Roots

. . . roll-over image links for previews or follow the theme trails by clicking on each image to proceed to the next . . .

Biological evolution generated us from a common ancestor that also gave rise to chimpanzees and bonobos. (This hominid timeline implies a linear evolution for hominids, whereas a pruned bush would be more accurate.)

We share more than 98% of our DNA sequences with chimpanzees, indicating that our evolutionary lines diverged 7 to 5 million years ago. In general, the later the analysis, the more recent the esimated split. The ancestor of chimpanzees and bonobos are estimated to have split again between 0.89 and 0.86 million years ago, and the two common chimpanzee subspecies are estimated to have diverged about 0.46 million years ago.

Even though our advantages over our cousins result from a regulatory-gene-mutation that permitted development of a greater brain/body size ratio, biological mutation/reproductive selection did not care whether or not we were otherwise inherently vastly superior in rationality/morality.

We seem to have inherited from this common ancestor a nature that lies somewhere between aggressive chimpanzies and sex-obsessed, peaceful bonobos. Possibly chimpanzees and bonobos diverged from a midway-natured common ancestor. The environments in which chimps and bonobos now live are comparatively more challenging in the case of chimps, no doubt necessitating – and so selecting for – their aggressive behaviour.

. . . continue

Darwin and Great Accomplishments

"It was Darwin’s greatest accomplishment to show that the complex organization
and functionality of living beings can be explained as the result of a
natural process—natural selection—without any need to resort to a Creator or
other external agent."


(Francisco J. Ayala, "Darwin’s greatest
discovery: Design
without designer," Proceedings of the National Academy of
Sciences USA, Vol.
104:8567–8573 (May 15, 2007).)

(It has been my almost invariable observation that those who write on behalf of evolutionary biology exhibit far superior grammar and wordpower to creationists. The author of the brief article surrounding this quote is an exception to the rule and writes well.)

The quote is from Francisco Ayala, "Renaissance Man of Evolutionary Biology," says “Darwin’s greatest discovery: Design without designer”. Since the original was published on the "Discovery" Institute's website and we have decided to refuse to lend authority to any creationist institution by providing backlinks, this post is published without a url. Googling will pull up the original.

The DI purports to have the aim that, "The misreporting of the evolution issue is one key reason for this site. Unfortunately, much of the news coverage has been sloppy, inaccurate, and in some cases, overtly biased. Evolution News & Views presents analysis of that coverage, as well as original reporting that accurately delivers information about the current state of the debate over Darwinian evolution.".

I would agree with DI that "much of the news coverage has been sloppy, inaccurate, and in some cases, overtly biased", though the vast bulk of bias has appeared on Christian websites. If a reporter were educated and unbiased then he or she would know that there is absolutely no place for anti-science and pseudoscientific "debate over Darwinian evolution". In other words, any supposedly fair presentation of the facts on DI is merely a sham that is *designed* to bestow legitimacy on DI's pretentious, pseudoscientific, creationist aims. Calls for "debate" are merely an attempt to support ID demands that thinly disguised religious views be promulgated in science classrooms.

While evolutionary biology has moved far beyond Darwinian (natural selection) concepts in explaining the fact of biological evolution, natural selection remains one of the key mechanisms in biological evolution. Science has moved well beyond accepting Darwinian principles. Religion, on the other hand, denies well-established facts of science in a vain attempt to support disproven claims in Genesis.

intelligent [sick] design

. . . roll-over image links for previews or follow the theme trails by clicking on each image to proceed to the next . . .

The creationism-based "intelligent [sick] design" craze – with craze being the operative word – has swept the Bible Belt.

There is no scientific evidence that points directly and incontrovertibly to the operation of an "intelligence" behind the evolution of biological complexity. Creationists choose to misinterpret the physical evidence as sign of the operation of a deity, just as the creators of other creation myths have done.

Cousinhood

. . . roll-over image links for previews or follow the theme trails by clicking on each image to proceed to the next . . .

It is a fact, denied vociferously but unsuccessfully by creationists, that chimpanzees are our closest living relatives. Of course, creationists of various ilks deny our close relationship with the chimpanzee in order to protect their illusion of Special Creation.

The problem for creationists, particularly for YECs, is that Genesis does make falsifiable physical claims that do stand disproven by science. Somewhere along the way, some creationist has comprehended enough science to realize this major problem and the era of Misleading Pseudoscience for Dummies was ushered in. The fact is, YECs and proponents of intelligent [sick] design theory promulgate ignorance and falsehoods in support of what they mistakenly call "Truth".

Biological evolution generated us from a common ancestor that also gave rise to chimpanzees and bonobos. (This hominid timeline implies a linear evolution for hominids, whereas a pruned bush would be more accurate.) We share more than 98% of our DNA sequences with chimpanzees, indicating that our evolutionary lines diverged 7 to 5 million years ago. In general, the later the analysis, the more recent the esimated split. The ancestor of chimpanzees and bonobos are estimated to have split again between 0.89 and 0.86 million years ago, and the two common chimpanzee subspecies are estimated to have diverged about 0.46 million years ago.

Even though our advantages over our cousins result from a regulatory-gene-mutation that permitted development of a greater brain/body size ratio, biological mutation/reproductive selection did not "care" whether or not we were otherwise inherently vastly superior in rationality/morality.

We seem to have inherited from this common ancestor a nature that lies somewhere between aggressive chimpanzees and sex-obsessed, peaceful bonobos. Possibly chimpanzees and bonobos diverged from a midway-natured common ancestor. The environments in which chimps and bonobos now live are comparatively more challenging in the case of chimps, no doubt necessitating – and so selecting for – their aggressive behaviour.

associated

Associated science sites • Abiogenesis and Evolution • Algorithms of Evolution • Archea Eubacteria • Cancer • Cell Biology • Complex Systems • Cyanobacteria • Diagrams Tables • Endosymbiosis • Enzymes • Evo Devo • Evolution in Action • Fat • Geology • Glossary • Immunology • Life Chemistry • Medical Science • Mechanisms of Evolution • Molecule • Molecular Biology • Molecular Paths • Neurosciences • Organics • Origin of Life • Paleogeology • Pathways • Photosynthesis • Protein • Receptor • Rocks & Minerals • SET • Signaling • Sleep • Stem & Progenitor Cells • Stromatolites • Taxonomy Phylogeny • Tissue • Virus •

And some philosophy/general interest sites: Avidity : Eine Kleine Nattermusing : eMusings : Galaria : Godspell Follies : Harper's Folly : Mimble Wimble : Sintheist : Tabula Flexuosa :