EVOLUTIONARY CRITIQUES by mac, dan, lane, arsh
WHAT IS CREATIONISM? The belief of the universe existing because of the works of God. Which can be read from the Bible in the Book of Genesis 1:1, In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Colossians 1:16 and 17 For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him
WHAT IS THE THEORY OF EVOLUTION? An evolutionist is a person who believes in the idea of the gene pool being modified by natural ways of the Earth i.e. one who believes in animals changing every generation due to natural selection, mutation, and genetic drift. This means that these organisms gradually change, or evolve, over time.
EVIDENCE FOR CREATIONISM 1. The idea of God has been constant throughout many ancient and isolated civilizations. 2. Among these civilizations, flood stories appear persistently, most including stories of only animals and a few select people surviving the disaster ( 3. In the observable world, creationism is just as viable as Evolution. (Ham, 2014)
EVIDENCE FOR EVOLUTION 1. Fossil Record 2. Radioactive dating (half-life based) 3. Genetic linkage between most creatures in a predictable pattern 4. Similar anatomical structures between species
FLAWS IN THE THEORY OF EVOLUTION 1. The probability of everything that needed to occur, occurring. 2. The evolution of new features has yet to be proved by evidence. 3. The idea of God coming through most human religions. 4. The evidence of genetic unity from the human genome project. 5. None of the fossils can be properly dated..
The Probability of Evolution
PROBABILITY Scientists have calculated that the chances that the Big Bang exploded with the correct amount of force to allow the formation of dense elements as well as not collapsing back in on itself 1/10^40 power (Peacock, N.D.). This while not statistically impossible, is statistically improbable (Miller, 2011).
PROBABILITY Another probability all-together is the chances that life would form by chance with the ability to not only sustain itself, but: Reproduce Survive its environment Form some sort of genetic code in its first generation. The current probability of this occurring is unknown because no laws of physics nor biology can accurately predict this (Retchless 2010).
Evolution of New Features
NEW FEATURES No new features have been observed due to evolution. Different gene expression have been observed over time, but this may not be direct evidence for the occurrence of evolution. For example, the peppered moth which has been naturally selected to have darker colored wings, dues to pollution from the industrial revolution in the 1800s (Zimmer, 2013).
MUTATIONS Mutations occur in deletion, substitution, and frameshift (University of Utah Health Sciences, 2016). No evidence has shown DNA mutations in any other way, and their occurrence is completely random (Loewe, 2008). New features are not evolving with the higher design of mutation.
Human Religion
GOD Every ancient culture observed some type of religion, but where religion started in humans is unknown (Mark, 2009). If there was no God then where did this subconscious awareness of a higher being come from? The impulse to believe is a part of the human condition, which cannot be explained by the theory of evolution which focuses on the descent with modification rather than a higher power controlling everything?
MAJOR RELIGION CONNECTIONS Many ancient and isolated religions share stories and lessons. Native Americans believed in a great flood, similar to the one found in the bible. This can be seen throughout religions (
Evidence of Genetic Unity
GENETIC UNITY The Human Genome Project produced the first, fully catalogued piece of human DNA (U.S. Government, 2015). This DNA proved the human race was constrained to one species, which is highly irregular for such a widely dispersed population (Foster, N.D.). Evolution would suggest the development of more diverse people and even speciation (Ham, 2014).
Flaws in the Fossil Record
FOSSILS The fossil record is incomplete, not giving enough evidence for evolution. Certain appearances of certain organisms in the fossil record do not make sense for the theory of evolution. Currently, inferences from the fossil record cannot be taken as solid evidence, and while not disproving evolution, also cannot support the ideas based around it (Ham, 2014).
CAMBRIAN EXPLOSION The cambrian explosion was a rapid diversification in animal species over the course of 20 million years. In terms of evolution this is an incredibly fast change (Gould, 1981). This sudden change in the fossil record poses a major inconsistency with evolution because it is though that evolution is a more gradual change (Crouch,2015).
CONSENSUS Danielle Holbrook: I started out a creationist, and after analyzing everything I am even more confident in my belief. Maccoy Merrell: I grew up believing in creationism and find it hard to accept any other way of thinking. In the end, to me, it can only be one way. Lane Womack: I support the theory of evolution and remain unchanged on the subject. I am still sceptical of Creationism Arshama Dehghan: I started out believing in the theory of Evolution but have decided to withdraw because I did not really care. All arguing between the two makes people argue and arguing is just a waste of time.
BIBLIOGRAPHY 1. Ojibwe People. (n.d.). Legends Retold by Students Participating in the Anishinabe Teachers for Anishinabe Children Project. Retrieved from University of Wisconsin Oshkosh: http://www.uwosh. edu/coehs/cmagproject/ethnomath/legend/legend1.htm 2. Peacock, R. (n.d.). Probability of Life. Retrieved from Evolution Frequently Asked Questions: http: //evolutionfaq.com/articles/probability-life 3. Mark, J. J. (2009, September 2). Religion in the Ancient World. Retrieved from Ancient History Encyclopedia: http: //www.ancient.eu/religion/ 4. Creationism explained; includes Creation Science and Intelligent Design. (n.d.). Retrieved February 18, 2016, from http://www.genesis-creation-proof.com/creationism.html 5. Zimmer, C. (2013, October 9). Evolution in Color: From Peppered Moths to Walking Sticks. Retrieved from National Geographic: http://phenomena.nationalgeographic.com/2013/10/09/evolution-in-color-from-pepperedmoths-to-walking-sticks/ 6. Ham, K. (2014, February 5). Ken Ham's Creationist Model. (B. Nye, Interviewer) 7. NCSE National Center for Science Education - Defending the Teaching of Evolution in Public Schools. (n.d.). Retrieved February 21, 2016, from http://ncse.com/creationism 8. Foster, M. (n.d.). Race, Ethnicity, and Genomics: Social Classifications as Proxies of Biological Heterogeneity. Retrieved from Genome Research: http://genome.cshlp.org/content/12/6/844.full
BIBLIOGRAPHY CONTINUED 1. PBS. (2002). Religion: Three Religions, One God. Retrieved from GLOBAL CONNECTIONS: http://www.pbs. org/wgbh/globalconnections/mideast/themes/religion/ 2. Ruse, M. (2003). Creationism. Retrieved February 21, 2016, from http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/creationism/ 3. The Tenets of Creationism. (n.d.). Retrieved February 21, 2016, from https://www.icr.org/article/168/ 4. Retchless, A. (2010, March 15). What Would Cast Doubt on Evolution? Spontaneous Generation. Retrieved from Science 2.0 5. Miller, J. (2011). Apologetics Press. Retrieved from The Laws of Science: Probability 6. "Abrupt Appearance in the Fossil Record." Genesis Park. Web. 21 Feb. 2016. 7. Ancient Plesiosaur and Mosasaur Depictions. (n.d.). Retrieved February 21, 2016, from http://www.genesispark. com/exhibits/evidence/historical/ancient/plesiosaur/ 8. Crouch, Andy. "Does the Cambrian Explosion Pose a Challenge to Evolution." Bio Logos. Web. 2 Feb. 2016. <http: //biologos.org/common-questions/scientific-evidence/cambrian-explosion>. 9. Ginex, N. (2012). God, us and the universe: The beginning of the creation of god. Place of publication not identified: Xlibris. 10. University of Utah Health Sciences. (2016). What is Mutation? Retrieved from Leran Genetics: http://learn. genetics.utah.edu/content/variation/mutation/ 11. Loewe, D. L. (2008). Genetic Mutation. Retrieved from Nature Education: http://www.nature. com/scitable/topicpage/genetic-mutation-1127 12. U.S. Government. (2015, June 29). An Overview of the Human Genome Project. Retrieved from Genome: http: //www.genome.gov/12011238
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