Evolution — An Observation
www.bibleone.net
Evolution is and always has been
a theory that was first made popular by the English naturalist
Charles Darwin. His 1859 book
On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection, or The
Preservation of Favoured Races in the Struggle for Life (usually
abbreviated to The Origin of Species) established evolution
by common descent (i.e., a group of organisms is said to have
common descent if they have a common ancestor. In biology,
the theory of universal common descent proposes that all
organisms on Earth are descended from a common ancestor or ancestral
gene pool) as the dominant scientific explanation of diversification
in nature.
The following
from Chuck Missler’s K-House eNews is provided so that the reader
may have a better understanding of the subject of evolution:
Scientists working in the Galapagos Islands have observed changes in
a type of bird made famous by Charles Darwin's book
The Origin
of Species.
A decades-long study of Galapagos finches has documented a change in
the beak size and eating habits of a specific species of finch.
Peter Grant of Princeton University led the team of researchers, who
reported their findings in a recent issue of
Science
magazine.
According to the report, a
medium-sized species of finch has evolved a smaller beak in order to
take advantage of an alternate food source. The changes were the
result of a decrease in the food supply due to drought, and an
increase in competition for the same food source among multiple
species of finches.
The study has been touted by
some as confirmation of the accuracy of the evolutionary theory -
verifiable evidence that Darwin was right. However, while the study
is
a clear example of adaptation and the survival of the fittest, it is
not
adequate proof to explain the origins of all life on planet earth.
Darwin in a
Nutshell
Today, the predominant
worldview is built on the belief that we are all the product of
chance. The Biblical notion of a transcendent Creator is therefore
ridiculed as being unscientific. The Bible, once revered, has been
cast aside. The roots of this change in outlook can be traced back
to the year 1859 and the publication of Charles Darwin's book,
The
Origin of Species.
In his book, Darwin sought to
explain the origin of all life through the process of natural
selection. The birthplace of this theory is the Galapagos Islands
off the coast of South America. Darwin observed that there was a
great deal of variation among the species on the islands, especially
among the islands' finch population. Darwin noticed there were many
different sizes of finches, in a variety of colors, some with
different sizes of beak. Some had thick heavy beaks, others had thin
long beaks. Darwin viewed the different types of finches as distinct
species that had evolved, over time, from a common pair or small
number of finches. Darwin felt that the various traits he saw in the
finch population were the result of mutations. He believed that the
inherited traits of all animals are mutable. Darwin proposed that
periodically a mutation would arise that would be beneficial to an
organism. These beneficial mutations would then be passed on to the
next generation. Over time these mutations would create an entirely
new species.
Upon returning from the
Galapagos Islands, Darwin began to formulate his theory of
evolution. According to Darwin's theory, all life forms on planet
earth began as a single celled organism such as an amoeba.
Therefore, all the variation of life on earth arose through gradual
evolution by way of mutation, adaptation, and survival of the
fittest.
The
Probability of Chance
With the discovery of DNA our
understanding of biology and genetics has grown. Modern science has
proven that it is impossible to produce an entirely new organism or
organ system (such as the cardiovascular, immune, and digestive
systems) by random mutation. Random chance cannot account for the
complex design of DNA. It is statistically and mathematically
impossible. The chances of winning the state lottery every week of
your life from the age of 18 to 99 are better than the odds of a
single-celled organism being formed by random chance. Likewise, the
probability of spontaneous generation is about the same as the
probability that a tornado sweeping through a junkyard could
assemble a 747 from the contents therein. It's impossible. The
evidence all points to the unavoidable conclusion that we not the
product of chance or evolution, but the result of intelligent
design.
In
recent years the debate over intelligent design has intensified.
School districts all across the country are debating the question:
should evolution be taught as a scientific fact? Some scientists and
educators and parents say that the study of evolution is necessary
for understanding many biological processes. Others argue that
evolution is a humanistic belief system that has been promoted as
science. Both statements could be considered correct, even if you
believe Bible's account of creation, it all depends on what people
mean by the term "evolution".
The word "evolution" is
generally used in a broad sense to describe various scientific
processes that have contributed to Darwin's theory of evolution.
Because of this, educators and parents and students can easily
misunderstand one another. Below are the definitions of some of
terms that usually fall under the broad umbrella of "evolution."
Sorting these out can help one communicate clearly when discussing
the topic of teaching evolution in public schools.
Change over
time:
The most basic definition of evolution is simply "the process of
change or development over a period of time". Hence, music,
cultures, sports teams all "evolve". In biology, classes of animals
and plants have experienced marked change over dozens or hundreds or
thousands of years. Over time, groups of animals diversify, as shown
by the fossil record and common observation. This definition is
extremely broad, and says nothing about what caused the change.
Descent
with Modification:
This term that Darwin used basically means that living creatures
have the ability to create offspring like themselves, but with the
potential for variation. Today, descent with modification is
explained through the field of genetics and studies involving DNA,
the coding mechanism of life. Through the code of DNA, creatures can
produce offspring like themselves, yet with room for variation.
Brown-eyed parents who have recessive gene coding for blue eyes can
produce blue-eyed children. Cats can give birth to kittens with a
range of characteristics, all in one litter, depending on the
specific DNA coding passed on to each kitten by its mother and its
father.
Adaptation:
Sometimes an offspring
receives certain traits or characteristics from its parents that
allow it to survive in certain situations better than in others.
Large-beaked finches adapt better to eating hard, large seeds,
because their beaks are strong enough to crush them. Finches with
long, thin beaks adapt better to getting food out of hard-to-reach
places.
Survival of
the Fittest:
This basic concept promoted by
Darwin argues that those organisms that are best able to adapt to a
particular environment will live to produce more offspring. For
instance, when there is plenty of food, all the finches on an island
can do well. However, during times of drought, only the finches with
the strongest beaks will be able to eat the hardest seeds, enabling
them to survive and reproduce. If other finches with longer, thinner
beaks can get seeds from places the rest of the finches can't, these
will survive and reproduce. The other finches that can't compete for
the food supply will die out. Soon, the "specialized" finches are
reproducing more "specialized" offspring like themselves, so that
obvious variations start showing up between the different groups of
finches.
Natural
Selection:
Adaptation and Survival of the Fittest work together to create
success among certain groups of creatures with certain genetic
variations. "Nature" selects which ones survive based on which ones
are best adapted to their environment and best able to overcome the
competition. Natural Selection includes both ecological selection
(overcoming competition for food, safety, shelter) and sexual
selection.
Genetic
Drift:
This refers to the way small populations of creatures end up
reproducing and passing on their genetic information and becoming
specialized even if they are not the best adapted to an environment.
If all the competition got killed by a lightening storm or flood or
avalanche, those left behind would continue to reproduce and
survive, whether or not they were the best suited to survive
otherwise.
Most of the above concepts can
be seen regularly in nature and are largely beyond dispute. However,
the following ideas start creating heavy debate:
Speciation:
This term refers to the formation of new "species" over time,
generally through the mechanisms of natural selection and survival
of the fittest. When many people talk about "evolution", they often
mean "speciation", arguing that through natural selection; entirely
new species have been formed. Whether this can be proven actually
depends on the definition of the term "species" (there is still a
great deal of arguing among scientists on this subject). Usually, a
species is considered to be a group that does not reproduce with
other groups. Finches may become so specialized that they no longer
mate with other kinds of finches. These can be considered a new
"species" of finch. Yet, evolutionists often extrapolate to argue
that through these processes thousands or millions of years ago,
finches evolved from some more generic form of bird, which evolved
from some more generic form of vertebrate. The line should be drawn
at the DNA evidence. What does the DNA allow for? How much genetic
variation was originally available in the DNA of the earliest
finches, and how can we determine it? Natural Selection can only
work with the DNA code already present, and cannot create new DNA
coding that did not previously exist. The specialized finches are
still finches, and are not turning into some other kind of bird.
Mutation:
To deal with this obvious
problem of DNA coding, some evolutionary scientists have argued that
through small mutations, new information can be added to the genetic
code. However, there is much debate over this issue. Mutations are
naturally destructive and cause damage, and evolutionary scientists
have been hard pressed to find "beneficial mutations". On rare
occasion, a mutation can help a creature survive when it would
otherwise not be able to, but only because the mutation has caused a
malfunction. For instance, children with sickle-cell anemia are more
resistant to malaria, but this is because their red blood cells are
not functioning properly, (and large numbers still die from the
sickle-cell anemia). Many "super bugs" in hospitals are immune to
antibiotics -because they are actually mutated, sickly bacteria and
can't function properly to take in the antibiotics. When put in
competition with normal bacteria outside of a hospital setting,
these "super bugs" can die off quickly.
The General
Theory of Evolution:
This is the popular but controversial idea that all life on earth
started in a primordial soup, and that all the variation of life on
earth arose through gradual evolution by way of mutation,
adaptation, and survival of the fittest. This is where the heavy
argumentation over "evolution" is often focused. The general theory
that all life on earth evolved from primordial microbes is based on
philosophical beliefs about the nature of nature, on models, on
extrapolations, and on guesswork – because it deals with theories
about things that cannot be directly observed or reproduced. The
best scientists can do is create models and work to fit the
observable evidence to their models. In this sense, evolutionary
theory is absolutely a "work in progress".
While many concepts in
evolutionary science are useful in understanding genetics and the
variations between species, it is important to recognize where
observation ends, and where extrapolation and theorizing begin.
Those in the information sciences recognize the vital importance of
focusing on information and the genetic code, and of determining
where the DNA code originated in the first place. Without a
mechanism for adding information to the genetic code, natural
selection and adaptation can only produce more specialized finches
or dogs or horses, but they cannot tell us how finch or dog or horse
DNA was programmed in the first place.
(The
above is a combination of two articles in Chuck Missler’s K-House
eNews, dated August 29, 2006)
Observation
It has often been said that it
takes more faith to believe in the theory of evolution as the
answer to the beginning and advancement of life than it does to
believe in the existence of God for the same. It has been this
writer’s observation that more and more within the scientific
community, after a fair and comprehensive examination of the
theory of evolution, are coming to this conclusion.
Statistically they simply cannot become convinced that evolution can
produce a different species from an entirely different one.
Additionally, they are realizing
that life evolving from a primordial soup is beyond reason;
and, if that is not enough, there is no answer for the origination
of that “soup.” Even those who seek to advance the concept that
life as we know it today comes from aliens outside our
universe can offer no rational explanation as to the origination of
this alien life.
Something simply cannot come
from nothing.
|