Origin of Life: Brian Miller Distills a Debate Between Dave Farina and James Tour

abiogenesis, blind natural forces, Brian Miller, Center for Science & Culture, Dave Farina, early Earth, Eric Anderson, Evolution, ID The Future, Intelligent Design, James Tour, origin of life, Podcast, researchers, Rice University, science educators, synthetic organic chemistry
No one — not even the most elite of origin-of-life scientists — has a clue how life could have arisen through blind natural forces on the early Earth. Source
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Verdicts of “Poor Design” in Biology Don’t Have a Good Track Record

"poor design", An Introduction to Systems Biology, ARF, bioengineering, biological information, biology, Darwinian processes, diarrhea, Erez Ribak, Erika DeBenedictis, gut bacteria, INK4a, Intelligent Design, MIT, Müller cells, natural selection, neurons, optic nerve, photoreceptors, physiology, random mutation, Technion, TEDx talk, Uri Alon, vertebrate eye, vestigial organs
For years people cited the wiring of the vertebrate eye as evidence of “poor design” in biology. Source
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Stephen Meyer: The Evidence “Cries Out” for God, Not the Other Way Around

Apologetics, Atheism, biology, BreakPoint, cosmology, Down syndrome, ID The Future, Intelligent Design, James Tour, John Stonestreet, materialism, mistakes, New Atheists, physics, Physics, Earth & Space, Return of the God Hypothesis, Richard Dawkins, River Out of Eden, scientific evidence, Stephen Meyer, theism, unborn children, utilitarianism, William Dembski
I have heard ID dismissed as “apologetics,” with the implication of proponents in search of evidence to support a conclusion to which they're pre-committed. Source
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Optimality Recognized in Core Biological Infrastructure

"poor design", amino acids, Athel Cornish-Bowden, biology, biology textbooks, carbon, constraints, development, Drosophila, elements, embryology, Erika DeBenedictis, glycolysis, human engineers, human genome, Intelligent Design, María Luz Cárdenas-Cerda, metabolism, Michael Denton, natural amino acids, optimality, Pareto optimality, Princeton University, TEDx talk, William Bialek
I will begin with an example from embryology, then turn to metabolism, and finish with the breadth of chemical space covered by the natural amino acids. Source
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How Do We Decide if Something Is Well Designed or Poorly Designed?

"poor design", beetles, biological engineering, biology, cancer, ceramics, cutting board, dental enamel, disease, drones, Engineering, Erika DeBenedictis, hummingbird, IEEE, Intelligent Design, iPhone, lightning connector, MIT, optimality, photosynthesis, smart devices, solar panels, somatic cells
Erika DeBenedictis's statement that “organisms are absolutely the most sophisticated machines we know of” is supported by overwhelming evidence. Source
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Study Challenges Evolutionary Relationship Between Flagellum and Type III Secretory System

ATP synthase, bacterial flagellum, Cell (journal), Darwin's Black Box, Eduardo P. C. Rocha, Evolution, Howard Ochman, human technology, Intelligent Design, Irreducible Complexity, Jiaxing Tan, Journal of the American Chemical Society, Judge John E. Jones, Kitzmiller v. Dover, last bacterial common ancestor, Michael Behe, molecular machines, motors, Nature Reviews Microbiology, New Scientist, propeller, pumps, rotary engine, Salmonella, Sophie S. Abby, T3SS, University of Arizona
There are various types of flagella, but all function like a rotary engine made by humans. Even non-ID scientists marvel at the complexity of these machines. Source
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