Faith in Science
I was discussing current discoveries in science with a fellow researcher from a different lab, discoveries including the cloning of a dog and the cloning of a human embryo. I mentioned that there are efforts now to create a bacteria ... well, not necessarily from scratch but assemble all of it's DNA and insert it into a cell.
He said in wonder, "Science is amazing. Soon scientists will be able to create life."
Our biology textbooks says it is a law that every cell comes from a cell. So I responded, "I don't think it's that easy to create life. There are so many complex mechanisms of the cell already in motion and are continually in motion, that to just assemble the parts will not necessarily give us life."
He glared at me, offended, silent and then rebuking, "Take off your lab coat! You call yourself a scientist. There nothing magical or mystical about life."

Where did that outburst come from?

I overheard later that he went to a conference bashing intelligent design and touting the primordial soup of evolution. Perhaps he was fired up and took it out on me.

Anyways, I was amazed at how blind he was to his blatant faith in science. He didn't offer a reason for his belief, only insult.

This again demonstrates the false dichotomy created by Emmanuel Kant: Science and Reason on one side and Religion and Faith on the other and how they are mutual exclusive (nary the 'tween shall meet). In addition Science & Reason trumps the other and so it is allowed public but Religion & Faith must be private.

[ Science + Reason ][ Religion + Faith ]

The ramifications of this wrong dichotomy are profound and far reaching. It has so ingrained itself into our minds the world over. Reality is, people live and operate by faith all the time. Most of our actions are not governed by reason. Science is no different, it involves a great amount of faith. Likewise religion* involves much rational thought. And both sides have had its share bogus superstions. (Heh, bogus superstition is redundant, no?)

[*rational thought is at least found in the Christianity laid out by the Bible]