Reply to: RE: Flagellum Re: Definitions of ID
>Nelson:
>I disagree. I think that IC is is clearly defined and does indeed apply to
>the bacterial flagellum. As link itself states:
>
>"When viewed as a motile stucture, the flagella is IC."
>
>Thus it is realized that IC means:
>
>"a single system which is composed of several well-matched, interacting
>parts that contribute to the basic function, and where the removal of any
>one of the parts causes the system to effectively cease functioning."
Then atoms and each element must be IC as well. So are each of the subatomic particles. According to this definition of IC, the basis of all matter is IC. This would suggest a few things things: 1) the basic laws of the universe must have been intelligently designed, 2) the notion that aliens created the universe in which they exist is pretty silly, 3) ID is about God, and 4) that God must have created the universe in some way similar to that which Van Till describes (which I agree with). I agree with this form of ID. However, I don't think that this is what Behe and Dembski are suggesting.
>
>Although the definition is useful, I do concede that it is not precise. As
>another IDist has pointed out, in Biology it is difficult to be precise.
>This is simply the nature of Biology:
>
>"It is ironic that the words we seem to need in order to think productively
>about biology, words such as 'homology', 'individual,' 'organism', and
>'species,' have no precise meaning."
I agree. It is sometimes not possible to quantify a species or an individual, especially when discussing something like an ant colony. But, it is possible to quantify the differences between two individuals or two species. DNA mapping does it all the time. It is also possible to describe the differences in species diversity of two ecosystems. Why can't Behe or Dembski tell me which is more irreducibly complex, a pocket calculator or a crystal? Are they even trying? I haven't seen any indication that they are trying to address this criticism.
Cliff H
>
>
>The nature of the universal ancestor and the evolution of the proteome
>W Ford Doolittle
>Current Opinion in Structural Biology 2000, 10:355-358
>
>
>
>
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>Date: Tue, 12 Sep 2000 14:38:39 -0400
>From: nalonso@megatribe.com (Nelson Alonso)
>Subject: RE: Flagellum Re: Definitions of ID
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Common sense isn't.
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