Sir

We would very much appreciate an explanation by the editor as to why a part (the hands of God and Adam) of Michelangelo's painting The Creation of Adam was chosen for the cover of the 2 December 1999 issue of Nature . It was presumably meant to commemorate the elucidation of the first complete human chromosome nucleotide sequence.

However, the use of such Christian religious symbols to mark this event seems difficult to fathom. Does this harken back to the centuries old practice of natural theology1? Does the elucidation of the human nucleotide sequence provide us with insights into the work of the Christian God at the creation event? Why not also use the Garden of Eden as the first event in the chronology of events leading to the revelation of the chromosome sequence in Fig. 1 of the News and Views article2? We are confident that the editors are well aware of the oft quoted statement by Dobzhansky: “Nothing in biology makes sense except in the light of evolution.”

The decision to use this cover makes no sense. It is common knowledge that it continues to be a struggle in many parts of the United States to teach the principles of evolution in high schools. The recent decision by the Kansas Board of Education reveals the problem is not going to go away soon. Many letters to Nature, Science and other publications reveal the dismay felt within the scientific community regarding this action in Kansas. We are also dismayed by efforts in the United States to weaken the teaching of high-school science, but are also troubled by Nature's willingness to add fuel to the fire.