An Evolving Debate

As discussed in a recent post, fossils help paleontologists unravel earthtime and sort events into their proper order. Along with the other rules and clues we have discussed regarding absolute time and relative age dating, fossils are a big part of how earth scientists figure out what’s been happening on earth since life started leaving fossils in the geologic record over three billion years ago.

This unavoidably brings us to the “E” word we’re going to discuss in this post: Evolution. GeoMansBlog.com (please subscribe if you haven’t already) attempts to present clear and understandable descriptions of the earth sciences but, before we jump into this post, it’s important to recognize that there is another equally valid and compelling version to the origin and parade of life.

It’s far too easy for both sides to get their backs up about the validity of their particular point of view. I am not going to do that in this post, and I’d encourage you not to, either.

Few would argue that the Biblical version is based upon faith, but so is the vast majority of science. Sure, plenty of established dogma exists on both sides, but unless you were there (in the case of divine intervention), or did the experiments and took the measurement yourself (in essentially all of science), you are choosing to believe in the narrative that lights your fire… rings your bell… floats your boat — whatever metaphor works for you.

So, let’s do our best to keep an open mind, and be sure to always afford both versions the respect and civility they so rightfully deserve. Both have rabid, frothing-at-the-mouth followers who are willing to sacrifice their lives (or yours) in the furtherance of their cause; both have valid pros; both have devastating cons — there is absolutely no reason to get cocky or dismissive just because your version works for you. So, I promise to keep an open mind if you will too.

With that being said, let’s try to remember that this is a blog that attempts to advance scientific thought in layperson’s terms, so we’re gonna dwell on that side. But also remember: my personal beliefs are probably as conflicted as yours may (or may not) be and, while I plan to focus on the scientific versions, that doesn’t mean I am plugging them as the gospel truth — I could absolutely present compelling evidence for the Biblical account as well.

Evolution gets off to a bad start. The reason is simple: all many of us have been exposed to is the concept that humans were not created in the image of a god who loves us and listens — and responds — to our pleas, but are in fact descended from apes. While there is certainly quite a bit of evidence, both scientific and logical, in support of this, it is in no way proven. Not even close.

It’s easy to get emotionally involved when evolution is linked to humans: who and what we are, and where we came from. As such — and as was touched upon in Climate Change for Dummies — it is tempting for many to discount all of evolution. It’s not much of a shocker that the “Monkey to Man” evolutionary blueprint is all many ever hear before running for the door.

As The Boxer so eloquently reminds us:

A man hears what he wants to hear and disregards the rest.

But… something that sure looks and smells like evolution has been documented in many cases.

Probably one of the first attempts to introduce scientific evidence for evolution and natural selection was by Charles Darwin, and his work on the Galapagos Islands in the nineteenth century. During his investigations of the lifeforms he found there, he documented multiple varied species of a common bird called a finch.

In his study, which he advanced in his 1859 book titled On the Origin of Species, Darwin proposed that a single finch somehow made it across the waterway between South America and the islands, and once there evolved into the dozen or so versions that he saw; each with a specific beak that allowed it to feast upon a specific type of food. He offered this as an example of “adaptive radiation” and “natural selection.”

Yeah, yeah, I hear you — they’re just some stupid birds, so who cares (and this still doesn’t mean my granddaddy was a chimp). But there are other unique — and modern — evolutionary trends affecting some of the lifeforms that humans are in direct contact with. An example might help…

If you’ve had any sort of bacterial infection lately, you have probably heard about the concerns that many doctors have these days about the superbugs which are beginning to plague our health. We are told to be careful about using antibiotics, because their overuse is causing organisms to “evolve” which are not affected by the traditional antibiotics that we have been using to protect us from diseases and other nasties.

The whole concept is actually easy to understand. You are sick, the doctor gives you antibiotics, and most of the time they successfully obliterate the bacteria that was causing your distress.

But, over time and with regular use by millions of patients, some of the nasties — it actually only takes one — survive. These are the ones that reproduce and, again with time, evolve into an entirely new strain of bacteria which is not sent to bacteria heaven by the traditional antibiotic. The concept is fairly straightforward, and a terrifying scenario — not just for ourselves, but most especially for future generations as drug-resistant germs proliferate.

And superbugs are just one example of how humans and our scientific expertise is causing evolution at the species level to some of the lifeforms inhabiting our planet. Drought-resistant corn; shorter wheat that doesn’t blow over in the wind; weeds that Round-up cannot touch; smaller tusks in elephants in response to poaching — we are seeing evolution occurring right before our eyes. Oftentimes it is intentional, but in many cases it is not.

So, to my way of thinking it’s hard to argue with the concept and reality of evolution. Again, this does not mean that we came from “lower” primates; only that something that looks and sounds and smells and tastes like evolution is actually happening.

Is this good? Is it bad? I’m not sure either way and in no position to judge, but I do have faith that evolution is real, and when the doctors say “be careful with antibiotics,” we should probably believe them.