Here's something I found on some quack's website, so I wrote an email to show him his error in reasoning, and I thought some of you might enjoy it so here it is.
" The laws of nature prohibit evolution. Evolution is against the second law of thermodynamics, which says that the amount of disorder in a system always "increases. This is a fatal flaw in the theory because of the immense amount of disorder created by the very processes necessary for mutations. For instance, the radiation, which induces mutations, the mechanism for evolution, always harms the species more than it helps by helpful mutations (which have never been observed in the first place). " "
Firstly, mutations are neither helpful nor harmful, they simply are, and they exist independent of our subjective interpretations of them. Mutations are only beneficial if they turn out to help an organism, they are not beneficial in themselves, and evolution takes many many successive generations and involves many many various mutations in conjuction. The universe is in a constant state of flux, even our genes, and they mutate all the time for whatever reasons. You seem to be suggesting that all mutations are bad. If that were the case, life would not exist, cuz everything mutates, so obviously not all of these tiny mutations are "harmful", if they were then life would be getting worse instead of better (life is doing a great job of adapting, like always).
This idea that evolution violates the second law of thermodynamics is quite fatally flawed and based on a misinterpretation, which I will explain.
Evolution is little more than the propogation of order in parts of a given system (parts, not the *entire* system). Thermodynamics states that in a system as a whole disorder will increase, which it always does, but it does not state that no order can be generated in parts of the system. We cannot look at parts of a system and refer to these parts as being the entire system just to suit our purposes. Thermodynamics applies to the whole system, not just the parts which comprise it.
Example: You boil up some Alphagetties and start eating. As time moves forward disorder is increasing all around you, even in your soup. With each spoonful you are mixing up the soup, which is generating heat and causing molecules to move around. The heat you give the soup by stirring it is being released into the air and the air molecules in the room are being more and more disordered by your actions (disorder is increasing). Then you look down and see that the word "DOG" has appeared in your soup in a perfect line. Does this mean that the amount of order in this system (your soup and the room) has actually increased? Of course not. So much disorder had been generated when the word DOG came together. A 3 letter word in your alphagetties (order) does not outweigh all the disorder which occured.
Example: You grow some crystals in a test tube. This is inorganic material magically creating order before your very eyes. Does this violate the law of thermodynamics? No. As the crystals are formed molecules are being shuffled around (disorder) and heat is being generated and released into the air (which is even more disorder). In the end we end up with a highly ordered structure, but does the amount of order generated outweigh the amount of disorder generated? Not by a long shot. So, even in the case of highly ordered crystal structures, the second law of thermodynamics is not violated.
Example: Evolution. Molecules (amino acids) come together as part of an entire system which is increasing in disorder. As stings come together and replicate themselves by the basic laws of physics (nothing magical at all going on, nothing we can't explain) heat is generated and released and disorder is increased as a result.
Evolution does not violate the law of Thermodynamics. The law applies to a system in it's entirety, not the specific parts of a system (which is the fatal flaw in your assertion).
Satori
" The laws of nature prohibit evolution. Evolution is against the second law of thermodynamics, which says that the amount of disorder in a system always "increases. This is a fatal flaw in the theory because of the immense amount of disorder created by the very processes necessary for mutations. For instance, the radiation, which induces mutations, the mechanism for evolution, always harms the species more than it helps by helpful mutations (which have never been observed in the first place). " "
Firstly, mutations are neither helpful nor harmful, they simply are, and they exist independent of our subjective interpretations of them. Mutations are only beneficial if they turn out to help an organism, they are not beneficial in themselves, and evolution takes many many successive generations and involves many many various mutations in conjuction. The universe is in a constant state of flux, even our genes, and they mutate all the time for whatever reasons. You seem to be suggesting that all mutations are bad. If that were the case, life would not exist, cuz everything mutates, so obviously not all of these tiny mutations are "harmful", if they were then life would be getting worse instead of better (life is doing a great job of adapting, like always).
This idea that evolution violates the second law of thermodynamics is quite fatally flawed and based on a misinterpretation, which I will explain.
Evolution is little more than the propogation of order in parts of a given system (parts, not the *entire* system). Thermodynamics states that in a system as a whole disorder will increase, which it always does, but it does not state that no order can be generated in parts of the system. We cannot look at parts of a system and refer to these parts as being the entire system just to suit our purposes. Thermodynamics applies to the whole system, not just the parts which comprise it.
Example: You boil up some Alphagetties and start eating. As time moves forward disorder is increasing all around you, even in your soup. With each spoonful you are mixing up the soup, which is generating heat and causing molecules to move around. The heat you give the soup by stirring it is being released into the air and the air molecules in the room are being more and more disordered by your actions (disorder is increasing). Then you look down and see that the word "DOG" has appeared in your soup in a perfect line. Does this mean that the amount of order in this system (your soup and the room) has actually increased? Of course not. So much disorder had been generated when the word DOG came together. A 3 letter word in your alphagetties (order) does not outweigh all the disorder which occured.
Example: You grow some crystals in a test tube. This is inorganic material magically creating order before your very eyes. Does this violate the law of thermodynamics? No. As the crystals are formed molecules are being shuffled around (disorder) and heat is being generated and released into the air (which is even more disorder). In the end we end up with a highly ordered structure, but does the amount of order generated outweigh the amount of disorder generated? Not by a long shot. So, even in the case of highly ordered crystal structures, the second law of thermodynamics is not violated.
Example: Evolution. Molecules (amino acids) come together as part of an entire system which is increasing in disorder. As stings come together and replicate themselves by the basic laws of physics (nothing magical at all going on, nothing we can't explain) heat is generated and released and disorder is increased as a result.
Evolution does not violate the law of Thermodynamics. The law applies to a system in it's entirety, not the specific parts of a system (which is the fatal flaw in your assertion).
Satori