IT WAS a mixed bag of victory and defeat for science last week when the Texas Board of Education voted on science standards for the state. In a move that pleased the scientific community, the board voted down proposed changes that called for the teaching of the "strengths and weaknesses" of scientific theories - code for letting creationism into the classroom.

But the final decision provides loopholes for creationist teaching. "It's as if they slammed the door shut, then ran around the house opening windows," says Dan Quinn of the Texas Freedom Network, a community organisation one of whose aims is "to counter the religious right".

Echoing phrasing often used by supporters of intelligent design and creationism, the standard now calls on students to "analyze and evaluate" scientific explanations for the complexity of cells, the fossil record, global warming and the origin of the universe. The board also voted to remove a statement that the universe is roughly 14 billion years old.

The next battle may come in two years' time when the board reviews school textbooks. The Texas market is a large one which publishers can't afford to lose, and creating a Texas-only edition of a biology textbook would be expensive. If Texas requires the science to be watered down, other states could end up using flawed books too.

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