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Creationism/Evolution
See other Creationism/Evolution Articles Title: Canadian scientists want out of Darwin's 'rut'
Source:
canada.com
URL Source: http://www.canada.com/national/nati ... c38-4397-8015-96e92046e3a2&p=1
Published: Feb 22, 2006
Author: Tom Blackwell, National Post
Post Date: 2006-02-26 20:35:21 by A K A Stone
Keywords: scientists, Canadian, Darwins
Views: 3684
Comments: 4
A handful of Canadian scientists are speaking out against evolution as an explanation for all of life as we know it, saying the complexity of living things simply cannot be attributed to biological chance. Nine university professors and others with science or engineering PhDs have added their names to an American petition that voices skepticism about the theory of evolution. The list was posted on the Internet this week. At least two of the scientists teach at Christian universities, while another runs an organization dedicated to the links between Islam and science. Some of those contacted yesterday acknowledged their doubts about Darwinism coincide with their religious beliefs, and espoused the controversial idea of "intelligent design" -- that some guiding hand was behind life on Earth. But one molecular biologist said he is convinced that science is stuck in an evolutionary "rut" and must seek better explanations for the existence of elaborate biological structures. "I look at biology as being a very complicated computer code," said Stephen Cheesman, a geophysics PhD and software developer who compares genetic systems to languages created by humans. "There is no way I could create a code like this..... In the DNA, you have a novel, a long novel, spelled out, which produces us." The scientists' public positions against evolution mark perhaps the first time the issue has arisen recently in Canada, despite a raging debate in the United States over the teaching of evolution in public schools. The petition was established by the Discovery Institute in Seattle, an organization dedicated to promoting intelligent design. The document has previously been cited by anti-evolutionists as evidence that the scientific community is not united in its belief in evolution. "We are skeptical of claims for the ability of random mutation and natural selection to account for the complexity of life," the preamble says. "Careful examination of the evidence of Darwinian theory should be encouraged." Dr. Cheesman said he believed in creationism as a young man but developed doubts after he started studying geology, which he admits conclusively shows the world is billions of years old. But his perusal of biological evidence has convinced him that evolution and the idea of natural selection and mutation of living organisms is not the key to all of life. Tony Jelsma, a Burlington, Ont., native with a biochemistry PhD from McMaster University, said he teaches evolution to his students at Dordt College, a Christian university in Sioux Center, Ind., but points out what he believes are its flaws. For starters, it cannot explain how the whole process of life on Earth began, he said. "If you look at the research into the origin of life, there isn't a single, plausible hypothesis or even proposed mechanism [within evolution] that would have worked," he said. "That is the biggest shortcoming in the whole evolutionary scenario." Marvin Fritzler, a professor of biochemistry and molecular biology at the University of Calgary medical school, said he does not believe intelligent design is the answer to such questions. But he is convinced science must look beyond evolutionary theory.
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