Mike Teacher
04-16-2003, 01:41 PM
As to the many threads here on these here's one opinion.
1. Evolution hapens; its happening now. It's change. things change; animals, oceans, planets, stars, all the way up. As to understanding the actual mechanisms; it's simply gonna take some study. But heres a short list of evidence:
Same DNA in all living things
Same Genetic Code
Domestication of plants and animals [we reshaped the earth in a few 100 years; in terms of what planst and animals live around us]
The constant evolution of resistance in all sorts of Viruses and the emergence of new ones, ie. SARS, HTLV, HIV, Ebola Zaire and Reston
Homologous Structures [you have a head and four things sticking out of a body. so do ducks. thats HS]
The finding of Huge amounts of Organic Macromolecules in cometary debris and all sorts of stuff flying around space.
Oh and so much more, but.....
And if anyone asks how we know how old the earth is; we DON'T use carbon dating. We use other methods, but they measure, like C-14 Isotope ratios of elements; and we also use fission-tracking. Having said all that; over 100,000 measurements, all independent, in dozens of nations, all point to a bit more then 4.5 Billion Years.
2. Is There a God? Why not? Hey I'm the first to realize science doesn't explain everything; but then again, it's not attempting to. Can a God and evolution co-exist? for me, no problem.
I'm not atheist; I'm Agnostic. That's means a] I'm stupid [etymology] and b] I'm uncertain as to the nature of a God, but I don't deny it's existance.
And before we talk God; I'm Not referring to the Gods of any Organized Religions. I'm talking the Great Out There and Unknown. There are forces and energies out there we are Utterly unaware of in 2003; just as we were utterly unaware of the makeup of the atome in 1903 [we didnt even discover the neutron until 1932].
So Who Knows?!?!?!
3. Why Is there War?
Wrong Question; there's always been war. A beter Question might be; Why is there Not Peace? But I'll take a stab...
Were animals with brains; but animals. Don;t try to deny your aminamlian ancestry; it's you. And before you spout off we can do everything better then animals; you're dead wrong. I can name an animal that can do just about Anything better then us. Sight? Eagle. Smell? A zillion species. Hearing? you get it....
Sure we have hands and opposable thumbs so we used them causing a Huge Increase in the Outer part of the brain; the higher thinking part.
But the old part is still there; the Base Instincts. Among them are Pleasure/Pain; Territoriality; Aversion to Loud Noises; Crowd Behavior; Lying, cheating, stealing, all the good stuff.
And we kill. But then again; so does nature. Maybe we don;t have as good an excuse. Nature has an excellent excuse; things die so that life may go on.
Nature is Beautiful. And it's a Beautiful Killing Machine. If described without mentioning species; what animals do to each other is so horrific on one level; and utterly necesary on another.
AND KNOW THIS: Science doesn't Claim to have all the answers. It admits it's Ignorance and relies Only on Good Evidence. And we blast at it constantly; checking this and changing that. It's self-correcting and gets better over time.
Mike The [Science, usually] Teacher
www.miketheteacher.com
<IMG SRC="http://members.aol.com/miketeachr/MikeTheTeacher">
1. Evolution hapens; its happening now. It's change. things change; animals, oceans, planets, stars, all the way up. As to understanding the actual mechanisms; it's simply gonna take some study. But heres a short list of evidence:
Same DNA in all living things
Same Genetic Code
Domestication of plants and animals [we reshaped the earth in a few 100 years; in terms of what planst and animals live around us]
The constant evolution of resistance in all sorts of Viruses and the emergence of new ones, ie. SARS, HTLV, HIV, Ebola Zaire and Reston
Homologous Structures [you have a head and four things sticking out of a body. so do ducks. thats HS]
The finding of Huge amounts of Organic Macromolecules in cometary debris and all sorts of stuff flying around space.
Oh and so much more, but.....
And if anyone asks how we know how old the earth is; we DON'T use carbon dating. We use other methods, but they measure, like C-14 Isotope ratios of elements; and we also use fission-tracking. Having said all that; over 100,000 measurements, all independent, in dozens of nations, all point to a bit more then 4.5 Billion Years.
2. Is There a God? Why not? Hey I'm the first to realize science doesn't explain everything; but then again, it's not attempting to. Can a God and evolution co-exist? for me, no problem.
I'm not atheist; I'm Agnostic. That's means a] I'm stupid [etymology] and b] I'm uncertain as to the nature of a God, but I don't deny it's existance.
And before we talk God; I'm Not referring to the Gods of any Organized Religions. I'm talking the Great Out There and Unknown. There are forces and energies out there we are Utterly unaware of in 2003; just as we were utterly unaware of the makeup of the atome in 1903 [we didnt even discover the neutron until 1932].
So Who Knows?!?!?!
3. Why Is there War?
Wrong Question; there's always been war. A beter Question might be; Why is there Not Peace? But I'll take a stab...
Were animals with brains; but animals. Don;t try to deny your aminamlian ancestry; it's you. And before you spout off we can do everything better then animals; you're dead wrong. I can name an animal that can do just about Anything better then us. Sight? Eagle. Smell? A zillion species. Hearing? you get it....
Sure we have hands and opposable thumbs so we used them causing a Huge Increase in the Outer part of the brain; the higher thinking part.
But the old part is still there; the Base Instincts. Among them are Pleasure/Pain; Territoriality; Aversion to Loud Noises; Crowd Behavior; Lying, cheating, stealing, all the good stuff.
And we kill. But then again; so does nature. Maybe we don;t have as good an excuse. Nature has an excellent excuse; things die so that life may go on.
Nature is Beautiful. And it's a Beautiful Killing Machine. If described without mentioning species; what animals do to each other is so horrific on one level; and utterly necesary on another.
AND KNOW THIS: Science doesn't Claim to have all the answers. It admits it's Ignorance and relies Only on Good Evidence. And we blast at it constantly; checking this and changing that. It's self-correcting and gets better over time.
Mike The [Science, usually] Teacher
www.miketheteacher.com
<IMG SRC="http://members.aol.com/miketeachr/MikeTheTeacher">