Why Evolution is True - Research Paper Example

?Running head: Why evolution is true Why evolution is true: A critique Life came from a molecule and from this molecule evolved different life forms.This is truth supported by evidence, according to evolutionists. But life is the result of “intelligent design,” a deity who breathed life into the “nostrils” of man. And that needs no evidence. Discussion over truth of man’s existence and origin of life, evolutionism versus intelligent design, has long been held. Professor Jerry Coyne from the University of Chicago is on one side arguing and proving that evolution is true. Evidence is found in plants and animals and every living thing found in nature. This essay is about truth or falsity of evolution theory. Coyne has thoroughly dissected Darwin’s theory of evolution and the concept of natural selection. This will examine Coyne’s support of the evolution theory, provide a critique and apply philosophical, theological, and sociological reflections on Coyne’s views. Coyne summarized the modern theory of evolution and this is: “Life on Earth evolved gradually beginning with one primitive species – perhaps a self-replicating molecule – that lived more than 3.5 billion years ago” (Coyne, 2009, p. 3). Coyne further said that this molecular “thing” started to spread, giving various life forms and performing the acts of evolutionary change, guided by the principle of natural selection. Coyne’s summary of the evolution theory consists of 6 elements: “evolution, gradualism, speciation, common ancestry, natural selection, and nonselective mechanisms of evolutionary change” (Coyne, p. 3). His proposition that evolution is true simply means that the six elements are all true. Creationists should accept this fact in the sense that they are in mainstream science, there is decisive evidence from many lines of inquiry and are available for all to scrutinize. Creationists do not accept it and argue that there is nothing that was conceived with an “intelligent Being.” Evolution means that a species experiences changes in a span of time. A species can change into something quite different over generations. The differences can be seen on the changes in the DNA which have resulted into mutations. The species of living things on earth today were not present in the past but these have come from those that lived before. Coyne (2009) adds: “Humans … evolved from a creature that is ape-like, but not identical to modern apes” (p. 4). The various species evolved at different rate and for a long period of time, a matter of millions of years. Whales and humans evolved rapidly but not other living animals since some of them looked almost the same hundreds of millions of years ago. Some scientists believe that the whale’s flippers were used to be walking legs. Whether that is true, it is a theory, or part of the theory. The concept of gradualism, as one element of evolution, states that evolution takes place for many generations. Birds and reptiles evolved from something different before. The evolution of the teeth and jaws that distinguish mammals from reptiles occurred for hundreds or thousands, or millions, of generations. But there are some that undergo evolution for very short generations, or very short period of time. The microbes undergo a lot of evolution in just a few minutes. A considerable change due to evolution occurs for thousands of years. Different species evolve differently and requires different time interval. It depends on the evolutionary pressure. But when a species becomes well adapted to a permanent habitat, evolution mellows down. All of us, meaning all life forms, evolved from a single species but there have been over ten million species living on Earth today. The diversity of species seemed mysterious as we all evolve from one ancestral form. But from this one ancestral form evolved millions of species. This part of evolution is known as splitting. Creatures with recent common ancestors share many traits, while those whose common ancestors lay in the distant past are more dissimilar. The natural classification is itself strong evidence for evolution. The evidence of the evolutionary theory is all found in fossil records that link DNA of the species. But evidence of fossils is limited to some extent. Coyne provided evidence by using taxonomy on the theory of gradualism. Another element of evolution is speciation which states that evolution arises by natural selection from a common ancestry. Each organism can adapt to a particular niche in nature. In his analysis, Coyne states that the transitional forms in birds and whales support evolution. Fossils of birds that come from therapod dinosaurs have been discovered in China, which were found to be about 135-110 million years. Whales also have descended from even-toed ungulates, the artiodactyls of 30 million years ago; these are evidenced by DNA studies in fossils that date back millions of years ago. Coyne states that science tells it all, albeit in a gradual way, but evidence is plain and simple and can be found around us. The fossil evidence is only hidden but can be found in due time. Evolution explains how humans become what they are now. Evolution operates in simple ways, if we come to understand it. There are small, inherited variations in us which enhanced our ability to survive and be dominant, which refers to the concept of “survival of the fittest.” Coyne states that the design that we see came from nature as stated in Darwin’s natural selection which is the result of a materialistic process that did not require an intelligent design. Those who opposed this idea were forced by a dogma coming from the so-called “creationists.” Coyne posits that embryology is the strongest evidence for evolution. For example, vertebrates have definite or prescribed development pattern. There are the six branchial arches, but in the human fetus they are not gill slits. In animals, there is the basic forelimb structure in the whale’s flipper which is similar to the bat and bird wing. This is also similar to the functional wings in the ostrich and kiwi. Coyne also explains geography of the world in relation to evolution. He answered questions of the continental drift. Most species are already in place on the land and adjacent continental shelf. A split occurred about 170 million years ago and the land masses transported their biota with them. This results into some plant species not found in some areas, for example the cacti of the Americas, which store water in fat stems, are not found in Australia, Asia or Africa. Coyne reasoned out that this is not the work of a “creator” but rather the work of evolution. He stressed the importance of geological isolation in the origin of new species. The creationists are immune to change and theirs is belief not founded on evidence; their beliefs are illogical. Chapter 4 of Coyne’s book relates the geography of the world which has a great part of evolution. He explains the different features between oceanic and continental islands, that there are no fresh water fish, amphibians, reptiles and mammals on oceanic, volcanic islands but these groups are found in continental islands. Evolution is natural selection which happens when genes of living organisms mutate to become a different life form. This is the filtering process, anatomical innovations to remodel old structures. In animal bodies and development, there are structures that have lost their purpose or function. Coyne gave some generalizations: that the oldest fossils occur in the earlier geological strata and that the bacteria called photosynthetic was found in the first two billion years of life on earth. Geological seams occurred with fossils of bones, shells, teeth and plankton found of marine origin. The fossil hominid, man’s ancestor, is far from complete, but he reasoned out that we are the product of natural selection and no “intelligent design” ever made us. The hominid evolved, at first there was bipedal walking and the brain size gradually grew. “The Engine of Evolution” is the subject in chapter five. Coyne discusses about an evolution marvel which is the Asian giant hornet, one of nature’s predators found in Japan. It is described as a giant but it is as long as a thumb, its body is decorated with orange and black stripes. This predator has fearsome jaws used to kill its victim and a stinger that has killed several people. One remarkable thing is that it can fly with its 3-inch wingspan to a speed of 25 miles per hour and can also cover 60 miles in one day. This hornet has larval grubs that can rap its victims’ heads against the hive. The hornet is voracious, it raids hideaways of bees and wasps, particularly the European honeybee. The hornets hunt their prey like real professionals; most honeybees could do nothing. There are honeybees, real Japanese, that can defend themselves, a show of adaptive behavior. The defense is marvelous. When the hornet arrives to attack the hive, the honeybee guards call their nestmates to arms while enticing the hornet inside. Hundreds of worker bees come to attack the hornet. There adaptations involved in the predator-victim activities of the hornets and the honeybees. The hornets, ants, and honeybees have changed in order to attack their prey. Another example is the roundworm that kills a species of Central American ant. The ant experiences a change in appearance when infected. Coyne said that the changes in appearance are caused by the genes. These are adaptations wherein parasites are able to control themselves. The worm changes its appearance and behavior of the ant; the ant shows itself to birds so the latter can eat it. The birds are also a part of the cycle when it eats the ant full of worms. The birds then drop the eggs, and the ants again take back the eggs to feed the larvae. Coyne says that this is a process of evolution. There is natural selection when the worm commandeers its host and changes the host’s appearance and behavior. The adaptations go on and on. Adaptations are found in animals and plants; this is to keep the evolutionary juice flowing. In the last chapter of the book, we find a summary of the whole concept of evolution – “the relatedness” in the entire biota, the world where life began. This is also related with the philosophy of natural theology which is now being accepted widely. Biology studies have confirmed the six predictions or elements mentioned in the first part of Coyne’s book. Critique Scientists may have proven the truth of evolution but many do not believe it. The key word here is “believe.” Many do not believe. But this does not mean truth has been proven, or has not been proven. Scientists who delved on the concept of evolution argued that the evidence is found all around us. But theologically speaking, the hand of God, the intelligent design, can be seen everywhere in nature, in people, in relationships, in feelings and emotions. Natural theology complements the full revelation of God and his work. But as we learn from continuous contemplation and rethinking, we can understand that not all things we do not understand we obtain the explanation from God. Evolutionists also do not have all the explanations. They say they have the explanation and the evidence but their explanations are incomplete. Their evidences have strengthened their theory but the theory has remained a theory. For the creationists, their strength lies in their beliefs, and if there is no intelligent design, explanations remain theories. For a deeper understanding of our existence, scientific facts and findings must be reviewed and studied. It is important to learn from these findings for people to see through the eyes of science and religion and know the facts about our existence. A British scientist who worked for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) conceived his famous hypothesis soon after the first man landed on the moon. This theory states that the entire chain of living beings, from simple bacteria to human beings, is interconnected and can be viewed as a single entity. This living entity possesses powers beyond those of its constitutive parts. Indeed, there had been astronauts who have seen the planet Earth from the outer space, cannot help but wonder at the beautiful blue planet, magnificent in its grandeur and which appears to be the only planet so far that is bubbling with life, alive with all of its systems working in place. If there is no one,” no intelligent “Being” working here, this would have disappeared since scientists say Earth has been in existence for millions and billions of years ago. The “big bang” theory states that there was such a big explosion and life, that molecule, came from that explosion? If this is true, who authored it? Why is there peace and quiet in the universe and not chaos? Darwin’s The Origin of Species presented evidence of change in the biological world and related concepts about anatomy, biogeography, classification and fossils. It provided an easy understanding of how the world and life came to be without a supernatural being. One can say that Darwin did not believe in God. God is the architect or engineer in creation. Oxford theologian Aubrey Moore (as cited in Berry, 2013) wrote a generation after the Origin of Species, that Darwin did the work of a friend under the guise of a foe by making it impossible to accept the Enlightenment assumption of an occasionally interfering absentee landlord (the landlord refers to God). Moore said that Darwin’s idea of “special creation” implies the immanence of God in nature, and the omnipresence of His creative power. For Christians or creationists, the facts of nature are the facts of God. Creationists relate these facts to God as the author, the maker of nature. Science relates them to one another, the relatedness, and in new technology, they call it the interconnectedness, science calls it the integral parts of a visible order. According to Moore, “Religion does not tell us of their interrelations, science cannot speak of their relation to God. Yet the religious view of the world is infinitely deepened and enriched when we not only recognize it as the work of God but are able to trace the relation of part to part” (Moore as cited in Berry, 2013, p. 115). The concept of natural selection is difficult to prove although evolutionists contend that the evidence is obvious. Natural selection depends on inherited variation, and this stems from random changes in the chemistry of genes or DNA. Evolution is not the result of chance. But can evolutionary processes be described without resorting to the “intelligent design.” There is always the metaphysical agent. God has a place in the evolutionary process explanation, like for example the mutational processes. Evolution is not purely naturalistic; it still seeks the “intelligent design” explanation. During Darwin’s time, people lacked the concept of God which is what we call nonbelief in God. Darwin himself must have a weakened belief in God because of his evolution theory. His acquaintance with evolution made him create arguments that were against God and against biological design. But also, during Darwin’s time, the concept of evolutionary change was easily accepted. Owen Chadwick (as cited in Berry, 2013) said that from the concept of evolutionary change which was easily a view of many, “the concept of compatibility of evolution and Christian doctrine was increasingly acknowledged ‘among more educated Christians” (p. 116). This means that Darwin’s idea of evolution, although it was not his original idea, became accepted among Christians and was not popularly opposed. References Berry, R. J. (2013). Disputing evolution encourages environmental neglect. Science & Christian Belief, 25(2), 113-130. Retrieved from http://web.ebscohost.com.proxymu.wrlc.org Coyne, J. (2009). Why evolution is true. New York: Oxford University Press. Read More