With biochemist Michael Behe’s book Darwin Devolves set to release TOMORROW, Professor Behe (above) was in Richmond, VA, to teach at ID Education Day alongside Discovery Institute philosopher of biology Paul Nelson. “The conference was a smash,” Behe reports. “The morning started out with some snow (in Richmond!) but that didn’t stop anyone from attending. The audience questions and discussion were great.”

The concept behind ID Education Day is to give private school and homeschool students, educators, and parents a daylong field trip. Speakers offer a jumpstart introduction to the science behind the theory of intelligent design. ID Education Day comes next to Seattle where biologist Jonathan Wells and physicist Brian Miller will teach, and Mike Behe will speak via Skype. Save the date — Wednesday, March 20! More information is here. It’s free!

CSC Educational Outreach Coordinator Daniel Reeves introduces Michael Behe.

Discovery Institute Senior Fellow Dr. Paul Nelson teaches.

In Richmond, about 250 people joined us, including students and adults. The sessions, including a preview of the argument in Darwin Devolves, were all well-received, and the Q&A times were highly stimulating. Questions were relevant, smart, and respectfully presented — no exceptions. One of the best came from a young woman who asked for advice on avoiding “straw-man arguments” when addressing the deficits of Darwinism. That’s exactly the kind of question we love to answer!

Questions from the audience, answers from the speakers.

The inevitable book table.

Discovery Institute’s Center for Science & Culture was pleased to co-sponsor the event, but the organizing work was mostly done by the Richmond Center for Christian Study whose director, Chris Daniel, gave a very cordial introduction to the folks at CSC. He generously observed that in the paradigm shift from materialism to design, we are the number one player. Well, if you insist. Thank you!

Photo credit: Richard Elliott.