Part one of term paper
July of 1925 saw the most celebrated American battle between creation and evolution: the Scopes “Monkey” Trial. The defendant, John T. Scopes was found guilty of violating a Tennessee law forbidding the teaching of evolution in public schools. Although the penalty was small (a $100 fine paid by someone else), the ramifications were anyt ...

Part two of term paper
... serious setback to civilization in all history,” (Smout 45), as well as a “threat to civilization itself,” is the “trial of the century.” New ideas frequently require considerable time to gain public approval, especially when religion is involved. Galileo’s heliocentric theory of the sun revolving around the earth directly contrasted Ptolemy’s 600-year-old precedent of geocentricism. This was looked upon as an act of heresy, and Galileo was nearly burned at the stake. Thus, when a ...