Archive: Fossils, Evolution, Cell Repair, Morals, SETI

Some of the lies evolutionists were telling 23 years ago are still being told today.

Note: Some embedded links may no longer work.

Tiny Crustacean Fossil Fuels Cambrian Explosion Debate  07/20/2001
A tiny but detailed fossil of a crustacean, less than half a millimeter long, has been found in rocks alleged to be 511 million years old (see picture in the BBC News). Most fossils have only hard parts preserved, but this remarkable find has mummified soft parts and legs; it must have been fossilized rapidly (see Discovery.Com for close-up pictures). The fossil is “so old, yet so advanced” it adds fuel to the “Cambrian Explosion” controversy – why do so many different animal phyla appear abruptly at the onset of the Cambrian, 545 million years ago? Some scientists speculate that more fossils like this are not found because geological conditions did not favor fossilization at the time.

That cannot be an excuse, because the Cambrian is a long period of time in their scheme, and other similar periods of time have abundant fossils. The Cambrian Explosion remains a clear problem for Darwinism. In the absence of any evidence, scientists in this story claim that “there must have been a period of evolution prior to the Cambrian explosion.” The fossil record itself, however, supports the Theory of Abrupt Appearance, not the Theory of Slow, Gradual Evolution.

Blame Your Tardiness on Evolution  07/20/2001
If you’re always on time, the predator may be waiting to eat you, according to a speculation by a Japanese scientists writing for Physical Review Letters (see Philip Ball’s summary in Scientific American). By keeping the biological clock a little imprecise, evolution may be giving the tardy critters a chance at survival; e.g., you don’t want to be the early worm if the early bird knows by habit you’ll check in on time. But the evolutionist confesses that his model is preliminary: “The underlying assumptions and simplifications remain to be carefully examined,” he says.

OK, so let’s do that. Let’s carefully examine the assumptions: read these pages. Evolutionists go out of their way to pay homage to Darwin at every turn for every phenomenon. Anything that happens can somehow, some way be called an evolutionary adaptation.  Evolution, therefore, fails as an scientific explanation that can be falsified.

Scientists May One Day Hatch Jurassic Chicken  07/19/2001
The cover story of the current New Scientist is called “Rewinding Evolution.” Scientists think they might some day regress offspring of living creatures into their evolutionary ancestors. The blurb says, “Bring out the T. Rex in your chicken and the ape in your aunt. The past is coming back to life with a roar as we discover the power of evolution’s sleeping genes, says Philip Cohen.” A review in Ananova says “Jurassic Chicken is not far-fetched; Chickens could be turned into Jurassic Park monsters by turning back the evolutionary clock to when birds were dinosaurs.”

How much did the makers of Jurassic Park III pay New Scientist to run this story on opening day?

Digital Organisms Achieve Survival of the Flattest  07/19/2001
A team of biological modelers created computerized organisms and made them mutate and replicate at various rates, according to Nature. The ones that survived the best were not the fittest, nor the ones with the most offspring, but the ones on a fitness plateau (a flat rate of reproduction) that were the most robust against mutations.

Evolutionists need to stop playing video games and get back to the real world.

25 Years of Study on DNA Copy and Repair Mechanisms Summarized  07/18/2001
The July 17 issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences contains a long paper by two MIT biochemists on what we have learned so far in 25 years of study of enzymes that help copy and repair DNA: the DNA polymerases. Apparently these wonder molecules not only synthesize DNA but repair a number of different kinds of errors. The coordination of which polymerase is activated and tosses the baton to another is still poorly understood. Most of the work has been done on E. coli, a prokaryote (simpler one-celled organisms lacking a nucleus), but the situation is even more complex in the eukaryotes (all higher organisms), “where both the number of DNA polymerases and the level of complexity of the events are far greater.”

If your brain can tolerate the technical jargon without crashing, and if you need evidence for a Designer, you should read this paper. The authors seem truly amazed at the performance of these submicroscopic molecules. Some sample sentences:

• • A common, defining feature of these DNA polymerases is a remarkable ability to replicate imperfect DNA templates . . .
  • The recent discovery of additional eukaryotic DNA polymerases…further complicates the already daunting issue of understanding the control systems that govern which DNA polymerase gains access . . . .
  • A growing body of evidence suggests that an important additional level of control results from DNA polymerases being “coached” as to their correct biological role through interactions with other proteins associated with the particular DNA substrate . . . .
  • In addition to their roles in chromosomal DNA replication, DNA polymerases participate in numerous DNA repair pathways, including double-strand break repair, mismatch repair, base excision repair and nucleotide excision repair . . . .
  • Elaborate regulatory controls and a sophisticated system of protein-protein contacts ensure that the…gene products carry out their appropriate biological roles. However, as is so often the case in science, the discoveries of today are posing even more challenging questions for tomorrow.

And this all takes place in the simplest kinds of bacteria! Remember that Darwin did not know any of this. To the Darwinians, cells were little blobs of unknown stuff called “protoplasm” and it was easy to talk glibly about it arising in some warm little pond and evolving into higher organisms. As Michael Behe said, the cell was a “black box” to Darwin, but now we have opened the box and are staring with awe at the contents. Does a system as complex as a robotic factory, complete with fail-safe mechanisms, feedback, automatic repair and inspectors originate out of ooze? No way! Darwin himself said, “If it could be demonstrated that any complex organ existed, which could not possibly have been formed by numerous, successive, slight modifications, my theory would absolutely break down. But I can find no such case.” Well, biochemistry is providing cases by the truckload. How do you spell DNA? “Darwinism Not Adequate.”

Recombination Vital to Genome Stability  07/18/2001
The latest issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (July 17) contains a symposium on gene replication and recombination, among other papers on DNA. Among the interesting papers:
(1) A theory on how genomes can contain vast stretches of non-coding DNA, apparently inactive retrotransposons that were inserted by recombination, polyploidy or lateral transfer. These inactive stretches, while harmless, can greatly expand the genome while keeping the number of actual genes relatively constant.
(2) A description of how recombination is an essential method for repair of DNA breaks, stating that “DNA synthesis is an accurate and very processive phenomenon; nevertheless, replication fork progression on chromosomes can be impeded by DNA lesions, DNA secondary structures, or DNA-bound proteins. Elements interfering with the progression of replication forks have been reported to induce rearrangements and/or render homologous recombination essential for viability, in all organisms from bacteria to human.”
(3) Another paper describes how specialized proteins called topoisomerases help prevent the strain of uncoiling DNA from breaking,  but when they fail, recombination can help restart the replication process.
(4) A paper describes how recombination works to repair breaks in a replicating chromosome.
(5) Some Japanese scientists describe how a gene codes for a motor protein that is essential for genome stability.
(6) The cover story describes the various repair mechanisms, stating, “Maintenance of genomic integrity and stable transmission of genetic information depend on a number of DNA repair processes. Failure to faithfully perform these processes can result in genetic alterations and subsequent development of cancer and other genetic diseases.” Describing one such mechanism named Rad52, the authors state, “The key role played by Rad52 in this pathway has been attributed to its ability to seek out and mediate annealing of homologous DNA strands . . . . our data indicate that each Rad52 focus [i.e. active site] represents a center of recombinational repair capable of processing multiple DNA lesions.”

These are just samples of the exciting findings being made about DNA replication. These and other papers show that it is a fail-safe system with many sophisticated backup and repair mechanisms. While there is still much to learn, and many mysteries to explain, DNA’s ability to replicate is truly a marvel of engineering. Think about the classic chicken-and-egg conundrum for evolution illustrated by (5) above: a gene codes for a protein that is essential for the gene to exist. Browse through the abstracts of these papers just to get a feel for the amazingly complex world of cellular processes going on in your body right now, without your conscious thought or control. Modern biochemistry is putting the exclamation point on David’s praise in Psalm 139:14 – I will praise Thee, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made.

Time Cover Story Features Ethiopian Ape-Man Find  07/17/2001
With color art of ape-faced upright creatures warily traversing the forests of Africa, Time Magazine put the latest Ethiopian fossil find onto its cover this week, stating “The discovery of a handful of bones in Ethiopia this week brings scientists tantalizing close to the time, 6 million years ago, when our most ancient ancestors took their first upright steps. A look at the juncture when chimps and man went their separate ways.”

Red baloney alert! Red baloney alert!  Time has built an evolutionary mountain out of a data molehill that Nature called “extremely fragmentary” and hard to distinguish between hominid or ape. A handful of tiny bones were found in a gravelly area in Ethiopia, that have no dates on them and no explanation attached; so what? All the evolutionary talk is manufactured out of a pre-existing commitment to evolution; it is not justified by the raw data. Follow our chain links to see what a hopeless tangle their whole story is, before granting any credibility to this propaganda outlet for Darwinism.

Science Students Learning in Moral Vacuum  07/16/2001
A report on Ananova and the BBC News says that today’s science students are learning in a moral vacuum, and are ill-equipped to deal with serious ethical questions such as human cloning and genetic engineering.

In the age of relativism, who is to do the moral teaching? “Moral” is an undefined term in Darwinland.

Discovery Channel Debuts New Dino Virtual Reality TV  07/16/2001
The Discovery Channel declared Jurassic Week on Sunday with a new sequel to their immensely popular Walking with Dinosaurs computer-animated world: When Dinosaurs Roamed America, on the eve of Jurassic Park III which premieres on the 18th. Clearly aimed at kids and students (watch the commercials), the TV program puts hair and feathers on the dromeosaurs, describes in detail the senses of various species (how acute their hearing and eyesight and sense of smell), and ends with the Yucatan asteroid, followed by an eagle in the sky described as the last dinosaur, and a tiny mammal emerging from the boneyard intact with the words “someday its children will walk on the moon.”

You don’t need facts any more; virtual reality TV brings good myths to life. The program is interspersed with a few vignettes of scientists describing what could have or might have been true, but all the narration is stated so matter-of-factly, and the visuals are made so believable, it doesn’t matter what the data (or lack of them) are – why, you’re right there, so it must be true. Kids watch this without any hint of the controversies that exist behind the scenes, and without being shown any distinction between data and interpretation. The behavior, motives and even sex appeal of these creatures is all described, extrapolated from silent bones. If you have kids, teach them to look for the raw data and see if the picture is justifiable from it. You’ll hear a lot of wiggle words in the scientists’ explanations.

The fossil graveyard at Dinosaur National Monument is interpreted as having formed during a drought, when both predator and prey died together looking for the last water hole; but if you have ever seen the quarry, you know the bones are so jammed together it looks like a catastrophe occurred. Animals in deserts today do not fossilize in such a manner! Their bones bleach in the sun and decay to dust. They don’t tell you that dinosaurs, like everything else in the fossil record, appear abruptly and fully formed, and that there are systematic gaps between the different orders. The viewer gets no information about the guesswork that goes into dating methods, nor the wrangling among scientists behind the scenes about the origin of birds, feathers, and the cause of the extinction.

Dinosaurs were clearly loaded with complex functions and capabilities, but who gets the credit? Why “Nature,” of course, the goddess of modern paleontology, who works miracles with her magic wand of natural selection. Typical quote: “At [such and such a place, xx million years ago], an experiment in evolution is underway.” This is the fallacy of personification at work.  Don’t let them get away with it. When Dinosaurs Roamed America makes a good cartoon but poor science. We observe dry bones, but the rest is inferred. The only one who watched dry bones come to life was Ezekiel (Eze. 37). The ankle bone connected to the leg bone … Now hear ye the Word of the Lord.

Congress Urged to Fund SETI Again  07/15/2001
Ever since the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence (SETI) was removed from the Federal Budget in 1994 and deemed unworthy of funding by the National Science Foundation, according to CBS News, proponents have been depending on private funding. Now, Rep. Lamar Smith (R-TX) believes it is time for the government to support the search again. Four scientific witnesses testified to Congress that the time is ripe, based on the following findings: (1) Over 50 new planets have been discovered; (2) New technologies will soon allow chemical spectra from extrasolar planets; (3) Water has been deemed likely on several planets and moons of the solar system; (4) New theories suggest planet formation around stars may be common; (5) Life has been found to exist in extreme environments.

Every one of these arguments is either disputable or inconsequential. The planets discovered so far have all been Jupiter-sized and inhospitable. Water is necessary for life, but not sufficient: did the Internet evolve because earth had dirt, from which copper and other ingredients could be extracted? We reported recently that earthlike-planets may be rare, not common, and if life has been found in extreme environments, that argues for its design. It is a logical fallacy to think that since life is found in extreme environments that it evolved there. Did firemen evolve inside burning buildings?

Sandia Big Screen TV Approaches Acuity of the Eye  07/13/2001
A 10 x 13 foot screen with 20 million pixel resolution has been developed that renders complex scientific data sets faster and sharper than any previous displays. According to the news release from Sandia National Laboratories, this is achieved with massively parallel imaging, using 64 computers splitting the processing into 16 screens as a 4×4 set. The technique allows complex images to be computed in seconds instead of the half-hour time frames required for “rendering farms” used by the movie industry for complex special effects. The news release states – and this is the punch line – “The facility’s digitized images, created of 20 million pixels, approach the visual acuity of the eye itself.”

Did you hear that!? Think about it! Here our top physicists and engineers have built a screen taller than a man that can finally approach the capabilities of what God or evolution (depending on your worldview) has packed into a little 1.5-inch eyeball. And yet Sandia’s 64 massively parallel imaging computers take several seconds to render what the 3-pound human brain does instantaneously (in 3D, with surround sound accompaniment, a variable focus lens, automatic diaphragm, tandem movement, automatic cleaning, and more). No wonder the eye gave Darwin cold shudders! The eye is just one of countless wonders that point to a Designer infinite in wisdom.

P.S.  The Sandia engineers are bluffing. Their big screen has 20 megapixels, the eyeball has 120!