Creation science

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{{cquote|[[Confirmation_bias|We take this revealed framework of history as our basic datum]], and then [[Shoehorning|try to see how all the pertinent data can be understood in this context]].|||Whitcomb and [[Henry M. Morris | Morris]], preface to ''The Genesis Flood: The Biblical Record and Its Scientific Implications'' (1961)<ref>The Genesis Flood: The Biblical Record and Its Scientific Implications by John C. Whitcomb Jr. & Henry M. Morris (1961) Presbyterian & Pub. Co. ISBN 0825433266.</ref>}}

'''Creation "science"''' is the [[Pseudoscience|pseudoscientific]] pretense of making a scientific description of the [[Book of Genesis|Genesis]] [[Creation Week|creation myth]], in the mistaken idea that [[faith]] in these concepts is, somehow, not enough for a [[Kool-Aid|believer]]. 

Creation science tends to focus on two areas: creationism itself and denigrating existing science, either specifics such as with [[evolution]] or more generally [[scientific method|as a method]]. In this way, [[fundamentalist]]s attempt to 
create
 foster the illusion that [[science]] is entirely a [[faith]]-based system,<ref>[http://www.detectingdesign.com/ The Emperor Has No Clothes, Naturalism and The Theory of Evolution] One author claims that scientists refuse to admit that [[evolution]] and [[natural selection]] are wrong in the same way that the characters in Andersen's famous story refused to admit that the emperor was naked.</ref> to show that ''their'' faith-based system (whatever this particular system preaches) is just as valid as actual science. The major problem of this, however, is that it is [[bollocks]]. 

[[Science]], while having many definitions and nuances, is fundamentally the application of observation to produce explanation, iteratively working to produce further predictions, observations, and explanations. On the other hand, creationism begins with the assertion that a particular interpretation of the biblical<ref group=note>Some other religions promote creationism, but primarily it stems from [[fundamentalist Christianity]] in the US. [[Islam]], for instance, often preaches against evolution, but very rarely for special creation 6000 years ago — and the creation/evolution controversy is practically unheard of in Hinduism. The reason we say ''a particular interpretation'' of the account is that books 1 and 2 of Genesis conflict and Creation Science picks from one or the other as it sees fit.</ref> account is [[Biblical literalism|literally true]] and tries to [[shoehorn]] observations into it. The two methods are fundamentally incompatible. In short, "creation science" is an [[oxymoron]].

==Contrast to science==

It is entirely possible for the statement "the world was created in a quasi-magical event 6000 years ago" to be tested by science — that is, by observation. One simply asks what we would expect to see if it was true, and look for it. Unfortunately for creationists, this question has pretty much [[evidence against a recent creation|been solved]], so they have to invent a new method to ''make'' it true. So, the statement "the world was created in a quasi-magical event 6000 years ago", and its ramifications, is used by creationists in a very different way from science.

===Falsifiability===

One of the pillars of the [[Scientific method|scientific method]] is that [[scientific theory|scientific theories]] should be [[falsifiability|falsifiable]]. This property is attributed in the modern era to [[Karl Popper]], but isn't unique to him and goes back further, and states that in science, there has to be some potential observation that would show a theory to be wrong. This is simply because if there were no way to disprove an idea, it could always be said to be true no matter what, which not only isn't very interesting, but doesn't present a pathway for our knowledge to grow. Various parables have been made to explain what falsifiability is, including [[Russell's Teapot]] and Carl Sagan's [[The Dragon in My Garage]].

Unfortunately, this reasoning is counter-intuitive to some and may be the reason that creation science doesn't work well with the concept of falsifiability. The thinking seems to be that if you ''define'' something to be correct regardless of evidence, then you must also ''be'' correct regardless of evidence. Hopefully, no one will need to read any Karl Popper or [[Bertrand Russell]] to realise that you can't ''define'' something into existence.

Creation science falls at this hurdle, as there is no known way to falsify a creation event the way they use it. Unless creationists impose [[Essay:Complexity limits an Omnipotent Deity|limits]] on their chosen creator, which they are naturally loath to do, there is no way to really falsify a creation event. For a creator can choose to create whatever they will, in whatever manner they will, so any possible scenario could be "explained" by a creation event. Goalposts [[moving the goalposts|may be moved]], or the position can resemble [[Last Thursdayism]], but nothing will change a creationist's mind about their subject matter. So, in being able to answer every question, "creation science" in effect ''answers'' '''none of them'''. Floating axe heads, burning bushes, people being raised from the dead, [[original sin|talking snakes]], etc. are all capable of being explained by a supernatural creator, so there is nothing left to test (falsify) the idea, meaning that it can never be confirmed either, and nothing about it can be used to generate follow-on scientific ideas, which means that scientifically, you can't ''do anything'' with "creation science".

===Cherry picking===

One of the main problems that creation science has is that it often fails to include all available data. As seen in creationist debating tactics such as the [[Gish Gallop]], the idea is that if one point in a thousand holds (or, at least, isn't responded to instantaneously), the entire idea must be false, and yours must be true by default. And so, you can ignore [[Carbon dating|radiocarbon dating]] because occasionally it's unreliable due to contamination — and you can also ignore potassium/argon dating because C-14 has a maximum dating time. Or that the Grand Canyon is evidence of a [[global flood]] — but the ''lack'' of a Grand Canyon in the Sahara desert is either inconsequential or ''also'' evidence of a global flood. 

Creation 'science' only attempts to prove the idea by [[Cherry picking|whatever evidence it can find]] — even if the evidence doesn't actually support it — and ignores or excuses any evidence against it. Real science doesn't make excuses for evidence, or lack thereof (though it ''will'' explain why bogus arguments against it aren't valid).

===Scientific conclusions===

Scientific study starts by examining evidence and drawing conclusions from the evidence. Creationism starts with a Bible-based conclusion (or interpretation) and attempts to look for evidence to support the conclusion. This much is clear, and it's also admitted to by many creationists. As [[Ken Ham]], founder of [[Answers in Genesis]] (AiG), put it: ''"By definition, no apparent, perceived or claimed evidence in any field, including history and chronology can be valid if it contradicts the Scriptural record."''<ref>[http://www.answersingenesis.org/about/faith AiG - Statement of Faith]</ref> The thing is, they don't see this as a problem — they view the problem as entirely the responsibility of science, for failing to endorse [[presuppositionalism]], among many other logical fallacies and methodological flaws that plague creationism as "science".

[[Circular logic]] is also an error that creationists admit to. Circular logic starts with a foregone conclusion, and derives from it exactly the same conclusion — we don't learn anything, so it's pointless and doesn't provide supporting evidence. Yet, responding to the criticism of circularity, Darius and Karin Viet of AiG said, "The common accusation that the presuppositionalist uses circular reasoning is actually true. [...] Yet if used properly, this use of circular reasoning is not arbitrary and, therefore, not fallacious." which is, in short, '''the opposite of true'''.  (Presumably, by "if used properly" they meant "if used to support ''our'' conclusions".)

At the risk of sounding like a broken record, the entire point of science, the entire methodology for learning about the world through observation, requires us to hold ideas up against reality to see where they break and fail to produce accurate predictions. Creationists refuse to do this, and even admit to it, so the mantle of "creation science" is very much a misnomer. The "science" tag, therefore, has nothing to do with these people performing real science according to the methods laid out by [[rational]]/[[skeptical]] [[empiricism]], and everything to do with them adopting and then denigrating the term "science" for their own ends: to produce the illusion that their thinking is just as valid as actual science.

==Baraminology==

According to [[Young Earth Creationism]], the Earth and all animals were created during [[Creation Week]]. The animals were created in non-evolving kinds, the study of which is called [[Baraminology]]. (However, in order to reduce the vast numbers of animals that would have been required to be in the Ark, many YECs have proposed hyper-evolution of these baramins following the Flood.) In an effort to further their cause, [[YEC]]s have built a [[Creation Museum]].

==Geology, and other things that aren't in the Bible==

As the [[global flood]] of [[Guide to Genesis|Genesis]] is also believed to be true, a separate element of creation "science" deals with [[flood geology]], another howler of a misnomer.

Creation science acknowledges some decidedly non-biblical aspects of prehistory which have been proven during the modern period by [[geology|geological]], [[archaeology|archaeological]], and [[palaeontology|paleontological]] evidence, such as ice ages, plate tectonics, and the existence of [[dinosaur]]s. In creationist chronologies, these are fitted incongruously around the events described in Genesis: for example, some branches of [[creation geophysics]] postulate that continental drift was a catastrophic event associated with the biblical flood.

==Creation scientist==
To a young earth creationist, a creation "scientist" is any degree-holding person who — no matter in what field, discipline, or even whether they do any research, experimentation, or propose any hypotheses — believes the [[Genesis]] account to be the literal truth (''e.g.'' the [[Creation Ministries International]] [[CMI list of scientists alive today who accept the biblical account of creation|"list of scientists alive today who accept the biblical account of creation"]]).

Many of the world's foremost pioneers in scientific fields such as [[Sir Isaac Newton]] and [[Johannes Kepler]] are thus considered creation scientists by young earth creationists because they did not believe in [[evolution]] or the [[Big Bang|Big Bang Theory]] and held to special creation — never mind that neither theory had arisen yet.

This ignores the fact that these scientists had none of the knowledge we have today regarding modern science, leading one to wonder if they would have been (or remained) creationists if they were alive today. Also, as an analogy, scientists back then knew nothing about germ theory and even supported miasma as a cause for disease; does this make germ theory dubious or false?  And ([[Just asking questions|just hypothetically, of course]]), would you be willing to expose yourself to smallpox viruses to show that germ theory isn't true?

==Intelligent design==

As it has proved almost impossible for creationists to get creationism taught officially<ref group=note>Of course, plenty of nutball creationists manage to teach it in class in defiance of the law, and it's very hard to stop these sorts of shenanigans.</ref> in public schools in the US, the [[Discovery Institute]] came up with another pseudoscience &mdash; [[Intelligent Design]]. Intelligent design is effectively creationism with a thin veil of neutrality and a thick coating of vagueness and pseudoscience. It does not name a designer or promote a specific creation myth (
specifically
 one example being the Genesis account), although adherents of ID typically believe in the Judeo-Christian God and are generally quite vocal that ID is another term for YEC when they think no one else is listening. It attempts to give scientific evidence for "design" of the universe, yet falls into the same trap as creation "science" by not following the scientific method and being based on religious ideas.

Intelligent Design doesn't explain the origin of the universe any better than scientific theories. According to Intelligent Design, the universe is too complex to have formed on its own, so an even more complex "God" must have created the universe. [[Infinite regress|So where did that God come from, if it's even more complex than the universe?]] If one can believe that God created itself or always existed, and that the universe is even less complex than God, then one should also be able to believe that the universe could have created itself or always existed. Even if Intelligent Design were ''true'', it still would be useless for any scientist. It explains the origin of the universe by saying something like "the Big Bang happened, but there's also this omnipotent being or an uncaused cause"; it doesn't actually explain anything not already explained by scientific theories. All it does is introduce [[Occam's razor|unnecessary complications to those theories]].

In other words, scientifically speaking, the problem with ID isn't that it's a religious idea; the problem is that you ''can't do anything with it''. It doesn't give you the basis for further inquiry and discovery.

==In a nutshell==
[[File:Cr-vs-evo.gif|center]]

==See also==
* [[Lists of creation scientists]]
* [[Baraminology]]

==Notes==
{{reflist|group=note}}

==References==
{{reflist}}

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[[Category:Creationism]]
[[Category:Pseudoscience]]
[[Category:Apologetics and counter-apologetics]]
[[Category:Misnomers]]
[[Category:Science and religion]]
[[Category:Oxymorons]]

Categories: Creationism, Pseudoscience, Apologetics and counter-apologetics, Misnomers, Science and religion, Oxymorons