Physical and Geological Hurdles on the Darwinian Race

Can the smooth big-bang-to-brain story of evolution jump the physical and geological hurdles along the way?

Superflares: Astrobiology Magazine posted a new worry: life-preventing “superflares” likely erupted from the early sun, possibly at the “astounding” rate of 250 per day. “Our young sun may have routinely blasted Earth with gobs of energy more powerful than any similar bombardments recorded in human history,” the article says. Good thing the intricately structured Van Allen belts safely absorb the more moderate flares now (see ENV). Surprisingly, astrobiologists figured out a way to make these superflares encourage the evolution of life!

Stellar arcade: When the only solar system we knew about was our own, it made sense to envision all planetary systems in similar arrangements. The BBC News rounds up the evidence that proves planets must have migrated from their place of origin. This implies that gravitational interactions would have made earth-like planets very unlikely—meaning that Earth had to survive a game of “cosmic pinball.” If so, it’s an oddball.

Banded iron formations: These markers of the early earth (see picture on PhysOrg) have nothing to do with the rise of oxygen, says geologist Desmond Lascelles.  Why? Iron is only soluble in acid, he says, and there wasn’t any when they were deposited. Instead, he says, they formed around black smokers (hydrothermal vents). This “challenges current thinking,” the headline reads, because evolutionists have tied banded iron formations (BIFs) to the “Great Oxygenation Event” chapter of their history of the earth. This finding pulls the evidential rug out from that important hypothetical transition.

Any rational evolutionist would worry, you would think, about these findings, and consider abandoning materialism for intelligent design. But look: they turned the superflare study into evidence for their view! This is like grabbing a firebrand shot at them, eating it, and then farting out smoke.