Re: If you believe any of your theories, you've turned science into a religion.

On 4 Dec 2005 08:51:30 -0800, "us2" <us2@xxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:

>1. Evolution, if true, should be happening today. You said that it
>takes a long time to occur, so there should be plenty of LIVING links
>between species around today. Are there?

Evolution is happening today. Keep in mind that the idea of a "species"
has changed considerably in recent years. Species are now seen as
somewhat fuzzy distinctions. Why would you necessarily expect to see
evolutionary links between existing species? In most cases an existing
species is itself the link between an extinct species and a species that
has yet to develop. What we see is evidence of common ancestors- easy to
see where the divergence was fairly recent (e.g. equids or hominoids),
and less obvious where the divergence was distant (e.g. reptiles and
birds).

Nevertheless, we can see evolution in action in the divergence between
population of certain species when conditions change. I was just reading
an interesting paper about how populations of European blackcaps may be
showing signs of evolutionary divergence based on different migratory
routes.


>or;
>2. evolution reached it's peak & stopped. Why are there still
>subordinate species around? Shouldn't (if this is the case) everything
>be at it's highest level, ie human?

Evolution hasn't reached its peak. There is not even such a concept as
an "evolutionary peak". What are "subordinate species"? Why do you think
humans are "highest". We have big brains- that's all. Nearly every other
species on earth is better equipped for survival, and has a longer
history. We were still evolving rapidly just a few tens of thousands of
years ago- it is too early to say if our "design" is currently stable.
And while we seem very successful based on reproductive success, that
very success may doom us as a species within a short time. In the big
scheme, humans may just be a blip on the screen.

Species don't reach peaks, but rather they reach relatively stable
plateaus when they and their conditions work. Around us today we see
species that have been stable for a long time (such as many insects),
species that have been stable only for a short while (many larger
mammals), and species dying out because they can't evolve fast enough to
deal with their changing environments (again, many large mammals). These
are exactly the things seen in the fossil record- not much seems to have
changed over hundreds of millions of years in terms of the mechanisms of
evolution.

_________________________________________________

Chris L Peterson
Cloudbait Observatory
http://www.cloudbait.com
.

Relevant Pages

  • Re: Defining&testing "macroevolution" (was: Testing the Laws of Intelligence)
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  • Re: Darwinian Mechanism of Mutation and Natural Selection Found Lacking
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  • Re: Macroevolution FAQ 2.1D
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    (talk.origins)
  • Re: Macroevolution FAQ 2.1D
    ... > Macroevolution - its definition, ... > "microevolution" is, and by this they seem to mean that whatever evolution is ... > evolutionary change at or above the level of species. ...
    (talk.origins)