Designer Science

A History of Intelligent Design in America

By: C.W. Howell

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Hardcover | 9 September 2025

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Hardcover
288 Pages

Dimensions(cm)
23.6 x 16.4 x 2.6

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The history of the intelligent design movement and its legacy Anti-science rhetoric in contemporary American politics has become a preoccupying concern for science educators, politicians, and government employees. But why are so many Americans primed to distrust the scientific establishment? This book offers a history of the intelligent design movement, analyzing the links between the legal contests over United States high school curricula and a radical rejection of contemporary scientific practice. Though closely associated with creationism, the intelligent design movement has its own story. It is related to but different from the various forms of creationism, and it has a unique background in natural theology and conservative politics. Typically perceived today as defunct after its public defeat in the 2005 Kitzmiller v. Dover court case, intelligent design did not disappear, and this book makes the case that its legacy is far more significant than we might think. Though it failed to achieve its goal of remaking contemporary science, intelligent design played a crucial role in legitimizing a mindset of suspicion which has taken hold in discussions of climate change, COVID-19, and vaccine hesitancy. In today's post-truth moment, where scientific expertise has become increasingly rejected, the volume showcases that the intelligent design movement's most lasting effects may not be in its challenge to evolution, but in the way it influenced the public's understanding of science and scientists. Designer Science makes the case that we are all grappling today with intelligent design's legacy, and it offers a history of how we got here.

Industry Reviews

A significant contribution to the history of American religion and popular culture as well as the long-standing disputes over science and religion in the American context. One of the great virtues of this work is that its author is eminently fair in his treatment of the book's most notable figures, drawing the reader's attention to both their academic accomplishments and shortcomings. Because the public disputes over evolution in the American context have often been marked by vitriol and ridicule, with a tendency to label and dismiss, Howell's presentation is a breath of fresh air. There is simply not a better historical account of the modern Intelligent Design movement. -- Francis J. Beckwith, Professor of Philosophy and Church-State Studies, Baylor University.

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