In a September 2007 talk, Dembski used an over-dubbed version of a computer animation of the inner workings of the cell that he took from Harvard and XVIVO, which he subsequently claimed he had downloaded from the Internet in a form that didn't have the credits (e.g., from YouTube).
Peter Irons has now shown that the content of Dembski's latest book, Design of Life, shows that his explanation is a lie. That book includes a reference to the same video, with a link to its original location, marked as "last accessed" on January 25, 2007. Since he knew where the video came from in January 2007, he also already knew in September 2007. ERV points out the details of Dembski's deception.
(Via Pharyngula.)
UPDATE (December 31, 2007): There is an entertaining exchange of letters between Peter Irons, Bill Dembski, and Dembski's attorney John Gilmore posted at Pharyngula.
Dembski is an arrogant cockscomb and charlatan, who fancies himself above criticism by darwinists and the law. His smoke-and-mirrors mathematical humbug hides the hollowness of his position; a Hovind with an accredited degree. Martin Garder's Fads and Fallacies book has a list of criteria for judging if someone's a pseudo-scientist, and I think Dembski fits it perfectly.
ReplyDeleteOn any other issue, Dembski would be ignored and forgotten like the thousands of cranks and quacks before him. Sadly, he is supported by a well-financed and devoted core of fundamentalist backers. With such people cheering him on, no wonder he has delusions of grandeur.