80 107 - Freshman Seminar:Life, the Universe and God: The Argument from Design

Institution:

Carnegie Mellon University

Subject:

Description:

What, if anything do the sciences of biology and cosmology tell us about the existence of God? For more than two thousand years it has been argued that God's existence can be deduced from observable features of the world. The features in question?whether the ineffable complexity of living things or the precise balance of constants in the physical laws that govern the cosmos?are supposed to be ?marks of design,? and thus scientific evidence for a designer. We will examine many forms of the design argument, from those put forward by Cicero in the first century BC to the modern theories of ?Intelligent Design? and ?Cosmic Fine Tuning,? with two goals in mind: (i) to determine which if any version of the design argument is sound, and (ii) to understand what makes any argument rationally compelling. We will focus on developing the skills necessary for analyzing complex arguments, and we will apply these skills to one of the most enduring arguments for the existence of God.

Credits:

9.00

Credit Hours:

Prerequisites:

Corequisites:

Exclusions:

Level:

Instructional Type:

Lecture

Notes:

Additional Information:

Historical Version(s):

Institution Website:

www.cmu.edu/

Phone Number:

(412) 268-2000

Regional Accreditation:

Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools

Calendar System:

Semester

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