Gridley professorship candidate to talk about intelligent design
2:36:08 PM CDT - Thursday, March 03, 2005
By Amy Geiszler-Jones
Niall Shanks, who is a candidate for WSU's new Curtis D. Gridley Professorship in the History and Philosophy of Science, will give a public lecture, "Intelligent Design Theory: Science or Nonsense," at 2 p.m. March 7, in 107 Devlin Hall.
Shanks is a philosophy professor at East Tennessee State University and is the author of "God, the Devil, and Darwin: A Critique of Intelligent Design Theory."
As part of the search process for this new professorship, the candidates will teach a class and give a lecture open to the public, said Keith Pickus, chair of the search committee. The reason for the public lecture is that the donor, alumnus Curtis Gridley, indicated when establishing the fund that the professor chosen for the position engage in public discussions, Pickus said.
"It's just a coincidence this candidate is an expert on an issue that's timely," Pickus said. Kansas science education standards, that include the topic of evolution, are once again in the news.
The Gridley Professorship is one of WSU's newly announced Faculty of Distinction professorships. Gifts of more than $350,000 to establish a professorship qualify for the state's Faculty Distinction program in which the state will annually match the income generated from the fund.
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