The Demise of Evolution

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But like most creationists you only have an opinion and appear to be afraid to learn what is and what is not evidence.

Evolutionists themselves claim that the theory is uncertain and subject to change.

 

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Flawed in what way?

Its uncertain and subject to change.

 

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You really should attempt to understand basic concepts if you want to be taken seriously. Please take a moment to read through this....



"The hardest part about understanding scientific theories and hypotheses seems to be this: a hypothesis is never proven correct, nor is a theory ever proven to be true. Words like prove, correct, and trueshould be removed from our vocabulary completely and immediately."

"One source of confusion about the status of the science or theory of evolution stems from the difference between the "everyday" meaning of the word "theory" and the scientific meaning the word.

Below we list some common misconceptions about the term "theory" and describe a classroom activity that can help students rethink their understanding of this term.

NSTA News

(The National Science Teachers Association)

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Misconception 1 "Evolution is 'just a theory'".

Misconception 2 "Theories become facts when they are well supported and/or proven."

There are three important misconceptions propagated in the above statements. The first statement implies that a theory should be interpreted as just a guess or a hunch, whereas in science, the term theory is used very differently. The second statement implies that theories become facts, in some sort of linear progression. In science, theories never become facts. Rather, theories explain facts. The third misconception is that scientific research provides proof in the sense of attaining the absolute truth. Scientific knowledge is always tentative and subject to revision should new evidence come to light."

https://ncse.com/library-resource/theory-

(National Centre for Science Education)

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One of the most common misconceptions concerns the so-called “scientific proofs.” Contrary to popular belief, there is no such thing as a scientific proof.

Proofs exist only in mathematics and logic, not in science. Mathematics and logic are both closed, self-contained systems of propositions, whereas science is empirical and deals with nature as it exists. The primary criterion and standard of evaluation of scientific theory is evidence, not proof. All else equal (such as internal logical consistency and parsimony), scientists prefer theories for which there is more and better evidence to theories for which there is less and worse evidence. Proofs are not the currency of science.

Proofs have two features that do not exist in science: They are final, and they are binary. Once a theorem is proven, it will forever be true and there will be nothing in the future that will threaten its status as a proven theorem (unless a flaw is discovered in the proof). Apart from a discovery of an error, a proven theorem will forever and always be a proven theorem.

In contrast, all scientific knowledge is tentative and provisional, and nothing is final. There is no such thing as final proven knowledge in science. The currently accepted theory of a phenomenon is simply the best explanation for it among all available alternatives. Its status as the accepted theory is contingent on what other theories are available and might suddenly change tomorrow if there appears a better theory or new evidence that might challenge the accepted theory. No knowledge or theory (which embodies scientific knowledge) is final. That, by the way, is why science is so much fun.

Common misconceptions about science I: “Scientific proof”

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"No amount of experimentation can ever prove me right;
a single experiment can prove me wrong."
Albert Einstein

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Karl Popper -

"In the empirical sciences, which alone can furnish us with information about the world we live in, proofs do not occur, if we mean by 'proof' an argument which establishes once and for ever the truth of a theory".

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Jack Fraser, Master's Physics, University of Oxford -

“Proof” implies that there is no room for error — that you can be 100% sure that what you have written down on the piece of paper is 100% representative of what you are talking about."

And quite simply, that doesn’t exist in the real world.

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National Science Foundation

Journalists often write about "scientific proof" and some scientists talk about it, but in fact, the concept of proof — real, absolute proof — is not particularly scientific. Science is based on the principle that any idea, no matter how widely accepted today, could be overturned tomorrow if the evidence warranted it. Science accepts or rejects ideas based on the evidence; it does not prove or disprove them.

Right, the theory is uncertain and subject to change. I believe one poster said it was tentative?

 

[Subduction Zone]

Evolutionists themselves claim that the theory is uncertain and subject to change.

Of course. That is a feature, not a bug. A willingness to correct errors is a good thing. Why on Earth do you think there is anything wrong with that.

Now it would be nice to be given all of the answers without doing any work. But not if those answers are all shown to be wrong.

 

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Its uncertain and subject to change.

That is not a flaw. It does not matter how many times it is said.

 

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That is not a flaw. It does not matter how many times it is said.

Its uncertain and subject to change, therefore anyone saying its fact is wrong. Facts dont change, they remain factual. Thats my point.

 

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Its uncertain and subject to change, therefore anyone saying its fact is wrong. Facts dont change, they remain factual. Thats my point.

No, we can still say that it is a fact. You do not seem to understand. It has so much evidence by the standard of any court case the person being charged with that much evidence against him would be voted guilty by an impartial jury in five minutes. Your use of terminology is imprecise.

Here is the unpleasant fact that no creationist will honestly deal with, when it comes to proper evidence, in this case that would be scientific evidence, there are mountains of evidence for the theory of evolution and none for creationism. In fact many creationist claims are testable and can be shown to be wrong.

 

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No, we can still say that it is a fact. You do not seem to understand. It has so much evidence by the standard of any court case the person being charged with that much evidence against him would be voted guilty by an impartial jury in five minutes. Your use of terminology is imprecise.

Here is the unpleasant fact that no creationist will honestly deal with, when it comes to proper evidence, in this case that would be scientific evidence, there are mountains of evidence for the theory of evolution and none for creationism. In fact many creationist claims are testable and can be shown to be wrong.

If its uncertain and subject to change its not a fact. A fact is proven true, you yourself say parts of evolution can be wrong.

 

[Subduction Zone]

If its uncertain and subject to change its not a fact. A fact is proven true, you yourself say parts of evolution can be wrong.

That's right. The theory of evolution is not a fact. It explains facts. You need to understand this. Evolution is both a fact and a theory, just like gravity. As we learn more the theories change, but the facts remain. If you deny evolution because it is "just a theory" then by the same bent, broken,and twisted logic you should reject gravity too.

 

[Speedwell]

If its uncertain and subject to change its not a fact. A fact is proven true, you yourself say parts of evolution can be wrong.

You need to make a distinction between facts and theories which explain facts. Evolution is a fact. The theory of evolution, which explains the fact of evolution, is a theory and like all scientific theories, is only held to provisionally pending new facts coming to light.

 

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You need to make a distinction between facts and theories which explain facts. Evolution is a fact. The theory of evolution, which explains the fact of evolution, is a theory and like all scientific theories, is only held to provisionally pending new facts coming to light.

Mental gymnastics.

 

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That's right. The theory of evolution is not a fact. It explains facts. You need to understand this. Evolution is both a fact and a theory, just like gravity. As we learn more the theories change, but the facts remain. If you deny evolution because it is "just a theory" then by the same bent, broken,and twisted logic you should reject gravity too.

Something that explains facts but is uncertain and subject to change doesnt explain facts too well.

 

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Mental gymnastics.

No, an explanation of why you are wrong.

Do you deny gravity?

 

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Mental gymnastics.

No, it's an important distinction which we need to keep straight.

It's a fact, not a theory, that life on Earth has changed and diversified since it began. Species which once existed are no longer alive. Species are alive now which have not always existed. The purpose of the theory of evolution is to explain how that change and diversification came about. The theory of evolution is intended to explain the fact of evolution.

 

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No, an explanation of why you are wrong.

Do you deny gravity?

I dont deny apes are stupid animals that play with their poo., but i deny that i came from one.

 

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Something that explains facts but is uncertain and subject to change doesnt explain facts too well.

Really? Then I guess that the GPS on your phone never works.

 

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I dont deny apes are stupid animals that play with their poo., but i deny that i came from one.

You can deny it, but that only makes you a science denier and wrong.

 

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Really? Then I guess that the GPS on your phone never works.

Even a blind squirrel can find a nut once in a while. However, GPS is proven to work, no one has proven millions of years of evolution however, because its uncertain and subject to change.

 

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You can deny it, but that only makes you a science denier and wrong.

No, i just dont trust things that are uncertain and subject to change.

 

[Speedwell]

Something that explains facts but is uncertain and subject to change doesnt explain facts too well.

It explains all of the facts we have at present very well. But we can never be certain whether new facts will come to light which will require that the currently accepted theory be modified or abandoned altogether.