Intelligent Design Of The Essay, Research Paper

The search for knowledge about the

origin of humanity is as old as its inhabitants. Since

the early 1800’s mankind has narrowed the debate

to creation by a Supreme Being and the theory of

evolution. Ever since then, science has been at

odds against religion. Now it appears that science

is returning to religion. Scientists are finding proof

that the universe was created by a Supreme Being.

The word evolution refers to the change of

something over a period of time(Webster’s 634).

In biology, the theory of evolution is "the complex

of processes by which living organisms originated

on earth and have been diversified and modified

through sustained changes in form and

function"(Valentine). This theory proposes that

between 4 million and 10 million years ago, all

organisms on earth had a common ancestor and

that through a process of evolution, all living

organisms descended from this common

ancestor(Coyne). Chevalier de Lamarck, a French

naturalist proposed a theory of evolution in 1809.

His idea did not get much scientific consideration

until Charles R. Darwin announced his theory of

evolution(Coyne). Darwin published "his most

famous book, On the Origin of Species by Means

of Natural Selection"(Valentine) in 1859. Darwin

stated that offspring resemble their parents, yet

they are not exactly identical to them. He also

noted that some of these differences were not

effects of their environment, but actually were

passed down from parents to children(Valentine).

Darwin is the most well known scientist to write

on evolution. There are many different variations

on the theory of evolution. Darwin states that

natural selection is the main reason for the

evolution of life. The fight for food, water and

other necessities benefits those creatures who are

well adapted for the struggle. Those that cannot

survive, die with no offspring to continue their

genetic line. Natural selection is also called survival

of the fittest. Another related idea to evolution is

gradualism. "Gradualism is the idea that

evolutionary changes do not occur suddenly but

over large amounts of time, ranging from decades

to millions of years"(Coyne). Genetic drift is

another way that scientists define evolution. When

two of a species mate, their offspring gets 23

chromosomes from both parents. When a gene

does not split and combine correctly, a mutation

occurs. This mutation will get passed down from

the creature to its offspring. In this way a species

can permanently be changed(Coyne). Scientists

who have accepted the general theory of evolution

as fact disagree among themselves about the ratio

of importance between natural selection and

genetic drift. They also disagree about what

caused the apparent gaps in fossil layers. New

species "abruptly"(Valentine) appear in the fossil

record with no apparent mutation from another

species, then remain unchanged for long periods of

time. They do not seem to exhibit the gradual

changes that would be expected by modern

evolutionists(Valentine). Many people, including

those in the scientific community, do not accept

the theory of evolution as fact. When Darwin was

alive, his theory was attacked by many scientists

and religious leaders(Coyne). In the 1900’s,

United States public high schools began teaching

evolution in science classes. By the 1920’s, laws in

twenty states to ban the teaching of evolution in

public schools had been proposed by people who

did not want their children being indoctrinated.

"They considered the teaching of the theory to be

part of a dangerous trend toward the separation of

religious beliefs from everyday life"(Coyne).

Several of the proposed laws were passed into

effect in states including Arkansas and Tennessee.

"The ACLU challenged the Tennessee law in

1925 by defending a teacher named John T.

Scopes, who had volunteered to stand trial on the

charge of teaching evolution"(Coyne). The ACLU

lost the case but because of bad press, creationists

appeared ignorant to science. However, in 1968

the Supreme Court of the United States "ruled that

laws banning the teaching of evolution were

unconstitutional because they made religious

considerations part of the curriculum"(Coyne). The

courts continue to give rulings on creation and

evolution in schools, some have come as recently

as 1987(Coyne). The fight to keep evolution out

of the classroom is still persevering. Those who

are pushing to keep evolution out of the public

schools are primarily creationists. Creation is the

belief that a Supreme Being created the universe

and all its contents from nothing(Vawter). Many

different people have believed different stories of

how and why this was accomplished. Judaism,

Christianity and Islam are a few of the major faiths

that teach Creation. There are many differences in

what different people believe. Many Jews and

Christians with a literal interpretation of the Bible

or the Pentateuch, the first five books of the Bible,

believe that God created the universe and all that

is in it in six 24 hour days. They believe that each

species on earth has remained relatively the same

since the Creation. These people "base their

beliefs on the Bible"(Eve) and some use fossil

evidence of long consistencies and abrupt

changes(Valentine). Others believe that God

created everything, but not in six days. Still others

believe that God created the universe by lighting

the fuse: the big bang was God’s way of creating

the universe. Many people have gone in search for

proof that the universe was created by a Supreme

Being. The case for Intelligent Design was argued

by Reverend William Paley of Carlisle, England in

his 1802 book Natural Theology. Take, for

instance, a rock and a watch. How old are the

two objects? The rock has "remained more or less

the same perhaps since the earth was

formed"(Miller 24). The watch is different because

of the intricate gears, springs and parts. It was

produced with a specific design and knowledge of

the watchmaker, and watchmakers have not been

around forever. Paley knew "there cannot be

design without a designer; contrivance without a

contriver…. The marks of design are too strong to

be got over. Design must have had a designer.

That designer must have been a person. That

person is God"(Miller). Paley’s examples are

understandable examples that form "a line of

reasoning known as the ‘argument from

design’"(Miller). Even some evolutionists have

come to realize that humanity is not an accident,

even if they disagree with the six, 24 hour days

belief. The Anthropic Principle is based on so

called "technical observations about the evolution

of the universe since the Big Bang"(Glynn 28).

This principle has concluded that not only was the

creation of the universe not an accident, but "the

existence of human life is something for which the

entire universe appears to have been intricately

fine-tuned from the start"(28). This principle is

based on universal constants such as Planck’s

constant and the gravitational constant. It started

out as a list of coincidences, but as the list grew

the more it appeared as if the universe had been

designed for humanity to exist(29). The second

law of thermodynamics has been extensively

studied by scientists and people as another proof

of creation. The second law of thermodynamics

can be stated: "The thermodynamic principle

which governs the behavior of systems is that, as

they are moved away from equilibrium, they will

utilize all avenues available to counter the applied

gradients. As the applied gradients increase, so

does the system’s ability to oppose further

movement from equilibrium"(Schneider 30). In

every system, the entropy, or disorder, will

increase, not decrease. This is one of a number of

different analogies to simplify this law. There is a

box with ten equal compartments. Ten thousand

marbles are released into one compartment. If the

box is randomly shaken, it is expected that the

marbles would pass through the open doors in

each compartment and there would be

approximately 1000 marbles in each

compartment. It is highly improbable, yet not

impossible that if the box continued to be shaken

randomly, that all the marbles would go back into

the same compartment they started in(28). The

second law of thermodynamics is an excellent

argument for creation. Creationists stand in "awe

of the perfection of the earth… If it were a little

farther away from the sun the entire planet would

be one gigantic Antarctica; if it were a little closer,

it would be one continuous Sahara Desert. Earth’s

placement is precise; and that, my friends, is not a

result of chance"(Limbaugh 154). There are infinite

numbers of variables. If one were changed just

slightly, like the distance from the sun, Earth would

be unhabitable and humans would not exist. This

preciseness leads these people to use the second

law of thermodynamics as an argument. An

ordered world like Earth could not exist in a

universe that was created by an explosion.

Humanity itself is a good example for creation.

The differences between other animals in nature

and humans are vast. However, many evolutionists

claim that we are animals ourselves. Jonathan

Swift shows the absurdity of this comparison in the

fourth book of Gulliver’s Travels. Guliver is living

between two extremes: the reason based

Houyhnhms and the savage Yahoos. Gulliver tries

so hard to fit in with the Houyhnhms, or horses.

They "conclude that Gulliver ‘must be a perfect

Yahoo’"(Suits 116), yet Gulliver believes that he is

more Houyhnhm. This struggle can represent the

origin struggle. The evolutionists say that humans

were once like the Yahoos, but by saying that

humanity evolved because of an haphazard

accident, they are claiming that humans are now

the superior being in the universe. They claim we

are like the Houyhnhms(Sagan). Humans are not

like that. The Houyhnhms are divorced of passion.

"They have no shame, no temptations, no

conception of sin"(Williams 62). Marriage is "’one

of the necessary actions in a reasonable

being’"(63). These definitely do not identify

humanity. Gulliver "understands none of this"(72).

Humans have the ability to use reason and humans

have certain inherent desires that cannot be

reasonably explained: love, marriage, and a sense

of right and wrong. Still the debate continues. It

seems "the double standard at work here is

breathtaking"(Glynn 32). Scientists who believe in

evolution are free to use detailed accounts of what

happened 4 billion years ago and base it on

Darwin(Sagan). "But the moment scientists begin

marshalling rather considerable and persuasive

evidence for the opposite case, their speculation

risks being branded by colleagues as

‘unscientific’"(Glynn 32). This parallels the third

book of Gulliver’s Travels. The ways of the

respected Laputan people were very precise,

according to Gulliver. All their wise men reject

what seems obviously the best way preform a

task(Williams 49). Member of the Academy are

seen trying to weave with spider web and make

ice into gunpowder(Swift 196). Such acts of

stupidity are Swift’s attack on the Royal Society of

England in Swift’s time; however the apply

perfectly to many of the scientists who reject what

they do not want to see. The argument about the

origin of the universe will definitely continue. There

will be those who argue both sides until this world

comes to its end. To what extent people believe

the Biblical teachings or what some scientists teach

is a personal decision. Darwin concluded his

book: "There is grandeur in this view of life, with

its several powers, having been originally breathed

by the Creator into a few forms or into one; and

that, whilst this planet has gone cycling on

according to the fixed law of gravity, from so

simple a beginning endless forms most beautiful

and most wonderful have been and are being

evolved"(Miller 32). The more science seems to

dig and research about the origins of humanity, the

less likely it is that Earth and all the creatures on it

were an accident. All the precision, consistency

and detail point to an universal architect, a

Supreme Being, God. Bibliography (please

disreguard my mess for now) Coyne, Jerry A.

"Evolution." World Book. CD-ROM Eve,

Raymond A. "Creationism" World Book.

CD-ROM Glynn, Patrick. "Beyond The Death of

God." National Review May 6,1996:28-32.

Limbaugh, Rush. The Way Things Ought to Be.

New York:Pocket Books, 1992. Miller, Kenneth

R. "Life’s Grand Design." Technology Review.

Feb./March 1994:24-32 CD-ROM. 1996 SIRS.

SIRS 1994 Life Science. Article 59 Sagan, Carl.

"Snowflakes Fallen on the Hearth: The Evolution

of the Earth." Planetary Report. Jan./Feb.

1993:4-9 CD-ROM. 1996 SIRS. SIRS 1994

Earth Science. Article 53 Schneider, E.D, Kay,

J.J. "Life as a Manifestation of the Second Law of

Thermodynamics." Mathematical and Computer

Modelling 1994: 25-48. Suits, Conrad. "The Role

of the Horsesin ‘A Voyage to the Houyhnhnms.’"

Modern Critical Interpretations, Jonathan Swift’s

Gulliver’s Travels. Ed. Harold Bloom. New

York:Chelsea. 116-125 Swift, Jonathan. Gulliver’s

Travels. New York:Penguin,1960. Valentine,

James W. "Evolution." Encarta. CD-ROM.

Microsoft Corp:1994 Vawter, Rev. Bruce.

"Creation." Encarta. CD-ROM. Microsoft

Corp:1994 Webster’s New Twentieth Century

Dictionary. Second Edition. 1983 Williams,

Kathleen. "Animal Rationis Capax." Modern

Critical Interpretations, Jonathan Swift’s Gulliver’s

Travels. Ed. Harold Bloom. New York:Chelsea.

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