More "miscellany" PARTS ONE & TWO (General)

by David Turell , Friday, September 15, 2023, 17:44 (19 days ago) @ dhw

Speciation

DAVID: Some species arrive with non-useful-now abilities that will be used later.

dhw: Abilities are not the physical structures that distinguish one species from another. Those structures may allow for future new actions, but the species will only change if the existing structures can’t cope with future requirements. You agree that speciation takes place when required, and not before required, and so intelligent cells would not need a crystal ball in order to speciate. Enough!

Note today's article on bird song, brain size, and cognition. " The evolutionary human pattern of a large, very complex brain before language development suggests the same pattern of evolution occurred in birds. This supports my view that speciation includes preparations for future important developments within species lifetime."

MICROBIOME (Back to theodicy)

DAVID: I repeat. My view are mine alone, totally consistent with ID.

dhw: As your views are yours alone, you can hardly attack my alternatives on the grounds that they are mine alone! You are quite right that your views concerning design are consistent with the theory of intelligent design. So are all my theistic alternatives. What is obviously not supported by ID is your unique theory that your God designed all species for the sole purpose of designing us plus food, although 99.9% were irrelevant to us plus food.*** Stop dodging.

DAVID: ID assumes God designed all of evolution. Not different than my theory.

dhw: Read the bold.

I did and disagree with your conclusion about ID.

Early pre-humans

DAVID: The Cambrian answers your straw man illogical premise. God designed as God needed to. He didn't mind how long it took.

dhw: Your belief that your God created Cambrian species “de novo” denotes that he could have designed us directly if he'd wanted to, but for unknown reasons he either chose or was forced to use the method bolded above.***.

As God used evolution it was the best method available.

dhw: If you can’t make sense of your bolded theory***, maybe it’s wrong.

Stop psychoanalyzing me! It makes perfect sense to a clear thinking mind.

Horizontal transfer

DAVID: [Bacteria] can extensively edit their own DNA. Other single cells as part of multicellular organisms have specific consigned duties to perform, actively manufacturing proteins and other molecules or monitoring levels of oxygen in the hypothalamus or sodium in the kidney. They do not edit their own DNA.

dhw: You always state this with authority, but even your God would have had to edit DNA in order to produce evolutionary innovations. If he can do it (and bacteria can do it), why can’t his specially designed invention have done it?

What 'specially designed invention'?

dhw: I’m always intrigued by stem cells as a possible key to our understanding of how evolution works.

They are the manufacturers under orders to produce species forms.

Encyclopedia Britannica
https://www.britannica.com/science/stem-cell
Stem cell | Definition, Types, Uses, Research, & Facts

stem cell, an undifferentiated cell that can divide to produce some offspring cells that continue as stem cells and some cells that are destined to differentiate (become specialized). Stem cells are an ongoing source of the differentiated cells that make up the tissues and organs of animals and plants.

dhw: So could it be that speciation occurred when stem cells responded to new requirements by forming new organs and/or variations of existing organs with new specialties?

They are the manufacturers under orders to produce species forms. Stem cells can't think or design.