Intelligent Design

[Kitsu]

From Wikipedia:

Intelligent design is the assertion that "certain features of the universe and of living things are best explained by an intelligent cause, not an undirected process such as natural selection."[1][2] It is a modern form of the traditional teleological argument for the existence of God, but one which purposefully avoids specifying the nature or identity of the designer.

Essentially, the Intelligent Design movement is based around the idea that an intelligent being (read: God) intervened in Natural Selection, and created the Universe, etc cetera.

Intelligent Design arguments usually include things like "...The Universe is fine tuned for life...", or that the Universe/Life is "too complex' (see Irreducible Complexity) to have just "happened".

The latter assumes that life and the universe have always been so complex, and the formed assumes that life could only arise in its current form.

Intelligent Design arguments also commonly use secular terms, although the core idea is that a god (usually the Judeo-Christian god) created the Universe and started life.

Intelligent design (ID) is an anti-evolution belief asserting that naturalistic explanations of some biological entities are not possible and such entities can only be explained by intelligent causes.* Advocates of ID maintain that their belief is scientific and provides empirical proof for the existence of God or superintelligent aliens. They claim that intelligent design should be taught in the science classroom as an alternative to the science of evolution. ID is essentially a hoax, however, since evolution is consistent with a belief in an intelligent designer of the universe and with an unlimited number of other metaphysical myths. The two are not contradictory and they are not necessarily competitors, though evolution clearly contradicts the creation stories of numerous religions. ID is proposed mainly by Christian apologists at the Discovery Institute and their allies, who oppose the science of evolution because it threatens their hidebound, literalistic view of Bible stories. The approach of the Discovery Institute to scientific discoveries that contradict their literal understanding of the Bible is reminiscent of the early twentieth-century organization known as the World Association of Christian Fundamentalists.

[1]



Sources:
[1]Skepdic.com
actionbioscience.org [link]
Wikipedia for main definition.

[Maedhros]

Intelligent design is such a strange movement. Proponents argue that they deserve equal time in schools alongside evolutionary theory, yet they want to circumvent the entire scientific process. They have never submitted evidence for rigorous peer-review, but they assert that the scientific community is being "biased" towards them. To give an analogy, it's like a little kid who gets mad because he can't play in the sandbox, yet when offered the opportunity to play, he refuses it and keeps on whining.

Dr. Ken Miller delivered a fantastic presentation on the subject, exposing ID for what it really is: a rehashed form of theism attempting to worm its way into the classroom.