Monday, October 18, 2010

Common misconceptions of Darwinism: Part 1

-Darwinism is not synonymous with evolution. Evolution had been accepted long before Darwin published his books, long before he was even born. Individuals such as his own grandfather Erasmus Darwin, and Jean-Baptist Lamarack had purposed accounts of evolution long before Darwin.

-Darwinism (and evolution,) are not theories which purport to account for the origin of life. Rather, Darwinism and evolution are theories which purport to explain the origin of species, i.e. the origin of biodiversity or the reason for variety amongst and within species. This is a different question from the origin of life itself. Abiogenesis, or the primordial soup theory, is a possible explanation for the origin of life on earth, see Carl Sagan video excerpt from "Cosmos":

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yet1xkAv_HY

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