Freethought & Rationalism Archive

Oolon Colluphid · 01-16-2002, 04:35 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by E_muse:
<strong>I just thought that, because of the relative low levels of entropy on planet earth, entropy must be increasing somewhere else in the universe.
</strong>

Um... like in the sun, and the earth's core?

Oolon Colluphid · 01-16-2002, 01:03 PM

I said:

Quote:

And I’ve never before seen macroevolution used to refer to phenotypic changes. It is usually defined (in Futuyma I’m pretty sure, I’ll check) as change above the species level.

Yup: "the origin of higher taxa, and of their characteristics and distribution, throughout the long history of life." (Futuyma 1998, p85.) E_muse, you can of course use words however you like, but if you're going to diverge from the usual meaning, please could you let us know first.

Cheers, Oolon

E_muse · 01-17-2002, 03:33 PM

I've already stated that my knowledge of genetics is not well developed and even simplistic.

I can only use terms with regard to common usage, not according to the strict scientific definition. I can seek to convey my 'intent of meaning' though.

As far as I understand macro evolutional change will not occur in an individual, but will occur within a species over time. This is as a result of changes in the genotype.

My original arugement was with regard to chance - not the mechanisms of evolution.

Richard Dawkins asserts that living things are too complex to have come about by chance. However, he then attempts to describe how they could have come about by chance using the idea of many slight changes over a very long period.

I agree that his emphasis on non-random natural selection is probably an attempt to jump on the other side of the see-saw in an attempt to encourage his reader to contemplate other forces which inform the process.

Your comments have been helpful in better understanding the process and your replies are appreciated.

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01-17-2002, 03:33 PM	#53
E_muse Banned Join Date: Mar 2001 Location: na Posts: 329	I've already stated that my knowledge of genetics is not well developed and even simplistic. I can only use terms with regard to common usage, not according to the strict scientific definition. I can seek to convey my 'intent of meaning' though. As far as I understand macro evolutional change will not occur in an individual, but will occur within a species over time. This is as a result of changes in the genotype. My original arugement was with regard to chance - not the mechanisms of evolution. Richard Dawkins asserts that living things are too complex to have come about by chance. However, he then attempts to describe how they could have come about by chance using the idea of many slight changes over a very long period. I agree that his emphasis on non-random natural selection is probably an attempt to jump on the other side of the see-saw in an attempt to encourage his reader to contemplate other forces which inform the process. Your comments have been helpful in better understanding the process and your replies are appreciated.

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