Theory Of Macro Evolution example essay topic

The Theory of Evolution can be divided into two parts, micro-evolution and macro-evolution. Micro-evolution deals with small changes within a species which adapt that species to be better suited to its environment. This process is well supported with scientific evidence and doesn't conflict with a Christian understanding of reality. Macro-evolution claims that through major genetic mutations one species can evolve into another, so over a long period of time fish could evolve into insects, birds and mammals. From this concept it's suggested that all life could have evolved from simple chemical structures, thus life could have resulted from natural processes without the need for a creator. Macro-evolution is highly contentious and its more extreme interpretations challenge conventional Christian thinking.

It's sometimes suggested that God chose to create life through evolution, however, there's now a weighty and growing body of both scientific and philosophical evidence that discredits macro-evolution. This article very briefly surveys that evidence. Firstly, there's the question of how life itself originally got started. The theory of macro-evolution suggests how to develop from one species to another, but it can't explain how to jump from no life to life or from unconscious to conscious.

There are two questions in this area that macro-evolution can't answer. Firstly, the DNA molecules which store the genetic code for living beings are extremely complex even for the most basic forms of life. Where did the original injection of the genetic information for life come from? The second question centres around an issue termed irreducible complexity. Even in the simplest life forms there are a number of different and complex components which must all be in place for life to occur. Take any of the components away and you no longer have life.

The building blocks of living beings are complex and are not independent. How can these components have been assembled separately apart from pre-existent life? A second serious challenge to macro-evolution comes in the forms of fossils. The theory suggests that through genetic mutations over a long period of time, species gradually evolve into new species. If this were the case, you'd expect to find a whole spectrum of species within the fossil record at different stages of evolution. However, the fossil records do not show life evolving from one species to another.

On the contrary, there's a notable absence of any fossils of species at intermediate stages of evolution. Further, there aren't obvious intermediate species around today. The problem of the lack of evidence for transition between species is known as the Missing Link. The 2nd Law of Thermodynamics suggests that the universe is moving from a state of order and concentration to disorder and dispersion.

Energy is spreading out and being transformed into simple, low-level forms. Thus, if you pour hot water into a bucket of cold water the heat spreads out and the hot and cold water cannot be separated out again. This principle from physics is directly at odds with the theory of macro-evolution, which sees life as developing into increasing complexity from simple forms. Macro-evolution is understood to be a very slow process, random mutations taking place and becoming established over long periods of time. From developments in Geology and Earth Sciences, the window of history where conditions suitable for evolution have existed has become shorter and shorter.

Many interpretations of macro-evolution have been abandoned as the time available for species to evolve was not long enough to account for the diversity of life we see. Whilst there is widespread acceptance of the theory of micro-evolution, the question of macro-evolution continues to be hotly debated. Over the last fifteen years the tide of scientific opinion has been turning against the evolutionists. The complexity and apparent design of life has defied a purely naturalistic explanation and the problem of how life started remains unanswered by the scientific community. In addition to the huge practical and theoretical difficulties associated with macro-evolution, the physical evidence presented by DNA code and the fossil record has not supported the theory. The available evidence seems to be pointing to the separateness of different species.

As the case for all life evolving from simple cell structures is looking less and less convincing, alternative explanations are needed. Science rests heavily on the principle of cause and effect. To account for the diversity of life on Earth, an adequate cause is required. Many in the scientific world are beginning to seriously consider the case for intelligent design in the universe. The consistent Christian claim of history is that the intelligent designer and sustainer of the universe is the God of the Bible.