Good teaching tool for early teaching in biology

[Carl in Michigan]

You're so wrong in everything you've said. I missed this one earlier. I do not want to appear religious. I have no religion and am not religious. But you are a fool, that's for sure.

Then why do you attempt to speak for the Scriptures. Why do you bother trying to "explain" for the rest of us what the Bible says.

As the young people say today, "stay in your lane."

 

[Riff Raff]

[more stupid stuff]

This is a discussion forum. You are far too stupid and ignorant to be saying anything about Christianity. You're an embarrassment to that religion.

 

[Woodznutz]

"Lastly, the “calculation of odds” ignores the very basic reality that there would be incalculable numbers of biochemical interactions occurring simultaneously."

You have defined the 'explosion-in-the-junkyard-producing-a-747'.

 

[ReinyDays]

Most believe we evolved from lower life forms.

Science isn't about belief ... it's about experimental evidence ... again, you're thinking philosophically, which implies you're ignorant in matters of cell structure and biochemistry ... it's sad you insult Creationism with your hatred and war-mongering ... Christ said "believe in Me and you will be saved" ... doesn't say to believe in evolution, now does it? ...

 

[Hollie]

You have defined the 'explosion-in-the-junkyard-producing-a-747'.

No. I've made the point such a thing is silly.

 

[Woodznutz]

Science isn't about belief ... it's about experimental evidence ... again, you're thinking philosophically, which implies you're ignorant in matters of cell structure and biochemistry ... it's sad you insult Creationism with your hatred and war-mongering ... Christ said "believe in Me and you will be saved" ... doesn't say to believe in evolution, now does it? ...

Most who believe in evolution are abysmally ignorant about it.

I don't hate anyone. However, I do feel sorry for people.

 

[Woodznutz]

No. I've made the point such a thing is silly.

What are the odds of an "incalculable number of biochemical interactions occurring simultaneously" all in harmony to produce a single complex organism such as man. That actually sounds more like creation than evolution.

 

[toobfreak]

The fossil record completely backs it up.

Well yes and no. It suggests the WHAT from the fossil record but totally ignores the WHY and HOW. Since it would take infinite combinations infinite time to arrive at today's biota by simple random selection, yet we only had about 4 billion years to play with, the obvious missing piece of the puzzle left is the intelligent design behind it all!

It also leaves out any answer to why if simple celled organisms evolved into plants and animals, then why they all didn't do it and why all the lower lifeforms are still around as they were billions of years ago!

 

[The Duke]

The fossil record completely backs it up. But religious nuts choose to remain willfully ignorant.

If the earth is really that old, why are we not miles deep in bones?

 

[Hollie]

What are the odds of an "incalculable number of biochemical interactions occurring simultaneously" all in harmony to produce a single complex organism such as man. That actually sounds more like creation than evolution.

Well, no. Christian creationism is reliant on supernaturalism. “Hey Rocky, watch me pull a fully formed human out of my hat”.

I think you’re missing the point that biochemical interactions act in ways that are unpredictable. “All in harmony” would be the opposite of those interactions. Gene duplication, mutation and selection are all known to occur due to natural biochemical processes in a variety of organisms studied in the laboratory. I think what you’re missing are the advancements in science and medicine due specifically to the study of biochemistry.

On the other hand, this might be a good time to offer the creationist, General Theory of Supernatural Creation as a counter to Gene Theory.

 

[Hollie]

Well yes and no. It suggests the WHAT from the fossil record but totally ignores the WHY and HOW. Since it would take infinite combinations infinite time to arrive at today's biota by simple random selection, yet we only had about 4 billion years to play with, the obvious missing piece of the puzzle left is the intelligent design behind it all!

It also leaves out any answer to why if simple celled organisms evolved into plants and animals, then why they all didn't do it and why all the lower lifeforms are still around as they were billions of years ago!

Clearly, it would not take “infinite combinations infinite time to arrive at today's biota by simple random selection”, because as we see, today’s biota exists, and it only took 3.5+/- billion years.

Random selection is the opposite of biological evolution. Natural selection is a non-random process, and this fundamentally affects the probability of genetic success. As long as there are inherited characteristics which have some impact on an individual's reproductive success, then natural selection occurs…. you know…. naturally. In different environments, different characteristics become more or less significant.

On the other hand, introducing supernatural gods (intelligent designer gods), leaves us, as usual, with requiring some evidence for the existence of these supernatural designers before you can task them with actually performing supernatural designs,

 

[Riff Raff]

Creation only requires belief. Evolution requires that the believer thoroughly understand the concept, otherwise it must be taken on faith.

Creation can mean different things to different people. To some fundamentalist Christians it can mean literally that it occurs in a matter of days. To some more liberal Christian's, with the same words in their Bible, it can be taken less literally and assumed to allow for some scientific evidence.

Belief alone based on trusting dogma may not be enough for some. Personally, I would never believe anything without fact and reason a consideration. I'm not a Christan or religious, yet with fact and reason I've concluded there is God.

I think ultimately God must be reality. Ultimate reality. So the closer we can get to understanding the universe and everything in it the closer we get to getting a glimpse of God.

I don't thoroughly understand evolution, but with only general knowledge of it I can see it appears to somewhat accurately describe the process of life changing in ways related to the environment over extremely long time periods, and close examination by scientists can seem to confirm some examples of that. It's a partially understood process even by those who study it professionally, yet I suspect some are convinced it's generally true. I suspect it's on the right path with the little I know because it's compatible with my larger ideas of reality. I think that's more than just simply taking it on faith (an approach I reject for myself but not for others).

 

[Hollie]

Most who believe in evolution are abysmally ignorant about it.

I don't hate anyone. However, I do feel sorry for people.

There’s no requirement for belief when facts and evidence are available. If you are convinced the medical and biological sciences are all one grand conspiracy theory, that’s fine.

If you had a serious illness would you,
a. rattle bones, read tea leaves, burn incense, practice Santeria, or, would you,
b. seek a competent doctor trained in the medical and biological sciences?

 

[Riff Raff]

What's an "OEC" and "YEC"? And any other EC's that might exist.

 

[Riff Raff]

The God of the Bible is the same yesterday, today, and tomorrow. Science on the other hand changes faster than I change my socks.

Some scientists are trying to piece together the "Grand Unified Theory" or "Theory Of Everything" (God) but by examining the components with microscopes and telescopes, not assuming it's God they're examining. I thing Albert Einstein had a sense of it, and he's not the only one.

On the other hand, religions don't have a clear view of the big picture either, and oftentimes get bogged down excluding helpful angles rather than consolidating and unifying.

Unbeknownst to both, the other is also trying to know the same Unity better — God.

 

[Riff Raff]

So why don't alligators have opposable thumbs?

Why haven't the organic molecules on Saturn's Moon Titan evolved to make radio telescopes?

Gators don't need 'em. They've been able to be in harmony with basically the same environment since the dinosaur age without thumbs.

 

[Riff Raff]

Evolution violates the law of odds, and would require God to make the millions of otherwise impossible changes needed.

With God, all things are possible.

 

[Riff Raff]

I also don't believe ...

... Samson had literally "magic hair"

... in the talking snake

... that a virgin had a child

... Lot's Wife turned into salt

... anyone was raised from the dead

... Noah saved humanity and (almost) every animal, reptile, insect, and single-celled lifeform on the planet in a boat.

... anything in the entire Book of Revelation


However, I do believe there there is a lot of good stuff in The Bible, such as one of man's first attempts to codify morality.

But, I don't literally believe that every word in it is factually true.

I generally see the Bible in the same way, including that there's a lot of really good stuff in it.

 

[Riff Raff]

... the obvious missing piece of the puzzle left is the intelligent design behind it all!

Hallelujah!

 

[CrusaderFrank]

Gators don't need 'em. They've been able to be in harmony with basically the same environment since the dinosaur age without thumbs.

So evolution skipped them by? Are they the one and only species that's "able to be in harmony with basically the same environment since the dinosaur age"? Evolution stops when a species is in "harmony"?