Posted by The Grey Pilgrim on April 24, 1998 at 12:44:38:
In Reply to: I'm ready to see the experiment: Man, chimp evolve from common ancestor posted by Walker on April 24, 1998 at 11:54:09:
: : : 1. What predictions can you make with that theory?
: : If something reproduces hereditarily and there is variation in individual characters among the members and there is variation in the fitness of the organisms then natural selection automatically results.
: I was hoping for something more concrete like how
: Einstein's theory predicted the sun would bend star light.
: There are many species currently under stress. Often
: they die out. Can anyone predict what adaptions they
: will make to survive? The cheetah, rhino? Can anyone
: predict what specialization the Galapagos finches,
: tortise, iguanas will undergo in the future?
No, because adaptation doesn't work quite that way. What happens is, assorted mutations occur on a frequent basis. If the mutation is harmful, the organism bearing it will die, and it will not enter the gene pool. If the mutation is neutral, it will not provide any competitive edge; it's a matter of chance whether it continues to remain in the gene pool. If the mutation is beneficial, then it will be passed on and organisms bearing it will have a better (probably only slightly, but it depends) chance of survival, and it will therefore gain a foothold in the population. There is no way to predict what mutations will occur; only that some will.
: Your answer sounded like "An organism will pass its mutatated
: genes to its offspring". Big deal. I know variation happens but
: is this proof by induction that humans evolved
: from a chimp-like ancestor? I don't buy it.
No, it's not proof; it's merely an explanation. The evidence is in the DNA (there is approximately a 97% correspondence between human and chimp DNA) and the fossil record. It is not perfect or complete, but evolution is the best explanation that satisfies the known facts. Saying, "God did it" isn't an explanation, it's merely an assertion. There's no proof or even very good evidence to support it.
: That's why I compare it to evolution. There is a ton of
: evidence for evolution but little proof. Yes,
: variation does occur between generations of
: a species but proof that we and the mosquitos
: have a common ancestor -- I haven't seen
: it and I'd love to. I'd be happy with proof that
: we have a common ancestor with chimps and for me that
: requires a repeatable, verifiable experiment;
: not just a trail of fossiled bones (although this
: is very compelling evidence)
Well, you're asking for too much; the time required to reproduce that (not to mention the moral issues) is prohibitive. We can only do detective work to try to establish what happened; the conditions are such that we can't come up with an experiment that would satisfy the requirements you cite above.