Sunday, 11 September 2011
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The Greatest Show on Earth: The Evidence for Evolution
By Richard Dawkins
see relatedWhy Creationists Irk Me
Imagine, if you will, that you are a doctor. You've spent about a decade of your life going through intensive schooling, studying fields like anatomy, physiology, biochemistry, microbiology, and dozens of other fields that all accumulate the knowledge you need to be able to treat humans. You've dedicated much of your life to attaining this knowledge, and the credentials that come with it showing that by an impartial institution you have earned a title that indicates you are an expert on the human body and what can go wrong with it. How intensely pissed would you be if you walk into your office to tell a patient that they have a brain tumor, and she looks up from her smart phone and matter-of-factly tells you that no, it's actually an imbalance of chi that's causing her headaches and dizzy spells. Now, instead of starting on the treatment that will make her better, you have to focus your energy on convincing her that not only are you right, but she is wrong. You have to spend session after session with her explaining that there is no natural evidence for chi, nor for anything like chi to affect one's head. You further show case study after study showing that the exact same kind of brain tumor you know she has. You show her the CT scans, the MRIs, the biopsies... and this is all the work you have to do even before you start to treat her.
Or imagine being a historian with your focus being on the Holocaust. You went through all your schooling reading first-hand accounts, meeting with holocaust survivors, seeing pictures of concentration camps, and you are doing your research on some nuance of the holocaust itself. Then someone comes up to you and tells you that the holocaust never happened. Say what? This is a point of view you didn't think anyone ACTUALLY held. Sure, someone had mentioned in passing that there were people that didn't believe the holocaust didn't happen, but that was reserved to people in tinfoil hats or stuck in an oppressive regime like Iran where they don't get outside information. So now instead of doing your research on how the post-WWI economic situation in Germany led so many ordinary people to blame the Jews for their problems, you now have to focus your energy on explaining to somebody that the holocaust did, indeed, happen.
This is how people who have studied evolutionary biology feel when dealing with creationists. Creationists demand so much from evolutionists to explain, but it's simply not that easy. Evolutionary biology is a complex, many-faceted field. A molecular biologist is not going to be as ready to explain how Tiiktalik is exactly what we expect as a transitional fossil between fish and tetrapods. A paleontologist will be hard-pressed to explain the transition between single-celled organisms to multicellular organisms. There are literally tens of MILLIONS of peer-reviewed, scientific articles on the subject of evolution. It's a complicated subject, and no one person can be expected to know it all.
Then, when bringing up salient points while discussing evolution with creationists, it often seems to fall on deaf ears. They dodge around us being able to answer their questions by constantly using vague terminology like "kinds" of animals, a topic I've dealt with before. They change the definition of evolution to something completely unrelated, like abiogenesis or cosmology, which I've also discussed in-depth. They move the goalposts when asking for evidence, claiming that the information I've given them doesn't fit the criteria they deem important. And some are downright dishonest when asking for evidence of evolution, much like Ray Comfort and his $10,000 challenge. Then, of course, there are those that flat-out ignore evidence given to them, some even here on Xanga going so far as to delete my comments.
So to all you creationists who say "it should be so simple to prove it true if it's a fact," you either don't realize what you're asking for, or you do and you're being intellectually dishonest. Evolution is not a concept one can master a full knowledge of in a handful of Xanga comments, just like quantum mechanics or optics or organic chemistry or any other science you don't question at all.
So tell me, creationists, what would it take to convince you that evolution is true? And before you answer, consider whether it is something that would actually convince you, or if it's even something that the theory of evolution would predict. Because the more I discuss evolution with creationists here, the less respect I have for creationists in general. This is your chance to redeem yourself in my eyes (if that even matters to you).
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Comments (103)
Fortunately, evolution is not brain surgery. It is just an approach by which people interpret the science. So it doesn't really matter what the doctor thinks about evolution or what the patient feels about creationism. You want to just stick to the science and get the tumor out.
@TheTheologiansCafe - I think you missed my point. It's an analogy, not a call for all doctors to embrace evolutionary biology. Was this a tl;dr scenario for you?
Yeah, except none of this applies...
By the way... i'm a nursing student, and have been studying biology for a while. I also used to be an evolutionist, and know all about it. I don't ask for your evidence because nothing evolutionists tell me is new. Interestingly, though, except for a rare few (and from what you've told me you're an exception) the evolutionists are the ones not willing to read the other side.
I even had someone ask me for book references once, i think trying to trap me. (This was a couple of years ago.) When i gave them the references, they came up with some lame excuse not to read them. You can't say that all evolutionists are educated and all creationists aren't. Just doesn't apply. Its not true. In fact, MOST evolutionists have NO idea why they believe in evolution. Its just "what they learned in school."
"Then someone comes up to you and tells you that the holocaust never
happened. Say what? This is a point of view you didn't think anyone
ACTUALLY held. Sure, someone had mentioned in passing that there were
people that didn't believe the holocaust didn't happen, but that was
reserved to people in tinfoil hats or stuck in an oppressive regime like
Iran where they don't get outside information."
This is exactly what I thought about Creationists until, I have to admit, a couple of years ago. Being from the UK I had something of a "benefit of the doubt" mentality going on regarding what I heard from some Americans. "They're just a wing-nut fringe, an ignorant and undereducated minority" I told myself. Over the past 6 years I came to realise that not only were these people not necessarily "a minority" but even politicians - people supposedly qualified to lead and serve their people and country - also held these views (whether their 'belief' is genuine or is merely a way of pandering to their regressive constituents I don't know. It's absurd either way.)
It is hard to respect those who would twist and manipulate reality to suit their personal beliefs. Every last Creationist is not coming from a position of "hey, this evidence for Creationism really has something" position. They're coming at it from a "my faith gives me more comfort than cold, hard facts thus I will do whatever I can to reaffirm it, even if it means spending my life in blind ignorance and cognitive dissonance" position. If the 'evidence' for Creationism is so strong why is it exclusively a Christian-held position? Surely even some none-Christians, impressed by the objective facts that hint at Creationism, a few of them would come round and say "you know, there may be something to this...." Yet any nation of scientists with no desire to confirm inerrant biblical ideology overwhelmingly embrace Evolution. and many, such as where I live now, in Japan, have never even heard of Creationists and, upon my describing what Creationists believe and their refutation of Evolution, they look back at me with utter disbelief and bewilderment.
There was even a TV show on this past year where the hosts look into strange and bizarre ideas around the world. The subject: Creationism in the US. The hosts: utterly incapable of understanding how people could be so ignorant. In a country where there is no confirmation bias for personal belief standing in the way of science the science shines through on its own merits. The unsupported personal beliefs of a religion, however, seen to them hokey and anachronistic.
thats a good question at the end, hopefully the comments will be fun
it's much like music. you study various species of 2 and 3 voice counterpoint. you study harmony. you study composers and periods. you learn that the church taught using intervals other than perfect 4ths and 5ths was heretical, thus all the parallel notes in "Organum" during the dark ages and you know most people have no idea what any of that means. you study orchestration and learn to compose. you study and become adept at several instruments. you study different forms of music from various parts of the world and various cultures. you do all of this from the time you're barely able to walk until adulthood. you learn what intonation is and the importance of it then someone comes along and tells you "Young Folks" is the greatest song ever.
of course no one dies from not studying music. no one dies from not becoming a chef. no one dies from not studying auto mechanics. no one dies from not knowing computer code and people who do can't seem to agree on whether Mac or PC or Linux is better. only 3 choices. shouldn't be difficult. no one dies from not signing up for military service. no one dies for not becoming a fireman or a pilot when they grow up. no one dies from not opening a pet store so what's the difference?
@TNLNSL_PRN - If you don't accept evolution, it's because you don't understand the evidence. Sorry, but you simply can't understand the evidence and be a creationist or ID proponent. Don't mean to be rude or blunt, but your nursing degree doesn't imbue you with knowledge about evolution. Unless you received a graduate degree in evolutionary biology, or went to one of the few undergraduate universities that offer a range of evolutionary biology classes, you likely don't know very much about it.
Regardless of what the average evolutionist knows compared to the average creationist, it's indisputable that a great deal more of the most respected, published, and accomplished expert natural scientists accept neo-Darwinian evolution than creationism or ID. Virtually every professor at every first rate school, every prominent natural scientist, all the most published researchers, all the Nobel Laureates, etc. are proponents of neo-Darwinian evolution, not alternatives. After years and years of trying to find creationist/ID scientists, organizations like the AiG and Discovery Institute have managed to find ~250 according to the last updates I read on their website. It should be noted that most of these individuals weren't biologists, evolutionary biologists, or biochemists. Moreover, creationists and ID proponents consistently fail to prove that their beliefs are scientific or factually supportable in cases like Edward v. Aguillard, even though they usually have the benefit of conservative judges and juries. That's all pretty astounding corroborating evidence that these theories just aren't well supported. And of course, prominent biologists like Kenneth Miller and Richard Dawkins have provided more than adequate demolitions of the pillars of each competing theory (see last comment section on the irreducible complexity mousetrap design post, which can be summarized as the evolutionists disproving IC from a philosophical, engineering, and scientific perspective only to be countered with "nuh-uhs!" from the ID proponents).
@UTRow1 - Seriously, that's funny. I understand the evidence. Believe me, probably better than you. I've studied it like crazy trying to make it work. It doesn't. Period. And you insulting my intelligence doesn't make evolution any more true.
You forgot to mention ET. They are responsible for creating the human bodies you live in, hence the abductions, poking and prodding to seek how the equipment works.
But but...what about those of us that feel that everything that's been proven by science was done by God? I mean, I know you don't like the idea of an invisible man in the sky, but to me, the things science has figured out is just how I feel He works. And don't ask me to explain it. I have a hard time putting my beliefs into words.
Now that I think about it, I'm probably a Deist.
awesome post! I can already picture people plugging their ears and say stuff like "bible says!" or "in our sacred traditions, we came from the stars" and so forth. Like, where's the evidence homey?
It looks like those who believe in god for whatever reason are just plain brainwashed. You're not going to make any progress with them. Shake off the dust and post it where you might have a chance at a decent set of comments. Xanga is bankrupt, leave them to their own devices.
@Da__Vinci - Not all of us are brainwashed. For me, at least, it's just what works best for me. I understand everything behind science and have absolutely no doubts in science being right.
@Da__Vinci I was religious until I was fourteen or so just because that's what my mother had been telling me, then everything in biology class made much more sense.
It is incredibly frustrating to me as a scientist when people underestimate the rigor involved in science.
@lifeonacitybusem4 - They don't underestimate it, they blatantly, willfully ignore it. There is absolutely no excuse for the way they act. Minds turned off and the switch is broken.
the moral of the story: while professionals go to work professional creationists go to irk.
that about wraps it up. :P
@TNLNSL_PRN - [You can't say that all evolutionists are educated and all creationists aren't.]
You're right, I can't, which is why I didn't.
[In fact, MOST evolutionists have NO idea why they believe in evolution.]
And creationists come to their beliefs through rigid scientific study?
@trunthepaige - And denying the Holocaust doesn't affect much, but it IS still a denial of the truth.
@GodlessLiberal - Okay, you didn't. And i assumed. Sorry!
And i can't say that about creationists, either. I'm not saying i can. Most haven't studied it. I'm just saying let's keep the playing field even here.
@TNLNSL_PRN - [I'm just saying let's keep the playing field even here.]
Sure. Let's compare peer reviewed articles on evolution vs. peer reviewed articles on creationism.
@GodlessLiberal - LOL, sure... but the problem is we won't accept each others'. Why? Because we don't accept each others' premise.
i think what irks me the most is how they try to pass Creationism off as science, when it's simply mythology. there's no reason why i should believe the Christian creation myth above the Sumerian, Norse, Hindu, or Aztec ones. because they all require some element of faith, something that cannot be tested or peer-reviewed under any circumstance.
all i'm saying is, if you want to believe in Creationism, that's your business. but don't try to pass it off as science. that's like saying astrology and astronomy are equal scientific endeavors.