He has rubbed Fundamentalist noses in evolution in the second episode, helped to explain the workings of the universe in an episode aptly named "When Knowledge Conquered Fear," and last night he took on one of the most famous of all Biblical stories.
Noah's Ark.
Only Tyson does not relate the version we are all most familiar with, he shares the one related in the Epic of Gilgamesh, a thousand years earlier.
Of course those of you who are fans of IM, know that we dealt with the stories that proceeded Noah earlier this year. Of course that is the kind of thing I like to explore here on this blog.
However having the story transmitted into American households by such a popular new show is definitely going to cause bigger shock waves than anything we do here.
And if suggesting that one of the most famous Biblical stories was the result of plagiarism were not enough, then Professor Tyson went on to suggest that life on this planet may not have been the result of a supreme being suddenly snapping his fingers but instead simply the result of microbes hitching a ride on an asteroid.
In other words he opened the door for Panspermia, the idea that life on this planet originated elsewhere and then hitched a ride here on meteorites.
I think there is very little doubt that the producers of Cosmos and Professor Tyson are purposefully goading the Fundamentalists and Creationists into responding, and that they are prepared to continue challenging Christian mythologies moving forward, in what I would assume is an attempt to address the attacks on science, and public education, in this country by religious zealots.
So far I have found no response online from the Creationists. But since they have demonstrated an overwhelming need to refute the facts shared on this show in the past, I have to imagine they are typing their fingers to the bone in response to this one.
Have I mentioned before how much I love this show? Because I most certainly do!
I wonder how Fundamentalist Christians are going to deny this:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/05/18/fossil-largest-dinosaur-discovery-titanosaur_n_5347564.html
The same way they always do, 9:37. By saying that ANYTHING is possible to god. Want proof? Look in the bible, of course!
DeleteStorytellers love to tell stories. It’s no surprise that they would borrow a tale from somewhere else, to increase their oral inventory, and tailor it to the audience. “Long ago, but not so far from here, God came to a man in his sleep…” The storyteller looked out over his audience, their eyes sparkling in the firelight, and he was happy. Who cared if he’d updated a myth from another people? No one in the audience would call him a liar, they loved being entertained.
ReplyDeleteGryphen,
ReplyDeleteCheck out today's Salon. They have an article with quotes from the Creationist "rebuttal". Sad, but hilarious as well (concerning birds...well, look it up.)
Thanks for all you do.
I don't get the feeling at all that Tyson or the Cosmos producers are purposefully goading the creationists into responding; they would respond regardless. I have been watching the series and have long been a fan of Tyson.
ReplyDeleteWhat I have noticed is that he simply states facts. He states the science. He doesn't dumb it down, nor does he apologize for the facts. He also doesn't insult, demean, or belittle those who do not accept the science. Their religiously-based statements about scientific topics are just irrelevant to a science-based discussion.
If anything, he does not seem to be a fan of the idea of getting into pointless debates with people who will not argue the science of a position.
I have also noticed headlines around the internet after each episode to the effect that he "eviscerated" or "destroyed" some sacred cow, but it never seemed so to me. He politely stated the science. Not believing the science doesn't make it less true and he is there to educate us about science.
Agree.
Delete+1
DeleteOT
ReplyDeleteBREAKING NEWS
Oregon's gay marriage ban struck down!
And the state won't appeal, saving taxpayers a helluva lot of money.
DeleteThe Epic of Gilgamesh needs to be introduced into the American mainstream. I have been telling people about this for years 99% of the people I talked to had never heard of it.
ReplyDeleteWhen I heard the quote about the story of Gilgamesh, that happened a thousand years before the story of Noah, I just about fell off the chair laughing. Well played, Dr. Tyson, well played!
ReplyDeleteFrom geek.com:
ReplyDelete"A television station in Oklahoma censored the first episode’s discussion about evolution.
Local Fox affiliate KOKH — which resides in Oklahoma City — did not simply bleep or cut out the evolution segments from the episode. Instead, it happened to interrupt the segment with a very conveniently timed news break...
...the news break wasn’t actually breaking news — it was just a simple preview for an upcoming episode. Regardless of the preview bumping talk of evolution off the air in a state infamously known for being at odds with teaching evolution in classrooms, the simple act of airing a standard news preview in the middle of any television premiere would be bordering on nuts.
We’re not here to debate or discuss the legitimacy of creationism versus evolution, or whether or not it’s wrong to promote teaching religion in schools in favor of or alongside evolution. However, if you’re going to push teaching one thing — in Oklahoma’s case, creationism — you probably shouldn’t interrupt an inoffensive television show teaching an equally (if not more) valid explanation of life.
Now that the story is out there and the censoring edit has been placed on YouTube for all to see, the news station claims it was an unfortunate accident — however perfectly timed — and that it will air the uncensored episode this Saturday night."
Oh, yeah. If last week's climate change spun some heads, this week's origin of life and contradiction of some people's religion lit plenty on fire.
ReplyDeleteBut let's face it. None of those people are probably watching any more if they ever did. This is a SCIENCE show.
"... purposefully goading the Fundamentalists and Creationists into responding ..."
ReplyDeleteThat's the new, religious wingnut definition of "science," "unbiased history" and "telling the truth" ...
I consider myself a Christian (the real kind, you know, feed the hungry, visit the imprisoned and all that) and panspermia doesn't bother me at all. In fact I think it's a pretty cool hypothesis. I do think NdGT is kind of smug though- I work with a lot of real physicists and astronomers (I'm an engineer myself) and in contrast he DOES talk down to his audience.
ReplyDeleteKeep in mind, though, that his audience does not consist of other physicists and astronomers, but just a wide range of mostly non-scientists and (hopefully) kids and teenagers. So he has to popularize, and to an engineer, this certainly might sound like "talking down"--but I think that's just unavoidable in the circumstances.
DeleteConsider the audience.
DeleteYou can't assume they've all got college degrees or were even paying attention in science class.
He basically has to explain the basics in terms anyone that has had no exposure to science can grasp.
I think he's doing a great job.
I will say the last few episodes had way too much cartoony animation to please me. The one on climate change especially.
Excellent Show. Yeah, his scientific facts will be questioned and debunked with nothing of substance, but I don't think he finds any pleasure in it. I'd rather think he's laying out the facts and if it ruffles a few feathers, he's doing his job right.
ReplyDelete"The plot of Gn 2-11 (creation, the flood, renewed creation) has been borrowed from creation-flood stories attested in Mesopotamian literature . . . " This quote is taken from the preface to Genesis in the New American Bible, which has been used for decades in the Roman Catholic Church in daily mass readings, religious formation, catechism classes, etc.
ReplyDeleteYoung-earth Biblical approaches are themselves recent inventions. Early Christians and Jews long understood the Old Testament according to the genres of the various books, including foundational myths and legends; priestly codes of conduct; epics (with larger-than-life figures like Moses, Abraham, David, and Noah); annals; psalms and laments; wisdom literature; and so on.
Creationists get so much press, one might think they represent the majority of Christianity. In fact, Roman Catholicism is the largest single denomination in the US. Worldwide, over one billion of the world's two billion+ Christians are Catholics. Many mainline Protestant religions also eschew narrow creationist viewpoints.
It's important that Tyson and others with a platform address the topics in question. Fundamentalists can be aggressive in trying to advance their wrong-headed views, from the classroom to the legislature. They can be dangerous and their bigotry needs to be held in check. But we need to guard against the tendency, which can be pervasive in the blogosphere, to view the whole of Christianity, or of all religion for that matter, as a monolithic, backward, negative influence on culture and society.