ymmak
New member
I get it predz23, I get it now. I guess we all know which extreme camp he/she stands in, don't we?
Anyway, here is my understanding of evolution. Evolution is simply the change in the gene pool over time. I have a unique set of genes, you have a another unique set, and different people will have their own unique set of genes. When 100 people come together in a room, a pool of genetic resources is formed. As long as nobody leaves the room or no extra person enters the room, the gene pool will remain undisturbed. If these 100 people inter-marry among themselves and have offsprings, albeit the individual offsprings are different from their parents, the overall gene pool of all the offspings should be similar to that of their parents. As long as the total time derivative of the gene pool remains unchanged, there is no evolution of the specie.
If we extend this idea to the 6 billion people on this planet, we will have a very large gene pool. For evolution to occur, there should be a significant change in the gene pool and its composition.
So what are the kind of changes that can affect the gene pool? There are many things that can affect the gene pool. Mutations, selection pressure, segregation, eugenics, survival of the fittest, genocide, or a combination of these items etc, or anything that can cause a change in the gene pool, can potentially cause an evolution of the specie over time. But as discussed earlier, there are also many other mechanisms that resist or buffer for these changes, such as degeneracy of the genetic code, dominancy of the alleles, silent mutation, absense of a environment stimulus to favor mutation, etc.
There are 6 billions of us, and the chances that any of us carry a silent mutation and pass it on to our children, is quite likely. Eugenics and genocides happened before, and large-scale selection pressure like plagues, also happened before. In view of this, it is very likely that the gene pool of humans have undegone significant changes from what it was before, maybe 200 years ago. In a sense, we have evolved.
Now, for speciation to occur, then the change in the gene pool must be so drastic and exclusive that there is a new gene pool emerging or a reclassification of the gene pool. Note, the change must be drastic. Such drastic changes, in tandem with suitable environmental factors, are not very common, but may require many many years for successful speciation to occur.
I think that the mechanisms proposed by evolutionists are valid explanations to how evolution can occur, and I think that it is reasonable to say that evolution has occured and we are still evolving. But what I cannot accept is that some experts have proposed the idea that all humans, animals and plants, could have evolved from a single common ancenstal. Well, this apect of evolution, is to me, too far-fetched. Because, like what taypeng81 mentioned, a drastic change, coupled with suitable external factors, are not common and will take many many years. It will take many many successive speciation and evolution at so many different levels, in order to map an ancestral pathway from a single-cell amoeba to a multicellular organism like humans. This is mathematically improbable. There may be a chance that there is such a lineage, but I feel it is highly unlikely.
Discovery of a prehistoric fossil that share similar traits or DNA as humans, is not necessarily an evident that we are derived from a common ancestor. It could be an independent specie that share similar traits to humans. You may argue that this traits interestingly occur in some sort of a pattern, hence lending weight to evidence for evolution, but I may also argue that across the globe, there are overlapping and continuous variation in traits from one organism to another. Example: Uncanny similarities from man-ape-monkey. One can interpret this as man descended from monkeys. Another can interpret this as there are overlapping and continuous variations in traits from one monkey to man.
Anyway, here is my understanding of evolution. Evolution is simply the change in the gene pool over time. I have a unique set of genes, you have a another unique set, and different people will have their own unique set of genes. When 100 people come together in a room, a pool of genetic resources is formed. As long as nobody leaves the room or no extra person enters the room, the gene pool will remain undisturbed. If these 100 people inter-marry among themselves and have offsprings, albeit the individual offsprings are different from their parents, the overall gene pool of all the offspings should be similar to that of their parents. As long as the total time derivative of the gene pool remains unchanged, there is no evolution of the specie.
If we extend this idea to the 6 billion people on this planet, we will have a very large gene pool. For evolution to occur, there should be a significant change in the gene pool and its composition.
So what are the kind of changes that can affect the gene pool? There are many things that can affect the gene pool. Mutations, selection pressure, segregation, eugenics, survival of the fittest, genocide, or a combination of these items etc, or anything that can cause a change in the gene pool, can potentially cause an evolution of the specie over time. But as discussed earlier, there are also many other mechanisms that resist or buffer for these changes, such as degeneracy of the genetic code, dominancy of the alleles, silent mutation, absense of a environment stimulus to favor mutation, etc.
There are 6 billions of us, and the chances that any of us carry a silent mutation and pass it on to our children, is quite likely. Eugenics and genocides happened before, and large-scale selection pressure like plagues, also happened before. In view of this, it is very likely that the gene pool of humans have undegone significant changes from what it was before, maybe 200 years ago. In a sense, we have evolved.
Now, for speciation to occur, then the change in the gene pool must be so drastic and exclusive that there is a new gene pool emerging or a reclassification of the gene pool. Note, the change must be drastic. Such drastic changes, in tandem with suitable environmental factors, are not very common, but may require many many years for successful speciation to occur.
I think that the mechanisms proposed by evolutionists are valid explanations to how evolution can occur, and I think that it is reasonable to say that evolution has occured and we are still evolving. But what I cannot accept is that some experts have proposed the idea that all humans, animals and plants, could have evolved from a single common ancenstal. Well, this apect of evolution, is to me, too far-fetched. Because, like what taypeng81 mentioned, a drastic change, coupled with suitable external factors, are not common and will take many many years. It will take many many successive speciation and evolution at so many different levels, in order to map an ancestral pathway from a single-cell amoeba to a multicellular organism like humans. This is mathematically improbable. There may be a chance that there is such a lineage, but I feel it is highly unlikely.
Discovery of a prehistoric fossil that share similar traits or DNA as humans, is not necessarily an evident that we are derived from a common ancestor. It could be an independent specie that share similar traits to humans. You may argue that this traits interestingly occur in some sort of a pattern, hence lending weight to evidence for evolution, but I may also argue that across the globe, there are overlapping and continuous variation in traits from one organism to another. Example: Uncanny similarities from man-ape-monkey. One can interpret this as man descended from monkeys. Another can interpret this as there are overlapping and continuous variations in traits from one monkey to man.
have a fruitful discussioN! BTW, the posts have been very enlightening/interesting/captivating 
