Why Evolution is True Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Why Evolution is True - Research Paper Example Discussion over truth of man’s existence and origin of life, evolutionism versus intelligent design, has long been held. Professor Jerry Coyne from the University of Chicago is on one side arguing and proving that evolution is true. Evidence is found in plants and animals and every living thing found in nature. This essay is about truth or falsity of evolution theory. Coyne has thoroughly dissected Darwin’s theory of evolution and the concept of natural selection. This will examine Coyne’s support of the evolution theory, provide a critique and apply philosophical, theological, and sociological reflections on Coyne’s views. Coyne summarized the modern theory of evolution and this is: â€Å"Life on Earth evolved gradually beginning with one primitive species – perhaps a self-replicating molecule – that lived more than 3.5 billion years ago† (Coyne, 2009, p. 3). Coyne further said that this molecular â€Å"thing† started to spread, giving various life forms and performing the acts of evolutionary change, guided by the principle of natural selection. Coyne’s summary of the evolution theory consists of 6 elements: â€Å"evolution, gradualism, speciation, common ancestry, natural selection, and nonselective mechanisms of evolutionary change† (Coyne, p. 3). His proposition that evolution is true simply means that the six elements are all true. ... Coyne (2009) adds: â€Å"Humans †¦ evolved from a creature that is ape-like, but not identical to modern apes† (p. 4). The various species evolved at different rate and for a long period of time, a matter of millions of years. Whales and humans evolved rapidly but not other living animals since some of them looked almost the same hundreds of millions of years ago. Some scientists believe that the whale’s flippers were used to be walking legs. Whether that is true, it is a theory, or part of the theory. The concept of gradualism, as one element of evolution, states that evolution takes place for many generations. Birds and reptiles evolved from something different before. The evolution of the teeth and jaws that distinguish mammals from reptiles occurred for hundreds or thousands, or millions, of generations. But there are some that undergo evolution for very short generations, or very short period of time. The microbes undergo a lot of evolution in just a few minut es. A considerable change due to evolution occurs for thousands of years. Different species evolve differently and requires different time interval. It depends on the evolutionary pressure. But when a species becomes well adapted to a permanent habitat, evolution mellows down. All of us, meaning all life forms, evolved from a single species but there have been over ten million species living on Earth today. The diversity of species seemed mysterious as we all evolve from one ancestral form. But from this one ancestral form evolved millions of species. This part of evolution is known as splitting. Creatures with recent common ancestors share many traits, while those whose common ancestors lay in the distant past are