Download Notes - New Life Sanctuary Church

Year 2 Class 6 Session A Notes Class 6 is a bit different. On this evening we reviewed some of the creation material we had covered previously, then went on to consider the case for Intelligent Design based on the video documentary ”Unlocking the Mystery of Life” produced by Illustra Media, 2002. Pajaro Dunes, California: A gathering of scientists and philosophers -­‐ Philip Johnson, Dean Kenyon, Paul Nelson, Michael Behe, Steven Meyer, Scott Minnich -­‐ to discuss the problem of the origin of life. Those who came were growing dissatisfied with the Darwinian explanation. Review: Charles Darwin’s famous voyage on the HMS Beagle to the Galapagos Islands; encountered an array of animal varieties – studied there for more than a month. 25 years later – developed a theory to explain the origin of the variety he saw 1859 – Time, chance and natural selection – published his book “On the Origin of Species” Natural selection operating on the finch species – 13 species on the Galapogos; Size and shape of beak shape – confers “functional advantage” – environment contributes to a change in the population as a whole Meeting at Pajaro Dunes – all agree that natural selection is a real process but is limited as to what it can do (it can account for changes in beak shape but not for the finch itself!). Darwin: Natural selection can never take a huge and sudden leap Behe: Taught Darwinian biology; read “Evolution a Theory in Crises” by Michael Denton -­‐ introduced to arguments he had never heard before; now doubts that natural selection could account for the origin of life In Darwin’s time – the cell regarded as simple; Today – the cell is known to be staggeringly complex Cells contain molecular machines (delivery systems, systems that harness and utilize sunlight etc..) Where did these machines come from? The Flagellum: An astounding machine – affected Behe; he saw design behind the flagella “The most efficient machine in the universe” – 100,000 RPM, wired into a signalling system, can stop and change direction in ¼ turn. The flagella appears to be an example of “Irreducible Complexity”: Nothing can be taken away from a system without the system failing to work; biological machines appear irreducible complex Flagella – 40 protein parts, needs them all to work How could Natural Selection creation something as complex as the flagella? Natural Selection said to preserve beneficial changes, how can a partially built flagellum offer selection advantage? Natural selection needs something functioning to select. Co-­‐option: The idea that the flagella’s parts were used in other machines and were preserved by natural selection and put together in a new way. Is this a reasonable hypothesis? Not really. 30 of the flagella’s parts appear nowhere else in the cell. Even more importantly – where did the assembly instructions to build the flagella come from? The flagella has to be assembled in a precise way, each component made in a precise sequence; timing/coordination essential Other machines required to ensure that assembly is carried out correctly. All orchestrated by the DNA instructions – the whole system seems irreducibly complex Darwin’s suggested test of his own theory: if it could be shown that any system or structure could not have evolved through numerous, slight, successive modifications -­‐ his theory would break down. His theory does appear to have broken down. Dean Kenyon – tried to explain how life arose through Darwinian processes; was initially optimistic, problem: how to explain the origin of proteins – became a huge problem Proteins: molecules form complex and specific shapes, interlock with other chemicals to accomplish various functions in the cell 20 amino acids in living things -­‐ need to be arranged correctly to create functional proteins, some chains 100’s of amino acids. What produces the precise ordering of the aa’s? Kenyon – originally thought that the chemical components in living things were drawn together by their own physical properties Encountered a powerful counter-­‐argument: Where did the instructions directing the assembly of aa’s come from? These instructions are contained in the DNA – but the DNA did not come together as a result of chemical properties. So: 1. How did aa’s assemble themselves into functional proteins w/o DNA? 2. How did the genetic code arise naturalistically? Kenyon could not answer these problems; experimental work seemed to rule out the idea that Darwinian processes could accomplish these things Genetic information could not be produced by chance alone; could natural selection explain it? No – natural selection requires something functioning to select. Kenyon saw only one explanation: Intelligent Design Protein Synthesis Explained: Transcription, delivery, translation at ribosome, chain of amino acids created, moves to barrel shaped organelle or folding into a useful shape, shepherded to the proper place within the cell. Because of Darwin – science has been redefined as an endeavour that only will entertain naturalistic causes, I.D. is ruled out. Contradictory: archaeology is a bona fide scientific endeavour that recognizes design. William Dembsky: Design detection involves high improbability PLUS correspondence to an independently given pattern. This is what we see in living things Small probability + specificity = information Information does not arise through naturalistic process but through intelligent design.