Shapiro redux: experiments with bacteria & Yeast (Introduction)

by David Turell , Wednesday, August 16, 2023, 18:24 (254 days ago) @ dhw

DAVID: Support for Shapiro

https://www.quantamagazine.org/andreas-wagner-pursues-the-secrets-to-evolutionary-succe...

QUOTES: Mammals originated more than 100 million years before they first became successful. Evolution experimented with different mammalian life forms and ways of life, such as flying like bats or water living like otters, or tree living, and so forth. A lot of these originated and went extinct again. They were so unsuccessful that they actually had to be reinvented by evolution. That happened in some mammalian lineages multiple times before mammals became really successful.

"We see analogous phenomena in bees and other insects. So many, many different life forms were not very successful in the beginning and then became successful.”

DAVID: Simple live on-their-own bacteria and yeast must have these abilities to survive and then evolve into our complexity where only minor adaptations can occur. A designer God would naturally do this with simple organisms.

dhw: The quotes makes it abundantly clear that the authors are not confining their conclusions to simple organisms or to minor adaptations. You are right, this all provides support for Shapiro, and it could also provide support for other theories. Evolution does not “experiment” with anything. It’s not a being but a process. Nobody would say evolution has a conscious mind! And so we might justifiably regard this whole article as support for the theory that your God did the experimenting, or Shapiro’s intelligent cells (possibly invented by your God) did it. One theory which the diversity and constant comings and goings does not support is that of an all-powerful, all-knowing God setting out with the sole purpose of designing H. sapiens and his food.

Aagreed.