From: Denyse O'Leary (oleary@sympatico.ca)
Date: Wed Jul 30 2003 - 17:15:34 EDT
I've tried to follow this thread, because I have to write something on
(a)biogenesis soon.
Here is what I have gathered so far: There is no scientific explanation
for the origin of life.
Translation: We don't have the least idea how life originated.
Thus, science does not have any special expertise in the matter, at present.
Of course, science can pronounce on a viable hypothesis, when offered.
That is what science is for.
Right now, naturalistic evolution and panspermia are neck and neck in
what looks to me like a race to nowhere.
ID is not really in the race, as far as I can see, because ID thinkers
claim that intelligent design is detectable.
That does not require a miracle. It only requires that we can detect the
work of a designing intelligence in at least some aspects of nature.
Demonstrating that we can detect such an intelligence is their problem.
Either we can or we can't. It's up to them to provide the evidence.
The ID people do not need to think about abiogenesis until someone
hypothesizes a plausible non-intelligent cause.
Put simply: Because they think that an intelligent cause acts in the
universe, they can afford to defer their more difficult problems and
concentrate on the easier, more researchable ones where they might
detect design. This is much like a cop interviewing felons on the street
as opposed to felons he knows were in jail on the night in question.
However, those who want to rule out evidence of detectable design need
to address the more difficult problems. It's only fair because they are
asking us to abandon an entire line of reasoning -- that the universe
shows detectable evidence of design.
Thus, abiogenesis is mainly the problem of those who assert that
non-intelligent causes can produce life.
Maybe they can. I don't know. How would I?
Here is what I do know: Nothing in biology makes sense except in the
light of biochemistry, and nothing in biochemistry makes sense except in
the light of evidence.
Evidence is always appreciated.
Denyse
-- To see what's new in faith and science issues, go to www.designorchance.com My next book, By Design or By Chance?: The Growing Controversy Over the Origin of Life in the Universe (Castle Quay Books, Oakville) will be published Fall 2003.To order, call Castle Quay, 1-800-265-6397, fax 519-748-9835, or visit www.afcanada.com (CDN $19.95 or US$14.95).
Denyse O'Leary 14 Latimer Avenue Toronto, Ontario, CANADA M5N 2L8 Tel: 416 485-2392/Fax: 416 485-9665 oleary@sympatico.ca www.denyseoleary.com
This archive was generated by hypermail 2.1.4 : Wed Jul 30 2003 - 17:04:09 EDT