Belly-buttons - yes or no? (Did Adam and Eve Have Navels? - Martin Gardner)

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Product:	Did Adam and Eve Have Navels? - Martin Gardner
Date:	15/03/01 (41 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Interesting read

Disadvantages: A bit too glib sometimes

It’s a more interesting question than you might think. Well, did Adam and Eve have belly-buttons or not? If they didn’t, then how did their descendants get them? That kind of thinking leads to evolution, which is out for many religious fundamentalists. If they did, than that suggests that they were born. Again, that goes against Biblical teaching. It’s a bizarre little conundrum, but one that has exercised a number of different religious thinkers over time.

The question provides both the title of Martin Gardner’s latest opus and his opening chapter. It manages to combine science, religion and the activities of cranky obsessives in one neat little bundle. Gardner has spent more than fifty years tackling pseudo-scientists, charlatans, tricksters and fakes and he shows little sigh of slowing down or losing interest. This book is largely made up of his columns from Skeptical Inquirer magazine. Each chapter is pretty much standalone, which makes this a good book for dipping into. The subject matter is invariably interesting, and his asides and addendums are packed with good sources and pointers to more material.

Topics covered include Numerology, Biblical codes, pseudo-physics, alien abductions, reflexology, urine therapy, bizarre cults and more. Unfailingly Gardner writes with good humour and does little more than point out the absurdities and logical inconsistencies in the claims made for these diverse subjects.

While Gardner mounts a very stout defence of the scientific method, I do sometimes get the feeling that for him this involves defending scientific orthodoxy too. For example he makes several side-swipes at traditional herbal medicine, without really stopping to look too deeply at it. He doesn’t ask why it is that so many people in Western countries are turning towards traditional medicines (such as Chinese herbal medicine). Nor does he acknowledge the science which is now backing up some of the claims of
herbal medicine.

That aside, this makes for an interesting and enjoyable read.

Summary: