The Biology that dare not speak its name

Evolution, the unifying principle of modern biology, can now be mentioned in Florida public schools! According to the AP story

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) -- Florida's public school science standards for the first time will use the word ''evolution,'' although the biological concept already was being taught under code words such as ''change over time.''

The new standards, part of a set of overall science changes adopted by the State Board of Education Tuesday on a 4-3 vote, require schools to spend more class time on evolution and teach it in more detail.
. . .
Opponents of evolution denied they had a religious motive, arguing that there are flaws in the scientific theory of evolution and that students should be allowed to explore them.

As a compromise, the standards refer to evolution as a scientific theory, explaining that a theory is a well-supported and accepted explanation of nature, not simply a claim.
. . .
John Sullivan, executive director of the Florida Baptist Convention, objected to calling evolution the only fundamental concept underlying biology. He wrote in an e-mail to Education Commissioner Eric Smith that Baptists firmly believe there's evidence of a ''Creator-initiated origin of life'' but did not object to teaching evolution. He argued, though, its scientific weaknesses should be taught as well as its strengths.

Among the standard tactics used by evolution opponents is to ensure evolution is labeled as (only a) "theory" -- which they recognize in common usage to mean, your guess is as good as mine. It's encouraging that the Florida standards "compromise" explains that evolution is a theory in the scientific sense -- which is to say, it is an explanation of nature that is well supported by known facts, and makes testable predictions. That this is a social, not a scientific, issue is quite apparent from the fact that evolution opponents spend no time lobbying against the germ theory of disease, quantum theory, or relativity theory to ensure that their scientific weaknesses be taught and that the competing claim that, simply, "God does it" be presented. After all, we know that the acceleration of gravity on earth is 9.8 m/s² (32.2 ft/s²), but beyond that, any explanation is "just a theory" and, if one allows supernatural explanations, it is just as plausible that God makes apples fall.