Susan Anton, a New York University anthropologist and co-author of the Leakey work, said she expects anti-evolution proponents to seize on the new research, but said it would be a mistake to try to use the new work to show flaws in evolution theory.

“This is not questioning the idea at all of evolution; it is refining some of the specific points,” Anton said. “This is a great example of what science does and religion doesn’t do. It’s a continous self-testing process.”

Wired News - AP News

Why do we have “anti-evolution” and anti-”anti-evolution” at all?

Why were these two paragraphs even inserted into this, otherwise scientific, article?

Believe me, I am not defending the stance of some groups within the world of organized religion on many scientific topics but I am compelled to point out the fallacies in these statements.

“This is not questioning the idea at all of evolution; it is refining some of the specific points … “

Technically speaking, this is not a “fallacy” but it is a disconcerting stance. Isn’t this tantamount to saying “We already know the answer, we are just refining all of our arguments to prove it.” Hmm. Sounds a bit like assuming that “evolution is not right” and focusing on the arguments that support that assumption.

“This is a great example of what science does and religion doesn’t do. It’s a continous self-testing process.”

Where do I start with this one? My best response is this. Authentic religion is inherently a self-testing process. I am no scholar but my understanding of the Judeo-Christian God has been that He/She/It (whatever pronoun you require to respond intellectually) is all about the “self-testing process.” The entire Bible is a story of humanity’s attempt to understand who God is. Nothing confirms this more than the life and teaching of Jesus. Not healing on the Sabbath and all of those statements starting with “You have heard it said … but … ”

There will always be a layer of people frightened of change. They are, sometimes voluntarily, completely misinformed about the facts and the true implications of those facts. What group of people does not have that layer? It is found everywhere from high school bands to sports leagues to national political parties. That is part of being human. Moving past that layer is where you find those hungry for truth. These people realize that life is too precious to do it all wrong much less to spend it living a lie.

I suspect even Susan Anton realizes how hypocritical and narrow-minded she sounds. I know I have said much worse. I totally understand why she feels so bitter that she is compelled to lash out; her entire professional career puts her in the middle of the most annoying, belligerent, mis/informed people in the world. I just long for the day when everyone is honest enough to admit that we don’t know all of the answers and we are all looking for them together.

How does the human brain create an evocative haiku, a beautiful painting, a sculpture or even a delicious new dinner?



Neuroscientist Nancy Andreasen tackles that question in her book to be released this fall in paperback: The Creating Brain: The Neuroscience of Genius.



And who better to take on that topic than Andreasen, a psychiatrist who started her career with a Ph.D. not in neuroscience but in Renaissance literature?



USA TODAY’s Kathleen Fackelmann talks to Andreasen about the muse, the link between genius and madness and the part of the brain that kicks in during the creative process

USATODAY.com - The brains behind creativity

technorati tags:psychology, creativity, Andreasen, genius, depression

I am a sucker for psychology, philosophy, literature, and writing. Throw a little study of creativity in the mix and you have my attention. Combine them all and “bam” - you have a dish I cannot resist. All of that to say, I have been reading a lot of interesting articles on the link between Depression and Creativity. So, I will have to start posting some of the more interesting articles here.

This article was not the first of my discoveries but it was the most easily shared due to the usability of the NYTimes.com website.

CASES; Connecting Depression And Artistry

By RICHARD A. FRIEDMAN, M.D.

Published: June 4, 2002

Everyone knows that creative geniuses are all mad. At least that is what the time-honored notion linking creativity and mental illness holds. Recently, this was underscored by A Beautiful Mind, the film about the Nobel Prize-winning mathematician Dr. John Forbes Nash Jr., who struggled with schizophrenia. Bedeviled by hallucinations and delusions, Dr. Nash is seen scribbling mathematical formula on his Princeton dorm window and doing pioneering work on game theory in a pub. But in real life, Dr. Nash accomplished his greatest mathematics before his illness really took hold.

Permalink to item on NYTimes.com

technorati tags:psychology, creativity, nytimes