkins
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language)
Format: Color, DVD, NTSC, Widescreen
Picture Format: 1.66:1
Running Time: 139 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2009-11-03
Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Studio: Athena
DVD Reviews of The Genius of Charles Darwin
DVD Review: Interesting but uneven
Summary: 4 Stars
Richard Dawkins hosts this two-disk set for the 200th anniversary of Darwin's birth and the 150th anniversary of the publication of "Origin."
The first disk contains three video essays about: Darwin's life and some of the evidence he used to support his revolutionary ideas; possible evolutionary explanations for the development of altruism; and the creationist backlash. There are also three short commentaries on individual species found in the Galapagos Islands and what they tell us about evolution.
The second disk presents six conversations with different people about evolution.
Dawkins' conversation with philosopher Daniel Dennett included some interesting comments about atheists finding as much spiritual joy, comfort, and solace in a godless world as believers find in a created world.
The conversation with Randolph Nesse discussed evolutionary insights into some of the health problems (design problems) that humans face and the importance of evolutionary thinking in medicine.
The conversation with Archbishop (of Canterbury) Rowan Williams touched on the massive failure of Christian clergy to tell their congregations the truth about evolution's compatibility with Christianity, and hinted at the possibility that faith and reason are two radically different ways of looking at the world.
The conversation with young-Earth science teacher John Mackay was noteworthy primarily for Mackay's failure to say anything meaningful.
In Dawkins' conversation with a group of what apparently were high school biology teachers, the highlight was Dawkins' bizarre suggestion (which, thankfully, he later seemed to modify) that students should be required not just to understand evolution, but to accept it. That's obviously, completely inappropriate.
The longest and IMHO most notable conversation was with Wendy Wright, head of "Concerned Women for America," perhaps the U.S.'s largest public policy women's organization. This 67-minute conversation revealed the utter stupidity and hypocrisy of the Intelligent Design movement.
Early on, Dawkins asked Wright what science education she'd had. Bizarrely, instead of answering directly, Wright took offense and accused Dawkins of resorting to ad hominem attacks. Apparently Wright is ignorant and proud of it. What a wonderful spokeswoman for a national organization focusing on public science education.
Interestingly, Wright repeatedly relied on ad homs herself, repeatedly questioning Darwinists' honesty, political motives, etc. Such hypocrisy is typical of Christian, ID-advocacy groups.
One argument in particular caught my ear, Wright's implication that atheistic Darwinists were responsible for the eugenics movement. In reality, of course, most, if not all, eugenics legislation in the U.S. was enacted by legislatures overwhelmingly comprised of Christians; and I suspect that very, very few of them were knowledgeable Darwinists. Wright's obvious hypocrisy seems to be matched by her utter cluelessness, again, typical of Christian ID-iots.
Wright stated that she wanted the "evidence against evolution" to be taught, repeating the "evidence against" mantra over and over again, like a broken wind-up toy. Unfortunately, other than vague references to undefined gaps in fossil sequences, Wright never actually described any of the so-called "evidence against evolution." What she did mention was Piltdown Man and Nebraska Man, neither of which, of course, can even remotely be considered as evidence against evolution. What an ignorant cow.
Wright repeatedly regurgitated various creationist slogans about teaching both sides of the controversy and insisted that the controversy was scientific, not religions; but when confronted with scientific evidence, Wright frequently changed the topic to religious arguments. What an ignorant cow.
Wright's brainless babbling about teaching "both sides of the controversy" was interesting for another reason. It turns out that CWFA is also quite vocal about sex-education, but when it comes to sex-ed, they are definitely not -- repeat, not -- interested in teaching both sides of that issue. Abstinence-only for Wright's organization! Again, what a hypocrite.
Wright's blind ignorance and hypocrisy were the overwhelming impressions I came away with. Unfortunately, Dawkins didn't exactly cover himself in glory either. He was simply unprepared to deal with a brainless wind-up toy like Wright. One of Wright's favorite tactics was to ask Dawkins for evidence of evolution, and in a 67-minute conversation Dawkins offered only three fossil examples: australopiths to modern humans, reptilian jaws to mammalian ears, and fish to land animals. After each example, Wright's response was always the same, some version of, "That's not good enough." It would have been child's play to make Wright look even dumber than she already looked, but Dawkins simply wasn't prepared. Instead of just three fossil sequences, Dawkins should have been prepared with a list of twenty. Being a brainless bimbo, Wright undoubtedly would have responded, "That's still not good enough," even after 20 different examples, which would expose in a very dramatic fashion how blind her stubbornness is. This tactic was used with great effect against Michael Behe in the Kitzmiller trial, and the judge got the message loud and clear that Behe's stubbornness in rejecting pro-evolution articles -- even articles Behe hadn't even read yet! -- was proof, not that evolution was flawed, but that Behe's opposition was based on blind ideology, not science.
Dawkins also seemed unprepared to deal with the falsifiability issue. He brought the issue up, so he was obviously aware of its importance, but he completely failed to follow up effectively on what might be the single most important difference between evolution and ID: Evolution makes testable (falsifiable) claims about fossil sequences, and ID doesn't. Evolution also makes testable claims related to biogeography, DNA sequences, anti-biotic resistance, petroleum exploration, biomimicry, the age of the Earth, geological strata, and many, many other issues. ID doesn't make any testable claims about any -- repeat, any-- scientific issues. Michael Behe was easily made to look like a complete fool on this point in the Kitzmiller trial. Why didn't Dawkins do that with the airhead Wendy Wright?
Dawkins also flubbed a couple of other points. Piltdown Man was never used as evidence for evolution? Science theories can become facts? Both claims are extremely dubious.
"Genius" has many good points, but could have been quite a bit better.
Description of The Genius of Charles Darwin
"Dynamic look at the life, work, and legacy of Charles Darwin" --The Sunday Times (U.K.)
Published 150 years ago, Charles Darwin?s On the Origin of Species changed everything--science, religion, and even humanity?s image of itself. Join Professor Richard Dawkins as he explains exactly how Darwin developed his revolutionary theory of evolution and why it?s still relevant today.
How do species evolve? What does "natural selection" mean in biology, politics, sociology, and philosophy? With passionate certainty, Dawkins provides answers, positing evolution as a matter of fact, not faith. In addition to interviewing scientific experts such as geneticist Craig Venter and paleoanthropologist Richard Leakey, Dawkins speaks with Dr. Rowan Williams, Archbishop of Canterbury, and other religious leaders about the existence of a Creator. Provocative, informative, and irresistibly watchable, this award-winning documentary offers lively new insights on an idea that still meets stubborn resistance.
Evolutionary biologist and fellow of the Royal Society, Richard Dawkins has served as professor of public understanding of science at Oxford University. He has written dozens of scholarly and popular works, including the controversial best seller The God Delusion.
Winner, Best Documentary Series (British Broadcast Awards, 2009)
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