Re: Phil Johnson on the Second Law of Thermodynamics

From: Richard Wein (rwein@lineone.net)
Date: Thu Nov 09 2000 - 20:08:33 EST

  • Next message: Stephen E. Jones: "Re: Dembski's `The Design Inference' peer reviewed? (was Examples of natural selection generating CSI)"

    From: David_Bowman@georgetowncollege.edu
    <David_Bowman@georgetowncollege.edu>
    [...]
    >>If these can experience decreases in entropy without a "code-driven
    >>energy-conversion system", then obviously pre-biotic structures
    >>can do so too.
    >
    >I disagree here. The above is a non sequiter. It is not obvious *at
    >all* what is needed for the appropriate structures to form. But it is
    >true that *if* it should be the case that some foreignly implanted
    >"code-driven energy-conversion system" is necessary to form the necessary
    >structures, then that necessity is not imposed by the 2nd law, and any
    >appeal to it to argue for such a structure is invalid.

    Point taken. I think I explained myself badly. When I said "pre-biotic
    structures can do so too", I only meant that the Second Law wouldn't prevent
    them from doing so. But there may be other reasons why they cannot do so.

    >>I hope David will correct me if I've got anything wrong here. Sorry,
    David,
    >>but I hope you won't consider it a waste of time to educate me. ;-)
    >
    >Here are my comments. I really did not intend to take up nearly as much
    >time as I ended up spending on this post. I hope that time was not
    >wasted (w.r.t. list members *other* than Richard who seems to value
    >my occasional tomes).

    I keep assuming you will be able to answer my questions with a sentence or
    two, but you end up giving me a whole lesson. And I'm very grateful for it.
    I think perhaps I'm actually starting to understand the Second Law now. I
    just hope you aren't going to bill me. ;-)

    Richard Wein (Tich)
    --------------------------------
    The Second Law of Thermodenial: "In any closed mind the quantity of
    ignorance remains constant or increases."



    This archive was generated by hypermail 2b29 : Thu Nov 09 2000 - 20:08:42 EST