Review: PBS's Evolution

Faith,
You are correct in your assumption that the AB resistant TB did not necessarily arise as a result of mutation. What probably happened is as you described, a small portion of the global TB population was ALREADY AB resistant. All that happened was the non AB ones died to be replaced by the AB variety. This is natural selection at its finest. For evolution to have happened, a mutation would have to have occurred, that mutation THEN being tested by natural selection. NOTE. given rates of mutability, is is highly likely that many mutations took place. It just can't be shown that any affected restistance to ABs.I'm glad you posted this. I come from the science side of the argument & groan when I see people claim instances where evolution actually occurred, when "all" were seeing is natural selection. It was Darwin who gave us natural selection, NOT evolution, as is commonly thought. Evolution existed as an idea before Darwin, particularly Lamarck. Darwinistic Natural Selection is alive & well & you have now seen it for yourself.I ask you to consider, given that evolutionary change in species is random mutation being given up to non-random natural selection, & that both of these events/processes have been observed. Why do creationists still hold out? Surely a well supported theory where the two driving processes are fact (shudder), is better than a God hypothesis that is based on ABSOLUTELY NOTHING, a triumph of hope over expectation?In my opinion this is the crux of creationism. What mindset allows the destruction of other peoples ideas that are to a greater or lesser extent supported by observation, by pointing out that there are gaps still requiring evidence in said idea. When the defended creationist notion (& I choose my words carefully)itself is entirely without evidential merit?What sort of FUBAR logic is going on here?A Jokey example follows........If a creationist drove up to a road junction & there were lots of cars & lorries smashed into the back of each other. Twisted metal & plastic abounds, no survivors, all burnt beyond recognition. He would therefore, on the basis that no living human witnessed what science laughably describes as a "traffic accident", that God did it. Going further, the vehicles were probably deposited in the Flood. Because not only was radioactive decay & light speed different back then, but so was the rate that motor vehicles rust. Clearly this "traffic accident" is evidence for the Flood, & therefore evidence for God.Why DO they do that?

​

[This message has been edited by mark24, 12-02-2001]

Faith,"That's true, but this could be largely a function of evolutionistic assumptions preventing thought from going in the necessary directions. If in fact "evolution" describes what is only an isolating and limiting of a gene pool, there's simply no further direction to go. It's reached some kind of limit for that gene pool. "Thats true for natural selection in a gene pool with no mutations going on. If a mutation occurs then the gene pool has changed. If this continually happens then species CAN change as the entire gene pool for the species potentially (depending on quality) changes with every mutation. Then there is nothing stopping a "kind" evolving into something that, given enough time, couldn't breed with the original species. I.E. A new species has evolved.I picked this up on the scientificcreationism forum."DNA changes all the time. Mutations occur approximately once every million base pair during every DNA replication. Considering that humans have 30,000 genes with the vast majority having greater than 100 codons per gene (a codon is 3 base pairs), that is at least 90,000,000 base pairs. At a mutation every million base pairs per replication that is 90 mutations per cell per replications. Now considering that you started as one cell that divided into millions to become a full grown adult, and that cellular division occurs all the time (therefore so does DNA replication) in your gonads, how many mutations do you think are in your sperm/eggs that will be passed on to the next generation. Add to this the mutations you inherited from your parents and grandparents ect. No granted most of these DNA mutations are silent, but many aren't. Most are detrimental, and that is why only 1/3 human fertilisations result in a pregnancy. However not all detrimental mutations are filtered in this way and that is why so many children are unfortuantely born with genetic diseases - it is not Gods will. Nevertheless some of these mutations are benifical - inhance a metabolic pathway, give better sight, hearing etc; and if this mutation increases the chances of an individual in passing of their genes to the next generation, evolution will begin, and gradual the whole population will inherit this advantagous mutation. And sometimes, the accumulation of advantagous mutations will lead to speciation. All due to random mutations."So, roughly 90 mutations in EVERY sperm & egg adds up to a lot of gene pool changes.

​

[This message has been edited by mark24, 12-02-2001]