Dr. Georgia Purdom

Ph.D., molecular genetics, Ohio State University

AiG-US researcher, speaker, author and online instructor

To our knowledge, Dr. Georgia Purdom is the first female Ph.D. scientist engaged in full-time research and speaking on the Book of Genesis for a creationist organization (i.e., which accepts Genesis as literal history, including a young earth).*

Even at her young age (it was in 2000 that she received her Ph.D. in molecular genetics from Ohio State University), Dr. Purdom has already developed into an expert on the growing creation/evolution controversy. She is a compelling, dynamic lecturer. (For example, at AiG’s extremely well-attended “Creation Mega Conference” in the summer of 2005, she spoke on the topic of the Intelligent Design Movement and some of the cautions Christians should have about this growing movement.)

Dr. Purdom told AiG that “the creation and evolution issue is so important because it is foundational to biblical authority, a Christian worldview and to the whole of Christianity. Therefore, it is necessary to have a solid understanding of the issue of origins.”

Professional experience and interests

Among Dr. Purdom’s professional accomplishments include the winning of a variety of honors, research presentations at national conferences and the completion of six years of teaching at Mount Vernon Nazarene University (Ohio), where she served as a professor of biology.

Dr. Purdom has published papers in the Journal of Neuroscience, the Journal of Bone and Mineral Research and the Journal of Leukocyte Biology. She is also a member of the Creation Research Society, American Society for Microbiology, and American Society for Cell Biology.

She is a peer reviewer for Creation Research Science Quarterly and has attended several creation conferences held by AiG and BSG (A Creation Biology Study Group). She is also a member of the research team for the GENE project being conducted by the Institute for Creation Research. Dr. Purdom helped design several exhibits for the Creation Museum and serves as an instructor for the online apologetics classes offered through AiG.

Dr. Purdom’s main area of specialty is cell and molecular biology. Her graduate work focused on the genetic regulation of factors important for bone remodeling. Her creation research interests are the role of microbes before and after the Fall and the speciation of animals after the Flood. Dr. Purdom organized and led the first ever meeting of creation microbiologists (called Microbe Forum) at AiG. This meeting resulted in the formation of a collaborative research project on the origin of pathogenicity with the intended outcome of a publication.

She also enjoys pointing out the problems with mutation and natural selection as the driving forces for evolution. (See Evolution or Adaptation? for one of her articles on this issue). Her current research focuses on adaptive mutations in bacteria. These mutations help bacteria adapt to adverse environmental conditions. Although they are touted as an example of “evolution in action”, they do not add information (as required for microbe-to-microbiologist evolution) to the bacterial genome. Instead, adaptive mutations alter the bacteria’s current genetic information making them more suitable for a particular environment.

Another one of Dr. Purdom’s keen interests is the Intelligent Design Movement (IDM). Regarding the IDM, she commented that: “On the surface, IDM looks very attractive to Christians in that it supports the existence of God through science alone, while leaving out the Bible. It seems less controversial because a ‘god’ is not named and therefore, could be taught in schools in opposition to evolution. Many Christians are not educated about the IDM and the implications that it is teaching, which I think are problematic.” (See The Intelligent Design Movement: Does the identity of the Creator really matter?)

Dr. Purdom heard first heard Ken Ham speak several years ago when she was a student at Cedarville University (in Central Ohio). She soon had a dream of being able to work in creation studies, especially after noticing that there were not very many women engaged in even part-time creation research and lecturing. (To learn more about how she came to AiG see My Journey to AiG)

Current endeavors at AiG for Dr. Purdom include:

• Research to develop models to understand the role of microbes before and after the Fall and speciation of animals after the Flood.
• Writing articles for the website, Answers magazine, and the online technical journal.
• Expanding AiG’s outreach to women’s conferences and youth.
• Designing and instructing online education courses offered through AiG.
• Designing and conducting workshops for the Creation Museum

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*Dr. Kelly Hollowell holds a Ph.D. in science (molecular and cellular pharmacology) and speaks on the topic of creation. She is also a speaker and researcher on other topics, such as health issues, bioethics and, as an attorney, legal issues. Find out more about this multi-talented creationist by reading her biography on our site. To our knowledge, Dr. Purdom will be the only female researcher and lecturer devoted to full-time creation work. Return to text.