from the Science Desk

[Big Girls Are Best]

i'll say this simply so it sinks in. i dont have enough knowledge to discuss these specifics with you.

I’ll simply take that to mean you have absolutely no idea where/how genetic material originated.  Don’t feel bad as science is still searching for the answers to that question.

I do, however, find it interesting that you seem to possess "enough knowledge" to accept (believe) the theory of evolution.  As a result, you should be able to defend your own belief system with verifiable scientific evidence… at least that's the standard everyone holds me to.

additionally you are not a suitable person to learn from given your record.

Do you deny what Berkeley says about genetic information and natural selection on their website about evolution?  And do you also deny that natural selection is, according to Ernst Mayr, an "elimination process"?

[imaginary friend]

http://io9.com/5898846/dark-energy-confirmed-how-ancient-sound-waves-shaped-the-entire-universe

[soapit]

i'll say this simply so it sinks in. i dont have enough knowledge to discuss these specifics with you.

I’ll simply take that to mean you have absolutely no idea where/how genetic material originated.  Don’t feel bad as science is still searching for the answers to that question.

I do, however, find it interesting that you seem to possess "enough knowledge" to accept (believe) the theory of evolution.  As a result, you should be able to defend your own belief system with verifiable scientific evidence… at least that's the standard everyone holds me to.

i think it is sinking in. good for you. i did not even do elective biology in high school so yes, i have no real idea.

i accept it as common knowledge based on the consensus of experts in the field. it has no impact on my life and i dont find the detail interesting so i see no need to research it further. i dont need to defend it, these experts are doing so. if consensus changes i will change with it without changing stride.

true to form you have singled me out as the one to debate on this topic seeing i am the one who has stated he has only a basic knowledge. try mixing with some of the others on here who know what they're talking about if you really want to prove your arguments (but we've all seen how that has gone).

Do you deny what Berkeley says about genetic information and natural selection on their website about evolution?  And do you also deny that natural selection is, according to Ernst Mayr, an "elimination process"?

i am not going to read the article and what is written may be completely true or completely false or somewhere in between.

sorry for the diversion all.

[Thehorsefly [whinny!]]

How many pages has this gone on for anyway?

[soapit]

How many pages has this gone on for anyway?

too many

[Joe90usa]

there are a number of mechanisms by which change can occur.

Actually, there are not a "number of mechanisms" that are known to add new genetic information!

See:  Why Pigs Don’t Have Wings (by Jerry Fodor, London Review of Books, October 18, 2007)... and don’t forget to read his rebuttals to the critical letters he received. 

BTW, Fodor, who is an atheist and believes strongly in evolution, felt it necessary to write this disclaimer in his recent book, What Darwin Got Wrong:

"This is not a book about God, or about intelligent design. Rather, here is a remarkable book, one that dares to challenge natural selection—not in the name of religion but in the name of good science. Most scientists are so terrified of religious attacks on the theory of evolution that it is never examined critically.  But there are major scientific and philosophical problems with the theory of natural selection."

Wherever the evidence leads, right?

Jerry Fodor is a philosopher and a cognitive scientist. He has no background to write about the science behind evolution.

[Joe90usa]

What is knowledge and what empirical evidence do you have that proves its existence? Also, where does knowledge (and the Laws of Logic) fit into Herbert Spencer's five categories: time, space, matter, force and action?

Spencer is a Young Earth Creationist. As such, he will only espouse scientific theories that support his religious beliefs. Keep those awesome sources coming.

[Big Girls Are Best]

What is knowledge and what empirical evidence do you have that proves its existence? Also, where does knowledge (and the Laws of Logic) fit into Herbert Spencer's five categories: time, space, matter, force and action?

Spencer is a Young Earth Creationist. As such, he will only espouse scientific theories that support his religious beliefs. Keep those awesome sources coming.

I'm not sure what "awesome sources" you used to determine that "Spencer is a Young Earth Creationist," but you are spectacularly wrong about that point!!

http://rationalwiki.org/wiki/Herbert_Spencer ("Part of the series on Evolution")

Herbert Spencer (1820-1903) was a British philosopher, classical liberal political theorist, and polymath. Often described as an agnostic or a Deist, he took a stance of "agnostic realism" in which he believed a god exists but he is impossible to know.

The phrase "survival of the fittest" is generally mis-attributed to Charles Darwin, but was actually coined by Spencer in his 1864 book The Principles of Biology. Darwin's preferred phrase for evolution by natural selection was "descent with modification." Darwin didn't include the phrase in On the Origin of Species until the fifth edition and attributed it to Spencer himself.

[imaginary friend]

http://io9.com/5899130/the-dark-future-of-phone-jamming

remember this when 1000mics doesn't work for some show you couldn't get to.

[Big Girls Are Best]

What has four wheels, a 400+ pound battery and takes owners 26.6 years to break even?  Answer: Chevy Volt

[MarsGirl~Descends to Hell for a bottle of milk]

Hey, my car is not even on there.

[Big Girls Are Best]

Hey, my car is not even on there.

Do I detect a hint of buyer's remorse for not purchasing the Jetta?  Just kidding! 

[MarsGirl~Descends to Hell for a bottle of milk]

Hey, my car is not even on there.

Do I detect a hint of buyer's remorse for not purchasing the Jetta?  Just kidding! 

No, actually, I love my car. And, btw, sixth gear is useful at 65mph and above. It's kind of weird, though, when I have to shift on the highway cuz I hit a 50mph construction zone. But this car is a monster. I had to drive it up this right dirt road with a hill and trees on each side and I didnt even sweat it. The car wanted more.

[Izzy]

Hey, my car is not even on there.

Do I detect a hint of buyer's remorse for not purchasing the Jetta?  Just kidding! 

No, actually, I love my car. And, btw, sixth gear is useful at 65mph and above. It's kind of weird, though, when I have to shift on the highway cuz I hit a 50mph construction zone. But this car is a monster. I had to drive it up this right dirt road with a hill and trees on each side and I didnt even sweat it. The car wanted more.

the car is a battle ax. rented one to climb 3000 ft through arizona, the sport drive is awesome.

Did you get the tdi?

[Droo]

What has four wheels, a 400+ pound battery and takes owners 26.6 years to break even?  Answer: Chevy Volt

If BGAB fixated on a person to the degree he fixates on the Volt, they'd have to get a restraining order.

What, exactly, dear friend, is your purpose in continuing to harp on it? What is your message exactly?