5 replies to this topic

[UM-Bot]

The evangelical war on science

Click here to watch video - 06:44s

A film exploring following those teaching creationism over evolution to today's younger generation.

[REBEL]

They should start a new world wide religious forum and/or early morning show, Unexplained Ministries.

[Solid Skeptic]

This is shocking and depressing.

[techfreak]

Scientists should really change the theory of evolution to adaptation. Adaptation makes more sense to me in that this is what basically happens when a species environment changes. Especially when it involves food or survival. Organisms adapt not evolve. I am asain and my parents are fairly short, as are all of my other asian friend's parents. But I, on the other hand, am 6'3" and my friends are tall as well. I feel that our bodies adapted to the food we eat. The more nutrients, vitamins.... we eat the stronger, taller we get. I think it only makes sense to use the word adapt.

[lee-uk]

If we had only adapted we would just have tall monkeys, not man.

So we evolved into man, hence evolution.

[Copasetic]

techfreak, on 02 February 2010 - 03:01 AM, said:

Scientists should really change the theory of evolution to adaptation. Adaptation makes more sense to me in that this is what basically happens when a species environment changes. Especially when it involves food or survival. Organisms adapt not evolve. I am asain and my parents are fairly short, as are all of my other asian friend's parents. But I, on the other hand, am 6'3" and my friends are tall as well. I feel that our bodies adapted to the food we eat. The more nutrients, vitamins.... we eat the stronger, taller we get. I think it only makes sense to use the word adapt.

You don't adapt in your life time, adaptation is the favoring of traits-Traits are expressed genes, which can only be passed vertically (at least in humans) via reproduction. Hence, you are born with a set genome and die with the same genome-No chance to adapt during one's life.

What you are discussing, is called phenotypic plasticity. Genes, while they are set, produce product through interactions with the environment-Such as better nutrition, or tissue trauma or neighbors dividing-Etc.

You and your friends are taller than your ancestral countrymen because you have better nutrition, which allows genes to expressed to produce more growth factor.

The theory or evolution describes the biological fact of evolution (that allele frequencies change through generations). You could probably benefit by clicking on the link on my signature "All I know about evolution I learned at UM", which will take you to my profile page where you can click on various posts to explore some of the evidence of evolution and refutations of creationist propaganda about evolution.