Intelligent Design the Future

Is the famous “panda’s thumb” evidence of unguided evolutionary processes, or is it a masterpiece of engineering and the result of intelligent design? On this ID The Future, host Andrew McDiarmid concludes his conversation with retired geneticist, Dr. Wolf-Eckehard Lönnig, an intelligent design pioneer who has been offering robust criticism of Darwinian theory and advocating for intelligent design for over 50 years. The topic is Dr. Lönnig's new paper reviewing the debate over the panda’s thumb. Giant pandas have an extra digit, an elongated wrist bone, that aids the animal in walking and manipulating bamboo with great dexterity. Some claim it's a clumsy structure produced by evolutionary processes. It wouldn't win any design awards, but it gets the job done. Others call it one of the most extraordinary manipulation systems in the mammalian world and clear evidence of purposeful engineering. So which is it? Dr. Lönnig helps us answer that question. This is Part 2 of a two-part conversation.

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In 1980, influential paleontologist and evolutionary biologist Stephen Jay Gould wrote that “we can know that evolution has happened by the imperfections and oddities that life shows.” But is that true? And what if we take a closer look at those assumed evolutionary oddities and see instead evidence of engineered elegance? On this ID The Future, host Andrew McDiarmid welcomes retired geneticist Dr. Wolf-Ekkehard Lönnig to the podcast to discuss his new paper reviewing the debate over the panda’s thumb. Giant pandas have an elongated wrist bone, the radial sesamoid, that allows them to handle and eat bamboo with great dexterity. Some claim it’s an imperfectly and inefficiently formed structure that is clear evidence of evolutionary processes at work. Others Read More ›

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On this ID the Future from the archive, hear the second half of Discovery Institute’s John West’s talk given at the 2020 Dallas Conference on Science and Faith, on how Darwinism has corroded Western culture. In this portion he examines the morally poisoning effects of Darwinism on marriage, sexual ethics, and religion, such that virtually anything can be defended as OK, and no particular culture’s ethic is to be preferred over another. Humankind’s spiritual purpose has likewise been eroded. Yet West closes with hope: science in our generation is discovering more and more signs of intelligent design and purpose in nature, and young researchers are learning that materialism shouldn’t be the foregone conclusion of contemporary science. This is Part 2 Read More ›

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On this ID The Future, science writer David Klinghoffer reads from his new book Plato’s Revenge: The New Science of the Immaterial Genome, now available from Discovery Institute Press. This is a compact book, but it’s the story of a very big idea, and one that has the potential to usher in the next great revolution in biology.

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You're likely familiar with the genetic revolution — the discovery that physical structures in the cell, including DNA and RNA, shape every organism. But we are now overdue for another and more profound revolution in science, one you've likely heard very little about. Recent findings reveal that genetic and even epigenetic sources alone cannot account for the rich dynamism of life — not even close. Some other informational source is required. On this ID The Future, science writer and Discovery Institute Senior Fellow David Klinghoffer speaks with host Andrew McDiarmid about his new book Plato's Revenge: The New Science of the Immaterial Genome. It's a little book about a very big idea. It also tells the story of the scientist, Dr. Richard Sternberg, who has spent the last two decades bringing together cutting-edge molecular biology, higher mathematics, and commonsense reasoning to flesh out this potentially revolutionary new idea.

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On this ID the Future from the vault, catch the first half of a public talk by political scientist John West on how Darwinism has poisoned Western culture. In the lecture, delivered at the Dallas Conference on Science & Faith, West explores how Darwin’s purely materialistic theory of evolution has drained meaning from nature, undercut the idea of inherent human dignity, and fueled the rise of scientific racism in the twentieth century. West is author of Darwin Day in America: How Our Politics and Culture Have Been Dehumanized in the Name of Science. This is Part 1 of a two-part series. Look for Part 2 in a separate episode.

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On this episode of ID The Future, hosts Andrew McDiarmid and Nathan Jacobson continue their conversation with Wikipedia co-founder Larry Sanger. In this segment, Sanger explains how his philosophy to decentralize the world's knowledge plays into science and truth-seeking in the age of AI. He talks about the shortcomings of large language models and why humans are irreplaceable and essential to increasing our understanding of the world. Sanger also discusses the challenges that online encyclopedias like Wikipedia have faced in accurately and fairly reflecting controversial or important topics. This is Part 2 of a two-part conversation. Check out Part 1 in a separate episode!

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On this ID The Future, Wikipedia co-founder Larry Sanger joins hosts Andrew McDiarmid and Nathan Jacobson to delve into his personal evolution from longtime skeptical philosopher to belief in God. After falling out of faith in his teens, Sanger became a committed skeptic and agnostic, adhering to the principle of methodological skepticism for decades as he evaluated traditional arguments for the existence of God and found them wanting. And while Sanger was unconvinced by the claims of "new atheists" like Richard Dawkins and Daniel Dennett, he found himself drawn to the arguments of intelligent design scientists like Stephen Meyer, Michael Behe, and William Dembski. In this first half of a conversation, Sanger recounts his fascinating intellectual journey while unpacking the intelligent design arguments he found most convincing along his journey. This is Part 1 of a two-part interview. Look for Part 2 in a separate episode.

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On this episode of ID the Future out of the archive, biologist Ann Gauger walks listeners through the triumphs, flaws, and tragedies of Louis Pasteur, the French scientist whose scientific breakthroughs have saved millions of lives, and whose work on microbes sounded the death knell of the idea of spontaneous generation. Dr. Gauger also discusses his pioneering and life-saving work on vaccines, the Christian faith that saw him through the death of his three of his children, and more.

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Did our universe come from nothing, as some physicists have proposed? On this ID The Future, host Andrew McDiarmid critiques the audacious claim that our universe popped into existence out of nothing. What is nothing? What isn’t nothing? And how does the universe from nothing claim actually imply intelligent design? McDiarmid shares audio from the Science Uprising video series, as well a portion of an interview with Dr. Stephen Meyer, to help answer these questions.

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Is origin of life research going round in circles? This is ID the Future, a podcast that isn't afraid to tackle the big questions about evolution and intelligent design. Today, host Eric Anderson chats with physicist Dr. Brian Miller about circular reasoning and other problems in origin of life research. They discuss the work of Stephen Meyer and James Tour, highlighting the information problem and the difficulties in natural chemical synthesis of life's building blocks. Miller analyzes a new paper on the supposed order of amino acid recruitment into the genetic code, critiquing its underlying circular reasoning. Dr. Miller also explains the concept of causal circularity in biological systems and reveals why intelligent design provides a better explanation for the origin of life than an unguided evolutionary scenario.

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On today’s ID the Future from our archive, historian of science Michael Keas concludes a two-part conversation with science-and-religion scholar Robert Shedinger about his research into the writing and work of 19th century naturalist Charles Darwin. In this segment, Shedinger makes the case that a well-known biography of Charles Darwin, Darwin’s Sacred Cause, is deeply misleading. The book tries to make Darwin seem like a saintly abolitionist. Instead, argues Shedinger, it's closer to historical fiction than the truth. This is Part 2 of a two-part conversation. Visit idthefuture.com for more.

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On this episode, Dr. Casey Luskin concludes his conversation about the basics of intelligent design with Sam Kleckley, host of the Live Life in Motion podcast. You'll find this interview (including Part 1) particularly helpful if you are new to the science of intelligent design yourself, or you have friends or family who are open to learning more. In Part 2, Dr. Luskin begins by discussing the fossil record and the abrupt appearance of new life forms. He also tackles the often-debated question of the intelligent agent behind the design found in nature. Finally, in the realm of education, he addresses the controversy surrounding teaching evolution and intelligent design in schools. This is Part 2 of a two-part conversation.

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How would you explain intelligent design to someone who has just recently begun looking into it? Perhaps you are new to it yourself, or you have a friend or family member who is curious. Today, Dr. Casey Luskin begins a two-part discussion of the basics of intelligent design with Sam Kleckley, host of the Live Life in Motion podcast. Part 1 presents a nice overview of where and when intelligent design began, how it developed, and why it is such a compelling idea for so many. Luskin also discusses some key lines of evidence for intelligent design, including the complexity of living things at the cellular level and the evidence for the fine-tuning of the universe. This is Part 1 of a two-part discussion.

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Does the public promotion of Darwin's theory of natural selection match Darwin's own private view of his theory? On this episode of ID the Future out of the archive, historian of science Michael Keas begins a two-part conversation with Robert Shedinger, the Wilford A. Johnson Chair of Biblical Studies and Professor of Religion at Luther College and author most recently of The Mystery of Evolutionary Mechanisms: Darwinian Biology's Grand Narrative of Triumph and the Subversion of Religion. Shedinger reports on the contrast between Darwin's private view of his theory of natural selection and the public view as detailed in his published work. Shedinger also notes the deficiency in evidence for Darwin's proposal, despite claims to the contrary from his followers and evangelizers today.

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On this ID The Future, we bring you excerpts from a recent gathering to celebrate the life of biologist Dr. Jonathan Wells, who passed away in September 2024 at the age of 82. Dr. Wells was one of the first fellows of the Discovery Institute’s Center for Science and Culture. In 2000, Wells took the science world by storm with Icons of Evolution, a book showing how biology textbooks routinely promote Darwinism using bogus evidence — icons of evolution like Ernst Haeckel’s faked embryo drawings and peppered moths glued to tree trunks. Dr. Wells's achievements in the field of biology are notable. In this episode you’ll get a glimpse into Dr. Wells’s life and character as well as his relentless search for scientific truth. This episode includes eulogies from Dr. John West, Dr. Paul Nelson, Dr. Richard Sternberg, and Dr. Casey Luskin. Learn more about Jonathan Wells at www.jonathanwells.org.

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Traditional methods in biology have proven insufficient for understanding and accurately predicting complex biological systems. Why? The great majority of biologists are trained to study life from the bottom up, as the result of unguided evolutionary processes. It turns out there are better ways to observe, question, hypothesize, experiment, and analyze a complex system. On this ID The Future, host Andrew McDiarmid welcomes biochemist and metabolic nutritionist Dr. Emily Reeves to the podcast to discuss her co-authored paper on how biologists can apply principles from systems engineering to biology to better approach the study of complex living systems. Dr. Reeves explains how the new methodology works and how it can produce fruitful scientific research.

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On today’s ID the Future out of the vault, join host and geologist Casey Luskin and historian of science Michael Keas for a lively conversation puncturing a series of anti-Christian myths about the history of science, including the Dark Ages myth, the flat-earth myth, the myth that humanity was rendered insignificant by the discovery of the size of the universe, and the simplistic revisionist history of Galileo and the Inquisition. What about the claim in the recent Cosmos TV series reboot that in abandoning his traditional Jewish faith, seventeenth-century philosopher Baruch Spinoza was able to provide an improved framework for doing science? As Keas argues, the truth is just the opposite. Spinoza, he says, abandoned a key tenet of Judeo-Christian theology that had proven vital to the birth of science.

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Host Andrew McDiarmid welcomes science reporter David Coppedge to the show to explore some fascinating examples of intelligent design in the plant world. They look so helpless tied to the soil, but plants and fungi have perfected technologies for spreading themselves far and wide. Coppedge and McDiarmid unpack the ingenious methods plants and fungi use to disperse their spores. The conversation also touches on the engineering principles behind plant root systems, and how studying these natural designs can inspire advancements in human technology through biomimetics.

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On this episode of ID The Future, host Andrew McDiarmid interviews Dr. Brian Miller about the Discovery Institute's Summer Seminar Program, which offers a unique opportunity for students and professionals to explore intelligent design across various scientific disciplines. Dr. Miller shares his personal journey from participant to teacher, highlighting the program's impact on his career and the transformative experiences of other past graduates. Miller and McDiarmid also review frequently asked questions about the program, including who is eligible to apply, the costs associated with the program, the focus of the curriculum, and more.

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