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"adapt"
I would like to take this time to define adaptation.
"Here's what seems to be the common misconception, as far as I can tell. One thinks that when we speak of a species adapting, that we're talking about individuals being born, assessing the habitat/environment, and making changes to themselves in order to better adapt to it. They usually make similes to humans adapting to cold weather by wearing fur and building shelters, or some such thing, then passing it on to their children. This is not what it means.
To again quote Dawkins, "life results from the nonrandom survival of randomly varying replicators." Evolution occurs through random mutations during replication. Those mutations that happen to be better suited to the environment create more survivability among those individuals, allowing them to reproduce more and pass on those mutations to their genetic heirs.
We can go back to the Galapagos finches for an example. In a population of one species of finch, many chicks will be born. Some, by virtue of random mutation will have larger, more robust beaks; others will have smaller beaks. The environment then decides which beak is more successful, depending, in this case, on what kind of food is available. If the only food available during that period is hard-shelled, then those finches with larger, more robust beaks will be more successful in breaking those shells to get to the food inside. They survive longer to reproduce and pass on the genetic code that created those beaks to their descendents. [Jonathan Weiner's The Beak of the Finch is a really good read for laypersons, describing the studies of Rosemary and Peter Grant. It's in a sort of narrative form as well, which makes it a nice, entertaining read.]
The "adaptation" that has occurred here isn't a matter of deliberate, active process, but rather something that simply happens as a matter of consequence when one random mutation is nonrandomly favored over another by the environmental circumstances. This is natural selection.
Basically, a lot of people seem to conceptualise evolution backwards. This also leads to misconceptions about "direction" and whatnot (sometimes leading people to ID). Evolution is a bush that develops out of happenstance. It's not a straight line with a beginning that entailed a plan for the future, and with an endpoint that has resulted in the completion of this plan in the present day. Remember, evolution hasn't stopped. We live very short lives and evolution is an ongoing, slow, gradual process that will continue well into the future.
Um, I was on a train of thought here but just got derailed so I'll stop, heh. Anyway, I just wanted to attempt to clarify that, because that's why I think some people have difficulty understanding, and sometimes ultimately accepting, evolution. It's a conceptual problem that results from sloppy education on the subject."--Oscilliscope
"Here's what seems to be the common misconception, as far as I can tell. One thinks that when we speak of a species adapting, that we're talking about individuals being born, assessing the habitat/environment, and making changes to themselves in order to better adapt to it. They usually make similes to humans adapting to cold weather by wearing fur and building shelters, or some such thing, then passing it on to their children. This is not what it means.
To again quote Dawkins, "life results from the nonrandom survival of randomly varying replicators." Evolution occurs through random mutations during replication. Those mutations that happen to be better suited to the environment create more survivability among those individuals, allowing them to reproduce more and pass on those mutations to their genetic heirs.
We can go back to the Galapagos finches for an example. In a population of one species of finch, many chicks will be born. Some, by virtue of random mutation will have larger, more robust beaks; others will have smaller beaks. The environment then decides which beak is more successful, depending, in this case, on what kind of food is available. If the only food available during that period is hard-shelled, then those finches with larger, more robust beaks will be more successful in breaking those shells to get to the food inside. They survive longer to reproduce and pass on the genetic code that created those beaks to their descendents. [Jonathan Weiner's The Beak of the Finch is a really good read for laypersons, describing the studies of Rosemary and Peter Grant. It's in a sort of narrative form as well, which makes it a nice, entertaining read.]
The "adaptation" that has occurred here isn't a matter of deliberate, active process, but rather something that simply happens as a matter of consequence when one random mutation is nonrandomly favored over another by the environmental circumstances. This is natural selection.
Basically, a lot of people seem to conceptualise evolution backwards. This also leads to misconceptions about "direction" and whatnot (sometimes leading people to ID). Evolution is a bush that develops out of happenstance. It's not a straight line with a beginning that entailed a plan for the future, and with an endpoint that has resulted in the completion of this plan in the present day. Remember, evolution hasn't stopped. We live very short lives and evolution is an ongoing, slow, gradual process that will continue well into the future.
Um, I was on a train of thought here but just got derailed so I'll stop, heh. Anyway, I just wanted to attempt to clarify that, because that's why I think some people have difficulty understanding, and sometimes ultimately accepting, evolution. It's a conceptual problem that results from sloppy education on the subject."--Oscilliscope
actualy adaptation can be either a slow involintary process like natural selection or a volintary attempt to respond to changing conditions.
also sexual reproduction contributes to evolution more efficently than random mutation.
and finaly a remark about intelegent designe:
the argument that life is too complicated to be the result of random chance is foolish. In truth intelegently designed systems are elegent and simplistic. compecated systems arise more frequently when the system adapts over time, or arises from random or incomplete designe.
oh, and why is this in the sugestions forum, as opposed to "of topic"?
also sexual reproduction contributes to evolution more efficently than random mutation.
and finaly a remark about intelegent designe:
the argument that life is too complicated to be the result of random chance is foolish. In truth intelegently designed systems are elegent and simplistic. compecated systems arise more frequently when the system adapts over time, or arises from random or incomplete designe.
oh, and why is this in the sugestions forum, as opposed to "of topic"?
[Moved to Off Topic]