I have been reading Dr. Francis Collins' book The Language of God: A Scientist Presents Evidence For Belief as per the recommendation of my mentor. He and I have a great many similarities both in personality and in worldview, but he is Catholic and I am not an Abrahamic theist (if technically a theist at all). I will discuss the book in more detail once I have finished reading it, but for now I wanted to share this excellent quip for Jay (if he hasn't heard it already):
[The famous watchmaker analogy] can be summarized as follows:
1. A watch is complex.
2. A watch has an intelligent designer.
3. Life is complex.
4. Therefore, life also has an intelligent designer.
But the fact that two objects share one characteristic (complexity) does not imply that they will share all characteristics. Consider, for example, the following parallel argument:
1. Electric current in my house consists of a flow of electrons.
2. Electric current comes from the power company.
3. Lightning consists of a flow of electrons.
4. Therefore, lightning [also] comes from the power company.
More thorough deflations of ID are surely not unknown to Jay or to myself, but I found this electrical analogy to be quite easy-to-understand and quite brief. Unlike a 10-minute video or 5-page essay, 8 simple sentences can be used to convert all but the most die-hard Intelligent Designer back into a more rational theist or atheist.
4 comments:
::will remember:: Is this Collins' little syllogism?
I believe it is his own, because he is a very humble man (and classically-trained scientist) who frequently gives proper credit where credit is due. Even were it not his own creation, it would be simple enough to come up with one's own and to avoid the hassle of needing to give credit to others. For example:
(keep the first 1-4 the same as above)
1. Milk is potable.
2. Milk comes from cows.
3. Coca-Cola is potable.
4. Therefore, Coca-Cola also comes from cows.
In this sense, Collins is merely employing (as you observed) the syllogism, and by no means would he or any other contemporary be credited with inventing this thousands-of-years-old philosophical concept.
You've got to admit, though, that if Coca-Cola did come from cows, it'd be proof of the existence of God.
It'd be proof that Greg L. chose the right company to endorse. XD
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