Intelligent Design: Is it Science?

Science is the human endeavor which obtains a testable explanation of phenomena such that the knowledge of a set of input parameters or observations will enable the prediction of the values of a corresponding set of output parameters or observations. The attribute of "testable" implies that there is some form of prediction that can be made and observed to verify that the explanation does indeed describe the phenomena. The phenomena may be naturally occurring or obtained in a controlled laboratory experiment. In the event there are two competing explanations, the one with the broadest application, the most fundamental interpretations and the fewest, adjustable parameters is considered the "best" or preferred explanation. The "best" explanation is determined by the long-term consensus among the knowledgeable practitioners of the appropriate disciplines and often depends on one or a few crucial differences in the predictions made and confirmed by measurement.

Science usually progresses by successive improvements to prior explanations, each one being applicable to a wider range of phenomena and more extreme conditions. For example, Kepler's Laws explained the motions of planets quite well but were replaced by Newton's Laws which covered planets better as well as the motion of a wide range of more earthly objects. These Laws, after great success, were replaced by Einstein's Theory of Relativity which accounted for some minute effects which were predicted and subsequently observed, some important effects of high speeds, and most importantly predicted the nature of space-time itself but does not address the behavior of very small particles, a province of quantum mechanics. General Relativity is in use by countless everyday citizens; GPS instruments rely on very accurate clocks which must be corrected for changes in the earth's gravity.

Accommodation and prediction are the names of two types of scientific proof. Accommodation is the use of all the known data to develop an explanation. Prediction is the use of an explanation to reveal the existence of a new phenomenon or to estimate new, unmeasured values of an old variable. Both are evidence of the validity of the explanation. Prediction, especially of new phenomena, is considered the most powerful proof. Accommodation must be applied carefully lest the explanation be "fudged" to accommodate all the data thus minimizing the power of the proof; the number of adjustable parameters in the explanation must be minimal.

Note that scientific proof does not establish "absolute truth" but only the relative validity of an explanation to account for all the known data and to predict new values and phenomena. Also note that science is a human endeavor and thus subject to error and misdirection but in the long run is self correcting.

Authority in science refers to the an advanced level of expertise possessed by an individual or group of individuals with respect to a given topic and in NO manner suggests any established power to assert the validity of one explanation over another. It is the weight-of-evidence that gives an explanation its validity.

Democratic in science refers to the attribute that any person may participate in the process and in NO manner implies that a majority opinion gives credence to an explanation.

Simple in science means based on a few assumptions and containing few adjustable parameters but it in NO way implies easy to understand or expressible in elementary mathematics.

Laws, Principles, Theories, Hypotheses, Conjectures, Suppositions, etc. are categories of explanations in decreasing order of generality and supporting evidence. However, the usage of these terms is not standardized nor is there any recognized authority to certify the proper category. Nor does the fact that one explanation is called a "law" and another is called a "theory" necessarily mean the law is better than the theory: Clearly Einstein's Theory of Relativity is more general and valid than Newton's Laws and the supporting evidence is extensive. Even so, it is more productive to not speak of Newton's Laws as wrong but as being right only at velocities that are slow compared to that of light. Currently, too much is being made of what something is called; not what it is and the degree to which it explains the observables. A part of this confusion is probably the existence of two differing definitions of the word, theory:

1. a well-substantiated explanation of some aspect of the natural world;

2. a tentative explanation about the natural world;

Differential survivability and self-replication are attributes of the universe at many levels of complexity and are the foundation of any evolutionary system. The Laws of Thermodynamics and Chemical Kinetics support a universal pool of simple organic compounds that can initiate a complex evolutionary process. Self-replication provides for the perpetuation of very complex systems. A very large and old universe with biased physical processes can overcome the statistically small chance of success and produce truly complex details. Continuing complexity can be the result of seemingly mindless physical processes.

Evolution, especially when it includes the origin and evolution of the universe, is the most inclusive and complex phenomena possible. Some of the data is about 13 billion years old and elusive. Therefore, it is not surprising that it is a "work in progress" and that gaps exist in its complete explanation but the broad thrusts of the modernized Big Bang Theory are in surprising agreement with the known data. Modern Cosmology, Mendel's Laws of Inheritance, Darwin's Origin of Species and modern DNA chemistry provide for explanation and predictive capabilities over a wide range of circumstances. Clearly, this effort is Science in the making. One important attribute of cosmic evolution is that the nature of matter and physical laws are determined at a very early evolutionary stage and govern how the universe develops in all its complexity. Evolution is no less valid because a segment of it is termed a "theory" rather than a "law".

Intelligent Design postulates that a universe as complex as ours containing complex and seemingly purposeful organisms must have evolved under the guidance of an "intelligent designer". Under the above definition, "intelligent design" is not a scientific theory, nor can it be: It does not allow for testability or for the prediction of outcomes from knowledge of input parameters. It merely says: Things are the way they are because something intelligent (but not understood) made them that way. Believing something to be true it is not the same as having predicted it from other measurements or principles. Intelligent design does not predict anything not all ready known thus it is not testable. Both testing and prediction are essential attributes of a scientific explanation.

Furthermore, intelligent design when accepted absolutely as the explanation of natural phenomena suppresses the human curiosity which is necessary to discovering more predictive explanations of those phenomena. This in turn tends to the stoic acceptance of the status quo and the desire to make things better. Even this tends to be self-correcting: As humans try to support non-scientific explanations of natural phenomena, they uncover evidence that demands a different, fuller, more accurate explanation thus initiating a scientific process.

Further intelligent design, lacking the attribute of proof, is susceptible to political influence and other non-science influences. Science does not thrive under censorship. To prove intelligent design would be to deny one of its tenets: The intelligent designer is everywhere. ??????

Evidence for Origin and Evolution of Universe

There is no single piece of evidence that "proves" the origin and evolution of the universe but it is the weight of the great mass of evidence that supports the current scientific explanations as opposed to other explanations. Both of these origin theories are works-in-progress and subject to refinement or even replacement as new evidence is acquired. However they are correct in the scientific sense; they are the current best, testable explanation of the available date. The cited evidence is only partial, there is much more

Augmented Big Bang Origin of Universe

1) Current existence of isotropic, pervasive, micro wave background radiation with proper frequency and plausible fine structure accounted for by quantum mechanical variation in primal energy field.

2) The successes of the theories for the evolution of stars in predicting their lifetimes and fates.

3) Current distribution of light elements in early stars and heavier elements in old stars as predicted by nuclear theory.

4) Observed general structure and expansion of the universe are consistent with BB origin

5) Success of the Standard Model in dealing with a very wide range of cosmological phenomena in spite of its probable shortcomings.

6) Observational successes of General Relativity – Distortions of space-time continuum, gravitational bending of photon geodesics, black holes, accretion disks, precession of perihelion of Mercury's orbit, gravitational corrections of clocks, conversion of mass to energy

Augmented Origin and Evolution of Species

1) Organization of extinct and extant species into hierarchical clades based on a progression of anatomical features.

2) The clade origin date estimated from DNA mutations is in reasonable agreement with the origin date based on fossils.

3) Continued existence of ancient fossil species in unchanged form.

4) Complete, detailed records of the evolutionary development of some fossil/current species.

5) Discovery of the RNA/DNA molecular mechanism underlying Mendel's Laws of inheritance and Darwin's selective evolution.

6) The wide-spread successes of deliberate selective breeding as a direct analog of natural selection.

7) The sudden increases of new species in newly available environmental regimes.

8) The spontaneous adaptive mutations of laboratory species subject to nutritional stresses.

9) The wide range of dates establishes by various radio-dating methods are consistent with other time estimates based on a variety of phenomena

10) The progression of old, simple fossil form to new, complex forms with the retention of successful old forms.

11) The very wide range of both simple and complex species having similar fundamental features, i.e., cell nuclei, Kreb's energy cycle, spore/seed production, heterosexual reproduction.

12) The existence of isolated species/subspecies well adapted to their specific environments.

13) The generation of moderately complex organic compounds from simple molecules (H2, CO, NH3, CH4) when exposed to electric discharge.

14) The existence in space of a large reservoir of a wide range of simple to moderately complex organic compounds potentially acting as precursors for more complex molecules.