GrumpyBob

GrumpyBob

51p

125 comments posted · 0 followers · following 0

10 years ago @ Wonderful Life - Alfred Russel Wallace'... · 0 replies · +1 points

Hi George - I hope I didn't attribute that opinion to you - but I've seen that opinion elsewhere. My own view is that for the public Wallace has been somewhat eased out of the history - and his 'reinstatement' is probably a good thing. I've been enjoying reading the Wallace-related sites I linked to.

11 years ago @ Wonderful Life - Discovery Institute ta... · 0 replies · +1 points

Don't be silly.

11 years ago @ Wonderful Life - The Edinburgh Science ... · 0 replies · +1 points

Well, it might be an interesting experience. I have been looking at some of Jason Rosenhouse's experiences at US creationist conferences. I'm unlikely to be in Edinburgh in October, unfortunately!

11 years ago @ Wonderful Life - The Edinburgh Science ... · 0 replies · +1 points

Well, it might be an interesting experience. I have been looking at some of Jason Rosenhouse's experiences at US creationist conferences. I'm unlikely to be in Edinburgh in October, unfortunately!

12 years ago @ Wonderful Life - No Signature in the Cell · 0 replies · +1 points

I read the Szostak (2003) article - I didn't find it terribly useful, quite brief and more of a small 'idea' article. His 2007 paper ( Hazen et al) is rather more thought provoking, and really codifies quite neatly how one might think of functionality in sequence. Unfortunately as I've never used Avida, I couldn't come to judgements about that specific discussion. I have yet to find time to read the Durston paper.

To be honest, I didn't think that the Hazen concept of functional information corresponds with Meyer's (which isn't really defined in his book) - it's a lot more coherent for a start. But I'll look at the relevant sections of Signature again, once I've read Dunston.

In any event, assertions that there are no known mechanisms where new genetic information can arise in biological systems are clearly false. Meyer's claim remains that natural processes can not have led to the appearance of replicating systems. One assumes that one version of an intelligent designer is that a supernatural entity established primitive replicating systems on Earth and then left it to run on.

12 years ago @ Wonderful Life - No Signature in the Cell · 0 replies · +1 points

I don't think Meyer's arguments have validity, regardless of his religious beliefs.

12 years ago @ Wonderful Life - No Signature in the Cell · 0 replies · +1 points

Well, my modification to your analogy assumed you would realise that I was merely illustrating that duplication followed by divergence did yield additional information.

In the case of duplicated genes, subsequent random sequence changes (mutation) coupled with natural selection (and random drift) leads to divergence between the genes and ultimately increase in genetic information. There is evidence for all these processes.

12 years ago @ Wonderful Life - No Signature in the Cell · 3 replies · +1 points

IDproponent: I think depends on the definition of information. In the case of genetic information, duplication of gene(s) gives rise to material upon which subsequent sequence divergence can be acted on by selection (and by drift) to lead to two distinct but related genes. One needs to think of events as chains of events. To take your analogy, if a student copies another student's essay, then introduces modifications while the original student modifies his/her essay in different ways, then yes information has increased by any measure.

But I think this misses Meyer's claims, which are that science has not explained the origin of biological information bearing molecules, but that it can never do. He then invokes an unknown creator with supernatural powers to do the job. I think (though I am no specialist in origon of life) that science has formulated many hypotheses of processes that may have given rise to biological information, not all of which are given full consideration by Meyer, who also supposes that components of life had to leap into existence in a more or less fully functional state.

12 years ago @ Wonderful Life - No Signature in the Cell · 5 replies · +2 points

I see duplication of genes. In the literature I see generation of novel genes by duplication and gene fusion. This is increase in genetic information.

I am a molecular geneticist, this is genetic information. Increasing.

12 years ago @ Wonderful Life - No Signature in the Cell · 0 replies · +1 points

Please supply the citations for the papers by Szostak, Hazen et al and Durston et al.

I am a molecular geneticist, and I can see genetic information within a species increasing by segmental duplication. Within phylogenetic analyses, one can see the effects of duplication of chromosomes and whole genomes as a route to increasing the amount of genetic information. And if you think this is not a route to increasing 'functional' information you reveal your ignorance: duplicated genes diverge in sequence in function.