Author and blogger John Scalzi has posted an amusing report of his visit to the Creation Museum.

Some time ago he said that he’d visit the museum, which was built near his home, on the condition that his readers donated $250, with the added incentive that any extra money would be given to Americans United for the Separation of Church and State. His readers came through and donated over $5000.

So he went, took a bunch of pictures, and posted a very thorough report.

An excerpt:

Here’s how to understand the Creation Museum:

Imagine, if you will, a load of horseshit. And we’re not talking just your average load of horseshit; no, we’re talking colossal load of horsehit. An epic load of horseshit. The kind of load of horseshit that has accreted over decades and has developed its own sort of ecosystem, from the flyblown chunks at the perimeter, down into the heated and decomposing center, generating explosive levels of methane as bacteria feast merrily on vintage, liquified crap. This is a Herculean load of horseshit, friends, the likes of which has not been seen since the days of Augeas.

You can read his entire report here.

NOVA’s most recent program is about the Intelligent Design debate over the last few years. They’ve put together an excellent companion website, and as of November 16th, you can watch the entire program online – I highly recommend it. NOVA always does a fantastic job on their programs and this is no exception.

My one criticism is that they neglected to mention the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster’s role in the Intelligent Design vs Science debate.

Richard Dawkins has a new TV series about the rise of superstition and pseudoscience, and you can watch the first episode online here. It’s pretty good.

Also, I would like to note that about 6 months ago I sent professor Dawkins an FSM emblem, and he never wrote back. I can only assume that he was so taken aback by the gesture that he couldn’t find the words to respond. I’m still waiting, professor.

Clearly a result of the London Pirate Demonstration – A recent statement by the UK prime minister includes the following:

The Government is clear that creationism and intelligent design are not part of the science National Curriculum programmes of study and should not be taught as science.

The full statement can be found here

[youtube]JVRsWAjvQSg[/youtube]

This is a very interesting discussion on the subject of Intelligent Design by Brown University’s Kenneth Miller. It’s just under two hours long, and if you have the time I highly recommend watching it. There is even a mention of Pastafarianism at around 90 minutes.

Casey Luskin of the Discovery Institute‘s Evolution News & Views has posted an article on the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster’s treatment of the Christmas holiday.

During the holiday season, many Americans take time to seriously and respectfully reflect on Judeo-Christian religious beliefs. Not so for one website, the “Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster” (FSM), a pro-evolution satire against intelligent design. They exhibit no interest in treating Christian holidays with respect. To celebrate the season, they are selling Christmas cards which show a dead Christian fish symbol. Other Christmas Cards portray Michelangelo’s well-known “Creation of Adam” painting on the Sistene Chapel, but the FSM cards have God replaced by the Flying Spaghetti Monster. Another graphic promoted on the page shows a nativity scene where Jesus is replaced by the “Flying Spaghetti Monster.” I can appreciate humor, but it’s also clear that the FSM images are intended to mock traditional religion:

…

I disagree with most of what he’s saying – we are no more mocking Christian beliefs than Christians are mocking ours – but it’s an interesting read.

You can read the whole article here.