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Life Science
1st place: Brian Benson, eighth grade — Creationism Is the Winner!
Brian Benson, an eighth-grade student who won first place in the Life Science/Biology category for his project “Creation Wins!!!,” says he disproved part of the theory of evolution. Using a rolled-up paper towel suspended between two glasses of water with Epsom Salts, the paper towel formed stalactites. He states that the theory that they take millions of years to develop is incorrect.
“Scientists say it takes millions of years to form stalactites,” Benson said. “However, in only a couple of hours, I have formed stalactites just by using paper towel and Epsom Salts.”
Even if he had used calcium rather than Epsom salts, and managed to relate it to biology. The fact still remains that the age of the Earth is not measured by measuring stalactites! The annual rainfall, rock composition, numerous other factors all influence stalactite growth, and even if this was constant it doesn’t change the fact that they are often (geologically) damaged and destroyed.
Shouldn’t the teachers have realized that the experiment’s bases was flawed, or where they just incompetent?
More importantly, someone should have thought to ask the obvious question: what does that have to do with evolution?
Stalactite formation is geology, not evolution. Unless he's trying to prove the earth is far too young to allow evolution I'm not sure what he'd be getting at; then again I'm not sure he knew either. Why such an, ahem, experiment would be categorized under Life Sciences/Biology is also beyond me. Apparently the faculty running that sham of a science fair didn't feel the need to ask Brian to explain that one either.
__________________ FAITH, n. Belief without evidence in what is told by one who
speaks without knowledge, of things without parallel.
It is my understanding that large stalactites take thousands of years to form, not millions.
__________________ “The biblical story of the perfect and finished creation from which human beings fell into sin is pre-Darwinian mythology and post-Darwinian nonsense." -Bishop John Shelby Spong
"It is not the obligation of the State to reconcile various faiths with reality. Do it yourself." -Atomweaver
"We have designed our civilization based on science and technology and at the same time arranged things so that almost no one understands anything at all about science and technology. This is a clear prescription for disaster."
- Carl Sagan (Demon Haunted World)
Congratulations, school district. You just ruined this child's science education. You have planted in him the seeds of distrust of the science community. For shame.
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"Tonight, we gather to affirm the greatness of our nation—not because of the height of our skyscrapers, or the power of our military, or the size of our economy. Our pride is based on a very simple premise, summed up in a declaration made over two hundred years ago: "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness." That is the true genius of America—a faith in simple dreams, an insistence on small miracles." - Senator Barack Obama
Society needs people for sweeping the toilets of smarter people. He'll be fine. He has a nice shiney prize to prove to himself that he be smart, after all.
Society needs people for sweeping the toilets of smarter people. He'll be fine. He has a nice shiney prize to prove to himself that he be smart, after all.
The problem is probably not that the kid is unintelligent. Most kids his age could not be expected to do their own extensive research. He's in fifth grade. This isn't his problem, this is his parents and the school screwing with him.
This is abuse.
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"Tonight, we gather to affirm the greatness of our nation—not because of the height of our skyscrapers, or the power of our military, or the size of our economy. Our pride is based on a very simple premise, summed up in a declaration made over two hundred years ago: "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness." That is the true genius of America—a faith in simple dreams, an insistence on small miracles." - Senator Barack Obama
This is also showing exactly how unBiblical some of the ideas of Creationism can be.
Specifically, Truth.
Christians are not supposed to bear false witness. We are supposed to seek God, who is (among other things) the Truth. Who stands for what is true. Yet, what is continually done? Strawmen are put up and knocked down, misinformation is created and spread, and travesties like this happen. If they knew what they were talking about, if they were being truthful, this wouldn't have happened. All the problems listed so far and more would have been recognized and dealt with.
Oh wow. Salt crystals. I did that in 1st grade. They show how crystals are formed... not how natural stalactites, which are not made of drugstore epsom salts.
Other prizes seem a little iffy, too. It raises the question of how succesful some private educations -educations motivated not by the love of learning, but the love of money, of prestige, of propaganda of passing down exactly what one believes (not what is true) down to children - can be.
ETA: I do not know about the school in the OP. I am not suggesting that it is actually a school motivated by propagana, prestige, or money, only that some schools do that. The only thing I can really say about the school in the OP is that it is worrysome that such an experiment could be applied in such a scientifically faulty way and still win a prize.
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Last edited by SallyNow; 25th May 2007 at 09:19 AM.
Why you should NOT send your children to a Creationism based school. 
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