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Book Reviews the new and exciting developments which emerge virtually every week, Natural selection— the book should be regularly revised every couple of years to keep the issue evolution’s phantom at the forefront in the hotly contested fields of intelligent design and creation science. This is particularly important mechanism given the fraudulent rhetoric actively promulgated by theistic evolutionists and popular science authors. A review of What Darwin Got Wrong References by Jerry Fodor and Massimo Piattelli-Palmarini 1. Williams, A., Astonishing DNA complexity demolishes neo­Darwinism, J. Creation Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 21(3):111–117, 2007; creation.com/images/ New York, 2010 pdfs/tj/j21_3/j21_3_111­117.pdf. 2. Wells, J., Icons of Evolution, Regnery Publishing, Washington, DC, 2004; www. iconsofevolution.com/. Jean K. Lightner 3. Clamp et al., 2007, Distinguishing protein­coding and noncoding genes in the human genome, his book is not a creationist or Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. 104:19428–19433; Tintelligent design book. In fact, it see also review: Truman, R., What biology was written by two men who consider textbooks never told you about evolution, J. themselves atheists, have no problem Creation 15(2):17–24, 2001; creation.com/ what­biology­textbooks­never­told­you­about­ with the idea of common descent, and evolution. assume “that evolution is a mechanical 4. Probst, A.V. and Almouzni, G., Pericentric process through and through” (p. xiii). heterochromatin: dynamic organization during So what is it that the authors believe early development, Differentiation 76:15–23, Darwin got wrong? The mechanism 2007. for evolution; namely, the theory of 5. See creation.com/biologos for detailed critique natural selection. In the first chapter the authors ask: and the apostasy to which theistic evolutionary Jerry Fodor and Massimo Piattelli­ compromise logically leads. “What kind of theory is the theory Palmarini are professors of cognitive of natural selection?” They compare 6. Tomkins, J. and Bergman, J., Telomeres: science at their respective universities. evolutionary theory to B.F. Skinner’s implications for aging and evidence for Fodor also has expertise in philosophy intelligent design, J. Creation, 25:86–97, 2011; theory of operant conditioning. creation.com/journal­of­creation­251. while Piattelli­Palmarini began his Initially they look at both as a black career as a biophysicist and molecular 7. Luke, B. and Lingner, J., TERRA: telomeric box (i.e. what the theories propose to repeat­containing RNA, EMBO J. 28:2503–2510, biologist. Information from these do). They elaborate on six postulated 2009. diverse fields is brought together in this strong constraints in which the two 8. Farnung, B.O. et al., Promoting trans­ book as the authors argue that natural theories are essentially identical. They cription of chromosome ends, Transcription selection cannot be a major mechanism then ‘open the box’ to look at the 1:140–143, 2010. for evolution. mechanism by which they are said to operate. In each case there is a random Organization of the book generator of traits and a filter which can Prior to the first chapter, the influence the persistence of those traits. book has a section entitled Terms This comparison is frequently referred of Engagement. This provides some to later in the book, as the authors argue introductory comments along with that natural selection fails for many of an outline of what is discussed in the same reasons the theory of operant the various chapters. It is here the conditioning has failed. authors warn that they will embark on The remainder of the book is numerous digressions, a promise they divided into two sections. The first, certainly keep. These digressions make chapters two through five, presents the the book difficult to follow at times, but biological argument. Here numerous the authors work hard at tying these advances in the field of biology are thoughts together. discussed as they have relevance JOURNAL OF CREATION 25(3) 2011 27 Book Reviews to the inadequacy of the theory of despots who are notorious for having the idea that change is driven primarily natural selection. In the second section, killed masses of people. The effect by environmental factors). From a chapters six through nine, the authors of Darwinian thought in science and creation perspective, these patterns of deal with the conceptual situation. This psychology has also been explored gene similarity fit well with the belief portion is more philosophical in nature. before. However, I appreciated how the that the Creator reused various design In chapter nine the authors work book brings out some of these points. elements in separate creations. It is to bring all the pieces together and The authors mention that they possible their reuse is due to functional provide a summary of the arguments know people in the fields of ‘wet’ constraints. It is clear that their reuse is that began in chapter one. biology who are not ‘that’ kind of beneficial to humans from a research The nine chapters occupy only Darwinist. In other words, these perspective. In fact, medical research 163 pages. There is an appendix which experimental biologists, while likely depends heavily on such similarity, as examines various quotes from the accepting common descent, do not mice are commonly used as models for literature demonstrating that Darwin’s agree that natural selection is a major human disease. ideas remain incredibly influential in mechanism for evolution. In spite The authors discuss the reality the fields of psychology and philosophy of this, Darwinian dogma on natural that mutations are not random (e.g. of the mind. This is followed by notes selection remains firmly entrenched in hotspots exist). They also point out on the chapters where the authors put many areas, both within biology and in that even if they were random, their bits of information and explanatory other fields. This highlights the ‘power effects on phenotype would not be. A comments that they found interesting of the paradigm’ problem where ideas variety of biological discoveries are and couldn’t resist including. Given that have been shown to be fallacious surveyed (microRNAs, chaperones, the propensity of the authors to find can live on for decades. It is helpful alternative splicing, gene networks and bunny trails, which were somewhat to realize that what is promoted as signaling pathways) which challenge related but tended to result in much ‘scientific fact’ on a popular level in postulates of natural selection meandering before reaching the our culture can often differ markedly discussed in chapter 1; namely, that destination, this seems a prudent way from what scientists in the field really evolution is a gradualistic process to organize such comments. The notes believe. where small phenotypic changes occupy over 40 pages. Finally there is generated at random are then filtered a list of resources and an index. No genetics in a bean bag by environmental constraints. Despite the brevity of the book, This discussion in the biological Bean bag genetics refers to the it is certainly not a quick read for section (chapters 2–5) was my favorite idea that the phenotypic traits of an most people. I found the authors’ style part of the book. I was familiar with a organism are like colored beans in a enjoyable with appropriate humor fair amount of the content, but I learned bag which exist independent of each scattered throughout. However, the some valuable new things along the other. Changing a trait by mutation was authors challenge the reader to think way. This section would be helpful for viewed to be the same as exchanging deeply in diverse areas. It often takes anyone (creationist or otherwise) who one color bean for another. This is a while to recognize why the authors finds ‘just so’ natural selection stories consistent with the neo­Darwinian are exploring a topic that on the surface satisfying. The authors maintain their idea that variation in traits is generated may seem unrelated. Yet I found the view that naturalistic processes can randomly and it is the environment book well worth the effort. Here, I explain these phenomena, consistent which selects them. The problem is that summarize some of the authors’ points with their clearly stated starting this idea is not consistent with what we that I found most interesting. assumptions. In that respect I am happy know about genetics. to operate within the creation model. In reality, there are a number of The prevalence of Neo- I would not want to be in the position internal constraints that affect the Darwinian thinking of trying to explain optimal design generation of phenotypes. There are (chapter 5), which exceeds that of the One concept the book brings out single genes that can affect a variety of best human engineers, by mindless is the extent to which neo­Darwinian traits (pleiotropy). There are individual naturalistic processes. thinking has influenced multiple traits that are influenced by many scientific fields outside biology, different genes. The authors spend a Intensional fallacy: can natural including philosophy, psychology, bit of time discussing the unanticipated selection choose? and semantics. In fact, the 15­page finding that many genes were found to appendix is devoted to extended quotes be largely the same in vastly different One major criticism of neo­ and discussion of this. The ubiquity species. Many of these are regulatory Darwinism centers on the confusion of Darwinian thinking in our society genes, and their existence is interpreted of two non­identical claims: 1) natural is certainly not a new concept. Much in an evolutionary (common descent) selection is “a process in which crea- has been written about how Darwin model, while the authors acknowledge tures with adaptive traits are selected”, influenced politics, particularly the the problem these discoveries make for and 2) natural selection is “a process policies of Hitler and Communist natural selection (i.e.

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