If information, not matter, is the basic stuff of reality, how would this change the way we look at the world? On a classic episode of ID the Future, Center for Science and Culture Managing Director John West sits down with mathematician and philosopher William Dembski to discuss his 2014 book Being as Communion: A Metaphysics of Information. Building on his previous books making a case for intelligent design, Being as Communion presents a metaphysical framework for an informational world that can accommodate intelligent design.
One of Dembski’s key arguments is that matter isn’t the fundamental unit of reality. “Everything that we call matter reveals itself through patterns, through information,” says Dr. Dembski. To get to the heart of the matter, we must look beyond the concrete manifestations of matter we see around us to the patterns of information that lie beneath. Dembski rounds out Part 1 by explaining what information is and how the word information is better understood as a verb, not a noun.
Download the podcast or listen to it here. Look for Part 2 of this classic conversation soon!
Dig Deeper
- Get your own copy of Being As Communion.
- Watch Dr. Dembski discuss information theory with Dr. James Tour: