"Evolution and Religious Creation Myths arms the public with facts about the differences between myth and science, fiction and theory. The book begins with a whirlwind tour of creation stories and then explores the ways in which certain forms of religious fundamentalism clash with the science of evolution. It examines how creationists and Intelligent Design proponents misuse and misrepresent scientific terms and conclusions to further their own agendas, and how scientists respond to this threat."--BOOK JACKET. Distributed by Syndetic Solutions, Inc.

This densely packed and meticulously researched volume offers many strategies and facts to use to combat the creationists and neocreationists who are busily engaged in attempts to stultify science and science education in the US today. It should be very useful, although, as always in a culture war, facts are generally not enough. Furthermore, since this conflict is basically a symptom of a deeper vein of anti-intellectualism, also unclear is whether a scholarly work, primarily written to motivate scholars to wake up and provide rebuttals for ignorance, is the best weapon. But Lurquin and Stone (both, Washington State Univ.) have made a solid beginning. The only quibble is that the target audience is a bit mysterious. The chapters on basic biological science are essentially a summary of an introductory college course in biology, so this work is certainly not meant solely for biological scientists. The same is true for the cosmological/astrophysical chapters. Perhaps readers are supposed to pick and choose chapters for background reading, based on their training. In all cases, however--e.g., the material on the history of creationism and neocreationism, and the chapter on the dangers of creationism--this book makes for good and useful reading. Summing Up: Recommended. Lower-level undergraduates through faculty/researchers; general readers. General Readers; Lower-division Undergraduates; Upper-division Undergraduates; Graduate Students; Researchers/Faculty. Reviewed by D. A. Rintoul. From: Syndetics Solutions, Inc. Distributed by Syndetic Solutions, Inc.

Linda Stone is a professor in the Department of Anthropology at Washington State University. Distributed by Syndetic Solutions, Inc.