Re: [asa] Evolution - A Biological Law, a Social-Cultural Assumption

On Fri, 11 Jan 2008, Gregory Arago wrote:

> Evolution: A Biological Law, a Social-Cultural Assumption
>
> Despite the fact that most natural scientists who accept biological evolution have elevated (read: accepted) evolution as a biological law, much the same as gravity is considered a universal law; the same law is not applicable to human society and culture. Evolution may be a biological law, but it is simply a social-cultural assumption (though Darwin was nevertheless inspired by Rev. T. Malthus). This assumption of evolution in society and culture, including ethics, morals, values, language, meanings, purposes and teleology, is what the majority of Americans are rightfully and stubbornly against. It is not evolutionary biology that is the REAL problem. Clarify this argument and the difficulty of defending evolution merely in biology, geology, botany, ecology, etc. will be much easier to make.
>

You seem to be using the word law in a way that is different from the way
I (and, I think, most people) use it. You seem to want to refer to any
body of generally accepted science as a law. To me a law is a rule that
can be applied in specific situations to give rather precise answers to
problems. For example, Mendel's Law, not evolution, would be a biological
law. Newton's Laws would be laws in physics, but the mere existence of
gravity would not even though it is true that gravity exists.

Gordon Brown (ASA member)

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Received on Fri Jan 11 16:51:21 2008