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Reading Question Set #1:  Science, Religion, Morality

1.  Gould believes that scientific creationism is:

a.  a serious contender to evolution as an explanation of life.

b.  no threat to the case that life on earth evolved through natural selection.

c.  well supported by the evidence.

d.  a global doctrine.

e.  a view that is isolated to some parts of the American protestant movement that read the Bible literally. 

2.  According to Gould, the enterprise of science is:

a.  to investigate the nature of the universe that manifests itself empirically.

b.  understanding the physical world, including human values and spiritual pursuits.

c.  incompatible with the pursuit of religious practice. 

d.  compatible with scientific creationism.  

e.  incompatible with scientific creationism. 

3.  What does NOMA mean?

a.  the projects we pursue in science will never conflict with any religious doctrine.

b.  the primary concerns of religion are distinct from, but occasionally intrude on the pursuit of scientific knowledge. 

c.  the domain of religion, while distinct, will shrink as scientific knowledge expands. 

d.  science is concerned with rocks, trees, animals—all natural things.  Religion is concerned with the entirely distinct domain of morality and spiritual meaning. 

e.  science has shown that even morality and spiritual meaning are founded in the natural, empirical world.

4.  Who has the view that evolution remains unproven and a bit dangerous?

a.  Steven Jay Gould

b.  Pope Pius

c.  Pope John Paul

d.  The Italian and French priests that Gould meets for lunch.

e.  Catholics in general. 

5.  When Gould says,  “If religion can no longer dictate the nature of factual conclusions properly under the magisterium of science, then scientists cannot claim higher insight into moral truth from any superior knowledge of the world's empirical constitution,”  he means,

a.  that science and religion cannot have a legitimate dialogue. 

b.  science and religion should stay out of each other’s business.

c.  NOMA is a mistaken position because it delimits the reach of vital scientific inquiry. 

d.  NOMA dictates that religion and science share goals and domains of inquiry. 

e.  Religion can discover empirical facts as well as science, and science can inquire into the nature of values.

6.  Gould believes that,

a.  religious claims that the life did not evolve and scientific claims that it did are compatible. 

b.  the scientific analysis of values is a misapplication of science. 

c.  scientists would do well to heed John Paul’s admonition about the dangers associated with evolutionary theory. 

d.  science has its origins in the Catholic church. 

7.  Paul Kurtz has the view that science and religion:

a.  are compatible.

b.  are incompatible. 

c.  pursue two different kinds of truths that do not overlap. 

d.  both make paranatural claims that can be empirically tested. 

8.  According to Kurtz, how would a skeptic answer these pairs of questions:

(1) Does the soul or consciousness exist, as a separate and distinct entity; or is it a function of the brain?

(2) Does science provide evidence for "intelligent design," or does evolutionary biology suffice without it?

(3) Is it possible to influence the healing of persons by praying for them at a distance, or are the tests performed completely unreliable?

(4) Is there empirical evidence for the claim that "near-death experiences" enable us to reach "the other side," or are there alternative physiological and psychological explanations for these experiences?

(5) Can mediums under certain conditions communicate with deceased persons, or are the protocols of such tests too loose?

(6) Does the Big Bang hypothesis in astronomy point to God as the cause of the universe, or is the latter claim beyond science and purely speculative?

a.  they would deny the first question and answer affirmatively to the second.

b.  skeptics would deny that such questions are even meaningful.

c.  they would answer in favor of science where we have empirical evidence.

d.  skeptics would deny the existence of paranormal and religious entities no matter what the consequences or evidence. 

e.  they would deny the second question and answer affirmatively to the first.

9.  What view does Kurtz take about Gould and NOMA?

a.  there are two truths, the truths of science, employing the methods of scientific inquiry, and  the truths of religion, which transcend the categories of empirical fact and logic.

b.  Ethics is not the proper domain of religion;  religion does not have any special expertise in the field of morality. 

c.  science has no role to play in analyzing moral judgments, so that realm is suitable for religion.

d.  he agrees with Gould about the essential points of NOMA. 

10. The essential role of religion, according to Kurtz, is:

a.  the expression of cultural heritage.

b.  the expression of emotive, evocative, poetic, and eschatological needs in humans. 

c.  to provide guidance in the domain of morality. 

d.  science has left no room for religion. 

11.  Kurtz is endorsing,

a.   methodological naturalism, but not scientific naturalism.

b.  scientific naturalism, but not methodological naturalism.

c.  both scientific naturalism and methodological naturalism.

d. neither scientific naturalism, nor methodological naturalism.   

12.  When Socrates asks:  “The point which I should first wish to understand is whether the pious or holy is beloved by the gods because it is holy, or holy because it is beloved of the gods,”  he means,

a.  Does something become holy because the gods love it, or do they love it because it is holy?

b.  Does an act get loved by the gods, or is it holy? 

c.  When the gods love something, is it holy or not?

d.  When something is holy, do the gods love it or not? 

13.  What is Socrates’ view of Euthyphro’s definition of the good as that which is loved by the gods?

a. Socrates thinks that it doesn’t give us a definition of the good at all.

b.  Socrates agrees with Euthyphro’s definition, and then tries to determine what the gods love. 

c.  Socrates thinks that the gods love something distinct from that which is good. 

d.  Socrates disagrees with Euthyphro’s definition because there are no gods. 

14.  Which of these are not among the building blocks of morality instilled by evolution according to Pinker:

a.  group loyalty

b.  disgust

c.  authority

d.  harm

e.  purity

15.  According to Pinker, how can human moral sense be universal and variable at the same time?

a. right and wrong are universal concepts, but the details of what belongs on those lists varies from culture to culture.

b.  all cultures agree about some basic, universal moral values.

c.  it is universal for cultures to have morality, but everything else is variable. 

d.  the basic concepts of morality like “fairness” are universal, but how high a priority a culture puts on what’s fair varies greatly. 

16.  Pinker is best understood as a(n):

a. Divine Command Theorist

b. Evolutionary Moralist

c. Moral Realist.

d. Linguistic Evolutionist

e.  Moral Relativist

17.  Consider Steven Jay Gould’s NOMA position and Pinker’s view about morality.  Which one of these is correct.

a. Gould and Pinker would agree about the source of our moral knowledge.

b.  Gould and Pinker would disagree about the source of our moral knowledge. 

c.  Gould and Pinker would agree that science can help us to understand the ultimate answers about our values. 

d.  Gould and Pinker would agree that incest and eating your dog are both immoral, scientifically and religiously. 

18.  Veneer theory, according to deWaal, is the view that:

a.  humans have evolved to be sympathetic at the core towards others of their own species, and there is a further veneer of social values imposed on top. 

b.  humans are bad or sinful at their core, and society imposes a thin, and fragile shell of civility on top.

c.  monkey morality mirrors human morality. 

d.  human morality is a veneer of previous versions of animal morality, especially found in chimps. 

19.  Which of these best represents what primate studies have shown about human morality:

a.  Human morality is worse in several regards than monkey morality. 

b.  Primates have a simple morality of their own, but it is fundamentally unlike human morality.

c.  Primates do not possess the basic features of cognition to be able to function as moral agents. 

d.  There is continuity of several basic vectors of morality from primates to humans. 

20.  Consider de Waal’s view and Gould’s view.  Which one of these is correct:

a. Gould and deWaal would agree about being able to derive morality from primates.

b.  Gould and deWaal would disagree about  being able to learn about human morality from the study of primates.    

c.  Gould and deWaal would agree that science can help us to understand the ultimate answers about our values. 

d.  deWaal would argue that concern for the pain of others is evident in humans but not in monkeys;  Gould’s view is that human values are the proper domain of religion only.