Design vs. Darwinism

In 'Design' vs. Darwinism, Darwin Wins Point in Rome

In Rome, the official Vatican newspaper published an article stating that Darwinism is "correct". The decision was made by a judge in Pennsylvania who said that intelligent design should not be taught as a scientific alternative to evolution.

Fiorenzo Facchini, a professor of evolutionary biology at the University of Bologna, had proposed that if the theory of evolution was not sufficient, another should be searched for. Researchers from an organization in Seattle defended evolution. Advocates for intelligent design argue that biological life is so complex that it must have been designed by an intelligent source.

On December 20, a federal district judge in Pennsylvania ruled that public schools could not present intelligent design as an alternative to evolutionary theory.


In the ninteenth century, Charles Darwin first presented the idea of "Darwinism". He emphasized natural selection and survival of the fittest. He published The Origin of Species in which Darwin provided the first cogent mechanism by which evolutionary change could persist. He was unable to explain several critical components of the evolutionary process, but was able to explain the source of variation of traits within a species. The scientific community began to accept Darwin's idea.