Science Is Constantly Evolving

Discover the latest in climate change and evolution education news.

Say What? An Infuriating False Dichotomy, Part 3
The false dichotomy of the title that so infuriates me is the idea that you can be either accessible and engaging or accurate and scientific—but not both. It was a Science Friday interview with Hope Jahren, author of Lab Girl that occasioned my furor, as…
Dorner and Scott in Evolution: Education and Outreach
Meredith A. Dorner and NCSE's founding executive director Eugenie C. Scott published "An Exploration of Instructor Perceptions of Community College Students' Attitudes Towards Evolution" in Evolution: Education and Outreach. Dorner and Scott explain in the abstract, "we compared…
A Justly Neglected Argument
Leafing through Robert Patterson’s The Errors of Evolution (third edition, 1893), I noticed a really silly argument in a footnote. To be fair, it isn’t Patterson’s argument; it occurs in the editorial preface to the second edition, due to H. L. Hastings (1831–1899), a Boston-based…
Say What? An Infuriating False Dichotomy, Part 2
As I was just saying in part 1, I was starting to feel nervous while listening to Hope Jahren, author of Lab Girl, interviewed on NPR’s Science Friday. After she made the perfectly welcome point that scientific jargon can be alienating to the general reader, she was asked by John…
Say What? An Infuriating False Dichotomy, Part 1
I am, as regular readers of the Science League of America know, a regular Science Friday listener. I don’t always listen on Friday, but I do always listen, eventually. I let a few week’s worth of shows accumulate (perhaps as a passive-aggressive reaction to my dismay at NCSE’s…
NCSE and the Case of the Missing Pepper
A class action lawsuit over an ounce of pepper? Sounds crazy doesn’t it? But if it’s wrong to steal a million dollars from one person, isn’t it also wrong to steal one dollar from a million people? Of course it is. But as NYU professor Arthur Miller told NPR reporter Jacob Goldstein last week…
Answer Monday
It’s the ophiuroid Geocoma carinata! (Synonyms include Ophiocten kelheimense, Ophiopinna derecta, Ophiopsammus kelheimens, Sinosura derecta, Sinosura kelheimense, and Sinosura kelheimensis, so give yourself partial credit if you mentioned any of…
What We’re Reading
A philosophical question for you: Why do stories about dinosaur extinction bring out the punster in headline writers? In other news, we have a wealth of interesting stories for you this week plus a bonus adorable video. WAAAAY cuter than kittens. The Domesticated Human, Sapiens,…
It’s Earth Day: Get Busy!
It’s that time of year again. The time when the Earth starts to wake up. Flowers are popping, bees are buzzing, and everyone (humans and animals alike) is emerging from their homes, rubbing their eyes and thinking…yikes, where have I been all year?! Yep, it’s spring and with it, the incredibly…

For Journalists

Need information, background, comments, or referrals to other sources?

The National Center for Science Education is the only national organization that specializes in defending the teaching of controversial issues (such as evolution and climate change) in public schools. Because of our special expertise and experience, NCSE is often cotacted by members of the press who are writing about the evolution/creationism controversy, or about the teaching of global warming and other climate science issues that have come under political attack. Our staff can provide reliable information about creationism, evolution, climate change, and the state of science education in the United States.

Get in touch with NCSE