Genetics – Page 64

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Flightlessness Evolved Four Times

September 10, 2008

An article on Science Daily claims that the famous flightless birds – African ostriches, Australian cassowaries and emus, New Zealand kiwis and South American rheas – are unrelated. There was no flightless common ancestor. They lost their ability to fly independently, scientists say, because of “parallel evolution.” This would also mean that emus […]

Darwin and Evolution

How Not to Prove Positive Selection

September 5, 2008

Erase all that evidence for positive natural selection in the genes you’ve read about.

Amazing Facts

How Chromosomes Pack Without Exploding

August 24, 2008

When preparing to divide, a cell has to copy all its DNA accurately and pack it into chromosomes. A professor at U Chicago told Science Daily this is “like compacting your entire wardrobe into a shoebox.” The cell has another difficulty in this compaction process, though: DNA, being negatively charged, resists packing. Eukaryotes […]

Genetics

Flatlife Has More Genes Than It Needs

August 23, 2008

The genome of a placozoan (“flat animal”) shows more complexity than one would expect for a simple life form. According to evolutionists, it shows that even a barely-differentiated animal presumably ancestral to complex animals had the genetic toolkit of its more-advanced descendents. Trichoplax adhaerens is a slimy-looking thing that sticks to aquarium walls. […]

Genetics

Admissions of Ignorance in Evolutionary Theory

August 11, 2008

For a scientific idea some have proclaimed as a fact no longer in need of proof, and as well-established as gravity, Darwin’s theory of evolution still reveals surprising weaknesses when its defenders speak about the details. Detecting these weaknesses requires tuning out the media hype, and tuning into scientific papers and pro-evolution journals where evolutionary […]

Genetics

Tree of Life in the Genes? Not Yet

July 23, 2008

Now that we have hundreds of animal genomes in the bank (the GenBank), is Darwin’s tree of life becoming visible? If the image is present, it is extremely weak, said Michael J. Sanderson of the Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at University of Arizona. Writing for Science,1 he showed that only a small fraction […]

Genetics

Mangrove as Metaphor

July 22, 2008

The mangrove – that shoreline tree with the salt-tolerant roots that grows into dense thickets – is the fulcrum of two unrelated news stories. It never met a force it couldn’t handle. It also provides metaphors for evolution and creation. PhysOrg reported that the mangrove is a key to saving lives. “The replanting […]

Early Man

The Cro-Magnon Were Europeans

July 16, 2008

There’s no genetic difference between Cro-Magnon Man and modern Europeans, a genetic study reported by Science Daily. Researchers took extra care to avoid contamination of bones found in southern Italy, they said. They claimed Cro-Magnon people were able to maintain genealogical continuity for 28,000 years, remaining distinct from Neanderthals, whom they said lived in Europe […]

Biomimetics

Is Artificial DNA Intelligently Designed?

July 15, 2008

Japanese chemists have made a new kind of DNA, reported Science Daily. It resembles natural DNA, but is composed of bases that are shorter, modified forms of the ones cells use. “The finding could lead to improvements in gene therapy, futuristic nano-sized computers, and other high-tech advances,” the article says. An evolutionist should extend his […]

Dumb Ideas

How to Tell an Evolutionary Story

July 4, 2008

Thanks to Science Daily, we now know that “Evolutionary Origin Of Mammalian Gene Regulation Is Over 150 Million Years Old.” The proof is easy. It is so easy, in fact, that no proof is necessary. One can merely assume it is true. Trust them; they are scientists, after all. Here is how the E word […]

Birds

Birds of Different Feathers Evolve Together

June 26, 2008

Are pigeons like parrots? Are hummingbirds like hawks? And are falcons unlike eagles? Scientists are all a-flutter after results of a massive genetic comparison of birds has put some members in unlikely pigeonholes. “The largest ever study of bird genetics has not only shaken up but completely redrawn the avian evolutionary tree,” said Science Daily. […]

Biomimetics

Animal Patterning Keeps Scientists Puzzle-Solving

June 23, 2008

Here’s a fascinating area of research for a budding young scientist: the development of animal patterns. Look at the dazzling wing patterns on butterflies in an illustration on Science Daily or consider a zebra’s stripes. How do such patterns emerge from a single fertilized egg? “Although this has been studied for years,” said a researcher […]

Amazing Facts

Few Typos Get Past Your Spell Checker

June 11, 2008

Inside your cells are thousands of spell checkers that put any human typist to shame. In a process critical to all living things, RNA Polymerase II transcribes DNA into RNA rapidly with high fidelity. Even very similar chemical letters are accurately discriminated by this wonder of a molecular machine that is described in Science Daily. […]

Genetics

Can Darwin Fit into Designer Genes?

June 2, 2008

Humans are tinkering with DNA in ways that appear to blur the boundaries between design and nature. PhysOrg reported that geneticists at the University of Nottingham have created capsules that can coax bacteria to transfer their genetic information. The title is “Life, but not as we know it?” PNAS reported that scientists at UC Santa […]

Birds

Animals Outsmart Scientists

May 15, 2008

In science, long-standing beliefs are often challenged by new evidence. Several recent findings not only show animals to be more remarkable than thought, they pose some new questions for evolutionists. Slothlessness: Sleeping almost all day, the sloth is the epitome of laziness in the animal kingdom. Or is it? The BBC News now tells us […]

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