Backwards Reasoning on Science Friday

I often listen to NPR's Science Friday podcast; the show covers a wide variety of science topics, without a lot of nonsense. Every once in awhile though, something like last Friday's episode is released..

In a segment about whether science and religion can "get along," a caller stated as fact the Anthropic Priniciple, basically that the universe was "tuned" to support life, and the Science Friday host let this assertion go unchallenged. This is backwards reasoning, much like noting a hole in the ground being "tuned" to hold the water which fills it.

We know from observation that most of the universe does not support life, that there are only small regions which might contain a planet which itself might have some kind of life. Organisms evolved over millions of years to fit their environment. Similarly, water fills a hole in the ground to make a puddle, it's no coincidence that the hole "fits" the puddle.

As to the idea of science and religion getting along, they can't. Religion rests on faith, or accepting as truth assertions not based on (or in the face of) evidence. Science is based on evidence and reason, claims you can observe and test. These two ideas do not overlap; there is no common ground. If a claim is supported by evidence, you don't need faith to "believe" it. If a claim is not supported, there is no reason to accept it.

Update: The geologic column shows ample evidence of life adapting to the environment, rather than the other way around. As the environment changed (grew warmer, colder, etc), life forms either adapted or perished. Humans change their environment; heated homes in the winter, AC in the summer, etc; to make more of the world habitable. Ask a homeless person in the midwest in winter, when temperatures can reach -30F, how well his environment is "tuned to support human life."