Return to David's theory of evolution PART 1 (Evolution)

by David Turell , Tuesday, June 28, 2022, 16:17 (666 days ago) @ dhw

DAVID: I agree. God's method is evolution by designed creation.

dhw: The bedrock of the theory of evolution is that all varieties of plants and animals have “come into being through a progressive diversification that has accompanied their biogenetic descent from their ancestors” (Fontana Dictionary of Modern Thought).That is the meaning of common descent. The article that we are discussing only tells us that the lines of descent are different from previous interpretations. It does nothing to contradict my definition of common descent as “all life forms except the first are directly descended from earlier life forms”, which you rejected “emphatically” last week. I have asked you to provide your own definition, but all you have come up with is your theory that God designs all species separately, some of which have no precursors (the exact opposite of common descent).

With our new knowledge of DNA, it is time to alter definitions of evolution. Old definitions are not set in stone. We have to account for the gaps in evolution recognizing old steps lead to new steps. We must recognize new steps need new protein molecules with new functions. Then the issue becomes the source of the necessary new molecules. A designer or intelligent cell factories.

Octopus
DAVID: The 410,000-year Cambrian gap is like none other in history. It is based on fossils, not absence of them.

dhw: Of course this is based on the absence of fossils! If there were fossils of transitional forms, there would be no mystery!

DAVID: You miss the mystery. How did so much change in form occur in such a short time? Especially when compared to other time gaps in speciation? Think Whale series as one example.

dhw: Apart from your leaping away from the fossils mystery, you obviously don’t read my replies, so I will summarize them. Speciation takes place as a RESPONSE to new conditions. If conditions remain the same for a long time, then there will be long periods of stasis (Gould’s punctuated equilibrium). Nobody knows the cause of the Cambrian explosion, but whatever it was (an increase in oxygen?) must have made a huge difference to the range of possibilities for the innovations that produce new species. 410,000 years may well be too short a period for Darwin’s random mutations to produce the new complexities, but the theory of cellular intelligence would allow plenty of time for let’s say 30,000 generations of organisms to invent new ways of exploiting the new environment.

I know all your replies!!! They are a vague set of theoretical possibilities to wave way the problem. Cells produce a huge variety of biochemical molecules at very high speeds. No other function has ever been ascribed to them. That they act so intelligently can in no way imply they created the Cambrian gap all by themselves in such a short period.

DAVID: I do not think the intelligent cell theory is at all possible!!! And you know it. The appearance of the cells from the outside has a 50/50 probability of cause! I've picked my 50% side of the equation.

dhw: If you reject a 50% possibility, your rejection of the theory can only be the result of sheer prejudice.

Not prejudice but a deep knowledge of the biochemistry of life. I feel I have the knowledge to make an informed choice, based on real evidence.

DAVID: I've agreed God's form of evolution is designed creation. Again, you act ignorant of Adler's position which is mine: humans, as a result of natural evolution, are so unusual, we should not expect a natural cause, but accept humans are a proof of God.

dhw: When will you stop dodging? The discussion here is not about God’s existence - ALL life’s complexities and not just humans can be viewed as evidence for the existence of God - but about your illogical combination of evolutionary theories. See Part Two.

I can't help you undo your obvious rigid prejudices to new approaches to new views of evolution based on new knowledge about DNA