OT: Evolution

[Bill Wood]

On Tue, 19 Sep 2000 13:54:28 +0100 (BST), Simon Bowring wrote:

>On Mon, 18 Sep 2000 12:55:30 -0400 (EDT), Rodney R. Korte wrote:
>
>>>>Evolution always means events moving in a certain direction or
>>>>toward a certain end. 
>
>>>No it most certainly does not! If it did, you'd be able to predict 
>>>where evolution "is going" and you can't!
>
>>>Really?  I did not define it as "moving in a *known* certain
>>direction". 
>
>Duh! It moves in a certain (but unknown) direction? [or it moves tworads
>a certain (but unknown) end?]
>
>>If you are without a paper desk reference, www.brittanica.com,
>>has the Merriam-Wester dictionary online.
>
>I do not go to dictionaries for the definitions of scientific terms,
>they are usually unreliable and often 10+ years out of date!
>
>I am an avid reader of New Scientist and SciAm, and and have read
>several books on evolution/genetics including most of Dawkins' and 
>I stand by my assertions:
>
>If evolution "means events moving in a certain direction or
>toward a certain end" you *must* be able to identify the "direction"
>or "end" if you can't, the statement cannot be shown to be true and is very 
>likely to be false!  If you can, you can make predictions!  Ain't 
>logic a wonderful thing?
>
>Simon
>
>
>

Love this stuff.

Evolution is change. Usually random, but not always. Then the
change, whatever its origin, is thrown into the arena of real life
and it either survives or it doesn't. Etc.

Now that we are getting visibility of human DNA coding, it seems to
be a ... mess ... not even rudimentary error correction (would you
like to live forever?). This supports the notion of a random
process. This is probably not a good model for software
development, but it may be better than what is actually done.


w3

Bill Wood
Las Vegas, NV
wwwood@lv.rmci.net

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