F.A.Q.s

This page is dedicated to the most common misconceptions about evolution.

"Evolution is only a theory; it hasn't been proved."

Calling the theory of evolution "only a theory" is, strictly speaking, true, but the idea it tries to convey is completely wrong. The argument rests on a confusion between what "theory" means in informal usage and in a scientific context. A theory, in the scientific sense, is analyzed more adequately the the page "Only a Theory?".

"There are no transitional fossils."

There are many, many, many examples of transitional fossils. Here are a few examples:

Archaeopteryx

Dinosaur--->Bird

A. afarensis
Monkey ---> Human


Pakicetus
Ancestor of Whales

Further discussion of transitional fossils is found here.

"The theory of evolution says that life originated, and evolution proceeds, by random chance."

There is probably no other statement which is a better indication that the arguer doesn't understand evolution. Chance certainly plays a large part in evolution, but this argument completely ignores the fundamental role of natural selection, and selection is the very opposite of chance. Chance, in the form of mutations, provides genetic variation, which is the raw material that natural selection has to work with. From there, natural selection sorts out certain variations. Those variations which give greater reproductive success to their possessors (and chance ensures that such beneficial mutations will be inevitable) are retained, and less successful variations are weeded out. When the environment changes, or when organisms move to a different environment, different variations are selected, leading eventually to different species. Harmful mutations usually die out quickly, so they don't interfere with the process of beneficial mutations accumulating.

"Evolution violates the 2nd law of thermodynamics."

This logical fallacy suggests perhaps a refresher course in the laws of thermodynamics.

"Evolution has never been observed."



Evolution is observable not just in the fossil record and genetics but before our very eyes. For examples of animals that are currently evolving see the page, "Before Our Very Eyes".



"Evolution tries to explain the origin of the Universe and/or the origin of life"



Evolution explains how life changed since it began, but its origin is not the central focus. We don't know exactly how life arose, but we know that once it did, it began to diversify through the process of evolution. Evolution itself does not contest the existence/non-existence of a God. Evolution is concerned with HOW life works, not WHY we are here.



"Macro Evolution has never been proven or observed."




Most people now admit that micro-evolution, or change below the species level, is a fact. However, they have trouble extrapolating and realizing that there is no reason to believe that micro-evolutionary changes would not accumulate over time and translate into macro-evolutionary change. Speciation has been observed and all of macro evolution is depicted in the fossil record.