Examples of structures Examples of structures that have been that have been

proposed as irreducibly proposed as irreducibly complexcomplex

Bacterial flagellumBacterial flagellumSee Illustration on next slide . . .See Illustration on next slide . . .

Matzke, N. J. (2003). Evolution in (Brownian) Space: a model for the origin of the bacterial flagellum. Retrieved December 8, 2008, from http://www.talkdesign.org/faqs/flagellum.html

The eukaryotic cilium• Whip like structure

found in most eukaryotes– Very complex– 9+2 microtubule

arrangement – Many additional

protein parts– Used for movement

and locomotion

The eukaryotic cilium• Evolutionary simpler forms found in many

different organisms:• Simpler can easily be functional.

Figures from Finding Darwin’s God,Kenneth R. Miller, 1999, New York, Perennial

Eliminate Factor XII

Whales & Whales & dolphins lack dolphins lack Factor XII - and Factor XII - and their blood still their blood still clots.clots.

Blood Clotting“… none of the cascade proteins are used for anything except controlling the formation of a clot. Yet in the absence of any of the components, blood does not clot, and the system fails.” (DARWIN’S BLACK BOX, Behe p. 86).

Whales & Whales & dolphins lack dolphins lack Factor XII - and Factor XII - and their blood still their blood still clots.clots.

Blood Clotting“… none of the cascade proteins are used for anything except controlling the formation of a clot. Yet in the absence of any of the components, blood does not clot, and the system fails.” (DARWIN’S BLACK BOX, Behe p. 86).

Puffer fish lack Puffer fish lack the entire the entire contact system - contact system - and their blood and their blood still clots.still clots.

Immune System EvolutionBetween 1996 and 2005 each element of the transposon hypothesis” of immune system VDJ evolution was scientifically confirmed.

Kapitonov & Jurka (2005) RAG1 Core and V(D)J Recombination Signal Sequences Were Derived from Transib Transposons. Public Library of Science, Biol. 3: e181..

Emotional Investment

• “Professor Behe was presented with– fifty- eight peer-reviewed

publications– nine books– several immunology textbook

chapters about the evolution of the immune system

• he simply insisted that this was still not sufficient evidence of evolution, and that it was not “good enough.” (23:19 (Behe)).”

Is Body Design Intelligent?•Recurrent laryngeal nerve

– Goes from the brain through a tube near the heart to the larynx.

– One of the cranial nerves

• Direct route in fish.• Detour of ~ 1-2 feet in humans.• 10-15 feet of extra nerve in giraffes.

•Why?

•Because evolution and natural selection operate in the short term, with each step taking place as a modification of what is already present.

Grateful AcknowledgementsGrateful Acknowledgements

Ms. Cynthia Curtis – IB Biology Teacher GHSMs. Cynthia Curtis – IB Biology Teacher GHS

Pia Vogel PhD – Associate Professor in Biology SMUPia Vogel PhD – Associate Professor in Biology SMU

John Wise PhD - Lecturer in Biology SMUJohn Wise PhD - Lecturer in Biology SMU

Randall Scalise PhD – Senior Lecturer in Physics at Randall Scalise PhD – Senior Lecturer in Physics at SMUSMU

Mark Pallen PhD - Professor of Microbial Genomics, Mark Pallen PhD - Professor of Microbial Genomics, Centre for Systems Biology Biosciences at the Centre for Systems Biology Biosciences at the University of BirminghamUniversity of Birmingham

Kenneth Miller PhD – Professor of Biology, Royce Kenneth Miller PhD – Professor of Biology, Royce Family Professor for Teaching Excellence, Brown Family Professor for Teaching Excellence, Brown UniversityUniversity

Mollusk Eye Evolution• Five different eye forms

found in mollusks – “Gradations from

complex to very imperfect and simple”.

• Lens material is “house-keeping enzyme.

• Pathway from a simple light absorbing pigment to a complex camera-like eye is well worked out. From - Evolutionary Analysis, 4th ed.

Scott Freeman and Jon Herron