The April 27th episode of Cosmos: A Spacetime Odyssey saw Dr. Neil deGrasse Tyson declared the age of the earth as 4.5 billion years, Answers in Genesis (AiG), an organization headed by creationist Ken Ham, protested the way in which scientists like Clair Patterson had deciphered the true age of the planet.
According to AiG, Tyson had earlier said that the true age of earth cannot be found in the absence of reliable historical records, which is what AiG considers the Bible to be. The episode on April 27 showed how good data can always triumph over bad data, which is exactly how science works, through peer-review. Ignorant of the latter point, AiG repeated its accusation that science is biased and flawed.
“How ironic that the Cosmos writers shine light on how scientists’ biases affect how they interpret the same data! Bias doesn’t just come from a desire for money, prestige, or power. Bias also comes from a scientist’s worldview,” wrote AiG.
Tyson referred to the Grand Canyon to explain the age of the earth, showing viewers how the many layers of rocks explain the canyon’s formation and age, but AiG disputed that as well. According to AiG, the canyon was formed during a catastrophic event, namely the great flood that is described in detail in the book of Genesis. The organization assailed Tyson for ignoring this evidence in the Bible and at the same time became a laughing stock for the millions of viewers who follow Cosmos on a regular basis.
“Truth does not change according to who believes it. Our Creator God has provided us with truth about our temporal and physical origins in His Word. And that history is consistent with what we observe scientifically,” wrote AiG while closing its argument.
AiG’s stance maintains that Patterson and other scientists, who on a completely different note also claim to be atheists, are anti-creation. However, the truth of the matter is that science is only looking to explain better the world we inhabit.
AiG has regularly attacked the Cosmos program, demanding equal airtime on Fox so the world could be taught the creationist view. AiG also attacked Tyson for mocking the Bible as authoritative while saying, “17th-century scholar Archbishop Ussher like almost everyone one else of his time and his world accepted the biblical account of creation as authoritative.”
Although AiG sought to defend Ussher by saying Isaac Newton too believed in the Archbishop’s views, the truth is that Newton believed in radioactive or carbon dating even before Darwin discovered natural selection.
