Support for Evolution

Criticism: The truth is that, just as there is evidence for evolution there is also evidence against it. Evolution teaches that things evolve from simple to complex. And this is supposed to be true for all living things. But there is stacks of evidence against that hypothesis. A few examples from an interesting book called "The Crumbling Theory of Evolution," by J. W. G. Johnson.: "Among the dead bones of the past, we find no fossil links, no evolution.

Response: There are many intermediate species found within the fossil record. The fossil record is particularly telling because a VERY tiny percentage of organisms have been fossilized. Additionally the geological strata provide a nice smooth progression from single celled organisms roughly 3.5 billion years ago through the complex organisms today. There are no instances of any organisms grossly more complex than their predecessors merely appearing ex nihilo.

The fossil record is corroborated in terms of dating via numerous forms of radiometric dating. A wide range of dates can be tested with various forms of radioactive decay including Uranium 238-Lead 206 (4.5 billion year half life), Uranium 235-Lead 207 (704 million), Thorium 232-Lead 208 (14 billion), Rubidium 87-Strontium 87 (48.8 billion), and Potassium 40-Argon 40 (1.3 billion). All of these tests are very robust and have very tight error bars.



Then, if we look at the living world of the present, again we find no inter-mediates between living kinds.

Every species in existence is an intermediate. All species will follow what came before and will be replaced by what precedes them. That is a very elementary concept. Good examples are the many breeds of dogs that have been produced through selective pressures provided by humans. Can these breeds still reproduce? Sure, for the time being anyway. If you keep breeds separated for a long enough time genetic drift will generally make them unable to interbreed.



Living creatures prove that kinds do not change no matter how long the time span. For example, using the evolutionist's supposed ages (later I will talk a bit on this particular issue as well), there is a dragon-fly species still with us after sixty-million years. The Australian lung-fish should have evolution in its blood, but it has not changed in 220 million years. Spiders remain unchanged after 300 million years. Cockroaches and silverfish unchanged in 350 million years. "Turtles have been turtles for 250 million years of evolutionary time.

All that means is these few species the author cherry picked have not mutated significantly in the amount of time chosen. There is nothing in the workings of evolution that would indicate change MUST occur. It does tend to occur as seen from the fact that the dragonfly, lung-fish, spiders, and turtles evolved from prokaryotic cyanobacteria over the course of three billion years. Additional many other species were mutating into forms that were more appropriate for the changing ecological niches that ebb and flow with climatic changes and with the ever changing balance with other species. However with any system it should not be surprising if a few components/species remain viable and near optimal for their particular niche or their niche has not been subjected to pressures for a relatively lengthy period of time.



Turtles have an incredible skeleton. They live inside boxes; and their girdles are inside the rib cage. That should mean a lot of evolving. We should find millions of quarter-turtles, then half-turtles, and so on. But we don't. The very first turtles were perfect turtles. There is no fossil of something pre-turtle, nearly-turtle. "The hard fact is that every kind of creature living today which appears in the fossil record, appears there in form similar to its present form.

He is cherry picking the data again. The entire fossil record is a collection of simpler forms followed by small mutations over vast time spans. The first fish sans fins were followed by fish with first very subtle fins followed by more complex fins, then by fins that doubled as legs, then true legs, etc. This is evidenced by the mutations evidenced by Eusthenopteron, Panderichthys, Ticktaalik, Ichthyostega, and Acanthostega over the roughly 25 million year time span from 380-365mya.



This was dramatically confirmed by the Coelacanth fish. This fish, through one of its relatives, was credited as being the ancestor of amphibians, a vigorous evolutor. It was regarded as extinct for seventy million years. But in 1939, a fisherman hauled up a Coelacanth very much alive. To an evolutionist, this was just as upsetting as if a dinosaur had walked up the street. Since then, several more living Coelacanths have been caught, all of them exactly as they were when the last Coelacanth fossil was laid down seventy million mythical years ago."

This was not upsetting at all to evolutionists. In fact quite the opposite was the case. This was a very exciting finding for evolutionists. Again there is nothing within the workings of evolution and natural selection that precludes well adapted species from continuing for millions of years. Furthermore because this living fossil in the form of Coelacanth is so readily available morphological, bio-behavioral, and genetic studies can and have greatly enhanced our understanding of evolution.



Then there is another interesting law of science called The Second Law of Thermodynamics. ... "It would hardly be possible to conceive of two more opposite principles than this principle of entropy (mass-energy loss) and the principle of evolution. Each is precisely the converse of the other. (Henry M. Morris, The Twilight of Evolution., p.35).

This is a VERY old and worn out argument against evolution. The earth is not a closed system. Entropy works when you have a finite amount of energy in a system that is sealed off from all outside inputs. The earth has had a constant supply of external energy for the last 4.6 billion years in the form of the sun. It is very analogous to the continued creation of complexity in a car factory. If you close and lock the doors on the factory then yes things will begin to decay and nothing will ever come out the doors in the way of products. However, if you continually provide electricity, raw materials, and food for the workers then complex systems will be generated. It is quite possible that entropy will eventually lead to the darkening and dissipating of the matter in the universe over many trillions of years. However the big bang infused all of the matter in the universe including what is included in the stars with massive amounts of energy. Complexity can increase in the local subsystems around stars because there is a massive energy imbalance between the star and the surrounding matter.



Evolutionists will say that different layers of rock formations will show different periods of the evolutionary process, in other words, the simple becoming more complex as you get closer to the surface of the rock formations. This sounds very good and fine except that fossil remains don't always appear in that order. In fact, fossils are found in all kinds of order contrary to the evolutionary ladder. Many caves and canyons that appear to be millions of years old can indeed have been formed over a very short period of time. A simple example. Some years ago a volcanic mountain blew up and left a huge deep gorge that looked like a prehistoric canyon. Of course it wasn't as it had just been formed. So things are not always as they appear.

Small differences in a local area are taken into account by paleogeologists and paleontologists. Taking a very small difference in a localized area does not negate the findings that are rigorously compared across the planet. Also see my comments on radiometric dating above. The various forms of radiometric, stratigraphic, and paleomagnetic data fit very tightly together and provide an incredibly robust picture of the ages of the many and varied fossil finds.



There's no question that genes determine what a foetus is and what it will grow into. Here also manipulation plays a big part. We know that we can develop better breeds of cows, flowers, etc. But still a cow is always a cow; a flower is always a flower, etc. We may be able to change the colour and the size of something but the specie itself always remains true to its own kind. So here once again evolution falls flat.

That is over a VERY short period of time. Selective breeding has only been around for thousands of years whereas evolution works over hundreds of millions of years. The difference is so many orders of magnitude apart that the author's comparison falls flat. As I mentioned above, if you keep the breeds completely separated for a long enough period of time the differences will generally continue to build until interbreeding cannot occur.

So the improvements of the spontaneous type (just going back to the Second Law of Thermodynamics for one minute) hypothesised by the devotees of the current theory of evolution who suggests that cosmic radiation caused genetic changes which resulted in a higher order of off-spring survivability than the parent possessed, and also a change in the genetic makeup have not been found to support that theory.

This is only one very small cause of genetic change. There is massive amount of evidence that shows genetic changes are incredibly common and most of these changes happen because of transcription errors that randomly/accidently occur when genes are replicated within each organism. The fact that this has been happening for hundreds of millions of years is evidenced by the "junk" DNA found in every organism. Most changes that occur randomly are neither beneficial nor nefarious. Thus there are no selection pressures that would eliminate organisms that carry these random mutations.



In simple words, scientists may be able to work with genetic engineering and indeed have made wondrous advances, but that's not creating life, it's simply meddling with life that already exists. Even cloning is not creating life but is simply taking from already existing life.

This argument is what is called ignoratio elenchi or a red herring. While it is true that current genetic engineering is only altering current life forms this has nothing to do with the mechanisms that drive evolutionary change necessarily.


Because of all the millions of creatures that exist on the earth, only humans think in terms of logic, good and evil, can invent incredible devices and machinery, understands and is in a constant learning process and development, etc.

Another red herring and he is also begging the question. He is assuming that there must be an intelligent designer without providing a rationale for why that is so. Self organization and increases in complexity driven solely by the laws of physics are observed in the lab and throughout the universe on a regular basis. One example is the creation of new stellar and associated planetary systems from the remnants of previous systems.



The evolutionists say that we are related to the apes. Yet we are separated by a gulf so wide that it seems to defy all logic.

The genetic differences between Homo sapiens and the various other hominids are actually very small with our genetic code being comfortably over 95% identical. We actually share a tremendous amount of DNA with all other living organisms including things like pine trees and fruit flies.

The evidence for evolution is immense and volumes of data are added each year that provide additional support. There is no theory that fits the massive amounts of evidence better than evolution while the theory of evolution becomes more robust with every passing discovery.

Steps toward the formation of RNA

A recent article in Nature reports another possibility in the steps toward the formation of RNA. In short science is slowly closing in on the pathways that could have led to the first replicating polymers and then to the first cells. All of the answers are not available and we will probably never know exactly how the first life formed but some of the plausible pathways are being discovered.


Nature 459, 239-242 (14 May 2009)
Synthesis of activated pyrimidine ribonucleotides in prebiotically plausible conditions

Matthew W. Powner, Béatrice Gerland & John D. Sutherland

Abstract

At some stage in the origin of life, an informational polymer must have arisen by purely chemical means. According to one version of the 'RNA world' hypothesis this polymer was RNA, but attempts to provide experimental support for this have failed. In particular, although there has been some success demonstrating that 'activated' ribonucleotides can polymerize to form RNA, it is far from obvious how such ribonucleotides could have formed from their constituent parts (ribose and nucleobases). Ribose is difficult to form selectively, and the addition of nucleobases to ribose is inefficient in the case of purines and does not occur at all in the case of the canonical pyrimidines. Here we show that activated pyrimidine ribonucleotides can be formed in a short sequence that bypasses free ribose and the nucleobases, and instead proceeds through arabinose amino-oxazoline and anhydronucleoside intermediates. The starting materials for the synthesis—cyanamide, cyanoacetylene, glycolaldehyde, glyceraldehyde and inorganic phosphate—are plausible prebiotic feedstock molecules, and the conditions of the synthesis are consistent with potential early-Earth geochemical models. Although inorganic phosphate is only incorporated into the nucleotides at a late stage of the sequence, its presence from the start is essential as it controls three reactions in the earlier stages by acting as a general acid/base catalyst, a nucleophilic catalyst, a pH buffer and a chemical buffer. For prebiotic reaction sequences, our results highlight the importance of working with mixed chemical systems in which reactants for a particular reaction step can also control other steps.

The Emergence of Ethical Behavior

Some within various belief systems seem to struggle with the concept of ethical behavior from atheists and agnostics. There seems to be a belief that people with gravitate toward selfish and destructive behavior without direction from a deity and that deity's spokespersons.

In the book "Emergence" Steven Johnson writes:

"We're naturally predisposed to think in terms of pacemakers, whether we're talking about fungi, political systems, or our own bodies. Our actions seem governed for the most part by the pacemaker cells in our brains, and for millennia we've built elaborate pacemaker cells into our social organizations, whether they come in the forms of kings, dictators, or city councilmen. Much of the world around us can be explained in terms of command systems and hierarchies..."It amazes me how difficult it is for people to think in terms of collective phenomenon..."

The same inability to understand seems to exist in the minds of many people living within hierarchical religions and societies. How, they wonder, can people not descend into debauchery, criminal actions, and anti-social behavior without the guidance of religion or a strict set of laws? It is anathema to them that people can actually cooperate and show compassion on a daily basis without someone standing over them to keep them in line.

The questioner fails to see the regression issue with this concept. If it takes an authority figure to keep a person living ethically then who keeps the leaders in check? If they point to a god or divine being, who keeps god or the divine being in check? If civil and productive behavior cannot arise from within then all societies would have descended into chaos long ago. Indeed, they never would have been able to organize into a meaningful, cooperative entity.

Even something as simple as slime mold is able to organize and work cooperatively without frequent readings from the Bible, Torah, or Koran. The slime mold also does not need to attend regular services at their local church, synagogue, or mosque in order to keep from going rogue. Perhaps there is something in the complexity of humans that renders us in need of constant guidance. However, where is the evidence of such a need?

“...many human beings prefer certainty…

...no matter how oppressive and primitive, to the risks and responsibilities of freedom." - Ralph Peters

Many religious texts are filled with an unbelievable number of rules. These rules range from the macro to the micro and can cover any aspect of life. For example if one were to follow all of the rules in the Bible, the follower's world would be devoid of decision-making and the associated risks for many things.

The result would seem to be people who are not accustomed to the responsibilities of being free and are severely weakened. Among those in the Abrahamic faiths, many believers do not take a literal view of their canonized scriptures. Thus they are not burdened with the micromanaged lives of the more fundamentalist among their ranks. Fundamentalist and literalistic lifestyles are similar to strapping a person to a board and not allowing them to exercise his or her muscles. The muscles are never allowed to develop and the person would end up being weak, uncoordinated, and physically unskilled.

The punitive god of these belief systems creates a following that views freedom and mistakes as a negative. The believers point at this danger of "sinning" or making errors as a reason to remain strapped to the board. They are afraid to stand up, learn to walk, and develop coordination. While learning to walk children stumble and fall. This is essential for growth and not something to avoid. Fundamentalists have been conditioned to believe that even some simple mistakes can be catastrophic and should be avoided at all cost.

Moving the Goalposts and the Bible

Moving the goalposts is a logical fallacy in which the arguer changes the original claim without acknowledging the changes have been made. The arguer also does not respond directly to the evidence presented against his or her original claim.

Similar efforts have been undertaken with the Bible. This varies from person to person but similarly it has generally moved from the inviolable word of god, to an accurate historical account, to a collection of myths mixed in with a bit of history. Attempts to hang onto the tattered remnants of false hopes and beliefs even though those beliefs have no resemblance to the original position of any given individual.

Even though the original premise utterly collapsed years ago people still hang onto the tattered remnants of belief. This is based on the goalpost that now only requires the Bible (or Koran if you prefer) to be a morality tale. So even though the apologists are trying to prove a very different hypothesis than they were years ago the quest is somehow still valid. I would argue that the game ended the first time the goalposts moved. What has actually happened over the last several decades is the equivalent of not only moving the goalposts down the field but planting it in a different country and using it for a different game.

The Multiverse

The concept of the multiverse extends to the possibility of an infinite number of universes constantly popping into an out of existence. Some of them have laws of physics allowing them to survive for various lengths of time and others disappear almost instantly because of instabilities.  

Is there a possibility that we are a universe, inside of a universe, inside of a universe, etc? Definitely. It is also possible that there is a larger something that provides structure or direction to it all.  

Our understanding is definitely limited by the abilities of our senses, our manufactured sensors, and the limits of our abstract thought. We only perceive and process a portion of what is around us. For our senses much of the electromagnetic spectrum is beyond our ability to detect. For our manufactured sensors whatever constitutes dark energy and dark matter is beyond our capabilities for example. We are able to infer that dark energy and dark matter exist by the influence they have on what we can detect. It is possible there is infinitely more out there that our senses and sensors cannot and potentially never will be able to detect. For instance if there are other universes, realities, objects, etc. that are governed by laws of physics not congruent with our own known universe’s laws, then left to our own devices we will remain forever unenlightened about these other entities. There may be many other things around us, inside of us, or outside of our universe that are either older or younger than our 13.5 billion year universe.

The Meaning of My Existence

I live each day where I find myself and carry my solace with me. I do not feel a need to control my environment nor have it control me. There is no prewritten script that we ignore to our detriment.

I also do not look at life as a quest dictated by arcane and ancient mythologies. There is no grand, mysterious prize hidden from view that we must find through much hand wringing and reading of the tealeaves. There is knowledge to be gained and progress to be made. However, the vast majority of real progress made by our species has occurred at the likes of Pasteur's workbench, Edison Labs, MIT, and Johns Hopkins. Clinging too tightly to the past, listening only to one's emotions, and living in the future tends to result in events such as the trial of Galileo, rejection of medical advances, and refusing to look at mountains of scientific research.

I find enjoying each day, contributing, and being engaged is where life really is. Once upon a time, I lived my life in some nebulous future state but found that I was not living at all. Invariably when the future finally arrived with each passing second, if I bothered to notice at all, it was often not the existence my imagination had conjured. At that point, in my life I assumed that this meant I was somehow unworthy or had not acted according to the rules of the game. If only I had spent two more minutes a day in silent mediation, or read one more verse the outcome would have been so much different. What a painfully legalistic existence that. What omniscient deity would be so petty and punitive?

Attempting to control in minute detail the course of one's own life and those around us is similar to trying to grasp a wave as it crashes on the sand. We can adjust our position as the waves continue to arrive but arrive they will and in the way the local environment directs. We can hope for a different shape to the waves and grasp at them with our tiny hands. However, we will find that the water merely slips through our fingers as the waves hurry on to their destination.

I choose to walk through the waves when it is fitting and enjoy the constant rhythm of life's ocean that it has followed for billions of years. There is no imperative to stand in the way of the ocean and attempt in vain to bend it to my will. The ocean and I are fellow travelers in a complex walk sculpted by our milieu. I will live today and share the gift of each fleeting moment with my sojourning companions.