Charles Darwin's grandfather, Erasmus, advice to, 'Go, proud reasoner, and call the worms thy sister!', is prescient of the genetic commonality of all organisms and why the Theory of Evolution is irrefutably pertinent, and has a transcending frame to predict and explain natural phenomena in all the biological disciplines. Much to the consternation of the pious nay-sayers of evolution, H1N1, aka the swine flu, is the quintessential evolving machine, and our long lost cousin. The "selective reasoning" creationist readily avail themselves to the medical advances of western medicine, yet execrate the very theory, evolution, which provided the empirical scaffolding to discover species specific immunizations and antiviral drugs.
"A curious aspect of the theory of evolution is that everybody thinks he/she understands it ", Jacques Monod
As much as it pains me to admit this; especially, in the 21st century, and a citizen of the most scientifically technological advanced country in the world, the irrational subscribers to religious superstition, will not recant their remissness of reason and observable evidence. This recalcitrant demur against the method of science engender, at least in me, obfuscation; for, sentinel beings of reason publicly declare that it is by this means we know things, and advance our culture to a higher standard of living. This paradox of forfeiting reason and embracing faith is explicated in Bruce M. Hood, psychologist of Cambridge, new book, Supersense Why We Believe In The Unbelievable: He postulates that we bipedals with the advanced cerebral cortex have a mental tendentious inclination to perceive patterns, purpose and causality, which is counter-intuitive to evolution's process of randomness and non-teleology
Basically, Evolution is a theory explicating biological change manifested by genetic variation over time and expressed in the next generation randomly and without purpose
Maybe, the above definition is counter intuitive; however, arguably simple, just as simple as the phenotypical composition of the nano-size virus: consisting of nucleic acid (genetic material) which is surrounded by a protective protein coat called a capsid. Its natural history is to infiltrate a host by either ingestion, inhalation (H1N1 route), or contact, where its target is the receptor site of a cell. Its force entry into to cell is facilitated by secreting chemicals that weaken the cell wall enough to permit the interloper to inject its nucleic acids intracellular, where it commanders the cell's machinery of replicating cellular components. What makes the virus a studly example of evolution is its capacity for exponential population growth in minutes (~ 20 minutes) to turn over a generation of millions of microscopic squiggles; progenies that are all sporting their own genetic signature. The Evolutionary strategy of resistance is exemplified by the lone, genetically coy virion that withstood the chemical fallout of our cornucopia of pharmaceuticals designed to sequester their very existence and toxic pathology. Game on: from one comes many, but now armed with the genetic arsenal of resistance. This is Natural Selection plain and simple.
A virus, geranium, worm, all genetic relatives; they are sometimes refer to as the cousin so many times removed, and apparently, the creationist are reticent to admit are family. Maybe, we should water-board their contrition of relation to their genetic cous---and speaking of torture...
I like this very much; I read a more controlled Roy, and yet still there was a very poignant and driven Roy.
ReplyDeleteHave you heard yet of "The Link," an even early ancestor than Lucy; it's very interesting.