Intelligent Evolution and Stupid Design
Terry Traub
December 21, 2005
Edited February 25, 2006
Intelligent design (see Wikipedia for a
thorough definition) is currently promoted as a way to replace the teaching of
evolution with a Biblical explanation for the origins of life. But intelligent
design, so-called, is simply another name for the Creation myth of the Book of
Genesis, the one that says that "In the beginning, God created the heaven and
the Earth..." Why God would create a world that is demonstrably billions of
years old, with evolutionary patterns abundantly manifested, and then declare
that evolution didn't happen is something the IDers seek to explain
away.
But the fact is, adaptation can be demonstrated in a test tube in virtually any
professional or home laboratory. Throw in a few bacteria, add some agents that
harm them or else help them in some manner, and watch how they adapt to the
agent. To experience it on a more personal level, get an infection such as
conjunctivitis in the eyes, and then instead of taking the antibacterial or
antiviral medicine five times a day as directed by a doctor, take it only once
every other day. This gives the microbes more of a fighting chance to adapt to
the agent, and ultimately you may have an infection that is immune to your
medication. Intelligent design or simple adaptation? A biologist can show you
that it's the latter; a Creationist might counter that mere mortals can't
fathom the underlying reasons for God's actions.
Intelligent design purports to explain away some of the complexities of the
universe that otherwise seem impossible to understand. But are they? A person
with faith in science might argue that we will understand much more in the
future as we continue to think and explore and experiment. The Creationist
will respond that there is an absolute barrier to certain understandings, for
example that of evolution. There is no evidence, they claim, to support the
theory that species such as humans evolved from lower forms of life. But why
dismiss what seems almost self-evident even if not entirely proven (albeit
supported by voluminous evidence)?
People have always preferred an easily grasped explanation of natural
phenomena. Organized religions tend to speak to the lowest common denominator
of their constituents when they seek to explain the mysteries of the universe.
There is a comfortable feeling in knowing that some Greater Force has taken
care of things, that intellectual effort is not required to understand the
world around one, that mere passive faith is a sufficient basis on which to
proceed through life.
Ironically, most people who fall back on this faith-based short cut have no
problem utilizing the great developments of the scientific age, discoveries
based on empirical research such as that which produced the theory of evolution
and Mendelian genetics. The fact that the earth was found to be round, in
contravention to the teachings of the Church, is one that comes into play when
people travel around the world. Satellites orbit the earth to deliver weather
information, communications, television broadcasting, and military
intelligence. Fundamentalist Christian television broadcasts utilize these
satellites, and so they therefore utilize Newtonian laws of physics which
define the motion of objects in the universe.
But what really controls the motion of objects? Is it the invisible force of
gravity, a force that is finely measured and quantified, or is it the hand of
God? And if it is the latter, would it not be reasonable to expect that
sinners and non-believers would not be granted the benefits of gravity? Why
don't they float away? We know a lot more about evolutionary biology than we
do about gravity; evolution is a documented, easily observed process that has
been even more thoroughly substantiated by modern genetics, whereas the nature
of gravity is still a complete mystery. Yet the fundamentalists do not ban the
use of Newtonian physics and Einstein's theory of relativity to harness
gravity. This smells of hypocracy, if not downright ignorance.
But this brings us to the fundamental truth which is that humans are creatures
of limited intellect, knowledge, and understanding; although we struggle to
tease apart the puzzles of the physical universe, we still have a long way to
go to fully understand the universe. We have a clear choice: explore and grow
and triumph over disease and suffering and war and hunger, or surrender to the
know-nothings, who deliberately limit the process of discovery, and become
another dead end civilization that inevitably collapses from its own weight.
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