Infamous creationist and educator Ken Ham made headlines this week when he engaged in a live-streamed debate over Evolution with Bill Nye the Science Guy. If you watched the debate and wondered what this guy was all about, here is all you need to know:
1. He Debated Bill Nye
On Tuesday night, Ken Ham and Bill Nye squared off at the Creation Museum in Kentucky to debate evolution, creationism, and the origins of the Universe. The debate was well-watched, with it’s Youtube live stream hosting over 500,000 people at one point in during the event. The 2-hour-45-minute debate included thirty minute presentation rounds and a number of opportunities for rebuttal.
2. He and Nye Battled Over Youtube in 2012
In 2012, Bill Nye posted a video on Youtube entitled “Creationism is Not Appropriate for Children,” in which he expressed his shock and dismay that the United States could be simultaneously so technologically advanced, and yet so backward in terms of its large population of creationists. You can watch that video above.
One week after Nye’s video, Ken Ham posted his own video entitled “Ken Ham Responds to Bill Nye ‘The Humanist Guy.” You can watch his response below.
3. He Got a Bachelors Degree in Environmental Biology
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Trained as a science teacher, Ham has a bachelors degree in applied science, reportedly with an emphasis on environmental biology, from the Queensland Institute of Technology in Australia, where Ham is originally from. He then went on to get a degree in teaching and taught science until he moved to the United States in 1987.
Ham is known for his “you were not there” retort, in which he argues that people who were not alive during biblical and historic times could not possible know what happened.
4. He’s the President of Answers in Genesis and the Creation Museum
Ham has become very successful serving as the president of “Answers in Genesis” a group that advocates for the teaching of creationism to children. He also serves as the president of the Creation Museum, a 70,000 square-foot museum in Kentucky that walks people through the Christian-imagining of the world’s creation.
Check out a video tour of the museum above.
5. He Has Been Criticized Both the Religious and Secular World
Secularists, scientists, atheists, and even different types of Christian creationists have expressed criticism over Ham’s beliefs and methods. A religious group called the Old Earth Ministries has expressed critique over Ham’s belief in a massive world-covering flood despite scientific evidence to the contrary. Likewise, scientific groups, like the lecture you could hear above, have dedicated time and effort into disproving Ham’s teachings.