The sixth floor of MacAlister was crowded with 50 people, seated in groups at five tables, on Wednesday, April 15th, 2009. Students, along with a plentiful buffet of food and a panel of professors, were gathered to discuss the D3 – Dinner and Discussion at Drexel – entitled "Interactions Between Science and Religion."
Dr. Leonard Finegold, physics professor, opened the panel discussion, thanking the College of Arts & Sciences and the Dean, Dr. Donna Murasko. Finegold joked the event should be called a "D5," in honor of Dean Donna, who generously supports the D3 events.
Finegold then introduced Rev. Timothy Thomson-Hohl, who works at the Newman Center. Thomson-Hohl quoted Einstein, who said, "Science without religion is lame, religion without science is blind."
Thomson-Hohl also mentioned his own personal view that religion is not only valid, but a "good thing," and that awe of the mysterious and the unknown, and appreciation for spirituality, is necessary.
Thomson-Hohl addressed one topic up for discussion at the event, the God-spot, or whether or not human brains are programmed to believe in God. He asked the audience whether man created God, or God created man, leaving the question as food for thought.
Next, Finegold introduced Dr. Mary Spiers, a neurophysiologist at Drexel. She stated that science can be very reductionistic, and asked the audience if science really looked at the big picture that included beauty, art and poetry.
Because neurology focuses on cognitive processes, Spiers shared information about the brain that scientists know. She said the brain is "our master controller," and studying the brain can answer questions about the validity of religion.
For example, during religious experience or deep meditation, the temporal lobes, which detect parts of your body even when you can't see them, become very quiet. Scientists have studied monks and religious people during meditation to monitor this phenomenon. Spiers thinks studying the brain may bring science and religion closer together.
"The brain is the final frontier," she said.
After all three panelists had their turn to give a brief statement on the interactions between science and religion, the audience asked several questions, and two students were invited to sit on the panel as well.
After some vigorous and intense debating, tables were asked to discuss matters further amongst themselves, and as time ran out, students and professors both lingered, coffee in hand, to discuss the multi-faceted world in which science and religious, two volatile subjects when put together, could co-exist. Though the D3 technically ended at 7 p.m., some stayed discussing until nearly 8:30 p.m., long after Helios had pulled the sun from the sky.
