Uncommon Descent

1 September 2007

My retreat from the public view….

scordova

As some of you know…

I have been accepted into a graduate program at Johns Hopkins University. I attempted to apply both at Hopkins and at Baylor. I was attempting to work with Dr. Robert Marks at the evolutionary informatics lab. I got the sense Baylor was putting Dr. Marks in their gunsights and that they would also put me indirectly in their gunsights as well if I worked at the informatics lab.

After I received late confirmation this Tuesday of my acceptance into the Johns Hopkins Whiting School of Engineering, I informed Dr. Marks with my regrets that I would no longer seek enrollment into Baylor’s Engineering program. I cited developments which have been in the news along with my acceptance into the Whiting School of Engineering at Johns Hopkins.

Recently, I have received ‘advice’ from faculty at other universities (not from any faculty at JHU) that I may expect possible complications for my public involvement with ID.

I’d like to emphasize that the faculty at JHU have not threatened complications, and even one of their professors has publicly assured me that I have nothing to worry about. I stand committed to bringing respect and upholding the reputation of the academic institution I am now affiliated with. I would like to publicly thank Johns Hopkins for the opportunity they are giving me. But in light of the advice I’ve been given from faculty at other universities, it would be best I if I simply not rock the boat by publicly being a part of the ID movement.

Thus, on the advice of professors from other universities, I have decided to play it safe and retreat from further public debate (at least under my own name).

I will limit my posting under my real name at UD or the blogsphere in general. I would like to thank the UD community for all they have meant to me.

I would like to assure everyone that I have also found a new job which I will work at while I go to Johns Hopkins part-time in the evenings.

I have degrees, in Computer Science, Math, and Electrical Engineering, so I’m not worried about my immediate or future employment. However, now that I have ambitions to go through the program at JHU’s Whiting School of Engineering, it would be best I not make any more waves.

Thank you everyone for a wonderful time at UD.

I would welcome everyone’s prayers on my behalf and that of my family.

God bless you,
Salvador Cordova

These icons link to social bookmarking sites where readers can share and discover new web pages.
  • Digg
  • del.icio.us
  • Netscape
  • Reddit
  • Fark
  • Furl
  • NewsVine
  • StumbleUpon
Email This Post Email This Post Print This Post Print This Post
16 Responses

1

bornagain77

09/01/2007

5:00 pm

e

Sal,
Good luck in your future. But I am not buying for a minute that you are not going to make any more waves! I’m sure that you will call a spade a spade your whole life and not back down from anyone you know is lying about the evidence of origins. Again good luck in your future and I for one will miss your youthful spirit and combativeness with Darwinists.


2

antg

09/01/2007

5:43 pm

e

Good luck Salvador


3

tribune7

09/01/2007

6:33 pm

e

Good luck, Sal.


4

EndoplasmicMessenger

09/01/2007

7:16 pm

e

Welcome to the world of pseudonyms! I was always impressed that you had you full name out there front and center.

Ah well, all is not lost. Many great things have been done anonymously.


5

EJ Klone

09/01/2007

7:56 pm

e

Good luck, Sal.


6

apollo230

09/01/2007

8:41 pm

e

Go with God, Sal, I wish you the best!

Best regards,
apollo230


7

DaveScot

09/01/2007

8:49 pm

e

Via con Dios, Salvador.

Welcome aboard, John Doe!


8

Forthekids

09/01/2007

10:38 pm

e

I’m still hoping this is a more Botnik nonsense? No?

Well, good luck with all your plans, Sal…sounds exciting.

Hope to meet up with your reincarnation.


9

Robo

09/02/2007

3:19 am

e

Have enjoyed your posts, all the way from New Zealand! Cheers Sal.


10

kairos

09/02/2007

6:02 am

e

Good luck, Sal and congratulations for your last ERV skirmish. What I strongly hope, both for you and for the ID community is that:

1. the reseach program you are going to pursue at JHU will be somehow related to the field of system complexity,

2. you will be able to obtain (indipendently of ID) important results about the limit of blind search strategy in engineering design,

3. you will publish about and you will obtain an academic tenure,

… and finally:

4. you will highly criticised for have published some besselleller books against NDE such as DBB oe EoE.


11

idnet.com.au

09/02/2007

6:55 am

e

Hey Sal,

Thanks for your posts. It is a sad day when a great mind is blackmailed by the establishment into retreating. We know that Zorro will fight on under a new mask

Australian IDists will miss you!


12

BarryA

09/02/2007

11:53 am

e

Best wishes Sal


13

LeeBowman

09/03/2007

3:49 am

e

Retreat, you say?.

Au contraire, mon ami. You are about to advance more deeply into the sacred halls of wisdom and knowlege. May your journey be intelectually fullfilling, and may it open new doors of enlightenment. Of these many doors of science, I know of one passageway that rather than besetting upon you its dictates and established paradigms, would benefit more highly from what you might bring to it. Science and technology work together, but in more of a common law relationship than a of a true bonding. I’d like to see that change.

While basic research is important, what is more important (and often lacking), is the proper intrepretation of that research. To that end, I feel that the area of nanotechnology, the realm of informatics, and their interrelationship, will bring new erudition to the proper understanding and applicaion of biotechnology, thus providing a benefit to society, and an ennobling of science as well. At some point, I feel that you could be instrumental. So good luck and please, don’t lose your focus.


[…] I mentioned My retreat from public view, but I have a few loose ends to tie up. First, I had promised Walter ReMine a few weeks back that I would help advertise the first part of his response to Ian Musgrave. I point UD readers to Walter’s essay Haldane’s view of Haldane and also a discussion at ARN’s ID Observatory here. I indicated Walter’s work had been funded by the Discovery Institute and Walter’s work should not be ignored. [See: Part of the Discovery Institute’s secret research program uncovered.] […]


15

lars

09/04/2007

1:34 pm

e

Sal, I too have appreciated your contributions. You will be missed on UD. Would that there were a way for you to remain nonymous, to keep pushing back at the anti-ID front with the force of your personal courage as well as research and intellect. But maybe the better strategy is to get the next degree (and maybe tenure!) and you can come back swinging later with more punch, in whatever arena you are called to.
In any case, your time at UD has been fruitful — I have been strengthened, as have many others, by your observations. Keep your eyes on the Author & Finisher (and Designer)!


16

kairosfocus

09/05/2007

4:25 am

e

Sal:

All the best!

GEM of TKI

PS: As a believer in the strategy of indirect approaches, I trust you will find Archimedean points of leverage wherever you go.

PPS: FOr shame on your censorship and career-busting, evo mat zealots!!!!!!!!!!


Post a Response