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Of Evolution Kevin Padian Book Review/Science in the Media Truth or Consequences? Engaging the “Truth” of Evolution Kevin Padian ohn is the only one of the four to the uninitiated not just what we evangelists who recounts Jesus’ regard as the evidence but how we J(possibly apocryphal) statement to come to see it as evidence. But Coyne Pilate that he was in fact a king whose is concentrating less on methods and role was “to bear witness to the truth; philosophy than he is on the evidence and all who are on the side of truth itself—which he reasonably thinks listen to my voice.” Pilate is said to have should be enough to convince sentient replied to this, “What is truth?” people of the truth of evolution. This is a question that Jerry Coyne The problem is that, as Pilate never really engages in his excellent implied, truth is a personal thing. new book [1], which purports to This is not to say that all morality is explain why evolution is “true.” This subjective and all ethics conditional, raises the question of who his intended and we don’t need to rehash audience is. But we’ll get there in a philosophy here. But it seems important minute. First, make no mistake: this in a book entitled Why Evolution Is True is a wonderful book, as far as the to engage the question of truth—and explanation of many of the interesting whose truth—at least a bit. lines of evidence and case histories for Everyone is aware of the level of evolution go. Coyne is a professor at the ignorance and lack of acceptance University of Chicago who specializes in of evolution among the American the genetics of speciation (his previous populace. The numbers can reach book on the subject, with H. Allen Orr, close to 50%, depending on how is widely recognized [2]). He explains doi:10.1371/journal.pbio.1000077.g001 the questions are phrased, and this the evidence for evolution not just Coyne JA (2009) Why Evolution Is True. New statistic constantly appalls many foreign in terms of speciation, however. He York: Viking Penguin. 304 p. ISBN (hardcover): scholars. As my colleague Eugenie 978-0670020539. US$27.95. revisits many of Darwin’s arguments, Scott at the National Center for Science such as the progression of fossils, the for people needing to know the basic Education is fond of saying, this is not importance of vestigial organs, how evidence for evolution. Why don’t a problem that you can solve merely by evolution explains biogeographic textbook publishers just produce stuff throwing more science at it. The reason patterns, and sexual selection. But he is like this for classrooms? But therein lies is that people don’t always decide what also able to go far beyond the evidence a different tale. stories they want to believe—how they available to Darwin, with topics such Unusually for a specialist in construct their worldview—on the as genetic and molecular support for population genetics, Coyne has a same basis. Scientists are rationalists, species divergence, and the record of strong grasp of the highlights of the believers in the power of reason, of human evolution. fossil record, and he focuses on some observation of the natural world, the Coyne hits all the right notes, without of the major cases such as the origin of formation of patterns, the testing over-dazzling the general reader with tetrapods (mistakenly called the “fish- of inferences. I said “believers” too many molecular complexities amphibian” transition), the origin of deliberately. Do we “believe” in the or obscure examples. This is a very birds, and the return of whales to the results of our investigations? We readable, companionable work that water. So it is a bit surprising that there shouldn’t; we should accept them takes its place alongside other fine is not more in his book on the methods provisionally pending further testing. recent explanations of evolution such we use to study these major features as Evolution: What the Fossils Say and Why of evolution, notably the importance Citation: Padian K (2009) Truth or consequences? Engaging the “truth” of evolution. PLoS Biol 7(3): It Matters, by Donald R. Prothero [3], of constructing phylogenetic trees e1000077. doi:10.1371/journal.pbio.1000077 and Your Inner Fish, by Neil Shubin [4], (which show patterns of lineage as well as a great many Web sites that branching) to test hypotheses about Copyright: © 2009 Kevin Padian. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms explain the evidence for evolution. macroevolutionary processes, or (even of the Creative Commons Attribution License, It would be an excellent text for a more surprisingly) the advent of which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and freshman or non-majors course in evolutionary developmental biology. reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited. evolution, or for a local book group. These and other approaches have It is a real shame, ironically, that this been tremendously important in the Kevin Padian is in the Department of Integrative Biology and Museum of Paleontology, University kind of book has to be produced at integration of fossil evidence in recent of California, Berkeley, California, United States of all, because it is so perfect a textbook decades. Most importantly, they explain America. E-mail: [email protected] PLoS Biology | www.plosbiology.org 0433 March 2009 | Volume 7 | Issue 3 | e1000077 The word “belief” should normally be engagement with the philosophy of last chapter with the statement of an reserved for statements of faith, which knowledge. How do we know something audience member to him after his cannot be confirmed or denied on the is true, and what do we mean when we public lecture: “I found your evidence basis of empirical evidence. My friend say something is true? What could make for evolution very convincing—but I Alan Jones, Dean of Grace Cathedral us abandon our claims, and realistically, still don’t believe it.” Well, nothing says in San Francisco, often says that “faith would we ever do so? that our job is to convince people of is the opposite of certainty”—although Scientists don’t have to deal with this the “truth” of evolution—I don’t think it is unlikely that fundamentalist problem very much. If they work in a it’s my job—but we would like people Christians, who regard their religion as research environment, nearly all their to understand it. Coyne does a very absolute certainty, would agree. They colleagues will share their worldview. If good job in this book of presenting would regard their beliefs as absolute they teach at a high-powered university, the actual evidence for evolution. He knowledge, at least as strongly as the most of their students will also have is less complete on the philosophy most positivist scientist would his own their outlook, or at least will keep their and methods that underlie science, understanding of nature. opinions to themselves and just give particularly in specific disciplines. Creationists—people who deny the professor the answers he wants And one would have liked to see more evolution because it conflicts with their on the exam. And that brings us to about dealing with people who are religious precepts—often tell us that the students who never learned much apprehensive about the “truth” of whether we accept a naturalistic or a about science, but were brought up evolution. For the last question readers supernatural explanation of the world with conservative religious views. Will are referred to Brian and Sandra around us is a philosophical choice: a it make sense to them to tell them that Alters’ Defending Evolution: A Guide to belief. They’re not wrong. That first “evolution is true,” even if you give the Creation/Evolution Controversy [5], decision—what kind of “knowledge” is them a lot of examples of evolution which is (another unfortunately titled going to be privileged in your mind—is at work? Will they listen in the first book) about how to listen to such ultimately a question of belief, a leap of place, particularly if they think that people, win their confidence that you faith, a decision about truth, if you care your teaching is going to be hostile are sensitive to their worldviews, and to use the term at all. to their beliefs? Coyne does not seem develop answers that may make sense So how can scientists reach people overly concerned with this, although to them in their own terms. Maybe who have at least provisionally decided he recognizes the problem in his last some of Coyne’s reluctant audience that religion and not reason is the chapter. He says that evolution is true members can be reached in different ultimate arbiter of experience? What “in that the main tenets of Darwinism ways. of those who find that religion takes have been verified” (p. 223), although References precedence sometimes and reason there is still lots to learn. And despite 1. Coyne JA (2009) Why evolution is true. New works the rest of the time? Think of complaints from the usual sources, we York: Viking Penguin. 304 p. the people who have had a strong are not to take any moral or ethical 2. Coyne JA, Orr HA (2004) Speciation. conservative religious education, and lessons from evolution; it will not Sunderland (MA): Sinauer Associates. 545 p. 3. Prothero DR, Buell C (2007) Evolution: What yet are willing to listen to a scientific corrupt us; evolutionary psychology the fossils say and why it matters. New York: account of how the natural world came (if done properly) may get us to the Columbia University Press.
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