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Evolution is a two way street

May 08, 2009 Letters

Dear Editor,
A. I. Gafoor’s letter, “Mutation is not evolution” (Kaieteur News May 6th) is premised on a single error; that biological evolution always move towards greater complexity.
His theories, he admits, are guided by the scientifically discredited Intelligent Design (ID) idea, which is secretly a religious movement aiming to convince people that their God created this world.
Over time these folks have learned, they evolved, the idea that it is better to use the words Intelligent Designer instead of the name God.
They think this completely fools us about their religious intent and allows their speculations to pass as science.
Fortunately, these ID folks have been unmasked in the courts of law and have been laughed out of the proper scientific community.
Respected and creditable scientists know that genome evolution is a two-way street; changes can be made backwards, sideways, and occasionally forward. So it is completely incorrect to say, as Gofoor does, that evolution is the “transformation from a lower to a higher life form”.
There are numerous examples which show the Darwinian view of evolution as a reversible process. Scientists have identified several cases of genome reduction in organisms as diverse as the malaria parasite and bakers’ yeast meaning that these living things have become, in our view, less complex.
As another example, think of how evolution fashioned whales. These sea creatures evolved from warm-blooded, air breathing mammalian ancestors that lived on land.
The transition from land to sea, probably in search of food, presented difficulties for which adaptations developed over many generations. Smooth skin and loss of protruding ear parts and hind limbs streamlined whales for swimming.
The nostrils moved to the top of the head to facilitate breathing and an underlaying, insulating layer of blubber replaced hair for warmth. From a mammalian perspective, the whales lost some of its complexity as it evolved to suit ocean life.
Living things change in response to pressures in their environments.
A genetic mutation which helps them to better deal with these pressures (and so allows them to more readily reproduce their species and pass on this mutation) is an invaluable tool in this process which is called evolution. Beneficial genetic mutation is the basis for evolution.
Justin de Freitas

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