Doctoral Dissertation Research: American Humanists and the Ideology of Science

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9311037 Numbers Science and religion have had a long and at times contentious relationship in the United States. Within the past decade, advocates of more fundamentalist Christian sects have argued that many of the theories of contemporary science, especially the theory of evolution, have been advanced by a "religion" known as secular humanism. The fundamentalists have offered an alternative creationist theory and have convinced at least two state legislatures that the opposing theories should have equal standing in biology classes. In his dissertation research, Mr. Sheldon is examining the development of "secular humanism" and its relationship to science in 20th century America. His objectives are to understand the role of science and religion in humanist thought and the ways in which prominent scientists and popularists have adopted humanism as a framework for the presentation of the history, discoveries and methods of science. The project focuses on John Dewey, H. J. Muller, Carl Sagan, B. F. Skinner and others. The project involves a thorough survey of the primary humanist journals in America as well as published works of the principal actors and critics. In addition, Mr. Sheldon is using interviews and archival research to provide crucial data on the institutional development of humanism and its relation to scientists and their ideas. ***