Scopes Simulation

Over a two day spam, we did a Scopes Simulation which was really interesting and it was a great way to learn some new vocabulary. I was a jury member and my job was to record notes, keep score, and make a final decision on who won the trial. 

SCOPES SIMULATION:

• Intelligent design → life is too complex because there is some sort of intelligent design that says so (there is no clear evidence to back this up)
• There is an extent where Natural Selection causes Evolution
• Natural Selection could not have caused Intelligent Design
• Many people believe that God created us however many people believe that evolution created us -- not God
• We are unsure if God created us
• Something has to start from something else which means that Evolution must have been involved
• We all start as humans and evolve from there
• Louis Walport → Developmental Biologist
• Intelligent Design is an advancement in the human species
• Science has a lot to do with the answer
• Life is created from specific acts such as religion
• The Establishment Clause: The government cannot establish a textbook that promoted a certain religion (PROBLEMATIC)
• Theory of the Flying Spaghetti Monster and the Pink Unicorn: The Spaghetti Monster acts like the GOD that changes things
• All religious beliefs should be taught in school
• Point of the school is to teach students about things in an unbiased way
• Irreducible Complexity and Specify Complexity: Nature cannot be described or explained as a religion → nobody knows who the higher power is 
• Theory of Evolution - Organisms evolve overtime to what they are now and continue to further grow

FINAL PARAGRAPH

I believe that TEAM 1 (Sana, Chiara, Tara, CJ, and Leila) who favored Intelligent Design won the trial because they made really good and strong arguments explaining why Intelligent Design would not interfere with kids and their learning process. For example, they mentioned that the point of the school was to teach students about things in an unbiased way. This means that if Intelligent Design were to be taught in school, it would not enforce a certain religion upon any student. They could not force students to believe in a certain religion because that is not up to them. The defense team called their witnesses up but it seemed that their witnesses were unclear of what they were talking about alongside the fact that the attorney had lots of questions that were quite confusing. They also mentioned that ¨natural selection could not have caused intelligent design¨ which meant that the evolution of species could not have had anything to do with ¨the theory that life, or the universe.¨