> Well, the vertebrates first appeared in the Late Cambrian
> and so are not really associated with the Cambrian explosion
> at all
In any case, the evidence suggests that vertebrates evolved
suddenly, geologically speaking. My point was that this is quite
a marvel, and quite a difficulty for gradualism. Yet Dawkins et
al can gloss over this, and critics would rather focus on some
particular problems which may well be non-problems, as they
assume phylogenetic patterns which may not be true. The issue
seems to be almost taboo for both sides. I wonder why. Maybe
it's simply that the matter is so opaque that it's boring.
-- Cliff Lundberg ~ San Francisco ~ cliff@noevalley.com