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November 25, 2009

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Letter: Lots of evidence supports Darwin

Tuesday, Aug. 9, 2005 | 9:05 a.m.

This is in reference to your story last Wednesday on the World & Nation page headlined, "Teaching evolution debate is renewed." Lest they appear ignorant, those who want to further an agenda of teaching the philosophy of "intelligent design" in science classes may want to pick up a dictionary first and look up the word "theory."

Like many words, theory has more than one meaning, depending on the context in which it is used. In the context of the "theory of evolution," the word means "a closely reasoned set of propositions supported by established evidence and intended to serve as an explanation for a group of phenomena."

Theory here does not mean speculation or conjecture, which many proponents of intelligent design seem to imply when they sneeringly refer to Darwin's "theory" and say it should not be taught as fact. Established evidence is fact. Intelligent design is a philosophical speculation.

LIZ CRONKHITE

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