On this ID The Future, host Andrew McDiarmid welcomes Dr. Tom Woodward to the podcast to share some of his memories of our longtime colleague Dr. Jonathan Wells, who recently passed away at 82 years old. In Part 1, Dr. Woodward tells the story of Jonathan’s efforts to fight the battle over textbook misinformation with his 2000 book Icons of Evolution. When the book first came out, National Center for Science Education director Eugenie Scott said that Icons of Evolution would be a “royal pain in ...
Mar 10, 2025•20 min•Ep 2028•Transcript available on Metacast Dr. Richard Sternberg speaks on his mathematical/logical work showing the difficulty of identifying genes purely with material phenomena. Source
Mar 07, 2025•23 min•Ep 2027•Transcript available on Metacast On this episode of ID The Future, philosopher of biology Paul Nelson continues to share his remembrances of our longtime colleague Dr. Jonathan Wells, who passed away in 2024 at 82 years old. Dr. Wells was one of the first fellows at Discovery Institute’s Center for Science & Culture, and his contributions to the intelligent design movement over the last quarter century have been monumental. In Part 2 of the conversation, Dr. Nelson shares another adventure he had with Jonathan, this time at...
Mar 05, 2025•24 min•Ep 2026•Transcript available on Metacast On this episode of ID The Future, host Andrew McDiarmid welcomes philosopher of biology Paul Nelson to share some of his remembrances of our longtime colleague Dr. Jonathan Wells, who passed away in 2024 at 82 years old. Dr. Wells was one of the first fellows at Discovery Institute’s Center for Science & Culture, and his contributions to the intelligent design movement over the last quarter century have been monumental. In the first half of the conversation, Dr. Nelson takes listeners back t...
Mar 03, 2025•32 min•Ep 2025•Transcript available on Metacast On today’s ID the Future from the vault, Casey Luskin continues his conversation with host Eric Anderson about the myths surrounding human origins. Luskin rebuts the popular claim that the human and chimp genomes are 98-99% similar and therefore surely resulted from Darwinian common descent. He also throws shade in the argument that humans and chimps share junk DNA similarities. The problem? So-called "pseudogenes" are turning out to have functions. Listen in as Luskin unravels this popular myth...
Feb 28, 2025•30 min•Ep 2024•Transcript available on Metacast Can we train AI models to help us detect evidence of intelligent design? On this ID The Future, host Andrew McDiarmid welcomes science reporter and former NASA engineer David Coppedge to the podcast to talk about scientists who are doing just that: using artificial intelligence to make design inferences. Here, Coppedge tells us about a group of scientists who are training an AI model to search through imaging data to identify possible instances of human-made geoglyphs in the Nazca Plain in Peru....
Feb 26, 2025•21 min•Ep 2023•Transcript available on Metacast Did meaning and purpose arise from a bottom-up Darwinian process to give us an evolutionary advantage? Or is the universe infused with meaning and purpose for a deeper reason than survival? On this ID The Future, host Andrew McDiarmid and Dr. Emily Reeves explore whether meaning and purpose can emerge from an unguided evolutionary process. They also discuss the machine metaphor in biology and how it can help us understand and explain living systems. Source...
Feb 24, 2025•35 min•Ep 2022•Transcript available on Metacast What is wrong with the standard evolutionary story of human origins? On today’s ID the Future from the archive, host Eric Anderson begins a two-part conversation with geologist Dr. Casey Luskin to discuss why evolutionary models of paleo-anthropology, genetics, and evolutionary psychology fail to account for human origins. Dr. Luskin contributed a chapter on the topic in the 2023 book Science and Faith in Dialogue, which also features chapters from Stephen Meyer, Guillermo Gonzalez, James Tour, ...
Feb 21, 2025•34 min•Ep 2021•Transcript available on Metacast What's the best explanation for the origin of complex life? And while skepticism is healthy, can perpetual skepticism prevent us from moving closer to the truth? On this ID The Future, enjoy the second half of a stimulating conversation between philosopher of science Dr. Stephen Meyer and historian of science and Skeptic Magazine founding editor Michael Shermer. The conversation was hosted by comedian and podcaster Bryan Callen on The Bryan Callen Show. In Part 2, Meyer and Shermer both address ...
Feb 19, 2025•51 min•Ep 2020•Transcript available on Metacast Humans seem to be drawn in a certain direction toward truth and beauty. Is that an accident of nature? Or is there a higher truth prompting it? On this ID The Future, we're pleased to share the first half of an engaging conversation between philosopher of science Dr. Stephen Meyer and historian of science Michael Shermer about science, God, the origin of information, and the nature of mind. The conversation was hosted by comedian and podcaster Bryan Callen on The Bryan Callen Show. In Part 1, Me...
Feb 17, 2025•50 min•Ep 2019•Transcript available on Metacast On this classic ID the Future out of the vault, we hear commentary on the singularity from distinguished cosmologist Frank Tipler, co-author of The Anthropic Cosmological Principle. The singularity in question isn’t the supposed future singularity imagined by transhumanists, but the evidentially well-supported singularity at the foundation of the Big Bang. The equations are clear, says Tipler, as are their implications: among its many arresting features, the Big Bang singularity had an existence...
Feb 14, 2025•14 min•Ep 2018•Transcript available on Metacast Happy Darwin Day! But what's the current status of Darwinism? And if modern Darwinism is broken, what's the best way to commemorate Darwin's life and achievements? On this ID The Future, host Andrew McDiarmid welcomes Dr. Casey Luskin to give us answers to those questions. On this episode, Dr. Luskin reviews the current status of Darwinism, gives us an impressive sampling of the evidence for intelligent design, and instructs us on the most appropriate way to mark Darwin Day today. Source...
Feb 12, 2025•33 min•Ep 2017•Transcript available on Metacast Why do so many evangelical Christians reinvent their theology to make it consistent with undirected Darwinism? On this ID The Future, Dr. John West reads an excerpt from his new book Stockholm Syndrome Christianity: Why Christian Leaders Are Failing And What We Can Do About It. As Exhibit A of an influential evangelical Christian that has been captivated by scientific materialism, West unpacks the work and troubled legacy of Dr. Francis Collins. During his tenure as director of the National Inst...
Feb 10, 2025•14 min•Ep 2016•Transcript available on Metacast On this episode of ID the Future out of the vault, host Emily Kurlinski talks with Michael Egnor, professor of neurosurgery at Stony Brook University, about the dire warnings, stretching back at least to Thomas Malthus near the turn of the nineteenth century, that overpopulation would lead to starvation and civilizational ruin. Egnor discusses this and other scientific claims once widely embraced by scientific experts and later shown to be off base. The lesson, Egnor says, is that when someone t...
Feb 07, 2025•14 min•Ep 2015•Transcript available on Metacast When Christians in science embrace scientific materialism over historical biblical teaching, they mislead their fellow believers and hinder scientific progress. On this ID The Future, host Andrew McDiarmid concludes a two-part conversation about this problem with Dr. John West, author of the new book Stockholm Syndrome Christianity: Why Christian Leaders Are Failing and What We Can Do About It. In Part 2, Dr. West describes three biblical beliefs that have been corroded by theistic evolution. He...
Feb 05, 2025•38 min•Ep 2014•Transcript available on Metacast What if American culture isn’t collapsing because of crusading secularists? What if it’s failing because leading Christians identify more with secular elites than with their fellow believers? Those are the provocative questions posed by Dr. John West's new book Stockholm Syndrome Christianity, which exposes how influential Christian leaders are siding with their anti-Christian cultural captors on everything from biblical authority and science to sex, race, and religious liberty. On this ID The F...
Feb 03, 2025•31 min•Ep 2013•Transcript available on Metacast On this ID the Future out of the archive, Nancy Pearcey, author of numerous books, including The Soul of Science (co-authored with Charles Thaxton) and Love Thy Body: Answering Hard Questions about Life and Sexuality, challenges the common belief that Darwin’s leading early supporters were convinced of the main pillars of his theory. Many in the nineteenth century were already primed to accept a theory of evolution, but not necessarily by natural selection. As Pearcey explains, some of Darwin’s ...
Jan 31, 2025•18 min•Ep 2012•Transcript available on Metacast What part of neo-Darwinian evolution is actually random? Can random mutational processes account for the new information needed to drive the diversity of life on Earth? On this ID The Future, host Andrew McDiarmid reads selections from Dr. Stephen Meyer and Dr. Casey Luskin to find answers to these questions. If you want the confidence to be able to tell your friends, family, and associates why modern evolutionary theory fails to account for the origin and diversity of life on Earth, you’ve got ...
Jan 29, 2025•24 min•Ep 2011•Transcript available on Metacast One of the most incredible features of cellular life is the capability of self-replication. But can a Darwinian mechanism take the credit for the origin and design of the cell division process? On this episode of ID The Future, host Andrew McDiarmid concludes a four-part series with Dr. Jonathan McLatchie on the intelligent design and irreducible complexity of eukaryotic cell division. In his recent paper on eukaryotic cell division, Dr. McLatchie quotes a Latin expression Darwin uses in his fam...
Jan 27, 2025•20 min•Ep 2010•Transcript available on Metacast Today’s ID the Future out of vault puts atheist Richard Dawkins’s book Outgrowing God under the microscope and reveals multiple ways his argument smashes up against contrary scientific evidence. Walking us through the critique are author and Mama Bear Apologetics founder Hillary Morgan Ferrer and her co-host, Amy Davison. The two co-hosts rebut several pro-evolution arguments from Dawkins with strong evidence of sophisticated engineering order in animal life. Source...
Jan 25, 2025•56 min•Ep 2009•Transcript available on Metacast One of the most incredible features of cellular life is the capability of self-replication. And built into the remarkable process of cell division are several checkpoints that ensure the success of this life or death cellular practice. But can a Darwinian mechanism take the credit for this elegant cellular system? On this ID The Future, host Andrew McDiarmid continues his four-part conversation with Dr. Jonathan McLatchie on the intelligent design and irreducible complexity of eukaryotic cell di...
Jan 22, 2025•28 min•Ep 2008•Transcript available on Metacast Could the components of the eukaryotic cell division process have arisen through a gradual, unguided process? On this ID The Future, Dr. Jonathan McLatchie casts light on the unlikelihood of this proposition as he continues a four-episode series with host Andrew McDiarmid on the intelligent design and irreducible complexity of eukaryotic cell division. In this segment, McLatchie dives into some of the key molecular machinery responsible for the success of mitosis: the mitotic spindle and the mot...
Jan 20, 2025•23 min•Ep 2007•Transcript available on Metacast We are mourning the recent loss of our friend and colleague Günter Bechly. Gunter was a world-class paleontologist and an inspiration to many for his learned insight into the fossil record and his brave rejection of Darwinian dogma. Today we’re sharing the second half of a two-part interview with Dr. Bechly originally recorded in 2018 with host Sarah Chaffee. You’ve likely heard of the Cambrian Explosion of animal life. But what about all the other geologically sudden explosions of biodive...
Jan 17, 2025•21 min•Ep 2006•Transcript available on Metacast On this ID The Future, host Casey Luskin concludes a two-part conversation with Dr. Uditha Jayatunga, a medical doctor and consultant in rehabilitation medicine in the UK, about the challenges that biological complexity poses to evolutionary theory. Their chat is a helpful refresher on some of the biggest challenges to a Darwinian explanation for the origin and development of life on Earth. In Part 2, Dr. Jayatunga provides more examples of purposeful complexity from the animal world and unpacks...
Jan 15, 2025•25 min•Ep 2005•Transcript available on Metacast Does animal complexity suggest a Darwinian origin, or is it evidence of intelligent design? On this ID The Future, host Casey Luskin begins a two-part conversation with Dr. Uditha Jayatunga, a medical doctor and consultant in rehabilitation medicine in the UK, about the challenges that biological complexity poses to evolutionary theory. Part 1 of the conversation covers the complexity of cells, the need for the simultaneous origin of complex systems, and some fascinating examples of design and c...
Jan 13, 2025•28 min•Ep 2004•Transcript available on Metacast We were shocked and grieved to learn of the death of our friend and colleague Günter Bechly this week. Gunter was a world-class paleontologist and an inspiration to many for his learned insight into the fossil record and his brave rejection of Darwinian dogma. Over the next two Fridays, we're sharing a two-part interview originally recorded in 2018 with host Sarah Chaffee. In this exchange, Gunter spotlights some problems the fossil record poses for Darwinism and, specifically, the theory’s idea...
Jan 10, 2025•17 min•Ep 2003•Transcript available on Metacast If a grand multiverse contains everything that’s possible, it ends up explaining nothing. On this ID The Future, physicist Brian Miller concludes his conversation with mathematician Elie Feder and physicist Aaron Zimmer, hosts of the Physics to God podcast, about their unique formulation of the fine-tuning argument and their rigorous examination of the multiverse hypothesis. In Part 2, Feder and Zimmer explain in detail three premises they use to critically evaluate the strength of multive...
Jan 08, 2025•27 min•Ep 2002•Transcript available on Metacast It can be tempting to dismiss the idea of the multiverse as unobservable fantasy. But what happens when the available evidence for it is given a fair shake? On this ID The Future, physicist Brian Miller begins a conversation with mathematician Elie Feder and physicist Aaron Zimmer, hosts of the Physics to God podcast, about their unique formulation of the fine-tuning argument and their rigorous examination of the multiverse hypothesis. In Part 1, Feder and Zimmer explain how their podcast got st...
Jan 06, 2025•23 min•Ep 2001•Transcript available on Metacast On this episode of ID The Future from the archive, John West, Associate Director of the Center for Science & Culture and author of Walt Disney and Live Action, talks about how science is portrayed in Walt Disney’s films and theme parks. Disney’s worldview was an interesting blend of 19th century morals with a 21st century vision for science and technology. A futurist, Disney was given to techno-utopianism and his works tended to reflect this, but they have also offered warning messages about...
Jan 03, 2025•14 min•Ep 2000•Transcript available on Metacast Most people know Hawaii is famous for its beaches. But did you know it’s also home to one of the world’s leading stations for monitoring the atmosphere? On this ID The Future, self-taught citizen scientist Forrest Mims talks to host Andrew McDiarmid about the history and significance of the world-famous Mauna Loa Observatory in Hawaii. He also shares some of his own experiences and adventures there over the last quarter century. In this episode, Mims reminds us of his dust-up with Sc...
Dec 30, 2024•39 min•Ep 1999•Transcript available on Metacast 
