DNA :: The Tentative Apologist

Post tagged with DNA

An Intelligent Design for increasing traffic at your blog

July 08th, 201002:08 PM ET

By Randal Rauser

I ventured into turbid waters a couple days ago by mentioning that in the future I would discuss Steve Meyer's Signature in the Cell in the blog. What followed was a barrage of discussion which led AnAtheist.Net to observe: "It looks like you have discovered a quick way to attract a fiery horde of new readers." Indeed. Actually I learned la...
Hey calm down, it's just a book

July 07th, 201011:01 AM ET

By Randal Rauser

Geez, you throw these guys an olive branch -- I'll even read Robert Wright, but why don't you read Steve Meyer? -- and they have all sorts of excuses. AnAtheist.Net attempts to extent the bizarre argument that if scientists present their theoretical proposal in a long book that seeks to reach a broader readership, we ought not read it. Does publis...
When is a miracle a miracle?

September 09th, 200902:49 PM ET

By Randal Rauser

Here's how things went down. I said to my buddy beetle496: "are you saying there is an account of how non-directed processes produced the vast store of biological information in the DNA molecule? If so, can you provide a reference in the literature for that account?: beetle496 directed me to this website which was admirably brief: http://www....
Design: The debate continues

September 07th, 200912:49 PM ET

By Randal Rauser

The Facts: The human genome is a vast store of biological information encoded in a four letter alphabet. Like staggeringly complex assembly instructions for an incredibly sophisticated machine, DNA provides the blueprint of life, the assembly instructions for you and I. The Design Theorist's Question: We know what put you and I together. (It ...
DNA and Design

September 01st, 200912:05 PM ET

By Randal Rauser

So now on to the second criterion that the peanut gallery has proposed to shoot down the conclusion that DNA was designed: it doesn't show any sign of fabrication. This depends on the "recognizable fabrication criterion" which I defined last time around as follows: (2) RFC: evidence in the object of fabrication (e.g. tool marks) So goes the reaso...
Hair spray, DNA, and the Design Inference

August 31st, 200908:55 AM ET

By Randal Rauser

Lucy the environmentalist is getting ready for the spotted owl rally while her friend Charlene chews gum and listens to ELO on the record player. Just as Lucy pulls out the Adorn hairspray in order to finish off her bouffant hairstyle, Charlene grabs the bottle away. "You can't use this you idiot!" "Why not?" asks Lucy, rather shocked at the insul...
In Search of a Design Filter

August 28th, 200910:11 AM ET

By Randal Rauser

My last post is not actually about William Paley, the design argument, or intelligent design. Rather, it is about the changing of intellectual fashion, and the subtle bullying that occurs when some refuse to accept the change. Just look at the level of vitriol directed against those who dare to defend the design argument (calling them "IDiot...

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An exploration of faith, knowledge, reason and doubt (with the occasional trite pop culture reference thrown in for good measure).