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Dear Rafi,
I do not want to prolong the debate, but just wanted to point out
something that you wrote regarding electrons:
How the above two things happen? The answer is not known yet. Does that
mean quantum mechanics is not science?
I believe you are mixing observations and theories. What you mention are
strange observations by scientists with NO theory to explain it. Newton
proposed theories to explain observations. Einstein then proposed a
theory to explain the discrepancies in observations when judged against
Newton's laws. Quantum mechanics was a "quantum leap" to try to explain
discrepancies at the sub-atomic level.
Similary, the observations of Darwin and scientists since then are
exciting and intriguing, but do not deserve to be called a theory as
they do not postulate a solution. Evolution has two parts: speciation
and changes within a species. While Natural Selection and Artificial
Selection are genetically sound and explained they address the latter.
Until someone comes up with a plausible mathematical model, with enough
scientific proof to show how exactly speciation may have occurred, and
how it may occur in the future, it is not even a theory -- for it does
not explain the how.
Two very simple questions: will Homo Sapiens sub-speciate? If not, why
not? If yes, when and under what circumstances? :) See, no one knows the
answer, because there is no scientific model -- in other words, there is
NO THEORY of speciation.
I hope that you see that mere observations of strange things does not
constitute a theory. Darwin concluded that his conclusions about
speciation were analogies only and guesses -- and no one since has
provided any theory about that. Darwin's theory is about Natural
Selection -- the discovery that Nature acts as a big horse-breeder or
cat-breeder -- and MAYBE species originated that way.
It has recently been discovered that lions and tigers can inter-breed
artificially. Let us get back to humans:
Between 10 and 2 mya (million years ago) an abundance of ape/homo/australopithecus
creatures appear. Scientists talk about the "geographical isolation" of
the Rift Valley and "rain barrier" etc. etc. All proven to be nonsense
recently -- fossils found even in the deepest rainforests all the way to
China. The rainforests of Africa have remained quite the same. Homo
sapiens shows up in Neanderthal form about 200,000 years ago -- that is
25 times recorded history :) and in modern form about 30,000 years ago
-- that is about 4 multiples of recorded history. Small variations of
body size and molars and muscles have existed since, which is natural
selection.
So, the questions are:
1. what caused human speciation without geographical isolation and
climatic changes (homo is too widespread)
2. what caused other homo taxa to die out at the outset of modern man -
Homo has never been cannibalistic.
3. Will Homo sapiens sub-speciate? If yes, under what circumstances? If
not, why not?
Some scientists are proposing that the evolution of Homo sapiens may
have been "cultural" -- that religion and culture and social
organization may have been much stronger causes of the genetic isolation
of Homo sapiens that biological natural selection :) I'll provide you
with references if you do not find. I will leave the repercussions of
this up to a fertile imagination.
As you see, Rafi, the science is not clear-cut and some parts of it do
not reach the "level" of theory. If you disagree, we can postulate what
a theory is, and go from there -- if you have time. If you would like,
we can carry it offline. My goal here is to learn more for continued
refinement of one's ideas and positions.
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