Cyprus-Forum.com

[YFred]

Two hundred years of Darwin, but not in Greece
By Lauren O’Hara

HE MAY have been born exactly 200 years ago and it may be 150 years since his groundbreaking book Origin of the Species was published but Darwin still draws crowds and controversy. They were gathered in Athens last week to listen to three academics reflect on their own personal view of the eminent biologist. And, as we might have predicted, just as when he first presented his theories in conservative Victorian England and was jeered and lampooned for suggesting the genetic links that unite our common ancestry and the process of ‘survival of the fittest’ in natural selection, there were those in the audience who were still affronted. Those who believed it heresy, who took to their feet and quoted Genesis and the Gospel of St John, who refused to accept the possibility of evolution.

For they are powerful forces here in Greece. Although it is not illegal, unlike some parts of the US, Darwin is still omitted from many state schools’ curriculum. It is a state of affairs that infuriates many local academics who find students entering their Greek University departments to study biology with no knowledge of the theory. It is not surprising: a report published in 2008 by the Department of Education at the University of Athens found that “Even though the theory of evolution is included in the 12th grade biology textbook, it is not taught in Greek upper (senior) high schools.”

The line from government appears to be that teaching the theory of evolution is a matter of conscience not compulsion with the effect that many students leave school ignorant of its existence. On the panel one Emeritus Professor of Philosophy explained why. Evolutionary theory he told us was simply an ideology to place along side religion, it did not take account of the divinity within us all nor, perhaps, the legacy of “Greekness”.

To his left on the podium, Professor Zouros of the University of Crete smiled wryly. As a highly regarded biologist, he made it unequivocally clear where he stood. Transmutation of DNA was a fact: an observable fact. A fact described and catalogued by Darwin and his painstaking research on finches. A fact proved by the human genome project. A fact he needed his Greek students to understand.

Of course, to some extent creationists and exponents of Intelligent Design are right, it is hard to observe the process of evolution in man: the length of our life cycle means genetically we alter slowly. The changes we observe about weight and illness and longevity or the roles of men and women and children are often due to social factors not evolution. Which is why Zouros told us, with an impish gleefulness, that he could confidently predict man would not last as long as other species. When it came to survival it would be bacteria, which had already lived for millions of years, not the meek, that would inherit the earth.

A shame then, that church and dogma still haunt the Greek education system and they are not actively promoting total access to all knowledge. For as Darwin wrote: “It is not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent that survives. It is the one that is the most adaptable to change.”



Copyright © Cyprus Mail 2009

God/Allah preserve us all.
Is Darwin included in the GC curriculum?

[Bananiot]

It is worse in Cyprus, but nobody cares. I also wonder how much evolution is taught in Turkey. Probably just as bad there too. We have more in common than we care to admit.

[YFred]

Perhaps, one of our Turkish friends can enlighten us. I just can't believe that Darwin's theory is excluded fron the Biology lessons and is equated to Creationism. I thought that this was only an American problem. I did not realise that It was much wider.
Over here in UK, we have no such problem.

[Get Real!]

Darwin fails to explain why some apes “evolved” into humans while the rest did not and are still apes!

Is it an evolution of species or an evolution of some individuals of that species? The whole theory falls flat on its face from this alone!

[Oracle]

The Greeks (Aristotle) postulated on the theory of evolution long before Darwin. We see evolution as so natural, we don't need to make a song and dance about it, like some who still want to attribute "Evolution" as a singular postulate of Darwin's

[Piratis]

Darwin fails to explain why some apes “evolved” into humans while the rest did not and are still apes!

Is it an evolution of species or an evolution of some individuals of that species? The whole theory falls flat on its face from this alone!

http://evolution.berkeley.edu/

Read it and all your questions will be answered.

On the other hand Creationism can not be supported with any scientific or logical arguments.

[Get Real!]

Darwin fails to explain why some apes “evolved” into humans while the rest did not and are still apes!

Is it an evolution of species or an evolution of some individuals of that species? The whole theory falls flat on its face from this alone!

http://evolution.berkeley.edu/

Read it and all your questions will be answered.

On the other hand Creationism can not be supported with any scientific or logical arguments.

I'll check it out later tonight when I have the time. Both theories have serious flaws which is why I support neither.

[Oracle]

Darwin fails to explain why some apes “evolved” into humans while the rest did not and are still apes!

Is it an evolution of species or an evolution of some individuals of that species? The whole theory falls flat on its face from this alone!

http://evolution.berkeley.edu/

Read it and all your questions will be answered.

On the other hand Creationism can not be supported with any scientific or logical arguments.

I'll check it out later tonight when I have the time. Both theories have serious flaws which is why I support neither.

Fundamentally, the flaw is that you think we evolved from Apes (as a ready formed group).

We actually evolved from a Common Ancestor which branched off to make the different types of Ape (of which we are one). That is why today's Chimps, for example, are also not the same as chimps of 5 Million years ago.

[lovernomore]

Darwin fails to explain why some apes “evolved” into humans while the rest did not and are still apes!

Is it an evolution of species or an evolution of some individuals of that species? The whole theory falls flat on its face from this alone!

http://evolution.berkeley.edu/

Read it and all your questions will be answered.

On the other hand Creationism can not be supported with any scientific or logical arguments.

Piratis is not a chimp or a ape, he is a ROBOT. created by man

[miltiades]

Darwin fails to explain why some apes “evolved” into humans while the rest did not and are still apes!

Is it an evolution of species or an evolution of some individuals of that species? The whole theory falls flat on its face from this alone!

Why don't you explain to us peasants your theories then mate !!
ps.Don't blame Darwin for not publishing links .