Genome complexity: what genes do and don't do (Introduction)

by dhw, Monday, January 28, 2019, 13:40 (2126 days ago) @ David Turell

dhw: So your interpretation, just to sum up all the bolded statements above, is that information is passive reference material and cannot serve as instructions, and the cells are totally aware of it and use it in performing their actions. However, (latest statement) the information does contain instructions and cells are not aware of them but are programmed to follow them in performing their actions. I suspect I am not alone in finding these two sets of statements confusing.

DAVID: Davies is coming to agree with my ID folks who believe life runs on information. In my mind I break this up into procedural information which runs most of life's activities automatically and reaction information which instructs appropriate reactions to new stimuli. I believe the cells are instructed to use the information and instructions appropriately.

You have agreed that information (a passive data base) cannot possibly serve as instructions, and you cannot passively "be instructed" without instructions. You have said unequivocally that “the information just lying there is inactive, of course, but the cells are totally aware of it and use it in various required actions.” I would say, then, that life "runs on" cells being aware of and actively using the passive information that is lying there inactive. All your own words.

I don’t know what this has to do with ID. An atheist can believe in exactly the same process.