Complexity of gene codes (Introduction)

by David Turell , Monday, August 16, 2010, 03:01 (5023 days ago) @ George Jelliss

I thought this comment on a discussion on the Dawkins forum might be of interest. It estimates the enormous number of generations in the process of evolution from the simplest cell to humans. More than enough for chance and natural processes to evolve all manner of complexity.-Your observation and Dawkins' is exactly correct. Quadrillions of generations, but the ever-present Archaia and the other bacteria have been the same for 3.5 billion years. Then we see changes, punctuated equilibrium, the Cambrian Explosion, and actually intermediate forms, (i.e. the whale series), but the fossil record has never provided Darwin's little-step-at-a-time proposal. Darwin was extremely prescient, but at a huge disadvantage to what we can study today. -To me it is necessary to take the next step. Your multitudinous generations provide time for the development of the processes I have been presenting. Evolution can speed up, driven by necessity, and by processes in the genome to allow rapid adaptation. Where you and I will disagree, is I expect it to be found that many of these adaptive processes are present in Archaia from the beginning, and to me that means design. If on the other hand, the processes developed over the 3.6 billion years of life, and are a recent phenomenon, then you are correct and there in no design, only chance. At present, neither of us knows the 'true' answer, only our individual biases.