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Author Topic:   Smoking-Gun Evidence of Man-Monkey Kindred: Episode II... Tails
EZscience
Member (Idle past 5181 days)
Posts: 961
From: A wheatfield in Kansas
Joined: 04-14-2005


Message 40 of 127 (213852)
06-03-2005 12:09 PM
Reply to: Message 35 by Hrun
06-01-2005 9:45 AM


A tautology
Hrun writes:
I claim that from this day forward, only atavisms will be found that can be explained by the presence of this feature in an ancestral species.
This is not 'Hrun's law of atavisms', it is 'Hrun's tautology of atavisims' because it is true by definition and cannot be falsified. So you are stepping over the line with this one. No evolutionary biologist worth his salt would be caught using a tautology to support ToE.

This message is a reply to:
 Message 35 by Hrun, posted 06-01-2005 9:45 AM Hrun has replied

Replies to this message:
 Message 42 by Hrun, posted 06-03-2005 12:22 PM EZscience has replied

EZscience
Member (Idle past 5181 days)
Posts: 961
From: A wheatfield in Kansas
Joined: 04-14-2005


Message 41 of 127 (213858)
06-03-2005 12:15 PM
Reply to: Message 38 by Orlando Dibisikitt
06-03-2005 6:56 AM


Winged humans
Let's not forget about evolutionary constraints either.
Not only does the evolution of wings exact some fitness cost (check out the thread on Macroevolution toward the end), but its evolution may also be prevented by exisitng morphologies taht are valuable in their present form. Vertebrate wings are modifications of our 'arms' for flying and typically require loss of ability to oppose digits, among other things. Ready to give up arm wrestling and being able to type on a computer ?

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 Message 38 by Orlando Dibisikitt, posted 06-03-2005 6:56 AM Orlando Dibisikitt has not replied

EZscience
Member (Idle past 5181 days)
Posts: 961
From: A wheatfield in Kansas
Joined: 04-14-2005


Message 43 of 127 (213887)
06-03-2005 1:01 PM
Reply to: Message 42 by Hrun
06-03-2005 12:22 PM


Re: A tautology
Hrun writes:
We will never find a randomly appearing fully developed feature that can not be explained by the presence of this feature in an ancestral species.
Actually I think your law is 'evolving' along the right lines.
You are also gaining appreciation for the difficulties involved in the real process of stating a natural law. The same apply to formulating a good theory. The pivotal terms require very solid definitions for the theory to be functional. And I don't think your term 'fully developed' is far off the mark either. I would be hard put to improve on it.
Actually, I kind of like your 'law'. If it were ever falsified, I guess it would constitute proof of Intelligent Design .

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