SUMMARY: In 1837 Charles Darwin first drew a picture of an evolutionary "tree of life" in a notebook with the notation "I think" written above it. The tree illustrated his belief that all of today's species evolved from a single common ancestor.That image of a tree is fast being abandoned by biologists who can't fit gene sequence data into it. "Biologists need to depart from the preconceived notion that all genomes are related by a single bifurcating (dividing into branches) tree," authors of the book, The Tree of One Percent, wrote. A new paradigm of origins is needed.
Darwinian evolution or gradualism would predict that over time species would show a series of slight modifications of genes from simple to more complex. Various genes though are telling contradictory evolutionary stories. One geneticist at the U. of Texas at Arlington has found a nearly identical family of DNA in widely divergent tetrapods. Different animals can have the same sequence in unpredictable patterns, a contradiction to classic Darwinian vertical inheritance. So, in contrast to the classic Darwinian tree, a newer tree of life would show considerable cross-branching.
Some researchers admit difficulties with Darwin's tree but insist that doesn't prove evolution is wrong. It just means evolution isn't "as tidy" as scientists would like. One new non-Darwinian view appears to be just a twist on the old "Hopeful Monster" theory. A retired marine biologist, Donald Williamson, proposed a fantastic theory that two separate species could come together by random fusion, one assuming the role of the larva and the other that of the adult. "Once in a million years it works," he said, adding that the sperm of one species could fertilizer the egg of the other.
The truth is that whatever changes are observed in organisms all take place within a breeding kind and all are horizontal. There is no natural law that generates new, specified order or information that can cause vertical movement upward to more complicated species.
To read the entire article, click on this ICR link.
COMMENT: If someone doesn't believe that Darwin's theory of evolution is in trouble, stories like this one should cause him/her to engage in some deep reflection. Darwin's tree of life is what evolution is all about. If it is gone, the only obvious alternate is to go back to the discredited Hopeful Monster theory such as Mr. Williamson is trying to do. If you believe a lizard can begat a bird, then the Hopeful Monster theory is for you.
Isn't it better to accept the word of the only One who was there when the world and its various inhabitants came into existence? Genesis says each kind of organism was created separately and designed to reproduce "according to its kind." That is exactly what we see in the world around us. Yes, there is room for considerable variation within each kind, but a whale can never turn into a cow or vice versa
The only real example of a major change in a creature is what will happen to us human believers on the world's last day. We will be able to discard our diseased, sinful bodies and put on glorified bodies that will neither sin nor suffer anymore. And it is ours simply by repenting of our sins and accepting the forgiveness offered us and won for us by our Lord Jesus through his suffering and death on the cross. Why believe anything else?
*************************************************
Want to be automatically notified each time there is a new post? Just e-mail your request to [admin@lutheranscience.org].
*************************************************
QUESTION OF THE DAY
Why do we have wax in our ears?
Earwax protects the ear by trapping dust particles, bacteria, fungal spores, sand, and dirt and keeping them from entering and possibly damaging the inner ear. Earwax not only contains many defensive compounds to fight harmful microorganisms, its bitterness repels insects, mites, and other creatures. Under normal circumstances it should not be removed from the ear.Source: Acts and Facts (January, 2009)
*************************************************
B010 - MARVELS OF CREATION: BREATHTAKING BIRDS
by Buddy & Kay Davis
Attractive book with full-color photographs. Shows why the obvious design features in each animal call for an Intelligent Designer. The 30 birds covered include bald eagle, penguin, horned owl, and roadrunner. 2006. 80 pages.
Join LSI (anybody can) and rent this book for $3.
No comments:
Post a Comment