Why Evolution is True

Summary

The origin of life is an issue that attracted controversial debates for decades and been the subject of arguments in different fields. Evolutionism and creationism have attempted to answer this question by providing divergent perspectives about it. While creationism is largely influenced by religious beliefs and views, evolution is largely influenced by historical scientific evidence. Jerry Coyne seeks to demonstrate that evolution is true in its explanation of the origin of life in his book, Why Evolution is True. To demonstrate that evolution is true, Coyne (2010) dispels common fears and misunderstandings regarding this theory. He provides clear scientific evidence and confirmation that supports evolution as the correct explanation of where life originated. Evolution is proven by natural selection and evidence from other disciplines/fields such as comparative anatomy, genetics, geology, molecular biology, paleontology, physiology, comparative embryology, and biogeography.

At the heart of Coyne’s argument that evolution is true is the idea of natural selection and gradualism. With regards to natural selection, Coyne suggests that life origins from nature acts since things develop randomly. Therefore, nature acts influence the formation of life and the development of the universe. With respect to gradualism, Coyne argues that things change over time. In essence, organisms undergo changes over time such as how birds become reptiles. However, some of Coyne’s ideas are refuted by existing evidence including the disregard for fossils that are inconsistent with evolution. The idea that things do not make sense biologically unless in light of evolution is refuted by the numerous biological achievements before the theory. However, despite these shortcomings, Coyne adequately proves that evolution is true.

Why Evolution is True

Evolution and creation are two topics that have generated numerous controversies among scholars in different fields and the general public. The controversies surrounding these topics emerge from their contradictory or differing views on the origin of life. Debates on the origin of life have been exacerbated by the existence of theories providing plausible explanations and evidence to demonstrate their points. In essence, similar to the story of creation, the evolution theory has plausible evidence to support its claims regarding the origin of life. While these two divergent views have reasonable evidence to support their claims, there have been concerns about whether they provide sufficient scientific evidence. Scientific evidence is essentially at the core of controversies surrounding the debate regarding evolutionism and creationism. This paper is a personal reflection on why I believe that evolution theory is true and provides sufficient scientific evidence on the origin of life.

The Process of Evolution

As a student-athlete golfer, I have always taken time to reflect on what is the origin of life. I must admit that reading theories of evolution as well as creationism, I have ended up being confused on what is the actual origin of life. I believe that each of these theories provides reasonable evidence to support their claims regarding the issue of the origin of life. My reflections on what is the origin of life have largely been fueled by the desire to live a life with a purpose and make an impact in my community. I am a person with a big heart and grounded. I have also grown a lot by being away from home in college. My college experience has enabled me to reflect on critical things about life including what is the origin of life. I believe that identifying the origin of life is essential to living a purposeful life. My quest to identify the origin of life has involved reading many books and articles on evolution and creationism.

Based on the insights obtained from this course, I believe that evolution is true as it provides adequate scientific evidence on the origin of life. Evolution theory has irrefutable evidence that proves it is the right explanation of the origin of life. Evolution is proven by natural selection and evidence from other disciplines/fields such as comparative anatomy, genetics, geology, molecular biology, paleontology, physiology, comparative embryology, and biogeography. Through natural selection and incorporating insights from these fields, evolution provides magnificent, varied, and vast scientific evidence regarding the origin of life.

Jerry A. Coyne wrote a book named Why Evolution is True in which he attempts to address the current controversy regarding evolution and creation. The book does not attempt to prove creationism wrong but focuses on providing irrefutable evidence to demonstrate the veracity of evolution. To demonstrate that evolution is true, Coyne (2010) dispels common fears and misunderstandings regarding this theory. He provides clear scientific evidence and confirmation that supports evolution as the correct explanation of where life originated. This book has formed a critical part of my understanding that evolution has the scientific rigor on the origin of life.

One of the key points shared in the book and obtained from the course relates to the process of evolution by natural selection. Evolution is basically the notion that things change over time. However, based on Charles Darwin’s theory of natural selection or the Darwinian Evolution, things not only change over time as there are individual variations influencing this process. In this regard, the change exploits individual differences and eliminates those that are purposeless or those without any benefits to the organism undergoing the changes. As many variations have occurred over a period of time, evolution is considered to have contributed to all life through natural means. This implies that life essentially emerges from nature acts that take place through unguided processes. Therefore, the origin of life and the development of the universe can be explained only by naturalistic explanations since they are influenced by nature acts. Natural selection is the process by which the first mechanism was driven to reproduce molecules into millions of living forms and fossils (Coyne, 2010).

The idea of evolution as the right explanation of where life originated is also supported by the inclusion of insights from other disciplines or fields. The idea of evolution from genetics is supported by the concept of gradualism. Gradualism suggests that it takes many generations to create significant evolutionary change such as how birds develop to become reptiles. Species usually evolve into something different, which implies that they undergo changes over time. The changes that take place in species are based on changes in the DNA that occur as mutations. I believe that there is overwhelming evidence to demonstrate that changes occur to species over time. A recent example of such evidence is the emergence of different variants of COVID-19. These variants are essentially mutations of species due to changes over a period of time. This implies that species do not necessarily remain the same over time because changes occur. Such evidence proves the claim that life and the development of the universe come from changes that occur in species over time.

Paleontology supports the concept of evolution as the explanation of how life originates through examining prehistoric life. According to this field, organisms become part of the ground as they die. During this process, organisms leave behind imprints and bones that provide insights into what they looked like millions of years later. This creates a fossil record that helps to show how organisms changed over time. For example, paleontologists found the spread of ancient species postulates that continents were once joined (Coyne, 2010). The evolution of organisms over time supports the idea of gradualism, which is a key concept underlying evolution theory.

The field of biogeography is essentially the study of the dissemination of species on Earth. As noted by Coyne (2010), there is potent biogeographic evidence to support the theory of evolution though this field is rooted in religion. The idea of species evolving from a common ancestor and being distributed on Earth was first proposed by Charles Darwin. Based on his observation of Galapagos Islands animals and those on the South American mainland, Darwin believed that the former had migrated from the latter. I believe this is true since the similarity of environments does not produce the same kind of organisms. For instance, there are some very icy and cold environments across the globe such as the Antarctic and Arctic that do not produce the same kinds of organisms. If similarity in environment would produce similar organisms, animals that survive in very icy and cold environments would be common in all such settings. The similarity of organisms in different environments indicates origin from a common ancestor.

Comparative anatomy supports the idea of evolution on grounds that organisms that are related have relatively similar characteristics. Related organisms are likely to have similar attributes since they originated from a common ancestor. In addition, related organisms are likely to have similar adaptation of physiological processes. For example, humans can cope with ongoing changes in the environment in a healthy manner because of their capabilities to adapt to physiological processes as part of changes over time. Similarly, the field of comparative embryology bolsters evolutionary theory through the idea that all vertebrates develop in the same manner, which implies that they have a presumed common ancestor. The development of embryos is an indicator of the existence of a common ancestor underlying the process. Geology supports evolutionary theory by supporting paleontology. In this case, devastating geological events could have generated evolutionary bottlenecks that changed life.

I believe that the underlying principle behind how these fields support evolutionary theory is gradualism and natural selection. Gradualism is essentially the premise upon which changes in organisms and species take place over time. These changes occur through a process of natural selection, which implies that nature acts. Therefore, gradualism and nature acts are the premises upon which life originates and develops. Moreover, evidence from each of these fields provides a broad range of explanations regarding the origin of life. By providing a wide basis of scientific evidence, these fields of study demonstrate the veracity of evolutionary theory on the origin of life.

Theory of Evolution Using the Scientific Method

As previously indicated, controversies on evolution and creation are centered on one thing i.e. evidence. Scientific evidence is viewed as irrefutable proof of where and how life originates. Debates on this issue have been centered on scientific evidence to support the seemingly contradictory claims in evolution and creation. The veracity of evolutionary theory can be established by examining it using the scientific method.

The scientific method is primarily based on observation, investigation, and verification to prove the veracity of something. These three components of the scientific method have consistently been used to support the evolutionary theory. At the core of the application of the scientific method in evolutionary theory is the concept of natural selection. Charles Darwin used observation, investigation, and verification to support his idea of natural selection as the fundamental principle behind evolutionary theory. Phillips (2019) notes that observation, investigation, and verification have consistently demonstrated that evolution is the true explanation of the origin of life based on the idea of natural selection.

Based on observation, it is apparent that things including life happen randomly through nature acts. However, the formation of life is influenced by environmental traits that either support or inhibit the process. In this regard, suitable environmental traits promote survival and reproduction, which is critical in the formation of life. These observations became the premise for the development of the Darwinian theory of evolution. The significance of nature acts in promoting the formation of life is evident in the application of the concept of natural selection in different fields. As I noted previously, organisms survive and reproduce depending on environmental traits. Organisms produce life through nature acts that are beyond the control of humans.

As an explanation of the origin of life, the theory of evolution has undergone rigorous testing through observations and experiments. Observations and experimentation that have been carried out for decades have been centered on proving whether it is the right or wrong explanation of the origin or formation of life. Investigations on the theory of evolution have been carried out by different scientists and philosophers over the past few decades. For example, Erasmus Darwin, an 18th Century English doctor, conducted investigations that resulted in the development of different aspects of evolution (National Geographic, 2022). Erasmus Darwin’s recommendations of various aspects later became critical components of the eventual theory of evolution. His grandson, Charles Darwin, built upon his ideas to formulate the theory of evolution.

From an experimentation perspective, there has been continuity of investigations conducted by various scientists and philosophers to support the theory of evolution. Scientists and philosophers have built upon each other’s ideas to demonstrate the veracity of this theory as an explanation of the origin of life. This process of continuity has sometimes involved the introduction of new concepts and ideas that add to the scientific basis and evidence of the evolutionary theory. For example, Charles Darwin’s theory of evolution was a by-product of previous work by other scientists including his grandfather, Erasmus Darwin. Other scientists like Alfred Russell Wallace have added new ideas to this theory to enhance its scientific rigor as an explanation of the formation of life. Through their works, Wallace and Darwin proposed that evolution takes place because of the natural selection phenomenon. Given the recognition of natural selection as a potent idea explaining the formation of life, biologists have established it as a scientific theory. Biologists have used the ideas of previous philosophers and scientists to observe multiple examples of the influence of natural selection on evolution (National Geographic, 2022).

Experimentations on the evolutionary theory have also provided the premise for verification of the natural selection concept as they are used to manipulate things to generate results (Shubin, 2008). The idea of natural selection has been proven through the genetic drift phenomenon. The phenomenon postulates that some organisms generally produce more offspring than anticipated largely by chance. Verification of the hypothesis that natural selection influences evolution has been carried out through examining how organisms change over time. Verification of this theory is also demonstrated in the wide application of the concept across different fields of study or disciplines. As previously indicated, the theory of evolution is applied in different fields including comparative anatomy, genetics, geology, molecular biology, paleontology, physiology, comparative embryology, and biogeography. By examining how evolution is applied to these different disciplines, I demonstrated how the hypothesis is verified to support the evolutionary theory. Ayala (2009) states that Darwin advanced his ideas of evolution and its processes in multiple fields as part of subjecting them to severe empirical tests.

It is quite evident that the theory of evolution has undergone the scientific method to prove its veracity as the explanation of the origin of life. The theory has the scientific rigor to support its claims. The scientific method essentially confirms the evolutionary theory and enhances understanding of its underlying mechanisms. Using the scientific method, it is evident that the evolution theory is compatible with each aspect of life including the development of intuition, embryology, adaptation, variation, regression, and the effect of environmental traits.

Assessment of Views, Assumptions, or Arguments

Coyne’s book, Why Evolution is True, incorporates discussions and experiments that prove that the evolutionary theory is scientifically sold. One of the views presented by Coyne (2010) in his book is the model of how species change over time. This model is based on the assumption that biological populations comprise organisms with the ability to survive or reproduce. While Coyne’s book provides scientific evidence on the evolutionary theory, it puts more emphasis on biogeography and unique adaptations of some living things. In so doing, the book seemingly ignores the creationist position and alternatives that can be used to explain the origin of life. To support his biogeographic basis of the evolutionary theory, Coyne argues that some animals in South America migrated from Galapagos Island. He seemingly portrays the idea that Africa and South America were seemingly a few inches apart when the Earth was created several years ago. As a result, he seemingly argues that things tend to occur similarly in relatively the same locations they were created. Coyne’s argument that things occur the same in relatively similar locations is not entirely true as there are differences in the development of organisms in similar conditions. It is increasingly apparent that different organisms can develop in non-convergent environments or adaptations. I believe that there is overwhelming scientific evidence to prove that the similarity of adaptations do not necessarily produce similar organisms.