A common criticism of evolution is that there is not enough time in the universe
for all the possible combinations to be generated to make one living cell. This
argument always makes the implicit assumption that each sequence of DNA is made
in a separate process, i.e. as a serial computer. When the times are added up
for formation of all the possible sequences, the result is always enormously
bigger than the age of the universe.
But the real world is full of "massively parallel computers". They consist of
arrangements of molecules. As a crude example, a 60-gram stone contains about N
= Avogadro's number of molecules (about 6 X 10^23). There are N! possible
arrangements of molecules in such a stone. The probability of existence of a
particular arrangement of these molecules is 1/N!. This is an extremely small
number. I'll leave it as an exercise to the reader to figure out how small 1/N!
is, but believe me, it is small! Yet the real world is full of particular
stones.
The liquid environment allows molecules to carry out their stereochemical
experiments in massively parallel fashion. So the hidden assumption, that life
works like a serial computer process, is fallacious. All calculations based on
serial processing for the probability of the origin of life or species or
thoughts in the brain or anything else are wrong. They give us no guidance at
all as to the possibility or limitations on origin of these phenomena.
Actually, I don't think there is at present any valid way known to calculate
such probabilities.
Paul Arveson, Research Physicist
Code 724, NSWC, Bethesda, MD 20084
73367.1236@compuserve.com arveson@oasys.dt.navy.mil
(301) 227-3831 (W) (301) 227-1914 (FAX) (301) 816-9459 (H)
Paul Arveson, Research Physicist
Code 724, NSWC, Bethesda, MD 20084
73367.1236@compuserve.com arveson@oasys.dt.navy.mil
(301) 227-3831 (W) (301) 227-1914 (FAX) (301) 816-9459 (H)