Difference between revisions of "Essay:A Refutation of the 15 Questions"

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(Part 1: A Refutation of the 15 Questions)
(Part 1: A Refutation of the 15 Questions)
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Every species is a missing link; all species evolve. In addition, transitional organisms only survive for a short time, since they are evolving towards being a stable species.
 
Every species is a missing link; all species evolve. In addition, transitional organisms only survive for a short time, since they are evolving towards being a stable species.
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How do “living fossils” remain unchanged while so many other life forms are supposed to have changed radically? (The classic examples: coelacanth, lemurs, horseshoe crabs)
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Because they are already well adapted to their environments.
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How did blind chemistry create mind/intelligence, meaning, altruism and morality?
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This is a philosophical question, not a scientific one. However, intelligence confers an evolutionary advantage, and so does altruism/morality (since it benefits the species as a whole. Meaning (to life, presumably) is certainly not a scientific question.
  
 
==Part 2: 15 Questions for Creationists==
 
==Part 2: 15 Questions for Creationists==

Revision as of 15:22, January 4, 2013

Please note that, unlike many other essays on Conservapedia, this is written from a factual, evolutionary perspective.

THIS PAGE IS UNDER CONSTRUCTION! PLEASE DO NOT EDIT THIS PAGE!

Part 1: A Refutation of the 15 Questions

How did life originate?

This is not part of evolution. Even so, there are many explanations. Proto-life, such as nanobacteria, viruses, or prions, exist as transitionary stages. Even a simple salot crystal can replicate itself. And amino acids are widespread, even in outer space.

How did the DNA code originate?

There have been simpler versions of the DNA code, for example one that only uses Adenine and Guanine.

How could mutations create the vast amounts of information in the DNA of living things?

Richard Dawkins once ran a computer model in which a complex insect-like shape evolved from a single pixel. Evolution had billions of years and billions of generations to do this.

Why is natural selection taught as “evolution,” when natural selection selects, but does not create?

Mutations can add to the DNA code. Natural selection is the cumulative effect of mutations, and can create information. Evolution is simply the cumulative effect of natural selection.

How did new biochemical pathways, which involve multiple enzymes working together in sequence, originate?

See Bombardier Beetle.

Living things look like they were designed, so how do evolutionists know that they were not designed?

Living things are not perfectly designed. Vestigial organs exist. In addition, evolutionists don't know that they were not designed. That is what they think, based on the available evidence.

How did multi-cellular life originate?

The first step was colonies of bacteria. Even today, these colonies blur the line between single- and multi-cellular life. Bacteria have been discovered which use chemical pathways to communicate with other nearby bacteria.

How did sexual reproduction originate?

Sex, by definition, depends on both male and female acting together. As sex evolved, there would have been some incompatibilities causing sterility (just as there are today), but these would affect individuals, not whole populations, and the genes that cause such incompatibility would rapidly be selected against.

Why do the millions of “missing links” remain missing?

Every species is a missing link; all species evolve. In addition, transitional organisms only survive for a short time, since they are evolving towards being a stable species.

How do “living fossils” remain unchanged while so many other life forms are supposed to have changed radically? (The classic examples: coelacanth, lemurs, horseshoe crabs)

Because they are already well adapted to their environments.

How did blind chemistry create mind/intelligence, meaning, altruism and morality?

This is a philosophical question, not a scientific one. However, intelligence confers an evolutionary advantage, and so does altruism/morality (since it benefits the species as a whole. Meaning (to life, presumably) is certainly not a scientific question.

Part 2: 15 Questions for Creationists