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Evolution

Robert J. Marks on “machines with minds” vs. the real-life dweebs in his evolutionary programming:

A machine mind didn’t “just evolve” in this experiment; it was programmed in — even if its output was a surprise. The same is likely true of the human mind. Read More ›

Domesticated Rice: the Power of Artificial Selection.

I suspect that almost every week there’s at least one article published somewhere that undermines Darwinian theory. Now using the term, ‘Darwinian theory’, might ruffle some people’s feathers. Yet, without Darwinian theory, neo-Darwinism makes no sense; it lacks any intellectual foundation. And, so, here we are inching towards the 200th anniversary of Origin of Species and 21st-Century evolutionary biologists remain saddled with 19th-Century thinking. With that said, this “week’s” article comes from Phys.Org and it offers a newer understanding of rice domestication. We find out that the results of an international collaboration “suggest that the emergence of cultivated rice from wild rice plants is the result of three gene mutations that make the seeds (i.e. the grains of rice) fall Read More ›

At Phys.org: Chinese fossils show human middle ear evolved from fish gills

Researchers: Embryonic and fossil evidence proves that the human middle ear evolved from the spiracle of fishes. However, the origin of the vertebrate spiracle has long been an unsolved mystery in vertebrate evolution. EH: It seems that evolutionists have a much softer definition of what amounts to proof than in other fields of science. Read More ›

At Skeptic: Why Christians Should Accept the Theory of Evolution

Larry Arnhart writes: American Christian fundamentalists reject Darwinian evolution for at least two reasons. The first is their belief that the Bible has revealed a clear teaching about the divine creation of the world that denies Darwinian evolution. The second reason is their belief that Darwinian evolution contradicts the foundational principle of the American creed that human beings have been created equal and endowed with rights by their Creator, as affirmed in the Declaration of Independence. In this article I will argue that both beliefs are mistaken, and that Christians should all accept the theory of evolution. American Christian fundamentalists reject Darwinian evolution for at least two reasons. The first is their belief that the Bible has revealed a clear Read More ›

The Death of Neutral Theory

In today’s Nature, we find this article: “Synonymous mutations in representative yeast genes are mostly strongly non-neutral.” They investigated what effect “synonymous, nonsynonymous and nonsense” mutations involving “21 endogenous genes” would have on yeast. The fitness levels of synonymous and nonsynonymous fell in equal (though not ‘identical’) measure–around 75%. I don’t have access to the article itself, only the abstract. The abstract begins thusly: Synonymous mutations in protein-coding genes do not alter protein sequences and are thus generally presumed to be neutral or nearly neutral[1,2,3,4,5] 1 through 5 are citations. Who are they: Kimura, King and Jukes, Nei and Kumar, Li and Dan Graur. The heavyweights of neutral theory. The abstract ends: The strong non-neutrality of most synonymous mutations, if Read More ›

At Evolution News: Three Realities Chance Can’t Explain That Intelligent Design Can

Professor Granville Sewell appeals to common sense and the limitations of natural forces to argue the obvious: "Unintelligent forces cannot rearrange atoms into computers and airplanes and nuclear power plants and smartphones." Read More ›

Researchers: Steve Gould’s Punk Eek is right; evolution can pause a long time, then happen rapidly

Punctuated equilibrium is what we observe but it isn’t popular. Punk eek makes it even less likely that life develops due to unintelligent random processes. It just does not allow anywhere near enough time. Read More ›

Eukaryogenesis: The Rise of an Emergent Superorganism

In his lengthy article, Bell draws attention to evolutionary hurdles to the origin of eukaryotic cells. The "chasm" between eukaryotic and prokaryotic cells is causing a re-think of the universal common ancestor notion. Read More ›